Oh my gosh! I'm finally updating one of my stories! It's 12:45 AM, but I just finished this chapter and I wanted to get it up as quickly as possible.

Disclaimer: I most certainly do not own Big Time Rush. And yes, that's extremely painful to admit.

Guest: Thank you so much! I'm so glad you're enjoying it :) Let's hope so...;) Thank you for reviewing, I really appreciate it!

Special thanks to UnpublishedWRITTER for mentioning Sparks the Rescue's song "She's a Bitch and I'm a Fool". It makes an appearance in this chapter, and you guys can thank her for that.

And as always, THANK YOU to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, followed, or read this story! I love you all so much, and you guys do keep me going, even if I sometimes take forever to update.

I'm going to say right now that I'm so, so sorry that it's taken me so long to update any of my stories. I got hit really hard with school, and I'm still kind of bogged down, but hopefully it won't take me quite as long to update next time. Thank you to everyone for being so patient with me! I can't tell you how much I appreciate it, and I hope I didn't lose any readers because of the long-ish wait.

On with the story! Enjoy the chapter, everyone :)

Chapter Eighteen: Ice Rinks and Ice Queens

James' POV

The weekend went by both quickly and slowly, depending on the moment. There were times when I was relaxed, having fun, hanging with the guys, and then there were others when I found myself dreading leaving Holly hotel and returning home for the holidays and for school.

From what Kyle had said, the ice skaters would be after me with their torches and pitchforks. And I didn't want to have to deal with a witch hunt. And I really didn't like having people with torches and pitchforks after me. For one thing, torches meant burning stuff, and pitchforks were just poky and sharp.

Not exactly fun things to deal with.

I barely saw Katie at all on Saturday and Sunday, and when I did, she glared heavily at me, as if warning me against trying to join her little ice skaters are better than everyone else on earth club. Because, you know, that was exactly what I wanted to do when I knew she and her ice skating cronies were going to try to run me out of school with pitchforks and torches.

On Sunday evening, we repacked everything, and Monday morning found us loading everything into the Knights' van and Logan's car.

"Kendall," Katie said bossily to him as she, Stephanie, Jo, and a reluctant looking Camille sauntered over to him, "we're going to take the van, and you and the rest of the hockey heads can ride with Logan."

Kendall's jaw dropped. "You're not taking the van! Have you ever even driven it?"

"Yes, when I was in driver's ed. So, hand over the keys, Kendork."

"No!" he snarled. "Mom trusted me with the van, not you."

"I'm sure she won't mind if I take it," Katie replied, placing her hands on her hips and setting her jaw. "Now. Give me the fucking keys, or I'll tell Mom that the only reason you came here with us was to hook up with my friends. And you know how she feels about her little boy hooking up with anyone. And didn't you once promise her that you'd remain a virgin until marriage?"

"I was ten! She had just seen something on TV about teen pregnancies and made me swear I wouldn't have sex until marriage. She was crying, Katie, crying!"

Katie shrugged. "Still, trying to go back on your word. I don't think she'll take kindly to that, do you? And then there's the whole trying to take advantage of my friends."

"What?" Kendall asked blankly.

Katie smirked. "You know ice skaters don't put out. Yet you're still trying to sleep with Jo."

"I am not!"

"Some might consider that sexual harassment. Do you want Jo to sue you for sexual harassment, Kendall?"

I pushed forward. "Why the hell are you doing this? Kendall's not harassing Jo at all. Why are you being such a bitch?!"

"I am a bitch, James. Learn to live with it. Because the bitch is back, and I have the power to make your life a living hell."

"Is that supposed to scare me? I went to a school where Shane and I were bullied every single fucking day. So you threatening me doesn't terrify me. It just makes me want to laugh."

"Go to hell."

"Save me a seat?"

"If you don't get there first."

"I'm pretty sure they have a Hell Express, which you'll definitely get in."

"Uggh. You're such a loser," she groaned. "I can't believe I ever kissed you."

