A/N: This was a introductory chapter done as a commission. The setting was to have a 'Lord of the Flies' situation with a group of young boys being stranded on an island. I wrote this chapter with each of the boys on the plane to illustrate their characters.

The project has been placed on hold by the creator. I will be posting this, and the other concept work here though for everyone to enjoy.

This was my first attempt at working on commission and I will see whether I can create work for others in the future, but such things may be more suited to short stories.

There was a strange sucking sound, not unlike the compression of air, as the door of the plane was securely shut and fastened, sealing the young passengers in. Cameron shifted in his seat, pressing his head against the window so that he could watch the stairway being pulled away, and the men walking away across the dull strip of grey runway.

He ran his teeth over his bottom lip, nervously, and glanced up at the monitor in front of him. The flat screen had already began to shift its display, signalling that the plane was preparing for take-off. The bland airline flight-plan, a composition of white fluffy clouds against a bright blue background with an adorable cartoon plane, transitioned into a set of bullet-point safety instructions.

'The usual drill,' the boy beside him muttered, admiring his own reflection in the camera of his phone, a smart Galaxy model with a custom case. He was paying particular attention to the braces upon his teeth which he picked at, as if they troubled him, although they were perfectly clean and bright silver.

This boy, Ethan Falkes, was younger than Cameron by a good few years but he was tall for his age. The silver braces upon his teeth might have made a different boy look much younger, but they had a strangely severe effect upon this young teen. The smooth lines of metal looked striking against the rough, sculpted jawline, almost attractive. It certainly detracted nothing from the boy's natural good looks and Ethan, vainly, pushed his own dark hair out of his eyes before clicking the camera button and capturing an image.

'Have you ever been on a plane before?' he asked conversationally, lowering his thick black lashes over his eyes as his fingers worked away, uploading the picture to facebook, 'you have that tense, scared-shitless first-time flyer look.'

'With my parents,' Cameron replied, reluctantly, looking away from the boy with an instinctual flinch of disgust. He resented being seated next to the younger boy, when there should have been so much more options with seating. He found the boy's behaviour distasteful and everything about him, from his expensive designer clothing, to his distinctive scent – some sort of sweet tea cologne that no boy his age would usually wear. 'When I was younger, I used to go on holidays with them…'

He only vaguely remembered the trips abroad with his parents, when he had been too young to leave behind. He had been given anti-nausea medicine and allowed to drink soda, something which had been a rare treat. He had cuddled-up against his mother, sucking at his coca-cola and then drifting away as she stroked his hair. He remembered how the sound of her tapping away on her laptop had soothed him. That had been a long time ago.

'I go abroad all the time,' Ethan told him, 'my dad's in the music business, that's how I got put forward for this event. How about you?' Cameron turned his head aside, to hide the curling at the corner of his lips. He couldn't help thinking how obvious it was, now he knew, that Ethan was the pampered son of a music agent.

'Yeah,' Cameron muttered, 'pretty much the same…my mum's in PR and stuff…she got me a place…' He felt a little guilty for feeling so bitter towards Ethan when, quite naturally, the other boy gave him a wide, friendly smile. It was true that there was still a little hint of self-indulgence to that curling of the lips, an arrogant, self-satisfied edge but a sincere quality showed through.

'It's great isn't it,' he declared, 'I'm pretty psyched because it's going to be on TV, isn't it? I've never been on TV before.' He reached over to his backpack, Cameron noted that this was also a designer brand, and pulled out a packet of gum.

'Want one?' Ethan asked, offering him the packet. Cameron felt queasy at the thought of putting anything in his mouth and pursed his lips tightly shut before shaking his head. He watched as the other boy withdrew a strip and popped it in his mouth as if he was in a commercial, smiling like the atypical American teen.

Cameron felt a renewed sense of loathing for the younger boy as he realised, with disgust, that the gum was not mint but bubblegum and Ethan blew his first bubble. The rubbery gum strained wide before bursting over Ethan's face, making him chuckle, pointing out his red tongue to lick the strands back into his mouth .

He glanced behind him, catching a glimpse of the two boys that occupied the seats. He would have preferred to have been seated beside either of these boys who seemed far more reserved and easy-going, their heads bent down in quiet conversation, content smiles upon their lips. They were not much older than Ethan but they seemed like they were much more mature, more interesting.

