Sam banged his fist against Jerry's door in a rather panicky manner. Even if he'd made a point to ask Jerry about the camp, he'd put off talking to him for so long, their departure was only two days away. But he'd never caught Jerry in the kitchen alone over the past week and he'd spent the hours in which he didn't do research and brush up on his ancient Mayan with Christine who'd started turning into a huge distraction.

"Instead of trying to tear the door down, you could come in," Jerry called from inside.

Sam entered Jerry's desk infested room. The only desk-free corner was the one in which his bed and a small dresser were stuffed. Half of the surfaces were filled with chemistry sets while the other half served as support for Jerry's carefully arranged science records.

Jerry stood in front of one of the chemistry sets, which was siphoning some gooey yellow substance. Sam looked at his back, wondering how he could spend all that time in his room, like a troll in a cave.

"Make it quick. This could explode," Jerry said, though he sounded amused rather than worried.

"Jerry, I'm going to study camp."

There was a sound of clattering glass as Jerry dropped whatever his was holding and whipped around to face Sam. "What?"

Sam bit his lip. "You said to make it quick. Is there still a risk of explosion?"

Jerry looked toward his fallen vials wistfully then turned back to Sam. "No, it's gone. Anyway, what do you mean you're going to study camp? It could be dangerous."

"So you know what I'm talking about."

Jerry's eyes widened, but he kept quiet.

"So, obviously, you're on the list, too." Sam narrowed his eyes. "And you want to go." This was strange as hell. "Why would you want to go?" What skills did the recruiters see in Jerry that qualified him to go? He wasn't even into history and he was definitely not a survivalist.

"There's a biological side to this excursion too, you know." Jerry headed for one of his many desks. He turned back, holding a stack of papers. "This is all my research work."

Sam took the papers and browsed through them. Jerry had concentrated on plant proprieties, temperature, poison sources and possible antidotes. He'd never thought of that. He hadn't even known Jerry was interested in that stuff. "This is not chemistry."

"Yes it is. Everything around us is chemistry. Plus, I had a feeling you'd be on that list. How could they not pick you? You need someone to keep an eye on you."

"I have someone to keep an eye on me." The words were out before Sam could stop them.

Jerry frowned, trying to hold back a snarl. "Kyle."

"Yes," Sam said. "And don't make that face. You two could use the time together."

"Sam, Kyle and I are too different to ever get along."

"Why can't you at least try to-" Sam began.

"Let's not fight, okay?" Jerry's smile was extremely strained. He walked to the door and held it open for him. The conversation was over.

*

Sam poked at the stake on his plate, miserable thoughts swimming inside his head. Kyle had taken the news that Jerry was coming along even worse. No silly excuse, no strained smile, just an ugly swear word and a slammed door. Sam had tried to talk to the two of them, first together, then separately, but it turned out to be a waste of time. They wouldn't see sense.

"What's with the two of you?" Freider asked, waving his fork in Kyle and Jerry's direction. "Eat something."

"Not hungry," Kyle mumbled. His dinner was untouched.

"So moody." Freider slid the content of the fork into his mouth.

"That's what I always say," Jerry said in a low voice.

Sam aimed a kick at him under the table, but missed. Kyle winced instead, but still didn't look up from his plate. His jaw was set, as if he was trying very hard to keep quiet.

"Let's not fight." Maxi looked sternly from Freider and Jerry to Kyle. A worry crease appeared between her eyes. "Kyle, what's wrong?"

Kyle flinched. "Nothing's wrong." He didn't raise his head and his voice was edgy. "I'm just tired."

"Tired? You've been lying around all day." Freider pushed his empty plate forward and leaned back in his chair. "I hope you're not mourning over some girl."

Kyle's gaze shot up. Sam saw shock being quickly replaced by repressed anger, as if his father had just hit a nerve.

"I've made it clear that I don't want you wasting your time with girls." Freider continued as though he hadn't noticed that Kyle looked ready to chuck his plate across the table at him.

Sam's eyes widened. Kyle had grabbed on to the edge of the table as if he was ready to turn it over. Considering his brother's built, Sam believed he literally could. Instead, Kyle pushed himself to his feet.

"I know, Dad." He turned to his mother. "I'm leaving for study camp tomorrow."

"You're what?" Maxi and Freider asked at once.

Sam felt like asking the same question. He'd counted on Kyle's subtle way of informing his parents to cling to it and ask for permission. But he couldn't go anywhere from there.

"I'm not asking. I'm telling you," Kyle replied, his eyes narrowed.

Even better.

"Me too," Jerry mumbled.

