'Tis the Off-Season Read Online Free PDF

Ava weren’t the new kids anymore. And Charlotte was even more clueless than Alex was sometimes. Charlotte’s family had an enormous house, and Alex was pretty sure they even had servants, but not everyone else did. She quickly thought of a way to even the playing field in terms of gifts.
    â€œHey! I have an idea!” she said brightly. “Why don’t we all make our presents this year?”
    â€œGreat idea!” said Emily, almost too quickly.
    Lots of other kids nodded.
    Charlotte wrinkled her brow. “ Make them? You mean, like pot holders and stuff?”
    Alex laughed. “There are lots of things you can make,” she said. “I’m sure you’ll think of something great.”
    â€œAnd homemade presents will fit in perfectly with the ugly sweater theme,” added Emily.
    â€œAbout that,” said Charlotte. “I have no clue where to shop for an ugly sweater.”
    Alex quickly explained to her about the planned thrift store outing, and invited her along.
    Corey grinned. “The sight of you in a thrift store will be something to see,” he said to Charlotte.
    Charlotte didn’t seem offended by Corey’s remark. That’s the thing about Corey, Alex thought. He knows how to tease without ever coming across as mean. She stopped herself from smiling at him across the table.
    â€œAnd with Alex there to guide us to make the right fashion choices, we’ll be ready for the runway,” continued Corey with an earnest grin in her direction.
    Alex had to pretend to drop her napkin and hide under the table, so people wouldn’t see how much she was blushing.

CHAPTER
FIVE
    â€œAva, I noticed you didn’t pass in a thesis statement for your persuasive essay yesterday,” said Mr. Rader. He’d asked Ava to stop by to see him before leaving for her next class.
    Ava stared down at her sneakers. The white rubber toes were covered in flowers that her friend Kylie had drawn. “Yeah, I know,” she said. “I’m still thinking about what to write. I’m trying to decide between, um, why we should have a later start time to our school day and why we should have a longer lunch hour.” In fact, she hadn’t thought much about her topic at all, but those topics were as good as any. She couldn’t imagine writing four pages’ worth of stuff on any topic.
    Mr. Rader lowered his chin and frowned at her over the tops of his glasses. “Well, decide soon, Ava. As you know, the outline is due Thursday. I may need to have a word with Mrs. Hyde about helping you narrow down your arguments and supporting a thesis statement,” he said.
    Ava shook her head. “I’m on it, Mr. Rader, I promise,” she said.
    He nodded. “Run along or you’ll be late for your next class,” he said.
    Ava’s heart sank as she swung her backpack onto her shoulder and headed out. If Mr. Rader spoke to Mrs. Hyde, her parents were sure to find out. She thought about the Spanish test she’d taken this morning. She had to admit, it was a good thing Luke had been there last night to drill her on her irregular verbs, because she would have bombed it otherwise. Still. Couldn’t her parents see that she was doing worse, not better, without sports? This winter could be a disaster both athletically and academically.
    A thought struck her. She’d try appealing directly to her father. He was a coach , and he’d once been an athlete. He would listen to reason.

    â€œAva!” called Madison. “Are you coming to the gym after school today to play?”
    The final bell had just rung, and Ava couldn’t get out of the middle school fast enough.
    â€œCan’t today,” said Ava.
    â€œYou didn’t come to the rec center last night!” Madison reproached her. “You’re not having second thoughts about coming out for the team, are you?”
    â€œMe? No,” said Ava quickly. “ I am