The Great Gilly Hopkins Page #2

Six. One ran away.

I thought you and me

should get together.

Since you don't know anybody

and I've been here a while,

I could...

I don't need to know anybody.

I'm not here for long.

You still haven't told me

your name.

Duh, you're real quick.

So, you're not going to tell me?

If I tell you,

will you leave me alone?

My name is Gilly.

Gilly Hopkins. You got that?

You can call me Ag if you want.

Want to come over?

My dad won't mind.

Can't. I'm almost home.

William Ernest,

honey, is that you?

No.

Oh, Gilly, honey,

how was school today?

Did you make any new friends?

No.

Gilly, wait a minute, honey.

You've got some mail.

It's a postcard.

Came this morning.

"My dearest Galadriel,

"the agency told me

you had moved.

"I wish it were to here.

I miss you.

All my love, Courtney."

Anything I can do for you, hon?

Can anyone have any privacy

in this dump?

Well, I just want to make sure

you're all right.

I will be as soon as you get

your fat self out of here.

We'll be downstairs.

Dinner will be ready

in a little while.

I don't need help from anybody!

Except from you, mom.

If I can find you, write to you,

and if I ask,

would you come and get me?

I'd be good for you.

I'd change into

a whole new person.

I'd turn from gruesome Gilly

into good, glamorous,

gorgeous Galadriel.

Let's go home, baby.

San Francisco.

Well, miss Gilly,

how's school for you today?

I've seen better.

God, you young people

have such an opportunity today.

When I was in school...

Thank you, Mrs. trotter.

Oh, and the ketchup, please.

What's new, doo-doo?

What's wrong, William Ernest?

Honey, did something go down

the wrong pipe?

Do you want me to SWAT him one

on the back to knock it loose?

Nobody's gonna hit you, honey.

Everybody's just trying to help.

Ain't that right, Gilly?

Just trying to help you,

little buddy.

He don't always know that.

Well, I got your back, W.E.

I got an idea,

Mr. Randolph.

Since Gilly's feeling

so helpful,

maybe she'd like to read for us.

What?

Would you do that, miss Gilly?

It would be

such a pleasure to me.

I don't have anything to read.

Mr. Randolph

has enough books

to keep you busy

for a thousand years.

I do have a few.

Of course there's a Bible

right here.

I'll get a book.

Freaking blind people.

What is he, a librarian?

Gilly, honey, are you in here?

Mr. Randolph was worried maybe

all the bulbs had burnt out.

He tends to forget since they

don't really help him much.

Well, there's enough light here.

If there hadn't been,

I would have gone back.

I'm not retarded.

I believe

you mentioned that before.

Did you find something to read

for Mr. Randolph?

Got one right here.

The Oxford book

of English verse.

I'll give it a whirl.

What lovely reading material

did you bring us?

It's them poems we was reading

last year, Mr. Randolph.

English poems.

Page 357, William Wordsworth.

"There was a time

when Meadow..."

found it.

"There was a time when Meadow,

grove and stream,

"the earth

and every common sight

"to me did seem,

"appareled in celestial light,

the glory and the freshness

of a dream."

Oh, yes, yes.

"It is not now

as it hath been of yore,

"turn wheresoe'er I may

by night or day.

"The things which

I have seen..."

I now can see no more."

"I now can see no more."

Go on, child.

"Our birth is but a sleep

and a forgetting

"the soul that rises with us,

our life's star.

"Hath had elsewhere its setting

"and cometh from afar.

"Not in entire forgetfulness

and not in utter nakedness,

"but trailing clouds of glory

do we come

"from god who is our home.

"Thanks to the human heart

by which we live.

"Thanks to its tenderness,

its joys and fears.

"To me the meanest flower

that blows

"can give thoughts that do often

lie too deep for tears."

Miss Gilly, that was lovely.

He sure is a handsome reader.

Miss Gilly, how to do you feel

about Mr. Wordsworth?

Weird, and it makes no sense.

"Cometh from afar"?

"Nakedness"?

That's some weird sh...

Stuff.

Yeah, and right here...

"The meanest flower."

Whoever heard of a mean flower?

The word "mean"

has other definitions,

miss Gilly.

The poet is talking

about humility, loneliness,

not bad nature.

Well, I've never seen

a flower blow either.

Dandelions.

That may be exactly

the flower that Mr. Wordsworth

was thinking about.

It surly is one

of the lowest flowers.

And they sure do blow.

Yes.

Just like William Ernest says,

they blow all over the place.

Yes.

Isn't W.E. Impressive, Gilly?

I didn't know

he could even speak.

Oh, our little W can speak,

bless him.

He just chooses his times.

Special moments.

Howdy, partner.

Funny how we keep

running into each other.

Yeah, it's freaking hilarious.

What do you think

of coach Delaney?

I don't see how she can be

our gym teacher when she smokes.

I mean, I've never seen

her smoke,

but Darlene wicker said

she saw her at the mall,

and she was...

Agnes, I've grown to hate you!

Now, I know

we've known each other

for the briefest of time,

but if you open

that freaking piehole

one more time,

I'm going to shove my fist

right down it,

tear out your tongue,

and mail it to Mars.

Now, if you speak,

it'll be your last words

on this planet.

And we have an apple.

And a "sandywhich."

And a juicy box.

Hey.

W.E., head inside.

I said...

Hang on there, dumbo.

W.E., it's fine.

Go inside.

What did you call me?

Listen, ears Magee,

it's like 8:
00 A.M.

You already finish off

your own lunch?

Or did you misplace it?

Can I check behind the ears?

What?

You have big-ass ears!

Shut up, you two.

All right, sweetie... aah!

Nobody calls me "sweetie."

I get enough of that crap

at home.

I think you broke my leg.

It's called a shin kick, Spock.

Now, if I ever see you

even near that kid,

you'll wish the gods above

had never let your parents meet.

You should put some ice on that

or you'll have a wicked bruise.

Who are you?

Name's Hopkins.

Gilly Hopkins.

Now, don't get any ideas

of me liking you

or us being buddies

or anything like that.

People just got to understand

that if anyone's

going to be picking on you,

it's going to be me.

Got that?

Here.

Do you have your math book?

Why would you want to do this?

Tutor me?

I offer to help tutor anyone

in class for miss Harris

for extra credit.

Do you need extra credit?

No.

Well, it's like using

three pieces of bread

for a sandwich.

Doesn't make much sense.

I'm sorry, a sandwich?

How about I call you loaf?

That work for you?

No.

Loaf it is.

Let's just do this.

Very interesting perspective,

Gilly.

There's no marks on it.

Why don't I get an a-plus?

I said it was very interesting,

but it's not brilliant.

But give yourself some time.

You're new here.

Gilly.

Hey, Gilly.

Are you freaking stalking me?

No. I was in the neighborhood

and wanted to visit.

Yeah, well, hey, I'm great.

Nice visit.

Now just leave me alone.

Come on, Gilly, I just want

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