A/N: First of all, 500 REVIEWS OMFGWTFBBQ! That's just insane! Okay? INSAAAAANE! Can't believe I've managed to rope so many of you guys into my lil story but woot! Thanks to all of you who actually take the time to leave me a review, seriously makes my day so much fucking better! There's a bunch of you who review for every chapter and I swear I look for you every single time I post. Hope you keep coming back. Special shout-outs to Nath even though she hasn't reviewed the last two chapters for always believing in me and dealing with my annoying "OH MY GOD I AM SUCH A SHIT WRITER I GIVE UP ON EVERYTHING" moments and I'm sure I'm gonna get slapped one day for it. Also a shout-out to Lindaaaaaaa for her awesome fanart that I lurrrrrrve! And anyone else who's made fanart, just know that it makes me all spazzy and flail and so very very happy.

Anyway, now for the bullshit as to why this took so long. See, this chapter is kinda short, and kinda so is the next one. But I wanted to finish 26 first so I could see its length and if I needed to put 'em together. But putting 'em together would just be one ginormous chapter and just... no. So yeah. Took a while but here it is. And yes, 26 is done, it's just handwritten and needs to be typed. So whenever I actually feel like dealing with my laptop and typing it, I'll do it.

Next item of business, um... I guess ass-covering... blahblah iPhone. Blahblah Twitter. Blahblah Tumblr. Blahblah whateverthefuckelsethaticant remembernorbearsedtogolookup sodealwithit. Gonna end this because my notes are getting rambly again. Have a Palm Woods Day!

This soundcheck was way different than the first one Kendall attended. For starters, his previous experience had taken place with him in the audience, sitting with his little sister as far from the center of the group as possible, determined not to be recognized by any other fans. Now he was at the side of the stage, away from the small crowd's eyes, Logan on his right as they both watched James sing his latest single along with his two guitarists. But it was more than just his location that was different, it was how he actually felt. He wasn't freaking out, wasn't panicked, wasn't anxious. Sure, he still had unanswered questions in the back of his mind-although they were different from the inquiries he had during the first soundcheck-but this time, he was able to relax and take it easy, knowing that he'd have time to get the answers later that night.

Needless to say he was able to enjoy the experience a whole lot more the second time around, able to actually hear the songs-totally not bobbing his head or lip-synching and there was definitely not any air guitar going on-able to listen to the Q&A session. Overall it was just way fucking better.

So, of course, something had to fuck it all up.

"Are you and that Kendall guy together? 'Cause my friend text me and said he was at the radio station with you earlier today."

He had no idea who asked the question, nor did he wanna know. All that mattered was that it had been voiced, was out there hanging in the air like a dark cloud, a storm brewing indoors. And all he could do was stand there and wait for the downpour to start.

Logan had gone completely rigid beside him, but the blond didn't pay attention to him, his eyes glued to the taller brunet, the one who'd been asked, the one who was sitting on the stage like a deer in a hunter's cross-hairs, the one who was finger-combing his bangs and clearing his throat before bringing the mike up to his mouth.

"He's a friend," James told the necessary lie, smoothly, effortlessly, so well that even Kendall believed it.

"So, you aren't gay?"

Logan started muttering under his breath, a few blasphemies and a "butt out", the words barely noticed by the blond male.

The singer smiled his signature smile, let out a small laugh, seeming amused at the inquiry. "Nah, not gay." He pointed to another fan, asked if they had a question, essentially ending that topic of conversation, leaving it at what he'd said.

Kendall blew out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding, released his death grip on his own left arm as it hung by his side, tried to force himself to relax and his brain to shut the fuck up. Technically James hadn't lied. Sure, he said he wasn't gay and while activities in the hotel suite and dressing room contradicted that, there was always a possibility that he was bi. So really he was half-gay. Or not picky, whatever he preferred to label himself as.

