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“What a loser,” somebody whispered.
Cole looked at Ivy. She sighed and turned away. Cole felt so bad and humiliated. The situation was that offensive because he himself thought that he was a loser. Cole should have said something, but he didn’t. It wasn’t easy.
After classes Cole was waiting for Jacob. He was sitting in the hall when Ivy appeared in front of him.
“So, how are you?” she asked.
Cole stayed silent for a while. Why did she ask? What a surprise! Ivy herself talked to him!
“I’m…, I’m alright.”
“You should not pay attention to those idiots.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Ok, see you,” Ivy left.
“Mm-hmm… Well, not bad,” Cole thought to himself and chuckled.
He was immersed in his thoughts when somebody patted him on the shoulder. Cole turned around and saw Jacob.
“Hey, buddy, what’s up?” Jacob winked at Cole.
“Ah, it’s you.”
“Who else could it be?” Jacob smiled slyly.
“I don’t know…” Cole replied mysteriously.
“What is it?”
“Nothing. So, what are you doing tonight?”
“Well, it’s Thursday today. So, I have a journalism course at 4. After that I have a training session. I’m getting ready for the competition which will be held next week.
“Swimming?”
“Yes. You know, I have to take part in such kinds of contests because I’ll get closer to becoming a Master of sports.
“Sounds tough.”
“Not at all. I enjoy it!”
“It looks like you don’t have any free time “.
“No,” Jacob laughed. “I’m free on Saturday after 5 o’clock. Do you want to hang out together?”
“Of course, I do! I’ve been waiting for it since last month! Will you find some time for me in your schedule?”
“Ha-ha! Don’t exaggerate! By the way, what have you been up to, bro?”
“Nothing special, you know. Yesterday my cat bit me. Today all the group laughed at me because Nate called me a loser. So, same old. Just my normal life, but…”
“What?”
“No, nothing.”
Jacob stared at Cole. They had known each other for many years. They were good friends. Cole was an introverted and shy boy. Such people are always sincere. Jacob noticed a slight change in his behaviour, but he couldn’t get it.
“Ok, fine. I’ve got to go. See you tomorrow!”
“Take care!” Cole replied and headed home.
Vocabulary
intention n намерение
skip v пропускать
oversleep v проспать
interrupt v прерывать
decrease v уменьшаться
irritate v раздражать
speak up v высказываться
arrogant adj высокомерный
stay out v оставаться в стороне
squad n отряд
humiliate v унижать
chuckle v хихикать
immerse v погружать
pat v похлопать
exaggerate v преувеличивать
III
Cole couldn’t stop thinking about the situation that happened at school. Why did Ivy talk to him? She always seemed to be a little proud and judgmental. She also didn’t make friends with other girls. Ivy was new to the school, but she didn’t even try to find friends.
The thing that irritated Cole was that Ivy wasn’t afraid to speak out. She didn’t fear to say her point of view even if there was nobody to support her. Cole didn’t act like that. He doubted that anyone would be interested and, therefore, kept his opinion to himself. Deep down inside Cole knew he liked independent people like Jacob and Ivy. Maybe he envied them. Cole felt ashamed, but it revealed his weakness. So, he could work on it.
Now Cole was curious about that girl. Poor boy spent three hours trying to find her page on social networks. He tried all possible nicknames he could come up with. He failed. Then he asked all his friends (all three of them). Dylan, his classmate, was subscribed to her account. “But there’s nothing interesting,” he said.
“Ok, let’s see.” Cole opened Ivy’s page. There were only 6 posts. The first one was made more than two years ago. It showed Ivy’s photo where she was standing near the sea and looking at the sunset. She was wearing a nice dress. Cole almost felt the warmth of that day. Summer breeze was waving Ivy’s hair and touching something deep inside Cole’s heart.
In the second post Ivy shared a list of her favourite books. “That’s intriguing,” Cole thought. He found “The Count of Monte Cristo” by Alexandre Dumas and “Vol de nuit” by Antoine de Saint-Exup'ery in the list.