Not Your Average Fairy Tale (Not Your Average Fairy Tale #1) (15 page)

Ash

I tried hard to remember why I had kissed Kendall. I couldn't think of a logical explanation to give Sam. Or anyone else. Not that anyone else was going to find out. I was already in enough trouble for turning Dax into a rat. I had a meeting with Shenelle in an hour. Dax would be there. It sounded like tons of fun.

"Dude! What were you thinking?" Sam asked as I paced our room. He sat in the desk chair, his feet up on the desk.

"I wasn't," I said, closing my eyes and massaging my temples. I had a headache from all the stress I was causing myself.

"Does Shenelle know?"

I squeezed my eyes tighter, hoping the headache would disappear. What good was having magic when I couldn't even make myself feel better?

"No. I don't think so. All she does is read the notes I give her and check my wand every week." I frowned. "She seemed a little perplexed that Kendall hasn't made her third wish. She won't leave me alone about it. It's driving me crazy.”

"Uh, you just said perplexed. What's wrong with you?"

Turning to look at him, my eyes landed on the purple folder sitting on the desk. Kendall’s file. It bothered me that I still had it. I hadn't read it since Kendall's panic attack at her friend's party. I was also so sick of Shenelle asking me if I'd read it. There was no need to read it. I knew Kendall better than that stupid file. “Don’t move,” I said.

Sam glanced up at me and his green eyes widened.

I pointed my wand at the file and watched as blue light shot out of it. The folder lit the room for a second before exploding into a million pieces.

Sam yelled a curse and jumped to his feet. He shook the purple dust out of his hair. A whiff of smoke mixed with flowers reached my nose and I tried not to gag. “Seriously, Ash! You just blew up your assignment’s folder! Shenelle is going to be so pissed!” He opened the window to let some of the smoke out. "You're obviously regretting the kiss. What else would make you go all crazy like that?"

I plopped down on my bed, wishing I could focus on something other than
that.
I probably shouldn't have told Sam, but who else could I talk to? "I don't regret it."

"Was it
that
awesome, then?"

I leaned over to find something to throw at him, but my shoes were out of reach and I really didn't want to get my wand out again. "Go away."

"Oh, come on. I want to know how you feel about her."

"Could you please stop sounding like a girl? You're freaking me out trying to talk to me about feelings. You've done it twice this week."

He whistled. "You've got it bad."

"Sam," I said, warning him off.

"No, really. I've never seen you so worked up about a girl. And a girl without magic? It's fascinating." He stopped talking and sat down again. "I want to be a fairy now."

"Believe me. This is not what I signed up for."

"I know
that
," he said. "So, how close are you two, then? Besides the whole kiss and everything."

"Can we please talk about something else?"

He just sat there, waiting.

I sighed. "She knows about my nightmares."

"What?" He looked astonished. "How?"

"She heard me scream when I was asleep."

"So, you're
that
close?" He wiggled his eyebrows at me.

"Don't even go there, Sam. Of course not. I fell asleep when I showed her my wings."

Sam jumped to his feet, faster than I'd ever seen him move before. "You showed her your wings? I haven't even seen them, and we share a room!"

"You want to see the stupid things?" I tore off my shirt and threw it at him. "There. You happy?"

He smiled. "Pretty."

"Shut up."

"I thought they'd be more ... masculine."

I snorted. "At least they aren't pink.”

"Yeah, silver's pretty tight." He handed me my shirt and I put it back on, careful to bend my wings down so they hid underneath. I had promised Kendall I would never tie them down again.

When I looked up, Sam was shaking his head, a smile on his face.

"What?"

"I can't believe you're in love with a human girl."

"I'm not. I mean, I can't be. I haven't even known her that long."

"Whatever. You've been acting like you're in some kind of romantic comedy the past few weeks."

"This isn't funny, and I'm not romantic!"

"Oh yeah? Then what's this?" He picked a little blue box off the desk, complete with a silver bow on top, and held it out to me.

I swore.

"Thought so," he said, smirking.

