Slider

David meets up with HeyMan while Pigorino’s sets up the qualifier. They have blocked off part of the street. David also encounters Hoover, who will also be competing. Cyn announces that she has found a whole forum of people who do not like The Gurge. Before she can finish presenting her online research, however, the contestants are called to compete.

When the timer starts, David opens the box to see a Grande BLD—a pizza so massive that it takes an hour to prepare. David gets to work and quickly develops a method for softening the extra-thick crust in his glass of water. A dozen contestants are working at different paces, but David focuses on his pizza and gets an effective rhythm. He is doing better than he expected. When the time elapses, David and Egon Belt have tied for first place.

Papa Pigorino celebrates both winners and hands out free pizza to the crowd. David feels terrible and lies down in the grass again. HeyMan and Cyn assist him. Hoover congratulates David and compliments his abilities.

David and HeyMan find Egon behind the pizzeria, bracing himself on a crate and looking pale. David tells Egon that it was an honor to compete against him. Egon, barely keeping himself together, says there’s no honor, only gluttony. He warns David about the competitive eating business before shooing him away. David hears Egon throwing up as they flee the alleyway. A few minutes later, Egon emerges from the alley, looking much better. He joins the celebrations.

David watches Mal crawl around the backyard like a worm. Mal has been doing this for an hour. David is incredibly bored, but whenever he tries to turn his attention to a book, he finds himself watching Mal again.

David talks to Cyn on the phone about his boring day. He hasn’t been training. Every time he thinks about competitive eating, he recalls Egon Belt puking in the alley, so he is taking a break. David invites Cyn over to help watch Mal. She makes Mal smile and compliments the Things he has collected. David complains that he feels stuck in the middle, with Bridgette constantly making him feel like a pesky kid and Mal giving him no privacy. David realizes that he and Cyn haven’t had any long conversations in a while because HeyMan is always around. As he’s thinking this, HeyMan arrives, and David realizes that Cyn invited him.

HeyMan and Cyn encourage David to keep practicing for the Pigorino Bowl. Cyn reveals that The Gurge has been barred from the Nathan’s Famous contest, and David isn’t surprised. He tells his friends that he is hiding his mom’s Visa bill until he wins the contest, but the plan sounds ill-advised when he says it aloud.

When his friends leave, David watches Mal fix the new Things to his Wall. David worries about having lied to his parents and feels trapped in a space where Bridgette is the perfect child, Mal is special, and he himself is a disappointment. Derek calls and offers to be David’s competitive eating manager, but David declines. He cuts up cabbage and gets back to training.

David has been ingesting large amounts of food and liquid to maintain his stomach capacity. Mal loves to watch David eat. With HeyMan’s help, David has been showing Mal new foods. HeyMan pointed out that everything Mal eats is light brown, crunchy, and homogenous, so David reasons that Mal will also like toaster waffles.

Mal was originally enrolled in a special school for children with developmental disorders, but he screamed the entire time, so he has been homeschooled ever since. He hasn’t learned much except to say the word okay. David knows that Mal is smart and has his own way of thinking; the boy just gets overwhelmed by external information.

David and Mal go for a walk, which requires preparation. Mal needs his specific jacket, his music, and pockets full of Cheerios to stay content. David takes Mal on their usual route. Mal collects Things for his Wall and pets a familiar dog. When they are almost home, however, Mal has a meltdown. Lacking the rug, David embraces a shrieking Mal from behind, and in the struggle, David realizes that Mal’s headphones have gone silent, so he sings to calm Mal.

Mal continues to struggle, and David does his best to keep singing. David wishes that he and Mal could trade places. He’s jealous that Mal is always entertained, that he always knows what he wants, and that Mom and Dad will always take care of him. He knows that Mal will always be loved and accepted. Eventually, Mal goes limp, cries, and collects himself, then says okay when he’s ready to go. A neighbor pulls up and checks on them. Everyone in town knows about Mal.

Mal has waffles for dinner while David and Dad eat Chinese takeout. David tells Dad about Mal’s meltdown, and Dad compliments David on his quick thinking. Dad and David have a frank discussion about autism. Normally, no one uses this word, but now, Dad talks about his friend, whose son has autism and has very different needs and abilities than Mal does. While Mal is mostly nonverbal, he only has a few meltdowns a week. By contrast, the son of Dad’s friend has a larger vocabulary but cannot be left alone at all.

