A/N- I can't believe this is the last chapter of The Hunt. Like…so fast? It felt like just yesterday I was planning out how to make my first chapter of this story amusing and interesting. It felt like just yesterday I chose to create a Fanfiction account and write stories for a show that I was obsessed with. Remember when I published my first story Kim-Napped? Hah…don't read that. It was horrible.

Okay, enough of my rambling. I do apologize for keeping you waiting so long. I've been struggling on how to make this perfect for you guys without making too long. So I hope that this ending will please you.

Please read the A/N on the bottom when you're done.

Enjoy my last update on The Hunt!

This one's for you, Ariana…:)

(excuse me while I go fetch a few tissues….)

Chapter 20: The Best Summer Ever

KIM

"I'd like to gladly welcome our winning team from San Jose to the final ceremony of The Hunt!"

A chorus of applause roared throughout the entire banquet hall, as all six of us walked in to the hall, utterly awe-stricken. The public room was crowded with hundreds of people all eagerly staring at us with excited grins. A large interior fountain was placed in the middle of the room, with modern Chinese paintings decorating the walls, and a number of contemporary-styled chandeliers dangling on top to create a dim lighting to the hall. The entire room had a natural ambiance to it, making it feel a lot more comfortable than your typical, clichéd ballroom.

It was amazing.

Of course we dressed correctly for the occasion for once. I wore a white tank top, with a turquoise cami underneath, tucking it into a sea-blue skirt with floral designs on it, while accessorizing myself with flower-patterned jewelry. No way was I going to wear another lavish, formal like dress again…the ensemble was casual with a hint of formal, and the dress revealed my girly side…

The dress was… me.

And for the first time this summer, I wore something that pleased myself.

The boys stayed in that fine line between formal and casual as well. They wore dress tops with jeans, and they too felt satisfied with their ensembles. The funny thing was I didn't need to remind them that t-shirts with ninjas on them or jeans with golden chains weren't appropriate.

What kept us more awe-stricken was the crowd as they congratulated us while we walked into our last banquet hall. It was the exhilaration. The feeling that for once, we were important.

That we mattered.

"In a few moments, we will allow our guests of honor to come up on stage and say a few words," Bobby winked in our direction. "For now, just sit back and relax…we will provide you with our special lunch shortly."

The group of people returned to their individual conversations while we faced eachother with our mouths still agape.

"Can you believe this?" Rudy said, astonished. "This is way bigger than what I dreamed my wedding would be like. It would be a fine Tuesday evening, and I'd get married to a supermodel in Jamaica on a yacht—"

"Then I think it's best to keep dreaming," Jack said¸ patting Rudy's back teasingly.

"I can't believe all of this is just for us!" Milton said. "Holy Christmas Nuts!"

"Bobby really out-did himself…this place is amazing," I breathed.

"This place is so dope, yo!" Jerry said. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm just going to uh…look for, you know—"

"Kim!"

I spun my head around, meeting eye-to-eye with Grace Miller who looked at stunning as always. She wore a light pink strapless dress, her copper-brown hair in angelical curls and she had a kind smile on her face. With a wide grin, I pulled her into a hug.

"You look amazing!" I said. It was predictable for Grace to where something like this, as she was a lot more girlier than I was.

"So do you!" She squealed. She turned to Jack, who gave her a small and wave. "How are you feeling?"

"Never been better." Jack said. I could feel his eyes flicker on me for a second which caused my cheeks to slightly redden. Raising her eyebrows playfully at me, she laughed a little bit.

"Well, Jerry was certainly missing you…eh, Jerry?" Eddie nudged him playfully. His eyes slowly trailed on Eddie menacingly, glaring at him. I exchanged deliberate looks with Grace as her cheeks colored, lowering her head in slight embarrassment.

"Well¸ I wanted to show you guys something…it's in the hallway. Come with me," Grace gestured. Exchanging confused looks, we all followed the brunette into the hallway, and she showed us something that we never thought we'd really see again.

The Miao Dao sword.

The beautiful royal-red scabbard sealed the finely shaped piece of metal, with jewels embroidered on it. The sword stood on a podium, covered behind a large piece of glass with two guards standing by it. We all had our mouths agape, as we stared at the beautiful antique in admiration. This might sound weird, but the sword actually looked…peaceful. It actually looked like a piece of history rather than a weapon. The shade of red that was on the scabbard wasn't a blood-red fiery hue anymore…the shade was calmer, more pleasant to look at.

And that's when I realized the sword really was in its rightful place.

"It's beautiful," Milton breathed. "It just screams ancient Chinese history! I got to take a picture of this!"

"No pictures!" The security guard hissed in a strong Chinese accent. Pouting his lip in fear, Milton stuffed the camera in his jacket, hiding behind in Jack in fear. I chuckled and rolled my eyes.

"I figured since you guys saved it, you deserve to see it one last time before it gets locked away in some complex security system." Grace sighed.

"I wonder who Bobby's going to hand it over to," I said.

