A Complicated Relationship 8

In the second part of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, we are introduced to Mary Elizabeth.  Mary Elizabeth is a friend of Sam's and Patrick's who meets Charlie when they both participate in Secret Santa.  Although Charlie is not Mary Elizabeth's Secret Santa, he still gifts her forty dollars that he enclosed inside of a card, reading, "To be spent on printing Punky Rocks in color the next time."  This gesture surprises Mary Elizabeth, as she cannot believe that Charlie even remembers this about her and even went through the trouble to give something that thoughtful to her for Christmas.  From that point on, she begins to think of Charlie in a completely different way.

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Mary Elizabeth asks Charlie to the Sadie Hawkins' dance, which is a dance that instead of a male asking a female, a female invites a male.  Sam is extremely happy for Charlie and gives him points on how to treat a girl (or specifically, Mary Elizabeth).  Mary Elizabeth has grown to really like Charlie, and she wants to be more than friends.  Charlie, of course, agrees.  However, their relationship is very one-sided, as Mary Elizabeth is very assertive and has a lot to say.  She always talks about how she wants to introduce Charlie to many things, like the books or songs that she likes.  She holds the reins of the relationship.  Although Charlie thinks Mary Elizabeth is pretty and a nice girl, he cannot be honest about his feelings with her.  He is not strong enough to admit that he does not want to be more than friends, and that he really does not like her in that way.  Charlie is not completely happy with the relationship; instead he is conflicted.  This lack of honesty and assertion Charlie has for his feelings leads him to kiss Sam instead of Mary Elizabeth in a game of truth or dare, which causes serious problems in many relationships.