by CJ Adler
I hated him so much that I could no longer count the terrible adjectives I used to describe him. He was that terrible of a person. I seriously think he should be awarded Bully of the Year and be pushed off the cliff as a reward for everything he did to me. But, bullies couldn’t scare me. I could manage them on my own.
But why am I in here now? Hiding?
I checked my watch. Thirty minutes had already passed. I could go and grab a sandwich on my way to my next class. When I was completely sure that the coast was free of Aaron’s sidekicks, I left my cubicle.
“Sam!” A girl caked in make-up called out to me as I turned left to the outdoor cafeteria.
It was Chloe, my best friend, and my complete opposite. While I worshiped Coldplay and U2, Chloe was overly devoted to Lady Gaga and Beyonce. While I would never let people see me with lip-gloss on, Chloe would never leave the house without being dosed up with some dark mascara, blush, and eyeshadow. My wardrobe consisted of gray, white and black shirts and jeans. She, on the other hand, had two closets full of skimpy skirts with as many colors as one could find in a packet of Skittles.
Today, Chloe was wearing a pastel pink skirt and her favorite sky blue tee. She graciously flipped her shiny blonde curls, strutting towards me.
“What’s up, Barbie?” I greeted.
She hugged me and grinned when she finally decided to release me. “You totally kicked Aaron’s ass, loser!”
I wrinkled my nose. “You heard?”
“Yes. What do you expect? Gossip 101 is everybody’s favorite subject. I wish I were there to take pictures,” she said, laughing loudly. “That handsome jerk! Who does he think he is?”
I scowled at her. “Handsome jerk, huh?”
She pinched my arm, trying to make a point. “Well, you have to admit it, Sam. Aaron is one hot piece of meat,” she said sheepishly. “Sexy blond hair. Deep blue eyes. Perfect jawline, and those kissable lips… damn!”
“I can’t believe it. You’re drooling over the enemy.” I shrugged her off.
She giggled and continued to annoy me by praising the devil all the way to the outdoor cafeteria. I awarded my bravery with a fifteen-minute meal time instead and had three ham sandwiches, an apple, a tart and a bottle of soda. I was that hungry.
I arrived at my next class just in the nick of time and had to sit in the back corner of the room. Ms. Penny’s lecture on the conflict in ideologies of communism and capitalism that became a foundational factor of the Cold War had sent half of the class into coma—except for me. I topped most of my important subjects, the ones that really mattered. Gym class, not included.
Getting good grades, for me, was a piece of cake. I fell in love with literature as soon as I read Leo Tolstoy when I was ten. I briefly flirted with Math and soon realized that I really had to love it and live it too to maintain my class standing.
The day went on as expected. My recent run-in with Aaron went viral again, like how our previous encounters did. Some cheered and some jeered. And the same jovial reaction greeted me when I came to The Tutor Club Headquarters. Some of my fellow academic tutors smiled at me while others merely stared in sheer amazement.
I didn’t care what they thought; I was there to get the name of the student who needed my help and not talk about my squabble with the cretin.
I checked the row of small boxes that were attached to the announcement board. Each box was labeled with the name of the members of the club. I sighed loudly when my box was still empty.
What’s going on?
“Bruce, I think we now have a problem in the distribution of tutees.”
Bruce Carson, our club’s president, looked up at me behind his desk from the thick stack of paper.
“I don’t think so, Sam. Mira’s box has been empty for two weeks now.” He smiled, his eyes sparkling behind his black-rimmed glasses. “By the way, I heard Nicole was really pissed off. You made spaghetti art on Aaron’s shirt today. And I heard she bought him that shirt.”
I rolled my eyes. “That guy’s a moron. And Nicole is an even bigger idiot for being with him. Her boyfriend thinks he owns the school.”
“Well, when your parents are wealthy, you automatically get a free pass to be a jerk.”
“Whatever. You do know that’s an incredibly disgusting excuse to inspire injustice. He can’t take his wealth with him when he dies. And frankly speaking, he will die. He’s not immortal.” I walked to the door and sighed again. “I’ll check again tomorrow. I’m going home.”
Like the rest of the underprivileged students in my school, I owned a bicycle instead of a car, which I was pretty okay with because that was what I actually asked for my fifteenth birthday. I didn’t want a car. My mother was a very lucky woman. Her eldest daughter was low maintenance.
I turned up the volume on my headphones and listened to “Viva La Vida” and stepped on my pedal. It was a good autumn afternoon. I smiled as I breathed in the earthy smell of falling leaves while I passed by the trees already glowing in vivid hues of red and gold. I loved Lediville, Ohio, this time of the year.
As I scanned my iPod for another song favorite, a puppy in the middle of an empty road caught my eyes. I hurriedly went to its rescue and carried it to the side. I checked and saw that it was male. And as I rummaged for some leftover in my backpack, I felt someone came up from behind me and grabbed my arms. “Hey!”
It was Zack. Of course. He pushed me up against a large tree. My heart jumped when I saw a dark blue Mustang convertible not far from where I was pinned. Quickly, I was already thinking of ways to escape when the devil himself stepped out of the car. Jasper was not far behind him, mocking me.
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After School With Mr. Obnoxious
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Acknowledgements
I have so many people to thank for making every page of this book come to life.
To all my beloved cousins, you comedians are the reason why I started writing this book in the first place. Thank you for all the laughs and memorable moments together. I will always cherish them.
To all my Wattpad fans, you legends are the reason why I continued writing this book. Most importantly, you guys are the reason this book became known. Thank you for always encouraging me with kind words.
To my amazing agent, Le-an Lai Lacaba, none of this would have been possible without you. I could not have picked a better person to represent me. Thank you for keeping me motivated and for always supporting me.
To my wonderful editor, Precious Vidad, who has been so patient with me. Thank you for dedicating so much of your time and effort to this story. I'm so grateful to have worked with you.
Lastly, to my publisher, Blvnp Incorporated, for giving me hope in the career of writing. Without each and every one of you at Blvnp Incorporated, I would not be writing any of this right now.
CJ Adler
Author’s Note
Hey there!
Thank you so much for reading PAUSE! I can’t express how grateful I am for reading something that was once just a thought inside my head.
I’d love to hear from you! Please feel free to email me at cj_adler.awesomeauthors.org and sign up at cj-adler.awesomeauthors.org for freebies!
One last thing: I’d love to hear your thoughts on the book. Please leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads because I just love reading your comments and getting to know YOU!
Whether that review is good or bad, I’d still love to hear it!
Can’t wait to hear from you!
CJ
ADLER
About the Author
Just your average twenty-year-old
using writing to escape the realms of reality.
If I'm not spending my days running around after children, you'll find me stuck in the middle of yet another hilarious family debate that I may or may not have started.