Freeze (The Jewel Project #4)

Changes

"Sam!" Angie pushed Tom aside and rushed inside the room. "I can't believe it."

They weren't alone. Jessie and Lisa followed, all of them in school uniform. And Sam just realized he had no idea what time it was, what day of the week. It hadn't been relevant until right then, but he suddenly felt completely lost.

"I told you," Tom said, closing the door and hurrying by the bed. He took Sam in, analyzing him carefully.

Sam found it a little weird that he wasn't wearing sunglasses, especially since he'd come in off the streets, but he liked it.

"Shit, you need some food," Tom declared. "You don't look much like me anymore."

Sam suddenly wanted to punch him in the gut, but his twin's hug drove all murderous impulses out of him. With difficulty, he lifted his hands and placed them on Tom's back.

"You're such an asshole," Tom whispered in his ear. "What was that all about?"

"Move over and let someone else have a turn," Angie said, fortunately nudging him out of the way and unfortunately hugging Sam as well.

Sam shut his eyes, expecting something to happen, warmth to fill him, a foreign, unwelcomed feeling to take him over. Nothing happened and Angie let go, pulling away.

Jessie followed, giving him a short, tight hug, then he was left facing Lisa who was biting her lip, her eyes swimming in tears.

"Oh, Sam." She dropped on the bed next to him and hugged his head against her chest. Which was so weird, but strangely comforting because this was Lisa. The person who, out of all the people in this room, knew him the longest. "What did you do?"

"How's this all on me?" he asked.

"It kinda is," Jimmy said with a grin.

"Did you figure out something, genius?" Tom asked.

Lisa released Sam's head, but took his hand instead, squeezing it tightly, and sat on his bed. A knot of guilt formed in his chest, and for a minute he wanted to pull away, but he changed his mind. Because there was someone who was supposed to be there but wasn't, and her absence screamed loudly into the silence.

"Where's Christine?" he asked.

Lisa's grip on his hand loosened, but she didn't pull away. Angie heaved a sigh, but the others didn't seem to feel his question was loaded in any way. Even if it so obviously was. Because it brought things to the forefront that he'd almost forgotten. Almost.

His suspicions about her, her flaky attitude, how inside his hallucination she'd basically confessed that he was a target. Was he? Sure, he knew that wasn't Christine, that it was merely a projection of his own thoughts and feelings, but they had to stem from something.

God, you have no idea how to start, do you?

Yes, there was that. In a moment where he could be dying, when Christine had the chance for famous last words, she chose to belittle him. And it stung. Even after weeks of being in a coma, the words were stuck to him, setting his insides on fire.

He was insecure when it came to his romantic capabilities. Hell, Christine was his first everything. But this time, for some reason, he refused to believe her. So he refused to cater to her stupid wishes and let Lisa hold his hand. She was his friend and he needed the care and contact. If Christine wasn't there to provide, she should suck it up.

"Christine doesn't really wear the watch, so it might be a while before she gets here," Angie answered. "I can text her."

"No," Sam said before she could take out her phone. "She'll get here when she does. It's not like I don't have company."