He turned back around again, his attention returning to the slim monitor, just as the basic CG woman began to rotate, inflating a life-preserve about her torso. The scrolling instructions were interrupted by the clicking of a woman's tongue, and the clapping of her hands. Tina Ellis, the representative from MTV, had taken her place at the front of the plane.

'Okay boys,' she called out in her crisp, trained voice, tossing one plait of thick black hair over her shoulder, 'are you all ready to get going on your trip?'

Everyone, made an exclamation of excitement, calling out in a disorganized jumble of shouts and laughter. Ethan in particular, whooped as if he was already in the studio, with the cameras focussed upon him for his reaction. Cameron only made a murmur, feeling self-conscious.

'I just want to make sure now,' Tina said, the levels of pep in her high voice rising as she thrust her own slender wrist up into the air, 'is everyone still wearing their wristbands?' A forest of gangly, adolescent writs sprouted, each hand sporting a bright yellow strip of rubber.

'Excellent!' Tina declared, delighted, showing off a row of perfect white teeth, 'and does everyone still have their maps, guidebook, booking papers and passport – all together?'

Cameron glanced at the small promotional fanny packs that had been provided, coiled at his feet and emblazoned all over with the channel and event's logo. He hadn't moved his documents either from their plastic wallets or their careful placing within the bag itself.

'Yes,' everyone intoned, in their practiced schoolroom voices. Several boys rattled their bags to indicate their level of competency and responsibility.

'Okay then,' said Tina, smiling again and giving a thumbs-up motion, 'well then, let's go over the safety procedure. If everyone could just direct their attentions to the screens…'

Cameron drummed his fingers on the armrest, and fixed his eyes forward, letting the words wash over him. Beyond the droll of the safety directions he could just discern the rough rumble of the engines as they started up and the murmur of conversation of other boys behind him.

Cash was bent forward, his head almost pressing against the back of Cameron's seat, as his fingers worked the buttons of his friend's mobile phone. He paused, only momentarily, to go over a word that had been changed by the auto-correct system and straighten out the grammar.

'Is that Katy, you're texting?' murmured Gabe, clicking his tongue. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the small bright screen just visible beneath his friend's slender fingers.

'Yeah,' Cash replied, after clicking at the buttons for a few moments further, 'just replying to her before we take off, you know.' He blinked critically as he re-read his message and then hit the send button before handing the phone back over to Gabe.

Gabe held it curiously for a moment, resisting the temptation to scroll through his sent folder, then replaced it his backpack. Cash had moved on to his complimentary bag of nuts, tearing at the packaging with his teeth and then picking at the shells with his sharp finger nails.

'So,' Gabe began, toying with the plastic wristband on his arm and watching his friend move his jaw greedily, crunching up his snack, 'did you…do anything with her?'

Cash smiled, a broad smile across his tanned face, his brown eyes glittering with a restrained pleasure. He licked his lips, languorously, catching the stray traces of salt that remained there, and then shook his head, firmly.

'We were only alone at her house for a while,' he told his friend, in a whisper, 'and she was worried about her parents coming back and…you know…catching us…we only kissed.'

Gabe nodded, slowly, trying to hide the disappointment upon his face. He jealously pictured the girl that Cash had spent the last weekend with, allowing himself to picture the entirety of their encounter, from the first chaste kisses to their long, passionate ones.

The corners of Cash's mouth were still turned up, in a pleasant smile, and Gabe stared at them for a few moments, before speaking again.

'You've got salt all over your face,' he told him, contemptuously, but he knew that such a small blemish did nothing to diminish his friend's good looks. He narrowed his eyes again, enviously as Cash grinned widely and wiped at his lips. The other boy then leaned over, across the armrest, to whisper, confidentially.

'She said she wanted to do stuff though,' he told Gabe, wetly, 'we talked about it. She's a little worried about anything heavy but we agreed we could, you know, go down on each other.'

Gabe stared into his friend's gleaming eyes, and smiled back, aware of a flush coming to his face as he contemplated his words.

'Cool,' he muttered, breathily, looking away at his plastic wristband, running his fingers over the embossed characters. 'Teen Pop Awards 2014.' He felt the stiff plane seats shift as Cash leant back again and heard the sound of the boy letting out a breath in one long sigh.

'Is she…your girlfriend now, then?' Gabe asked, letting his eyes flicker back to his friend's face. Cash shook his head, carelessly, reached across to clutch at the packet of nuts that rested on the side of the other seat.

