Javan dreaded his first day of sixth grade.  He was going to be surrounded by…people.  He preferred the company of the animals at the ranch.  He understood them.  They understood him.  People were too complicated to understand.

He didn’t know why his foster mother was making him switch from homeschool to actual school.  He always got his school work done and was acing every single subject.  His reward for working hard and making good grades should be to keep learning from home.

But no.  Mama Sandra said he needed “socialization.”  Whatever.  He got plenty of socialization at the ranch.  He just socialized with the animals rather than people. 

So he made it his mission to show her that socialization wasn’t necessary.  In school, he sat quietly in the classroom and only talked when the teacher called on him.  At lunch, he sat by himself and didn’t bother even trying to make friends.

All he wanted to do was get back to the ranch and ride his horse Storm.  Until the spring.  When Julianne transferred in from California. 

With her long, wavy blonde hair, bright blue eyes and perfectly tanned skin, she was the most beautiful girl Javan had ever seen.  She was also slender and athletic, and only seemed to pay attention boys who were also athletic.

Javan found this athletic thing to be problematic.  He knew how to tame wild horses, but he knew nothing about sports. 

If he was ever going to get Julianne’s attention, he was going to have to learn.  So that’s precisely what he set out to do once school ended and summer break began.