It was strange how, in time, even after life-shattering experiences, the little things started to count again.

Clammy hands, rapid pulse, twisting stomach.

It's just an exam. Hell, he'd taken countless exams before. And it was just as worse every time. Except this time, Sam Grant thought it would be different. Because this time, it was different. So much had happened between his exam at the end of May and this one that it felt like two different lives lived by two different people.

He wasn't the same person he used to be back then. This Sam had faced death more times than he cared to count. This Sam was a leader, a fighter, a thinker. This Sam had a girlfriend and a large group of friends. Yet, this Sam was terrified of exams just like the last Sam. Sam 2.0. sucked just as much as the initial version.

As he watched himself in the mirror, he could swear he was turning green. It did not compliment his navy blue uniform at all.

"Move over, Sam," Tom said, nudging him out of the way. "It's my turn to see if I'm the fairest of them all."

Sam almost laughed, but it felt wrong. Just like the way Tom was wearing his uniform. Normally, Sam wouldn't have batted an eyelash at Tom's jeans and trainers, especially since the jeans were the classic straight instead of the usual loose and baggy. But ever since he'd started at Xavier Race High School when he was eleven, it had been an unspoken rule that during exam day, everyone wore their uniform. The entire one, from the navy blue pants and blazer, to the white shirt and crimson tie. And the shoes, oh the shoes.

Exams were the only time Sam wore the pants and shoes too, but seeing Tom breaking the rules had him feeling a bit nervous, as if divine retribution would befall his twin and cause him to fail every subject.

"Yuck," Tom said, sticking his tongue out at his own reflection. "And I'm not even wearing the tie yet." He had it around his neck but undone, playing with it mindlessly as if he couldn't decide whether to tie the knot or not.

"You should put it on. We're running late."

The fact that Tom didn't laugh at how high those simple two sentences had come out showed Sam that his twin was nervous as well. That and the way he kept fumbling with that tie.

"Do you think Mom can make a knot?" Tom suddenly asked.

Oh. Oh! Sam turned Tom to face him and started working on it.

"Wait, you can do it?" Tom asked in surprise.

"I've been going to that school for seven years. It became basic necessity at some point," Sam mumbled, straightening the knot and stepping back to look at Tom. Given the shade of his jeans, he almost looked like he was in complete uniform. Even his trainers were black.

Nerves and pride started a deadly battle in Sam's stomach. He'd never been up against Tom in an exam. Sure, they had almost the exact same classes and Tom did alright, but exams were something else. More pressure, more truth. Not just a smile, a wink and a lucky piece of homework.

"So tell me again how difficult the exams are," Tom said, finally looking away from the mirror and focusing on Sam.

"I won't lie. Probably the hardest exams you've ever taken."

"I hope so," Tom mumbled, "because I've never studied so much in my life. It'd better be worth it." And on that bombshell, he left the room.

Sam turned over his answer as he followed Tom out and down the stairs. He'd never seen things like that, but his twin had a point. Sam didn't think he'd ever studied harder either. It was maybe the guilt that he'd had other things on his mind as well, like the agency and his girlfriend, Christine. Or maybe it was the weirdness of being part of such a large study group.

Normally, he and his best friends, Harry and Lisa, would retreat to the library where Sam and Lisa would revise and Harry would complain that he hated exams and that he'd love to move to a public school if his dad would let him.

This year, Harry hadn't complained. He'd studied along with everyone else, probably trying his best to make a good impression in front of the others. Lisa hadn't changed her behavior much, but she did seem a bit more nervous than usual since they no longer had Sam to themselves.

Sam felt weird too, like he was the only thing tying his old life and new life together. Bringing Harry and Lisa into the same room as Tom, Jimmy, Jessie, Angie and Billy. It had been a strange experience, with Billy taking Harry's place as master complainer, Jessie randomly reciting all the bones in the human body, Tom fighting her and Angie over the theory that humans are actually immortal and can't die of old age, just of disease, Jimmy filling mountains of notebooks with careful calculations just to turn out that he wasn't actually studying but designing something for the agency.

Weird was maybe an understatement, but Sam had to admit it was the most fun he'd ever had studying. He just hoped Harry and Lisa felt the same. He didn't want his friends to pull away just because he had new friends. And brothers.

