…Yvonne. I figured it was important to know how hard it might be to get a supporter of Roxanne to turn to our side. I used the piece of paper to determine which of the other rooms on the floor belonged to Yvonne. Once I found it I knocked on the door and waited for an answer. After a few seconds there was no response. I knocked again. However I was greeted with only silence.
I turned around with the conclusion that she must not have been in her room. I intended to return to Erin’s room. As I walked in the direction of Erin’s room, a girl appeared from around the corner of the hallway. Before she could get much closer I asked, “Excuse me, are you Yvonne?”
“Yes,” she said slowly as she eyed me suspiciously. “Can I help you?”
“Yes, you can,” I said. “I need to ask you a few questions and I wish you’d invite me in your room and answer them.” I decided to use the direct approach that had worked with Shanelle.
“Hang on, let’s go in my room,” Yvonne said with more eagerness in her voice. I allowed her to pass me and head to her room. She unlocked the door and walked in as I followed close behind. “What kind of questions do you have?” she asked as she threw her backpack on her bed.
“Just a few general questions about your sorority,” I answered. “For example, how do you like living here?”
“So far it’s been really great,” she said. “I’m a freshman, so it’s nice to have some distinction like this.”
“How do you like the other girls?” I asked.
“They all seem OK,” she answered. “I don’t know too many of them yet.”
I nodded. “I understand you’re voting for head of the house and only two other girls are running. Who are you voting for?”
She gave me a brief, odd look as if this was too personal a question. However, she replied, “I’m voting for Roxanne.”
“Why is that?” I asked.
Again there was a brief, odd look. But still the wish made her dutifully answer, “Frankly, because Roxanne has actually bothered to talk to me. I don’t know what to think of her, but she’s at least acknowledged my presence. I’m not sure if I’ve ever really met Carrie.”
“So if you met Carrie do you think that you’d change your mind?” I asked.
“I suppose,” Yvonne replied. “She doesn’t have a lot of time to do that.”
“I wish that you won’t be freaked out by what is about to happen,” I said. I made a wish to myself to know Carrie’s exact location. She was sitting in her room, reading a magazine. She still had on her robe, so I wouldn’t have to worry about her appearing suddenly and being naked to boot. I then made another silent wish for Carrie to appear in Yvonne’s room and for Carrie to understand exactly why she had been brought here.
Carrie quite literally popped into the room standing next to me. Yvonne looked startled, but kept her composure perfectly. “Hi, Yvonne,” Carrie said cheerfully. “I’m Carrie. I don’t think we’ve ever really had the pleasure, but Joe here tells me that I should talk to you.”
Yvonne just stared at Carrie dumbfounded. “How did you get here?” she asked.
“Not important right now,” Carrie dismissed her question. “What is important is to know what you’d like to get from living in this house?”
“Very true,” I agreed. “I wish you’d let Carrie know how you feel.”
Yvonne quickly ignored the improbable actions that just occurred and started a dialogue with Carrie. I let them talk to each other and ask questions back and forth. What was very quickly established is that Yvonne had much more in common with Carrie than with Roxanne. Or, at least what I’d understood about Roxanne and her ways. Yvonne was not a snob and indicated a distaste for those who were. If anything, she seemed to be a bit of an outsider. She didn’t dress very stylish, as she currently wore sweatpants and a hooded sweatshirt. She may have just come from the gym, but there wasn’t any other evidence of that.
After they had exchanged a few ideas back and forth for several minutes, Carrie finally asked, “Can I count on your vote?”