"And fooled around with me. Don't forget that."

"Last time I ever lower myself to fooling around with a hockey head ever again. Anyway, the keys." She snapped her fingers at Kendall, who finally handed them over.

"Thank you!" Katie chirped. We spent the next five minutes switching luggage around, putting our suitcases into Logan's car while the girls shoved their stuff into the back of the van. Kyle paused before joining them, while throwing Shane an apologetic look. Shane just nodded in reply, slipping his hands into his jeans pockets.

At last, we were ready to go. We all piled into our respective vehicles and buckled up. Logan was driving, and Kendall sat up front with him, but Carlos, Shane, and I were crowded tightly into the back, grinding our teeth.

Logan pulled out of the parking lot, followed by Katie, who's tiny frame looked overwhelmed by the van's high seat and steering wheel, and off we went. One by one, Carlos, Shane, and I pulled out our iPods and plugged in.

I sighed as Sparks the Rescue's song She's a Bitch and I'm a Fool came on when I hit shuffle. Great. Even the universe was mocking me right now.

"I remember way back when we used to hold each other's hands

It was you and me, time drifted off to sea

I had you

Friday nights with shots of whiskey in the street

This town don't feel alive when you go sailing far from me

Why can't you see when it meant everything to me, no

Why can't I sleep?

She's a bitch and I'm a fool, I'm a fool she loves me not

And I tried to play it cool but my cool is running hot, oh yeah

Felt like a movie when you walked out slowly

Stuck on repeat during the last scene

I haven't been sleeping well

And I can only blame myself

When I fight with your photographs

And they seem to fight right back, yeah

It's always haunting me

A thousand words I'm supposed to see

A Polaroid of a memory

When you were always telling me

Why can't you see when it meant everything to me, no

Why can't I sleep?

She's a bitch and I'm a fool, I'm a fool she loves me not

And I tried to play it cool but my cool is running hot, oh yeah

Felt like a movie when you walked out slowly

Stuck on repeat during the last scene (during the last scene)

She's a bitch and I'm a fool, I'm a fool she loves me not

And I tried to play it cool but my cool is running hot, oh yeah

Felt like a movie when you walked out slowly

Stuck on repeat during the last scene."

I groaned. I was such a fool. I couldn't believe I had let myself get even a little bit involved with Katie Knight. I had known from day one that she was a bitch, and I had still fallen for her. But she had been nice. After the Halloween dance, her attitude towards me – towards all of us – had turned completely around. But now…now everything was just exploding left and right. She was a complete bitch again, and I was left looking stupid. Or maybe it was her…After all, she's the one who broke up with me when we weren't even dating, and just a few hours later I began seeing someone else. Maybe she thought she looked stupid, and that was why she was doing all this. She had been one upped by a hockey head, and she couldn't handle that, so she had to punish all of us for something that was her fault to begin with.

Bitch.

But as much as I hated to admit it, even with her supreme bitchiness, there was a huge part of me that still wanted her. Maybe not how she was at the moment, but how she had been. How I was hoping she would be in the future. I wanted her and badly. Lauren was amazing, but there just wasn't that intensity or power or chemistry with her, like there had been with Katie. And the honest truth was, fighting with Katie was elating, orgasmic almost. It was passionate and raw and hot, and just…just…us.

It was what we were, and no matter how many times we yelled at each other, screamed that we hated each other, insisted that we were fucking stupid for making out with each other, the fact of the matter was, there was still that attraction that had been taken to the extreme. I couldn't decide if I wanted to duct tape Katie's mouth shut or fuck her into the wall.

And the fact that I really wasn't rooting for the duct tape didn't seem like a very good ending to this whole mess.

Yeah, let's face it. Katie and I were just getting started.

Katie's POV

"James is right," Camille said as she rested her head against the front passenger window, watching as houses passed by. "You are kind of a bitch."

"I'm aware," I said coolly, clenching the steering wheel a little tighter than usual. "But in this world, it's either fight for your life or go home and die."

