I was a little disappointed myself. It's funny, I've never been a huge fan of English class. But having Ted for a teacher was changing my mind. These days, English was fun. Even if I did have to spend every class period staring at the back of Lex Luthor's - I mean, Cary's - head.

    Chapter 2.

    "Take one and pass the rest back." Ted handed a stack of papers to the first person in each row.

    It was the next day, Friday. I was in English class, staring once again at Cary Retlin's cowlick. Just as I was wondering why they call it a "cowlick," he turned and handed me the stack of papers. He smirked at me and raised an eyebrow. "Spacing, Kristy?" he asked.

    I frowned. "No," I said, wishing I could think of a snappy retort. I took one of the papers and turned to pass the rest to Rachel, the girl behind me. Rachel used to live in Stoneybrook, then she moved to London for awhile, but now she's back. Oh, goody. Rachel has never been a favorite of mine. Still, I gave her a smile along with the stack. She smiled back. I don't think we'll become friends, but I know she and my friend Stacey McGill are getting to know each other.

    I glanced at the paper and saw that it was a list of books. Some titles were familiar, such as The Catcher in the Rye and A Separate Peace. But there were also a few books I'd never heard of. It was nice to see a few unfamiliar titles; this list looked a little more interesting than our usual reading lists.

    "As you can see, this is a list of books," said Ted. "Can anyone tell me what they all have in common?" "They all have titles!" Alan Gray yelled out.

    Ted smiled. "Very observant, Alan," he said drily. "Anybody else?" "Um, they're all about kids?" asked Jeremy.

    "Good thought," said Ted, looking down to scan the list. "I can see why you would say that. But it's not entirely true. Anyway, I had something else in mind." Jeremy blushed a little, and I saw Claudia shoot him a sympathetic look.