Willy Wonka was on his way to school; it was the first day of fourth grade and he couldn't be more terrified. He almost didn't want to go to school, he was afraid of what the other students would think of him; the braces along with the headgear he wore were so big that he thought he would've been seen as a freak by the other kids. As he stood in front of the school building crowded with kids, Willy's legs were shaking underneath him.

"Have a good day at school, son. Remember to make good choices." His father, Dr. Wilbur Wonka, told him before walking away.

Willy turned his head around to respond but by the time he did, his father was already long gone.

"Thanks, dad. Thanks a lot…" He muttered to himself before letting out a frustrated sigh and crossing his arms over his chest.

He checked his wrist watch and realized that the bell was about to ring in six minutes, tops. He gasped and ran into the school, being as careful as possible not to bump into anyone (just so their clothes don't get caught in his braces). The first few periods of the day seemed like torture; Willy felt like his classmates were all laughing at him, judging him, and making fun of him behind his back and he tried to hide himself from everyone.

Then lunch came around. Willy had no one to sit with and nobody invited him to sit with them so he sat by himself. He tried to eat the lunch his father had packed for him earlier that morning (which was kind of difficult with the headgear and braces he always wore), but he didn't feel like eating anything. He felt so alone.

"Hi." An unfamiliar voice said.

Willy turned his head and saw a girl who looked to be the same age as him; she had long hazelnut brown hair that was put up into a ponytail, beautiful blue green eyes, and a splattering of freckles spread across her nose. She gave Willy a kind smile before asking him,

"Is this seat taken?"

"No." Willy shyly answered.

The girl sat beside him and said, "My name's Holly."

"I'm Willy." He said.

"Are you new here?"

"Yeah. What gave it away?"

"Nothing… just that I've never seen you before."

"It's the braces, isn't it?"

"What? No—"

"No, it's okay. I'm used to people staring at me weirdly."

"No, it's not that. I… like your headgear. I think it looks cool."

"Really?"

"Yeah. But the braces must be a pain, right?"

"You don't know the half of it. My dad is a dentist and he always insists that I wear this stuff all the time."

"Is your dad Dr. Wonka?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Uh… Can you keep a secret?"

"Sure."

"I think your dad… is pretty scary."

"You think so too? I thought I was the only one. Between you and me, I don't think he wants me to have any kind of fun… EVER. And these braces are certainly helping him out."

"Well, look on the bright side. At least when you're older, you'll finally get those things off."

"I doubt it. My dad will probably make me wear this until I'm 40."

"Don't worry, Willy; you'll get there. My sister, Bridget, had braces once but in a matter of time, they were finally off and she was back to normal. You will be too."

"You think so?"

"I know so."

Willy had started to feel comfortable around this girl; she seemed really nice. But then a thought popped into his head.

"You don't have to do this." He said.

"Do what?" Holly asked.

"This."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"You don't have to pretend is all I'm saying."

"Pretend? I'm not—"

"Come on; don't act so nice to me. Didn't someone dare you to do this?"

"Willy! I'm not pretending, honest!"

"Then why are you sitting with me?"

"Because I want to be your friend."

Willy's eyes widened; he looked back at Holly with his eyebrows raised.

"My… friend?" He asked.

"Of course. Most of the other kids here just call me a huge weirdo and make fun of me, so I don't have a lot of friends here." Holly replied.

"You? Weird? Why would they say that about you?"

"Because… I usually spend my time daydreaming and staring off into space as well as reading brightly colored comic books and watching weird stuff on television."

"I don't find that weird; I think that's interesting. You know, everyone in town calls me weird. Besides the braces, I stare off into space and daydream too."

"Really?"

"Yep."

Holly giggled which made Willy laugh with her. During the rest of the day, Willy and Holly were together. They spent most of it talking, laughing, and joking up a storm about their thoughts and past adventures as well as daily tasks. After school, Willy had never felt so happy before. He finally had a friend.

At dinner later that night, Dr. Wonka noticed his son acting differently than usual; he raised an eyebrow at him.

"Willy? How was school?" He asked.

"School? …It was great." Willy replied. "I made a new friend. Her name is Holly."

"Holly; that's a rather unusual name. When did you meet her?"

"At lunch. She's very nice and so much fun. She and I even have a few of the same classes together."

"Really? Well, I hope I get the chance to meet her."