Hearts Unbroken

Joey picks Louise up for their bowling date, and they spar in a flirtatious way about the popularity of Louise’s bullying article. Joey tells Louise that his parents were good bowlers before they divorced. He hugs Louise when she successfully knocks pins down. On the way out, Louise notices memorabilia for the Kansas City Chiefs football team; the owner of the bowling alley is a former player. Included are photographs of “frenzied fans in redface, screaming at Arrowhead stadium” (135). Later, the two joke about where they might place bowling trophies. Louise hopes for a goodnight kiss, but when Joey mentions that his parents threw out their bowling trophies after they divorced, and Louise hugs him instead; she thinks “what he [needs] right then [is] a friend” (136).

Emily is angry at lunch because her father wants her to drop the articles on the musical casting. A PART parent told Emily’s father, who owns a floral shop, that if Emily does not “slant the coverage their way” (138), Immanuel Baptist will pull all their business, including flowers for weddings and funerals. After school the same day, Louise meets with Emily, Karishma, and Ms. Wilson to discuss how to handle the casting controversy articles. Louise offers to take them and Karishma supports the idea. They decide that Joey and Louise will move forward on the articles as a team, with Emily still contributing a personality profile about Chelsea. 

Before a dentist appointment at her father’s office, Louise hears from her mother that an identical hate note arrived the day before. Louise and her mother go for chocolate cake at Cracker Barrel and discuss the note. Mama explains that police “seemed inclined to dismiss the whole thing as a prank” (144). Louise asks Mama if she’s certain that keeping the notes secret is the best option, and she says she is not. Afterwards, at the Kansas Indian Arts and Crafts Cooperative, Louise is paging through a book about white actors who played roles of Native Americans in film. A Native woman, assuming Louise is not of Native heritage, approaches her “in a smug tone” to ask, “Learning anything?” (145). Mama speaks politely to her, but the woman does not acknowledge that she made a mistake. 

The staff gathers at Nick’s house to watch a newspaper-themed movie. Having rejected Ms. Wilson’s suggestion, All the President’s Men (about two news reporters who broke the Watergate scandal), they decide to watch Never Been Kissed, in which a Chicago Sun journalist poses as a high school student. Alexis asks why the wrestling coach suggested Daniel might not wrestle this year. Daniel explains that the coach received pressure from Immanuel Baptist to get Daniel to choose between Journalism and wrestling; the church made it clear that the coach’s son’s construction contract worth millions is on the line. Louise notices that for no good reason the costumed prom in the movie includes “Hollywood Indians” (149). Joey drives Louise home; she again hopes for a kiss, but conversation turns to her relationship with Cam. Joey is surprised that Louise felt strongly about Cam. There is no kiss that night either.

Louise attends a German Bierfest celebration on Columbus Day with Joey. They cover events for the paper, then run into Louise’s cousin Rain, who chats with Joey about cameras and photography. Louise and Joey kiss in the parking lot before he leaves to visit his father. Louise plans to spend the night at Rain’s and meet her parents at their new church the next morning, a small, progressively-minded Baptist church.

Louise and Joey interview Mrs. Ney. Mrs. Ney insists that she has nothing against Chelsea, but that “casting a Black Dorothy Gale is an academic travesty. […] The character is supposed to be from Kansas” (157). When Louise points out the Chelsea is indeed from Kansas, Mrs. Ney moves right on to complain about the “Mexican scarecrow, and what’s that other kid, the Tin Man? Are they here legally?” (158). Louise is furious but keeps her temper. She adds a verbal disclaimer to the video interview stating that the actor playing the Tin Man is her brother. Louise finds an anonymous note with the same hate message in her locker the next day.

Louise interviews Tanner Perkins, Vice-President of the Student Council, on the bus. Tanner suggests that moving to multiple actors of color so quickly shows unfairness. He also mentions that it is “scary” that statistics suggest that “white people are going to be outnumbered” (169). He will not elaborate. Later, Louise interviews her neighbor, junior Julia Fuller, who says her family strongly supports Hughie’s casting in the role because Hughie stuck up for Julia’s younger brother last summer. Off the record, Julia says it surprised her to hear that her parents are not “looking for another Black president anytime soon” (162).

On Halloween, Louise greets Joey, who comes to help distribute treats. Louise’s parents leave to attend a party. Hughie trick-or-treats with friends from the musical. Joey, at Louise’s request, has brought candy to hand out instead of the usual floss and toothpaste her father usually gives. In between trick-or-treaters, Louise and Joey kiss and discuss how PART is currently sending emails to parents claiming that Ms. Wilson is too liberal. Louise notices that one set of children wear feathers, braids, and fringe; the boy carries a fake spear while “their Pocahottie mommy chatted up the neighbors” (170).

Hughie confides to Louise that Mrs. Qualey wants him to revise his write-up about the show for the program. Hughie noted that L. Frank Baum, author of The Wizard of Oz stories, “was a terrible man who hated American Indians and wanted us all killed” (174). He shows Louise the articles, research, and Baum’s own racist editorials that reveal statements calling for the genocide of Native Americans. Louise sees that Hughie knows little about the massacre of the Lakota people at Wounded Knee and tries to explain its place in chronological history to him. 

Louise is tired from being up all night talking to Hughie. Shelby notes Louise’s lack of attention but mentions her money worries and states she would rather hear about Louise. Louise tries then to explain Hughie’s concerns about Baum. Shelby’s response is “That’s not even your Indian tribe” (178), in a reference to the killing of the Lakota people. Louise invites Shelby to dinner so that she and Shelby can discuss it more, but Shelby must work till the restaurant closes.

Louise wants a Student Council representative to speak formally on the casting choices for The Hive. Alexis thinks Erin Gray, the Secretary, might be willing. Erin prepared a campaign for Isaac Olson and herself to run as President and Vice-President respectively, but Isaac and Tanner changed the ticket, leaving Erin with the position of Secretary. Louise finds her in the school courtyard. Erin wears reflective sunglasses and does not directly answer Louise’s request for a comment on the casting or the musical. Erin says that Karishma, who ran against Isaac Olson for Stu-Co President and lost, would have made a better spokesperson for the student body. Louise finds the meeting frustrating because she wants Erin to be a leader and representative in her role.

Louise meets her mother at the gym and tells her about Hughie’s discovery of Baum’s racist editorials. Mama agrees that Baum was “a monster,” but that neither the musical nor the stories of Oz “are the man himself” (185). Louise presses her mother for how she feels, and Mama responds, “I feel like shining a spotlight on…what certain people try so hard not to see” (186). Mama respects that Hughie had strong opinions in his program write-up. In Joey’s apartment, Louise and Joey kiss passionately. They “[get] as sexy as they could with [their] jeans on” (187) before Joey’s mother arrives home.