As Anjanette worked on her assignment in class, she thought about whether or not she should tell Ferdinand the truth. She thought, Why waste my time? He'll never believe me. She then thought about what Uncle Bruce would tell her if he were there. "Just tell him the truth. If he doesn't believe you, then you don't need him as a friend." When lunch time came, Anjanette walked to the cafeteria with Ferdinand. He asked, "Why did you avoid my question this morning?" She said, "Okay, Ferdinand." She took a deep breath. "I think I should tell you the truth. You might not understand." He said, "Try me." She said, "My parents are nothing like your parents. They didn't really want me. I honestly don't know why they had me in the first place. They have very strict rules...too strict. It's always 'Don't do this' and 'Don't do that', no matter what. They wouldn't even let me have a pet. A couple of days ago, they told me that they finally agreed, but they tricked me. They had a German Shepherd plush and a fake dog house in the garage." Anjanette held back tears. Ferdinand listened to her, and he said, "That's so awful. I'm so sorry." She said, "On the positive side, I do have one loving figure in my family, my uncle, Bruce." Ferdinand said, "I'm glad there is someone who loves you. Why don't you go live with him?" She said, "Well, he's been talking about getting me into a school on the other side of town that has a strict no bullying policy. I don't want to leave you." Ferdinand put a hand on her shoulder and said, "I told you not to worry. I can take care of myself." She said, "I know, but it's more than that. You're the only friend I've ever had. Since I've met you, I'm not so lonely anymore. At the new school, I'm not going to know anyone, and I'm going to be lonely again." He then said, "Anjanette, I'm glad we're friends. I'll tell you what. I'll talk to my parents and see if they'll let me go to that school. Then, we can both be safe." She said, "Okay." At the end of the day, Ferdinand offered to walk home with Anjanette. She said, "I don't think that's a good idea. My parents would never approve of you." He asked, "Are they home now?" She said, "I think so. They got off work early today." He then said, "Please let me go with you, in case something happens." She said, "All right. Don't let my parents see you." The two friends walked on the sidewalk together and talked about music and other things. Just then, Anjanette's parents came onto the front porch. Her father shouted, "Anjanette, you get in here right now!" She said, "But father, I..." and before she could say anything else, he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her into the house with her mother following. Ferdinand had a bad feeling about this. He knew he needed to find help, but who could he turn to? He then remembered Anjanette talking about her uncle, Bruce. Where did he live? Anjanette had not disclosed that information. Ferdinand asked a friendly old man for information. He got exactly what he needed. With this new knowledge, Ferdinand ran to Bruce's house and knocked on the door.