"He's probably going to hand it over to some museum here," Jack told me. "Or maybe hide it away in one of his other million dollar homes. Who knows?"

"Hey guys! I saw that they're handing out the appetizers! Come on, let's go!" Eddie said, rushing into the banquet hall. Rolling their eyes, Rudy and Milton followed him inside leaving Jerry, Grace, Jack and I alone in the room.

"So…" Jerry said, facing Grace. "So Grace, I was wondering you know…you and I…we got to know eachother a lot better through this whole Hunt thing, and uh…you know when we get back to the States…I was just wondering if—"

"Yes. I'd love to." She said with a smile. "But first…do you want to sit with me at the Banquet? I feel like we have a lot to talk about…"

"Sure," Jerry smiled. Laughing a bit dryly, they interlocked hands, and walked out of the room. I couldn't help but smile at the two soon-to-be couple, exchanging looks with Jack.

"Who would've known, huh?" Jack shrugged, smiling at me.

"I expected this sooner or later…Grace sometimes went into these non-stop talks about Jerry ever since that football game last year. It was pretty obvious."

"Hey, maybe we could double-date with them? It'd be a win-win for us and them, you know," Jack said leaning his head closer towards me. "They say that double-dates help ease the anxiety on a first date."

"But I'm not scared, Jack." I said, shoving him away playfully. "If it's anyone that I'm the most comfortable with, it's you. So I'm okay with it being just the two of us…all I want is to go to a place where we both feel comfortable."

He chuckled. "So I'm going to cross out going to the movies, then?"

I sighed, and contemplated the thought of going to the movies again after what occurred last time. The memory was still fresh, and now that I knew who it really was that nearly killed me that night, the horrible memories wouldn't stop creeping into my mind.

But I looked at Jack right in the eye… and I shook my head.

"The movies actually sound nice. In fact, I've wanted to see this new movie really badly so maybe we should go."

He slightly narrowed his eyes at me. "What happened to the girl who started hyperventilating when she just heard the word 'movies'?"

I sighed, and shrugged. "I want to do what I want to do. I'm not afraid of Drake or even some silly nightmares."

I'm Kim Crawford.

There's nothing for me to be afraid of.

Nothing.

"Let's see if you really can handle it, then." Jack smirked. "Once we get back, you and I are going to see The Women in Black…then let's see if you're really little Miss Fearless Crawford now."

I raised my eyebrows, and rolled my eyes with a playful grin. "Oh you're on, Anderson."

We both burst into tiny laughter, and I felt his gaze fixed on mine. We both fell silent; staring into each other's eyes, mine getting mesmerized by his seas of chocolate brown. In that moment, I might have felt like I was walking on clouds, that I was one of the luckiest girls, as cheesy as that may have sounded. Just one look could take me on a journey, on an adventure probably just as big as The Hunt.

Or maybe even just a slip down memory lane.

"Jack," I whispered.

"Yeah?"

With a deep breath, I leaned forward and pressed my lips on his cheek.

"Thank you."

He narrowed his eyes in confusion, smirking at me. "For what?"

I sighed and smiled, taking his hand. "For keeping your promise. Without you, I would've never said yes to The Hunt. And I would've never had the summer of my life, going to all these places, and…having an adventure. Because of you…I really did have the best summer ever. So thank you."

Jack smiled, squeezing my hand reassuringly. "Your welcome. You know…I should be thanking you too."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "For what? I didn't really promise you anything."

"Exactly. Because out of everything that happened, you were the one that made my summer the best one yet."

Smiling, we pulled eachother into a lingering hug, my arms wrapped around his neck, and his wrapped around my waist, squeezing me a bit tighter as both of us never wanted to let go. That was until we heard Bobby testing out the microphone from the inside.

"We should go," Jack said, pulling away reluctantly. "Bobby's probably going to start any minute."

"Um, I'll just meet you there," I blurted. "I uh….forgot something. In the hotel room. I'll just be right back."

Seeming to reluctantly buy it, Jack gave a last wave and walked back into the Banquet hall, leaving me alone in the hallway with the sword that had started it all. I gave a long stare at the Miao Dao sword, evoking everything we did to find that sword before anybody else. I started to reminisce every place we discovered, every clue we deciphered, every fight we fought, and every moment we shared together.

While this one sword may have nearly brought all of us in tragedy, all it did was knit us Wasabi Warriors closer together, taking us on a journey we never even would have dreamed of.

The security guards may have thought I was insane for talking to an inanimate object, but I didn't seem to care.

And these were the last words I said to the Miao Dao sword.

"Thanks for a summer adventure."

"EVERBODY LISTEN UP!" Bobby screamed rather impatiently, just like he did in the first meeting. With confused, slightly taken aback looks, their eyes trailed towards the man in his traditional Chinese get-up who managed a tight smile on his lips. All six of us were standing by the stage, with interlocked hands as we stared at Bobby with his manager Kevin standing by his side. While I could tell he was feeling slightly uncomfortable with the hundreds of pairs of eyes giving him cold looks, I could see the content lighting up his face. More so I could see the content on everybody's faces, as they gave us thankful and appreciative grins.