But still, that negative part of Kendall's brain kept nagging at him, filling his head with all sorts of bullshit. He might not have been the first fan to share a bed with the pop star. The singer still hasn't said anything about what was going on between the two of them. This could've just been a fling, something fun for James to do, a way to rebel against the fact that he was always told what to do and how to act. Kendall could've just been a way for the singer to have some sorta freedom, to do something he wasn't supposed to and to act naughty. What better way to go against your squeaky clean, good-boy-next-door image than to hook up with a metal-head underage dude?

Or maybe Kendall was just an experiment, a test, a safe way for James to see if he really was gay or bi or what-the-fuck-ever. The pop star couldn't be out there trolling the gay bars or clubs, couldn't be testing himself with any of the homosexual guys he'd regularly come in contact with, since all of that would be out in the open, the public knowing everything. So having a weekend with a fan who didn't seem all that likely to admit to having anything to do with James Diamond, International Pop Phenom, would be safe, would help him sort out his shit and not run the risk of being outted. He could figure out his feelings and his desires, or maybe even just give himself one weekend to indulge and get it out of his system for good before he settled down with a Victoria's Secret model like all famous singers should.

Leaving Kendall alone and in the cold that had nothing to do with the upcoming Minnesota winter, another crack in his already fractured heart.

Fucking awesome.

The blond smeared a hand over his face, shoving all those thoughts away, forcing himself to focus on James's next song. Only he couldn't. It was just like the first soundcheck when his head was elsewhere and all he could do was set himself up for disappointment. He really fucking hated his brain sometimes, really wished he could have some happy thoughts for once instead of always believing that everything would turn out horribly wrong.

'Well experience says-'

'Oh fuck off already.'

A sigh escaped him as he folded his arms over his chest, eyes glued to James but his ears not listening. He wished things could be easy, that his life could be like some cheesy fucking fanfic where the pop star would sweep him off his feet and whisk him away with romantic confessions of never ending love and devotion, the two of them living out a perfect happily ever after together forever.

Too bad this was real life and not some made up story concocted by a loser writer with no life and nothing better to do than sit around on their ass all day with their laptop, dreaming up that sorta fantasy bullshit that'd never happen in a million fucking years.

But still, a guy could dream.

'Dream all you want, pal. That shit still ain't happening.'

'Right because the fanfic me wouldn't have such an asshole for a brain.'

'You get what you deserve. Although that being said, you somehow managed to get a couple awesome friends who clearly should have a better pal than you, dickshit.'

He couldn't argue with that. Fuck knew Carlos and Camille had been there, supporting him, cheering for this relationship-type thing to happen between him and James. Yet he hadn't exactly returned the favor to either of them.

Slipping his phone out his pocket, he checked the time, figuring Camille would be outta school at that point. The meet-n-greet was up next, something Kendall figured would be better if he skipped. Maybe he could call her then in the privacy of the dressing room, get her clear-headed take on things and an honest answer on what she thought was going on. If anyone could get through his thick ass skull and shut those negative ideas up, it would be her.

He shoved his phone back down into his pocket, feeling like he was being watched. Turning his head to the right, he saw he was correct, Logan's brown eyes looking up at him, brow furrowed, lips twisted. Kendall cocked an eyebrow, mouthing a "what?", only getting a head shake in return. Jesus fucking Christ was that annoying. It was like the assistant and the pop star had this big inside joke and they weren't letting the teen know the punchline. Fucking rude, not to mention aggravating as shit.

The Q&A session ended soon after, no further questions about James' romantic status, sexuality, or relationship to "That Kendall Dude". The singer rose from his stool, gave the crowd his usual "see you guys soon" accompanied by a smile and a wave, before walking over to where Kendall and Logan stood waiting. The blond shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans, trying to keep them from grabbing hold of the brunet, knowing that any little thing would be blown way outta proportion and become a giant deal in the eyes of the fandom. They already freaked the fuck out over James bringing a guy onstage; then there was the freak out over that same guy showing back up at a different show months later. Now it was that same guy appearing in a totally different town two time zones away. Fuck only knew what would happen if that same guy was spotted hugging the singer or holding his hand.

