Chosen Read online

  We got to know Jay a little more—well, I did… Adam apparently already knew him.

  Jay and Adam were childhood friends, which was weird since Adam had never even mentioned Jay. Maybe they’d lost contact with each other? They told me some of their stories about when they’d pretended to be pirates and explored the woods. It was nice listening to their stories, and they gave me a warm feeling knowing that Adam had had a great childhood.

  Anyway, Jay had just moved into the woods area in Ford.

  He was born in Richmond, but he and his family moved here for his uncle’s business. He had a brother and lived with his uncle. From the stories he told me, his brother sounded like a little kid on a sugar rush.

  I liked it.

  He didn’t mention his parents, but I didn’t press it; I knew how it felt not to have any parents.

  Still, I couldn’t help but feel something was off.

  When I asked him some innocent questions like, “Is there anything interesting going on in your life?” he’d freeze. He laughed it off and changed the subject.

  Then again, why did I want to know something that personal? I hadn’t even known the guy for a day.

  I didn’t see Jay for the rest of the day, which made me a little disappointed, and that feeling, in turn, made me want to slap myself. But it was mostly concern that I was feeling.

  Later in the school day, there was tension in the popular group—meaning Bryce and Jess.

  Once Bryce had heard what Jay said to Jess, he was furious. She probably twisted it around too, since he was doing practice with the football coach and hadn’t witnessed anything. I had a feeling blood would be shed soon.

  That’s why I was disappointed I didn’t see Jay, right? Because I couldn’t warn him.

  It was the end of the day and Adam decided to hang out at my place. We never went to his place. In fact, I’d never been inside. He said that it was a family thing, but I’d never even met his parents.

  Which was weird.

  He was very insistent with his explanation, so I went with it. I trusted Adam and would wait patiently until he finally revealed the truth. Adam was a pretty weird guy anyway, so I didn’t even bother to understand how that boy’s mind worked.

  “I’m bored,” Adam whined. “Let’s do something Girl Scout,” he said, excited.

  I narrowed my eyes. Adam always came up with bizarre stuff to do, so I decided to be cautious.

  “Like what, Keller? And let it be very low-key. I refuse to vandalize any property today.”

  Adam pouted but started thinking thoughtfully. He beamed and ran into my closet. I sat on my bed feeling curious. What was that boy up to now?

  He came out with toy microphones that I’d been given when I was seven. He handed one to me.

  “Let’s do this thing,” he said in a sultry voice.

  I snorted but obediently went to my iPod. I gave it to Adam so he could pick the song we would sing. I had always enjoyed music and liked to use it as an escape. It was a perfect way to just be a teenager for once.

  As the familiar music came on, I groaned.

  ‘Stressed Out’ by Twenty-One Pilots started to boom out of my iPod. Adam pulled me off my bed and began hopping around, screaming the lyrics into the microphone. His enthusiasm was contagious and I couldn’t help but move to the music as well.

  Once the song was over, we were out of breath and our throats were sore from screaming.

  “I’m content now,” Adam said, jumping into my bed. I lay next to him and we looked at the ceiling, letting time pass by.

  “Clara!”

  I jumped at Irene’s voice and sighed. I turned to an angry Adam. He didn’t really like my foster parents. He thought they did nothing for my well-being. I would have agreed with him if they hadn’t put a roof over my head.

  “I think you should go. I need to clean the house anyway.” I sighed as I threw the microphones back into the closet.

  Adam looked ready to protest until I gave him a look. He sighed, got his things, and went downstairs. I trailed behind him.

  I watched as Adam walked out the door with a wave before I turned to an annoyed Irene.

  “Yes?” I asked.

  I never addressed them because I didn’t even know what to call them at this point.

  She let out a growl of frustration.

  “I need you to clean this all up. Herbert is too much of a lazy ass to do anything. We’re going to be having guests on Friday and this place needs to be spotless!” she ordered as she handed me a broom.