Their parents turned to him, eyes wide with shock, mouths hanging open.

"Wait, you and Kyle are going to study camp together?" Freider asked in disbelief.

"Me too," Sam said.

"Oh, no, you're not going anywhere without our permission. You're under-aged," Maxi snapped, shooting Sam down instantly. He doubted things could be any worse.

"I wasn't actually telling you, I was asking," he said, trying to keep his tone somewhere between certain and pleading.

His mother seemed to soften to this and gave him a small smile. "I guess it wouldn't be fair for your brothers to go without you."

"Who said they're going?" Freider piped in. "You two might be of age, but as long as you live under my roof, you don't go around telling us what to do."

"Dad, it's a study camp," Jerry said, his voice calm and confident. Sam wished he could pull that tone off, but he knew he was in the wrong so he couldn't.

Freider hesitated. "Okay, let's say we will consider it. What exactly does it imply?"

To Sam's horror, both Jerry and Kyle turned to him. Why were they doing this? They knew he sucked at hiding things. Okay, keep it simple. He wished he'd had time to play this out inside his head first. "We're going to Mexico to check out some ruins. In a safe, academic environment, of course."

"Why are you only telling us now?" Maxi asked the most sensible question ever.

"Because we were planning to tell you at the same time, all of us, but couldn't agree when to do it." That was sort of true.

"Wait, I get why Sam would want to go, but you two?" Freider asked another sensible question.

"We want to take care of Sam," both Jerry and Kyle answered at once. They threw each other a fleeting look that for the first time wasn't hostile. "And it could be interesting to come out of my comfort zone for once," Jerry continued. "It would be like an educational vacation before starting college."

Kyle shrugged. "I'm just going for the beaches."

Sam wondered why Kyle liked to show himself as a brainless slacker since he was neither, but his parents seemed to buy it.

Maxi and Freider looked at each other as though wondering what to ask next and Sam knew he had to say something to convince them before they started digging any deeper. And for that, for the first time in his life, he had to lie to them.

"I know you don't agree with my extra schoolwork, but this is a chance for me - for all of us - to learn important things.Like being very observant of minor details. I think that's very useful for thefamily business." He looked at his father as he said this. "Plus, it would be agreat chance for us to work together." He turned to his mother.

At once, he realized that he'd hit both of their weak spots. Both his parents looked excited, even if they tried to hide it behind stern expressions.

"We need to know a bit more before we make a decision," Maxi said.

"What more is there to know?" Kyle shrugged. "We're going to Cancun for a couple of weeks where we'll be looking at some rocks and hopefully spend the rest of our time getting a tan."

Wow, Kyle was really good at lying. Sam had to keep that in mind.

"That's true," Jerry lied as well, with incredible ease.

"Wait, but you can't expect me to believe there are ruins in the middle of the city," Maxi said.

Sam sighed, trying to play exasperated like his brothers. "They're in the jungle, Mom. But there'll be guides, specialized teams and everything."

"No. Definitely not." Maxi shook her head. "There's no way the three of you are setting foot into the jungle."

Sam opened his mouth to argue, but Freider beat him to it.

"Let's not be overprotective, honey. People walk through the jungle all the time to visit the pyramids. It's perfectly safe. Sam is right. They could learn a lot of useful things during this camp. And when they get back, they can put them to use for the rest of the summer."

Sam nodded, though he knew what that meant. When he got back, he'd be spending the rest of the summer at the agency as an intern. And strangely, he didn't mind it. Anything to get to go. Freider nodded to as though they'd sealed a contract.

Maxi rolled her eyes, but didn't protest any further. "As long as you take care of each other. I want the three of you to be the best of friends when you get back. And leave me the contact of the academic who's taking you there."

The three of them nodded. And as they gathered the dishes, Sam concluded that they'd gotten off easy. His parents had given them space ever since he could remember, but he'd expected them to want more information. He supposed that his father's desire for Sam to show interest in the agency and his mother's wish to see Jerry and Kyle getting along clouded their judgment.

But now that he knew he could go, there was something else he had to do. Making sure no one could see him, he texted Christine to see if they could meet in the part. He had to say goodbye to her. If Kyle was right and Harris was after treasures, the whole trip was dangerous. There was a slim chance he wouldn't make it home.

It took Christine a few seconds to reply that she'd love to see him. Sam pocketed his phone, announced that he was going out for a refreshing walk in the park and hurried out of the house before anyone would ask to come along.

Darn it, what's wrong with me? Why did he have to second guess himself and act so uptight around her?

He reached the bench he and Christine usually shared and found her in front of it, pacing nervously. She stopped once she caught sight of him and gave him a nervous smile. Sam smiled back, though he felt like frowning. What was wrong with her?

"Hi," she said once he reached her and gave him a hug.

He hugged her back, more out of reflex. This was new. He could feel her back tense as she pulled away. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"Oh, nothing's wrong." She gave a shaky laugh the negated her words. "I'm just a bit nervous. I'm glad you wanted to see me, because I wanted to see you too. I have news."

Her too, huh? Sam sat on the bench, curious to hear what she had to say. "Good news or bad news?"

"Depends." She started pacing again. "I..." She stopped and put her index finger on her chin as though considering if she should tell him or not. "Okay, I'm going all out. We've been friends for long enough and you'll understand."

Sam tilted his head wondering what the heck she was talking about.

She took in a deep breath and looked him straight in the eyes. "I think I'm in love."

Sam's heart jumped into his throat, almost choking him.

"He's the greatest guy," Christine continued as though she couldn't tell he was fighting for breath. "Brave, smart, funny... extremely handsome." She sighed. "I don't know if I should tell him."

A sharp stab of jealousy pushed Sam's heart into his stomach. Why should he care? But he couldn't pretend he didn't know what the pain meant. As much as he'd avoided thinking about his feelings, now that they'd become painfully obvious, he'd be an idiot to deny them. He never wanted to be Christine's friend. Every time they talked he tried to be smart and funny so that she'd like him. So that she'd want to be around him. Be with him. Couldn't she feel the heat between them when they touched? Had it all been inside his head?

Most likely. She was in love with someone else. Love... Was he in love with Christine? He wasn't sure about love, but he'd had a crush on her from the day he first saw her.

"Sam? Are you listening?"

"Um-hmm. Gee, Christine, I don't know what you should do." Why couldn't he be cool about this? Sarcasm oozed from his voice. "All I know is that I perfectly understand how you feel."

Christine bleached. "You do?"

"Yeah. You're not the only one with unrequited love." Stupid, stupid, stupid. He'd sounded so spiteful, it was a wonder Christine wasn't laughing at his crummy lie.

She lowered her eyes. "Well, then..."

Sam exhaled deeply. He was being a troll. "Look." He scooted next to her, trying to make his voice much softer. "You should tell him. He'd be an idiot not to love you back."

Christine looked at him, her amber eyes shining with tears. "You're right. He would be an idiot. Maybe I will tell him. Why did you want to meet?" The change of subject was so abrupt, it was clear she no longer wanted to talk about it. Which was perfect. He never wanted to talk about it again, either. He'd rather go to camp, focus on his passion and lick his wounds.

But when it came to actually telling her he was leaving, the words wouldn't come out. Sam bit his lip and looked at his watch. "I'll tell you on the way home."

Christine blinked. "Your home or my home?"

"Yours." Sam got up and led Christine towards the exit of the park.

They walked in silence for a few minutes. Why was it so hard to just open his mouth and say it? Christine didn't press him, so he remained tongue-tied the rest of the way. Christine stopped abruptly in front of an old house with tall windows. She apparently lived in the posh neighborhood on the other side of the park.

"Well?"

Sam swallowed. He had to do this. It wasn't like not telling her would cancel his imminent departure. But, despite everything, he wanted to spend at least one more second with her. She cleared her throat and he realized time was up.

"I wanted to say goodbye. I'm leaving on vacation tomorrow and I don't know how long I'll be."

Christine frowned. "And you're telling me the night before?" She waved her hand to stop him from bothering to find an explanation. "Anyway, I'm going away with my sister and father, too." She looked towards the house, the frown still on her face.

Seeing her like this hurt even more than the impossibility of their relationship. "I'm sorry for being a jerk earlier. I hope you do tell the guy and be happy."

Christine gazed at him as though trying to make up her mind about something, then hugged him. She put her hands on the back of his head and pulled him towards her until their faces were inches apart. Sam's heart went haywire as his whole body ached to kiss her. She was so close. Why was she doing this?

"I think it will work out after all." She smiled and closed her eyes.

She was so beautiful. He wanted to kiss her so bad it hurt. But it was just his luck that she would want someone else. He bent down and kissed her on the forehead then pulled out of her arms. As the turned and walked away, he wondered if the light played tricks on him or he'd really seen tears in her eyes.

I sure like my drama, huh? Family and love life. Poor little Sam.

What are your feelings on Sam's family at this point? Jerry? Kyle? Clueless parents?

Thanks so much for reading and don't forget to vote and comment. In the next chapter it's time to head for the jungle.