Sam walked back to Angie, took her hand, pulled her to her feet and hugged her. Angie squeezed him back, crying her heart out on his shoulder.

"Sam? What happened?" Christine put her hand on Sam's shoulder.

Sam let go of Angie and looked at Christine's worried face. "Stay with her. She needs a friend." He kissed her on the forehead and walked away.

"Sam, what should we do with them?" Steve asked tentatively.

Sam stopped for a fraction of a second. "I don't care. Make them disappear." He walked on, letting his legs carry him at random. JT came up behind him and grabbed his shoulder.

"Sam."

Sam jerked around, freeing himself. "You wanna be leader, Johnny? Go right ahead!"

JT stepped back, shaking his head. "No, that's what I wanted to say. I messed up. I..." He hesitated. "I'm really sorry about Tom. You're right. You're better at this than I am."

Yeah, right. Better at what? He waved JT away and walked on. Sam stopped in front of Jerry's tent almost at the same time as Kyle and Jimmy. As if sensing they were there, Jerry came out, blocking their way.

"You're not going in there."

"Jerry, move out of the way," Sam said calmly.

"I said no!"

"Come on Jerry, we're worried. We want to see him—" Jimmy started.

"I can't focus with you there. With anyone there. I have a lot of work to do." Jerry turned around, ready to go back in.

"Please," Angie said, coming up behind them. "You have to let me see him."

Jerry glanced over his shoulder, pain etching on his face as though he hated what he was doing. "No Angie. I can't let you in either. Trust me, you don't want to see him like this. None of you do. I'm doing this for your good as well as mine." His look suddenly turned steely. "I don't want anyone coming in until I say it's okay." He glanced at Kyle as he said this.

The little emotions Sam still had that weren't dread turned into anger. He couldn't believe that Jerry was picking on Kyle now. Instead, Kyle nodded shortly. Jerry entered his tent, seeming much less worried.

Angie grabbed on to Sam's shoulder and dug her fingers in so hard it hurt. Kyle and Jimmy both walked away from the entrance of the tent. Kay squeezed Angie's shoulder, watching her as if she were a bomb about to explode.

"Sam?" Christine slipped her hand in his. "Come on. Let Jerry work. He knows what he's doing. Let's go take a walk or something. Time will pass faster that way."

Sam took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly, trying to calm down. She was right. Hovering in front of the tent entrance wasn't doing anyone any good. Maybe a distraction was just what he needed. She put her finger on his cheek to stop him from looking away. Her amber eyes were like pools of sunlight. Sam hadn't looked at her properly in weeks. He'd almost forgotten how beautiful she was.

Some of the tension left him. Christine had the effect of a balm on him. He pulled her against him, resting his head on top of hers.

A scream coming from Jerry's tent made Sam's stomach clench. He let go of Christine and rushed to the entrance. Before he could reach it, Jerry came out, and blocked his way.

"Go, just go. He has to scream. I'm sorry." Jerry disappeared back inside.

Sam remained rooted to the spot, feeling as if he were breaking in half. The screams continued and each one pierced deeper. He could hear Jerry talking and wondered if Tom was conscious. Sam prayed he wasn't.

Angie raced towards the entrance, but Sam grabbed her around the middle and hoisted her in the air. She struggled to break loose, kicking the air, sobs erupting out of her throat.

"There's nothing we can do. Let Jerry work it out," Sam said. As much as he wanted to go in, Christine was right. It wouldn't help. It would only make Jerry lose his concentration.

"Kill me! Just kill me now! Make it stop!" Tom's voice was so distorted by pain, it was hardly recognizable.

"You don't know what you're saying!" Jerry screamed.

Angie turned over in Sam's arms and wrapped her arms around his neck, crying into his chest. Sam squeezed her tightly, edging away from the entrance of the tent. He wanted to get as far away as possible from all the madness. As they reached Christine, Sam wanted to detach Angie from him, and let Christine take over. Sensing this, Angie wrapped her arms around him tighter.

"Please don't let me go. Don't ever let me go..." she whispered.

Sam looked down at her, worried, and then up at Christine. She scowled at the two of them, obviously not enjoying the situation. He shrugged, but didn't let Angie go.

"Don't go. Please don't go...I don't want to lose you," Angie muttered and Sam forced her at arm's length.

"You're not doing yourself any good. I'm Sam."

Angie looked at him with wide eyes then frowned. "I know you're Sam. I'm not crazy!" Her voice shook as she said the last word. She swung around and walked away.

*

The sun was setting. Angie looked straight into it and wiped her eyes. They were dry. She'd cried for so long, she'd run out of tears. She sat on a tree branch, her back against the trunk, one leg dangling in the air. She'd sat in that position for so long, her body was numb.

Time had a weird habit of speeding up and slowing down. The hours in which Tom's screams had filled the camp seemed like years. According to her watch, the screams had stopped about an hour ago. To Angie, it seemed like seconds. She had no idea if the screams had stopped because Jerry managed to find the antidote for the poison or because Tom had finally died. She didn't have the strength to find someone and ask.

"Angie?"

Angie looked down to see Sam there. She climbed out of the tree immediately, ignoring her aching limbs. "Is he okay?"

"He's still alive, if that's what you mean. I'm not sure if that qualifies as okay. Jerry wasn't very specific either. He thinks he worked it out, but didn't seem too sure about it."

"Have you seen him? Can I..." She clamped her mouth shut. She'd never sounded so pathetic in her life.

"Yeah, you can go see him. Just brace yourself."