  From the corner of my eye, I saw Herbert glaring daggers at me. I knew I would be getting an earful later.

  I looked back at her and sighed.

  “But, it’s going to be—”

  “I know. I know. It’s going to be your birthday, Clara. But this is important. I need you to clean the house since Herbert and I can’t. Please do this for me,” she pleaded.

  I looked at her, shocked. She never said please.

  I nodded and she smiled in relief. Then she walked upstairs to who knows what.

  I looked around to see the mess that was my house.

  Happy-early-birthday-present to me.

  4 - Freak

  I ran through the dark woods, completely out of breath.

  It was pitch-black, besides the tiny flashlight I held in my hand. It was like one of those horror movies with the girl running away from the zombies.

  I tripped over roots and twigs, but I regained my balance quickly and kept running as fast as I could manage.

  I wanted to turn back, to see if they were alright.

  But I knew that I couldn’t afford to.

  I knew that if I did, something bad would happen.

  I needed to keep going. If I stopped now, I’d be dead.

  I heard footsteps and shouts, making me turn another direction. I called out for help, but no one replied.

  Tears were streaming down my cheeks.

  I looked around the woods, hoping for something to hide me. I took another step and hissed, looking at my twisted ankle. I couldn’t move without causing pain throughout my right leg.

  It was hopeless.

  I was alone.

  The shouts grew louder as I closed my eyes into darkness.

  My eyes snapped open and shut tightly again once the bright light blinded me.

  I slowly opened them again and looked at the ceiling.

  I thought about the dream I’d just had. To be honest, I had a great imagination, but it almost felt real, too real.

  But it was just a dream—a visual from my mind. I’d be fine.

  I groggily got up to get ready for school. I felt completely drained. It was probably from last night.

  My back was aching from cleaning the entire house last night. Herbert and Irene were nowhere to be found, and I’d finished everything by myself.

  As I put weight on my right foot, I felt a numbness pass through it. I walked it off and got into the shower.

  I let the hot water relax my tense muscles. After twenty minutes, I got out and brushed my teeth and hair.

  I put on a simple blue top with my jeans and dragged myself downstairs. As per usual, I stole a granola bar in disgust.

  I needed more breakfast choices.

  Sighing in relief when I didn’t see them, I walked outside to sit on the front porch to wait for Adam.

  Soon, Adam pulled over and I threw myself in.

  “Morning, Girl Scout!” Adam cheered.

  “Why must you be so peppy in the morning?” I groaned, rubbing my eyes.

  “Slow your roll, Ms. Pessimist. What’s got you on the other side of the bed?” Adam said in a mock baby voice. I ignored the urge to whack him.

  I rested my head on the dashboard and closed my eyes.

  “I’ve just been having trouble with sleep. My dreams are all weird and I wake up drained. It’s probably some weird psychological thing. I can take some medicine tonig
ht.”

  I got no response back and looked at Adam. He was staring straight ahead with his eyebrows furrowed. I looked at his hands to see that they were clenched on the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white.

  “Adam? Are you alright?” I asked, concerned.

  Did I do something?

  Adam quickly snapped out of it and relaxed his posture, but I could see the anxiety coming off him.

  “Yeah. Just thinking about heading to school. It’s terrible there,” he said, laughing nervously.

  I raised an eyebrow at him, but he ignored it. I knew he wasn’t going to talk, so I decided to ask him later.

  We parked and walked to our lockers. My leg felt back to normal, so I was fine walking.

  I made my way through the thick crowd. It was bigger than usual. People were pointing and snickering at me. I started to feel uneasy.

  Something was wrong.

  Once I got to the front of my locker, I understood completely.

  There was writing all over it. There were curses too colorful to describe. I held back tears. I didn’t want to give everyone the satisfaction that they were getting to me.

  Raising my chin high, I opened my locker to get my things.

  “Hope you enjoy your locker, Freak.”