So clearly, keeping his hands to himself was the best-and only-option. And since Kendall kinda had issues doing that when it came to James, he needed to keep them trapped in a denim prison.

'Course that didn't stop the rest of his body from going haywire from just the pop star's close proximity, stomach flipping and clenching, heart pounding, skin tingling. The smirk James gave didn't help shit, neither did the stretch the singer did that caused his shirt to rise up, revealing an inch or two of tan skin, taut muscle, and a happy trail the teen wanted to lick on his way down before taking the singer's cock and-

Whoa! Okay, add 'dick twitching' to the list of Shit His Body Was Doing Because James Was Less Than a Foot Away.

The brunet dropped his arms from behind his head, adjusted his shirt around his waist, licked his lips. Which caused the blond to tilt his head down, eyes turned to the ground before he started thinking about what else the elder male could put his tongue on.

Too late.

"So, I guess we gotta head to the meet-n-greet," the singer stated, the sound of skin being scratched hitting the teen's ears.

"Actually, uh," Kendall started, his voice slightly rough. He cleared his throat as he lifted his head, rubbing the back of his neck, taking in the curious look on the slightly taller male's face. "I thought I'd just hang in the dressing room, lay low. Probably better if I stayed outta sight."

James pursed his lips as he took in the younger's words, nodding slowly, folding his arms over his broad chest and making his already large biceps bulge out even more. The blond tore his eyes away, made himself think of something other than how it felt to have those muscular arms wrapped around him and hold him close, made himself pay attention to Logan instead. The assistant's lips were somewhat turned down in a thoughtful pout, eyebrows raised, almost seeming impressed by what the teen had said.

"That might be a good idea," the short male commented, scratching his neck under the collar of his blue button-down. "The fans already think there's something going on between the two of you, especially after Kendall showed up at the station. If he were at the meet-n-greet, too, it would add more to the rumors and seem like you were an actual couple."

The blond tilted his head down once again, left hand rubbing the back of his neck as the smaller male's words repeated in his head. "seem like a couple", meaning they actually weren't one. Which was slightly confusing, considering the fact that only a few hours ago, Logan had referred to Kendall as "the guy James was dating". And, okay, "couple" and "dating" were two different things, two thing he wasn't sure actually applied to him and the pop star. But whatever the case, the assistant was now implying that the other brunet and the blond weren't an item, something the teen knew was the truth, but still hurt to actually hear out loud.

"You gonna be okay?"

It took Kendall a few seconds to realize James' question had been aimed at him, lifting his head with a "hmm?", another few seconds taken to then realize the singer meant okay with being by himself for a period of time while the meet-n-greet went on, and not anything to do with what the younger male had been thinking about. But before he could reassure the pop star he'd be fine, Logan spoke up.

"I can skip a day of helping out," he volunteered, turning towards the blond. "Hang out with you, keep you company."

The teen had to put forth a conscious effort to not yell out a "fuck no!", to not overreact or seem panicked or some shit like that. So far, hanging out with Logan had meant lectures, instructions to behave and to cool shit with James down. He really didn't wanna deal with that shit again, didn't wanna deal with it in the first place really. Plus he couldn't talk to Camille about shit with someone else in the room.

"Nah, it's cool," the blond stated, both hands shoved in his jeans pockets, shoulders relaxed. "I got a phone call to make anyway."

The other two males both nodded, probably assuming he needed to call his mom to check in, not his best female friend to get advice. Probably better that way. Talking to someone about his situation with James would probably seem suspicious as fuck, like he was bragging, sharing everything with the world, only in it so he could tell people he hooked up with a celeb.

Freight Train walked over, informing them that James needed to go, that he was starting to run late. Kendall said his goodbyes, watching them walk away, the brunet all business, his professional pop star face on, fingers combing his bangs, smoothing his tee. The blond waited until they were outta sight before heading in the opposite direction, following the signs to the dressing room.