Speaking of new brothers and new things... Jimmy waited for them by the door leading out of the living room and into the small hall before the exit, twisting his car keys around and mumbling furiously to himself. It had been almost a month since he got it, but he still avoided his new car like the plague.

His parents insisted it was nineteen years' worth of birthday and Christmas presents. Jimmy insisted he didn't need a car when there were already three other cars in the garage. His parents didn't want to hear of it. Jimmy raged on about why it had to be an M3 instead of the regular three series BMW. Maxi and Freider shrugged off his protests, grinned like maniacs and shoved the key into his hands, like merry birthday, Jimmy. Tom just asked for drums.

"Come on, I'm not getting any younger," Jimmy snapped, pointing towards the door.

"Bro, chill. It's not our fault you own a luxury car," Tom said. "You old fart," he muttered as he passed Jimmy.

With impressive speed, Jimmy actually managed to touch Tom's butt with his kick. Tom just laughed and disappeared into the hall. Sam hurried past his brother too, fearing a kick out of revenge just because he looked like Tom. Jimmy just nudged him gently and followed them outside.

Sam shivered as he looked up at the grey sky. It had been raining heavily for three days, and now that it had finally stopped, the clouds hadn't gotten the momo and still lingered as if waiting for the tiniest sign that it was okay to unload some more. The rain had turned into frozen chips on blades of grass and concrete, turning every surface into an ice rink.

"I think it's about to snow," Jimmy said, watching the clouds, too. "I've never seen snow."

Sam tilted his head in question. To him, snow was such a natural thing, it was weird thinking there were people out there who had never seen it. It was maybe part of being a spoiled little sheltered rich kid all his life, but Jimmy and Tom were opening his eyes to an entire new world of possibilities.

A gust of cold wind hurtled Sam out of his own head and into the car for warmth. He should've grabbed a jacket, but he'd been too nervous to think about it. And now he was nervous again.

They didn't speak on the way to school. Sam just stared out the window, wishing they could get there already and start their exams. The wait before seeing the questions had always been the hardest part for him. Once he'd be seated and allowed to fill out his answer sheet, he'd feel better.

When they reached the school parking lot, he almost ran towards the door, both because of the cold and the continuous buildup of tension. This time, it wasn't even only about himself; he felt nervous for Tom, Jessie and Angie as well. The only good part about exam day so far was that he was finally, once again, invisible. Ever since they'd returned from their last mission, the media coverage of their lives had only gotten worse as the tabloids tried to figure out just what was going on within every couple.

He and Christine had a hard time going out and not making it into some seedy little newspaper. Since Tom and Jimmy didn't even bother to hide their relationships, they were getting the same treatment, except maybe a lot worse since Jessie was basically already a celebrity. The only ones who had magically managed to avoid the whole press debacle were Kyle and Kay.

Even if Jerry constantly complained that they needed to tone down their PDA, the press was left with speculations whether or not they were actually dating or not. This, of course, had led to a witch hunt, everyone trying to catch them at it. But the poor paparazzi had no chance against two trained secret agent. Sam really wished he'd had the foresight to avoid all this, especially since school had become a little hard to bear.

But today, after months of snide remarks and shifty looks, he was finally once again just another one of the students. And even with the exams looming over his head, he enjoyed just slipping past everyone. He just wished he wouldn't slip into a hole.

❄

Kay sat on the low wooden bench in the academy gym, staring at her phone, trying not to bawl like a baby. This was so hard. Her mother's message sent her stomach into uncomfortable twists.

Send me a picture.

The request came after Kay had answered the perfunctory "where are you/what are you doing" message that came once every few weeks. The answer was always the same. I'm fine. Very busy with school. Chicago is wonderful. Then her mother would say something about her ex-boyfriend Danny, and it would become so easy for Kay to block her out for the next couple of weeks at least.

This time, the mention of Danny was nowhere to be seen and it turned a mundane interaction into something much more complicated. Something she didn't need. With gritted teeth, she took a picture of the full gym and sent it to her mother to prove that she was indeed where she claimed she was.

That looks amazing.

