Development of Dell Duke

In the beginning of the book, Dell was a big man. He had a set way of living, and it was lazy. He didn't do much t his job, and his home was messy. He sorted the kids he worked with into the four categories of the strange: the weirdos, the oddballs, the misfits, and the lone wolves.
Toward the middle of the book, Dell became a lot more passionate and caring. He had Willow to care for, and it challenged him to grow. He allowed his home to be taken over, and he went out of his way everyday to care for Willow. He even started running to try and become healthier
Toward the end of the book, Dell was frustrated. He was stressed from all the sacrifices he was making, and his body was sore. One morning he crashed his car, scratching it up against a fence. Then, trying to get out of his now damaged car, he hit a district owned van with his car door, scratching it too. As he walked away in embarrassment, his cat who was missing jumped between his legs. Looking at the dirty, scared animal something clicked in Dell's mind. He had to start taking more responsibility for his actions. After that, he had a spring in his step. It could've been the running, or just knowing he had done right by his cat, but from there forward he did things with happiness and integrity.