As Brave As You

A thunderstorm starts up as the boys come inside to eat dinner, and Brooke comes out of a mysterious room in the house that he keeps locked and won’t tell Genie about. Genie can smell liquor and deduces that his grandfather has been drinking. The storm continues to rage. When the electricity in the house goes out, their grandmother calmly gets out candles, and the meal continues on until the boys’ grandfather pulls out a harmonica and plays for them. His playing entrances the boys, and Genie marvels at the various facets of his grandfather’s personality.

After dinner, with the power still out, the boys go upstairs to bed. Their grandmother escorts them to their bedroom, where she steps on Wood’s model truck that Genie left out on the floor. A wheel breaks, and Genie feels awful about leaving it out. Their grandmother is upset, but she regains her composure. Ernie asks Genie what he thinks about Tess, revealing that he’s interested in her, and then quickly goes to sleep.

Genie can’t sleep, though, and eventually goes downstairs to use the bathroom. His grandfather is up too, and the two talk for a while.