Kay scrunched her face in confusion. What was her mother doing? Kay didn't want to bond. She truthfully wanted to cut her parents out of her life after they basically kidnapped her and forced an abusive druggie down her throat. She'd considered multiple times to just change her phone number and never go home again. All the guilt accompanying that thought had vanished the moment William had returned home. With her brother back, losing her wouldn't be such a heavy blow for her parents.

"Thanks. Gotta go now," she typed quickly and put her phone away. It buzzed the moment she dropped it in her backpack and the text appeared on screen.

We miss you so much. Can't wait to see you at Christmas.

Yeah, right! Like that was ever going to happen. There was no way she wasn't spending Christmas with Kyle. Trying to smother the guilt, she closed the zipper of her backpack and returned to the bench. Why did her mother have to start acting like a normal parent? Over the summer, she'd been nothing but a guardian, making sure she never communicated with the outside world. Now, her parents had finally gotten used to the idea they could no longer control her. She was twenty and away from home. But they also thought Kyle had cheated on her and they were done for good.

Snitch Gravel had ended up doing her a favor. The thought of him sent her into a trembling fit, so she closed her eyes and took in deep breaths, trying to regain control.

"Hey, you okay?"

A gentle touch on her shoulder had Kay jumping out of her skin. Her eyes finally focused on Connie Hamlin's freckled face. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"I thought you were having a panic attack or something."

Kay shook her head, but frowned. She'd seen Connie around, but she was a sophomore, not a freshman, so there was no reason for her to be there. Just like there was absolutely no reason for the next person to come in to be there either.

"Okay everyone, settle down." Kyle dropped his backpack next to the nearest bench. "I want you all in one neat line."

Connie moved away and took her position next to Kyle, her hands behind her back, legs spread apart in a typical police officer position. Kay fell in line with the others, frowning.

"Yum," the girl next to Kay, Alicia, mumbled to her friends. "What do you think are the chances of him roughing me up?"

Kay gritted her teeth, trying to tune out the now giggling girls. If they kept it up, there would be a great chance of her roughing them up.

"Something funny?" Kyle asked, quirking a brow.

The girls shook their heads and sombered. Kyle glared at them and then at everyone in turn, making it pretty clear that there was no giggling in his class. Why was it his class?

"My name is Kyle Grant," he finally said. "And due to your usual instructor's current health issues, we'll be training together for the next couple of weeks, at least. Now..." He picked up a clipboard. "We're here to learn the art of hand-to-hand combat. Needless to say, the things I'm about to teach you could end up saving your lives at some point. So there will be no fooling around, no play-pretend, no excuses and, for Christ's sake, no giggling."

"No fun," Alicia mumbled with a pout.

Kay's arm trembled, her elbow begging to meet Alicia's face.

Kyle grinned in that adorable mischievous way of his. "Oh, there will be loads of fun. But maybe not the kind you have in mind."

"Oh, my heart!" Alicia fanned herself.

"Hey!" Connie snapped. "Eyes forward. He's your instructor, not a piece of meat."

Kay agreed, but the affirmation annoyed her all the same. It was none of Connie's business to say that.

"Oh, yeah," Kyle added, as an afterthought. "Connie Hamlin, here to assist me for some reason. Like I couldn't handle beating up twenty measly cadets."

"Kyle!" both Kay and Connie said at the same time.

Kyle started laughing and Kay lowered her burning face. Connie was staring at her quizzically, obviously having no idea who she was and why she addressed her new instructor with such familiarity. The problem was, Kay wasn't sure it was a good idea for the others to find out exactly how close she and Kyle were, especially now that he was her instructor.

"Enough introductions. Roll call."

Kay tried to play her part, pretend that this was nothing but another training class, but as the minutes ticked away, it became increasingly harder. Kyle was a lot tougher than their instructor and after a half an hour, she found she wasn't breezing through the class like she normally did. She was actually breaking a sweat. And Connie walking amongst them and correcting their position or their grips on ropes was beyond annoying.

As they were in the middle of pushups, Connie stopped next to her and crouched. "Can't you go any lower?"

"Oh, bite me," Kay snarled, lowering herself until her chest touched the floor.

"What did you just say to me?"