"In other words, life's a bitch and then you die," Jo spoke up in agreement from where she sat behind me.

"So, were you two scheming on how best to get the van?" Kyle demanded of Jo and me. "Or just how to get revenge on James, and on Kendall for being his friend?"

"Both," Jo replied. "I told Katie going after a hockey head would be stupid, and now look. She's left looking like a total idiot."

"Well, maybe she wouldn't if she had actually told James why she was ending their – their – whatever the hell it was. But did she? Hell no. And then you guys are all bitching about how James moved on immediately. Well, Katie wasn't exactly innocent either. It takes two to tango, people. And ice skaters aren't excluded from that."

"Well, we should be," I snapped back. "And you're an ice skater, so you should be siding with us."

"But I'm friends with the hockey players," Kyle shot back. "James and Shane have been nothing but nice to me since day one, and we all know you've been a complete and total bitch to them."

Now, if there's one thing I hate, it's being told how to behave by someone who isn't my dad. And if it's my best friend? Yeah, the claws were about to come out.

"Oh, give it a rest," I snarled. "We both know the real reason why you're defending them. You don't give a damn if James has been nice to you, but as long as Shane keeps blowing you, you'll always side with them."

There was a long pause, during which everyone took the time to process what I had just said. The color slowly drained from Kyle's face, and I felt my eyes widen. Oh my God…Had I really just said what I thought I'd said? Had I really just done that?

"Wait a second," Stephanie broke in, addressing Kyle. "You and Shane are gay?"

"Why don't you just ask Katie?" he suggested coldly. "Since she's so eager to blab about everything."

"Kyle – " I began, but he held up his hand.

"Save your breath. I don't want to hear it. God, you really are a total bitch. I don't know why I stayed friends with you for this long."

Hot tears pooled in my eyes and a lump began to grow in my throat. "Kyle – please – I'm so sorry – "

"I don't want to hear it," he interrupted, pulling out his iPod. "I don't want to hear any of your apologies or your excuses. It's done, Katie, as is our friendship."

"I didn't think – "

"No, you didn't. And you never do. You get so intent on getting your way that you completely forget that the ends don't always justify the means. And you're never going to learn it. You've used James, you've used Shane, and you've used me in the past. We both know James is too nice a guy for you. We both know you were lucky to ever get his attention. And we both know that you royally fucked it up. And I'm not siding with James and Shane because I'm with Shane. I'm siding with them because they're truly the better people. I'm sick and tired of watching you guys constantly walk all over people and push them out of your way! You judge, and you bitch, and you treat people like shit, and I've had enough. So I'm done. Ice skating isn't worth putting up with your guys' bullshit anymore. Tell the entire school I'm gay. Tell them who I used to like! Tell them I'm a fucking fairy if that's what you want, see if I fucking well care. Just go to hell, all of you." And with that, he stuffed his earbuds into his ears, and refused to speak to us at all for the rest of the ride.

I blinked back tears, doing my best to focus on the road, but my eyes continually blurred. I turned on the radio to try to keep my mind off of what had just happened, but all I could get was a twangy, angsty country station.

Great. Even the radio was conspiring against me.

We stopped by a Burger King for lunch, but Kyle refused to sit with us. Instead, he bought his food and took it out to the van, where he spent our entire rest stop.

"So," Stephanie said as she took a bite of her cheeseburger, "Kyle and Shane are, like, together, together?"

I nodded wordlessly as I poked at the salad I was trying to get down. The cheeseburger smelled sooo good, but I had been pigging out on chips and popcorn and ice cream and hot chocolate for the past five days, and I was sure I must've gained a few pounds. And Sarah would more than likely make me weigh myself in front of her on the very first day back at practice. I couldn't let her know that I had gained weight, and I couldn't let my friends know either.

I eyed all three of them, almost enviously. Well, maybe a little more than almost. They were all beautiful and skinny and taller than 5'1 and they carried themselves effortlessly. Plus, as far as I knew, they didn't have a maniacal skating coach telling them how to eat or drink.

