Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 97339 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 487(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97339 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 487(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
The whole cooking thing is taking a little longer to catch on than everything else, but I haven’t given myself food poisoning or burned down my apartment yet, so that’s a bonus. Though according to Cassie and Jax, the food could probably taste better.
It’s been another great day where I’ve managed to stick to my new lifestyle. I sit in my classroom with a great big smile on my face as I watch my students draw up equations on the whiteboard for one another to solve. The kids have just started learning about addition, and I swear, it’s the most amusing thing I’ve ever witnessed.
Hearing thunder booming through the sky, I glance out the window, watching the heavy rain slam against the window as the kids take a few minutes to work out the answers to their equations. As I wait, the rain turns to hail and the kids lose their tiny minds.
Just great. My brand-new car is parked out in that shit. Knowing my luck, it’ll end up with hail damage and put me out a couple hundred dollars on the deductible for the insurance. That’s what I get for trying to save money on takeout. It’s like the world just knows when you’ve got some cash saved up and it’s like here, you don’t need that. Let me hit you with a hail storm!
“It looks like snow,” little Isabelle squeals as the hail quickly blankets the school.
“Yeah, it looks pretty great,” I tell her.
“Can we go outside?” Jack asks.
I think it over. I know Jack’s idea of going outside probably consists of running through the hail, which I’d never allow, but I see no harm in going out and standing under the shelter. “Okay,” I smile. “Put your pencils down. We can stand out under the shelter and watch the hail, but if anyone goes past the shelter, you’ll be spending your lunchtime with me, understood? I don’t feel like losing my job today.”
“Yes, Miss Lucas,” they reply in unison.
The sound of their chairs scraping against the floor echoes throughout the room along with their excited chatter. Being the best bunch of kids I know, they automatically line up at the door and wait for me to come open it. If only I had this kind of organization in my personal life.
We head out into the cold, and they rush toward the very edge of the shelter, knowing damn well they’re pushing their luck. As if on cue, each one of them thrust their hands out to try and catch the hailstones.
“Why does it hail?” Jessica asks as she bends down to scoop a large hailstone off the ground before making a show of cleaning off the dirt and grass.
“Good question,” I tell her. “Why don’t we do a little research after lunch and see if we can figure it out?”
“Okay,” she smiles.
I can already see my afternoon plans changing into a science lesson, so I decide I better make it fun. The hail comes to a stop, and soon after, the rain calms down to a sprinkle. “Alright guys. You have thirty seconds to go out there and find the biggest hailstone you can.”
They lose their minds again, and I start counting down from thirty, putting on a big show, watching as they run for their lives. They scatter across the playground, picking up stones before tossing them back down and grabbing another. My countdown finishes, and they reluctantly make their way back to me, each with a single hailstone in their open palm.
Not wanting them to melt, I rush them back into the classroom and empty out one of the many crayon buckets. Reading my mind, they start rushing toward me and dumping their stones in. “Hurry up, guys,” I tell them. “We don’t want them to melt.”
With the stones safely in the bucket, I look over my students. “Alright, who’s the fastest runner?”
Every single hand flies up into the sky with a few of them going as far as jumping up and down to get noticed. I grin at the kids, absolutely loving my job. “Alright, Sam,” I say, handing him the bucket, “run this down to the staff room and ask Miss Davies to put it in the freezer.”
He nods eagerly, and like the damn flash, he disappears out the door.
“Okay, the rest of you get your little tushies back in your seats and finish these equations.” They all groan but reluctantly head back to their seats, a lot slower than when they vacated them. By some miracle, we get through the equations just in time for the lunch bell to ring.
Due to the wet weather, I ask the kids if any of them would like to stay inside during lunch, and with no takers, I head down to the staff room and eat my lunch among other adults. Taking advantage of the break, I look up more information about hail, just to make sure I’m telling the kids the right thing. Because honestly, who actually remembers this stuff?