Too Young (The Jewel Project #1)

Chapter 18.2 - A sudden Attack

"And for once I thought things would go smoothly," Sam mumbled, kicking a tree trunk.

Tom twitched his nose. He didn't like it when Sam blamed himself. "Stop beating yourself up over it. How were you supposed to know Snitch Gravel would send someone after the map? He's never done anything like this before."

"Yes, but not booby-trapping the temple side? This was the last straw. I'm doing things properly from now on. Until Jessie gets better, we're going to explore the area around camp and get a proper image of our surroundings." Sam wheeled around and traipsed towards the center of camp.

Tom watched him departing, shaking his head. He'd liked Sam's first plan better. As much as he played brave, he wasn't fond of sticking around more than necessary. It sometimes felt as if his whole body still ached. He was sure it was only his imagination. The poison had left his body by now. But it was scary.

Angie approached him, wringing her hands. She stopped in front of him, opened her mouth, closed it and whipped around.

"Angie, what are you doing?" Tom asked warily.

She turned to face him, her eyes welling. "I just wanted to...never mind." She spun on the spot again.

Tom grabbed her elbow and pulled her into a hug. "Calm down and tell me what's wrong."

"This... this reminds me too much of..." Angie bit her lip.

She didn't have to go on, Tom understood perfectly. It was almost like what happened to him. He smiled weakly. To him, the whole experience had a bright side. Like her telling him she loved him. Only he wasn't sure it hadn't been a beautiful hallucination brought on by the poison.

"I never got to thank you for saving me," Angie whispered.

Tom put his arms around her waist and pulled her towards him. "You don't have to thank me. Seeing you in pain would've been harder than dealing with it myself."

Angie wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed herself closer to him, laying her head on his chest. Tom took on step back and put one hand on her cheek. There were tears there. He lifted her chin gently.

She smiled and closed her eyes, parting her lips, waiting. Tom's heart picked up the pace. This was too good to be true.

He leaned towards her until his nose touched her cheek. She shuddered the tiniest bit at his touch. He kissed the corner of her mouth. Her skin was so soft. Angie tightened her hold on him, pulling him closer.

"Will you two quit fooling around? We have work to do!" Sam marched towards them, seeming oblivious to the fact that he was interrupting something.

Angie and Tom pulled away from each other. There was a heartbreaking look of disappointment on Angie's face. Tom felt like beating Sam up.

"You! Head south with JT to inspect the surroundings." Sam threw a pair of binoculars to Tom. "And Angie, east with Kay, Christine and Alice. Come on, we don't have all day."

Tom looked back at Angie. She smiled and nodded, then hurried away to find Kay.

"I hope this is the last time I have to say this. Stop messing with her," Sam said between his teeth. "Go after JT. He already left."

Tom nodded and rushed away, though what he really wanted was to punch Sam in the face. Really hard. Just once.

*

Sam came marching towards Jerry's tent where Kyle, Jerry and Jimmy.

"Be sure to keep her cool," Jerry said while strapping his backpack on. "When she wakes up, give her the tea I've prepared. She'll be up and walking in no time."

"You've figured it out fast this time," Jimmy said. Thank God for that.

"It's when you have some of the substance. Fever inducing herbs..." Jerry huffed. "A joke. I have antibiotics!"

Sam ushered Jerry away. "Less talk, more walk."

"What's with the sudden hurry, kid?" Kyle asked. "Bossy-smarty-pants said that Jessie will be out for at least two days."

"Maybe, but traps won't build themselves. I want to know exactly what and where to put. I don't feel like taking a break." Sam put his own backpack on. "Don't let her out of your sight," he said to Jimmy.

"Yeah, hold her hand while you're at it." Kyle winked. "You know you want to."

Jimmy smiled. "I wish I was holding something heavy. Then I could throw it at you and shut you up."

"No, you wouldn't. You appreciate people who tell the truth. Just don't come on too strong. You could scare her."

"Kyle, less tease, more..." Sam paused.

"You can't find something that rhymes, can you?" Kyle grinned at him. "I got the point. We're going."

"Full of crap..." Jimmy muttered.

But Kyle's remark made it very hard to stay by Jessie's side and not think inappropriate thoughts. He had a girlfriend. Jessie was nothing but an assignment. And you're nothing but a liar. Okay, that sounded strangely like Kyle. Was she still an assignment? He didn't believe she was a spy. She was one of the most honest people he'd ever met. Jessie was his friend. Just a friend. I have a girlfriend... A girlfriend I kinda feel like dumping. Okay, wrong thoughts.

"Jimmy?"

Jimmy jumped so violently, he almost tipped Jerry's tea over. "You're up!" Panic and relief battled inside him. She wasn't supposed to be up yet. He hadn't even started to think what to say to her.

Jessie smiled weakly. She had trouble keeping her eyes open. "Barely. Is everyone all right?"

"Yeah, everyone's fine. You grabbed the short end of the stick this time." Jimmy scooted closer to her. He found it difficult not to take her hand.

"What happened with Eye Patch? Why didn't you..." she swallowed. It seemed to cause her pain.

Jimmy felt his heart thumping against his ribs. He knew he'd have to answer this question, but he didn't feel ready for it. "Because I'm an idiot. Instead of protecting you, I left you wide open. I'm sorry, I should've..." he stopped once Jessie let out a low giggle.

She raised her hand to touch his face, but couldn't hold it up long enough. Jimmy took her hand. She was still burning, but not as badly as before.

"What I meant to say was, why didn't you punch him in the face? You're acting as if it were your duty to protect me." Her voice was becoming weaker with each word. "Giving yourself in for me was enough. I've never had anyone look after me like that."

"I'll try and do a better job at looking after you next time," Jimmy mumbled. He felt relieved that she wasn't blaming him, but what he did was still unpardonable. He let her go and grabbed the tea Jerry left behind. "Here, drink this. It will make you feel better."

He watched her carefully while she drained the thermos. She seemed very tired and new beads of sweat appeared on her forehead. After she was done, she passed him the container and closed her eyes.

"I know I might be out of line, but could you hold my hand until I drift off to sleep?" Her whisper was so low that Jimmy had a feeling she didn't really want him to hear her. He took her hand nonetheless. She opened her eyes and smiled. "Thanks for being such a good friend." Her eyes closed again and her hand slacked in his.

Jimmy didn't let go. He felt much better knowing that she thought they were friends, too.

🔷🔷🔷

Is this a wild new ship I see, or am I just breaking your hearts at this point? I guess you won't know until later.

I'm curious if you're seeing a growth in Sam's character and his role as leader.

Thanks so much for reading and don't forget to vote and comment.