Amanda, The Not So Invisible Girl, By Sarah P.

Amanda, The Not So Invisible Girl
By Sarah P.

Chapter One

Amanda shut her locker quickly and began to walk down the hallway. Wearing her usual smile, she joined her best friend, who was headed to the cafeteria. “So, are you ready for the Fall Festival?” Janet asked her. “Yes, I’m ready! It’ll be the best thing to happen since I moved here!” Amanda exclaimed. “Not much was happening when you came here,” Janet agreed with a laugh, “But I know you’ll have fun!” Amanda smiled at this as they entered the lunch line.

Two months ago, Amanda’s parents had decided to move their family to Massachusetts. She was completely surprised by this. Nothing had ever happened before to make her even imagine moving away from sunny Georgia. Everyone Amanda was close to; all of her friends and family, lived in Georgia. Here in Massachusetts, on the other hand, Amanda didn’t know many people. Even after two months, the only girl at school that would be friendly to her was Janet. Amanda just hoped that Janet would continue to be her friend. One was definitely better than none.

Janet followed Amanda through the lunch line, both of them automatically choosing what to put on their trays. Amanda finished first and stopped to wait a moment for Janet. They walked together towards their usual table. Amanda glanced up just in time to narrowly avoid crashing into Carla, who was standing right in front of her. The usual group of giggling and whispering girls behind Carla came to a sudden halt. She narrowed her eyes at Amanda. “Get out of my way, loser,” Carla ordered.

Stepping aside a few inches to let her past, Amanda continued to meet Carla’s angry gaze. Carla glared at Amanda and took a step towards her, threatening, “You think you’re so smart, Amanda the Panda Girl? Think again.” Amanda felt a flash of anger at Carla’s insult, but tried to ignore it. Janet quietly interrupted, “We’re sorry for being in your way. Let’s go, Amanda.” Amanda didn’t budge. She looked at Carla unflinchingly, her eyes showing only calmness and a hint of pity. In one swift motion, Carla pushed Amanda’s lunch tray out of her hands. It clattered to the floor. Amanda felt all of the students who weren’t already watching turn around to stare at them.

“What do you have to say about that, loser? Something from your precious Bible, no doubt,” Carla laughed in a mocking tone. Amanda didn’t reply. She slowly bent down and put the assorted lunch items on her tray. Carla stared at her the whole time, hoping that she would say something. Amanda finally spoke in a calm tone. “I forgive you, and if you want a scripture, check out Luke 23:34.” Janet gasped at her words, and Carla stomped off with her group after shooting another seething glare at Amanda.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Amanda walked calmly to her usual spot at the lunch table and sat down. Janet followed, staring at her in disbelief. “What’s wrong?” Amanda finally asked her. Janet slammed her lunch tray down onto the table and frowned. “What’s wrong? Are you kidding me? ‘What’s wrong’ is all you can say after what you just did?” she asked. Amanda looked up at her in confusion, replying, “Janet, I didn’t do anything wrong. What’s the big deal?”

“The big deal,” Janet scoffed, “Is what you just said.” She raised her voice until she was almost shouting. “Amanda, grow up! I can’t believe you just quoted scripture at Carla! I thought you were more mature than that. Why didn’t you just move out of her way? Now she’s mad at me and you.” Stunned, Amanda asked, “Janet? What do you mean? I just said ‘I forgive you’ and told her a verse out of the Bible. How is that wrong?” Glaring at Amanda, Janet took a step away from her and replied, “Forget I said anything. We are so not friends anymore. I’m tired of you and your obsession about Christianity.” She turned around and marched away from the table, leaving Amanda confused as she attempted to hold back her tears.

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Sinking back in her chair, Amanda tried to be as invisible as possible. That was relatively easy in the large, empty school library. After all that had happened at lunch, Amanda was just trying to finish this day as quickly as possible. Instead of choosing to go to the art room as she usually did with Janet, she had decided to stay in the library during her free time. It was pretty quiet in here other than the occasional clatter of computer keys. Amanda closed her eyes. This was just what she needed, some peace and quiet to think about why this had happened. Some time to pray about it and hope for the best.

