I decided to call Mr. Dover over the weekend. Everyone was out of the house. I mean, he said I could but I was still nervous. My palms were sweaty when I picked up the phone and my fingers shook while I dialed the numbers. The phone rang and rang and I almost hung up when he answered but I didn’t.

I started crying when he said hello and Mr. Dover just sat on the other end and waited for me to stop. “What’s the matter, Corabell?” he asked. “Having a bad day?”

I told him that I was sad and lonely and not sleeping very well. I asked him about what he told me about not giving up on friendship. I told him that I really missed Violet. That I’d been saying hi to her in the hallway and she always says hi back.

Mr. Dover told me that it sounded like I had already made up my mind to talk to Violet and that I should go for it. I thanked him and he said, No problem. But remember not to say anything about this call, okay?

I emailed Joseph, too, and told him what I was thinking and he told me I should just forget about Violet, that she’s not worth my time. He told me I should spend my time thinking about important things—him!

On Monday, I chickened out and went to eat lunch in Mr. Dover’s room again. The principal walked by and peeked in the room. Then she called Mr. Dover over and they whispered for a few minutes. I overheard her saying something about how it isn’t appropriate for him to be alone in a classroom with a student. That people might misunderstand.

So after lunch Mr. Dover told me that I should probably start eating lunch in the cafeteria again.

Today, when I walked into the lunchroom, I felt like my heart was going to explode I was so nervous. Nobody even looked twice at me, which was just fine with me. I sat next to Joy Willard and we even talked a little bit but I kept looking over at Violet. She was sitting at the same table as Jordyn but they weren’t sitting next to each other. Jordyn was actually sitting next to Gabe and they were talking and laughing. Violet wasn’t talking to anyone.

I feel like if I can just get Violet by herself I’ll be able to explain that I’m really sorry about the cell phone. I know that Joseph said I should forget about Violet, that she’s not my friend, but I’m so lonely that some days I don’t even think I can get out of bed. If I had just one friend, just one besides Wither, I know I’ll feel better.