Rejectables

By Nikole Gesualdi

Starting her junior year, Leah didn't think that getting detention would provide her with teens that like to perform like her and her other three friends. After quitting her school's a cappella team, she and her friends start their own team. They all try things they never thought they could do to show everyone what a reject can really do.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 8, 2020
• ISBN: 9781647016005

Book preview

Chapter 1

Mom drove me to the school’s drop-off lane, and I grabbed my bag and left. See you back at home, Mom! I called.

Okay, have fun at school! Mom said.

I shut the car door and walked up to the doors, and I saw my friends, the ones I had since I was in elementary school: Dawn, Dusk, and Skippy. Hey, Leels, what’s up? Dawn asked, excited to see me. Leels and Lee were their nicknames for me. My real name is Leah. Dawn had bouncy brown curls. She was wearing a pink shirt that had only one short sleeve on the right side with the word superstar. It was written in white glitter. She was also wearing skinny jeans and a pair of black-heeled boots. I had always envied Dawn because I thought she was the most beautiful girl I’d ever met.

Dusk Vorset, Dawn’s brother, was wearing a sleeve less blue plaid shirt and a pair of jeans with boots. Dusk was born first, and then nine months later, Dawn was born. Their parents had been going back and forth on letting them be in grades together or separating them. But they eventually decided to keep them together. I envied Dusk because he had his sibling with him. My brother, Emmet, came out a few years later.

Skippy Ross was wearing a red hoodie, jeans, and black sneakers. Skippy was Dawn’s boyfriend. They bonded over a movie that Dusk and I didn’t go to. When the movie ended, we got a group text saying everything that happened before, during, and after the movie. I envied Skippy because of the sound effects he could do—not many people could do sounds like him.

For me, I was wearing a ripped shirt, like literally; the sleeves were ripped, the sides and back were ripped. I had to wear a tank top underneath it or Mom wouldn’t let me out. My jeans were also ripped, and I had on a pair of brown boots with a zipper on the side.

Not much. What about you guys? I asked.

Nothing much. Hey, did you hear they’re going to start the a cappella try outs next month? Dawn asked, excited. She loved singing, especially if it meant singing in front of a crowd.

Yeah. Are you going to try out? I asked her.

We all are. What about you? Are you going to join? Dusk said.

We’ll see, because as much as I want to sing, it also calls for dancing, and you guys know I can’t dance. Do you guys remember when I had to dance rather than sing when I entered that beauty pageant? I said, remembering that day. Mom and Dad had put me in pageants ever since I was eleven, and I always came out in first place, though I think Dawn should’ve won; she always came out as runner-up. It was always my singing that helped me win. When I tried to dance when I was sixteen, I came out as runner-up, and Jules, the girl whom I always hated because she thought she was better than me and Dawn, won. At least until she got caught cheating and I became the winner. I’d always hated pageants because everyone was catty, and you had to make sure you we’re flawless. My parents put me in it because I was a legacy. My great-grandma, grandma, and mom were all in them and won; now my mom thought it was time to put me in it.

Oh yeah, you couldn’t sing because something happened to you, but at least you answered the questions. Plus, you got runner-up. Until, Jules got caught cheating and then you won, Dawn said, cheering me up. Besides, there will be someone to help you dance.

Good point—well, as long as I don’t have to do babysitting for anyone while we need to practice, then okay, I said.

Awesome! We’re going to be amazing! Skippy said.

Just then, the bell rang, as it was time for us to get to history class. We walked up the stairs to history class. We got in and sat down in our chairs in front of the class; we always sat next to one another. Except in some of our special classes. But we had sat together during history, math, science, English, and lunch from all our years together.

Mr. Bonnet came in, and he put his stuff down on his desk. He wore black glasses, had silver-gray hair, and today wore a green cardigan and beige cargo pants. He grabbed his textbook, and he told us to turn to page 100. We were learning about China. I got my textbook out of my bag and flipped to the page. It was about their religions.