'She's cute,' he murmured, 'I mean, I like her…but I don't really, really like her. She doesn't want to be really...you know…together. We're just friends, you know.' He started to tear open the second packet of nuts, 'is it okay if I have yours?'

'Yes,' Gabe replied, watching the other boy proceed to cram his face once again, 'so…it's nice, that you're what…'fuck budies?' Cash tittered, childishly,and shook his head.

'We only kissed anyway,' he muttered, with his mouth full, 'I told you.' He had to turn his head, hurriedly, as a small figure cast a shadow over them.

'Ax,' he said, with a sigh, when his eyes settled upon the soft features of his younger brother. Axel was standing in the aisle, leaning down on Gabe's armrest and fidgeting uncomfortably. He was wearing his best red T-shirt, the one which their grandmother had given him, and had Cash had carefully combed his hair but he still looked just as self-conscious as on his worst school days.

'What do you want?' Cash asked, reaching across to nudge the younger boy's shoulder in a firm, affectionate gesture. The boy flushed, and bit his lip, his dark chestnut hair falling over his eyes.

'Can't I come sit with you two for a while?' He whined, awkwardly, flicking his plastic wristband against his skin.

'Where?' Gabe asked, pointedly, 'on my lap?' He watched as the boy flushed deeper, his smooth browned skin turned markedly red. 'It's just a joke,' he added pointedly. He realised that Axel remained intimidated by his brother's friends, even though he and Gabe had known each other for years now.

'It's not a joke, really, Ax,' Cash said rolling his eyes, 'there's no-where for you to sit here, you can't hang out here, okay?'

'But…'Axel whispered, unhappily, 'I don't know anyone here…' He snapped his wristband against his bony wrist again and chewed his lip violently. Cash leaned forward, shaking his head in exasperation and patting his brother on the shoulder.

'Talk to the boy next to you, why don't you?' He looked over the seats, at the fair-haired boy with the empty seat beside him. He was hunched up against the window, looking out with dreamy eyes and toying with the cover of a childrens' paperback. 'He seems nice enough.'

'I don't know what to talk to him about,' Axel whispered, his face crumpling with anxiety.

'I can't do everything for you,' Cash replied, bitterly, 'talk to him about his book – isn't that obvious? You've read that Dragonfire series haven't you?' Axel shrugged, awkwardly, but began to move away, back to his own seat.

'I don't know why he's being shy now,' Cash muttered, 'he deals okay with kids at school.' Gabe didn't reply but leaned over, out into the aisle, to stare at the rows of younger boys at the back.

'They all look okay,' he murmured, 'they're behaving anyway.' The set of boys directly behind him were giggling, happily, giddy with excitement and delight. He had already noticed the auburn –haired boy with glittering brown eyes, doing back-flips in the lounge. He had been apparently been sourced from some sort of sports club, as many of the boys had been.

Riley, unused to sitting still, jiggled his feet impatiently and leaned over to whisper something to the boy beside him, comparing the MTV representative to Effie Trinket from The Hunger Games. Mason, a young boy with slightly over-long chestnut hair which tangled handsomely about his ears, laughed indulgently.

'I guess the odds are in our favour, though,' he said, carelessly, doing a fair imitation of the actresses' voice, 'you seem pretty stoked about the concert, right?' Riley flipped his head back and answered by jumping up and down in his seat, his white trainers scraping against the back of the seat in front as he did so. He gurgled his approval, prompting Mason to comment, with a pleasant note of derision.

'No need to go quite so full spaz about it, is there?' Riley was not perturbed by such a comment, comfortable with testing the limits of other people's patience and experienced in not over-stepping the boundaries. He proceeded to transition into a shockingly convincing seizure, letting his eyes roll back into his head and his body shudder, violently. Mason was unable to control his laughter, covering his mouth with his hand as the other boys slid down slowly in his seat, propelled towards the floor merely by the force of his own twitching limbs.

'Are you listening, back there?' Called Tina, the smile remaining on her lips but a reproachful note entering her bright and airy tone of voice, 'please can we keep the theatrical behaviour to a minimum – until we're in the studio?'

Riley rolled his eyes forward, dully, letting his body still while a trickle of saliva slid down his chin, an excess from the impression of rabid foaming he had been given. His eyes slid to the boy beside him, slyly, focusing on Mason's own bright green eyes and searching for any signs of embarrassment or discomfort. Mason was unruffled though, a twisted smirk still quirking his lips.