Kay ignored her and continued with the pushups.

"I asked a question, cadet. Get up!"

Kay pushed herself to her feet, sweat dripping down her forehead, and stood at attention. If Connie really insisted, she'd gladly repeat what she just said.

Connie just circled her, giving her the stink eye. "Too good for suggestions?"

"It's not that I can't go lower, I just hit my chest against the floor."

Connie eyed Kay's boobs and twitched her nose, obviously searching for a way to make that a bad thing.

"What's up?" Kyle asked, coming over to them.

"She just told me to bite her," Connie said immediately, the damn tattle tale.

Kyle nudged his head to indicate that Connie should back away and took a step closer, stopping inches from Kay. She could feel the heat radiating off his body and butterflies erupted in her stomach. Seeing him in sweats and a tank top reminded her too much of when he'd started training her.

"Is that so?" he asked, his voice low and way too sensual for a classroom. "Do I sense insubordination?"

"Oh, you bite me, too."

She regretted the words the moment they were out. The smirk on his face was infuriating because she'd usually wipe it off with a kiss. No chance of that happening, so all she had left was longing and frustration.

"I will," he whispered before pulling away and looking at her unimpressed, always the master actor. "Fifty squats. Now."

She bit back the curse and complied, trying to act as professional as he was, but it was so damn hard when he was so damn hot. And that Connie kept flaunting her yoga-pants-covered ass in his face and it drove Kay up the wall. Oh, how she wished they'd get paired in hand-to-hand combat so she'd have a reason to kick her ass.

Unfortunately, Kyle seemed to sense the animosity between them, because he paired her up with someone else, while he effortlessly humiliated the best guy in their class. Connie won her fight which was only slightly disappointing since she was paired with Alicia.

"Okay, class, that's it for today," Kyle said, checking his watch. "I'll see you all on Thursday."

The class left, grumbling, everyone massaging their sore spots. Kay lingered behind, pretending to gather her stuff, hoping she'd get at least five seconds alone with Kyle. With slow moves, she stood out of her crouch and turned around. Her stomach jumped into her throat. He was right behind her.

"Hi." He leaned in and planted a short kiss on her lips. Before she could kiss him back, he pulled away, his hands behind his back. "Sorry about that. It was inappropriate, but I couldn't help it."

"Huh?" She had no idea what he was talking about. She just wanted to kiss him, but since he was so tall, it was near impossible without his consent.

"Hope you enjoyed your class."

"I guess. You're much tougher than the instructor, but I don't mind."

Kyle hummed and looked at the ceiling, swinging on the soles of his feet. "I don't like where this is going. You're the only person in this class who isn't completely clueless. I wanted to pair us up so badly, but..." He let out a sigh. "I wasn't sure I could control myself and I would've ended up wrestling you to the ground."

"I see..." Kay said, trying to hide her smile.

"So, new strategy!" He picked up his backpack and swung it over his shoulder. "We're going home together to practice fighting beforehand."

"You're taking me home with you? Like to your house?" They'd agreed that was a bad idea since Kyle's dad was an unreasonable troll and his mother was cringe-worthy familiar.

Instead of spending awkward time together, they'd stay out after school, after training or he'd come over from time to time. Of course, the fact that Kay shared her place with Jessie and Angie meant they had zero privacy, which was turning into an issue. Ever since their little romp in the campus swimming pool in Malta, they'd barely come anywhere close to more than kissing. Not that going to Kyle's place would fix that. God, sometimes she wished he were as seedy as to take her to a hotel or something.

"Yup. Screw Dad. And I'll just tell Mom to leave us alone because we have school work to take care of."

"O-Kay..." If she were completely honest, she didn't care as long as she got to see him.

"See you in the parking lot in an hour." And with another quick kiss, he was gone.

❄❄❄

I'm back, so back, with the first chapter of Freeze! I'm so excited to start posting this. As I've mentioned before, this book is my favorite in the series. It's also the very first time anyone but me reads it.

So! That being said, I need all the support and encouragement I can get. If you're here, don't be shy. Give me your thoughts, give me your comments, give me your votes. Gimme, gimme, gimme!

After three books, I still can't belive I'm so nervous!