After All This Time

“Hey, babe, I’m really sorry I got your machine, I was kinda hoping to hear that sexy voice of yours. But that’s beside the point. I just wanted to let you know that Jesse has to go out of town for a week, so I’m staying at the house with Jay. Not our idea, by the way, but you know Jesse. I figured I should just let you know. I’ll talk to you soon, I love you.”

Kendall sighed, lowering his sleek phone from his ear. Kate’s voice echoed in his head, and he wished he could have picked up the call an hour earlier. The past week they’d been playing phone tag; he’d been busy recording for a new album, and she had picked up an extra shift at the diner to save up for her baby gift for Jesse and Jay. Of course, he’d seen her at weekly movie night, but it just wasn’t the same as alone time.

“Earth to Kendall, come in,” Carlos called, waving a tan hand in front of Kendall’s jade eyes. He flinched, jumping back half a foot. He could hear Logan and James snickering beside him at the table. They were on lunch break, eating at the poorly illuminated studio cafeteria. It honestly wasn’t so bad, aside from the flickering florescent lights; the food was great.

“What?” he snapped, then immediately regretted it. “Sorry.”

“I’m guessing from that,” James started, motioning at Kendall with his gleaming silver fork. “That it was Kate who left the message.”

“That obvious?” Kendall muttered, pushing his cheery green vegetables around the plate.

“Just a little,” Logan said, holding his fingers an inch apart. Kendall cracked a bit of a smile, tugging at his gray beanie.

“I just miss her. She’s what keeps me sane,” he mumbled under his breath, trying to avoid the heavy teasing that would come with the admittance. “What did I miss?”

“When you were being a space cadet? Not a lot. We were just being good friends and stopping you before you went comatose permanently,” James said with a grin, clasping his friend’s flannel clad shoulder.

“Greatly appreciated,” Kendall responded, his sarcasm dripping off every last syllable.

“Not a problem.” James smiled cheekily, his hazel eyes dancing as he chuckled a bit. All of them froze as their manager Tim walked over, his salt-and-pepper hair uncharacteristically unruly. His bright brown eyes were shining, and the combination usually meant good things were to come.

“It’s my favorite boys,” he said cheerily, placing his hands on the laminate tabletop. The guys exchanged a curious glance before devoting their full attention to Tim. He was grinning like The Joker, and the sooner they got whatever message he was delivering, the sooner the slightly creepy smile would disappear.

“Wanna tell us whatever is making you turn into a freaking rainbow now, or build the suspense?” Kendall teased, but Tim remained unfazed

“Boys, I just got off of the phone with the head of the label.” All of the boys froze; the head of the label usually only made contact that they heard of when life-changing things were happening; like when they were signed or their record hit platinum.

“And…?” Logan asked, resisting the urge to bite on his already shortened fingernails.

“You’re latest album hit platinum. They want you do go on a worldwide tour!” The three brunette boys whooped and high-fived, but Kendall sat, completely still and frozen.

“How long is this tour?” he asked, managing to keep his voice completely steady despite his emotional turmoil.

“A year.” The other boys froze at this as well. A year was a long time to spend in a foreign land, away from loved ones.

“When would we leave?” Carlos asked, exchanging a glance with Kendall. The raven-haired boy seemed to be reading his mind.

“In three months. The end of March.” The older man gauged the reactions, realizing what was going through their minds.

“What about the show?” Logan piped up, his thumb at his lips, his teeth gnawing on the jagged nail.

“You’d finish shooting for the season a week before you’re first concert. You’d be back to film the next season in time for it to air.” They looked at each other, defeated. They had no viable reason not to go. At least not in the studio’s mind.

“Thanks for letting us know Tim,” Carlos said politely. The older man skipped off, still on a buzz from his success with Big Time Rush. A silence fell over the table, all of them in their own worlds.

“Man, I just started dating Carolyn,” James mumbled.

“You guys made it official?” Logan asked curiously, a small smile on his face, which James mimicked.

“Yeah, we did. But what if this is too much to handle? I mean, we all saw what happened to Kate and Kendall last time.” James grumbled, running a hand through his shiny chestnut hair. Kendall raised his head, meeting the boy’s hazel eyes.

“Really, dude?” Kendall asked, his voice hitting a sharp note.

“Hey, you know if Katelyn hadn’t been all touchy-feel-y on you during tour, you and Kate might not have broken up.”

“We don’t know that. We didn’t even break up until after the tour, and it was my own stupid fault.”

“No arguments there,” James added, earning him a death glare from everyone at the table.

“What am I going to tell Kate? We just got back on the right track. And that’s right around when the baby’s due.” All of the guys looked at him with a questioning glance. “Jesse and Jay’s baby. C’mon guys, get with the program.”

“Sorry man,” Carlos said, shaking his head a bit. Kendall looked down at his hands, then back up at his friends.

“How do I tell her?”