“I thought so.” An unfamiliar voice interrupted Amanda’s thoughts. She opened her eyes and sat up. “Excuse me?” Amanda asked. A very short girl with jet-black hair and glasses was standing beside her. “I thought so,” The strange girl repeated. Raising an eyebrow, Amanda said, “Who are you? What do you mean?” The girl rolled her eyes, answering, “I’m Tulane. I was talking about you and Janet. Remind me to never look at her again. Her hair freaks me out.” Amanda stiffened, replying, “Okay…so, what about Janet and I? We just aren’t friends anymore, I guess, but what does that have to do with you?” Tulane shrugged. “Nothing, really. I just know that Janet obviously hates you now. I was wondering if you would want to do something about it. You know, for her screaming at you in front of everyone. I don’t know, a little revenge, maybe?”

“Revenge?” Amanda was shocked. “No…I really don’t have anything against Janet. Not like that, at least. I thought she was my friend, but revenge would be way too harsh. It’s not right, in the first place.” Pushing up her glasses, Tulane shrugged again, saying, “Whatever. You just won’t have any friends around here. Janet was kind of your last chance, unless you want to go my way. All of us who don’t mind doing something ‘wrong’ now and then can stick together.” She trailed off across the library, Amanda staring after her.

Chapter Two

Amanda flopped back onto her bed with a sigh and glanced up at the clock. It was three-forty. School was finally over, and she was here at home with nothing to do until her little brother was finished with preschool. If only Janet would forget about the lunch episode and come over. Amanda sighed again.

Her eyes drifted down and fell on the Bible sitting beside her desk. Suddenly, Amanda was reminded of what her youth pastor in Georgia had told her. "Amanda, stay close to God, even when you're in Massachusetts. You'll be surprised at how much He’ll help you if you'll only listen to Him," he had said. Amanda didn't feel very close to God at the moment, but she slowly crossed the room and picked up her Bible. It fell open to a bookmarked page. Amanda read the last few verses that she had studied back at her old church.

"But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you." -Luke 6:27-28

Wide eyed, Amanda thought about what had happened. Carla certainly disliked her, she knew, (she wasn’t quite sure that the dislike had reached hate yet), and these verses stated that her reaction had been right. Janet shouldn't be mad at her for doing the right thing. Amanda wondered if Janet was a Christian. It certainly didn’t seem likely, but Amanda knew that she should pray for Janet.

The sound of a car door slamming outside startled Amanda. Devin, her little brother, was home from preschool! She quickly said a silent prayer for Janet, and setting down her Bible, Amanda ran downstairs to greet her mom and Devin.

Devin was as excited as possible about being home from preschool. Amanda smiled at him as he chattered on and on about something that had happened that morning. "...and Manda, Tom said I could play with his truck tomorrow and it's a real nice one too and it's red like a fire engine and Andy has a yellow one and I'm gonna ask for a blue one for my birthday so we can have all three! Wouldn't that be cool?"

Amanda was about to reply, but Devin raced on. "And Miss Sandy said that tomorrow we're goin' on a field trip to the park won't that be fun? I just hoped we would still get our snacks because that's the best part and I asked Miss Sandy if we would and she laughed and said yes so that's good, too." Devin finally paused, out of breath, and their mom smiled at Amanda. "It's hard to imagine that the teacher says he's quiet at school," Mom said. "How was your day, Amanda?"

Trying to grin back at her mom, Amanda replied, “It was okay. We didn't have much homework." Mom nodded. "That's good to hear! Well, I wish I could stay here, but I have to go back to town for a city council meeting. Are you still planning on watching Devin?" Amanda nodded, saying, "Yes ma'am, I am." Mom laughed. "Nice bit of rhyming, sweetie!"

"Manda's a poet and she know it," chanted Devin, smiling innocently at her. Mom rumpled his hair, laughing, and said, "So are you, Devin!" She turned back to Amanda. "I'll be back in an hour or two." Amanda hugged her mom, replying, "Okay, I love you." "I love you both. Be good for your sister, Devin," Mom said. "I will, Mommy!"

As Devin waved to their mom’s departing car, Amanda headed for the kitchen to prepare his afternoon snack. "Do you want apple juice and pretzels?" she asked, looking into the fridge. Devin grinned at her. "I likes apple juice, Manda!" Amanda smiled. "Do you mean that you like apple juice?" Devin nodded vigorously, replying, "Yes, I likes apple juice!"