The grins that made us feel satisfied as well.

"So now that I have all of your attention, I'd like to begin the well-deserved ceremony for our winning dojo," Bobby's eyes flickered towards us with gratification. "My San Jose dojo…please come to the stage!"

A round of cheers and applause broke from the audience as we all made our way up the stage with wide, blissful beams across our faces. We were soon standing on a large wooden stage, face-to-face with a group of people that were clapping hysterically, making encourage noises with laughter echoing in the background.

They were making all those noises and claps for us.

I caught a glimpse of Bobby's manager Kevin who took out a large golden trophy from the back of the stage. I could see words inscripted on the surface of the metal saying "THE SAN JOSE DOJO" in large letters and underneath that was "THE HUNT" encrypted underneath. He handed it over to Bobby who gave it to Rudy with an honored look on his face. The crowd roared even louder as Rudy held it up high in pride, with the help of our hands gripping the handles of the trophy. We smiled at the crowd in content, where I could see a perfect view of Grace cheering me on which only made my smile to grow even bigger.

Throughout this summer adventure, this is the happiest I've ever been.

And it was that single moment where I truly felt victorious.

Bobby motioned himself towards the microphone¸ which caused the crowd's cheering to die down. We set the heavy trophy down, giving our attention to a slightly serious looking Bobby.

"Now, this wonderful group of kids has gone through quite a journey to be where they were today," Bobby began his speech. "One of the reasons why we created this as a reality show was to monitor what everybody was doing. Speaking of which, I'd like to acknowledge our camera crew out there who made The Hunt to be one of the most-watched shows on Fox! Show yourself—excellent job boys!"

A respective group of applause roared throughout the ballroom as I saw Eric and the others give shy waves.

"Anyway, while we had to monitor all twenty of the dojos in the beginning, we felt this particular group to be the most interesting. And it wasn't just because of our short little blonde friend, here."—the crowd burst into chorused laughter—"It was the overall chemistry between all of you. How you stood by one another, how no matter what happened you were never going to give up on eachother. And you were willing to fight to the finish, and more importantly not give up on finding my beloved sword. Their tasks weren't easy at all, and a few of them even took a detour to the hospital. But you guys were so determined, so focused, and so loyal to one another. You guys are what the Wasabi Code is all about. So thank you so much for everything you've done to keep the Miao Dao sword in good hands."

Another chorused cheer echoed through the crowd, and we returned smiles to the groups that were overjoyed at our victory.

"Because of their hard work and bravery I'd like to give out a few…individual prizes if you will," Bobby said. "I'd first like to present awards to our favorite sweethearts. Jack and Kim…come on over here!"

My cheeks slightly reddening we both walked closer towards Bobby, hand-in-hand, and sending eachother a few quick, shy glances. While it was a bit odd to be called the "sweethearts" Jack's reassuring squeeze in my hand made the anxiety go away.

"Aw, well look at you two!" Bobby cheered, which caused the audience to squeal "aw" simultaneously. "Don't you two look adorable!"

We sent him shy grins, my cheeks beginning to grow on fire.

"Yeah, well." I heard Jack mumble shyly.

Bobby stood right in front of us. "You two were incredibly brave throughout this journey. Your level of courage, loyalty and confidence inspired all of us in so many ways as we saw you two fearlessly battling your opponents. But what really touched us the most is the two of you battling for eachother. So I think you two are ready to go onto the next step of both of your martial arts careers."

"Next step?" Jack asked.

"Of course…it's never over in Martial Arts. Jack Anderson and Kim Crawford…congratulations on earning your position as asecond-degreeblack belt!"

Wait…what?!

Jack and I exchanged astounded looks, as we saw Kevin handing us our new, rolled-up black belt with two yellow stripes on the end of the belt. Bobby placed medals over our necks, and high-fived the both of us, with a pleased smile on his face. We stared at our black belt in complete shock, not even believing our eyes.

We've officially gone into the next step of advanced martial arts.

Together.

With an exchange of smiles, we wrapped our new belt around our outfit and faced the crowd who had grown hysterical. I grinned widely at Jack, and we pulled eachother into a tight hug. We ran towards the rest of our friends, and before I knew it, Jerry and Eddie had already rushed towards me, and picked me up swinging me around in excitement, screaming "Our second-degree buddy!" repeatedly in my ear. Finally choosing to put me down, I rushed towards Milton as he squeezed me into a hug, which only made my smile to grow wider. I pulled away and he stared at me with those sweet eyes. Next to Jack, if it was anybody that I felt most comfortable with, it was him. Seeing his smile made me feel like I really achieved it.

"Congratulations Kim! I'm so happy for you!" Milton exclaimed, grinning. "You definitely deserved it. But I hope we can still have our 'Weekly Wednesday Spars'…even though I'm not nearly as good as you."

I laughed, and nodded at him. "Of course. While you weren't much of a challenge, you still put up with me, even though I've flipped you to the ground thousands of times. You're one of the reasons why I'm this good today. So thank you."

