In the weeks after her unfortunate first day of school, Pam poured herself fully into her schoolwork, determined to catch up and possibly even surpass her classmates. Her hair, short curls held in place by a becoming blue ribbon bestowed upon her by a sympathetic Kelly, was constantly tucked behind her ears as she bent over her books.
Phyllis, surprised by the grim determination of the sunny girl told Marjorie, "I had thought she'd be chattering all the time with Kelly and the other girls, but Mr. Scott tells me she's very quiet and studious."
Marjorie nodded in approval. "That Mr. Scott told me Pam was moving steadily up in the ranks, and that she's in line to have the best marks in the class, although Jim Blythe is catching up, too," she said, "I'm proud of your Pam. A girl's mind is much better suited to books than boys at her age, though I did have two beaus at twelve."
Pam herself had her own reasons for studying so intensely. She had a need to prove herself to her classmates and Mr. Scott, to prove that she was not a poor, uneducated orphan. If she was truly honest with herself, she wanted to demonstrate this to Jim Blythe more than anyone.It continued to vex her that she couldn't ignore him. Certainly, she could refrain from speaking to him; she had ignored his many attempts to apologize for calling her mop top. It always hurt her a little whenever he said it, even in apology. The very last time, she might have relented, had Katy Pye not been standing next to him, smiling faintly, and when Katy and Jim's names appeared in a 'take notice' on the porch wall, Pam was sure she could never forgive him, though she could not explain why.
She never spoke to Kelly of any of this, feeling quite shy and unable to put words to her feelings. Kelly made no secret of her love for Ryan Wright, and if he so much as looked at her, she was giddy for the rest of the day.
*
One particularly lovely morning, Pam and Kelly were already to Violet Vale when Pam realized she was missing her arithmetic book. She remembered it was on her desk, finally resting with its covers closed after a night of studying. "Kelly, I've simply got to get my arithmetic; you go ahead, and I'll run back to Green Gables," she said, and Kelly hesitated.
"All right, but hurry," she answered, and both girls dashed off in opposite directions. Pam made her way back up the lane, and Phyllis looked surprised as she burst in the kitchen. "Forgot my arithmetic," panted Pam, dashing up the stairs and locating the missing item.
She trotted back down the lane and down Birch Path, where rather unfortunately, Dwighde Schrude overtook her. "Guten morgen, Pam, " he said, "which means 'good morning' ins Deutsch."
"I know, I knew some Germans in Hopetown," said Pam, and Dwighde looked annoyed. "They probably were not as Deutsch as my family," he said in a superior tone. Pam nodded. "You're right," she said, knowing instinctively that he would never let the subject drop otherwise.
She quickened her pace, and Dwighde kept in step with her. "Fact: these little brown pellets on the earth are not just dirt, they are worm castings, which is a polite way of saying that they are worm-"
"Dwighde, I've got to get to school," interrupted Pam, starting to run again. Dwighde followed suit. "Pam, you shouldn't run, it's not ladylike, and you're all red in the face and your hair gets puffy," he panted.
They neared the school in tandem, much to Pam's aggravation. A group of boys were picking chews of pine sap, and Kevin Spurgeon MacPherson spotted Dwighde and Pam and giggled. "When's the wedding?" he called out happily, and Pam glared at him. "She's not the type of lady I'd marry anyway," retorted Dwighde pompously, "I require a good strong worker, and Pam's quite small. Her arms are too skinny and she'd drop the beets."
Dwighde's words were rankling in her mind when someone fell in step beside her. She looked up and saw Jim. She stopped, and he stopped, too. His hands were in his pockets, and he withdrew them. In one, he clutched a small paper bag which he held out to Pam. "Pam, I wanted to say I'm sorry again for calling you mop top. I didn't mean it," he said, and she heard the sincerity in his voice.
Regrettably for Jim, at that moment she felt the wind on the back of her neck and was reminded that he was the reason she had destroyed her hair. A small part of herself wanted to forgive him, especially when his voice cracked as he said her name. The majority of her, however, was still so humiliated that she wanted nothing to do with him. She looked down again, not knowing what to say, and walked away, leaving him standing there.
"Hi Pam," said Toby Sloane, nervously walking up to her. Pam smiled at him. "Hi Toby," she answered, and he smiled. "M-maybe you'd like a chew?" he asked, holding one out. Pam smiled back. "Thank you, I'll share it with the girls at recess," she said politely, and Toby dropped the warm knot of sap into her hand.
As she wrapped it in her handkerchief and tucked it into her apron pocket, she saw Jim watching, a hint of hurt in his eyes. Well, he had no right to be angry, she was just being polite to Toby, and Toby hadn't done anything to her, she reasoned in her mind.
Some distance down the lane, Mr. Scott rang the school bell, startling them all. Pam was caught in the throng of boys as they all dashed toward the school. Kevin jostled her elbow and she dropped her arithmetic book in the dusty road. Jim appeared beside her and swiped it off the ground, handing it to her as they ran. "Thanks," she said as they approached the door, feeling that she must be polite regarding such a gesture.
The latecomers stumbled in, Pam and Jim bringing up the rear. Mr. Scott turned to the flushed, dusty boys and girl, and all the other students looked on in interest. "As you know, you are all tardy, and as the saying goes, 'he who is tardy is...late.'"
He sounded grumpy, and Pam figured the Widow Gould must have scorned another of his little advances. Pam had only been at the school for six weeks, and already she knew the signs. Mr. Scott continued, "Gentlemen, you will miss midday recess, and Pamela, since you seem so fond of the company of the boys, we'll indulge your taste in it. Please take a seat next to Jim Blythe. Break nothing over his head, please."
Pam was horrified at being singled out and even more dismayed at having to sit in close proximity to her perceived enemy. As she slunk up the aisle, Kelly gave her a sympathetic smile, as did Meredith. Angela gave her a look that somehow managed to convey that she was sorry, but that Pam had broken rules and should bear the consequences.
Pam gave her friends a brave nod, and the only thing that gave her even a bit of satisfaction was that Katy Pye was throwing murderous glances in her direction. Pam managed a small smile and flounce of her skirts as she took her place next to Jim.
Neither party spoke a word during morning lessons. Pam actually found it conducive to work, for as much as she adored Kelly, the latter tended to whisper at every whim, not caring about her studies as much as Pam. Once, though Pam was immersed in her reader, she glanced to the side and noticed small things, like how Jim's forearms looked resting on his desk or how his fingers traced the grain of wood on the desk top. She mentally chastised herself for thinking silly thoughts such as these and went back to her book.
It was difficult to ignore him when his hand slid into his pocket and withdrew the crumpled paper bag. Pam realized she didn't know what it contained, and she watched out of the corner of her eye as Jim poured into his hand a quantity of tiny candy beans, a specialty of Mr. Lawson's general store.
While Mr. Scott was busy on the other side of the room, Jim stealthily lined up the beans on his desk, spelling out 'PAM', shielding it so that only she could see. She finally spoke, whispering only, "Best not let Katy see that."
Jim's cheeks reddened; Pam thought it was almost as though he was embarrassed, but he merely nodded and whispered, "True."
She watched as he rearranged the beans, blocking it so that she couldn't see. Finally, he revealed his handiwork; the beans now spelled out 'DWIGHDE' and Pam could not help but laugh a clear, genuine laugh. Mr. Scott and Katy quickly looked in their direction, and with a swipe, Jim's masterpiece disappeared under his arm.
For the rest of the day, Pam worked silently and diligently. She was so focused on her work that she never noticed the small smile that played across Jim's lips and remained there all day.