"Wow…Neither of them really ever struck me as the gay type."

"So?" I snapped. "Stereotypes are usually complete bullshit. The point is that they really like each other, and that should be enough. And please don't tell anyone…"

"But Kyle said – "

"Well, don't say anything about Shane. James told me he was bullied at their old high school, and he's not ready to be out in the open about it yet."

"Okay," Camille shrugged. "That's not a problem. Besides, who cares if they like boys or girls? They're both nice and really good guys. And hey, if they're happy, then go them!"

"Exactly," I agreed, taking a bite of my salad. "But I guess the Diamond boys' dad is kind of a homophobe or something…I don't know, the way James explained it was weird."

"You know, you're really stupid," Camille informed me. "You're totally into James, yet you basically told him to go curl up somewhere and die. I mean, it's James this, and James that, and James told me, and come on, give me a fucking break. You want him every bit as much as he wants you."

"He doesn't want me anymore," I corrected her sullenly. "I fucked it up. Okay? I know I fucked it up. He's with Lauren Winters. Slutty blonde bitch."

"Um, hello, blonde bitch, right here," Jo waved her hand in the air.

"You know what I mean."

"What I don't get is how he went from you to Lauren," Stephanie said thoughtfully. "I mean, the girl's pretty and all, but the fact is, you're a tiny little brunette, and you're, like, a 32 B or something – "

"Depends on the bra," I cut in.

"Whatever. So, you're like a 32 B, and the girl's, like, 5'5 or something, and is like a freaking 36 C or a D or whatever, and is just curvy and all, and…Yeah, I'm not seeing the correlation. I mean, does he not have a type? Does he just make out with anything that moves?"

"Well, if that was the case, then he would have tried to make out with all of us a long time ago," Jo pointed out. "I mean, I wouldn't mind too much, the guy's effing hot."

"Hey!" I cried.

"What? You're not with him, so…"

"But my brother's totally into you."

Jo rolled her eyes and bit into her chicken wrap. "Okay, can we please not talk about Kendall? This is about you and James and Kyle and Shane, and Kendall doesn't fit anywhere in that picture."

I shrugged. "So, say whatever it is you have to say and be done with it."

"My point was," Stephanie said, "is that it seems like James chose the exact opposite of you to hook up with."

"You think he's hooking up with her?" I croaked out, my mouth going completely dry.

"Well, maybe not," she retracted. "But they're together, so…"

"Right." I sighed and pushed my salad away. "Why did he have to move on so fast?"

"Because he's a guy and he was hurt and his ego was probably pretty much nonexistent at that point," Camille told me. "Because she was there and willing to listen to him and liked him and that was what he needed after you rejected him."

"Okay, you didn't have to add the last part!" I cried.

"Are you going to go after him at school?" Stephanie asked. "I'm just wondering if I need to bring extra dodge balls." She cracked a grin at me, but I just sighed.

"Depends on how he acts and, well, how I'm feeling, I guess."

"Okay," she shrugged. "Want me to spread rumors about Lauren?"

"That's so tempting…"

She grinned. "I'll do it, you know."

"I know you will. Nah, not right away. We'll see how close they really are…"

"Sounds like a plan." She sucked up the rest of her milkshake and threw her trash away. I followed suit, before heading into the bathroom. I locked myself in a stall and did my business, before coming back out to wash my hands. As I turned the tap on, I looked up into the mirror. My hair hung straight down around my face, and there were deep bags under my eyes. My skin looked pale, and there was a red splotch growing on my chin. Great. Just fucking great. What a time to have a breakout.

I bet Lauren never had breakouts. I bet she got ten hours of sleep at night. I bet her hair was always shiny and bouncy and full of life, just like in those fucking Pantene commercials.