I really shouldn't have gotten Kendall a birthday present, but I couldn't help it. "So, you still dating that siren? Melody?" I asked as he set the box down.

He rolled his eyes at the subject change, but answered me anyway. "Sirens are hard core. Every time she opens her mouth I cover my ears, hoping she doesn't sing me to my death."

"Sam, Melody isn't the murdering type. She's pretty cool, actually." I kept him talking, grateful the conversation was now on him.

"I know. All those stories give me the willies, though," he said, shivering.

"You should take her to The Reef. Best restaurant on campus," I said.

"Can’t. She's scared of dryads. And she doesn't like to leave her little pool. She gets homesick." He frowned.

And I thought I had problems.

Kendall

I sat in the hospital room, trying to remember how I’d ended up here. My body felt heavy. Weak. I tried to lift my arm, and stopped when I felt a tug.

I was hooked up to an IV. I glanced up to see several bags of liquid slowly dripping into the tube that ran into my arm. A machine beeped somewhere to my right, and I felt something in my nose. I reached up and yanked the oxygen out, probably setting off alarms at the nurse’s station.

I waited, but no one came in.

The room was plain. A few outdated pictures hung on the wall, with fake plants taking up space on two small tables across the room. Purple curtains lined the window, and the drab brown couch would have looked at home in my grandmother’s living room.

My mom came in, her eyes red and puffy.

That's when I remembered. "Where's Dad?" I asked.

"How are you feeling?" Her light hair was coming out of its ponytail, and she had blood on her blue scrubs. I couldn't look away from it.

An image filled my mind. My dad and I driving to the game. Headlights coming straight at us, me yanking the wheel.

"Where's Dad?" I asked again. "Is he alright?"

I tried sitting up, but my mom pushed me back down on the bed.

"Honey," she faltered, and tears started sliding down her cheeks.

"Please. Please don't say it," I said. She reached out to stroke my hair, and I pushed her hand away. My whole body protested, but I sat up and kicked my legs over the edge of the bed.

"Kendall. You have to understand something–"

"No!" I yelled. "Tell me where Dad is! Where is he?"

"Honey–" She reached for me again.

"Don't touch me!"

"Kendall, please," she said. "Listen to me."

I stopped struggling and waited.

Grief etched every inch of her face. "He's gone, honey. Dad's gone."

"No." I shook my head.

"I'm so sorry, sweetie," she said. Tears slid down her cheeks. She made no attempt to wipe them away.

I stared at the too-white walls in my too-sterile room. The smell of the hospital overwhelmed me, and images of the crash played over and over again in my mind.

My head started swimming. I leaned over and threw up on the floor.

"Kendall?" I heard her stand and start to walk around the bed to get to me.

"Stay away from me!"

"Kendall–"

"He can't be gone," I sobbed. "He can't!"

"Kendall, it's going to be okay.”

"No! It's not going to be okay! Dad's gone!" My eyes widened. "And it's all my fault," I whispered.

I started hyperventilating. My sobs became too much. I couldn't breathe. My lungs wouldn't work. It felt like someone was sitting on my chest, squeezing all the air out.

"Take a deep breath, you're having an anxiety attack."

"I ... can't ..." I slid down the side of the bed and ended up on the floor.

My mom disappeared into the hall. I heard her say something, but couldn't make it out. Nurses ran in, holding my arms and trying to lift me back to the bed.

"Don't touch me! Leave me alone!" I kicked and screamed, fighting anyone who tried to touch me. They finally got me back on the bed and held me down as another nurse came in, took a needle out, and shot something into the I.V.

"This will help calm you down," the nurse said.

"No!" My veins burned, my vision blurred, and I saw only darkness.

A laugh, deep and hollow, echoed through my mind. I saw a face with golden eyes, watching me.

"Sweet dreams," a voice said.

I jumped, and sat up in bed. I looked around my room. Not a hospital room. I let out the breath I was holding.

I hadn't had a nightmare in ages.

My face was wet, and I wiped my tears away.