Amanda set his snack on the counter. "Well, here it is!" Devin ate his snack quickly. In between bites, he asked, "Manda, where are we goin' to play? Can we go outside?" Amanda looked down at Devin. "I think that's a great idea,” she replied, “What do you want to play?" Devin thought for a moment, and then asked, "Can we play baseball? I like to play that." "Sure! I'll finish cleaning the kitchen. You can go put up your backpack." Devin nodded his head, grinning as he said, "I'll go put my stuff up." He trotted out of the room and Amanda started to clean the kitchen. She was just finishing when her cell phone rang.

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Sliding it out of her pocket, Amanda glanced down at the screen. It was Hannah, one of her best friends back in Georgia! Amanda pressed a button to answer it and spoke. "Hello?" Hannah's cheerful voice came through the speaker, saying, "Hey, Amanda! What's up?" "Not much. I'm about to play baseball with Devin,” Amanda replied. “What's up with you?" "Well, I'm missing you, as usual. School isn't the same without you! I hope you can come back soon,” Hannah said hopefully. Amanda sighed. "I wish I could, too. I miss all of you so much." "So how's your school?" Hannah asked.

"It's okay, and my classes are fun. All of the kids here are different, though. Most of them tease me about my ‘country’ accent. I didn't even know I had one until we moved here! So far, I’ve only had one friend, and right now she won’t even talk to me."

There was a pause. After a few seconds, Hannah whistled, saying, "Wow, Amanda. I wish you could be here instead. Is everyone that mean?" Amanda shook her head as she answered. "No, some of the kids at school seem nice, but I think they're afraid to talk to me. There's this popular girl, Carla, and all the girls are scared of her. I don’t know why but she really dislikes me."

Hannah sighed. "I wish I could be there with you, Amanda. At least then we could be together. I'll keep praying for you. All of your other friends are, too, and everyone at church always wants to know what's happening to you." Amanda smiled, replying, "Well, it's nice to know that they remember me. I don't know....I kind of feel like I'm supposed to be here; that God wants me to be in Massachusetts. I don't have a clue why, though." "He has a plan, Amanda, remember that. God always has a plan, and Jesus will help you through this," Hannah said softly.

"Thanks, Hannah," Amanda replied. "I should trust that He’s still here, even when no one else is.” Everything suddenly felt lighter, like a load had been lifted off of her. Hannah had always been that type of friend, someone who would always cheer her up. “It was nice talking to you,” Amanda continued, “But I'm sorry, but I have to go. My brother is calling me." Devin's voice could be heard in the hallway, calling, "Manda! Can we play now?" Hannah laughed. "I can hear him! Anyways, things will probably get better at school. I'll text you later, okay?" "Okay," Amanda said. "Bye."

She pressed a button to end the call, knowing that Hannah, at least, was a true friend.


Chapter Three

The weather outside was bright and sunny. The air was a little warmer than usual, and it made Amanda want to daydream about last spring back in Georgia. Devin, however, was not concerned with anything but baseball. "Manda! I'll bat and you pinch the ball, okay?" Amanda replied, "Sure, Devin," absentmindedly, without correcting him. She glanced over at the house and remembered something Mom had said before. "Hey, Devin, stand over here on the right. That way the baseball won't hit our windows," Amanda reminded him.

Devin scooted over a few feet and prepared to bat. Amanda smiled at his intently focused expression. She picked up a baseball, and trying to aim right, Amanda threw it. Devin hit the ball and it bounced off into the rosebushes. "I'll get it!" he called, trotting off after the baseball. Amanda watched as he retrieved it.

As it turned out, Devin was pretty good at hitting the baseball, and Amanda pitched, (or "pinched", as Devin described it), fairly well. Amanda figured that if Devin could hit the ball then she didn't have to worry about anything else. Amanda leaned back a little and tossed the ball. Devin swung out hard, and bat hit ball with a resounding crack. They watched, wide-eyed, as the baseball flew out of their yard and over the neighbor’s fence. A few seconds later, Amanda heard the sound of shattering glass. She hurried to the gate and opened it, with Devin right behind her.

"Oh, wow," Amanda groaned. She knew what had happened the moment she saw their neighbor's house. A side window that was facing the fence had a huge piece of glass missing. Broken bits of glass were scattered around on what Amanda could see of the inside windowsill. She sighed. Devin took it all in beside her. After a few seconds, he sighed also, and said, "Rats. Triple rats. A gazillion rats!" Amanda looked down at him and then up at the window. "You can say that again." Both of them were silent for a moment. Amanda wondered what she should do. She didn't even know exactly lived here; maybe it was someone who wouldn't mind a broken window? Amanda hoped that they at least wouldn't mind waiting a little to have a new one. It was going to take long enough for her to earn that much money.

