Character Analysis
Sheila Borden
As the one other invisible person in Things Not Seen, Sheila Borden's existence is a revelation to Bobby. She had the exact same thing happen to her: She woke up one day and found out that she was invisible. But unlike Bobby, she handles the news completely differently:
And then she needs to talk, and I listen to her whole story. How she panicked that morning, how she started to tell her parents, but then stopped. She actually lived at home three days after it happened. She saw her parents crying about her. (23.52)
Instead of telling her family, Sheila disappears on them. Instead of revealing her secret to friends and going out, Sheila locks herself in her apartment, hardly leaving to do anything other than get groceries. She's chosen to live a life of solitude, and her existence reminds Bobby that had it not been for his loved ones, he could very well have ended up in the same situation.
Ms. Pagett
The social worker, Ms. Pagett, sure is a stickler for rules, which makes her hard to shake once she's honed her suspicions in on Bobby's parents. She wants to know about Bobby's long absence from school and why no one has seen him for weeks, and she's not willing to take just any old excuse. She's pretty tough when she talks to Bobby's mom:
Ms. Pagett takes her time answering. "Mrs. Phillips, this isn't difficult. Difficult is when a child is declared to be formally missing under suspicious circumstances. Because at that point, the full resourcse of the state of Illinois jump into action – and possibly the FBI as well. When that happens, these things often get into the newspapers. It can affect lives and careers. It can get quite messy, and… difficult." (23.9)
She straight-up threatens to ruin Dr. and Mrs. Phillips's lives if they don't produce their son stat. Because of her doggedness, Ms. Pagett throws everyone in the Phillips family into a state of panic—they don't have all the time in the world to resolve Bobby's condition; they only have a few days before Ms. Pagett calls in the police. Her presence certainly keeps everyone on their toes, driving the plot forward.
Dr. and Mrs. Van Dorn
Alicia's parents are the only two other adults (besides Bobby's parents and his Aunt Ethel) who know anything about his condition, and because of this, they're roped in to trying to solve his problem, too. Dr. Van Dorn is more like Bobby's dad—geeky and a scientist by nature—and gets right to the nitty gritty of trying to figure out the root cause. Mrs. Van Dorn, on the other hand, is just trying to make sure that Bobby's situation is reversed so that he's not hanging around her daughter buck naked all the time. Can't say we blame the lady.
Aunt Ethel
Dear old Aunt Ethel… Even though she lives all the way in Florida, Bobby's Aunt Ethel totally loves her great-nephew enough to cover for him when the authorities come a'knocking. At first, she's just the name they give when the hospital and school ask who is looking after Bobby, but when Ms. Pagett puts the pressure on them, Bobby's parents decide that it's time to bring Ethel into the fold for real. When told of Bobby's situation, Aunt Ethel hardly bats an eye—he just acts like it's a totally normal situation, and agrees to lie to the cops for her family.
Mrs. Trent
Mrs. Trent is the neighbor that you wish you didn't have, the nosy lady next door who makes it hard for Bobby to hang out alone at home in peace. As he puts it: "Mrs. Trent is the nosiest woman on the planet, and it doesn't help that the buildings in my neighborhood are only about fifteen feet apart" (7.6). In short, she's got front row seats for Bobby's life.
She is constantly keeping an eye on their house, and even wants to see Aunt Ethel when Bobby says that his aunt is there to take care of him. Because of Mrs. Trent, he has to sneak around through the back door instead of using the front door like a normal person and be mindful of his presence, all to keep her from investigating his situation.