David feels that Mal is teaching them about his world and is trying his best to communicate. David explains that Mal has his own rules, and the more the family understands them, the easier it is to work with him. Dad likes David’s outlook. Dad asks how David is feeling—a question David is not often asked. Dad is concerned about David’s competitive eating, but David likes it because he has talent in this area. Dad tells David that he used to be a skateboarder and could do all sorts of impressive tricks until one day, he broke both ankles while attempting a trick. His ankles healed, but he could never do the same tricks. Dad understands David’s perspective.

David and Mal fall into a routine of walking every day. David is diligent about making sure Mal has everything he needs. Mal also teaches David a card game; every time a face card appears, they say okay and eat a Cheerio. David tests Mal by saying incorrect names for the face cards, and realizes that Mal knows the correct names for the cards.

HeyMan comes over. He’s trying out new styles with his grandfather’s old clothes, including a pair of sunglasses. David tells HeyMan about Mal’s meltdown. David understands now that the music provides a buffer between Mal and the world. David asks to borrow HeyMan’s sunglasses. When HeyMan leaves, David shows Mal the sunglasses and encourages him to wear them. When Mal looks in the mirror with the glasses on, he is happy.

Mal is much more comfortable in the sunglasses and looks around during his walk, which he has never done before. David is so impressed by Mal’s transformation that he suggests they walk a new route, and Mal agrees. He imagines having a conversation with Mal, in which Mal expresses gratitude for the sunglasses. David suggests getting pizza. Mal says okay.

David is nervous about the nine-block walk to Pigorino’s, but Mal takes all the new sights, sounds, and smells in stride. David orders a pizza, and he and Mal take a seat in the booth. Mal touches all the condiments and begins to rock. David worries about Mal becoming overwhelmed, so he asks for the pizza early. David eats the pizza and gives the crusts to Mal, who pockets them. By the time they return home, the pizza is gone and Mal’s pockets are full of crusts. Bridgette’s car is in the driveway.

Bridgette eats ice cream in the kitchen. David tries to tell her about Mal’s positive progress, but she is not interested. She has been crying. David tries to figure out what’s upsetting her and gets a reaction when he asks about Derek.

David complains that while Bridgette is getting good grades and being perfect, he is stuck watching Mal. He says the only reason Mom can go work her dream job is because he’s watching Mal. Bridgette starts crying. David calls her problems stupid. Their argument is interrupted by a car horn outside. The front door is open, and Mal is gone.

Mal stands frozen in the street, blocking the path of a large pickup truck. The driver is an old classmate of Bridgette’s and is known for being insensitive. He tells them to lock Mal up and calls Mal derogatory names. David retaliates by kicking the truck. The driver jumps out and lunges toward David, but Bridgette pepper-sprays him. They get Mal inside. Mal is overwhelmed and has shut down rather than melting down. Bridgette and David tuck him into bed. David apologizes to Bridgette about Derek. Bridgette says they’ll figure it out and thanks David for taking care of Mal.

David calls HeyMan to tell him about the sunglasses. HeyMan is hanging out with Cyn again. They’ll be going to a movie later. Cyn invites David along, but he declines. He feels weird hanging out with Cyn and HeyMan when they are together. At dinner, David tells Dad about Mal’s progress with the sunglasses. They joke about getting Mal a full-body suit so he can walk around with a permanent buffer between himself and the world. Mal says okay. David and Dad speculate that Mal understood the conversation.

David sometimes tests Mal by speaking to him in gibberish, but he is certain that Mal knows when he’s being spoken to and can tell the difference between a question and a command. They walk to Pigorino’s again the next day. He suggests to an employee that Papa Pigorino serve plain cheese pizzas instead of Grande BLDs for the contest because it’ll be more impressive if the winner can eat a larger number of slices. It would also be more cost-effective and easier to prepare at the state fair. The server says he’ll talk to Papa about David’s suggestions. David orders a sausage and mushroom pizza for himself and a small, crust-only pizza for Mal—the Pizza Bianca.

Mal loves the Pizza Bianca. They work it into their daily routine. David tries to switch things up on Mal by changing walking routes or placing a single pepperoni on his pizza, but Mal remains strong through it all. David uses this daily trip to practice speed-eating. David is also volume training at home with cabbage and water. He doesn’t see a lot of HeyMan and Cyn, who are usually together. They invite David to join them, but David is always watching Mal.

Mom will be home Friday, the day before the contest. David is excited to tell her about Mal’s progress. Mal can go many places with his sunglasses, and he is now fascinated by hex bolts, which he has been screwing and unscrewing into his wall. David tries not to think about the Visa bill. By Friday morning, he is satisfied with his training and has arranged transportation to the state fair.