August lying to the teacher about not being able to remember the 7th-grade faces could be an indication that he does remember them, but for some reason, he is hesitant or unwilling to admit it. There could be several reasons why he might choose to lie about this:
1. Fear of being judged or singled out: August may be afraid that if he admits to remembering the faces, his classmates or the teacher might treat him differently or make him feel uncomfortable.
2. Wanting to avoid drawing attention to his differences: August is portrayed as having facial differences, and he might want to avoid drawing attention to himself by pretending to not remember the faces of his peers.
3. Protection of personal emotions: By lying about not remembering the faces, August can protect himself from potential negative feelings associated with those memories or experiences.
It is important to note that this interpretation is based on fictional characters from the book "Wonder" by R.J. Palacio. The true motives behind August's actions can only be fully understood by exploring the storyline further and considering the context of the book.