With a last smile, Jack and I finally came face-to-face with Rudy, who was fanning his eyes like the melodramatic person he was.

"My students…are second degree black belts?" He breathed, pulling us both into a hug. "Jack…Kim…I am so proud of you two. You guys definitely deserved it, with all the effort you put into this. I'm ready to challenge you guys more than ever now."

"Good." I smiled. "Oh, and Jack? Just because we're together now, doesn't make it okay for you to go easy on me. So you're going on me harder than ever now."

"After what happened last time, I don't think I'll hold back again," He said, rolling his eyes.

"Settle down folks, settle down," Bobby motioned the crowd, which caused the clapping to cease. "We're not done. We still have three little goofballs to get through. Milton, Jerry, Eddie…get on over here!"

Shocked, the three boys walked over to Bobby while the crowd cheered them on, including us. I could see the excited grins on their faces, as they nudged each other's arms repeatedly, shaking in enthusiasm.

"What it do, boss?" Jerry smirked.

"Don't push it," Bobby smiled wryly. "Anyway, while these three students haven't quite matched Jack and Kim's level¸ they're still superior in their own way. Throughout the course of this three week adventure, I noticed that these boys have shown extreme progress in their martial arts, and more importantly their self confidence that they really can be as good as their peers. They showed extreme loyalty towards their friends, and without them, we probably wouldn't even be standing here right now. Milton, Jerry and Eddie….you have come very far and very well with your martial arts. I'm so proud of the way you stood up for yourselves, and the confidence you've grown in you. I think it's time to grow out of those orange and green belts, don't you think?"

I saw them exchange confused looks with eachother as they stared at Bobby, completely bewildered.

"Even I don't get what's going on, and I'm supposed to be the smart one." Milton said to Bobby which caused fits of laughter to burst from the audience.

"Then let me explain. Milton Krupnick, Jerry Martinez, and Eddie Johnson…I hereby pronounce you official black belt members of the San Jose Bobby Wasabi Martial Arts Academy."

And that's when the crowd, including us, once again went nuts.

The three boys had their jaws wide open, as Kevin handed them their rolled up, brand new black belts, and the three stared at it like it was some sort of object nonexistent in Earth with their eyes distended in revelation, and their jaws practically falling to the ground. Rudy, Jack and I cheered hysterically with the crowd, laughing as we saw their awe-stricken faces. Bobby placed medals around each of their necks, and with a giddy smile, they quickly shook hands with Bobby and Kevin, and ran towards us into yet, another group hug. Rudy pulled away, and this time I could see real tears emerge in his bloodshot eyes.

"Rudy are you crying?" Jack laughed.

"Nah, nah, there's just…Chinese dust in my eyes," Rudy fanned his eyes, exhaling theatrically. "I'm just…incredibly proud of all three of you. You improved so much in your martial arts these past few weeks and you definitely deserve this. I never thought I'd see the day you three would become actual belts! Be strong Rudy…be strong!"

"Hell yeah you should be!" Jerry hollered. "We're black belts buddy! For the first time, my family's going to actually be proud of me!"

"I can't wait to phone Julie!" Milton cheered. "This is the happiest moment of my life! That is until I win the Nobel Peace Prize. Well….actually…even if I do win the Nobel Peace Prize, it'll never be better than this moment."

"I can't believe this…I never thought I'd actually be a black belt." Eddie said, eyes dilated. "I mean….me? Look at me! I'm…I'm short and pudgy and not even close to flexible. How am I a black belt?"

Rolling my eyes, I took Eddie's belt from his hand, and tied it around his shirt. "You my friend deserve this black belt just as much as Jerry and Milton. Trust me; I can see it on your Gi already."

"Really?" Eddie asked willingly, never taking his eyes off of his new-colored belt.

"Absolutely." I smiled, pulling Eddie into a small, friendly hug. "Congratulations, Eddie."

The rest of them wrapped their belts around their waist, cheering in victory along with the rest of the crowd which made me smile. It was nice to see that even they had a share of their moments as well.

"And of course how could I forget the sensei?" Bobby said. "Rudy, come on over!"

With a smile, he rushed up towards the podium giddily, jumping up and down in excitement, like some little kid. We all

"What did I win, what did I win, what did I WIN?!" He pleaded like a little boy.

"Calm yourself," Bobby ordered. "Now, as sensei you definitely fulfilled your duty and you've helped these kids as much as you could. And for that, it's time to award you Rudy Gillespie and your students a grand check for fifty thousand dollars, and a chance to go to any destination for one week!"

The applause continued to roar as Kevin handed Rudy a large, billboard-sized check that read for fifty-thousand dollars, that being our winning prize money which we still had no idea what we were going to do with. He had a wide grin on his face, as he gestured us to come towards the podium along with him.

"Would you like to say a few words Rudy?" Bobby gestured to the podium. Nodding, Rudy stood closer towards the podium, standing on his tippy-toes so his mouth could reach the microphone.

