Free Not Your Average Happy Ending by Chantele Sedgwick

around his neck and he tightened his grip around my waist with one hand and touched my cheek with the other. I don’t know how I survived without kissing him the past few weeks. It was always like…magic.
    A few minutes or hours later, I pulled away. “Wow,” I said, looking up at him.
    “Uh…” he trailed off and cleared his throat. “I’ve missed that.”
    “Me too.”
    We stood there, still wrapped in each other’s arms, but not saying anything. I rested my head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat slow. It was the perfect moment. I wanted to stay there forever. But I also had to know what happened to him and Sam. “So,” I started. “About Washington. I’m guessing you didn’t find Dax.”
    “No.” His voice had an edge to it and when I looked into his eyes, the gold was more pronounced than before. He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “We’ll find him. Don’t worry.”
    “You’re leaving again?”
    He sighed. “I can’t just let him go. He almost killed you.”
    “Well…maybe if you stay here, he’ll come looking for you . Then you’d have more help to catch him.”
    “I don’t need help,” he said, frowning.
    Why did he always have to do that? He always had to be the hero. “You’re so stubborn,” I said, turning away from him. “You can’t ever admit you might need a little help.”
    He moved in front of me and folded his arms. “I have a good teacher,” he said.
    I raised an eyebrow. “If you’re calling me stubborn—”
    He silenced me with a kiss.
    “Am I interrupting something?”
    I pulled away from Ash and we both turned to look at Sam who leaned against a tree with a smug look on his face. He had on new clothes and his hair was spiked and gelled. He looked like he was going to a party, not being inches from death an hour earlier.
    “Way to ruin the moment,” Ash said, glaring at him.
    “I try,” Sam said.
    “You look better,” I said.
    Sam smiled. “Thank you for noticing.” He looked at Ash again. “I was just coming to tell you, a few members of the Council showed up at my house. You probably want to get out of here. You know what will happen if they find Kendall in our world.”
    Ash stiffened and pulled me close. “Thanks, Sam. When you’re up to it, meet me at Kendall’s house later. We need to plan our next move. I need to go check on Logan as well.”
    Sam nodded. “Logan’s fine. My dad was with him earlier. Still the same. Still sleeping.”
    He sighed. “Great.”
    Sam turned around. “Someone’s coming. You’d better leave. Oh, and Kendall, keep an eye on him. Don’t let him leave until I get there.”
    “Okay.” I sighed. I didn’t want them going after Dax again. I didn’t want them to get hurt. And I knew I should tell Ash about my side and passing out, but I didn’t want him to worry. So, I just stood there. Only half listening to what they were talking about until Ash grabbed my hand and took me home.

Chapter 11
    Ash
    Kendall was quiet as we sat in her living room. I had already asked her what was bothering her several times, but she claimed she was fine. I knew better though. Girls never made it easy to figure out why they were upset, and Kendall was no exception. I knew better than to push her though. She’d tell me when she was ready.
    The front door opened and Ellie walked in. She looked exhausted. Dark circles were under her eyes and she yawned as she came in the room. She threw her backpack on the floor and kicked off her shoes, not bothering to say hello.
    “You okay, El?” Kendall asked, as she walked past us.
    “Fine. A little tired. I haven’t been sleeping well lately.” She glanced in the mirror on the wall and touched her face.
    “Why not?” I asked. She really did look awful. Even her long hair was a mess. And she never left the house looking less than perfect.
    “Um…school. I’ve had a lot of homework.” She shrugged and went into the kitchen.
    I frowned. Something was