Private (Private 1)

among the books than she was among her friends.

“Remember what Noelle said about me having done the whole

“Everyone thinks his weekly quizzes are killers, but I guarantee semester’s work?” she said.

you I can predict almost every question he asks,” Taylor said, openI nodded.

ing my history book to chapter six and turning it toward me on the

“She wasn’t kidding.”

table. “He takes all his questions from the third sentences of para-Damn.

graphs within the required reading.” She used her pencil’s eraser I opened my notebook and was about to get to work when

as a pointer. “Here. ‘On July 12, 1812, General Hull and his troops Taylor’s cell phone vibrated on the table. She glanced at it and crossed into Canada at Sandwich.’” She read upside down faster

rolled her eyes.

than I did right side up. “That’s the third sentence of a paragraph.

“It’s for you,” she said.

You can forget about everything else after that. Just memorize that My brow creased, but I took the phone. The text message read:

information and you’ll be fine.”

“smarter yet glasslicker?”

“No way,” I said, sliding the book toward me.

I snorted a laugh. I put my pen down and texted back “almost.”

“Trust me. If you don’t get at least a ninety-two on his next quiz, The moment I placed the phone down, it vibrated again. Taylor

you can take it out on me,” she said.

shot it an irritated look. This time the text read: “y dont u have ur I smiled and opened up my notebook so I could start making

own phone? r u a loser?’

lists. I felt as if someone had just handed me a limit-free charge I flushed and texted back “not allowed.” More like “have no

card. That’s how excited I was to show Mr. Barber up.

money.” But she didn’t need to know that.

“I think I might love you,” I told Taylor.

The response was almost instantaneous: “have 2 fx that.”

She laughed and was clearly pleased. “Get all that info down and Whatever that meant. I placed the phone down and it vibrated

then we’ll talk about how to impress Miss Krantz,” Taylor said, again. Taylor clucked her tongue and picked it up. She texted back pulling a romance novel out of her bag. “Woman has a thing for oral furiously.

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