"Hey everybody!" Rudy cheered, causing the crowd's clapping to die down. "God…I don't even know where to begin. Well first, I'd like to thank Bobby Wasabi himself and his producers for creating The Hunt which was this mind-blowing adventure. And more importantly, I'd like to thank all my students because without them, I wouldn't even be here. They…continue to make me proud every day, and I'm blessed to have them in my life. And I'd also like to give a shoutout to someone who I never thought would be my friend. Even though this guy can really push my buttons at times when he constantly followed us around everywhere taking videos of us, I know that he's always going to be there for me whether I like it or not. So I want to share this award with one of my best friends…Eric. Get on over here you idiot!"

I saw a guy with a scarf pop instantly out of the audience with a large grin on his face, as he sprinted towards the stage, throwing his arms around Rudy into a friendly hug. It was nice to see that Rudy had a friend he could rely on, a friend that honestly had many things in common with him. It was nice to see that be benefited somehow from this summer trip.

"Thank you, Rudy!" Eric beamed in his heavy British accent. "That is one of the nicest things anyone has ever said about me. I'm thankful to have gotten to know you, and this group of wonderful kids."

He patted his back with a grin and faced Bobby, who was gesturing for the crowd to settle down.

"So Rudy, and…students," Bobby said. "What are you planning to do with the fifty-thousand dollars? We'd all love to know!"

His eyes focused on us, and I could see the slightly anxious, guilty look portraying in his hazel eyes, as we haven't even thought about what we were going to spend the money on. What were we going to do with fifty-thousand dollars? Renovate the dojo? Buy a new car? Make our own skate park?

There was nothing that we wanted because we already had everything.

I gave Rudy one last reassuring nod, and Rudy took a deep breath facing Bobby as he eagerly shoved the microphone closer to his face.

"Well Bobby, we've all decided and I think we all agree on what we're going to do with this money." Rudy sighed.

"And what is that?"

"We're going to be giving it back. We don't want the money."

A number of gasps and indistinct whispering broke from the group of people as they looked at us like we were mad. Even Bobby stared at us like we needed a trip to the mental hospital.

But we were sane enough to know that our decision was final.

"But Rudy…why? I remembered three weeks ago all of you were so…desperate in wanting the money, just like the other teams. It's one of the reasons why we hosted this competition." He said. "Why don't you want the money?"

"Because we don't need it." Jack chimed in. "To us, it was never about the money or the prizes, or even becoming black belts in martial arts. It was about doing what was right and getting the sword in the right place. And…we did that."

All of us nodded in agreement as we stared at Bobby who still seemed skeptical as he fixed his glare on us.

"And you're sure you don't want the money?" Bobby said. "Because—"

"We're sure, Bobby." Rudy nodded. "Here…how about you use the money to build some security systems for the sword? That way, there's no chance of you losing it again...I mean, even if you did give the money to us…we would've done the same thing."

"Wait, but we're still getting that week off to go wherever we want, right?" Jerry hissed in my ear. I shot him a glare and pinched his ear for a quick second so he could shut him mouth for a few minutes.

Bobby still didn't seem convinced, but he gave a small nod, taking the check as Rudy handed it over to him. "So be it."

With a small smile, he turned to face the audience with a large sigh.

"Now before we conclude this congratulatory ceremony with a feast and quit my rambling, I must confess something myself." Bobby said. The crowd's cheers died down as they faced Bobby with serious eyes.

"As you know, I had stated earlier that Miao Dao sword was my property and that once it was found I'd be keeping it for myself." He took a deep, shaky breath here. "But after seeing what these kids have gone through, it just wouldn't be right. What wasn't caught on video was the Miao Dao sword actually having powers that was originally said to be nothing but a fable. Yet, I believed every word of the legend, contemplating the thoughts of what it would be like to gain all that power. It then dawned on me that I don't deserve to restore the sword into my property."

For the first time today, there was a deadpan silence throughout the room, as a few people exchanged thoughtful looks with one another.

"So with that being said, I'd like to pass on the Miao Dao sword to someone I find truly deserves the sword. This person defines a true Wasabi Warrior more than anybody I know. This person is courageous, determined, strong, and over the past year has become an incredibly good friend of mine. And I know he'll do a fantastic job of keeping the Miao Dao sword safely. Because this person has pure intentions more than anyone. So I pass down the Miao Dao sword to none other than my best friend, Rudy Gillespie."

Our eyes dilating in revelation, we faced Rudy who looked more astonished than any of us and once again the crowd went wild. We all wrapped our arms around him into a quick hug, but he seemed so flabbergasted, he couldn't even return the hug properly.

"I'm sorry…who now?" Rudy asked.

"You, that's who!" I cried. "You get to keep the Miao Dao sword!"

"SWAG!" Jerry cheered.

"Yeah, you go Rudy!" Eddie hollered.

"Dude you get to keep the Miao Dao sword!" Milton screamed. "Do you know how lucky you are?"

