The Boy Who Read Minds ✔️

44:\\ Cognitive Dissonance

Jared

Stacy was my dog. She obeyed everything I said. Her tough-girl persona diminished slowly.

Sit. she sat.

Come. She came.

Leave. She left.

I was living the dream.

"So how's this going to work?" She asked as we sat in my car outside the school. The sun was setting and we were the only two people left.

"Well, we're going to leave some notes on their lockers. And leave." I said.

"That's it?" She furrowed her brows, disappointed.

"Yes, we have to take it slow. Nobody can know it's us doing this stuff. And tomorrow after school, we can egg Aaron's car." I smiled, knowing these petty crimes wouldn't get me anywhere except spending more time with her.

"I heard he crashed his car last week." Stacy said as the sun completely disappeared. We sat in the darkness with only the light of the moon illuminating our faces. "And I don't understand how vandalizing their stuff is going to help us in any way. The idea sounds stupid." She said, crossing her arms as she turned her body away from me. I grinned wider as I watched her, the moonlight was the only source of light we had.

"How about we vandalize Aaron's locker only and blame it on Violet. That'll get them to fight and break up." I said. My idea sounded pure genius. It would get them to fight. But it also was just an excuse to get a reaction from Stacy.

"No, lets go home and reconvene tomorrow. I don't think they'd argue, and I just want Violet to be my friend again and Aaron to be gone."

What? I was shocked at what she had said. It sounded too mature for Stacy to say. I glanced at her and then looked back out my window. Was she concussed??

"Well, why don't we pretend to be a couple, run it in their faces until they want to be with us?"

"You know how stupid that sounds right? If this was all some ploy to date me, you didn't have to go through all this trouble." Stacy said slyly, she grinned at me. She turned back to look at me.

I felt my heart catch in my throat as realization hit me.

Did I like Stacy? I didn't think I did. I thought I liked Violet. Violet doesn't give me the time of day though. So is Stacy the one I was supposed to be with?

"Shut up." I joked, turning away from her as I faced the window.

"No, but really Jared," Stacy said, her blue eyes wild as her fingers tilted my chin toward her. I was entranced as I gazed at her with hopeful eyes. I was a sucker for a pretty face and everyone knew it.

Before I could open my mouth to speak, police sirens filled the atmosphere as a car pulled up behind us. It was nearly two in the morning now and we had been sitting in my car since ten. I watched fear flash across Stacys eyes as an officer approached my window.

"Hello officer, what seems to be the problem."

"Do you kids know that you're not allowed on school property from midnight until three a.m unless accompanied by a school member?" He asked as I stared blankly. I had never heard of this before. I've even had friends stay here that late working on school projects and shit.

"What? No I've never heard that"

"Well you'll need to stay here for a minute while I write you a citation." He said, walking back to his car.

It was a gut feeling at first, the mood seemed to shift around us. Then it was a scream when Stacy saw other people approaching my car. My heart was pounding as the figures approached.

"Go!" She screamed, my heart was racing as I quickly started the car. The officer, or fake officer, had a group of five or six people running toward my car with what looked like weapons in their hands.

I quickly rushed out of the school, screaming and shouting, I saw them from the distance as I saw them throwing objects at school windows.

That was not an officer. A few moments passed, I had parked in front of Stacy's house.

"That was so scary! Thank God we didn't walk into that school, we could've ended up dead tonight." Stacy's voice was shaky, the panic in her voice obvious as I watched her hand visibly shake. I was in shock too.

Confusion clouded my judgement and fear filled my heart as I reached over and hugged her.

"I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have kept us at the school that late." She hugged me too, her body shaking as I hugged her and I wondered if she was crying.

"Do we call the police on them? He was impersonating an officer which is a crime. And they're destroying the school."

"Yeah, I'm on it." I said, reaching for my phone and reporting the incident. Stacy simply stared out the window as I spoke to the lady on the 911 line. She assured me that the police would show up there in a matter of moments silently and arrest the gang or whoever those psychopaths were. I felt myself calm down slightly when she hung up but my heart was still racing.

"Jared, I hate to say this, but I think it's stupid of us to want revenge. They didn't do anything to us and I honestly feel like my hatred toward Violet is unnecessary. She did nothing to me and I was just immature and stupid and jealous, I think next time I see her, I'll need to apologize because I've honestly realized that I need to start forgiving people and myself." Stacy said as I cut her off.

"Woah? Where is all this coming from?" I asked.

"We could've died back there! I don't want to go through life with that on my conscious. I literally blamed her for taking something that wasn't mine and that I had no right to."

"Wow, you're all sorts of onion aren't you?" I smiled, staring at her with nothing but admiration in my eyes.

"I don't know what that means but thanks?" She smiled.

"It is a compliment. I didn't realize there were this many layers to you in all honesty. And back to what we were talking about, yes I would love to go on a date with you, if you'll let me." I said, hopeful.

"On one condition."

"Sure"

"I want to make things right. I don't want to have this weird, random hatred in my heart and I want us to start on a clean slate regardless of how we met." She said wisely. I wondered if she'd been talking to a therapist recently, it certainly seemed like it.

"So what do you want me to do?"

"Well... lets just say I heard about your little almost-fight or full-on fight with Aaron, I'm not sure what it was there have been lots of rumors. Anyway, I want you to apologize to Aaron too. I have to apologize to him and Violet for things I've done so I'm hoping you can to him too."

"No way, he was pissing me off and I...."

"Let it go, because if that's the case I don't think I could date you, and I'm not hanging that over your head or anything, I'm just letting you know I am so done with grudges and I hope you can also mature enough to forgive others."

Her words sort of stung and honestly felt kind of rude, but I knew she was right.

"Deal, but I'm paying for our first date and it's going to last two days." I smirked.

She giggled and hugged me goodbye, leaving the warmth of my car and entering her house. I was a smiling moron when I drove home, my heart racing at all times as I entered the dark house and the bad gut feeling was back.

In case you're interested in getting the totally edited/revised/changed paperback version of this book:

AMAZON PAPERBACK LINK: https://www.amazon.com/Boy-Who-Read-Minds-ebook/dp/B08RYV11F2/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=veronica+Soliman&qid=1609863783&sr=8-3

Barnes and Noble: (Link will be available in the coming weeks)

Apple Store: (Link will be available in the coming weeks)