Devin was tugging at her sleeve. "Manda, look!" He pointed at the house. Amanda looked; half afraid of what (or who) she would see. A middle-aged lady with black hair was standing inside near the broken window. She glanced up at Amanda and Devin standing outside. Amanda was startled by how blue her eyes were. When the woman spoke, her voice was soft and mild. "You did this?"

Stepping forward, Amanda said, "Yes, ma'am, I'm very sorry..." The lady interrupted her. "The boy hit the ball, correct?" Amanda nodded and was about to continue, but the woman held up her finger. "Just a minute, children." They watched as she left the room. A few minutes later, the woman came out the front door and headed towards them.

Now that Amanda could see the lady better, she noticed that she was smiling. Amanda wondered if that was good or bad. The woman introduced herself. "You may call me Mrs. Lilliana. And who are you two?" "My name is Amanda, and this is Devin, my brother," Amanda said. "I'm sorry about your window. I was supposed to be watching Devin, and we were playing, but the ball flew over your fence..." Mrs. Lilliana waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, the window can be replaced. I have another one somewhere."

With wide eyes, Devin a spoke for the first time. "So, are we in trouble, Miss Lily Ann?" Mrs. Lilliana laughed and smiled down at him. "No, I wouldn't say that, Devin. I may have your sister do a thing or two for me, but nothing else. You can certainly hit a baseball!"

Devin puffed out his chest a bit at this compliment and Amanda quickly remarked, "I'll be willing to do anything to pay for the damages." Mrs. Lilliana glanced towards her window. "Don't worry; my son will help also. I'll keep you both busy enough! Do you know how to make candied apples?"

Confused, Amanda replied, "Yes, I do, Mrs. Lilliana." She had been about to ask why Mrs. Lilliana wanted to know but paused just in time to remember that would be rude. Devin jumped up and down. "Oh boy! Candy apples! I likes those!" Mrs. Lilliana looked at Devin and smiled again. She glanced over at Amanda. "Can you ask your mom if you both could come inside? I don't get visitors often, but I would want your mother to know where you were."

Amanda nodded. "I'll ask her. I think her meeting in town should be over by now." Mrs. Lilliana occupied Devin by showing him some strangely shaped plants in her flowerbed as Amanda stepped aside to call her mother.

Mom’s phone rang a few times. Amanda pressed her cellphone closer to her ear, hoping that her mother would answer. She was getting curious about their neighbor, and if anybody knew who she was, Amanda's mom would. After all, as one of the newly elected city council representatives, Mom knew practically everyone. Amanda was relieved when her mom answered the phone, saying, "Hello? Amanda?" Amanda quickly replied, "Hi, Mom. Am I interrupting anything?" Mom sighed. "I'm afraid not. The meeting still hasn't started yet. A few of the representatives are on vacation and their stand-ins forgot about the meeting. So, what's wrong?"

Amanda told her everything that had happened, ending with, "So who is Mrs. Lilliana? I think I recognize her, but I don't know why.” Mom laughed, saying, “Amanda, Mrs. Lilliana is Janet’s aunt! We met her a few weeks ago, remember?" Amanda felt a strange twinge at the mention of Janet. She was silent for a moment. "I didn't remember that,” Amanda finally replied. “I haven't really paid much attention to different people since we moved here." Mom laughed and continued, "Anyways, I think you and Devin can go visit her. She's a very nice lady and loves little kids; no doubt she likes Devin! Amanda, please don't break anymore windows!” Amanda laughed and said, "Okay, Mom. I will help Mrs. Lilliana and try not to break another window in the process! I love you." "I love you too, Amanda. I'll pick you and Devin up in an hour or so. Bye." "Bye," Amanda replied, closing her cell phone.

