How It All Goes Down
- When Dolores is ten, her family moves to a new neighborhood, one partially owned by Daddy's boss.
- The woman has also given Dolores's dad a new car.
- Dolores makes friends with Jeanette Nord, and they bond over TV and who's hotter: Dr. Kildare or Ben Casey? (The Team Peeta or Team Gale of the 1950s)
- Ma has decided to cope with her grief over losing the baby four years ago by transferring her love onto her new parrot, Petey.
- Dolores is jealous of Petey.
- Daddy and Ma continue fighting, mostly over Dad's relationship with Mrs. Masciotte. Ma says he's "an old lady's whore" (1.2.94) and he sends Dolores outside while he slaps Ma.
- Dolores doesn't want to hear it, so she pedals her bike away.
- When she returns, her shorts are bloody. Knock knock, it's Aunt Flo calling.
- Ma isn't exactly supportive: "That's great, Dolores. […] That's just what I need right now" (1.2.128).
- Ma decides to go stay with Grandma in Rhode Island and she leaves Dolores with her dad.
- They spend their days hanging out and swimming and thinking about the good old days; after a week, Dad drives Dolores to see Ma and Grandma.
- When Ma and Dolores return home together, Ma tells Dolores that she and her dad are getting a divorce and he'll have moved by the time they get back.
- Dolores doesn't understand why her dad didn't tell her.
- She decides to direct her anger toward her mom, though, so when Ma asks Dolores if she thinks she's pretty, Dolores says, "yeah, pretty ugly" (1.2.202).
- Dolores turns into the meanest girl this side of Regina George, tormenting her mom and the girls at school.