Freeze (The Jewel Project #4)

3.1|| Runaways

Sam laid on the ground in his backyard, looking up at the cloudy sky, enjoying the snowflakes melting on his face. He hadn't done this since he was a kid, since snow was nothing but a reason for joy and wonder. And now, with Tom, he felt like he was a kid all over again. It was a great feeling, as if he got to reconstruct at least a bit of his childhood with his twin.

Tom lay beside him, his hands folded under his head, sunglasses off and eyes closed. There was a small smile on his face. Sam watched him and couldn't help but smile, too, even if his heart ached for all the missed opportunities, all the time they didn't spend together.

The blissful smile on Tom's face faded into a mild frown. "Angie didn't call," he said.

Sam looked back towards the sky, biting the inside of his cheeks. He tried his best not to snap, but Tom's obsessiveness regarding Angie was bugging the hell of of him. "She told you she'd forget."

"Her phone's switched off."

"Honestly, Tom, it's not the first time she runs out of battery and forgets the charge it. You do that all the time, too."

The crease between Tom's eyes only deepened. "I told her to call me. It bugs me that she never listens. I'm breaking up with her."

Sam sat up, fists clenched. "Are you an idiot or what? How could you break up with her over something as stupid as that?"

Tom sat up, too. "She knows I hate this and that I mean it every time I ask her to call. It's to make sure she's safe. Now who know where she is and with who."

"God, Tom, stop being such a jealous asswipe. She's with Christine. Tina said Christine was having a sleepover with some of her friends and most likely took Angie along."

Tom just mumbled to himself. Sam grasped his shoulders and forced Tom to look him in the eyes.

"Listen to me. You're not going to break up with her over this, no matter how unreasonably jealous you are."

"I'm not unreasonably jealous," Tom muttered, looking away.

Sam's eyes widened. He'd thrown it out there because Tom did guard Angie like the freaking Cerberus, but he never expected it to be true. "Wait, you really are jealous."

"She's a very beautiful girl."

"She loves you, you dimwit."

Tom narrowed his eyes at him and Sam pulled back. The look on his twin's face was scary.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You're awfully defensive of her."

Sam punched him in the shoulder. "Really? Rein that stupidity in before Angie or anyone else for that matter hears you."

Tom rubbed his shoulder, but didn't peruse the subject for the rest of the day. At some point, Sam even forgot about it. But as the next day passed as well and they got ready for school once again, he started feeling nervous. Tom hadn't said a peep or mentioned Angie lately, and Sam was a little scared of what would happen when they finally met in school.

Unfortunately, with exams gone, the crowd was back to being one huge mess of jeering and staring people. The fact that he was once again top of the list didn't help Sam's anonymity much. He spent the first part of the day trying to focus on his lessons and not be too worried about the fact that Jessie didn't know where Angie was either. It failed horribly. He had no idea what classes he'd actually attended.

He texted Christine, but she didn't answer either. As lunch rolled in and there was no sign of Angie in the cafeteria, Sam really started to worry. Christine wasn't answering her phone either and his insides had turned into the hopping ground for a giant frog.