Mrs. Lilliana was full of curiosity when Amanda returned. "What did your mother say? By the way, how is she doing?" "Mom said we could stay here for about an hour," Amanda replied, "And she's just fine, though the meeting that she's at is running late." Devin jumped up and down again. "Yay! We get to stay with Miss Lily Anna! Manda, look at this plant! Miss Lily Anna was showing it to me and guess what it's called? It's a cactypus!" Amanda raised her eyebrows, asking, "A cactypus?" Mrs. Lilliana explained, "I think Devin means cactus. Sometimes it's hard to tell what he's saying!" Amanda laughed, replying, "That's true!" Mrs. Lilliana motioned towards her house. "Shall we go in?" Devin and Amanda nodded in response and followed her up the front steps and into her house. 


Chapter Four

It was surprisingly bright inside of Mrs. Lilliana’s house. Amanda had expected it to be like most of the houses in the neighborhood, which were old and poorly lit. Instead, it reminded Amanda of her home back in Georgia. The white walls were decorated with pictures, and vases full of fresh flowers were everywhere. Amanda looked hopefully towards the bookshelves that lined what she could see of the hallway.

"How do you like it?" Mrs. Lilliana asked, bringing Amanda back to reality. "Your home is really beautiful, Mrs. Lilliana," she said. Devin sniffed the air. "I smell candy apples!" he exclaimed. "Let's clean up some of the broken glass, and then we'll see what we can find in the kitchen," Mrs. Lilliana suggested.

With a slight smile, Amanda offered to clean up the glass by herself. "It really wasn't Devin's fault, so I'll do it." Mrs. Lilliana nodded and replied, "Thank you, Amanda. I'll get a broom and dustpan."

Amanda knelt down on the living room floor, carefully sweeping bits of broken glass into a dustpan. Mrs. Lilliana was listening to Devin’s chatter out in the hallway. Amanda was grateful for that. Not many people could listen to Devin for very long! Finishing her sweeping, Amanda stood up just as the doorbell rang. She wondered who it was; probably just the mail carrier. That was the only person who ever rang the doorbell back at her house, other than Janet. Amanda’s stomach turned at the thought of Janet. She wished that she could just start this day over.

Awkwardly balancing the dustpan, Amanda stepped out into the hallway. "Mrs. Lilliana? Where do you want this glass? I just finished...” Amanda's voice trailed off as she looked up for the first time. A familiar-looking boy and girl with black hair and blue eyes were standing beside Mrs. Lilliana. They looked like…twins. That was weird. Devin was talking rapidly to the boy about something. The girl sent an amused glance at Mrs. Lilliana. "Hi, Mom," she said. Mrs. Lilliana looked down at her and then over at the boy with a smile, remarking, "You're both home a little late. What kept you?" The boy smiled and explained, "We had band practice after school. The instructor wanted to show us something about the new keyboard. I'm sorry we’re late."

Devin clapped his hands excitedly. "We have a keysboard at school! It's a black one and Miss Sandy plays songs on it every morning and we get to sing along which is really fun don't you think so?" Mrs. Lilliana laughed at Devin’s outburst and smiled at Amanda. "Amanda, this is my son, Peter, and my daughter, Lily. Peter and Lily, this is Amanda, our next door neighbor, and her little brother, Devin," she said to them.

"Nice to meet you, Devin," Peter said politely, nodding to him. Devin grinned widely. "Nice to meet you too, Petree!" Lilly moved towards Amanda. "I think we go to school together," she suggested, "We have the same math class. It's nice to see you." Amanda tried to smile back at her, replying, "It's nice to see you, too." She now recognized both of the twins from school. Amanda hoped that they hadn't seen what Janet had done at lunch. If they had, she hoped neither of them would think much about it. Nothing could be worse than being laughed at because of that today.

"Oh, Peter and Lilly," Mrs. Lilliana said, "Show Amanda where our outside trash can is. You can come to the kitchen when you're done." Amanda had a sinking feeling. She really hoped that Lilly and Peter were nice. Peter called, "Sure, Mom," cheerfully and held the door open for Lilly and Amanda. Amanda carefully stepped outside with the dustpan, unintentionally gripping it a little tighter than necessary. Lilly led the way around the back of his house and pointed to the trash can. “Here it is, Amanda.” Peter lifted the lid and he helped Amanda empty the glass out of the dustpan. As the lid slammed shut, Lilly awkwardly began, "About what happened at school today..." Amanda froze and looked over at Lily. She was staring at the ground. "I'm sorry for you. Janet's done that before."

