This Isn't Everything You Are
Everyone always thought that Janna Lewis would end up just like her mother: a lost-cause, but after a run-in with death, the then fifteen year old Janna decides to turn over a new leaf.
She cleans herself up and becomes the kind of person she never thought she would be. Fast forward two years: Janna is a senior in high school, she has friends who love and support her, a brother who is always there for her, and a step-mother who is the kind of mother she wished she had. Then there is the new boy at school. He's sweet and everything that her old boyfriend, Ryan, wasn't.
Owen Parker is the kind of light that she knows she needs, only darkness isn't too far behind.
THIS ISN'T EVERYTHING YOU ARE is a young adult contemporary novel about a girl who can't escape her past and a boy who destroys eveything he touches.
EXCERPT
The little boy in the red shorts thinks pretending to pee in the pool is funny. He keeps pulling down his trunks, as if to tease me. It’s only when I start towards him that he runs away, and waits
until I go sit back down to start messing with me again. Luckily for him, his
parents are nearby. If they weren’t – I would gladly give him a piece of my
mind.
No I wouldn’t.
Being nice was a part of the job description. My boss, Henry,
was a professional ass-kisser, which meant that he wouldn’t hesitate to let me
go if anyone filed a complaint against me. That’s why I spent most of my shift
biting my tongue, and smiling at all of the people I wanted to flip off.
I couldn’t afford to lose my job. The bills were piling up at
home and though my brother told me not to worry about it, worrying was all I did
nowadays. It was like smoking cigarettes. Once you start, you can’t stop no
matter how hard you try.
Well, there are nicotine patches, but I doubt they have any for
anxiety.
I looked down at my watch. It was nowhere near time for me to
take a break. Not that I was working right now anyways. Having a job as a
lifeguard was pretty easy, especially since no one was ever in danger of
drowning. I spent most of my time either sitting in the lifeguard tower or
talking to Christa. She was my best friend and the only other reason why I
didn’t quit working here a long time ago.
People here really knew how to push my buttons, so having
someone to joke and let off steam with really helped.
“You’re going to love it here,” I heard Ryan Jefferson say. He
was standing just a few feet away from me, a leggy blonde on his arm. I couldn’t
help but smirk. He has always had a thing for blondes. Even when we were
together – I couldn’t stop him from checking out every golden haired girl that
walked by.
Colby had an abundance of them.