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“Don`t let the noise of others` opinions drown out
your own inner voice”.
Steve Jobs
I
Cole came home after another bad day at school.
If only anyone could imagine how much he hated school and his classmates! Cole often asked himself: “Why are teenagers such idiots?” Every time the boy saw his age-mates he thought that human beings were as primitive as animals. All that his classmates did was playing computer games, partying, showing off with the expensive stuff their parents had bought them. Cole wasn’t that kind of a person. He was different. “Don’t humans have another goal in life? A meaningful one…”
At home Cole had lunch and went to his bedroom. He closed the door though there was nobody at home except him. He just liked to feel a bit isolated from the rest of the world. He needed it to have the possibility to concentrate. He was going to play the guitar. Music was his passion. It gave him freedom and confidence, the very things he often felt lack of.
Cole tried to stay focused, touched the strings, and then started playing. At first, he practiced some familiar tunes. A few minutes later improvisation began. Cole played on and on. Eventually, he got lost in Astral. You know, when you forget about everything around you and nothing else matters, just music. Music was his friend and support.
Cole closed his eyes and the whole thing started to seem like a meditation. Deep breath, confidence, solitude…
His phone rang. “Damn! Who’s this?” Cole sighed and looked at the screen of the phone. That was Jacob.
“Hey, bro!” Jacob sounded cheerful as usual. “What’s up?”
“Well, I was just playing,” Cole replied.
“Fine! How about joining the French speaking club at 6? I need a partner.”
“You know, I would go but I don’t want to. I just can’t stand those stupid dialogues the tutor makes us learn by heart. I find it useless.”
“Okay, okay. I see. I just wanted to check if you were alright.”
“Yeah, I’m doing well.”
“Ok, see you later!”
“Take care!”
Cole checked all his socials. No notifications, no messages. He had 122 followers and 563 followings. There were rock musicians, businessmen, some life coaches (those who taught how to become successful and confident), and schoolmates among his subscriptions.
Two days before Cole uploaded a photo of his guitar. He got 14 likes. Cool, right? He knew he wasn’t popular. Why was it so hard to find a soulmate? He just wanted to have some like-minded people to share ideas, songs, dreams. Cole’s best friend Jacob was a cool guy, very energetic and optimistic. But the two friends were totally different, even opposite.
Jacob was a leader of every event in school and, of course, a favourite of all the girls and teachers. He was a handsome mulatto, well-built and sociable. He had good manners and a sense of humour.
Jacob knew everyone and everyone knew him. It seemed that the guy was the embodiment of success. Cole felt lonely sometimes, though he knew he had Jacob there for him all the time.
You may wonder how it could be possible that they were best friends. Well, life is unpredictable.
Vocabulary
human being n
age-mate n ровесник
show off v хвастаться
stuff n вещи
goal n цель
meaningful adj значимый
lack n недостаток
eventually adv в итоге
familiar adj знакомый
upload v загрузить
like-minded adj одинаково мыслящий
embodiment n олицетворение
unpredictable adj непредсказуемый
II
The next day Cole was late for literature class. His first intention was to skip the whole lesson, but literature was one of his favourite subjects. He was keen on reading. That lesson’s topic was “One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest” by Ken Kesey.
“Why are you late?” asked Mr. Johnson.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Johnson, I overslept.”
“Take your seat and get ready to answer.” Mr. Johnson didn’t like being interrupted.
Cole got to his seat and Mr. Johnson continued his speech about decreased interest in reading among young people.
Ivy, the girl who always irritated Cole for some reason, agreed with the teacher. “Reading lets you understand life better”, she said.
“That girl always speaks up and often criticises others,” Cole thought. “ Why is she that arrogant?” However, Cole agreed with her idea.
But Nate, the noisiest and the rudest guy in the group, confronted Ivy. He wanted to hurt her. Ivy was an attractive young girl. She had long chestnut hair and hazel eyes. In addition, she was smart.
“Hey, Ivy, have you listened to ‘We don’t need no education?” Nate tried to make a joke. The group of his mates laughed. Ivy looked at Cole.
The boy couldn’t stay out of it: “Hey, Nate, you’d better read some books!”
“Nobody asked you, loser!” Nate replied and his squad laughed again.
“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.