Strange. Every detail about the night my dad died had been in the dream. It had all seemed so real.

At least I hadn't woken up to a scary voice talking in my head. I shivered.

I thought of the guy’s face in the dream. His golden eyes. I'd never seen him before, yet he seemed familiar.

Glancing at the clock told me I had two more hours to sleep. My brain was wired, and I knew I wouldn't be able to relax. I got up and got ready for the day.

I wondered what Ash was doing. I wanted to tell him about the dream. He’d mentioned he knew a lot about dreams, since he was studying to be a sandman, so maybe he could help me figure out what mine meant. The more I thought about it though, the more I realized it hadn't really been a dream.

It was a memory.

Ash

Lady Shenelle glared at me from across the desk. Her hair was blue this time, and cut short. I considered making a snide remark about her looking like a Smurf, but thought better of it. I knew how much trouble I was in. I didn't need to make it worse.

I glanced at Dax, who sat a few feet away, a smug look on his pale face. He was normal again, and I silently cursed myself for not making the spell last a little longer.

"So, let me get this straight," Shenelle said. She took off her glasses and set them on the desk.

I was so screwed. When Shenelle took her glasses off, she meant business.

She clasped her hands in front of her, looking way too calm. "Dax threatened you and to get him back, you turned him into a rat. Correct?"

Before I could open my mouth, Dax answered. "I was joking around, and he attacked me. I didn't even get a chance to defend myself," he said.

I tried to keep my expression neutral, even though I wanted to laugh. Turning Dax into a rat was honestly one of the coolest things I'd ever done. Not to mention hilarious.

"Ash?" Lady Shenelle waited for me to say something.

"Everything he said is true. Except the joking around part."

She groaned. "Ash, this is serious. You used magic on another person without his consent. You could be expelled."

"Great," I mumbled. My eyes wandered to the floor.

"You mean he might
not
be?" Dax asked.

"If you’d kept your mouth shut, none of this would have happened," I said, glancing at him.

He stood, his voice rising with every word. "I know the rules. No one ever seems to care when
he
does something wrong! I'm sick of it!"

"In other words, you're jealous," I said.

He started toward me. "You son of a–"

"Enough!" Shenelle pointed towards the door. "Dax, leave us."

"Are you kidding me? He's the one that–"

"Now!"

Dax glanced at me. "Fine." He turned and stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

"Well?"

I met Shenelle's eyes. "What?" I asked.

"What do you mean
what
? Are you going to plead your case, or do I have to take this to the council?"

No way was I going to tell her about Dax threatening Kendall. She'd figure out I had some sort of attachment to her and cut me off completely. At least this way I'd just be on probation until I had my hearing with the council. That was usually how they did things when rules were broken.

"Ash," Shenelle said.

I shook my head.

Dax was right. I'd never really gotten in trouble before. There was no way I was going to lose my chance to see Kendall, though.

I sat up a little straighter and looked her in the eye. "I guess you take it to the council. I'm not sorry, and Dax deserved it."

"You're sure?"

I squared my jaw. "Yes."

She studied me, and I swear the corner of her mouth twitched. "Fine." She picked up a paper and started writing on it. "Ash Summerland, you are now on probation for the remainder of your apprenticeship. You must report to me if you wish to leave campus for your assignment, and may only stay out for an hour at the most. You must also report to me when you return. I'll know if you stay out any longer."

"Yes, ma'am." It's not like I was staying with Kendall longer than an hour anyway, lately. Even though I wanted to spend every second of every day with her.

"So, did you use your wand? When this happened?"

I frowned, trying to remember. I hadn't used my wand, but I wasn't about to tell her that. Shenelle's interest in my magic was starting to make me nervous. I'd rather keep some things to myself. "Of course. Why?"

She shrugged. "No reason."

"Anything else?"

"Yes. You will meet with the council tonight. I'll call you in an hour or so. Be ready to plead your case to them."

I nodded.

"You're dismissed."

"Thanks."

"Oh, and Ash?"

I looked at her.

"This is your first and last warning. Don't do this again."