About a week later, Logan was in his room- just sitting there. It was what he did a lot of lately.

He heard the phone ring, then he heard Mr. Garcia answer it. A second later, the man's head poked into the room.

"Someone's calling for you." he said. Confused, Logan got up and took the phone, returning to his bed.

"Hello?" he answered.

"Logan!" came a familiar voice. "It's Kendall."

"How did you-?"

"Sister Rosemary hooked me up." Kendall answered. "And I'm pissed at you for LEAVING without even telling me."

"I'm sorry. I just- I'm not good at goodbyes." Logan said.

"It's whatever." Kendall said. "So who adopted you?"

"They're the Garcia's."

"Do they have kids?"

"Yeah."

"Are they nice?"

"Yeah."

"Are they religious like you?"

"No."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"So you still don't talk much, eh?"

"And you still talk a lot, eh?" Logan said.

"Yeah- guess I do." Kendall laughed. "So are you happy there?"

"I guess."

"Do you get along with them?"

"I get along with Carlos and James."

"Are they your new brothers?"

"Yeah."

"Hey- I gotta go. Katie's beating some kid up. I'll call you again sometime."

"Okay."

Logan hung up the phone and stared at it for a while until the door opened.

"Hey, bro." Carlos said. "Who was on the phone?"

"Kendall from the orphanage."

"Was he your buddy?"

"Yeah."

"Oh." Carlos nodded, looking around the room. "Your walls are so empty... I can give you some posters. I got some of Pam Anderson in her younger years."

Logan shifted uncomfortably.

"Oh- guess that's sinful... Isn't it?"

"It's not that. It's just that.. I'm not into girls."

"I guess some guys just have better stuff to be interested in." Carlos shrugged. "Anyway, I came in here to see if you wanted to go to James's birthday bash tomorrow night at the lake."

"A party?" Logan asked, confused. "You're inviting ME?"

"Yeah- why not?"

"It just seems like I'm a bore to you guys."

"A little. But it's my mission to get you to come outta your shell." Carlos said, playfully shouldering Logan. "I have a hard time believing you've always been this way."

"Is there going to be... Alcohol?"

"No way." Carlos laughed. "My dad's a cop!"

The lake and area around it were filled with drunken teenagers when Logan and Carlos arrived- and James wasn't even there yet. Logan didn't know anybody, but Carlos greeted everyone and knew everyone's names.

"I thought you said there wasn't going to be alcohol." Logan said, cowering away from a naked girl who was trying to hug him.

"There wasn't supposed to be." Carlos said reluctantly. "But I guess we'll have to go to James's tonight- stay away from home. His mom won't be there."

"Maybe we should call your dad-"

"First off, my dad's your dad. You can call him Papi. How many times have we told you that? Second, why would we do that? That would mean I'd be hated by EVERYONE AND I wouldn't be able to get shitfaced. C'mon- let's go find something to drink."

Carlos got two red solo cups filled with alcohol and shoved one in Logan's hand.

"I'm going back to your house." Logan said, trying to give it back.

"You mean home?" Carlos laughed, taking a drink. Logan quickly took the cup from him.

"You can't drink that!" Logan said, black eyes wide. "You're underaged!"

"Yeah- we all are!" Carlos laughed, taking his drink from Logan. "Look, Logie- mah boy. If you drink this, you'll have more fun that you've had in a long time."

"It's a sin."

"Look, you drink wine in church, right? That's not a sin."

"But that's the blood of-"

"If you want chicks to be all over you, you needta loosen up!" Carlos interrupted. "Don't gotta get shitfaced, just take little sips here and there."

"But I don't want girls to-"

"Little sips!" Carlos said, raising the cup to Logan's lips and tilting it- making Logan swallow the alcohol and cough in distaste. "James is here! Let's go!"

Logan kept taking little sips- draining cup after cup. Really he didn't like the alcohol and he knew it was a huge sin to do so, but the sadness lingering over him slowly disappeared as he drank. Plus Carlos, James, and all their friends seemed to really like him when he drank. So he did it. Until he didn't really know what was going on anymore.

"You know- you really SHOULD do something with that hair." James slurred, reaching over to run his fingers through Logan's black locks. "I mean- the down do looks good if you gotta round chin like me. But you gotta angle-y one."

"Should I chop it off?" Logan asked with a giggle.

"No WAY! I'm just sayin'- like, gel it up or somethin'." James said.

"I will." Logan nodded.

"You know, Logie. You're like- really good looking." Carlos slurred. "If you would smile every once in a while, you could turn a straight man gay."

"Yeah, man. You're sexy." James added.

"Pfft." Logan snorted. "Guys- guys. I got somethin' to tell you."

"Okay." Carlos said, taking a drink from his cup.

"I'm gay." Logan said, then laughed. "Hooooomooooooo."

