Chosen Read online

  Adam and I looked at each other for a few seconds before we shrugged and smiled.

  We’d probably figure it out soon. It’s not like anyone was going to tell me anything anyway.

  I quietly squirmed my way through the crowd. There were a couple of bumps, shoves, and grunts thrown my way, but I just pretended it hadn’t happened. I ignored them and went to my locker to get my things.

  I found Adam banging his head on his locker.

  I raised my eyebrow at him.

  “What’s up, Keller?” I asked curiously.

  He turned and gave me weird look.

  “I think I just found out what all the gossip is about. It’s a new student and all the girls are huddled around him,” he muttered, pointing down the hallway. I squinted to see a large crowd. “That’s why all the girls are drooling on the floor. I don’t think he plays for my team though,” Adam said with a strange look.

  I smiled and gave him a pat on the back.

  Adam shut his locker, and we left for first period.

  We entered the classroom and sat in the back corner like usual. It was a nice secluded area where no one would bother us—thank goodness.

  The bell rang, and as the teacher began the lecture, I opened my worn-out textbook to finish my doodle from yesterday. Don’t judge me; you should see everything else in this textbook.

  As I was finishing my scribble of Adam, a knock sounded on the door. The teacher always kept the door locked, which was annoying whenever I had to use the restroom.

  The teacher walked to the door and opened it. Everyone looked over, and Adam nudged me in the side. Annoyed, I looked up to see what the commotion was all about.

  I all but lost my breath when I did.

  Standing at the door was one of the most handsome guys I’d ever seen.

  With dirty blonde hair almost covering his eyes, he looked like a giant. He was well built and you could see his muscles bunched from holding his backpack. I examined his face and saw his high cheekbone structure. His lips were full and formed a smirk on his face. This boy had no blemish whatsoever.

  It was kind of annoying but cool at the same time.

  “Ah, you must be Mr. Woods,” I snapped out of my examination and felt my cheeks flush. “Welcome to Ford High—take a seat wherever you like.”

  Girls began eagerly batting their eyes, begging for him to notice and sit next to them.

  I rolled my eyes and looked at Adam, who was next to me. He narrowed his eyes at the new student with both annoyance and amusement. I didn’t miss the look of familiarity in his eyes. Did Adam know him? He noticed me staring and used one hand to cover the side of his face and mouthed 'hottie.'

  I tried to cover my giggle but failed. It seemed to have gotten Mr. Woods' attention and he snapped his eyes to mine.

  I looked into his eyes and saw how grey they were. They reminded me of something, but I couldn’t recall what.

  Mr. Woods smiled genuinely at me and made his way towards me. I was more than shocked when he took the empty seat next to me. He turned and smiled.

  “Hey,” he greeted.

  His voice was deep and had a husky hint to it. I wanted to melt into a puddle.

  Snap out of it! He’s only being nice to you for now. Just wait until the populars pull him into their group.

  It had happened before. New students would introduce themselves to me before they were whisked away by the rumors. The next class period, I was just dirt under their shoes.

  Keeping that in mind, I concentrated on my book and nodded my head in acknowledgement. He only smirked at me.

  “My name’s Jay. And you are?”

  I looked at him and tried not to squirm under his gaze. It was the first time I’d had a conversation with someone besides Adam and my foster parents.

  “Clara,” I said simply, proud of myself for not stuttering.

  He examined me thoughtfully before he looked behind me. I turned and saw that he was making eye contact with Adam. It looked like they were having a silent conversation.

  I turned around and got back to my doodle. I was going to ask later about that. I felt a poke on my shoulder and looked to see Jay with a smirk.

  “What?” I muttered. I didn’t want to be rude, but I felt like I’d had enough interaction for a day.

  I saw girls glaring at me with open envy, and I wanted to escape into a hole. I hated attention.

  Jay put his hands up in mock surrender.

  “I was just going to say that I like your name. Clara has a nice ring to it.”

  I could feel warmth spread across my cheeks.

