Not Your Average Fairy Tale (Not Your Average Fairy Tale #1) (18 page)

Kendall

"How was the dance?"

My mom sat in the living room reading what I assumed was a romance novel. Even from across the room I could see the dark circles under her eyes, and her face was puffy. She looked exhausted. And sad.

"It was great."

"Have fun with Cameron?"

I thought about it for a moment and nodded. Better for both of us if I didn't tell her the truth.

"Good." She went back to reading, and that was when I realized she was holding the book upside down.

"Mom?" I asked, noticing a wadded-up tissue sticking out from underneath the couch cushion.

She jumped.

"Can I talk to you about something?"

A guarded expression crossed her features and then vanished. She nodded, and I went to sit beside her.

"What's wrong, honey?" She put the book down.

I cleared my throat, knowing tears were coming and I couldn’t stop them. "I'm sorry," I blurted.

She looked surprised. "For what?"

"For dad. The accident. Everything." I wasn't sure if my wish would make her forgive me, but the least I could do was tell her I was sorry.

She started to say something, but I cut her off.

"No. I need to say this." I took a deep breath. "I know you blame me for what happened to him." She shook her head. "Even if it's a small part of you. I just wanted to tell you ..." My voice caught. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I took him away from you. I'm sorry he's gone."

Before I knew it, I was cradled against her like a small child. She stroked my hair, tears running down her face. "It's not your fault, Kendall."

I was quiet, save for my sniffling. It was the first time we'd ever talked about what happened. I wasn't about to ruin it by saying something stupid.

"I know it feels like it was your fault, but I promise you, I don't blame you at all. I'm just glad I still have you." She paused, gathering her thoughts. "I do miss him ..." her voice caught, and she took a moment to breathe. "I miss him more than words could say, but I'm so thankful you're still with me." She sniffed. "You and Ellie mean the world to me, and I'm sorry I haven't been the best mother lately. I'll try to do better. For all our sakes. I know I've thrown myself into work, but it was the only way to keep myself sane. Now I realize I've been neglecting you. I won’t do that anymore. You’ve been through enough without me making it worse."

"You're not a bad mom," I said.

"I'm not a good one either."

We sat in silence, leaning on each other for support.

"Thank you," I whispered.

"For what?"

"For talking to me. You have no idea how long I've wanted this."

"I love you, sweetie." She kissed the top of my head. "You and Ellie, both. I promise I'll never distance myself from you guys again."

"I love you too, Mom."

I said goodnight to her and walked upstairs to my bedroom.

I had so many things to think about. Cameron, my mom. Dax with the sand that made me go to sleep. So many weird things happened tonight, and my mind was still whirling.

Ash was the only thing I actually thought about, though.

The dance we'd shared under the stars. The way he had held me when Dax attacked us.

I touched my lips, still feeling the heat of his kiss before he left me on the porch. I could get used to a kiss like that.

But there was one problem.

He was a fairy.

I wasn't sure what to do about that. I wasn't sure where we stood, or if we even had a chance of a future together. I knew he cared for me, but didn't know how deep. I also knew if I laid my heart on the line and he didn't feel the same, I'd lose myself again. So, I'd keep quiet. Unless it had to be said. Then, if it came down to keeping or losing him, I'd give in and tell him.

Ash

"You are so screwed," Sam said, as we stood in the fairy wing of the university.

"Probably," I said.

"No, really. You are
so
screwed." He shook his head and chuckled under his breath. "I so wish I were you right now. You get to have all the fun."

"Hey, you were pretty awesome tonight, too. If it wasn't for you, I'd be a big pile of sand right now."

"I know."

I smiled. "Thanks for coming with me. If it gets really bad in there, stop time so I can get the heck out."

"Only if you go
crazy fairy
on Melody. Stop her from following me around and singing me creepy songs." He grimaced. "I probably shouldn't have broken it off with her, but she was starting to freak me out!"

I smiled at the notion of scaring a siren.

"Deal."

The door to Lady Shenelle's office opened, and a green haired fairy floated out. She winked at me, which normally would have been flattering, but I ignored her.

"The council will see you now," she said. She shut the door after I stepped into the room. Three pairs of eyes stared me down.

"Ash Summerland. Would you care to explain tonight's events to us?" Master Time asked. He checked his pocket watch, like he always did, and glared at me.

"Not really. You already know what happened."

"Ash!" Shenelle snapped. She looked furious. "You’re already in enough trouble! You missed your meeting with the council. That was two hours ago.”

“But–”

“I don’t want to hear anything else out of you unless we request it.” Her eyes flashed. “Sit. Down."

I sat.