Amanda stared at the twins, shocked. They both looked at each other and then back at her. Peter nodded, saying, “Yeah, Janet has done that before. I’m sorry you had to go through it.” Lilly looked back up at Amanda and smiled. "Thanks," Amanda said quietly. They started to walk back towards the door.

“Why are you sorry for me? I didn’t think anyone would care,” Amanda asked, to break the silence more than anything else. "We’ve both had that done to us," Lilly replied shortly. Amanda was surprised. "Really? Why?” Peter nodded and said, "Yes, earlier this year. Being a Christian isn't a popular choice at our school. Ask the football captain what he thinks of God and you can see what I mean." “Or ask Carla if she wants to go to church with you!” added Lilly. They reached the door. Hesitating for a moment, Amanda paused, asking another question. "Who did Janet do that to before me?" Peter thought for a while. He finally said, "Well, that was a long time ago, but I think her name was Tulane.”

Amanda yanked open the screen door and stepped inside, trying to not look disturbed by what Peter had said. So that was where Tulane fit into all of this. It certainly made sense, but Amanda was dreading school even more now. Thank goodness it was Friday and there was no school tomorrow!

Peter headed for the kitchen immediately. Lilly had followed Amanda inside and was looking at her sympathetically. Amanda sighed and wondered what to do. The twins seemed nice enough, but could she really trust them? It felt weird for her to doubt people like this. God, what do I do? Amanda prayed silently. Lilly gently put her hand on Amanda’s shoulder. “I know. It’s okay, Amanda.” Lifting her head, Amanda looked at Lilly. "What do I do now?" she asked. Her voice sounded just as discouraged as she felt. "I don't exactly know. It seems worse for you than it is for me, because I'm used to it,” Lilly replied as she looked across the sunny room. "I do know," she continued, "That God can help you with it. He was obviously with you when it happened, and I don't think He's left since then." Amanda smiled and remembered what Hannah had said. "You're right. He hasn't left me, and that's what really matters," she mused.

"Girls, I need some help in the kitchen!” Startled, Amanda and Lilly turned to find Mrs. Lilliana standing near the end of the hallway. She smiled and motioned towards the kitchen door. "Come on, you two! Devin's waiting and I’m afraid Peter will tear the house down looking for a snack!" Her words were followed by a loud crashing sound from the kitchen and Devin's voice calling, "It’s okay! I don't think it broke!" Groaning, Amanda ran towards the kitchen, followed by Mrs. Lilliana and her daughter.

Devin was seated on the edge of a large countertop when Amanda burst into the kitchen. "Devin? What happened?" she asked, her eyes wide. He slid off the countertop and pointed to a bent tray on the table. "Sorry for the noise. I was setting that down like Miss Lily Anna said she would. I'm helping!" Devin smiled widely at Amanda. Peter, who had been staring at the bent tray, burst out laughing. Mrs. Lilliana started laughing. Soon, Amanda and Lilly joined in. "Boy, your brother can do the impossible! Even I can't manage to break a window and bend a tray in the same day!" Peter joked. Amanda raised an eyebrow at Devin, replying, "He can certainly do twice the damage when he's not paying attention!"

Chapter Five

The afternoon passed quickly. Amanda soon learned that Mrs. Lilliana spent a lot of time in her kitchen! Her candied apples were a favorite at the annual Fall Festival, and Mrs. Lilliana was making them by the dozen in preparation. Amanda liked pouring the thick, sweet caramel syrup over crisp green or red apples. Mrs. Lilliana showed her how to do it just right so that the syrup smoothly coated each apple. Lilly’s job was to come after her with the different toppings and sprinkle them over apples while the caramel was warm. Mrs. Lilliana stirred up bowls of the sticky syrup, and Peter covered finished trays of apples in plastic wrap before placing them into a freezer. Devin's task, of course, was to munch on a finished apple and supervise the work. 

When the last tray had been placed in Mrs. Lilliana's freezer, they stopped to clean the kitchen. Amanda offered to help, but Mrs. Lilliana shooed her away with a smile. "Go outside with Devin and the twins. Run around some," she said to Amanda. "It'll be dark soon!" Willing to obey this order, Amanda washed her hands at the sink. Devin raced out the door, Amanda, Lilly, and Peter following him. 

It was beautiful outside. The sun was setting with streaks of gold and pink across the sky. Amanda sat down on one of the porch steps, and Lilly settled beside her. They watched as Devin raced around the yard, Peter chasing him. Amanda smiled as Devin attempted a cartwheel and fell over sideways. 

