A/N: Hello again everyone! I can't believe I'm saying this, but we've reached the final chapter!

Before we get into that, I would like to thank everyone that read last chapter, and this story in general! I would also like to give a huge thank you to RainbowDiamonds, Guest, winterschild11, Side1ways, and XxxAnimaniacxxX for taking the time to review and share their thoughts! :)

I hope you all enjoy!

James knows that Kendall isn't his boyfriend.

He's a boy and he's just a friend but he's a boy friend who he had the best sex of his life with and now he's bringing him to meet all his friends, who are basically his family, and, yeah, okay, James is a little nervous.

He goes into Carlos' house, yelling out a greeting and shucking off his coat. He throws it on the coat rack and takes the cake from Kendall's hands so he can take his off, too.

Carlos comes into the entryway, eyes wide, and he grins broadly. "Oh!" He turns his head towards the living room. "James brought a date!"

He yells it and James' entire face erupts into flames. He knows it does because Carlos laughs heartily and happily.

"Kendall." Carlos says as he comes over and shakes his hand. Kendall smiles at him, but it's a little nervous, James can tell, and he wishes he knew how to save the guy from Carlos. "Nice to see you not drunk in a bar."

James wants to punch his best friend. Somehow, though, it looks like Kendall's relaxed.

"It's nice to see you while I'm not drunk in a bar." He replies.

Carlos laughs. He points at him, slapping him on the shoulder, before turning to James. "I like him. He's a keeper."

"He's not mine to keep." James mumbles, shaking his head. He thrusts the cake at Carlos to distract him from teasing them. "Look. Kendall made you a cake."

As predicted, Carlos is suddenly completely distracted. "A cake! For me?"

Kendall shrugs. James bets that if his hair was pulled back just a tad, they'd see bright red ears, though. "Happy birthday."

Carlos turns on his heels abruptly, going into the living room. James rolls his eyes and grabs Kendall's hand, squeezing it once, before letting it go and following Carlis into the living room. He can feel Kendall not far behind him.

"Look!" Carlos is saying when they get there. "The new guy cares about me more than all of you sons of bitches."

Stephanie looks away from her conversation with Lucy, who waves at James. He waves back, ignoring Carlos' tirade.

"Way to show us up, Kendall." Stephanie says, but winks to show she's kidding.

There's a slight moment where Kendall is quiet and they're all waiting to see how he replies. James regrets forcing him to come to this.

But then Kendall shrugs. "I can't help it. We all know I'm the best baker in town."

There's another pause, and then everyone's laughing. James grins and throws an arm around Kendall's shoulder, so relieved that he's nearly dizzy from it. "All of you better know that."

"Why?" Kendall frowns.

"Duh." Dak says as he stands up and pours two glasses of wine. He hands one to Kendall, a huge grin on his face as he raises his own slightly. "You're the enemy."

"Ah." Kendall nods while everyone else laughs. "I forgot."

"How could you?" Lucy shakes her head. "Doesn't James remind you constantly? I'm Lucy, by the way."

Kendall shakes her hand and Carlos sets the cake down on the table, getting between them. "Don't get too comfy with Lucy. She'll set you up on a date with someone she swears is perfect for you and then you'll find out he has a literal Dear John."

Everyone laughs and James blinks. "Wait, what?"

James sits on the couch and everyone settles around the room, getting comfortable as Carlos delves into a huge story involving an Italian restaurant, Lucy's matchmaking skills, and a missing Navy SEAL. It's elaborate and Carlos seems to be playing the hesitantly jilted lover, but he's laughing so hard in some parts that he can't continue for a few minutes, so no one seems to feel that bad.

"Holy shit, man." Kendall shakes his head. "Small towns are so dramatic."

"Um, yeah." Stephanie tosses her hair. "What else are we supposed to do for entertainment around here?"

Everyone hums their agreement. The conversation flows from there and the evening passes quickly, effortlessly. James is kind of shocked by how easily Kendall fits into their group. He's sitting a little too straight and his answers are occasionally a bit stilted, but he seems to be trying, and James isn't quite sure how to articulate how much that means to him.

He can't quite articulate how much Kendall means to him.

He shakes the thought away and stands abruptly. Dak stops talking mid sentence and everyone looks at him. "Cake?" James asks.

"Sure." Carlos says. "It's pay attention to me time."

James rolls his eyes. "As if most nights aren't."

James goes into the kitchen, Carlos trailing after him. The conversation picks back up in the living room, a low thrum of laughter and stories.