"Now. Tell us what happened. In your own words."

I described, in detail, everything that happened at Kendall's dance. I left out a few things, like kissing her and giving her a gift. What they didn't know couldn't get me in trouble.

"So, you and Mr. Ellwater–" Master Time started.

"Sam," I said. I mentally cursed myself. I needed to learn to keep my mouth shut.

He looked annoyed. "You and
Sam
fought Dax because he threatened your assignment?"

"Pretty much."

Master Night, or Logan, glared at me from a few chairs away. He knew I was lying about something, but there was no way I was telling him anything. He was one of the reasons I was in this predicament in the first place.

"This is unacceptable, Ash. You were seen. By nearly a hundred high school students and two teachers," Shenelle said. "We had to erase all their memories of the entire night."

"Probably did most of them a favor," I said. "More than one couple wasn't happy to be there with each other." I started laughing, but choked to a stop when I saw the looks on their faces. "I swear they were still asleep when I left."

"They weren't."

"Huh. I probably scarred them for life then, seeing how I’m a guy with fairy wings."

"Ash! This is serious!"

"Sorry."

"What it all comes down to is this. We think you're spending too much time with your assignment," Master Time said.

"Her name is Kendall."

"Right." His eyes narrowed, and he swept his long white hair over his shoulder. "My point exactly."

"Okay?" I said, confused.

Logan spoke then. "Look. We've never had a fairy godmother ... er ... whatever you are, get so close to their assignment. You've been looking out for her, which is wonderful, but you may be getting too close. Maybe we should give this to someone who can handle–"

I cut him off. "I can handle it, Logan."

He stood up from his chair. "Like you handled Dax tonight?"

"That wasn't supposed to happen. He was trying to hurt Kendall. I had to stop him!" I folded my arms, and my eyes narrowed. "Plus, he pissed me off."

"Mr. Summerland–" Master Time started.

"Logan, do you have any idea what kind of magic Dax has been messing around with?"

"Don't even try to turn this on Dax."

"Why not? He's the reason all of this happened! He wanted to get back at me for turning him into a rat! Where is he anyway?"

Shenelle coughed, and I raised an eyebrow at her. She picked at her fingernails, not meeting my eyes.

Logan grunted. It sounded suspiciously like a laugh. "Why would Dax lure you to a human dance to make a scene in front of everyone? Why didn't he just wait for you here?"

"He was going after Kendall!"

"Why does that matter to you?"

I didn't say anything.

"You had no right to make a scene. Dax wouldn't have hurt her. He shouldn't even know who she is."

"He does."

"Even so, you shouldn't have intervened in front of all those people."

I laughed, but it sounded cold. "Like you didn't intervene when my dad was killed?"

"That's not fair," he said. "You know I would have done anything–"

Master Time cut him off. "That is not the point of this meeting."

"You're right,” I agreed. “It's not. I did what I had to tonight to protect someone I care about. Kendall is my friend. It's the least I could do for her."

They were all silent so I kept going.

"She'll be making her third wish soon, so you won't have to worry about me doing anything stupid anymore. I'll finish my apprenticeship, and apply to be a sandman." I turned to Logan. "If you'll still have me."

They all stared at me. Shenelle was the first one to speak.

"I'd like to speak to Ash alone, if you don't mind."

"Shenelle," Logan started.

"Logan, I need to speak to him. Please."

They left the room. I knew Logan lingered in the doorway trying to catch my eye, but I studied the pink carpet instead. I couldn't look at him.

The door closed and I looked up, meeting Shenelle's worried eyes.

"First of all, give me your wand."

My eyes narrowed. "Why?"

"I'll need to check it tonight. Make sure you haven't damaged it."

"It's not–"

"Just give it to me!"

Surprised at the tone of her voice, I reluctantly handed my wand over. A strange look crossed her features as she took it. She smiled to herself and then set it on the desk.

"Now," she said. "What's really going on, Ash?"

"Nothing."

"We strictly forbade you to show yourself to anyone else. Any other human. Yet you deliberately showed yourself to over a hundred."

"I had no other choice. And most of them were out of it anyway."

"Of course you had a choice."

"No. I didn't."

"What are you talking about? You didn't want this assignment, and now you flaunt yourself in front of the world to make her happy?"

"They didn't see my wings, if that's what you’re asking."

"No, that's not what I'm asking, Ash. I told you not to get too involved. Didn't you read any of the rules in your folder? Did you read anything at all?"

"Yes."

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

"Yes."

"Do you have anything else to say?"

"No."

She sighed. "Come on, Ash. I know you want to say something. Just say it."

"Fine. You're right."