"Are you going to the Fall Festival?" Lilly asked. Amanda nodded, saying, "Yes, I'm going with Janet… I mean…" Her voice trailed off awkwardly. The sinking feeling returned, and Amanda sighed. "You can go with us, if you want to. We always need help at our booth," Lilly offered. Amanda frowned. "You'd lose customers because I was there," she replied sarcastically. Hearing her across the yard, Peter called out, "Not everyone is like that, Amanda. Some kids are just shy, but not all of them are mean.” Lilly nodded in agreement, saying, “I know there are a few other Christians. They won't put up with what happened today for long." 

Amanda was silent. It was getting cold, and she shivered. Lilly looked out at the yard and then back at Amanda. She put her hand on Amanda’s shoulder, saying, “It’s okay. I know it hurts. But when you need us, we’ll be right here.” Amanda knew from the serious expression in Lilly’s eyes that she meant what she said. Smiling, Amanda replied, “Thanks. I really would like to go to the Fall Festival with you guys, and I don’t want Devin to miss out on it.” Devin and Peter collapsed at the bottom of the stairs, panting. Glancing up at Amanda, Peter grinned and said, “Devin can come too, as long as he doesn’t eat all of the apples!” Everyone laughed, and Lilly added, “Or bends anymore trays!” Amanda ruffled her little brother’s hair, saying, “And he will make sure that we don’t break anymore windows!” Devin smiled up at her. 

The sound of a car stopping nearby caused them to look up. Mom's small van was turning into Mrs. Lilliana's driveway. Lilly smiled at Amanda and stood up, asking, “Is that your mom?” Amanda nodded. Devin raced towards the van as soon as it pulled to a stop, calling, “Mom! Guess what we made with Miss Lily Anna? Candy apples! And she has a cactypus, too!” Peter smiled and turned to face Amanda. “So we’ll see you tomorrow?” "Definitely! I can’t wait," she replied, and for one of the few times that day, she really smiled. Lilly cheered and hugged Amanda, exclaiming, “Neither can I!” Amanda said goodbye to both of them and started towards her mom’s car. Maybe she would tell her mom about Janet. That would probably help a lot. Amanda silently thanked God for Lilly and Peter. Tomorrow suddenly looked a lot brighter.

Chapter Six

Amanda glared at the sign in front of the Junior High School. She fidgeted and looked over at Lilly, who was beside her. Lilly smiled encouragingly. I never should have agreed to do this, Amanda thought. Like they’ll just ignore me because I’m not acting scared! Carla and Janet will just ridicule me and then I’ll look even worse and no one else will talk to me except Lilly and Peter. Amanda sighed. Peter, who was watching them from across the street, gave her a thumbs-up and smiled. Amanda still lingered outside the building, really hoping that she hadn't made a mistake in choosing to do this. The other students would be here just as the bell was ringing, and Amanda needed to be inside before that happened. She hated having to be here so early, but it was the only way to avoid the rush of students that flooded the hallways as class started. Amanda sighed again as the knot in her stomach came back. Oh come on! I’m scared to go inside of the school? I know Carla is still mad, though.. Visions of Carla jeering at her in front of the full cafeteria flashed through Amanda’s mind. She sighed again. Peter made a shooing motion at Amanda, urging her on. Lilly put her hand on Amanda’s shoulder. "Courage," she whispered. Amanda's favorite Bible verse flashed through her mind. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.-Joshua 1:9. With a silent prayer for courage, Amanda turned her back on the sign and headed for the front of the school.

Pushing the heavy front door open, Amanda and Lilly stepped into a dimly lit hallway. Lilly whispered, “I’ll be over here, okay?” Amanda nodded and tried to swallow the lump in her throat. Walking to her locker, she slid it open and gently set her bag inside. Amanda found her schedule for the day and studied it. Even after two months, having several different extra-curricular classes to schedule every week took a lot of effort. Amanda heard someone coming down the hallway towards her. Whoever it was paused beside her. She heard the sound of a locker being opened. Amanda peeked over the side of her open locker to see who it was. It was Janet, reaching for her book bag. Cautiously closing her locker, Amanda noticed that Janet's eyes were red; like she had been crying. She thought about this for a moment, casually glancing up at the clock. Class would start in five minutes.