After class, it was time for English, and we sat down next to one another in the front of the class also. Mrs. Puffin always let us read before we got started, and I was almost done with mine. I was reading this book about a wolf that got injured and got nursed back to health by a vet’s daughter and she kept the wolf as a pet because when she tried to let it go in the woods, it wouldn’t go home. I was now all finished with the book, and I raised my hand so I could ask Ms. Puffin if I could go to the library to change books. She let me go, and I went to the library.

I felt like the librarians loved me because I always showed up every month and I sold them cookies whenever it was cookie season. Ms. Marble, the middle-aged brown-haired woman, loved the thin mints, and Mr. Harper, the old man with a white beard and gray hair, loved the peanut butter cookies.

I gave them my book, and the funny thing was that it should’ve been here in another week; I always finished my books a week early. I went to the back of the library to get a new book. I found this book and read its back, and I started to like it. I didn’t really know it when I opened the book to page 1 that I was humming. "Hey, I like your humming. That’s ‘All Too Well’," a girl said. I turned around and saw a girl with curly blond hair and black glasses. She had on a blue shirt that had a lot of glitter on it; her blue jeans had a flower patch on her right kneecap, and she was wearing sneakers.

Yeah, I mostly sing quietly or with music in the background when I read so no one hears me, I said, closing the book with my bookmark in it. My name is Leah Drelwolfe.

My name is Alainia Cabatica. I’m one of the a cappella leaders. We hear everyone, and we decide where to put you guys. You can either be in the all-girl group, the Golden Choir Girls; the all-boy group, the Tones; or the all-person group, which is the one I lead, the Zingers. Whoever wants you guys can have you guys. It’s every person for themselves, so you and your friends might not be in the same group, but I heard you, so you’re in after tryouts—that is, if you’re joining. Which you should. You’re great!

I’m joining as well as my friends, I said, checking out my book.

What are you reading or about to? Alainia asked.

"It’s a Gossip Girl book. I love this series," I said.

Fascinating! I love those books as well, Alainia said. I’ll see you and your friends at tryouts. Remember, it’s in October, before Halloween.

I know. My friends are excited about it. We even talked about it before we went to our first class together, I said, heading back to English class.

After class, we went to lunch together. We had first lunch before our classes started. I had art, Dusk and Skips—my nickname for Skippy—had gym, and Dawn had fashion designing. We sat down at our usual table. Mom packed me fluffernutter, chips, yogurt, and a soda. Skips and Dawn went to go get their lunch after they put their stuff down. Dusk had a grilled cheese sandwich with bacon inside, chips, and a juice pouch. Dawn and Skippy came back with their food. They had pizza, and Dawn was the only one with a carton of chocolate milk, and as soon as they put their food down, Skippy went to the soda machine for a drink.

That was when Thomas got up and started walking over to Skippy. Thomas had black hair in a faux haircut, wore a Boston Red Sox jersey and jeans. I thought something was about to happen to him, so I grabbed my soda, told Dawn and Dusk to stay here and eat their lunch, and walked over. Thomas was teasing Skippy again; he grabbed his soda and held it up so he couldn’t grab it. I poked him on his shoulder to get his attention. He turned, and I told him to leave him alone. He turned back to Skippy to tease him again. I’d never know why he teased Skippy, but I always made him pay.

Come on, Thomas, give me it back! Skippy said, jumping to go get it.

If you want it, then jump higher, squirt, Thomas said.

That was when I opened my drink, took a sip, and swished it around in my mouth so it could have all my saliva in it. I poked him on his shoulder.

What do you want now? Thomas asked, getting annoyed.

That was when I spat my drink at him. He dropped his arm, and Skippy got his drink. Everyone laughed at him. Then we went back to our table, while Thomas was getting my drink and backwash off him. Halfway into our food, the lunch aides came over. Did you spit in Thomas’s face? the lunch aide asked. This guy had red hair, freckles, green eyes and wore a plain yellow shirt with black pants. Throw stripes in those colors and he could be a life-size Irish bee.

"Yes, but he started