Sold (Stealing from the David Beckham Boy - Am I Pretty?)

Lakshmi sees where the David Beckham boy hides his money, and she steals from him. She never touches his money though. Instead she takes his book and reads and pretends to be in school. I think that this shows that Lakshmi has still clung to her personality and stuck to her morals. It would be so easy for her to take his money to help her get out of the Happiness House faster, but all she wants is to learn. She misses being in school, being a student and learning. She still loves what she loved at home. I am really proud of Lakshmi for not stooping low and stealing his money. One day the David Beckham boy sees Lakshmi reading his book. Lakshmi is ashamed of being caught. The boy seems slightly confused that Lakshmi is interested in his book, but offers it back to her to read. She is too ashamed and leaves. Lakshmi hates the look of pity he gave her when he offered her the book. It is like he knows what is going on with her life, which he probably does. Lakshmi does not want to be the girl who is in a terrible situation. She wants to be normal. That is why she pretended to be at school. I think that his look of pity made her realize more strongly that she wasn't at school, but rather in the Happiness House going through torture. The boy has a lot to deal with. He knows what goes on in the house, and he has to deal with the kids at school tormenting him because his mother is a whore. He could be and extremely hostile young kid, but he is not. He loves to play soccer, and even offers to teach Lakshmi different languages. I think that he is an amazing kid just like Lakshmi. Although his situation isn't quite as harsh, he is dealing with a lot as well.

Lakshmi becomes almost confused when one of the men lay with her. He holds her after he is done, affectionately. Lakshmi has never had this happen before, and she becomes attached. She felt like he was after more than just his own pleasure. As strange as it may seem, I think that when he did this he allowed her to reconsider what she thought of herself. She contemplated whether or not she was pretty. I think it is so sad that the slightest bit of gentleness affected Lakshmi in this way. It really shows how badly things are going in the house.