There was a sound of chatter becoming louder and louder, and the front doors of the school burst open. A crowd of laughing and talking students swept into the hallway. They went about their daily routines, jerking lockers open, slamming them shut, and heading to various classes; all the while talking loudly. Janet shut her locker and walked away towards the science lab. With a sigh of both relief and sadness, Amanda picked up her English textbook. Lilly joined her in the hallway. “You did great! Don’t be intimidated by them; God is with you!” Amanda smiled at Lilly. “Thank you so much!” Lilly grinned, waved, and disappeared into the crowd of students, heading for her next class. Amanda heard her phone beep. She slid it out of her pocket and read the text message. It was from Peter.

“U did great! I think Janet misses u.”

Amanda responded quickly.

“Thanks. Why do u think so?”

Glancing up at a large clock above the front doors, Amanda started down the hallway. She had three minutes until English class. Peter had to reply quickly; texting wasn't allowed when classes began. Her phone beeped again.

“I know because I'm her cousin and she told Mom on the phone yesterday that she missed you. Don't doubt Peetre the wise.”

Smiling, Amanda replied.

“I never thought of u being her cousin, wise one.”

Peter typed back quickly.

“That shows that u need me around. See u at lunch.”

“See u then,” she replied.

As Amanda silenced her phone and slipped it back into her pocket, she realized that today wasn't as bad as she had thought it would be.

Epilogue

Sliding her lunch tray onto the table, Amanda sat down beside Peter. "Has everything gone well?" he asked, munching on a bag of potato chips. Amanda grinned. "Yes! Carla hasn't bothered me, and Janet is kind of ignoring me; I guess those are both good things, right?" Peter shrugged, finished the bag of chips, and bit into a homemade sandwich. "These are good things, trust me," he replied in a wise tone. Amanda shook her head and declared, "Oh no! It's the return of Peetre the wise!" “From him cometh forth a fount of wisdom and knowledge,” Lilly said, approaching the table and sliding into the seat in front of Amanda. They all laughed.

As Peter bit into his second sandwich, Amanda glanced up towards the lunch line. She noticed a girl she had never seen before, looking around the room, a bewildered expression on her face. The girl didn't know where to sit. Amanda remembered how she had felt just as nervous a few months before. Certainly, sitting down at the wrong table (Amanda had, unfortunately, chose Carla’s) could lead to being teased and bullied. Should she ask this girl to sit with her? Lilly and Peter had seen the girl, too, and they were looking at Amanda. "Can she sit with us?" Amanda asked. Smiling, Peter nodded, and Lilly said, "I think that's a great idea!" Before she had thought enough about it to get nervous, Amanda stood up and waved at the girl.

The girl smiled, waved back, and walked over to their lunch table. "Hi," she said a bit nervously. "My name is Katie, and I'm new here." Amanda smiled back at her and replied, "It’s nice to meet you, Katie! My name is Amanda. I'm a Christian." She paused, wondering what Katie's reaction to this would be. Katie set down her lunch tray on the table, saying, "I’m a Christian, too! Could I sit with ya’ll?" Amanda nodded and said, “Sure! This is Lilly, and this is Peter.”

Lilly smiled at Katie. "It's nice to meet you." Peter echoed Lilly’s statement, waving and biting into his third sandwich. Katie laughed. "It's nice to meet you both!" Lilly raised her eyebrows at Peter. “Is that really your third sandwich?” He nodded. “Yup. I have a snack for later, too.” Katie’s eyes widened and she asked, “How can you be so hungry?” Lilly answered for him, “Mom says he’s growing again. She thinks he’ll be six feet tall like our uncle!” Amanda laughed. She was shorter than everyone in the grade. Katie giggled, saying, “Well, my uncle was shorter than me.” Everyone laughed at this, Amanda saying, “Hey! If I’m short, at least being short is okay!” Peter was the one who spoke this time. "What did I tell you, Amanda? Peetre the wise knows best, even for shorties!"

Lilly looked over at Katie, who was a bit puzzled, and said, “It’s a long story…” Amanda interrupted, "But we’ll tell you all of it as Peetre finishes his sandwich!" They laughed as Peter licked his fingers and polished off the sandwich. “You can start now, Amanda!” he announced cheerfully. Amanda began, “Well, it started about two months ago…”