It took Herrison two days to find them a suitable private jet to take them from Japan to India. Tom didn't mind, because he got his wish of being a ditzy tourist. He wished they could've stayed longer just so he could go out of Tokyo and see the countryside. He wished it were spring and he could see cherry blossoms.

But two days was better than nothing. And even if the bickering between Billy, his siblings, and Eddie got worse with every passing hour, he was glad he'd had the chance to walk around and go sightseeing with Angie. At one point, they'd even managed to ditch the others and sneak out on a date. It hadn't been much, just dinner and walking around on their own, hand in hand, visiting some temples and a night market, but it had been amazing. Because it had actually been their first date.

"I can't believe it took us so long to go out," Angie said as they made their way to the hotel.

"Me neither. How come I never asked you out before this?"

"You just never got around to it. We were too busy when we came back from Mexico and then..."

And then she'd just left and only showed up days before they came to Japan. Yup, time hadn't exactly been on their side.

"I'm so sorry I stood you up that one time you did ask," she suddenly said.

Tom tensed, but said nothing, letting her go on. It had been the beginning of the end for them, what had led them from love to hate in the span of days. He didn't care anymore, he'd decided to leave the past behind, but it still stung every time he remembered.

"I was so weak and foolish. So afraid of getting hurt," she whispered.

He opened his mouth to assure her that it was okay, but it wasn't. "I'm still trying not to hurt you."

"Not as hard as before, I hope," she said with a smirk.

They'd reached the hotel, but Tom stopped before going in and pulled her against him. "I'm done with that. You were right. It made me too awkward and nervous."

Now he wasn't anymore. Because they'd almost died more times than he cared to count and it made him realize time was too short to act awkward. And Angie wasn't a scared little girl anymore, either. She was tougher, more mature, a real agent. So he'd do what he wanted, when he wanted and let her set the pace by pushing him back.

Angie looked up at him, her green eyes shining, a smile on her lips, looking so beautiful that his breath caught in his throat. She'd put on a few pounds too, but they went in all the right places, making her curvier and even more intoxicating. But what had changed the most about her was the security and determination in her eyes. She was strong; a fighter, not a victim.

"I can't believe we've come this far."

Her voice was hypnotizing, and he had no idea if she meant in their relationship or across the world. He didn't really care at the moment. He just leaned down and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around him, pulled him closer, kissing him back with breathtaking intensity. This was heaven. There was nothing in this world he enjoyed more than kissing her. Well, he could think of a few things that would trump that, but even he and his impulsive brain knew it was too soon for that.

When they broke apart, she leaned her cheek on his chest, sighing happily. He squeezed her back, resting his chin on the top of her head.

"I'm really glad we got to do this," she said.

"What, kiss?" He was glad they did that too, though glad might be just a wee bit of an understatement.

She laughed. "That too. No, I meant go out." She looked up at him, a big, goofy smile on her face. "It's nice to feel normal at least for one night."

He smiled back, just as big, just as goofy, because he didn't think he'd ever been happier in his life than he was at that moment. "It does feel nice. We should do this more often."

"Definitely should." She laid her head back on his chest. "I love you."

The words warmed him up, sending a pleasant tingle through his chest. No, this was definitely the happiest he'd ever been in his life. At least until Angie pulled away and looked up at him, frowning.

"What?" he asked, surprised.

"Really? You're confused?"

He just nodded, even more confused. She let out an exasperated sigh and looked away from him.

"To be honest, you're not really the type."

"Not really what type?" This was getting really weird.

She smirked. "To say I love you. You've only said it once and a half."

Oh, right. She told him she loved him and he just grinned like an idiot without returning her words. "Once and a half?"

"Yeah. Once when you said it the first time and once, before that, when you probably tried to say it the first time but I interrupted you."

"That's true. Sorry."

"No, it's okay." Her gaze roamed to the other side of the street, on a shiny display of decorations.

"But I do love you, you know that, right?"