Carlos closes the kitchen door behind them, spinning around with a huge grin on his face. "So."

James sighs and digs in the cupboard for enough saucers. "So?"

"You guys dating?"

James groans. "No, I told you, we're not."

Carlos' eyebrows furrow as if genuinely confused. "Why? You like him."

James shrugs. "It doesn't matter."

"Dude." Carlos sighs. "It does. You're, like, chronically uncaring. It's the only bad trait you've even got. But you care about this guy in a way that's pathological. Even when you 'hated' him for those, like, twenty minutes, you cared. And you never brought Kyle to my place. You either hung out with his friends or you didn't see him at all. And now, you're bringing someone you aren't even technically seeing to our family fucking dinners-"

"I didn't think it was a big deal!"

"I didn't mean it in a bad way." Carlos says. "But...you like him. You, like, really like him."

James is too tired with this conversation to deny it. "So what?"

"So...tell him."

"He doesn't like me like that." James has already tried to explain this to himself. It sucks just as much to explain it to someone else.

"Bullshit." Carlos grabs a knife and a handful of forks. "Anyone with half a brain can see the guy's into you. Just do it, man."

He leaves the kitchen and James trails after him, trying not to feel hope in his stomach.

Kendall looks up when he comes back into the living room, shooting him a small smile. James' heart flutters.

They sing a quick round of happy birthday and then Carlos is cutting the cake, giving each of them a generous portion.

The first bite creates a chorus of praises and every new bite is an encore.

"Dude." Carlos groans out, scraping the last of the crumbs on his fork. "What the everlasting fuck?"

Kendall laughs. He pushes the remainder of his cake onto James' plate absently and brushes a stray strand of hair out of his face. James grins at him and takes another bite.

"This is so damn good." Stephanie agrees. "I am beside myself."

Kendall smiles. "Thanks."

"Why the hell are you working for Griffin?" Dak asks around a mouthful of cake. "He's an ass and you're an angel, apparently."

James' ears perk up and he watches Kendall as he grimaces. "He really is an ass. But he was hiring, so." He shrugs.

"That's dumb." Carlos says, cutting himself a second slice. He moans around his first bite. "You should be working for James."

They both freeze.

Dak laughs. "What, you seriously haven't thought about it? James makes the best food. Kendall makes damn miracles in dessert form, and together, asshole Griffin will be run out of business."

James swallows around a lump in his throat. "Well, I'm not sure about that. People liked it even before Kendall showed up."

Kendall scoffs. "Please. Once I'm gone, he'll be run out of town."

Everyone looks at one another. "Why?"

Kendall cocks his head before looking at James. "I told you. All his stuff is frozen. Once people find out, no one will go there. Your food is way better and it's fresh."

James absolutely does not preen.

Lucy hums. "How will people find out, though?"

Kendall shrugs, but he's smirking. "Well, I have a feeling it'll get out."

Carlos leans closer, wiggling his eyebrows. "What oh what did our dear Kendall do?"

"Well, I assume you've all met Martha." Eyes widen in understanding. "I might have let it slip when I made her a cake and muffins of her own." Kendall winks at Carlos.

Lucy laughs and, after a second, everyone else joins in. "Oh, hell, James." Lucy says, grinning. "If Kendall comes to work for you, there won't be any reason to go to Griffin's at all. And I swear to god, if you don't hire him, I'll hire him as my personal baker, because this cake is amazing."

James looks at Kendall with wide eyes.

Kendall's smiling back, not looking half as concerned as James feels.

They stare long enough that someone clears their throat and then the topic changes.

The conversation and wine flows until close to two and then Kendall's yawning, leaning against James more than he usually does.

James is also having a hard time hiding his yawns and stopping himself from wrapping his arms around Kendall and it's doing absolutely nothing to dispel the innuendos his friends are throwing at them.

"Okay." He says, straightening Kendall up, and standing. "We're going to go. See you for breakfast tomorrow?"

After celebration tradition: breakfast at Brooke's.

Everyone nods their confirmation, hugging him goodbye. The girls hug Kendall and the guys shake his hand. Carlos winks at James when Kendall isn't paying attention, and he tries very hard not to blush.

Kendall tells Carlos to keep the cake tray until the cake is gone so it'll last longer and Carlos tells him not to worry, that he'll bring it to breakfast tomorrow.

They put on their coats, call out another goodbye, and then leave the party.

The cold air wakes them up a little. James hesitates for only a minute before wrapping his arm around Kendall's waist.

