Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of child death and death by suicide.

When Hazel’s article comes out, Mabel teases Jimmy about being a “hero”; he is furious, especially as he remembers the events of that night.

The narrative shifts to the past to describe Jimmy’s experiences on the night of the explosion. Jimmy had been thrilled by the privilege of taking Nell to the dance. However, she treated him with disdain from the moment he picked her up, and she proceeded to ignore him in favor of other company from the first moment they reached the hall. Although hurt and irritated, an enamored Jimmy immediately acquiesced when Nell asked him to fetch her some alcohol to drink. Jimmy found Smiley, who was still in high school then, and he obligingly directed Jimmy to an alley outside, where Jimmy bought some illegal alcohol from a group of men.

However, when Jimmy returned to the dance hall, he was furious to find Nell dancing with other men. When faced with Jimmy’s blustering, Nell openly rebuffed him and walked off, leaving Jimmy in the throes of uncontrolled rage. Jimmy headed back outside and broke into the basement next door to the dance hall, where he discovered a couple of pickup trucks and a can of gasoline.