He entered the empty room, shutting the door behind himself, then took his iPhone out his pocket, seeing countless alerts. Camille had tried to contact him using every possible method: tweet, DM, Tumblr message, Tumblr post he was tagged in, text, and one loud ass voicemail, all of them conveying the same statement: "CALL ME!"

Kendall wondered what was so fucking important, so fucking huge that it needed that amount of urgency, coming up with the answer soon after: the radio interview. Chances were pretty high that a fan had recorded it and it was all over Tumblr, meaning she'd heard James say he wasn't dating anyone. And knowing her, with the information she had, the truth she knew, it was likely she was concerned for Kendall and how he was feeling about what had been said.

But the more likely possibility for her to immediately speak to him was because she knew he was with James. The whole fucking fandom probably was aware, judging by that question during soundcheck.

Shit.

After making sure all the alerts were cleared away, Kendall dialed up Camille, getting an answer after only one ring.

"The entire fandom is freaking out!"

He cocked an eyebrow as he sat down on the couch, slumping, legs spread wide, free left arm laying over his torso. "Hello to you, too, Cam."

"Huh? Oh, right, hi, whatever." The greeting was rushed, her impatience still in control, still evident, especially since she immediately shifted back to the original topic. "The fandom's losing its collective shit."

A sigh left him as he leaned his head back against the couch, face turned up towards the ceiling. "Yeah, kinda figured they would be," he stated, fingers playing with his tee at his side. "They know I was at the station, huh?"

"Yup. There's a couple pics floating around of you guys entering and leaving," she stated, Kendall muttering out a "fuck" before she continued. "And everyone's pissed at James, saying he lied during that interview and that something is clearly going on between you guys if you're suddenly with him in a different state."

The blond rubbed his forehead, kinda hating this situation. He knew the singer couldn't just tell people he'd been talking to a guy for a li'l while and had flown him out so they could finally fuck-at least that's how it felt at the moment-not without outting himself or seeming like a sleaze. But he wished the fans wouldn't be such assholes or be pissed about it. Technically, James hadn't lied about anything, wasn't really holding anything back. Too bad the public didn't-and couldn't-know that.

"And speaking of being pissed," Camille went on, getting Kendall's attention back. "Why didn't you tell me you were in my hometown?"

'Because I had no idea where the fuck you live,' he thought, dropping his arm back across his waist. And it was the truth. He knew she lived in SoCal, just had no clue what city.

But he couldn't say that out loud, instead giving a different, but still honest, answer. "I didn't even know where I was going 'til I got on the plane."

"Wait, so you just randomly hopped on a flight with no clue where you were going?"

"More or less."

"Why?"

'Damn good question,' his mind commented, his fingers playing with his wallet chains now. "Because James asked me, too," he stated lowly, staring down at his lap as he gave the only explanation he could think of, the only one that made sense. "He said he missed me and needed me there. I said I missed him, too, and then he asked if I'd fly out to where he was. Didn't even hesitate before saying 'yes'."

There was a long pause, nothing coming down the phone line for a moment or two, before Camille finally said a quiet "wow".

Kendall wasn't entirely sure what to say in response. Now that he'd told what happened, had spoken it out loud, he realized how crazy it seemed. Well, probably crazy to anyone on the outside, but his and James' mantra kept repeating in his head: "Be crazy together". They sure as shit were living up to it at that moment.

The blond cleared his throat, shifting his seat, pulling at his jeans on his thighs, waiting for Camille to say something other than "wow". He needed to hear that he wasn't nuts, that what he'd done wasn't totally absurd and insane and stupid, that anyone else would've done the same if they were in his shoes. He also needed to hear about a million other fucking things, from both her and James, but he'd settle for that for the time being.

It felt like forever, but was probably only a few seconds, but Camille started talking again. "Guess you guys are really serious then, huh?"