  What’s wrong with me? I never blush, and here he is, making me look like a tomato.

  What’s happening to me?

  3 - Did you just Commit Social Suicide?

  When the bell rang, I thanked God above and ran out of the classroom. I felt like a ninja, blending in with the crowd and scenery.

  I’d always wanted to be one.

  Too bad I’m the clumsiest person in the universe.

  I remembered the multiple times I’d tried to scare Adam and ultimately failed, due to untied shoelaces and uneven pavement.

  But that’s just life. Can’t change it now, right?

  Anyway, I knew Adam was going to yell at me for leaving without him, but I could deal with that later. I let out a sigh of relief.

  I needed to get out of there. I felt strange being near Jay and it freaked me out. I’d never had this reaction to someone before and it terrified me.

  The whole time in class, I’d felt his gaze burn holes in the side of my head, but I was determined to keep staring at my textbook.

  I went to the bathroom to breathe again. I took deep breaths.

  I could do this.

  In.

  Out.

  In—

  “Hey, Freak!”

  I groaned in despair. I wasn’t in the mood for this. I turned and saw Jess and her crew glaring at me.

  What did they want now?

  I gave them a look as if to say, ‘leave me alone, woman,’ but of course, she ignored it.

  “I heard you were talking to the new kid. Leave him alone. We don’t want your germs to get all over him.” Jess sneered. The rest of her followers giggled, while I rolled my eyes.

  “He chose to come over to me,” I said quietly.

  Jess snorted.

  “Why would a guy like him ever want to talk to you? You’re nothing but a loser in this school. Don’t forget how you embarrassed Bryce.”

  I clench my hands at my side.

  Bryce Thompson: star quarterback and a key part of the popular group. The school worshipped him. Jess and he were high school sweethearts.

  Cute, right?

  It would be if they weren’t here to destroy my life.

  The only reason the popular group targeted me was because of that kid. He accidentally tripped over my backpack and fell hysterically on the floor, papers flying everywhere. My laughing probably didn’t help, and apparently that wasn’t acceptable. He started spreading rumors and everyone else began to label me as the ‘Freak.’

  That’s high school—you hurt the jock’s ego and they socially humiliate you in return. It sounded like a bad high school television series.

  I hated it when they put Bryce in the picture. It was his entire fault that my once nonexistent life turned for the worse, all because of his own clumsiness.

  “It was from his stupid actions, not mine. If anyone wants to be the loser here, it can be you and your stupid so-called popular status. Get a grip on yourself. Let the new student do what he wants instead of shoving your fake gossip in his head.”

  Jess’ eyes widened, and I had to hide my shock as well.

  I never talked back—ever. I did a happy dance in my head before going back to my confrontation.

  Jess fixed her composure and glared at me. If looks could kill, I would have turned into ashes by now.

 
“He won’t talk to you after today. He’s going to learn the truth soon. Hope you enjoyed talking to him for those few brief moments.” She hissed before her and her posse stormed out of the bathroom.

  I went to the sink and used cold water to rinse my face.

  I looked at the graffiti-covered mirror. I looked down after I saw Clara Evans: The Freak and Loner of Ford High. As much as I tried not to listen to everyone, it was hard not to.

  I sighed and walked out of the bathroom.

  Jess was right though. Why would Jay take time out of his day to talk to me, out of everyone in this school?

  He could easily join the popular crowd and never look my way again.

  I felt myself frown deeply and heard the bell ring.

  Shoot, I was late!

  I ran to my next class, hoping the teacher wouldn’t try to bite my head off.

  ***

  JAY WOODS

  I watched as Clara left the classroom when the bell rang. Everyone scampered to the hallway and crowded the doorway as if they were waiting for something.

  Were they waiting for me?

  “What the hell are you doing here?” Adam whisper-shouted as he pulled me back in the classroom. Adam locked the door and the girls began to protest. I shifted uncomfortably from the attention as the girls pouted and eventually walked away.

