A/N I hope you enjoy this Chapter. Logan and Carlos will be entering the story in the next chapter or two! I will try to get those ones up as fast and I did the last few chapters.

Kendall stood tall in his brand new pressed uniform. It was graduation day. He was basking in his confidence for the first time in weeks. He looked out at the crowd and listened as their division was introduced. He knew that tomorrow he was going to be sent somewhere to be turned into a corpsmen. He had come to terms with the fact that he and Xander were not going to be going to the same place after today, though he did want to make sure that he had a chance to say goodbye to the guy that had been so amazing to him over the last few, most horrible, and demanding weeks of his life.

After the graduation ceremony was over he had a chance for the first time to see his mother and sister. He couldn't hide the smile that was forcing its way through his features as he thought about finding them.

"Kendall, honey!" He heard his mother's voice and whipped around looking for her. "Kendall!" He heard her again and as he turned he spotted her and Katie coming to him. He moved towards his small family and he thought that his heart was going to pound right out of his chest with excitement. He reached and out grabbed his mother bringing her close. He felt Katie wrap herself around his waist and he began to choke back a sob that was forcing itself from within his stomach.

"Mom, Katie, I have missed you guys so much!" He said into his moms shoulder. He pulled back to look at her. She gently wiped the tear from his cheek with her thumb. He took in her smile.

"I am so proud of you baby." She said with a tight voice, he guessed from all the emotions. He ran his fingers through Katie's hair and she pulled back to look at him. He bent down on one knee and pulled her into a hug.

"I missed you too little sis." He said to her with a large smile.

He looked around and found Xander standing with his mother.

"Hold on. I'll be right back." He said as he pushed past them. He went up to Xander and smiled at his mother before asking, "Hey. Do you guys want to join us for lunch?" They were able to leave the camp for 4 hours before they had to be back in order to get ready to leave for their next step in training. Kendall gave a slight jolt then extended his hand to Xander's mother before saying "Sorry, I didn't introduce myself. I am Kendall. Me and Xander have been training together in the same division." His mother took his hand and introduced herself as Megan.

Xander then added, "Yes, we would love to join you guys for lunch."

Kendall thought about how this was going to be the last time that him and his best friend of 6 weeks were going to do anything together.

Kendall led them over to where his mother and sister were standing. He quickly introduced Xander and Megan to his family. They spent the next four hours eating at a small restaurant on the outside of town just talking, Kendall and Xander telling their families about their crazy experiences. They explained to them the moment that they finally broke and how they met; their families got a laugh out of that one.

Kendall looked at his watch that read 2:39. He sighed before saying "We better get heading back before we get into trouble." For a moment the table went quiet. The air around them felt heavy with despair. The boys looked at each other with almost tired expressions. They wanted to stay with their family. Not have to let go for God know how long. "We have to be back by three." Kendall added and then cleared his throat of the lump that had built up in it.

Kendall didn't want to cry in front of his mom and Katie. He had fought it so hard but as he stepped out of the car after arriving back at the boot camp he broke. He couldn't do it anymore. After he realized there was no stopping the steady stream he gave up. He leaned into his mom and sister as he released every pent up emotion. The fear, the anger, the love, the excitement, the confidence, and even his pride. He let all those emotions out in the desperate sobs.

Kendall pulled away from the tear stained faces that he loved so much. He missed so much. He looked down at his watch. 2:49. "I have to go guys." He hugged them both one last time and whispered I love you's into each of their ears. He turned on his heels not looking back as he followed Xander to their bunks.

That night they laid down for their last night at the boot camp that they have come to know. Kendall stared at the white ceiling above him. The only noise in the room was the sound of the other boys breathing. 'No,' he thought 'they weren't boys anymore. They have graduated boot camp. They are officially in the military. They are Marines. They are men!' As he thought about this he got a good feeling at the base of his stomach and his eyes fluttered close leading him to a deep peaceful sleep.

The next morning they awoke with their drill sargent telling them that they all had busy and full days and to get up. Kendall rolled out of bed and threw his clothes on. They were called to attention as they were told exactly what they had to do to get to where they were going today.

As they were dismissed to attend breakfast Kendall walked silently with Xander. Both boys got their food though they played with it more than they ate. Kendall looked up at his best friend and said "Hey, how you holding up?"

The other boy just looked at him with a forced smile and said. "Eh, I'm holding." There was a long pause before he spoke again. "You know, I'm actually really excited to start doing what I have a passion for. I want to leave here and start my next chapter. I just wish that I wasn't leaving you behind. I'm gonna miss you Kendall."

Kendall looked down. He felt a blush dance across his cheeks though he didn't know why. Maybe because he was feeling the same way as his best friend had just pointed out. And the fact that he wanted to tell the boy that he thought of him as a brother and wanted to tell him he loved him and would miss him.

Kendall just looked at him and said "Yeah, me too buddy. I'm going to miss you too."

As breakfast wrapped up the boys stood. Kendall's bus was to depart right after the meal was finished. He turned to Xander and said "Hey, everything is gonna be ok. I know it will. Maybe we will see each other again." Kendall forced a smile onto his face and gave Xander a hug.

Xander pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Kendall saying, "Here, I wrote this down. It's my number for when we get our phones back and if we actually have service." Kendall took the piece of paper and stuffed it into his pocket making a mental note to put it in a special spot before he loses it.

"I'll make sure I call you some time." Kendall gave him a quick embrace before turning and gathering his things before 10:00 to be on the bus.

He made it to the bussing area early and was one of the first to board. He picked a seat in the middle of the bus and closed his eyes as he sank into the seat. After a minute or two he felt movement to his left and opened his eyes and looked at the one and only James Diamond. "Hi, Kendall." The boy said with a soft smile. "Hi." Kendall returned the smile though he was inwardly sighing now knowing that he was going to be with the cocky and confident James.