“Josias, I'm really sorry about things that happened. I had no idea.” Pamela speaks in a regretful tone.In other circumstances, she would be genuinely moved by Josias's suffering. However now she is pretending for him to think that she has her good side.'A boy who had this disastrous background will never be able to rise in life!' Thought Pamela with contempt, although she was smiling at Josias, ‘This filthy room, with cracked walls, and very little furniture is all he will get. That’s why his best clothes are donated.’“Now you understand my situation.” Josias speaks relieved to see that she is reacting ‘favorably’.“Yes, I was a fool to judge you too hastily.” Pamela does not face Josias when she says this, a sign that she is lying and knows it.“Now we can understand each other better and stop causing problems and headaches for your best friend.” Josias is more excit

Uélton scandalously asks Josias if he took Pamela to the room. The attention of the other masons was unduly attracted, as they think that there was indecency between him and Pamela.“Hey, Josias, I thought you were a good boy,” Robson spoke in a tone that sounded mocking or scolding, depending on who was listening.“Leave the boy alone, he's not made of iron!” Milton opines with a chuckle.Well, whether there is immorality or not, the fact is that the general opinion of the workers is that Josias deserved to date a girl, even more with the appearance of him.But, Josias went red like pepper and tried to justify himself, “Calm down, guys, I don't want to get anybody pregnant.”“That's it, let's be careful,” Robson advises without even letting Josias know if he was joking or serious.Romualdo arrives and the workers stop joking. Romualdo is a respectable and conservative gentleman; they do

So Pamela and Melissa say goodbye, the last one entering the house with the gift in hand. Upon entering the room, Melissa unwraps and sees what she got from Fabrício.She decides to sit on the bed, such a surprise.Inside the gift box was a walkman, a novelty in the music market. This device had been invented last year, and now in 1980, it was still expensive for the lower classes.But, Fabrício comes from a family with good financial conditions, and he easily bought one for Melissa.Melissa stood for long minutes admiring the new acquisition. Now she could listen to whatever cassettes she wanted, while the rest of the family continued on the normal radio. She just couldn't walk on the street with this, as she would get undue attention.It wasn't that Melissa was afraid of being mugged. Probably thieves wouldn't even know what they were stealing!It is just that, as said, she does not want to give the impression that she is snu

Josias is walking home, furious, frowning, looking more at the floor than ahead. When he passes the Hope Street corner bar, he sees from a distance Jeremiah drinking with another girl.Josias had some money in his pocket and decided to buy a bottle of soda to drink with dinner. He intends to keep it in Teodoro's refrigerator.When he enters, he finds the messy and chaotic environment strange. Samba was played on the radio, at a volume too loud for Josias's eardrums. Some customers talked too loudly as if they wanted to compete with the music. It was still early in the evening and they were already drunk; imagine when it's ten or eleven at night!Josias approaches the counter and asks the bar owner for a bottle of soda. After being served and paying for the product, Josias turns his back and prepares to leave, when a scene catches his eye.On the plastic table where Jeremiah and the other girl are, three men older and stronger than Jeremiah is approaching

Admired by Josias's decent and civilized stance, Teodoro congratulates him. “Very well, Josias Rocha! I see that you acted with principles. I would say that your father would be very proud of you, but it looks like he didn't teach you that.”"No, he didn't teach me." Josias confirms, "My mother taught me something about ethics and citizenship before she got divorced and disappeared from the city."“Anyway, once the subject of the bar has ended in a happy ending,” Teodoro rubs his hands, “we will continue to deal with the first subject. Young Rocha, you spoke as if you had lost Melissa. Aren't you going to ask her father for permission?”"I went to the football field to look for him, but I found Pamela first." Josias is crestfallen and shoulders slumped.“Pamela? Did she tell you?” Teodoro frowns, "Isn't she the one you suspected of slandering you to Mr. Campos?"“Yes, but nothing has been proven