Surviving the Applewhites

Jake is getting ready for rehearsal, realizing that his life has slipped out of control with the Applewhites. In addition to Winston, Destiny, who affectionately refers to him as the “bestest brother in the whole wide world” (116), now follows him everywhere. With the entire family engrossed in the show, Jake has become a babysitter. Hal is building set designs and leaving them outside his door (Jake has still never met him), Cordelia is finished with the choreography and is now helping with the costumes, while the guru assumes kitchen duties, preparing elaborate meals of curries, chutneys, and soft flatbreads. As he works in the kitchen, he imparts wisdom, emphasizing the necessity of passion in all aspects of life: “Passion is necessary to all of life. […] Meditating, working, cooking, eating” (118).

Jake packs his costume for rehearsal and tells Destiny it’s time to go. Randolph and E.D. left early to set everything up, and Cordelia, Bernstein, Jake, Destiny, and Winston follow. During the rehearsal, Jake notices a burning smell and sees smoke. Panic erupts as they discover a fire, but E.D. quickly locates the fire extinguisher and puts out the flames. They find out that Destiny caused it—he used Jake’s lighter to set fire to some papers, pretending to be Jake burning down his school. Randolph blames Jake for the incident.

Once the fire is put out, Randolph insists on continuing rehearsals. However, amid the chaos, the girl playing Gretl fell off the stage and hurt her arm. E.D. realizes they’ll need to find a replacement for the role.

The following morning, E.D. is in the schoolroom when the phone rings. It’s Mrs. Montrose, the president of the board of the Traybridge Little Theatre, inquiring about the reported arson attempt. E.D. assures her it was an accident, but Mrs. Montrose mentions that a child was injured and says she will cancel the show. E.D. proposes a solution: Mrs. Montrose’s daughter, Priscilla, who auditioned for the role of Brigitta, could step in as Gretl. She convinces Mrs. Montrose to hold an audition that evening and suggests they have dinner together afterward. Mrs. Montrose agrees, and E.D. hangs up, feeling proud of her quick thinking.

Randolph opposes the idea of casting Mrs. Montrose’s daughter as Gretl, claiming that “the Montrose kid has a wretched voice” (126). However, he gives in after everyone pleads with him not to let the show be canceled.

While everyone is having breakfast at the main house, Jake, desperate for some time away from Destiny, is in the kitchen at Wisteria Cottage. His thoughts drift to Jeannie Ng, who has taken Cordelia’s place as the most beautiful girl he’s ever seen. Suddenly, Destiny and Winston burst into the room, followed by Wolfie, the goat. The goat seems to be infuriated by Winston’s barking and rampages through the room, butting the couch, the hippopotamus coffee table, and everything else in its way. Jake intervenes, flinging the tablecloth over the goat’s head and guiding it back to the pen.

In the schoolroom, Jake and Destiny observe a butterfly chrysalis moving slightly. Their focus is interrupted as they hear a car pull up to the house—it’s Mrs. Montrose and her daughter. From the schoolroom, they hear Priscilla sing and are less than impressed. Suddenly, the chrysalis cracks open. Jake is taken aback as something unexpected emerges, “[looking] nothing at all like a butterfly” (130). Destiny is eager to see it fully come out and fly, and Jake realizes he feels the same way.

During dinner, Randolph avoids interaction with Mrs. Montrose, visibly uncomfortable with the situation. Meanwhile, Mrs. Montrose enthusiastically discusses Bernstein’s TV show, excited for her daughter’s involvement. E.D. understands her father’s problem—Priscilla is clearly not fit for the role. As Govindaswami serves a spicy dish, Mrs. Montrose immediately reaches for water to soothe her palate. Meanwhile, Destiny and Priscilla venture off to check on the butterfly. After some time passes, Jake notices their absence and goes to look for them. Upon his return, he announces that the two children are nowhere to be found in the schoolroom. Suddenly, a scream pierces the air, and Priscilla rushes in, followed by Wolfie and Winston. Wolfie first butts Archie and then Sybil out of the way and then smashes into the table. Amidst the commotion, a black butterfly flutters into the living room, “drifting serenely above the chaos” (137).

Jake and Archie manage to drag Wolfie out of the house, and Sybil apologizes profusely to Mrs. Montrose and Priscilla as they make their way back to the car. The whole scene leaves everyone feeling embarrassed. Afterward, they all pitch in to clean up the mess, and Jake catches the butterfly, which Destiny names Blackie. Destiny is keen on keeping Blackie indoors, but Jake knows the butterfly needs to eat. He recalls reading that butterflies can survive on sugar and water, so they concoct a sugary solution for Blackie, boiling water and adding a cup of sugar. Destiny insists on adding grape Kool-Aid to give it a purple hue. Placing the mixture on the counter, they wait until the butterfly starts to eat.

Later, while Jake rehearses his lines in the schoolroom, E.D. comes in. She’s skeptical about Jake’s claim of feeding the butterfly, but he assures her he’ll show her in the morning. Then, E.D. tells Jake her father has decided to cast Destiny in the role of Gretl, renamed Hans. Randolph knows this decision will lead to the show’s cancellation once he tells Mrs. Montrose, but “he’d rather have a musical with good singers canceled than one with lousy singers that actually happens” (143). The news unsettles Jake. He was excited to play Rolf, singing and dancing alongside Jeannie Ng. He was even planning on cutting off his scarlet hair and taking off his earrings. E.D. blames Jake for what happened, asserting that it’s all over now. Despite E.D.’s pessimism, Jake remains hopeful—everyone involved poured their hearts into the production. He recognizes that “what the Applewhites did they did with passion“ (144) and reassures E.D. that even if Mrs. Montrose cancels the show, their hard work and dedication will find a way to prevail, one way or another.