"Jolly good! I can't wait to take a picture of you with that sword and post it on Facebook!" Eric exclaimed giddily.

His dilated eyes met Jack's next¸ still seeming to not comprehend anything that was going on and he rolled his eyes playfully, giving him a reassuring smile.

"Well don't just stand there, go get what's rightfully yours!" Jack teased.

Seeming to still be in shock, He stumbled towards Bobby, with his mouth still forming a perfect little "O".

"Wh—why me?" Was all Rudy could say. "I mean…I…Me…I'm not worthy—"

"Nonsense!" Bobby hollered. "Rudy…I'm putting you up for the job because I trust you more than anyone else. And well…you got a lot more to live for than me, so the sword will officially be under your name from now on."

"Wow…well, I promise I won't let you down!" Rudy said.

"I know." He smiled. "Now…Let's give a final round of applause for the San Jose team, the official winners of The Hunt!"

The crowd of people stood up, clapping and cheering hysterically as we stood together, hand-in-hand with large grins on our faces, our new black belts wrapped around our waists, our medals dangling from our neck, and the trophy sitting right in the middle of us.

And somewhere in all of that¸ knowing that the sword was going to be in safe hands, I felt like a winner as well.

So that was the end of our congratulatory ceremony, as the crowd began to disperse to find their own lunches.

"Well Rudy, since the sword is officially your property now…can I pretty please take a picture with it?" Milton begged.

"Sure," Rudy rolled his eyes. "Hey, how about we all take a group photo? It'll be something to add to my live photo gallery back at the dojo."

"Sounds good!" Eddie called.

"I'll take the picture!" Eric offered.

"Why not? It'll be a good memory," Jack shrugged.

"Kim, Jerry…what about you?" Rudy asked us.

Before I could say anything else, I saw Grace rush up towards the stage and throw her arms around me, squealing with me in excitement.

"I think we're good," Jerry answered. "We'll meet you there."

"Kim, you're a second degree black belt! Oh my goodness, I'm so happy for you!" She squealed.

"Hey, what about me? I'm a first degree black belt!" Jerry chimed in stepping in front of me which completely blocked my view of Grace. I rolled my eyes playfully and observed Grace's eyes lighting up like a Christmas tree, as she wrapped her arms around Jerry's neck, tightly squeezing him into a hug. I exchanged looks with Jack as his eyebrows danced teasingly darting towards Jerry's flushed cheeks in amusement¸ which only caused me to laugh.

"I'm really happy for you too," Grace sighed with a smile. "You deserved it. And hey…it looks good on you! All you need is maybe a leather jacket—"

Smirking, I left the two alone so Grace could continue to give Jerry fashion tips like she always does. I started to head over to the hallway for the picture, where the noise from the crowd began to die down.

"Well…looks like stories really do have happy endings, don't they?"

Who said that?

Wait…that voice.

Why is it so familiar?

Narrowing my eyes, I spun around, and came face-to-face with a guy I never thought I'd see again. He looked down at me with those hazel eyes I first caught sight of three weeks ago, his dirty blonde hair in spikes and he had a teasing smirk on his face. I distended my eyes in revelation, as he inched closer towards me with that flashy grin nearly burning holes into my eyes.

"I mean…this seems like one happy conclusion to me…what do you think?" He smirked.

My lips curved into a wide grin, as I instantly recognized who the person was.

"Travis?!" I cried. I quickly gave him a friendly hug as we exchanged soft chuckles. "Wow, I can't believe you're here! What…what are you doing here?"

"What do you think? I'm here to cheer you on!" He laughed. "I really wanted to see you again! And see your other friends too, of course. I was still watching you guys on TV, and saw that you won after all. My prediction was correct."

"I'm really happy to see you," I smiled. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

"I guess I wanted to leave it a surprise," He grinned. "But, congratulations on becoming a second degree black belt. And winning The Hunt, of course. That's…amazing. I'm really happy for you."

"Thanks…It means a lot." I smiled.

"Listen, I heard everything that happened, and I just wanted to see if you were okay. And if how Jack and Rudy are doing."

"They're doing much better now…and I'm fine." I said. "Just glad that everything's over and back to normal."

"Well…I'm sorry," He said. "I know how all Drake wanted was really just revenge. And all Mr. Miller wanted was power, which was why they joined forces so well. Which reminds me…I paid a visit to them today at the station and they're being deported back home…but it doesn't look like they're going to get out until we're ancient…like, thirty. Just thought you should know."

I let out a soft, uneasy chuckle. "Well, I guess they deserved it…you know for nearly killing Jack and all."

I said it like it was such a simple thing when that still gave me nightmares.

"But just…watch out, okay?" He said. "When I was in…well…cohorts with Drake, he told me everything about his plans, his back story…everything. And from what I've seen, he doesn't stop until he gets what he wants. Even if he is behind bars, he's the kind of person that'll do…whatever it takes. He's not done yet, Kim. You know that, right?"