She turned back to him, her eyes sparkling and her lips quirking in a surprised smile. "Yeah, I do." And she wrapped her arms around his middle and squeezed so hard, he started coughing and laughing at the same time.

⭐⭐⭐

Something was definitely wrong. The moment Tom set foot on their private jet, the whole world turned upside down. Because it was small and felt unsafe. Because he didn't like the parachutes placed in plain sight as if the owner knew the little flying can was a crash hazard. Because somehow, one moment, Angie was right behind him, the next she was waving at him from the runway, tears in his eyes, and there was nothing he could do about it, because the flying piece of junk was already on the move and there were no flight attendants he could yell at to stop the plane.

"Tom, chill," Billy said, pulling on his t-shirt and forcing him to sit next to him. "I'm sure there's a reason she stayed behind. Angie wouldn't just miss the plane."

Of course she wouldn't. She'd freaking waved at him. Tom gritted his teeth, his blood pounding in his temples, his fists clenching and unclenching. He was giving her hell when they met up.

"I bet she has super-secret stuff to do," Eddie said excitedly, rubbing his hands together. He then leaned towards Emiko, wagging his eyebrows. "Would you be worried if I stayed behind to do super-secret stuff?"

"Ugh, for the last time, get lost," she spat, turning her back to him.

Tom slouched in his seat, trying to figure out what could be keeping Angie in Japan. Had the agency given her some other assignment she couldn't tell them about? And what could it be since they were going after the jewel already? What was more important than the jewel? He kept mulling it over for hours as the others talked and laughed and gradually fell asleep. He couldn't, even if he thought he'd actually dozed off a little at some point.

His thoughts kept spiraling between the reason Angie stayed behind and seeing Sam again and talking to him. He was way too nervous about that. Why should he care? Sam should get the stick out of his ass. But he did care, and only wanted to see his twin to make sure everything was okay between them. Even if it had only been days since he'd last seen him, Tom actually missed Sam. He missed all his brothers. They were much better company than this bickering lot. Thank God they were asleep.

The plane finally started its descent and Tom straightened in his seat. He nudged Billy, but gave up when his cousin just grumbled and turned over. Maybe it was better to wake them once they'd landed.

The plane jerked and their speed increased. Tom frowned. He could swear that the front was a little too dipped down. Another lurch and their speed increased even more, the front tipping dangerously. And at that moment, he knew it wasn't right.

"Billy, get up! All of you, get up!" He struggled to unbuckle his seatbelt as the plane shook violently under him.

"Huh? What?" Billy asked, rubbing his eyes. "This is some sick turbulence."

"It's not turbulence!" Tom got to his feet and grabbed the nearest parachute. "We're crashing!"

The words sent the others in motion at once.

"Are you sure we're not just landing?" Yuki asked, though he was already strapping on his parachute.

As if to answer his question, the plane dipped some more and they flew off their feet for a few seconds before sliding towards the front of the plane. The lights turned off.

"Open the security doors!" Tom yelled. He looked over his shoulder, towards the door leading to the cockpit, and in the fraction of a second decided to try his luck.

He let himself slide towards the door and yanked the handle. The door was locked. He banged his fist against it, but there was no answer. Not that he'd expected to be able to get in there. Cockpits were usually locked.

A strong air current hit him, almost knocking him over. Yuki and Billy had managed to open the emergency exit. The plane tilted even more and Eddie and Emiko flew towards Tom. He pushed himself off the door and blocked their progress. They both managed to grab on to the seats and make their way slowly towards the exit. Tom grabbed on to the nearest chair too, and pulled himself further up the aisle. It was harder than it looked; gravity pushed him towards the cockpit.

Yuki jumped first and disappeared out of sight. Billy stretched his hand out and pulled Emiko towards the exit, then Eddie.

"Come on!" he gestured to Tom.

He nodded and propped his foot against a seat to push himself forward. It's not hard. Just like parkour. Parkour with really funky gravity. He reached Billy and grabbed his hand. The plane lurched again. With a scream of surprise, Billy flew over Tom's head and smashed back-first into the security door leading to the cockpit.