  “Thank you, they wouldn’t leave me alone.” I shuddered as Adam looked back at me, seemingly not amused.

  “What are you doing here?” Adam repeated in a stern tone. I raised my eyebrows at him and crossed my arms.

  “Eric and Maggie sent me here. They want to see if the girl checks out—”

  “I’ve known that since last year!” he shouted, and I shushed him to be quiet. “I already sensed it and told Maggie—”

  “Well, Maggie can’t just walk into a high school and check and see if you’re right.”

  “And she sent you?” Adam gawked.

  “Will you stop cutting me off!” I snapped as Adam finally shut up. “I’m only here to see if there are any signs since her birthday is coming up, correct?”

  “Yes,” Adam sighed. “Clara is about to turn eighteen. She isn’t showing any signs yet. Herbert and Irene haven’t seen any either,” he finished with disgust.

  “Are you not a fan of Herbert and Irene?” I asked curiously.

  “No, I’m not. They barely treat her like a daughter. The only reason they haven’t put her back in the system is because they realized just how special she is. I’m pretty sure it’s just to keep their reputation in this town clean. I would’ve made her live with me instead, but that would look suspicious and they refused. Can you believe that?” Adam said furiously.

  I nodded as I thought back to the girl I’d seen in the classroom. She wasn’t like anything I’d expected. Adam sighed and gave me a smile.

  “It’s nice to see your face again. How’s Drake?” he asked curiously.

  I shook my head.

  “He’s still an idiot and somehow he’s still my brother. I’m waiting for him to mature.”

  “That’ll never happen. That’s like saying I’ll stop being delusional.” Adam laughed as the bell rang.

  “Go, let the girls lunge at you.” Adam laughed as I glared daggers at him while he unlocked the door.

  ***

  CLARA EVANS

  Adam and I stood in the lunch line, ordering our food.

  Adam gave me a long speech about what best friends were supposed to do. He reminded me that I couldn’t just bail on him to handle a hot guy. I rolled my eyes.

  We made our way to our lunch table and began to settle down.

  “So...” Adam trailed off.

  I raised an eyebrow at his normal ‘sly’ way to start a conversation.

  “So?” I answered back.

  Adam rolled his eyes. “Don’t be like that. Do you know what’s coming in two days?”

  I thought about it until it hit me.

  “Oh yeah,” I stated before chewing on a fry.

  “Oh yeah,” Adam mimicked. I gave him a dull look, which he ignored. “It’s going to be your eighteenth birthday! Aren’t you excited? How could you forget?”

  “Because birthdays don’t mean much to me. If it were someone else’s birthday, I would care but if it’s mine—meh. Look at me, I grew another year older. I grow older every second,” I stated drily.

  Adam rolled his eyes.

  “You turn into an adult. It’s great! You can join the club with me!” Adam said excitedly.

  “But I feel like something is going to be off. Something is going to go funny,” I replied. Adam tensed and forced out a laugh.

  “Why would it be funny?” he asked with a tight smile. I looked at him in confusion.

  “Because usually you make me do something with you. It’s usually something really funky like going to a thrift shop for candles to put on my birthday cake.”

  Adam relaxed as he began to laugh.

  “Right, right...” he chuckled nervously.

  What is that about? He was acting off today. Before I could ask, he changed the subject completely.

  “So, how come you were a big red tomato first period? Someone getting a crush?” he teased.

  I scowled and shoved another fry in my mouth.

  “First, that was redundant. And number two, no and why would I? He’s going to turn into a prick by the end of the day.”

  Before Adam could protest, the cafeteria doors opened, revealing Jay with a red-haired girl on his arm.

  I rolled my eyes at that. Of course he was a player. With those looks, he could have any girl he wanted.

  “You alright, Girl Scout?”

  I turned back to Adam, who was giving me a look of concern and amusement.

  I tried to keep a blank expression and nodded. Adam saw through it right away and patted my head.

