Previously
- Elly discovering a positive pregnancy test in her handbag
- Izzy telling Karl & Susan it's not her test
- Karl informing Susan that Holly needs stability not conflict
- Holly turning up to Ben & Xanthe's hotel room drunk
- Ben telling Xanthe about the apprenticeship in Oakey
- Xanthe believing this means Ben wants to break up with her
- Mishti telling Leo she's pregnant
Erinsborough Hospital
Mishti tells Leo that she's only known about the pregnancy for a day. She had the test to show him but lost it in a mix-up at Susan's party. They both admit they're "blown away" by the news, and not exactly in a good way. Leo says he thought they were careful but Mishti says she's been working double shifts and it's hard to time the pill. Before they can discuss things further, Jack arrives to visit Leo along with his son, Gabe the plot anvil. Mishti dashes back to work while Leo stares hesitantly at Gabe.
Lassiter's Hotel
Ben tells Xanthe through the bathroom door that they need to talk and he's not leaving until she comes out. But when Xanthe emerges it's to let him know that Holly's passed out. He wants to call Izzy, or an ambulance. Xanthe says it's not that dire - but they should call someone. Ben decides Karl is their best bet.
Harold's Café
Dipi lets Susan know about Izzy's $30,000 offer to fund her theatre company. Dipi says she wouldn't dream of taking the money if it's going to upset Susan and Karl, but Susan says Dipi may as well take advantage of it. Dipi just needs to be aware that Izzy always has an agenda. Susan then receives a phone call from Ben, looking for Karl.
The Waterhole
Shane's incredulous after Karl finishes telling him about Izzy's latest scheme.
SHANE: Stealing a bloke's swimmers? That's a whole new level of crazy.
Karl realises he's had two missed calls from Ben and then receives a text from Susan letting him know that Holly's been drinking again. He dashes out, crossing paths with Mishti. She runs into Paige, who asks about Leo's welfare, and then discussion turns to Gabe. After a couple of pointed questions from Mishti about how Paige has coped being a mum, Paige clues in that Mishti's never asked her this stuff before. She eventually realises Mishti's pregnant but Mishti shushes her so Shane doesn't hear.
MISHTI: We weren't planning to have a family and we've only just got together and I have a career to focus on.
PAIGE: Leo knows though, yeah?
MISHTI: Yeah and he's freaking too.
PAIGE: Listen, having a baby is life changing, it can make things complicated, and it does affect your career. But I can only speak from my own experiences. Gabe was a massive curveball but he was the best thing that ever happened to me.
Mishti doesn't look too cheered by this pep talk.
Lassiter's Hotel
Holly's now slouched against Xanthe while they sit on the bed. Susan and Ben look on while Karl checks Holly over in case she hit her head or ingested anything other than alcohol. But Holly says it was just the booze and flops back down to sleep. Karl wants to take Holly back to #28 but Susan insists they take her back to Izzy so she can see what her actions have done to her daughter.
KARL: I'd rather not subject her to Izzy. Not until she's more herself, it's a lot to face.
SUSAN: That's my exact point. You keep saying you want to stay on Isabelle's good side for Holly. What's the point of that if neither of you are looking after her welfare?
Number 32 Backyard
Yashvi's helping Dipi hang out the washing and is also getting a stern warning from her mum to stay away from Holly for a while (Dipi was there when Susan got the call about her drinking). Meanwhile, Kirsha ventures outside to ask when she can visit Leo in hospital, but is absolutely stunned when she can hear a snippet of her family's conversation. She rubs her ear, wondering if it's just going to be a once off.
Erinsborough Hospital
A guilty-looking Amy asks if anything looked off at the worksite before the accident. Leo says all that happened was he noticed the tailgate to the truck was open and when he slammed it shut, it caused the concrete slab to fall out. Amy says she was the last one to check the truck so it was her fault, but Leo isn't angry with her.
LEO: It got me thinking about mortality a bit.
AMY: That's understandable.
LEO: Made me think about life choices.
AMY: OK so maybe it wasn't all that bad then?
LEO: No seriously though. I mean look at you, you've got Jimmy, you've got your business and you're still young. Maybe I need to factor in family too.
AMY: As adorable as it is hearing you talk like this, maybe wait until the painkillers have worn off before you start ticking having kids off your bucket list?
LEO: So you don't think it's about time?
AMY: What's the rush now? You've got a career, a gorgeous girlfriend. Why not have an awesome life for a while? You can always have an awesome family later.
Lassiter's Hotel
Ben apologises to Xanthe for not telling her about Oakey sooner. Xanthe says she gets why he wants to be closer to his dad's family but isn't thrilled at the thought of breaking up. Ben surprises her when he says he wants to try a long-distance relationship.
BEN: I love you like crazy and I know how lucky I am to have you. I literally can't bear thinking of a life without you.
XANTHE: But you're still going away.
BEN: Not forever. Maybe until my apprenticeship is finished.
Ben asks Xanthe if she thinks a long-distance relationship would work between them but Xanthe says she needs to think about it.
Meanwhile in Izzy's hotel room things aren't going quite to Karl and Susan's plan when all Izzy does with her drunk daughter is mollycoddle her into bed and promise her room service and a big shopping outing the next day. Karl asks Izzy for a word outside, and Susan lingers by the door to eavesdrop. Izzy thinks they're out there because they don't need Susan interfering in their parenting decisions but Karl glares at her.
KARL: Susan is ten times the mother you are. Holly is very fortunate to have her as a stepmother.
IZZY: Not that she needs one.
KARL: I totally disagree. You've never shown Holly full attention and this is the result.
IZZY: I've struggled to be the perfect mother, and now that I've got this inheritance then I can finally...
KARL: Izzy! Good parenting is not about money! Holly needs you to be engaged. It's no coincidence that this disaster happens the day after your latest stunt. You do nothing but set her terrible examples.
IZZY: Karl...
KARL: No, I realise this is painful to hear but it's true. You have been appalling. Now you can threaten me all you like but I will fight back because I cannot stand by and watch you treat everyone this way.
Susan can't believe her ears - Karl's finally taken a stand with Izzy.
Number 24
Xanthe talks Ben's decision through with Piper. She just can't imagine having a relationship with someone who's far away. Xanthe immediately backtracks when she sees Piper's face fall and says she didn't mean to be insensitive about Tyler. But Piper is sympathetic towards her friend.
PIPER: My disaster doesn't take away from yours.
XANTHE: So you agree that it's a disaster?
PIPER: Seriously, I think that the whole long-distance thing can work. I wish that I could convince Tyler that, but it sounds like Ben is actually willing.
Erinsborough Hospital
Leo's using the phone app to communicate with Kirsha and they joke about whether she likes him more than David. When Mishti appears she asks Kirsha to put the bunch of flowers she brought into a vase. While Kirsha's back is turned, Mishti and Leo continue their conversation about the pregnancy. Mishti admits that she's not sure she's ready for a baby right now, but she hopes Leo doesn't see that as a sign of rejection. Leo's on the same page, though, and says he's not sure about a baby either.
MISHTI: I know a lot of women would give anything to be in my position but I'm only twenty-three. I'm not ready.
LEO: What do we do now?
MISHTI: I don't know.
Throughout this discussion, Kirsha's hearing returned for a split second and she overheard the words "... I'm pregnant yet", leaving the teen quite stunned.
Garage
Xanthe finds Ben sitting at the desk fiddling with an envelope. He tells her it's his letter of resignation but he doesn't know if he's handing it in yet, "it kind of depends on you." Xanthe then delivers him the good news that he should follow his dreams and that she wants to give the long-distance thing a go. Ben leaps up and hugs her, relieved.
XANTHE: We've always said how we wanted our separate lives so what's another year or two of extra space? We'll have the rest of our lives after that.
She takes the letter from Ben and pops it on the desk. Now all Ben has to do is tell his grandparents his plans. He thinks they're going to be more upset than angry.
Number 28
With Xanthe by his side, Ben finishes telling Karl and Susan his news, letting them know he spoke to Libby about it too and she thinks it's a great idea to know his dad's family better. They ask questions about where he's staying and what about TAFE, but Ben reassures them that everything will be OK. Karl and Susan are understandably taken aback by the news and they hope their recent fighting had nothing to do with his decision. But Xanthe says it has more to do with Tyler leaving - Ben's hoping that Kirky will fill that gap in his life.
KARL: I'm sure Dougal will love having his nephew around to pass his knowledge onto. That's one of the things I've loved about having you here.
BEN: You picked up a few guitar skills too. You guys have been awesome for letting me stay here. And I want you both to know how grateful I am for everything you've given me.
SUSAN: Oh darling, it's been our pleasure. And just for the record, we don't want you to go.
Ben promises he'll be back (which Xanthe wholeheartedly agrees with) and reminds them they'll have their hands full with Holly anyway. "So don't turn my bedroom into a guitar room just yet."
Number 32 Backyard
Kirsha sees Dipi, Shane and Yashvi celebrating something and is thrilled she can hear tiny bits of conversation again, including the words "new baby." Smiling, she tells them all to calm down and that they should wait until Mishti's at least 12 weeks before they get too excited. Everyone's confused. It turns out the "baby" is Dipi's theatre group, which just scored a large amount of cash from Izzy. Then they all discover Kirsha heard Mishti talking about being pregnant then they click that, hey, Kirsha heard something.
Number 28 Backyard
Susan and Karl chat about Ben and Susan says it's ironic Karl gave Izzy a serve about her bad parenting when they took their eye off the ball with their grandson. Karl says he's to blame for that but Susan says she's taking equal responsibility. Karl thinks that things will be more straightforward with Izzy from now on, but Susan just laughs.
SUSAN: I admire your optimism.
KARL: No, I truly believe that. Today was a turning point, there's no going back. I will not be manipulated by her anymore.
SUSAN: As delighted as I am to hear that, you do realise that if she is pregnant then that's just going to be a whole new world of chaos to deal with. Let's hope that what you said to her about Holly sunk in.
Karl nods but looks perturbed when he turns away from Susan.
Lassiter's Hotel
Izzy sets a glass of water and some headache tablets next to the bed while she gazes at her sleeping daughter. She gently tucks Holly's arm under the blanket and strokes her shoulder, looking at her in a bittersweet fashion.
Number 30
A British woman named Rita has stopped by to see Toadie after speaking to him on the phone about an urgent business matter. She apologises for troubling him at home but Toadie says he's been working there today anyway. Toadie's curious as to what Rita needed to speak to him about as she didn't say on the phone.
RITA: I need to talk to you about Isabelle Hoyland.
Number 32 Backyard
Yashvi tries screaming at Kirsha to see if she can hear anything but it doesn't work. Kirsha tells her family that she doesn't want to get too excited about anything yet until they've spoken to a doctor. Mishti arrives and congratulates her sister on the theatre group donation, but Dipi says they're also celebrating Kirsha getting some of her hearing back. Mishti's thrilled, but her mood changes when she's left alone with Dipi and finds out they know about her pregnancy after Kirsha accidentally overheard her at the hospital. Dipi's thrilled at the thought of Mishti becoming a mum but Mishti just looks agitated.