The loud smack of a bubble bursting sounded as Ethan leant his head around the seat, twisting his neck and glaring out to see who was causing the fuss.

'Hey,' he called out, thickly through the gum that had become tangled in his braces, he licked his teeth before continuing, 'who's acting like a fuck-up? Sit down and stop being such a retard!'

Riley slid up in his seat, smoothly, straightening his spine and wiping his mouth hastily. He was aware of the other boy's eyes upon him up until the moment he adjusted and fastened his seatbelt about his slim waist. It was only then that Ethan pulled his head back in, relaxing in his own seat and beginning to leisurely work his way through a fresh stick of gum.

'Tightly-bound, isn't he?' Riley muttered, quietly, 'do you think he's hoping to be scouted or something? He seems the ambitious type, maybe wants to go into movies or modelling.'

'Mmm,' Mason agreed, running one hand through his already thoroughly ruffled hair and cocking his head to one side, 'I'll bet he's got half a dozen head shots concealed in his backpack, perhaps along with another dozen full-body poses.'

Riley grinned, cheerily, and struck a pose, pouting his lips and sticking one arm behind his head before tossing his hair, as if he was in a shampoo advert.

'I think he gets photographed like this,' he stated, proceeding to run his tongue over his lips and flutter his eyelashes, 'don't you think?'

'Definitely,' Mason laughed, 'such a cute look…' He licked his own lips, in a slightly affected manner, but then leant back in his chair, wearily.

'Can I have some of your water,' he murmured, quietly, holding out his hand and wiggling his fingers, 'I think I'm going to take a nap.' Riley silently handed over the complimentary bottle into the other boy's waiting hand and then shifted his own shoulders against the back of the chair.

'I guess I should too,' he commented, watching the boy's throat tremble as he drank, thirstily, 'wake me up when you want me to wake you up, alright?' Mason chuckled and rolled onto his side, so that the two boys were facing each other and closed his eyes.

Opposite them, half concealed behind a blanket, a dark haired boy stared out at them with thick-lashed blue eyes. Jacob had been looking out at the other boys for a while, watching everyone talking, resting or entertaining themselves. He had hoped that he might be seated beside one of the older boys who seemed so interesting and exciting and felt his skin burn with envy when one of the boys in front of him and gone up to talk to them, chatting away with familiarity.

'Do you know them?' he had whispered, shyly, when the boy with the chestnut brown hair returned. The boy had nodded, awkwardly, twisting the wristband on his arm.

'Yeah,' he murmured, tilting his head at the boy in the window seat, 'that's my brother and his friend…'

'Oh,' Jacob had replied, wondering what else he might say to express his admiration, or to forge a friendship with this boy. He managed to stutter out an introduction for himself and catch, in return, a muttered acknowledgement of the other boy's name – Axel, but then his mouth had gone dry and he had run out of words. Axel had begun to fidget and then had returned to his seat, settling down to talk to the boy sat next to him.

For a while Jacob had eavesdropped on their talk, hungrily, listening to their comfortable chatter about books, wishing he could join in, but then he had drawn his attention away, pulling his comfortable blanket tightly about himself.

His blanket had a beautiful embroidered design of a starry night and smelt of his home, of his mother in particular, who had spent a huge amount of time stitching it. His silky black hair stuck out over the thick blue material, curling against the pretty golden stars.

He could hear the sound of raised voices, the representative's high tones were ringing through the cabin in a restrained hiss, punctuated by a childish whining.

'That's it! – Carter – you need to get back to your seat right now! Okay?' Jacob flushed, and twitched his head up from beneath his blanket. He had not seen the boy that had been seated beside him since the beginning of their flight in which Carter had jumped into his seat and rocked up and down on his heels, restlessly.

'Are you okay?' Jacob had asked, gently, shifting his rucksack to one side and glancing at the flushed, freckled boy beside him.

'Yeah, yeah,' Carter had replied, clicking his fingers and then giving Jacob a wide grin, 'I gots ADHD.' Jacob had blinked, uncertainly, licking his lips while he searched for words. The other boy laughed, loudly, showing his little rounded teeth and his long tongue.

'It's okay,' Carter told him, confidentially, 'my dad sent me out with a box of Ritalin, but I can't take any right now and I just can't stand to sit still, you know?' Jacob drew away without any words to reply, but had shot the energetic boy a friendly smile.

He had jiggled about for a while more, shifting his carry-ons, and then had jumped straight back out of his seat and charged-up, claiming he wanted to investigate the cabin and meet the pilot.

