Lost Stars (The Jewel Project #3)

15.1|| Broken Pieces

Sam was exhausted. An early flight combined with him completely forgetting that he had to pack his crap had led to very little sleep that night. And now that they were at the airport, their plane was late. Hours late. The plastic chair held no comfort. Sleep was a commodity he no longer had.

The others weren't doing much better. After much complaining and mumbling, Jerry had finally bought a book and settled on reading for the rest of their wait. The couples were exhausted. Kay sat in Kyle's lap again, her head on his shoulder, and seemed fast asleep. Jessie sat on a chair opposite to them, while Jimmy lay on four chairs, his head in her lap. His eyes were closed and Jessie massaged his forehead.

As he watched them, a tight knot formed in Sam's chest. Jealousy reared its ugly head because he wanted what they had. He wanted the comfort, the security, the love. He and Christine had never been like that, not even when he thought they had it best. And it couldn't be an age thing, because Jessie was his age. Christine's age.

Okay, maybe Kyle and Kay were older, but... Sam narrowed his eyes at them. Kay opened one eye and peeked at Kyle. He sensed it immediately and bent over to whisper something in her ear to which she blushed then giggled. Kyle grinned too as he rested his forehead against hers. And at that moment Sam could tell something had changed.

He'd always been able to tell from the way his brother looked at Kay that he was head over heels for her, but now it was more. It wasn't just love, it was beyond that. Like she was food and he was starving, like she was water and he was dying of thirst. And if Sam wasn't sure that Kyle wasn't as stupid as to get it on in public in a campus full of kids, he would've dismissed his claim that nothing had happened the previous night. It was too obvious that it had. But what?

"Please tell them to stop looking at each other like that," Jerry mumbled next to Sam.

"Seriously Jerry, they're not doing anything."

"They're making me uncomfortable."

Sam squinted at him. This was new. "Are you sure uncomfortable is the word?"

Jerry raised his book so the others couldn't see his face and turned to Sam. "No, it's not, but they're making me miss Tina and I just want to throw my book at them out of spite because I can't have that, too."

Sam pursed his lips, trying his best to keep the laughter in. "So it's envy more than anything."

"Shut up. You're obviously in the same boat."

"At least I'm not denying it."

Jerry nudged his shoulder and Sam actually laughed. This was such a fun spat and he never imagined he'd be having it with Jerry.

"Whoa, what did you do?" Jessie asked, half-laughing. "Jerry actually hit you."

"Nah, we're okay," Sam answered. "He was just trying to show me that all the training is paying off. Spoilers, it's not."

Jerry pushed him harder, and Sam actually slipped from his chair onto the floor. And it only made him laugh more. The numbness was going away and it gave him hope that he would recover, be happy again, even if for mere moments. It was better than the darkness. It was better than nothing.

So once they boarded the plane and settled into their seats, Sam could actually look forward to their new adventure. It wasn't going to be easy or comfortable, but they were going to pull through as usual. And then... well, he didn't want to think about that yet. He wasn't ready to face their parents or explain how and why Tom was gone, but all in due time.

The flight to Rome was short and boring, so once inside the airport, Sam couldn't wait to meet their contact and get out of there. They were supposed to connect with their flight to Delhi right away so if he could only find the guy already...