Read Outside In for Free Online

wind to come out for pizza. At least she’d found her first. At least she had soared.
    â€˜OK, people,’ Mr Moulton called, his voice bringing Lee back into English class. ‘We’ve been under the skin of some of the best poets in history. Now let’s see what you guys can come up with.’
    Groans and moans ricocheted around the classroom. Mr Moulton was unmoved. He roved around the class like an actor, waving his arms about. Lee couldn’t help but watch him. He switched on the CD player, letting instrumental music provide background while he provided the vocals.
    â€˜Yep. Let’s write a poem. It can be about you, or about someone special to you. Let’s write about how we really feel about ourselves, or about how someone else makes us feel. Let’s rip off our skin. Let’s show our pulsing hearts!’
    His chalk hit the blackboard with scribbled suggestions. They seemed to flow from his hand in time with the music.
    Lee squinted at the board. Why would she want to expose her pulsing heart in a poem? It was already out there for everyone to see. What she needed was to learn how to hide it all deep inside her, not to let it onto a page. Not that she could actually do that properly, anyway. Not that she would be any good at it.
    Lee looked around. Everyone had begun working. Cecilia had an arm protecting her page. Her head was bent in total concentration. She was probably writing something completely brilliant. Again.
    Lee sketched a butterfly in the margins. She drew dots and patterns on its wings. Flew it down the page, letting those wings fold and unfold …
    Looking around, Lee saw Dylan playing air guitar. He had picked out the violin part, and had his head thrown back and his eyes closed. Sam sat next to him, writing something in fits and starts.
    Behind Sam, Lee could see the new girl, sitting at her regular table, alone again. It was amazing how intense she looked. Something seemed to be spilling out of her. Her pen moved swiftly, left to right, left to right, about five times before it stalled.
    Lee watched her. The girl’s pen was still on her paper, and her head was angled up as though she was catching thoughts from the air. Lee wondered what it would feel like to be able to do that. She wondered what it would be like having smart thoughts entering your mind and flowing into your pen.
    The girl’s head moved and she caught Lee staring. Lee smiled at her, embarrassed. The girl didn’t seem to register the smile. She had a sort of invisible barrier around her, that girl. Maybe it blocked out the ordinary?
    Soon, the girl’s pen was moving again. Lee’s page was still blank, except for the butterflies in the margin.
    â€˜OK, pens down.’ Mr Moulton switched off the music. ‘Would anyone like to share their poem with the class?’
    He waited for volunteers, and then waited some more.
    Lee made sure she had her head down in case he asked her. From the corner of her eye, she saw the new girl tentatively put up her hand. Mr Moulton was looking in the other direction, and didn’t see it. By the time he looked her way again, the girl’s hand was down. She must have changed her mind.
    It was nice getting the patterns on the butterfly wings exactly right, taking into account how the perspective would alter as they opened and closed. Dots gave way to circles and half-circles.
    Finally, Cecilia put up her hand. It was unusual for Cec. She was bright, Cec, but she was also pretty shy.
    Cecilia’s voice was soft and melodic from the front of the room.
    â€˜Kindness leaps out from those blue eyes
Accidental. She doesn’t know
Her beauty, but it’s there
For itself. Not for show.’
    Lee stopped drawing. She listened with her whole body, not just her ears. Her butterfly froze, mid-flap. She looked up from her page. There were eyes on her. A whole classroom of eyes, switching focus between Cecilia at the front of the room and