"Dude- me too!" James said, drunken eyes brightening. "We're- we're meant to be."

"James, I've SEEN you fuck girls before." Carlos giggled.

"You don't know, Carlos!" James said defensively.

Carlos laughed and fell back to the grass (they were sitting down).

"So God's little angel is a homo?" Carlos said as if taking note. "That's classic."

"TOP DRAWER!" James hooted.

"James! Nobody knows what that means!" Logan giggled.

Suddenly, the sound of a siren cut through the air. Carlos shut up, staring at the cops pouring out of the cars.

"GET UP! GET UP!" he whispered urgently, pulling Logan up and away. James stumbled behind them.

They tried sneaking away by the blue and red lights illuminating everything, but suddenly Logan's arm was caught and he collapsed.

"I'm caught! Go on without me!" he shrieked- his arm held up above his head.

"Logan?" came a familiar Hispanic voice. Logan looked up to see Mr. Garcia holding him.

"IT WASN'T MY FAULT! I'M SORRY! I'M A BAD KID- YOU CAN TAKE ME BACK TO THE ORPHANAGE IF YOU WANT! OR YOU CAN BEAT THE GAY OUTTA ME LIKE MY DAD TRIED TO DO!" Logan waled as he was hauled to his feet.

"Where's Carlos?" Mr. Garcia demanded. Logan frantically searched the scene, not seeing James or Carlos.

"I don't know! He's lost! Oh, GOD, Papi! He's LOST!" Logan sobbed. "I lost your son! I lost him!"

Mr. Garcia shook his head angrily and wrapped an arm around Logan's waist- supporting him over to the car.

"I'm sorry Papi! I didn't want to drink ANYTHING!" Logan cried, hands pressed against the glass, breath fogging up the window. "I'm so so sorry! It's all my fault! I'm going to HELL!"

Logan watched as teens one by one were picked up off the ground from where they were passed out and put in cop cars. Soon enough, Carlos was tossed in the car beside Logan.

"YOU'RE NOT DEAD!" Logan cried in happiness, throwing his arms around Carlos. "I thought you were DEAD and I was crying!"

Suddenly, Mr. Garcia got in the front seat.

"What were you two thinking?" he asked angrily, starting the car. "You could have died."

"WHERE'S JAMES? OH MY GOD, MY GAY BUDDY IS DEAD!" Logan waled. He turned to Carlos, who was staring, head down, at the floor of the car. "JAMES IS DEAD! HE'S DEEEEAAAADDDD!"

"He's not DEAD, Logan." Carlos snapped. "He was just lucky enough to get away."

"I'm gonna drop you two off at home then go and find James. I can't let him pass out face down in a gutter somewhere." Mr. Garcia said.

"You're so nice, Papi." Logan sighed. "I wish MY dad was as nice as you. You know, if I was caught drunk by my dad, he'd just leave me. He'd hope I'd die- at least then-"

"LOGAN! SHUT UP!" Carlos scowled. Logan pouted and turned to the window, arms crossed.

Soon they were brought by their armpits inside and put in Carlos's room.

"Think James is dead?" Logan asked.

"No." Carlos said. "Dad'll find him."

"Am I going back to the orphanage?" Logan asked. "Is your dad gonna beat me up?"

"No, no. None of that." Carlos said, shaking his head. "We'll just get yelled at. Grounded- which means no James. No desert. No fun. Locked in our rooms after 9 every night. At least that's what happened with Javi when HE got caught."

"I'm sorry I got caught. We could be chilling at James's now and nobody would know about what happened."

"Whatever." Carlos grumbled. "Just go to bed."

"I can sleep in your bed?"

"Yeah... You need it more than me." Carlos sighed.

"You're like... The BEST brother ever." Logan smiled, hugging Carlos. Carlos lightly hugged back, not knowing what else to do. Then Logan pulled back and kissed Carlos right on the mouth.

Carlos immediately pushed Logan away, wiping his mouth.

"Look, I know you're that way. But-"

"Don't say anything rash, Los-y." Logan slurred, plopping down on the bed. "You said it yourself- I could turn a straight man gay."

Carlos settled on the floor, considering what just happened.

It was a brotherly kiss. When he was younger, Carlos's older brothers used to kiss him sometimes. But Logan didn't have siblings- he didn't know that now that they were older, it wasn't acceptable to kiss each other on the mouth. Yeah. That's it. A brotherly kiss. Carlos doubted Logan was even gay- he was WAY too religious for that. There was no way.

Logan, however, was sound asleep by the time Carlos's mind got to these thoughts.

Lots of stuff happened in this one- hope you liked it! :) BTW, I've got plans for Kendall to come into the story again. Soon. In a few chapters. :D

Please review! I love reviews. Who doesn't?