They did not dislike her they just stopped trying to get to know her.
So Betty Raye did not go anywhere except to school and back and sometimes to a movie with the family but that was really fine with her.
She was happy just to come home and Dorothy was glad to have her. In fact, she was a big help. Dorothy received hundreds of letters a week and Betty Raye helped her sort them out and put her recipe letters in one pile, her requests and announcements in another. Betty Raye also helped Bobby, only Dorothy did not know about that. Sometimes when he could not figure out his math or English problems he would sneak over to her room and she would do them for him. Mother Smith, who loved to play cards, was teaching Betty Raye how to play and was amazed at how quickly she learned. After a few days a pleased Mother Smith confided to Dorothy, "That girl is a natural-born card sharp. I wouldn't be surprised if she was playing bridge by the end of the week."
Everything seemed to be going along smoothly until one day in early November.
Dorothy was at the A & P picking out some russet potatoes when Pauline Tuttle, the high school English teacher, a tall woman without much of a chin, came in the door. She spotted Dorothy and came right over and asked in a loud voice, "Well, how is our Anna Lee doing? Have you heard from her?"
"She's just fine, Pauline. She says she's doing so well and apparently loves it up there."
"I knew she would. I always said if anyone succeeds in this world, it will be Anna Lee Smith."
"I'll tell her you asked about her."
"Of all the students I have had she was one of my smartest girls straight A's and so pretty."
"Thank you, I appreciate that. And how is my little boarder Betty Raye doing?"
Pauline suddenly frowned and picked up a paper sack. "I was going to call you and talk to you about that, Dorothy. I'm afraid we have a serious problem."
Dorothy was alarmed. "What is it?"
"She does well with her paperwork but it's in classroom participation where she falls down. She never raises her hand and when I do call on her she just mumbles and says she doesn't know the answer." Pauline picked up a potato and looked at it. "When I know full well she does. She just will not speak up. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, Dorothy, but the girl has absolutely no verbal skills whatsoever!" She then threw a large red tomato in her bag to emphasize the point. "The few times I did call on her to recite I thought she was going to faint dead away, so I just don't call on her anymore."
"Oh dear, that's not good," said Dorothy.
"No, it is not good."
Miss Tuttle threw an onion in the same sack. "That little girl is never going to amount to anything in this world if she does not learn to assert herself and she most certainly will not be making the grades she should be making."
"We knew she was a little timid."
"Dangerously so, and if we don't nip this in the bud right here and now, her entire future may be at stake. She may be left behind forever."
Now Dorothy was truly alarmed. "Oh dear. What can we do?"
"I was thinking she should join the Drama Club as soon as possible. Maybe Miss Hatcher can do something with her, teach her to express herself, speak up, speak out. It may be her only hope." She picked up a head of lettuce, weighed it in her hand, and put it back down. "It's so hard to fix dinner for just one. You can't buy a half a head of lettuce. You're lucky you have a big family to cook for. If you want me to talk to Betty Raye, I will."
"No, thank you. No, let me see what I can do first. Well, nice to see you, Pauline."
As she walked away Miss Tuttle called out, "Tell Anna Lee to drop me a line when she has time."
Dorothy worried all the way home. This was a problem she had never come up against before. Certainly not with her own two children. With Bobby the exact opposite was true. His teachers had a problem trying to get him to stop talking and concentrate on his paperwork, which was always messy and misspelled, if he managed not to lose it and turn it in at all. But right now she was concerned about Betty Raye. She hated for her not to do as well as she could be doing. Pauline seemed to think it was an emergency. Maybe Pauline was right; maybe Dorothy needed to say something today, before it was too late and she was lost forever.
That afternoon in the kitchen, when Betty Raye was busy mashing potatoes, she decided to broach the subject. "So, honey, how are you doing at school?"
"Fine."
"Are you having any problems?"
"No, ma'am."
"How are you doing making friends?"
"Fine."
"I don't know if you know this or not, but a good way to make friends is through extracurricular activities. I was the president of the Homemakers Club in high school and I really enjoyed that."
Betty Raye smiled. Dorothy continued on. "You know, I ran into Pauline Tuttle today and we were talking about you, and she, well, both of us were saying we thought that it might be a good idea if you were to join a club of some kind. We thought maybe you might want to think about joining the Drama Club. I know Anna Lee had lots of fun being in all the plays." She spoke brightly, but at the mere mention of the words Drama Club Betty Raye actually turned pale right before her eyes. She turned to Dorothy with a stricken look on her face. "Oh, Mrs. Smith, I just couldn't," Dorothy suddenly realized what a terrible idea this had been and immediately felt sorry for even bringing it up. She put her arm around Betty Raye. "No, of course you don't. I'm so sorry. How stupid can I be… you've been pushed up on stage all your life, haven't you?"
""Yes, ma'am," said Betty Raye, close to tears, "and I just hated it."
"I know you did, I don't know what I was thinking of And you don't ever have to do another thing you don't want to."
"Will she be mad?"
"Of course not. It was just a stupid suggestion. Don't you worry about a thing. I'll just tell Pauline that we don't want to join any old Drama Club or anything else, right?"
"Yes, ma'am."
After Dorothy had finished making the meatloaf and got it in the oven, she sat down at the table to string the green beans. She smiled at Betty Raye, who was busy rinsing out a bowl in the sink, and she thought to herself, Who cares if Pauline Tuttle doesn't call on her in class? So what if she doesn't set the world on fire? Not everybody has to be Mr. or Mrs. Personality. What difference does it make if she gets a B or a C instead of an A? She's perfectly happy the way she is and she certainly is a big help in the kitchen, quiet and good-natured. She'll probably make someone a wonderful wife. Betty Raye might not be a beauty like Anna Lee but she can already cook better than Anna Lee. For better or worse, men like a quiet girl who can cook.
Then she thought: A good thing Anna Lee is pretty, because she sure cannot cook. When Betty Raye sat down at the table, she smiled at her warmly and asked her favorite question. "Honey, if you could have one wish come true, what would you wish for?"
Betty Raye picked up a handful of string beans and thought about it and then answered. "A house."
"A house?" Dorothy was surprised. "What kind of a house?"
"Oh, just a little one with maybe a little dog."
"What about a husband? Don't you want a nice husband to buy it for you?"
"No, ma'am. After I graduate I'm going to get a job and buy it for myself. I don't think boys like me very much."
Dorothy looked at her with a twinkle in her eye. "I know a certain somebody who works at the Trolley Car Diner who thinks you're pretty wonderful…"
Just then Bobby came mincing into the kitchen wearing a pair of red wax lips. Dorothy looked at him. "Young man, why are you not in your room doing your homework like you're supposed to be?"
Bobby minced right back out again.
But later, when Dorothy came down the hall to check on him, she found him hanging by his fingers from the doorframe like a bat. She said, "Bobby, do you want to spend the rest of your life in the sixth grade? Get in there and get to work." Bobby dropped back down to the floor and went to his desk. His mother had made her point.
The next Friday Betty Raye came home from school looking somehow pleased. She handed Dorothy a small, yellow membership card that said:
BETTY RAYE OAT MAN ELM WOOD SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL LIBRARY