Kendall leans against him, smiling. James knows they've both had a bit to drink, but James has seen him drunk, and he thinks maybe this is just Kendall being Kendall.

"So…" James says, his voice crackling through their silence like the wind does between them. He tries to keep his tone light, as if telling a joke. "Think you'd want to come work for me?"

From the corner of his eyes, James can see Kendall frowning and chewing on his bottom lip. "That doesn't sound temporary."

James' heart skips a beat. "Do you want it to be?"

Kendall stops walking, hands wrapping around James' arm to stop him, too.

They're in the middle of the sidewalk, a few blocks away from Carlos' and a few away from James'. The night is dark and the streets are empty and James can feel something between them, waiting and ready to change irrevocably, one way or another.

Kendall releases James' arm and swallows hard. Then he does it again. "I...your friends thought we were dating."

James nods. He can't say anything.

"And you...you corrected them." Kendall looks up to meet his gaze and his shoulders square, jaw raising. "But you didn't have to."

All the air rushes out of James' lungs. "I didn't?"

"No." Kendall says. It comes out quietly, riding on an exhale. "At least, for me. You didn't have to if you did it for me."

"I wouldn't have." James can barely breathe. "If it was for me."

Kendall's eyes fall to James' lips before rising back to his eyes, getting stuck there. "And the job would be...what?"

James doesn't know the right answer. He wants in way he never has before, cares about his words and his posture and the outcome of this conversation so heavily that it bangs up against him.

"It would be…" He hesitates and then swallows. "Permanent. Or, at least, as permanent as you want it to be."

"Semi-permanent." Kendall suggests, closing the space between them. "With room for growth."

"Always room for growth." James agrees in a whisper.

They're a hair's breadth away from each other and James' heart hammers.

"If you were thinking about staying…." James says. "If you thought maybe you could stay here, for a little while...you should."

He waits. Kendall stares at him and James' whole body feels like its drenched in gasoline. Any second he could be set on fire and he feels dizzy from the fumes.

He waits to hear what Kendall says.

In the end, Kendall doesn't say anything.

He throws his arms around James' neck and kisses him instead, knocking the breath out of James and holding him tightly to him.

James might not know all of the kisses Kendall gives yet, might not know his every type and intention beneath his lips, but he's pretty sure he knows what this one means.

He's pretty sure a few blocks away, his friends are exchanging money. And he's got a brand new pastry chef.

He's pretty sure this kiss means things are changed, forever, for the better.

In the past six years, Kendall's lived in eleven different places. Eight cities and three small towns. Ten of them didn't matter. Ten places, ten jobs, ten different groups of people-he drove halfway across the country, baking pies, and not giving a single shit.

Until the eleventh place.

Until fucking Kansas.

Even after a year, some mornings Kendall wakes up in bed next to his boyfriend and is absolutely shocked he managed to get stuck in Poplar, Kansas, of all goddamn places.

He can't believe that a guy who blushes at the drop of a hat and can't bake a pie for the life of him somehow managed to enthrall him so completely that he now has an actual, honest to God permanent mailing address.

It's rounding up to one year since Kendall officially moved into James' apartment and started working as the baker at Brooke's and even on the mornings when he's shocked, he's so damn happy it's disgusting.

He rolls over in bed, patting the left side for James.

When his hand hits soft and cold pillow, he frowns and cracks open his eyes.

He's confused for a half a second before he smells the bacon. Kendall grins and thanks his lucky stars that he snagged the one guy who would make him breakfast every damn day.

Kendall finds his pajama bottoms on the floor and shimmies into them, yawning into his fist as he pads across the apartment to throw himself into the kitchen chair.

"Morning, sunshine." James says as he sets a coffee cup in front of him and runs his hand through Kendall's hair, twirling a strand around his index finger. It wasn't until Kendall mentioned going to get a haircut a few months into their relationship that he realized how insanely attached his boyfriend was to his messy, long hair.

It's almost too messy and too long now, but if James is going to give him coffee and bacon and a head rub every morning because of it, he's happy to comply.

Kendall smiles up at James, eyes crinkling, and James watches him softly until Kendall's gurgling stomach interrupts their sweet moment.

James laughs and turns around to make a plate. "Someone's hungry."

Kendall stops himself from pouting, but the blush runs up his chest and neck anyway. "It's not my fault. You've gotten me used to it."

James rolls his eyes and sets two plates on the table, sitting in his own chair across from Kendall. "Sure, sure, it's my fault."

