The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson is a real book which I do not own. I also do not own either of the poems that Andy talks about or the book of T.S. Eliot poems Brian is reading. And I am not the owner of the dirty limerick that Bender started to recite. Michelle Manning's name is on the poster from Prom Queen at the beginning of the movie in case you didn't know who she is. I'm kind of worried about how my Andy is turning out. I just can't get inside that boy's head. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Chapter Three

Allison walked into the library just as the bell rang, signaling the beginning of third period. Ms. O'Conner expected her students to be sitting in their desks before the bell rang but Allison always managed to slip in unnoticed, being invisible did have it's advantages some times. Besides it wasn't her fault that her second period U.S. history class was on the other side of the building from the library.

She saw Andrew sitting at one of the tables near the front library. Sitting next to him was another one of the jocks who was called Stubby by everyone including the teachers. On the other side of the table sat Brian Johnson who had his nose buried in some fantasy novel. He has to be Stubby's partner for the assignment because there was no way Brian Johnson would be sitting at the same table as two of Shermer's golden boys any other day, Allison thought as she dropped her bag on the floor and slipped into the seat beside Brian.

"Nice partner, man." Stubby said in a voice that Allison could plainly hear as he elbowed Andy in the ribs.

"I could say the same to you," Andrew answered in a voice that was quieter than Stubby's but still perceptible. Allison wondered if Brian could hear this. If he could he didn't show it. Allison wondered if she showed it.

"Alright class." Ms. O'Conner said walking up the front of the library. "I going to assume you all have picked a poet for your projects so I'll let you all go find your books." Allison rolled her eyes at her teacher as she opened her composition book. She had started drawing a picture the night before after she had finished her homework and she wanted to finish it. It was of a cliff over looking the ocean. Allison pictured herself standing on that cliff, breathing in the unique scent of salt air as she stared down at the blue-green water.

"Allison?" a voice jarred her out of her thoughts. She looked up at Andy who was looking at her oddly. Brian and Stubby had both left the table. "We should probably get started. I don't know anything about poetry. The only poems I know are Casey At Bat and that one about gold and how it can't stay," he said brushing his blond hair back with his hand. He looked at her notebook curiously, trying to examine her picture upside down. "Hey, that's a good drawing…" he said, reaching over to move the notebook so he could get a better look. Allison made an angry noise and slammed the composition book shut.

"Don't." she said in an icy voice. Andy raised his eyebrows at her outburst and muttered 'sorry' under his breath before getting up to go into the stacks to talk to Stubby. Allison threw her pencil down on top of her notebook irritably. Who did Andrew Clark think he was looking in her personal notebook? Nobody was aloud to. Not even Amy was when she was around.

"Allison, why aren't you looking for books with Andrew?" Ms. O'Conner asked as she walked by. She studied Allison over her pink framed reading glasses. Allison shrugged. "Have you selected a poet yet?" Allison shook her head. Ms. O'Conner pursed her lips. "How about Emily Dickinson? I think you would enjoy learning about her," the young teacher said patting Allison lightly on the shoulder before she went to stop John Bender from carving profanities into a nearby table.

Allison sighed as she stood up and walked over to the card catalogue. Emily Dickinson wasn't a bad poet. In fact Allison liked her poetry. It was the fact that Ms. O'Conner had suggested Emily Dickinson to her. Just because she was a loner didn't mean that she was going to become a total recluse and never go outside. She dug through it until she found a book called The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. After scribbling the call number for the book on a piece of scrap paper she headed to the stacks. She nearly collided with Brian who had his nose in a book of T.S. Eliot poems. He was muttering something about mermaids and drowning, hardly noticing that he almost bumped into someone.

Allison ran her finger along the worn spines of books, looking for the Emily Dickinson one. She had finally found it when Andy came over to her.

"Emily Dickinson is who you want to do the project on?" he asked as he studied the cover. Allison nodded. "Okay. Wasn't she that crazy lady who locked herself up in her house and wouldn't come out?" Allison rolled her eyes and picked up another book about Emily Dickinson off the shelf and handed it to him before turning on her heel.

"That's enough Mr. Bender!" Ms. O'Conner was saying as Allison walked back to her table. Claire Standish was sharing disgusted looks with Michelle Manning who was sitting next to her while Larry Lester bent over a notebook, pretending to work but really listening to the conversations that were taking place around him.

"All I asked was who wrote the poem that goes 'there once was a girl from Nantucket…' It is a poem." Bender said innocently but Ms. O'Conner cut him off by sending him to Vernon's office.

When the bell rang to end third period it startled Allison. She had been reading the book of Emily Dickinson that she had pulled off the shelf and she was so absorbed in it she hadn't realized that the end of the period had come. Andrew had spent the remained of the period not looking at the book Allison had handed him but listening to Stubby talk about how much he wanted to get into Michelle Manning's jeans.

"Alright class, we'll meet back in the classroom tomorrow." Ms. O'Conner said. Andy gathered his books and stood up, pausing for a moment as Allison put her composition notebook in her bag.

"See ya," he muttered to her before he headed out the door with Stubby. Allison nodded to him as she took her Emily Dickinson book and the one Andy had abandoned up to the check out desk.