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From a young age, JJ Baudelaire had a gift. She had a way with words; she could take any mundane story and turn it to one of vivid color. A dedicated fan of who she considered the best journalists in history — Nellie Bly, Ernest Hemingway, and Ethel Payne — Juniper had shelves upon shelves of written material. She dreamed of being one of the greats, of hanging a Pulitzer Prize on her wall. And, as the mayor's daughter, almost everyone in the town knew this about her.
But, as a girl of only sixteen, the best she could do for the time being was the "Lost and Found" magazine at Liberty High. As an editor-in-chief, alongside her best friend of 10+ years Ryan Shaver, JJ took pride in the weekly memoirs and exposés they would release to the public—however, such articles were never actually that scandalous. She was under direct supervision by the most powerful people in Evergreen County, so, every issue was simply another written praise of Bryce Walker or a spotlight on the "wonderful" Liberty High administration.
But, to be completely candid, JJ was content with that. The task didn't bother her much; after all, this entire process was simply preparation for her future — the girl was certain she would move away to Boston after graduation and never look back. However, everything changed when a certain curly-haired girl moved to the town and shook all of their lives forever.
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BEFORE HANNAH'S PASSING — italicization AFTER HANNAH'S PASSING — standard font
The suicide of Hannah Baker was one that sent tidal waves through the halls of Liberty High School. Parents didn't know what to tell their kids, teachers didn't know what to tell their students. Everything was still so fresh. Nonetheless, they tried. They tried desperately to make sense of it all.
"So, there are a number of ways to get help if you need it, or if a friend does, okay?" Ms. Bradley, the soft-spoken yet attentive Communications teacher, explained to her class — a class that used to be on the schedule of Hannah Baker. "And all of this information is on the board outside of my room or outside of the main office. It's on the Liberty High home page."
"Ms. Bradley, is it possible we could be done with all of this?" Pratters, a known pretentious douchebag within the LHS halls, asked with zero ounce of empathy for the situation. Everyone in the class looked at him — some with disgust, some void of any emotion at all. "I mean, it's been over a week. Isn't it healthy to, like, move on?"
"It's called tact, asshole," JJ mumbled below her breath as she fiddled with the sleeve of her oversized sweater, catching the attention of her long-time friend, Clay Jensen, beside her. Clay and JJ had known one another since elementary school. JJ was an introverted writer, Clay was a science fiction-loving geek — they're personalities meshed well together. In fact, she could recall a time when they got "married" in the third grade, made official by a watermelon-flavored ring pop and apple juice as champagne.
