I made such a fool of myself she lamented.Love does not make you a fool.He didnt love me back.That does not make you a fool either.Just tell me Her voice cracked. When does it stop hurtingSometimes never.

Voicemail 1 Hi Isabel Culpeper. I am lying in my bed looking at the ceiling. I am mostly naked. I am thinking of your mother. Call me.Voicemail 2 The first minute and thirty seconds of Ive Gotta Get a Message to You by the Bee Gees. Voicemail 3 Im bored. I need to be entertained. Sam is moping. I may kill him with his own guitar. It would give me something to do and also make him say something. Two birds with one stone I find all these old expressions unnecessarily violent. Like ring around the rosy. Thats about the plague did you know Of course you did. The plague is like your older cousin. Hey does Sam talk to you He says jack shit to me. God Im bored. Call me.Voicemail 4 Hotel California by the Eagles in its entirety with every instance of the word California replaced with Minnesota. Voicemail 5 Hi this is Cole St. Clair. Want to know two true things One youre never picking up this phone. Two Im never going to stop leaving long messages. Its like therapy. Gotta talk to someone. Hey you know what I figured out today Victors dead. I figured it out yesterday too. Every day I figure it out again. I dont know what Im doing here. I feel like theres no one I can Voicemail 6 So yeah Im sorry. That last message went a little pear-shaped. You like that expression Sam said it the other day. Hey try this theory on for size I think hes a dead British housewife reincarnated into a Beatles body. You know I used to know this band that put on fake British accents for their shows. Boy did they suck aside from being assholes. I cant remember their name now. Im either getting senile or Ive done enough to my brain that stuffs falling out. Not so fair of me to make this one-sided is it Im always talking about myself in these things. So how are you Isabel Rosemary Culpeper Smile lately Hot Toddies. That was the name of the band. The Hot Toddies.Voicemail 20 I wish youd answer.

Thats what I love about Aibileen she can take the most complicated things in life and wrap them up so small and simple theyll fit right in your pocket.

Can he love her Can the soul really be satisfied with such polite affections To love is to burn - to be on fire like Juliet or Guinevere or Eloise...

No man is offended by another mans admiration of the woman he loves it is the woman only who can make it a torment.

I realized Im in love. Its always been right in front of me.

the world is not a pleasant place to be without someone to hold and be held by.

I look down at our knees slightly touching. Jeans against jeans. Does she notice the heat transferring from her body to mine Does she even realize what shes doing to me I know I know. Im not a virgin and the slightest touch of a girls knee is driving me insane. I dont even know what Im feeling for Maggie I just know that Im feeling. Its something Ive tried to avoid and deny until yesterday when I held her in my arms while her tears spilled onto my shirt.God our knees touching isnt enough. I need more.Shes knotting her fingers together on her lap as if she doesnt know what to do with them. I want to touch her but what if she pulls awaylike before Ive never been such a wuss with a girl in my life.I bite my bottom lip as I slide my hand about millionth of a millimeter closer to her hand.She doesnt seem fazed so I move closer. And closer.When the tips of my fingers touch her wrist she freezes. But she doesnt jerk her hand away. God her skin is so soft I think as my fingers trail a path from her wrist to her knuckles to her smooth manicured nails.I swear touching her like this is driving me nuts. Its more erotic more intense than any other time with Kendra. I feel awkward andinexperienced as a freshman again. I look up. Everyone else is oblivious to the intensity of emotions running rampant in the back of the public bus.When I look back down at my hand covering hers Im grateful she hasnt come to her senses and pulled away. As if she knows mythoughts we both turn our hands at the same time so our hands are palm against palm...finger against finger. Her hand is dwarfed against mine. It makes her seem more delicate and petite than Id realize. I feel a need to protect her and be her champion should she ever need one.With a slight shift of my hand I lace my fingers through hers.Im holding hands. With Maggie Armstrong.Im not even going to think about how wrong it is because it feels so right. Shes avoided looking right at me but now she turns her headand our eyes lock. God how come I never noticed before how long her lashes were and how her brown eyes have specks of gold that sparkle when the sun shine on themThe bus stops suddenly and I look out the window. Its our stop. She must have realized this because she pulls her hand away from mine and stands. I follow behind still reeling.

The thing is that world doesnt exist. All growing up means is that your realize no one will come along to fix things. No one will come along to save you.

All any of us wanted really was to know that we counted. That someone elses life would not have been as rich without us here.