The Out Crowd

By: Michael Kirby

Narrated by: Brandon McKernan

Hallie Flynn was ready for the perfect senior year, but everything changed at Homecoming when petty rumors spiraled out of control. The In Crowd was always who everybody in the Out Crowd dreamed of being. The Out Crowd consisted of everybody else.

Isaiah was also expecting a normal senior year. His biggest concern was earning a scholarship for college, but then all the norms evaporated. Gossip piled on top of itself, overwhelming his social life and everyone else's. Friendships were ruined. People from all walks of Gates High School life no longer knew who to trust.

Determined, Hallie made it her mission to set the record straight. But by the time the gossip desperately needed to be stopped, it was already too late. Gates High could never be the same as it was again, because rumors and gossip are not toys to be played around with. What appeared simple and straightforward became more confusing. Eventually the rumors took on a life of their own, and truth and untruth merged into an unrecognizable blur. Both the In Crowd and the Out Crowd learned to live with their new fate in different ways. Inevitably, lessons were learned, but only after the damage was already done.

©2020 Michael Kirby (P)2021 Michael Kirby