  I turned to see Jess smirk at me before strutting away. The rest of the student body just laughed and enjoyed my suffering.

  One big happy family.

  As much as I wanted to smack her, I knew it wouldn’t help anything. She’d just do something worse.

  “Hey Clara—what the hell happened to your locker?!”

  I jumped and was met with angry grey eyes. Only they weren’t directed at me. They were examining my locker. Jay turned to the crowd.

  “Don’t you guys have somewhere else to be?!” Jay shouted, and the crowd scampered as his voice echoed through the hallways.

  Look at Mr. Authority over here.

  He turned back to me, concerned.

  “Are you alright?” he whispered softly.

  I thought about it. Was I alright? This wasn’t the worst thing that had happened to me, but it still hurt. But I didn’t care what they thought, right? This wasn’t going to matter after high school. Why bother? I’d just ask the janitor to clean my locker later. I nodded stiffly and gestured to the hallway.

  Jay looked at me for a few seconds before he turned around and walked by my side to our first class.

  “So,” Jay began. “I was thinking. Because Adam gets to give you a nickname, I’m going to give you one too,” he said determinedly.

  I gave him a look.

  “Adam has known me way longer than you mister, and he only says it to make fun of my size. It hasn’t even been an official twenty-four hours. What makes you think you can give me a nickname?” I asked.

  Jay smirked.

  “Trust me, I’m going to know you for quite a while.”

  Before I could respond to that, Jay pushed me through our classroom door and into our seats. I saw Adam giving me a look and I sent one back saying, ‘tell you later.’

  Adam wouldn’t have it though.

  As the lecture started, I felt something hit my head and saw a crumpled piece of paper.

  I opened it up.

  What the hell, Girl Scout? I want details!

  I rolled my eyes, took out a pen out, and scribbled my response.

  Jess and her posse wrote stuff all over my locker. Jay defended me.

  I tossed it back to him. A few moments later, the crumbled paper came back.

  The little bitches! How dare they? And Jay defended you? I’m not surprised—he’s that type of person.

  I felt another piece of paper thrown at me but from a different direction. I looked and saw Jay leaning back, smirking. I opened the note.

  It’s been 24 hours. I get to choose a nickname now. How about Shortie?

  I flushed and scribbled my answer immediately.

  NO! I already have Adam using a small joke on me. You don’t need to join the group. Be unique with it at least.

  I tossed it back to Jay and listened to the lecture, even though I had no clue what was happening.

  After fifty minutes of torture later, the bell rang and I almost danced out of there.

  I was free!

  I could hear chuckles and saw the guys looking at me. I looked at the ground to hide my blush.

  “Glad you were so glad to leave me, Girl Scout,” Adam fake-cried.

  What a drama queen.

  The day passed by, and eventually lunch arrived. We all sat at the same table.

  “Guess whose birthday is coming up?”

  I groaned.

  “Adam—”

  “Don’t you dare, this day is really important.”

  “Nothing special is going to happen,” I protested.

  “I beg to differ,” Adam muttered back as Jay elbowed him.

  “What?”

  “Nothing. It’s just that you don’t know what’s going to happen. You may want to enjoy your day while it lasts,” Jay interrupted, glaring at Adam.

  What was that about?

  I shoved my tray away and used my arms as a pillow.

  I was so tired that I could almost fall asleep anywhere at this point. I almost fell asleep in history. To be fair though, Mr. Lance wasn’t the most interesting teacher in the school.

  “You alright, Clara?”

  I looked up with heavy-lidded eyes to Jay. I nodded and hid my face in the comfort of my arms.

  I could hear mumbling going back and forth between Jay and Adam, but I didn’t listen. It took too much work to pay attention.

  “Hey, new kid!”

  My eyes snapped open, and I saw a fuming Bryce make his way to our table. I started to panic because I knew a confrontation was going to happen. Bryce moved so that he was in front of Jay.