I exhaled deeply, and looked down, constricting my jaw in frustration. "Can we just not talk about this, please? I'm already feeling guilty that because of me, Grace lost her dad. She seems okay with it but—"

"No. I understand." He said, putting his hands into his pockets. "Well Kim, I was wondering…since summer's not completely over yet…maybe you and I could start over? I could come to San Jose if you want, and maybe we could hang out…for real. Go to the movies, dinner, something…?"

I locked anxious eyes with him. "Travis, I thought we already had this conversation—"

"Look, I didn't just come here to congratulate you and see you take that award. I could've emailed you, texted you, or even video-chatted with you." Travis said¸ closer to me than ever. "But I wanted to see you in person to tell you that…I can't stop thinking about you. I felt guilty even when you forgave me for what I did to you in Paris, and I just needed to tell you that…I really, really like you."

I stared up at him with my eyes distending in shock as he was closer to me now than ever, beginning to lean in…

But I backed away instantly.

"Stop!" I cried, my heart nearly thumping out of my chest. I saw Travis' instantly hurt expression, which just made me feel guilty.

"I…I'm sorry Travis, but I can't. I only see you as a friend, and nothing else. I'm…I'm with Jack now, okay? And it's not like I don't like you anymore, I do, but…my feelings are totally platonic. Can you please respect that?"

"No. I understand." He said once more with more hurt shredding out of his voice. "I'm sorry."

I bit my lip once more, no longer making any eye contact.

"You know...I always knew you two would end up being a couple," He added, trying to smile. "I just didn't think it would happen so soon. But…I just want you to know that I'm happy that…you're happy. If that makes any sense."

I looked up and gave him a small smile. I opened my mouth, about to say something to him when I heard someone call my name.

"Kim!"

I spun my head around, coming face-to-face with Grace and Jerry, holding hands.

"What are you doing?" Grace asked a bit skeptically.

"Nothing, I just ran into Travis who wanted to…congratulate me," I said, my eyes flickering towards him. "That's all."

"Well, come on! Rudy's calling us for a group picture! I need to find a good spot before Milton and Eddie does!" Jerry said. Seeming very impatient, he ran into the hallway, leaving me with Travis and Grace.

"Bye Travis," I waved.

"Congratulations," He said. "And I'm not just talking about The Hunt…"

And with a last wave, he disappeared into the crowd leaving me alone with Grace.

"Okay…what was that?" Grace asked. "Did I miss something?"

I faced Grace, shaking my head to get my mind off of the conversation. "Just forget about it. It's really nothing. Come on…let's go get that picture."

"I just called you to go…I'm not really a part of your dojo, remember?" Grace said.

I faced her and raised my eyebrow. "It's a…family photo. And Grace…you're a part of the family, too."

With a smile, we both walked into the hallway, seeing Eric preparing his camera while the rest of the boys were scattered all over the area of the glass. Rudy was holding the trophy in his hands, deciding which pose he should strike, while Milton, Jerry and Eddie were fighting over where they should stand. Completely taking the conversation I had with Travis out of my head, I walked right over to Jack who couldn't seem to take his eyes off of the sword.

"Look at it," I said, getting Jack's attention. As soon as he saw me, he flashed a smile.

"I know," He said. "It's beautiful, isn't it?"

"You know… I'm happy we saved it. I mean, thanks to this we became second degree black belts. I guess we really can call this a happy ending,"

Jack stared at me and smiled, letting out a soft chuckle, and he took my hand in his.

"I guess we can."

I flashed him a grin, and we both laughed quietly together, gripping each other's hands.

"Alright guys, everybody in their positions…pronto!" Eric bellowed.

Avoiding on blocking the view of the Miao Dao sword, we all knelt below the glass. Rudy was in the middle of us, on his knees with his fingers wrapped around the trophy, while Milton and Eddie knelt beside him with their elbows resting on his shoulder. Jerry and Grace knelt beside the Miao Dao sword while Jack and I knelt on the other side, with his arm wrapped around my shoulder. All of us huddled closer together, preparing our smiles for the camera. A smile crept upon my face as I looked around, seeing everybody happy with eachother, like a family.

We really are family.

"Alright everyone…say cheese!"

But we didn't want to say cheese.

The seven of us exchanged looks and we stared at the camera with a different thought in mind. This was probably going to be our final moment of being in The Hunt, our final chance to take a group picture before we get horded with congratulations, hugs, and other means of celebration in the hall.

We all wanted to say one last word that was going to make us remember The Hunt.

That knit us together as a group of friends from the start.

And all it took was one word.

Just one word that could take just us back from the time when we all agreed on doing The Hunt, from the time we went to New York City, the time when I got stuck in a cave, the time I got into a fight on The Eiffel Tower, and even from yesterday when we all fought to the finish, saving the sword we were standing right next to at this very moment.

It all led up to now as we soak all those memories into just one photo.

This was why we shouted one word.

More specifically, a name.

"WASABI!"

One Month Later…

"Alright class, who would like to share their essays first?"

And once again, the entire English class remained silent and motionless.