'You alright?' Jacob, whispered, as Tina pushed the boy down in his seat, Carter shrugged, and then nodded, pulling himself up to make a face at the young woman as she walked away.

'Yeah, you alright, snuggles?' He said, eyeing the other boy's position, almost entirely curled up under the blue blanket. Jacob flushed, feeling like a baby, but hugged the soft fluffy material closer to his body.

'I saw the pilot,' Carter boasted, pulling out a packet of sweets and beginning on some jelly bears, 'I talked to him, I wanted him to let me steer the controls, to press some of the buttons. He wouldn't though, which I guess is cool. He was nice to me, though he talked to me like a little kid, really.' He swore a little, vaguely, and rolled the jelly bear around with his tongue, opening his mouth so that Jacob could see the whole procedure.

'Oh…cool…' Jacob mumbled, running his fingers over his soft blanket, and licking his lips again.

'Can I share your blanket, snuggles?' Carter asked, kicking his legs restlessly, 'it looks cosy, wanna cosy up together?' Jacob wasn't sure if the other boy was teasing him but smiled, shyly, and held up one end of the blanket as if it meant nothing to him. He knew it would not reflect him in a good light if he was too precious about this one item, making him seem immature and effeminate. He was worried that Carter might turn cruel, although the boy only grinned and accepted his offering.

'Ooh, snugly,' he murmured, wrapping the blanket about himself and moving closer to the other boy, even leaning over the armrest and pressing himself close to the other boy's narrow boy, 'snugly snuggles,'

'It's Jacob,' Jacob said, quickly, thinking that he was in danger of acquiring this term of endearment as an enduring nickname, 'not snuggles, dickhead.' He had added the soft swearword to try and seem more mature but he was worried that Carter might take offense. The other boy only grinned however, companionably.

He tilted his head, clicking his tongue, and shifted his knee, provocatively so that it pushed into the soft, smooth skin of Jacob's calf. They had both, given the forecast for their destination, chosen to wear shorts, leaving no layer of protection for Jacob from Carter's teasing. He flushed, wriggling away slightly, pressing his face against the window and pulled at the cuff of his thin khaki shorts.

'Don't,' he hissed at the other boy, gritting his round white teeth, at the satisfied smile upon Cater's freckled face. His dark, flushed lips twisted, impishly and he stuck his tongue out, childishly, in response to Jacob's reaction.

'You're such a wimp,' he whispered, reaching down to pinch at the other boy's leg, 'I'm not going to hurt you.' Jacob frowned, lowering his slender black brows and nibbled his scarlet lips, turning his face away and willing his knees up, tucking the blanket beneath his body and attempting to pull it away from Carter.

'Calm down,' Carter said, rolling his eyes again, he raised his hands above the blanket and began to kick his feet, restlessly again. 'I'm going to take my pills now, anyways, you can go to sleep too, right, and I'm not going touch yooou - '

'Don't be stupid,' Jacob replied, in a harsh hiss, feeling his pale cheeks flush, 'you sound so gay.' He sat still for a while, listening as there was a crackle over the speakers and the pilot began to announce that they were about to take-off.

The boys all cheered again, throwing their arms up in the air and waving them, so that Tina had to clap her hands to quiet them, reminding them to listen to captains words, although they were only the obligatory pre-amble about altitudes and expected flight times.

'We're predicted quite a bit of turbulence today,' the pilot said, his smooth voice distorted slightly through the tinny speakers, 'so please, keep your seatbelts tightened at all times from now on.'

'Buckle-up, says Bill,' Carter said, in a sing-song voice, 'the pilot's name is bill, I saw it when I met him, right?' Jacob pursed his lips at this unnecessary explanation and slid his legs down so that he could tighten his belt buckle, just as the other boys were doing. He was relieved when he saw Carter doing the same, taking care to adjust the belt's length and then pressing a pillow against his back. Jacob continued to watch him as he carefully counted out two small pills from a transparent pill pot.

'Are those your Ritalin?' he asked, curious, in spite of himself.

'Nah,' Carter said, with a harsh laugh, 'nah, these are just sleeping pills. I've got to sleep on the flight and these should knock me out for the whole way, alright?' Jacob nodded and let the other boy pull some of his blanket over himself before turning away and resting his own head against the window, wondering whether he would be able to sleep throughout the flight too.

Gradually, very gradually, Jacob let his eyelids droop, stroking his cheek with the corner of his comforting blanket, reeling comfortable and relaxed. Beside him he felt Carter droop, heavily, leaning upon his shoulder but his weight was pleasant, not awkward. Jacob no longer felt anxious about the other boy; he was harmless now, and quite child-like. He felt as though he had a trusted companion to dream beside and he let himself, cheerfully, imagine what it would be like when he awoke and would be in a very different place.

Flames were licking at the side of Cameron's seat by the time he opened his eyes, feeling as though some great creature had its claws pressing down on his chest. He shook his head, tears trickling down his cheeks as his eyes stung at the black smoke that swirled about him. He tried to take a breath but such an act only made him feel heavier, beginning to slip under again, straight away.

'Get up,' hissed a voice beside him, 'for god's sake get up, you idiot! We're all on fire, you god-damn idiot!' He felt a hand strike him, hard, across his face. It was a slap that made his skin sting and the tears at the corners of his eyes welled-up, hot and wet. He lurched forward and began to cough, dimly aware of the boy beside him beating at the flames with a jumper, managing to suppress them somewhat – but the air was heavy with smoke.

'What's happening?' Cameron croaked, weakly, blinking rapidly and trying to simply wrench himself off from the seat, 'what's happening?'

'I told you – we've gone down – the plane's crashed!' Ethan had begun the scream and now that Cameron's ears were beginning to work again, picking up every low and high pitch the smoky, rocking cabin, he could hear other screams, young wails that pierced the air.

'The engine's on fire!' Ethan screamed, 'most of the boys have already gone!' He grabbed hold of Cameron and started to pull him up, fiercely. Through his confusion Cameron was surprised by how strong the younger boy seemed but soon found himself moving, automatically, swaying with the movement of the rocking plane.

'I'm sorry,' Cameron whispered, dully, 'I'm awake now, I'm awake!' He felt the other boy let go of him and began to make his own way down the aisle, grabbing hold of the seats to support himself. Ethan moved ahead, unsteadily, weighed down by two sets of backpacks, one of which Cameron recognized as his own, and looked back, with a pained face, at the other boy.

He was clearly energized, being forced on by adrenaline, but when Cameron saw his face clearly for the first time the thing he saw most clearly was fear. His fear was visible in every wrinkle between his brow, in every thick drop of sweat upon his skin. He looked, too, suddenly so young, like the frightened child he was.

'Don't die, you stupid bastard,' he hissed, between his teeth, 'don't leave me!' He was thrown, off-balance, by a fiercer rock of the plane, and clutched tightly at the seat. They were closer to the screaming voices now, so high-pitched and desperate.

'We've got to get them!' Ethan waved, vaguely, 'Help me! Please, help me!' Cameron didn't hesitate but waded on, desperately, taking the arm of the young boy who had saved him. He moved forward, seeing the bob of a head, the whisper of singed lock of chestnut brown hair. He reached out to touch, cupping the side of a trembling face.

'I'm here,' he whispered, 'unbuckle your belt, we'll get you out – quick!' He felt the boy's head droop though, heavily, and the scream die away. The seats shook with the weight of another boy, one who was wriggling, frantically out of his seatbelt. Cameron observed the terrified face of a fair-haired boy, peering over the back of seat in front of him, one arm wrapped over his face, the limp plastic of a oxygen mask just visible beneath, crumpled under his fist.

'Help me,' he screamed, in a hideous wail, 'I can't breathe…I don't know…' Ethan reached out, forcefully, to clutch at the boy's arm and helped pull him up, over the seat, then hoisting him under his arm. The small boy leant into Ethan's body, burying his face in the older boy's neck, but managed to walk with him down the aisle.

'Can you get the other one?' Ethan shouted, his face flushing a deep red and the sweat trickling down his neck, 'I can't – I can't do this!'

'I've got him,' Cameron called back, though his fingers were trembling and his feet felt unsteady. He reached forward to undo the boy's seat buckle and saw, from the corner of his eye, Ethan making his way to the open emergency exit. He found the boy's skin alarmingly hot and slippery but clutched at the material of his clothes to bring him up into his arms, pressing him to him like an infant.

Instinctively the boy murmured and wrapped his legs about his chest, pressing his head down upon Cameron's shoulder and shuddering, desolately. Cameron ran his fingers through the boy's soft brown hair, absently, as he bore him forward, squinting his eyes as he stared at the narrow strip of light, just visible, beyond the open door of the crashed plane.