Kendall ignores the jibe in favor of shoving a piece of pancake in his mouth. He's fucking obsessed with James' pancakes and if they weren't as good, he thinks their love story would be different.

He rolls his eyes at himself. He used to be a badass; now he's got the nickname Sunshine and calls his relationship a love story.

His grandma would be proud.

Kendall never really thought he'd have this: a home, a stable job, a boyfriend he loves. He expected drifter and driver to be his main descriptions until he maybe died in a car crash from falling asleep after too much sugar. Now he's here, in Poplar, and he's happy it's really kind of gross.

Something of which, their friends never seem to stop reminding them.

"Do we have to open?" Kendall can't remember who's on the schedule for Brooke's.

After Kendall jumped ship a year ago and joined James at his restaurant, Griffin's place all but crumbled. Word got around that the food was frozen and since everyone could get Kendall's baked goods somewhere else, the place didn't last more than a few months. Stephanie and Dak, with the help of Kendall's gentle nudging and bedroom bribing, managed to get James to redecorate and business picked up so astronomically, they actually managed to hire more workers so James didn't have to work seven days a week.

Kendall apparently had become a soft pushover because one crying conversation with Camille and he was practically begging James to hire the entirely of Griffin's crew.

They were great workers and once they actually got to know James, they stopped thinking he was such an ass. Besides, Camille's argument that he didn't care about people fell a little flat when Kendall walked in the room. They were, as Kendall was constantly reminded, disgustingly in love.

Speaking of love...another unexpected development was the blooming relationship between Logan and Carlos.

Carlos had come into the restaurant one day to visit, and as soon they laid eyes on each other, it was like love at first sight. They were coming up on eight months together and were still going strong.

Logan-along with the rest of Griffin's former employees-had integrated so easily into their friend group. Honestly, they were all like one big family.

James' humming broke into Kendall's thought. "Nope." He grinned. "Logan and Dak are in the kitchen and Stephanie and Camille have the floor. Tyler's coming in the afternoon to help out, so I'll take over and close up but we don't have to be in all day."

"Hallelujah." Kendall praises. "I'll help you close."

"You don't have to."

"I'm aware." Kendall picks up the bacon on his plate and takes a bite. He groans around it. "This is so good."

"I marinated it." James says. "Better, right?"

"So much." Kendall agrees.

They finish breakfast and Kendall's about to hop in the shower when the phone starts ringing and he has to dig in the cushions while James digs in the bed to find the chirping cell phone.

"Why are you so bad with your phone?" Kendall groans, throwing one of the couch cushions behind his head. "I swear, this happens at least twice a week."

"Please stop judging me." James calls from the bedroom. "Aha! Found it."

"Thank fuck." Kendal throws himself on the cushion that's still on the couch and listens faintly to James' side of the conversation.

He's about to fall back asleep, stomach full and head lolling against the top of the couch, when he hears James' voice call out, loudly, "Are you fucking serious?"

Kendall's alert instantly. Outside of the bedroom, James doesn't really curse. Kendall stands up and goes to the bedroom door, leaning against the frame.

James is practically shaking. "Yeah, yeah, no, that's great. We'll….we'll be there at, say, two? Yeah, okay. Awesome. See you there."

James hangs up the phone.

"What was that-oomph!" His question gets punched out of him when James flies across the room, wrapping his arms around Kendall and kissing him hard.

Kendall has no idea what's going on, but then James swipes his tongue in that really nice way and Kendall doesn't care anymore. He groans into the kiss and winds his fingers into James' hair, tugging on the brunet strands and deepening their kiss. He tastes like coffee and bacon and Kendall can't believe that even after a year, he's still so intoxicated by James.

When they pull back, Kendall's all ready for round two, but James pulls back, grinning.

"Guess who was on the phone?"

He's practically bouncing. Kendall clicks his tongue and blows out from his mouth. "Um...we've won the lottery?"

"Nope!"

"Your long lost aunt?"

"Nope!"

"There's a bunch of dogs and we get to keep them all?"

"Kendall." James whines, but he's still grinning. "It was Mark!"

"Mark." Kendall repeats, trying to place the name.

"My business manager."

"Okay."

"We're doing, like, well." He emphasizes the well, as if Kendall needs to hear it in a special way.

Kendall smiles. "Yeah, Jay. I know."

"No, I mean, like, well." He stresses it the same way and he's so excited that Kendall really doesn't want to laugh at him.

"Tell me what that means." He says.

James grins. "Someone is interested in funding us."