"That's the thing," Kendall started, staring down at his thumb as it rubbed a link on his wallet chain. "I honestly have no fucking clue what's going on between us."

"You haven't talked about it?"

"No," he spat out, dropping his chain onto his thigh harshly before wrapping his arm around his torso. "Every time I try to ask we get interrupted or we, uh-" He shifted in his seat again, cleared his throat, rubbed the back of his neck, totally uncomfortable that he was once again discussing his sex life. "We'd get distracted. With. Other stuff."

"You guys have fucked already?!"

Jesus fucking Christ, she was blunt as hell. He smeared a hand over his face, eyes closed, so not wanting to deal with that aspect of their conversation. "No, we haven't fucked."

"Yet."

The corner of his lips twisted up, hand dropping to his stomach. "Yet."

She giggled down the phone line before getting serious once more. "So. You have no idea what's going on between you guys other than a desire to fuck each other."

A sad sigh escaped past his lips, green eyes turned down. "Yeah, pretty much. Which was why I was gonna call you when I got a chance."

"Because you're confused as to what's going on between you guys." Statement, not a question. "One minute he's saying he misses and needs you, next he's telling the world there's no one special in his life."

"Moment after that he's holding me in his bed and saying I belong in his arms."

That. Fucking. Squeal.

"That is so cute!"

His jaw clenched, eyes narrowed. "No. Not cute."

"Totally cute."

"No. Stop. Now."

She just giggled again, adding to his annoyance at that fucking word, then she grew serious once more. "All right, I'll stop. But seriously, that's really sweet and I can totally see why you're confused. That's a whole lotta mixed signals."

Kendall nodded, forgetting she couldn't see, hand resting on top of his beanie-covered head. Thank fuck someone else thought this shit was confusing, that it wasn't just him being retarded or anything. And she didn't even know everything, hadn't even been told the whole story yet. He needed about three years to explain all that shit. But since he didn't have that kinda time-

"Shit, I gotta go."

Kendall sat up straight, letting out a panicked "What?! No!" as his free hand dropped to his lap. "I need to talk to you."

"I know, I know," Camille replied, sounding torn, guilty, like she wanted to stay and talk but couldn't. "I swear I wanna help but I hafta get back to school for my play."

The blond sighed again, head hanging, nodding. He was being left again. "Yeah. I getcha. It's cool."

"Yeah," her voice was small, seeming to feel bad. "James is off tomorrow, right?"

He cocked an eyebrow as he lifted his head, confused about the change of subject and what the fuck that had to do with anything. "Yeah. Why?"

"You guys traveling?"

"I think in the afternoon or something. Why?"

"One: there's no way you and I can be in the same town and not meet up. And two: so we can talk about everything and maybe sort this shit out."

Both eyebrows raised as he considered it, wondering if he would even have the chance to do just that or if his day was scheduled out. "I dunno if I can. I'll hafta check what's happening tomorrow."

"All right. Just text me when you find out, 'kay?"

"Sure, no problem."

The two exchanged goodbyes, the call ending, Kendall staring down at his iPhone. He debated for a long moment before opening his Tumblr app, scrolling through his dash and reading various posts about James and "That Kendall Guy", seeing pics of himself outside the radio station. It was just like Camille had said, some fans pissed that James was lying and pretending he was single, others defending the singer and reminding people he was straight and chances were nothing was happening. But there were still a few fans who were stating they wanted something to be going on between the two males, how they hoped they were a couple, how they shipped Kames. Fans like Camille.

But all he could focus on was the confusion the fandom was feeling and expressing, no one sure what was going on between James and "That Kendall Guy". Seemed like everyone was lost when it came to the relationship between the two males, so he wasn't alone in that.

Lifting his head, he looked around the empty room, hearing the distant sounds of people walking up and down the hall, conversations happening, laughter hitting his ears. Then again, maybe he was as alone as he thought he was.