The Shortcut

Lexile: 870 | Grade: 6

Passage

Jordan and his friends stood at the edge of the forest trail behind their school. A large wooden sign read: 'Trail Closed for Repairs.'

“It’s just a shortcut,” Marcus said, stepping over the sign. “If we go through, we’ll get to the skate park way faster.”

Jordan hesitated. The forest trail was muddy and overgrown, and the school had warned students to stay out for safety reasons. But Marcus and two others were already laughing and heading down the path.

“You coming?” Marcus called back.

Jordan looked down at his sneakers, already a little wet from the grass. He imagined his mom’s face if he came home with ruined shoes—or worse, an injury. He also thought about the announcement last week about a kid who had twisted his ankle on that same trail.

He sighed and shook his head. “I’ll take the long way. I promised my mom I’d stay out of trouble.”

Marcus rolled his eyes. “Suit yourself.”

As Jordan turned away and started walking along the sidewalk, he felt a little nervous—but also proud. He didn’t take the shortcut, but maybe he took the high road instead.