Chapter Seven - The teacher places Tom next to Joe Harper. After trying to study for a while, Tom and Joe play with a tick, each attempting to keep the bug on his side of the desk with a pin. During lunch, Tom and Becky sit in the schoolroom together, and Tom persuades her to “get engaged” to him. Tom begins talking about how much he enjoys being engaged and accidentally reveals that he was previously engaged to Amy Lawrence. Becky begins to cry and says that Tom must still love Amy. Tom denies it, swearing that he loves only Becky, but she cries harder and refuses to accept the brass knob he offers her as a token of his affection. 

Chapter Eight - For the rest of the afternoon, Tom wanders about in a forest, first deciding that he will become a pirate, next trying a futile charm to locate his lost marbles, and finally encountering Joe Harper.

Read by John Greenman