Angie nodded and rushed towards Jerry's tent. She hesitated in front of the entrance. What was she supposed to do or say? Thanks for almost dying to save my ass? All her life, she'd been independent, gotten herself out of messes.

Shaking her head, she stepped inside. The heat and heavy smell inside hit her. It felt as if she'd just stepped into the room of a man about to die. Tom lay on Jerry's sleeping bag, apparently asleep. She walked to his side, tensing her muscles, forcing them to obey. She sat down cross-legged next to his sleeping bag.

Angie reached out her hand and let it hover in midair for a second, then sunk it into his hair. It was wet as were his clothes. The paleness of his face made his black hair seem even darker, if possible. His wrists were heavily bandaged and he had a huge plaster on the inside of his left elbow. His breathing was weak and uneven.

Against her will, tears streaked her cheeks again. Jerry had been right. If this is how he looked now, seeing him whirling in pain would have been too much. She desperately wished he would open his eyes.

She took her hand out of his hair and ran it down his cheek. He didn't even stir. Angie lowered her head as sobs shook her whole body. She took his hand, entwining her fingers between his.  If he hadn't jumped in front of her this could have been her. She could be the one lying there.

Would she have managed to survive the pain? Why had he done this? She let out a loud gasp and shut her eyes as she tried to contain her tears and not burst into full blown crying. But if she looked at him, she felt like dying, knowing it was her fault.

Tom tightened his grip on her hand and her eyes shot open. He was smiling weakly at her, his eyes barely open. She'd never seen him without the sunglasses. She'd expected him to look like Sam, but they were completely different. His eyes were so beautiful, with a slight blue tinge to them. And in them, she could see everything. His pain, his confusion, the hope...

"You're here." His voice was so low, Angie had to bend closer to hear.

"Of course I'm here. It was torture while Jerry kept me out." She squeezed his hand.

"No little dance of victory?" He couldn't keep the bitterness out of the question.

Angie's insides churned. The last thing she'd said to him was that she hated him. Probably the biggest lie she'd ever said. "How can you say that? And why on earth did you jump in front of me?"

"Isn't it obvious?" His voice was becoming weaker and weaker.

New beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. Talking drained the little energy he had left. She knew she should tell him to rest, to stop talking, but she wanted to know if what she hoped for was true.

"Not to me. It's the craziest thing you've ever done. And I've seen you do a lot of crazy things!"

Tom let out a sound that could have been laughter. "I know I'm not exactly known for...my...self..." His head lolled sideways and his hand fell limp in hers.

"Tom?" She shook him, but he remained unmoving. Great. She should've told him to rest, not press him like an idiot. Now he'd passed out again.

As soon as she finished the thought, she realized she couldn't hear his heavy breathing anymore. She reached out for his wrists, but because of the bandages, she couldn't tell if he had a pulse or not. Oh no.

"Oh, no, please don't do this to me." She grabbed his shoulder and shook, but he was limp. "No, no, no. Come on, wake up. Tom!" Angie got to her knees and took his hand with both of hers.

Pain ran through her like electricity, entwined with guilt. Guilt once she realized how stupid she'd been. The fear, the agony could only mean one thing. Despite doing everything in her power to hate him, deep down inside, her feelings had only grown stronger. She'd failed to see the energy that filled her since seeing Tom again, the uneven beat of her heart when he came near her. Now she could see everything clearly. Now, when he was dying.

"I've been so stupid. I'm so sorry for disappointing you, for being nothing but another stupid teenage girl." The words poured out and she couldn't stop them, wouldn't stop them. She might never get to talk to him again. He could already be dead. "I want to be that person you thought I was. Please wake up. Please..." It had become so hard to breathe. "I love you...I love you...don't die on me..."

Tom bolted up so fast, he almost gave Angie a heart attack.

"What did you just say?"

"You're not dead!" she said, shocked.

As if to force her to eat her words, he swayed and fell back on the sleeping bag. Angie put her arms around his torso and helped him into a sitting position. He raised his hands with obvious difficulty and let them drop on her shoulders. His head fell forward and slumped against her collarbone.

"You just said..." he mumbled, barely audible.

She swallowed. "That I love you. I mean it."

"Wicked." He moved his head sideways on her shoulder. His lips touched her neck causing her to shudder. He was burning with fever. "I can't believe...unless it's revenge..."

"Revenge?" she asked confused.

"Revenge..." He stiffened and pulled away. Sweat ran down his face and his muscles contracted. "Go!"

"Wha—?" Angie shook her head.

Tom tried to turn away, but fell over. "Go. Leave me alone. Now." His voice became weaker with each word.

Angie stared at him with wide eyes, her heart thumping unevenly. "You still hate me?"

Tom moaned and wrapped his arms around his torso, his face screwed up in pain. His whole body bent like a spring ready to snap. Angie scrambled to her feet and looked left and right for some medicine or something.

"Go. Get. Jerry," Tom struggled to say. "It's burning again!" A scream of pain followed.

Angie flinched as he rolled to his back, twisting and turning, his feet kicking the air, biting his lip so hard to keep in the screams that blood dripped down his chin. She broke from her paralysis and rushed out to find Jerry.

🔷🔷🔷

AN: Though not exactly very appropriate, I love that song (if you haven't listened to it, do, you might like it) and always imagined it for the last scene.

There was so much drama here. I know the action was a little confusing, but it will be fixed at some point.

And someone finally said some much awaited words..

Don't forget to leave your thoughts right here at the bottom :)