"Of course I am." She smiled slightly.

"I'm in love with her."

Her mouth opened. She blinked, shook her head, and blinked again. "Impossible."

"Why?"

"You can't be in love with her. She's your assignment, Ash! What were you thinking? This is against school code. The rules were clearly stated in your folder!"

"I didn't plan on it, it just happened."

"Well, make it un-happen." She took her glasses off and rubbed her eyes.

"I can't do that."

She muttered something under her breath.

"What?" I asked.

"I can't believe you did this. You had all the information you needed about her in your folder, and you
still
had to get to know her better. Typical Ash," she said. "Always bending the rules." She glared at me from across the desk. "Now listen to me."

I clenched my teeth, knowing I wasn't going to like what she had to say.

She clicked her tongue. "This is what we're going to do. You should be expelled for this, but I have a better idea." She rubbed her temples. “I’m sure I can convince the rest of the council ...”

"Shenelle–"

"You're going to go back to Kendall, and get her third wish."

I opened my mouth to speak again, but she put a hand up to stop me.

"When this apprenticeship is finished, you'll never see Kendall again. Ever. We don't leave here. The only reason we even mingle with humans is for our individual assignments and tasks. They don't know about us otherwise. We're protected here."

Shenelle actually looked afraid. Of what, I wasn't sure.

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked.

"To give you the facts. No one leaves this place."

"I leave every day."

"That's not the same and you know it."

"Then I'll leave permanently. I'll quit."

Shenelle sighed. "If you quit, you'll never be a sandman. You'll never be able to come back."

I swallowed the lump in my throat and didn't say anything.

"I'll get your wand back to you tomorrow."

"Fine."

I turned around and walked out, slamming the door behind me.

***

When I found her, she was sitting at the kitchen table, talking to Ellie. She looked different. Radiant, even. She was happy. Almost as if she was beginning to heal from the pain of losing her dad.

Ellie said something funny, and Kendall laughed, her eyes crinkling. I honestly could listen to the sound forever.

I shook myself out of my weird poetic stupor and sat down next to her.

"Oh," she said, smiling when she saw me.

I glanced at Ellie, who was looking right at me. Well, through me, I guess.

"Is he here?" she asked.

"You told her about me?" I asked.

Kendall nodded.

"And she believed you?"

"Yep. I'm surprised she didn't think I was crazy." She glanced at Ellie, who looked a little hesitant.

"I know it sounds so stupid, El, but he's right next to me."

"I kind of figured." She smiled. "Can he show himself?"

Kendall looked at me, her eyes hopeful. When I shook my head, she frowned.

"I'm in trouble. I can't show myself to anyone but you."

She turned towards Ellie. "He can't."

"Oh," she said, looking disappointed.

Seeing a bowl of fruit sitting on the table, I had an idea. I reached out, grabbed an apple, and lifted it to my mouth.

Ellie watched the floating apple. Her eyes almost popped out of her head, and she grabbed the table to keep from falling off her chair.

I took a bite and put the rest of the apple into Kendall's outstretched hand.

"Holy crap," Ellie whispered. "Holy crap!" she yelled. She stood abruptly, sending her chair careening into the wall. "That apple just ... holy crap!" She paced back and forth, still staring in my direction.

I was smiling, but Kendall looked worried.

"It's okay, Ellie. He's not a ghost or anything. I promise.”

"No, I'm fine," she said. "I'm fine." She sat back down and pulled her chair up to the table again. "I swear. I'm not freaking out." Putting her head on the table, she squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head back and forth. Her long blonde hair covered her face, so we couldn't see her expression.

"I'm sorry, Ellie. I shouldn't have told you."

Her head shot up so fast, Kendall jerked away.

"Are you kidding me?" she said. "That was so awesome!"

I started laughing, and Kendall shot me a look that shut me up.

"El, are you sure you're alright?" she asked.

"You seriously have a fairy god-whatever, sitting here in the kitchen with us?"

Kendall nodded and smiled.

"Is he hot?"

"Ellie! He can hear you!"

"Well?" I prompted. "Am I?"

Her eyes narrowed at me, but she blushed. "Yes."

"What?" Ellie asked.

"Yes, he's hot."

"I knew it," she said.

I liked Ellie. If I was ever able to show myself, we'd get along great.

"Well, I'll leave you two alone," Ellie said. She winked, and left the room.

I was suddenly nervous at being left alone with Kendall. I had no reason to be, since I'd had girlfriends before, but Kendall was different. She knew me better than any girl I'd ever liked. The feelings I had for her were so foreign to me. So foreign that I wanted to be near her as much as possible, and knew it would never be a reality.