  “I heard about what you said to my girlfriend. I think you should be taught a lesson,” Bryce growled.

  I tried to move away from them, hoping he wouldn’t notice me.

  But of course, we all heard the creaking noise from my chair in the silent cafeteria. Bryce’s eyes snapped to me and he smirked.

  “Well, if it isn’t the Freak,” he said.

  I looked down and heard a growl from Adam.

  I saw movement from the corner of my eye and looked to see Adam and Jay standing up. With those two together, they completely made Bryce look like a pre-teen.

  “We all know that’s not true,” Adam snapped.

  Bryce only snickered.

  “It’s my word against hers. Who’s going to defend her? This Freak is ruining our school’s reputation!” he shouted.

  I felt everything go red. I was sick and tired of all this. And in that moment, I decided to do the one thing that I’d almost definitely regret.

  I went up to him and kicked him in the crotch.

  I watched him fall and cover his parts with a whimper. Everyone gasped, but I heard snickers from Jay and Adam. I looked at him wide-eyed. I couldn’t believe that I’d just done that.

  Bryce glared at me; his expression one of hatred.

  “You’re going to regret doing that,” he said.

  But the thing was—I didn’t regret it. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders, a sense of freedom I hadn’t experienced in a long time.

  Bryce got up, and before I could register anything, he grabbed my wrist tightly.

  I winced at his grip. He was crushing my wrist.

  He pulled me to him and slammed me into his chest.

  “Do you think this changes anything? I’m going to hunt you down,” he whispered in my ear.

  I froze in terror. I suddenly felt Bryce being pulled away from me and heard a sickening crunch. I snapped out of my daze and saw a knocked out Bryce under a furious Jay. I guess the lesson was switched around.

  I looked from Jay’s red knuckles to the vein popping out of his fo
rehead. He was practically vibrating.

  I saw Adam trying to calm him down, but nothing was working. He was too busy looking at Bryce’s limp body, which was being moved by the rest of the football team. I saw Jess crying. None of that seemed to matter.

  I needed to go to Jay.

  I cautiously made my way to him, ignoring the rest of the cafeteria. I gently placed my little hand on top of his ginormous one.

  Almost instantly, he relaxed. His eyes snapped to me and we locked eyes.

  His eyes were hard to decipher, but I could see the anger in them.

  “Thank you,” I whispered. I put my hand down, and he looked down at the hand that I’d touched.

  He nodded and we all sat back at our lunch table.

  I felt Jay’s eyes on me but I didn’t look.

  This boy was seriously messing me up.

  ***

  I got inside my house and groaned. The day had ended in a disaster.

  Eventually, we ended up in the principal’s office, and we all were suspended for the rest of the week. The nurse gave me a wrap because Bryce had given me a bruise around my wrist. Thankfully, it didn’t hurt and would heal quickly. Bryce was suspended even longer because the teacher witnessed his actions. His coach decided to pull him back from future games and would notify the colleges that Bryce got scholarships for about his actions. If the evil glare Bryce gave me indicated anything, he wasn’t happy with me.

  Just wonderful.

  On the bright side, no school on my birthday.

  Yippee.

  Adam took me home while Jay vanished. I was disappointed when I didn’t see him. I couldn’t thank him for his actions. I just had to say it the next time I saw him.

  As much as I tried to hide my fears about Bryce, Adam reassured me he wouldn’t risk his scholarships even more. But I knew Bryce well enough to know that he was reckless. I just hoped that Adam was right.

  I made my way upstairs and locked myself in my room. I changed quickly into some sweats and cocooned myself in bed. I saw The Giver on my dresser but dismissed it. I felt like at this point I should just forget it. I closed my eyes and let the Sandman take me into a dreamless sleep.

  5 - Birthday Fail

  It has started.

  I felt my head start to pound. The day had already started off just great. I started to get ready for school, until I remembered I was suspended for the rest of the week. I sighed loudly. So much for having a good student record.