  “If you turn around, you can see him trying to get Rebecca to let go. She’s literally clinging onto him,” he laughed.

  As tempted as I was to look, I decided to keep my back turned.

  “Hey, Clara.”

  I froze and slowly turned my head to see Jay Woods smirking down at me.

  Dang it, you tall people. Why don’t you be nice to the people down here? You don’t intimidate me, so stop towering over me!

  “It’s not my fault you’re so small.”

  Oh crap. I’d said that out loud. I lowered my head so that my hair could cover my blush.

  How embarrassing.

  “Is it alright if I sit here?” Jay asked, looking at Adam and me.

  The whole cafeteria gasped and stared at us.

  The hot new kid wants to sit next to the Freak?

  Only Adam and I sat at this table. People were too disgusted to sit next to me. Everyone but Adam looked shocked. In fact, he had a cheeky grin on his face.

  “Come and join us, Jay. Plenty of room next to Girl Scout. I’m reserving all these seats.” Adam gestured to the empty seats next to him.

  Adam Keller, I hate you so.

  As Jay sat next to me, I couldn’t help but gawk.

  “What’s with the jaw drop?” Jay teased playfully, and I gave him a glare.

  “I’m just shocked you want to commit social suicide in this school,” I replied.

  “What do you—”

  “Hey, you must be Jay Woods!” a high-pitched voice screamed in my ear. I looked and saw Jess coming over. She sat next to Jay and grabbed his arm in a seductive way.

  I looked on in disgust. And she wanted me to stay away from her ‘beloved boyfriend.’ She should stay away from any male in a five-mile radius.

  “Um, yeah that’s me... and you are?” Jay said, a little annoyed.

  “I’m Jess. Class President for our senior class. I know you’re new around here, so you don’t know much about Ford. Let’s go sit at my table so I can explain everything,” Jess said with a sweet smile.

  So long, Jay. It w
as nice talking to you for those forty-five seconds.

  “Actually, I’m fine with these guys. They’re cool people,” he said dismissing her with a wave of his hand.

  Jess’ sweet smile dropped and she glared at me.

  “Jay, you don’t want to associate with this Freak,” she said, pointing a perfectly manicured finger at me. “These losers will only bring you down. I’m trying to save you—now, let’s go,” Jess demanded.

  That kind of hurt, but I could see where she was coming from. I didn’t like what she’d said about Adam though. He wasn’t a loser by any stretch of the imagination. He could be friends with anyone.

  Me? Not so much.

  Jay pulled his arm away from her claws and glared at her. I had to admit, he looked a little intimidating.

  “Sorry, I don’t take orders from perky makeup-covered wannabes. Why don’t you just go back to where you came from?” he said, sounding bored.

  Adam and I tried to cover our laughter as Jess started to get up, red-faced. I totally didn’t see that one coming.

  Jess gave us one last look of hatred and stormed away.

  “You just ruined any chances of popularity!” Jess yelled, thinking she had the upper hand.

  Jay just rolled his eyes.

  “Like I care,” he muttered.

  Everyone was still staring at our table. I covered my face with my hair again.

  Someone sneezed and that was it—everything went back to normal. I rolled my eyes on the attention span of our student body.

  Adam put his hand out for a fist bump, which Jay gladly returned.

  Jay raised his eyebrows at me, as if he was challenging me. I just grinned. I had to give him some respect now. He totally put down Jess’s fat ego.

  I just hoped Bryce wouldn’t strangle him.

  “Welcome to the Loser’s Table,” Adam sang with glee.

  Jay grinned and mock-saluted us.

  “It’s a pleasure to be here.”

  ***

  Lunch wasn’t that bad.

  It took a little bit, but I warmed up to Jay, which shocked me.

  It had taken Adam weeks to get me into a full conversation. For Jay, it only took hours.

  I didn’t completely trust him yet. I needed to get to know him first before I could make a judgment on him. He could still be a jerk for all I knew—especially after the entrance he made in the cafeteria earlier.