Rooster Read Online Free PDF

were sitting in her office. It was shortly after nine o’clock, and she had just told him about the plan involving himself, the Strikers and the bowling alley. She was quietly delighted with his reaction.
    â€œMrs. Helmsley and I agree that it’s a good idea. We think it will give you a chance to … ”
    â€œSay it again. You want me to what?” Rooster leaned forward in his chair so he could hear her better. Her “ office was small, tidy and full of books on counseling, addiction and coping with troubled teens. Adorning the walls were pictures of her and Bernie skiing on a gloriously snowy mountain in Whistler, B.C., sharing a laugh and a kiss at a beach resort in Maui, and posing with their golden retriever, Nana, named after the lovable dog in Peter Pan.
    Mrs. Nixon cleared her throat and told him again what they wanted him to do.
    â€œAre you serious?”
    She nodded. “Absolutely.”
    â€œAnd you think I’m actually going to do this?”
    â€œWe think you actually want to graduate, and we know your mother wants you to do this because we know she wants you to graduate.”
    â€œYou talked to my mother?”
    â€œI did. About fifteen minutes ago.”
    â€œWhat did you tell her?”
    â€œI told her everything. The whole story.”
    â€œWhich is what?”
    â€œWhich is that you had better get your act together in a hurry or else you’ll be back in here again next year or out on your own without a grade twelve diploma. That’s the truth, Rooster. That’s the way it is for you right now.”
    Rooster shook his head. “And this is your version of helping me out? Supervising a bunch of clowns at a bowling alley?”
    â€œNo one said they were clowns.”
    â€œWhatever. This is your bright idea?”
    â€œAs a matter of fact, it is, yes. This is my bright idea. Mrs. Helmsley had input. She chose you for it, actually. I was thinking of someone else entirely.”
    â€œWho?”
    â€œWell, I had thought that someone like Ainsley Miller would have been good for it, or Mackenzie Ashcroff.” “Ainsley Miller or Mackenzie Ashcroff?”
    â€œUh-huh.”
    â€œThey’re, like, the smartest kids in the whole school.”
    â€œThat’s right.”
    â€œHow did you ever go from them to me?”
    â€œI didn’t. Mrs. Helmsley thought of it. She turned my idea from being a learning opportunity for our finest students to a final opportunity for you. After thinking about it, I see her point. This is your last chance, Rooster. We’re doing you a favor.”
    Rooster stared at her for a moment. In spite of all their quarrels in the past, he had never actually disliked Mrs. Nixon. But at this moment, he disliked her very very much.
    â€œWell, I’m not doing it.” He sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. “I’m not going to take a bunch of people I don’t even know down to the bowling alley and sit there and watch them bowl. I don’t even like bowling. It’s a stupid sport and I’m lousy at it. So forget it. I’m not gonna do it, and there’s nothing in the world that’s gonna make me change my mind.”
    Mrs. Nixon held her ground. “Yes, you are doing it, Rooster.”
    â€œNo way.”
    â€œYou’re going to meet them today after school.”
    â€œUh-uh.”
    â€œYou have only yourself to blame for being in this situation. Defiance is not going to help you here.”
    â€œOh no?”
    â€œNo, it’s not.”
    â€œWhat is then?”
    â€œI beg your pardon?”
    â€œWhat is going to help me?”
    â€œWell …” Mrs. Nixon had to think for a moment. The reason she had added counseling to her portfolio as a teacher was so she could get to know her students better and do more for them. The courses she had taken gave her fresh insights into a young person’s world and new perspectives on communication and