Mrs. Steiner's shocking hazel eyes scanned each and every one of us, and her expression began to grow impatient in a matter of seconds. Even Milton wasn't willing to share his paper which shocked me. I cast a glance over to Jerry who was secretly passing notes over to Grace and Eddie who seemed to be like the ultimate trio at the moment. All Jack did was doodle something into his notebook, resting his chin on the palm of his hand in utter boredom. Well can you blame him? It was just the beginning of sophomore year, where the teachers take it like our brains are already fresh and ready to go, and bombard us with stacks of assignments, which annoyed the hell out of me.

Yet, I actually enjoyed writing this essay.

Every word of it.

"Come on, guys!" The auburn scolded. "I notified you already that you were required to present your essays. If nobody volunteers, I'll randomly pick on people. And this essay shouldn't be difficult to recite—all you had to do was write about what you did this summer! So…last chance for volunteers?"

The kids shuffled in their seat uncomfortably, exchanging looks with eachother to see who was willing to go first. I rolled my eyes, and with a deep, shaky breath I raised my hand up high in the air without a care in the world.

"I'll read mine." I shrugged.

"Ah, well thank you Ms. Crawford. You see ladies and gentleman…let us learn from Miss Crawford's confident attitude in life, and stop being so afraid just to present a little paragraph."

I heard snickers break from the class as I stood up from my seat but it didn't seem to bother me. I walked over to the front of the class with my paper flimsily shaking in my fingertips as I stared at the entire group of kids.

"Alright Kim…give us a little synopsis first about your summer." Mrs. Steiner said.

There wasn't just one way in saying everything I did these past two months.

It's difficult to describe my summer in a little synopsis.

But I took a large sigh anyway and tried to find the right words.

"Well, my summer was actually one of the best ones yet." I began facing the class. "It wasn't your cliché, average summer where you go to the beach, hang by the pool, or just relax at home. For me it was different. For my summer, I went around the world in search of something that at first didn't seem so important. I fought people, got stuck in a cave, deciphered clues, and saved something that turned out to be even bigger than anyone could ever imagine. But above all that, the entire time I was with my friends, which was why I really did have one amazing summer. I found people that made me want to rip my hair out at times…but I also found people that made me happy."

My eyes flickered on Jack for a moment¸ and I could catch a glimpse of his smile.

"Bottom line…this summer was actually an adventure. A life-changing adventure." I smiled.

"And what's the name of your essay?" My teacher asked.

I didn't even need to refer back to my paper, as I already knew the title from the minute summer had started two months ago. I smiled at Ms. Steiner and stared at the class, the memories instinctively flooding back into my head.

"It's called The Hunt."

And as I started to read my essay, I knew I'd be taking my entire English class on an adventure that'll make them stay awake for the rest of the year.

An adventure called The Hunt.

The End.

My LAST A/N- And that's the end to THE HUNT. I really hope this ending pleased you all. Let me explain why the emotions are kind of…all over the place. So the reason why it's so happy-ending like was because I was still on Cloud 9 from meeting Leo Howard on Saturday. So you'll get a sappy, corny ending. He is honestly one of the nicest people I have met, and that was like the best day of my life!

Anyway, while I did make it happy-ending like, I also left a little mystery in it too. The reason for THAT is because I finally gave in and watched Pretty Little Liars and I'm unhealthily obsessed. So you'll get a few unanswered questions with that conversation between Kim and Travis (which I added last minute).

I'd like to give a small shoutout to Ariana (fallen empires) who gave me some of the ideas for The Hunt. She's one of my best friends on FF, and some of the ideas used in this story were hers. For example, it was her idea for J, E, and M to receive black belts at the end of the story, and for Travis to return briefly. So thank you Ariana! I hope you enjoyed it, and that it wasn't too corny for you!

But bottom line, I'd like to thank you ALL for reading this story since February 12. Honestly, your support on this story and to me meant the world, and I'm really sad to leave here. I received like 20 PM's with all of you saying how sad you were and how I inspired you, and honestly that just made me cry. You guys are incredibly sweet, and I'll never forget the way you helped me through life. (BTW-want to read my sappy, incredibly cheesy goodbye speech? Check my profile).

THANK YOU SO MUCH to the 85 of you that have favorited and the 90 of you that have subscribed, for over 20,000 hits on this story AND for this story to be one of the top hits on Google when you just type "Kickin' It Fanfictions". You all are so amazing! Thank you!

I still have Once Upon a Dream that will be updated VERY shortly (It's on editing at the moment) and one more one-shot which should come out before September 6th. The day when I'm officially a freshman. Hoo-rah.

I hope that since this is the last chapter of The Hunt that ALL of you will review? Please? You'd make me feel a bit better? :)

Once again, please leave your thoughts on how you felt about the last chapter of The Hunt, and once again thank you for reading this story . I'm glad to have improved my writing through here, and entertain you all, hopefully!

Thank you guys! This is Taylor, signing off from The Hunt for good.

I love you all, and will miss updating this story! Thank you so much!

~Taylor (: