Previously on Neighbours
- Sheila invests in the Eclipse apartments, but Andrew frets that Paul hasn't got council approval
- Rhys is wondering whether to make contact with his father; Elaine thinks he'll get hurt
- Paul sabotages Sophie's application to music school by telling them about her recent expulsion
- Robbo arrives in town. Bailey warns Mason not to get sucked in, but it seems Amber already has
A road in Erinsborough
Robbo and Amber clamber out of the back of his van, where it appears they've spent the night together. Amber is freaking out as she hadn't meant to stay the whole night, and thinks her parents will be looking for her. She doesn't have any missed calls, but tells Robbo she hates sneaking around. He assures her it isn't forever, but they have to wait until he gets a job and a place to live. Robbo claims he hasn't been in touch with Mason yet, but that he will be soon. They kiss goodbye, and Amber heads homewards.
No 32
Amber sneaks through the back door, and just has time to pull a dressing gown on over yesterday's clothes before Lauren walks into the kitchen. Lauren notices the dressing gown is hers; Amber claims her own is dirty. Mason and Bailey get up, and Amber heads back to her room, looking relieved.
No 22
Sophie cheerily gives Paul a good morning hug, for letting her go to Sydney. Paul reminds her she hasn't been accepted yet, but Soph's confident she will be. Paul reminds Andrew they have the meeting with the council today to get approval for the Eclipse project. Sophie reminds Paul he only needs a three- bedroom flat if she's leaving, but he says he wants her to have a bedroom when she comes home for the holidays.
Sophie leaves for school, and Andrew worries aloud that the council might not sign off on Paul's plans for Lassiter's. Paul insists it will be fine, and that he hopes Andrew isn't showing the customers that he's worried. He insists he's not.
No 26
Sheila tells Kyle all about the apartment she's buying. She's confident she's grilled Andrew and Paul sufficiently, but has asked Toadie to look over the contract just to be on the safe side. Kyle admits he might miss Sheila a bit if she moves out. Sheila then notices all the returned mail from Rhys's father, but Rhys comes in and tells her to stop snooping, before leaving for work. Sheila hints to Kyle that Rhys may need somebody to talk to about his dad.
Harold's
Kate comes in for a strong latte and a small grass, telling Lauren that Amber has missed a few of their tutoring sessions lately. Lauren immediately goes to call Amber to find out where she's been, but Kate points out that when you're 16, moving halfway across the country must be quite traumatic.
Kate suggests that Lauren ought to focus on being the understanding mum, while Kate plays bad cop. This lesson in parenting dispensed with, Kate promises she'll let Lauren know if she needs to worry about Amber's grades. Lauren admits that Amber has had to bid farewell to her horse twice now - and asks Kate if Amber's said anything to her about her worries. Kate says she has, but that it's just typical teenage girl stuff.
Lassiter's (showroom)
Paul obsequiously shows the council representatives out of his evil lair, but starts cursing them the moment they've gone. To avoid having any of the council folk speak, Andrew helpfully fills Paul in on what they presumably just told both of them two minutes earlier - that there would be no approval on the Eclipse project until the buildings were up to code.
Andrew's desperate to postpone the sales operation as the council has identified lots of problems with the building, but Paul insists they will do no such thing - they'll just have to quickly sort out the issues. Another pair of gullible potential customers turn up, and the conversation has to be curtailed. Paul tells Andrew to get back to selling.
Power Street
Matt gets into the police car and hands one of the burgers he's just procured from Grease Monkeys to his partner, Senior Constable Kelly Merolli. She's looking forward to being posted in Erinsborough permanently once the cops move into the Lassiter's Complex - presumably because there are only half a dozen potential crime scenes in the area.
One of them is handily next door to the burger bar: the Bric- a- Brac Shop, which has just been turned over by a thief. The pair watch security footage from the store on a monitor in the car, and Matt thinks he recognises the burglar. So do we - it looks like Robbo - but Matt decides it can't possibly be who he's thinking of, as he 'couldn't be here'.
No 22
Tash turns up looking for Andrew, but finds Sophie instead, sobbing into her laptop. She's had an email from the music school, saying her application hasn't been successful. Tash is supportive in her own unique kind of way, and suggests Sophie should ring the school to find out exactly why they turned her down, and tell them why they should change their minds and let her audition.
Lassiter's (showroom)
Paul is busy ripping off his latest apartment customers, when Sophie turns up and yells at him for being a liar - scaring the customers away! Sophie tells Paul that she knows he told the music school she got expelled from Erinsborough High.
Paul argues that it would have come out eventually anyway, and that it was better coming from him. He suggests there are good music schools in Victoria, but Sophie accuses him of deliberately sabotaging her application so she wouldn't leave. Sophie says she's not interested; she was looking forward to being with Harry in Sydney, and having holidays with Paul.
SOPHIE: But now.... Now the other side of the planet wouldn't be far enough away.
She marches off.
No 32
Matt and Lauren discuss Amber's missed Kate- sessions. They ask Bailey if he knows where Amber's been getting to instead of tutoring, but he says she doesn't tell him anything. Matt wants to talk to Amber, but Lauren thinks It would make things worse, and that Amber's ostensible third parent, Kate, should be the one to keep an eye on her. Bailey agrees. Matt mentions that there have been three break- ins in Erinsborough in the last three days, and that they think it's a serial burglar. Bailey looks worried.
Lassiter's Complex
Kate hunts down Amber and reminds her they have tutoring after school today. Amber wants to make it another day, but Kate admits she told Lauren she'd been missing lessons, and that her mum is now worried. Amber once again begs Kate not to tell Lauren and Matt about her boyfriend. Kate begins to ask Amber personal questions about whether her relationship is 'physical', and whether she's taking precautions. Amber says they're 'safe', and that her boyfriend loves her. Amber promises to tell her parents as soon as he has a job and a place to live. She again asks Kate not to say anything, but Kate simply tells her not to be late for tutoring tonight.
Charlie's
Kate comes in to pick up a takeaway from Tash, and finds Mason at a table. She goes to ask him a question, and he jokingly answers that yes, he is free on Saturday night. Kate then asks her actual question: was Amber seeing anyone in Mount Isa? Mason says Amber dated a guy for about a week last year, and that he was the same age.
MASON: But, a year or two in either direction really is socially acceptable. And yes, I am talking about us again, Kate.
Kate says she's just trying to figure out why Amber is missing home. Mason says he'd know if Amber had a boyfriend, as he'd have to get past him. This impresses Kate, and she admits his approval rating has gone up a bit, before leaving.
On the other side of the bar, Tash interrogates Andrew about the hoops Paul has to jump through to get council approval on the Eclipse project. She warns Andrew that if the project falls through, Sheila could lose her life savings.
TASH: The guy that I'm in love with wouldn't be able to live with that.
Andrew looks worried.
No 22
Sheila storms in, and Andrew's just about to have a word to her about the council approval, when she tells him and Paul that she already knows - Toadie's read the contract and has told Sheila she's in danger of losing her deposit. Paul asks Andrew to tell Sheila how well the council meeting went this morning, and he tells Sheila they said approval would be likely. However, Sheila also points out that Toadie has discovered the designs for the flats have been stolen from a building in Dubai! Sheila says she's still in the cooling- off period, so wants her money back pronto.
PAUL: You took advantage of an opening sale, remember?
SHEILA: Oh yes, I remember the pitch. "Just like seven minutes of darkness in an eclipse, you have seven days to part with your hard- earned cash!"
PAUL: You know that offer won't be repeated?
SHEILA: You are trying to eclipse me out of my savings. Well I'm sorry; this little black duck happens to know the difference between day and night, and she is not biting!
Sheila storms out. Later, Paul asks Andrew to give her the cheque, as he doesn't want to look at her again today! Andrew suggests this might be a sign they should stop selling the apartments until they have approval, since Sheila could talk.
PAUL: Not if she wants to keep her job at Charlie's.
ANDREW: You'd hold that over her head?
PAUL: You know what? I've had it up to here with your disloyalty.
ANDREW: I'm not being disloyal, I'm trying to save you from making a mistake.
PAUL: Keep talking, because I can always find another assistant, son.
Andrew leaves to deliver Sheila's cheque, just as Kate and Sophie get home. Kate is on the phone, leaving a message for Amber to call her back, as she's missed her tutoring again. Sophie challenges Paul again about sabotaging her application to the music school, but he's unrepentant. Kate tells Sophie she shouldn't be too hard on Paul - what he did 'came from a place of love'.
SOPHIE: No, Kate, that's not love, it's control!
Sophie says she's not giving up on getting out of here.
Harold's
Margie hands Kyle his suit for the wedding, and he runs into Rhys. Kyle apologises for Sheila sticking her nose in with his dad's letters, but Rhys is surprisingly forgiving about it. He tells Kyle that he's decided he's going to meet his dad - he wants to know why he left him and his mum, and speaking to him beats getting angry about it.
Meanwhile, Bailey tells Mason about the series of break- ins and suggests Robbo's to blame. Mason says it can't be him, as he's only been there a couple of days. Bailey still thinks it was Robbo who burgled their own house, however, which would mean he'd been in Erinsborough for a much longer period. Mason says he's paying off Robbo as fast as he can now he has two jobs, and in the meantime, Bailey should stop worrying and buy him a coconut slice. While Bailey's away, Mason calls Robbo and asks to meet him.
A road in Erinsborough
Robbo meets Amber after school - she's skipped her tutoring to meet him - but he's now worried, as he's supposed to be meeting Mason. Panicking, he hurries Amber into the car and suggests they drive to the beach. Robbo claims he was planning to call Mason and tell him he's in town, but when Amber suggests they do it together and tell him about their relationship, Robbo says he'd rather speak to Mason by himself. Amber tells him Mason wouldn't be angry - but unbeknownst to either of them, Mason is watching as they kiss, get in the car and drive away. He looks very angry indeed.
Monday on Neighbours
- Angie's back, and Sonya's calm(ish), but Toadie's still worried about the wedding going wrong
- Connor is 'not so good', Toadie tells Sonya
- Mason tells Amber that she doesn't know Robbo as well as she thinks she does
- Robbo wants his cash, and offers to involve Mason in his next 'job' to help him get it