"For what?"

"Expansion." James beams. "Like, turning Brooke's into a franchise!"

Kendall's eyes widen. "Babe! That's fucking incredible!"

"I know! And your desserts. They want to sell them, like, outside of the restaurant."

Kendall freezes. "What?"

"We've got a business meeting at two." James kisses him once, softly. "Things are happening."

"Yeah." He breathes out. "Looks like they are."

James grins and wraps his arms around Kendall's torso, hugging him. Kendall hugs him back, burying his face in the crook of his neck.

"Think you're ready for something new?"

Kendall pulls back to look at him, grinning. "Always."

James' smile is so soft and so nice that Kendall can't think about anything else. He tightens his grip around him.

"I love you." James says.

Kendall lets out a breath, a shaky happiness that happens every time he hears those words. "I love you, too."

"No, like, I really love you." James insists.

Kendall laughs. "I know. I really love you, too."

James pulls out of Kendall's grasp and paces across the room, body still jittery and his smile so wide it looks like it hurts. Kendall sits on the edge of the bed, just watching him.

After a few minutes, he hears him curse under his breath. Like he did all those months ago outside of the party before they got together, James comes up to him. "Fuck it." He says and kisses him softly.

He pulls away too quickly for Kendall's liking and goes to the dresser, digging in his clothes. Kendall has no idea what time it is, but they might need to hurry to make it to the meeting. Maybe he and James could shower together and, yeah, it might take a little longer, but it'll conserve water and that's good and they could celebrate a little before-

James spins around, crosses the room in two steps before coming back and falling to his knees.

"Kendall." He said, lips quivering.

Kendall's breath catches in his throat. He can't look away from the ring box in James' hand.

"Kendall, meeting you was the best thing that has ever happened to me. I was lost then. I was confused and alone and I didn't care about anything except surviving. Nothing mattered the way I wanted it to and I thought I was broken." He chokes out, taking a shaky breath before continuing.

"Then you came. And, God, from the moment I saw you, all I could do was feel. All I could do was want and feel and it was the loveliest thing I've ever felt. It still is. You're the brightest thing I've ever seen and I'm lucky every day for being near you. You couldn't matter more to me. You mean everything and I would turn down this deal, I'd burn down the restaurant, I'd do anything to make you happy.

I love you, Kendall. I love you and I want to spend every night with you in bed and every morning making breakfast for you. I want you to be in my life every day for the rest of my life. I know you like your freedom and I know staying was never your plan, but Kendall, know I'd go anywhere with you. I'd live in the junker and never stay in one place again if that's what you wanted. All I want and all I need is you.

You've given me so much and it's selfish of me to ask for more. But I'm going to ask anyway. Kendall Knight, will you marry me?"

The world narrows.

Kendall spent his whole life getting away. At least, he thought he did. He thought he was running from places and thought he was aimless. But here, with James on his knees and an engagement ring in his hand, Kendall realizes how terribly, awfully stupid he's been.

He wasn't running from something. He was running towards home. And it wasn't aimless, but a search. Kendall found something in Poplar, with James, that doesn't exist outside of them.

They've only been together a year, but it feels like they've been together longer than that. They're obsessive and they're truly, truly going to get fat if they keep feeding each other the way they do.

Somehow, Kendall can't imagine a single thing better than that. He can't imagine a single place better than sitting inside Brooke's or a single feeling even close to the feeling of James' arms around him.

He's been crafting sweets his whole life but he'll never taste anything half as good as his name on James' breath and he'll never love anyone the way he loves James.

"I told you once," Kendall begins, and they both pretend like his breath isn't shaking, "that to bake something, you had to be purposeful. You had to understand why you were making it, not what you want in the end. And that's us, isn't it?"

James nods in response, his face frozen in a terrified expression. Kendall raises his shaking hand to James' face and strokes his thumb across his cheek.

"Every day with you is purposeful. Every day, I understand why I'm here and I learn more about why I love you. Every day with you is worth everything. Our ending will be so, so beautiful because every day, every decision we make, is. I love you. So James Diamond, please let me marry you. Yes."

Done! I couldn't help but have a sappy ending and for Kames to get the happy ending they deserve!

I'd love to hear you thoughts on the chapter, and the story in general! I'd also love to hear if you happened to have any favorite parts/moments!

Again, I hope you all enjoyed! I also want to thank you all again for your support! It means so much to me, and you all just motivate me to keep going. :) Hope yo see you all again soon!

-Epically Obsessed