Shit! Heart pounding, Tom let go of the seat holding him vertical and let himself fall towards Billy. He grabbed his cousin's hand before Billy could pull himself together. He grabbed on to the nearest seat and trying pulling himself up using just one arm and his feet.

"We're going to crash!" Billy yelled, his eyes wide and terrified.

"Not if you help me out," Tom said through his teeth. "Try pushing yourself up."

Billy's foot finally found a chair and he pushed further. Agonizingly slow, with the plane tilting more every second, they finally reached the door. The air current had Tom's eyes watering and it was hard to tell up from down. It was just endless sky wherever he looked. He couldn't even tell where the ground was, how close.

"We jump together, on three."

"Forget three," Billy yelled. "Let's just jump!" And he pulled Tom out after him.

For a second, it felt like he was suspended in midair, and time had stopped. Then everything seemed to happen all at once. The airplane zooming by them, the air currents cutting into his skin, he parachute opening, the brief flight through the sky until the ground took his breath away. And then, there was nothing but fire.

They'd jumped too late.

⭐⭐⭐

Sam turned another page on his book, trying to focus on the legend he was reading. If there was one thing India was full of except for people, it was legends. In any other circumstances, he'd have found that fascinating. But now, he wished there were fewer, that he could find some clue about a sacred stone or something and leave faster.

He also wished he could leave detention faster, but the clock ticked annoyingly slow and he only had pages left and no other books to peruse. And if there was one thing he hated, it was wasting time.

In normal circumstances, he'd try to beg his supervisor to let him off fifteen minutes early. But today, he deputy headmaster himself was overseeing his detention, so there was no way in hell he was getting off even a second earlier. The guy was looking for any reason to give Sam extra detention.

Struggling to keep in a sigh, Sam moved his gaze from the wall clock back to the book, wondering if he should drag out the pages or finish the book and maybe take some notes. Though he didn't really see the use for notes. Everything he'd read, though interesting, was useless.

He turned the page and analyzed the picture of a temple in the jungle. How ironic. Maybe they'd have to do that again. Maybe there were more traps awaiting them, more unbearable heat and humidity, more—

Sam's muscles contracted out of the blue just a fraction of a second before his head felt like it exploded. The pain came with the intensity of a freight train, almost knocking him out. His fingers curled around the edge of the desk, grabbing to it like a distant lifeline. He couldn't see. His vision had blackened completely. His ears rang and his skin burned and prickled, giving him goosebumps.

And then it was over.

Except his head still pounded and his chest felt hallow, as if a part of him had just...died.

"Tom," he whispered.

No, it couldn't be. How could he...? How could he not? His stomach turned over and he scrambled to his feet. Grabbing on to every desk possible, he half-hurried, half-limped towards the door. The coolness of the corridor helped him sober up a bit as he made his way to the nearest bathroom. He grabbed on to the sink and stared in the mirror.

He was white as sheet and his elbows shook violently. Sweat trickled down the side of his face and his whole body felt alien, even if it looked the way it always did. Except it didn't.

Sam leaned forward to get a closer look. So did his reflection. Except there was something wrong with it. The eyes. They were the wrong color. Sam never had any trace of blue in them. He didn't have a scar above his right eyebrow that cut just the tiniest bit into it.

Tom. He was looking at Tom. Only that the reflection was fading fast, replaced by his own pale face and stunned expression. And the moment Tom faded completely was the moment his entire body hurt as if someone had ripped a chunk out of him.

And with a pounding head and cold wind sweeping his insides, he watched the world spiral around him as he sunk further into nothingness.

🌟🌟🌟

Greetings from sunny Rome. Yes, I'm on vacation and the internet is only permitting me to post this little snippet. Now let's see some questions:

1. How do you feel about Angie and Tom? Cute or what?

2.Am I an evil prick or what? That aside, how was the crash scene?

3. I care very much about hurting poor Sam just right. How do you feel that was pulled off?

Fingers crossed for a Monday update. I'm not done torturing characters. No vote and comment before more people die!