The narrator, Julia, recounts her childhood in a wealthy town in Brazil where she and her single mother, a maid, struggled to make ends meet. One day, Julia befriends a girl named Andy, who is initially portrayed as a troublemaker but eventually reveals a more vulnerable side due to her neglectful upbringing.
Despite their initial rocky relationship, Julia and Andy become close friends, with Andy often visiting Julia's home to escape her own lonely and difficult life. However, their friendship is put to the test when Andy's actions cause Julia to miss an important exam, leading to a temporary rift between them.
Later, when Julia's mother enters a cooking contest, Andy surprisingly helps them by retrieving their stolen van, allowing them to participate and ultimately win. Andy's motives are revealed to be her desire to keep Julia from leaving town, as she has grown to care for her deeply.
The story concludes with Andy's mother abandoning her, and Julia and her mother inviting Andy to live with them. Andy accepts, and the three form a makeshift family, providing a sense of belonging and support that Andy had been lacking.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. Julia lives with her single mom in a small town.
2. Julia's mom works as a maid in one of the mansions in the town.
3. Julia's mom makes jam from fruit trees in their backyard and sells it at the Sunday market.
4. Julia was once taken to one of the mansions where her mom worked and met two girls her age.
5. The girls' mother shouted at Julia, accusing her of having lice.
6. Julia's mom enrolled her in the fanciest school in town in the sixth grade.
7. Julia met a girl named Andy in her class who was a troublemaker.
8. Andy wanted to have a hundred kids so she could have a hundred friends.
9. Andy was neglected by her family and often went hungry.
10. Julia and Andy became friends after Andy defended Julia from some senior girls who were bullying her.
11. Andy's grandma was mean and neglected Andy as well.
12. Julia applied for a scholarship to a big school in the city, but missed the exam due to helping Andy.
13. Andy's mom was on the school board and could have gotten Julia kicked out of school.
14. Julia's mom was afraid of Andy's mom and apologized to her after Julia had a fight with Andy.
15. Julia regretted her words and felt too mad to apologize to her mom.
16. Julia saw a poster for an amateur food business contest and decided to enter with her mom's jam.
17. Julia and her mom worked hard to make 200 pieces of their organic product.
18. The driver of the van they hired didn't show up, and Julia thought all was lost.
19. Andy found the van and saved the day, helping Julia and her mom win the contest.
20. Andy explained that she had made Julia miss her exam because she didn't want Julia to leave town.
21. Julia's mom started working with a big food company after winning the contest.
22. Julia and her mom moved into a new home and invited Andy over for dinner.
23. Andy's mom was leaving her with her grandma for a month, and Andy was upset.
24. Julia offered Andy to come live with her and her mom, and Andy accepted.
25. Andy's mom was angry and didn't want Andy to leave, but Andy stood up to her.
26. Andy moved in with Julia and her mom and had her own room.
27. Andy would often jump into Julia's bed and sleep with her.