I rubbed soap onto my palms, grinding my teeth together as a mental image of Lauren straddling James flashed through my head. I could see it like I was in a movie theater, and it was rolling across the screen like an Imax movie. Her hair flew everywhere as she lifted her shirt up. Her chest pretty much spilled out of the bra, and James grinned, sliding his hands around her perfectly proportioned hips. "You're so much hotter than Katie," he murmured, running his hand up and down her back. "I'd take you over her any day."

I let out a shaky gasp as the bathroom door swung open and the girls trailed in. They all chatted away as they closed themselves into stalls, but I didn't even begin to try to follow their ongoing conversation.

Lauren was everything I wasn't. And apparently, she was everything that James wanted.

And it was too late to change that.

Didn't mean I couldn't remind them who the queen ice bitch was of the school.

I was going to make sure to give them hell when school started again.

Eventually, we got back to La Castillo. It was beyond a relief to see the Welcome to La Castillo sign at the town's boundary. I drove past the Wal-Mart, the Target, the K-Mart, several Mexican restaurants, a couple of Chinese places, every single fast food restaurant you could dream of, the La Castillo mall, the drive-in theater, the high school, and finally, the old ice skating rink.

Nothing new. Nothing special. Nothing important.

But still warm and familiar and perfect and just so homey.

I dropped Kyle off first. I found myself watching him sadly as he dragged his suitcases into his house, not even looking back at the van. I wondered how long it would be before he forgave me…If he ever would…

Just as I was pulling away from the curb, Jo announced, "I just got a text from my mom. She said to drop Steph and Cami off at my house, because their moms and yours are all there."

I furrowed my brow, but drove to Jo's house nonetheless. Sure enough, I spotted my mother's car in the Taylors' driveway. Mrs. King and Mrs. Roberts' cars were also parked in the driveway, taking up the rest of the space, so I pulled over to the curb and parked, before unlocking the doors. We all clambered out of the van and headed up to the front door. Jo opened the door and we all trampled in.

Our mothers were all sitting around the living room, holding mugs of coffee and tea. On the coffee table was a platter of various cookies and fudge, and beside that was another platter of vegetable sticks, with a small dipping bowl of ranch dressing balanced in the very center.

Our moms turned around to look at us, before getting to their feet and hugging us. I hugged my mom back, leaning into her. At least she would still love me no matter what a bitch I was.

"What's going on here?" Jo asked her mom as she pulled back.

"We're having a meeting about what to do with the ice rink," she explained.

"What're you talking about?"

"Well, they're talking about reopening the town ice skating rink, but if that happens, then the high school's going to insist that you girls train there instead."

"But that's really inconvenient," Mom spoke up. "You'll have to drive back and forth between the high school and the ice rink, and that's close to a ten minute drive, and that's when traffic's good. Plus add in parking time and walking time, and you've got fifteen minutes. And when it comes to training, every second counts. Not to mention the fact that the town ice rink will charge more than the high school does. And you'll have to fight for practice time, since not only will you more than likely have a children's and preteen hockey team to war with, but also people who are just skating for the heck of it. You'll have to deal with birthday parties and day outings and beginner skaters who are taking lessons. The high school is a much better choice, since you're already there seven hours a day, but the principle has already told us that if the ice rink is remodeled and reopened, then the school board will insist that you use the town's ice rink instead, since ice skating isn't a school sport, and it sometimes clashes with hockey practice, which actually is a school sport."

"And we considered trying an ice rink in another town," Mrs. Roberts put in. "But the fact is, that's an even longer drive. And you girls are all going to high school fulltime. You've all got lives besides high school and ice skating as well, and that's just the way we want to keep it. You're all sixteen and seventeen, and you shouldn't have to be so focused on something."

"So we're going to fight to keep you girls at the high school," Mrs. King announced with a very Stephanie-like grin. "They're not going to boot you to the curb without having to fight World War III. Besides," she added, "with the amount of money we pay to rent out the ice rink for you girls, they should really rethink making you girls go somewhere else. After all, the second you girls leave, they're going to lose quite a bit of money that could go to whatever the hell it is that they do with it."

