“No, I can’t ‘use’ him,” Julietta replied to Vernicia’s statement. “I just think that he makes a valuable friend.”

“That’s the same as saying that you want to use his image so that you can benefit from it,” Vernicia commented. “Not a bad idea if you want to maintain your sanity so that you can follow your own goals of becoming a doctor. Having an influential friend will be good then.”

“You are really so focused on my being a doctor, that you forget ...