"Exactly," Mrs. Taylor agreed. "If they think they're going to win this, then they're sadly mistaken."

"Why isn't Mrs. Stetson or Mrs. Lancaster here?" Camille asked curiously. "They're ice skating moms as well."

"Brenda Lancaster was going to come, but she backed out at the last minute. Something about Kyle not being sure about wanting to continue skating."

I did my best to hide the guilty look that I was sure was crossing my face.

"And Ana Stetson had a spa appointment or something," Mrs. Taylor finished up with a roll of her eyes. "Of course, anything to get out of associating with us. Snob."

The other mothers nodded in agreement, just as the front door opened. We all turned around, and my heart immediately sped up a few beats as the guys trooped in, one by one. James, as usual, looked amazing, but even more so. His hair was messy and his clothes were rumpled from sitting in the car for so long.

He glanced at me, and for a split second, our eyes locked. His eyes were burning, and whether with hatred or lust or both I had no idea. But whatever it was, it was strong enough to make me want to push him into the wall and kiss him until his lips were as swollen as Angelina Jolie's. And then his gaze flickered down to my lips, and I knew at once that there was still a part of him that wanted me every bit as badly as I wanted him. He could hate me as much as he wanted, but the attraction was still there.

Good. Lauren wasn't going to stand a chance.

That bitch was going down.

"Um…what're you guys doing here?" Kendall asked the moms at large.

Mom quickly explained to him what was going on, and Kendall's brow immediately furrowed.

"But – but – ice skating isn't a high school sport. Wouldn't they be better off at the other rink?"

"Weren't you listening?" I snapped. "We'd be fighting for time on the ice, and we'd have to drop out of school completely."

"That's what most professional athletes do," Kendall replied.

James shrugged. "I don't know…As long as there's a second rink, there shouldn't be a problem."

"Well, actually…about that…" Mom bit her lip. "The second rink, the smaller one, is being closed down, since it's costing too much money to maintain it. So there's only going to be one ice rink at the high school…"

"Forget it," James said sharply. "Hockey is a high school sport. If there's only one rink, then it's rightfully ours."

"We rent out the rink," I snapped, stalking over to him.

"And you can rent out the rink in town. And if it's such a problem, get someone to tutor you part time. You could go to school in the morning and take whatever classes you need, and then skate in the afternoons. You'd probably have more time on the ice that way anyway."

"We're going to stay at the high school rink, where we belong. If anyone doesn't belong, it's the hockey players."

"You want World War III?" James demanded, advancing on me. "You want it with the hockey players?"

"Bring it, Diamond. You're not going to win this battle, and we both know it."

"You wanna bet?" he snarled, and I felt myself take a step back, hitting the wall. He moved closer to me, until our chests were almost touching. "We fight on the ice for the puck every single day. You have nothing on us."

"No?" I shoved him away from me and stomped towards him. "You think you can beat us? It's our job to be sneaky and cunning and to win. We're in it to win it, unlike you hockey heads. It's just a game."

"We never said that," he snapped. "But once again, you ice skaters are so much better than us hockey players. Why don't you go lie about someone else to benefit yourself?"

I raised my hand with the vague impression that I wanted nothing more to slap him, but, as if he was reading my mind, he grabbed my wrist. "I don't think so," he growled. "Not today, Ice Queen."

"Go to hell, Diamond."

"Save me a seat?"

"Believe me, I plan on sending you there first. You're going down," I snarled through gritted teeth.

He glared at me ferociously. "Bring it."

So, I've been waiting awhile to bring up the issue with the ice rinks. It was mentioned in chapter one, but I don't think it's been brought up since. But it was always supposed to play a role in the story, and I'm sorry it took so long for it to come up again.

Anyway, what'd you guys think of the chapter? Katie and Kyle are...fighting, for lack of a better term. And James and Katie are still pretty much spitting fire at each other...Did you like it? Love it? Hate it? Feel free to let me know what you think of it :) I never get tired from hearing you guys, and it always brightens up my day.