Previously
- Piper tells Xanthe of her plans to TITTNL™ with Cassius
- But when the time comes, Piper has flashbacks to her time with Tyler and flees
- Cassius then has his own flashback - he was the one who rescued Piper after she fell off the boat
- Clive apologises to Sheila for speaking to her like a doctor and not the man who loves her
- Elly confronts Bea about her attitude change; Bea tells Elly that they were never a team
- Ned offers Bea some company on one of her night walks
- Ned overhears Bea telling Elly that she's going to be staying late at work
The Row of Trees
Ned and Bea are walking at night. Bea explains that Susan is coming home tomorrow, but that whatever she's achieved while staying with Liz won't change the past. Bea says she thinks she's better off without Liz.
BEA: I mean, who wants a mum that lies, kicks you out of home, and then blames it on your sister?
NED: My mum lied to me as a kid. She told me that my dad didn't want to see me. And it turned out that she was the one keeping him away.
BEA: What is wrong with parents?
NED: You've got to be in a pretty bad place to do that to your kids.
BEA: Wait, so you're defending them?
NED: No. I just don't think it's as simple as 'bad people do bad things'.
But Bea makes it clear she isn't ready to forgive Liz. Ned agrees there's no easy fix, but...
NED: I just found things got a lot easier when I let the anger go.
BEA: What, so you just let them get away with it?
NED: No, but it's not about them. It's about breaking the cycle, so we don't make the same mistakes.
BEA: Hmm.
No 22
Cassius has walked Piper home, and she offers him a bed on the couch - but he decides to head back to the backpackers' instead.
CASSIUS: Besides, if Clementine jumped on me, I'd probably have a heart attack.
PIPER: (...) I'm sorry again, about tonight.
CASSIUS: No - don't be. Seriously, I want to wait until we're both ready.
Cassius gets a phone call. When he sees the screen, he claims it's an overseas number, so must be some sort of scam. He offers to come over tomorrow morning with breakfast. Piper agrees, promising to lock Clementine in her room!
PIPER: I'll be thinking about you tonight.
CASSIUS: I'll be thinking about you, too.
Cassius leaves, glancing worriedly at his phone as he goes.
Lassiter's Complex
Sheila and Mark are having a drink, and commemorating the anniversary of Russell's death tomorrow.
MARK: I can't say it's gotten any easier.
SHEILA: Well, he was your dad - and blood's blood.
MARK: Well, he meant something to you too.
SHEILA: Yeah.
Clive shows up, and Sheila explains they were just toasting Russell's memory. Clive offers to meet Sheila later if she wants to stay with Mark, but Mark's heading off anyway. Mark hugs Sheila as she reminds him 'never to forget', and tells him to call her tomorrow if he needs anything. Clive looks uncomfortable.
CLIVE: You okay?
SHEILA: Yeah, I think so.
But Clive looks concerned as they walk off together.
Erinsborough Greenway
As their walk continues, Bea is moaning to Ned about Elly's capacity for sticking her nose in. Ned admits that Elly could be 'pretty intense' when they were together.
BEA: Can I ask you a stupid question?
NED: Sure.
BEA: You're not just hanging out with me because of her, are you?
NED: What do you mean?
BEA: Well, you know - you're not with her and then I'm the next best thing.
NED: That *is* a stupid question.
BEA: (...) Well, the last guy I was with who did that -
NED: Wait, wait - hold on. I genuinely enjoy going on these walks with you. I understand why you'd worry, but there's no need.
BEA: Well, you don't still like her, do you?
NED: No. No!
BEA: Okay. Well, you just... said it was intense.
NED: I said *she* was intense!
BEA: Yeah, well. Elly does have really high standards, and she can't handle anyone who doesn't live up to them.
NED: The Elly I know has made a lot of mistakes. And sometimes, she takes her helping others a little too far. But only cos she cares. Give her a chance - see if I'm wrong.
No 28
The next morning, Susan comes in with Karl, and Elly gives her an enthusiastic welcome-home hug. Susan asks how things have been; Elly is evasive, and asks how things went with Liz in Sydney.
SUSAN: It went well. I've convinced your mum to go and see a therapist (...) She realises that she was using Bea as a scapegoat, and in fact, she's probably been doing that her whole life (...) She also broke up with Bruce, and she Skyped with Lars. She told him what had been going on; she apologised. I think she's really committed to moving forward.
ELLY: Okay. We'll see.
Elly admits that Bea has been pretty closed off while Susan has been away, and that Elly didn't help matters by overstepping. Karl tells her not to be too hard on herself; she was just trying to do the right thing. At that moment, Bea comes out of her room, and gives Susan as enthusiastic a welcome as Elly did. When Elly offers everyone a coffee, Bea is surprisingly eager, and starts making small talk.
Lassiter's Complex
Clive is walking Sheila to work. She asks if he'll meet her after work too, but he queries whether she'll have something planned with the Brennans. She says not; but Clive is evasive about what time he'll get out of work. Sheila asks him what's going on, saying he's been acting strangely all morning.
CLIVE: I guess I am a bit uncomfortable with you talking about Russell Brennan last night.
SHEILA: That was ages ago, and the man's dead, for heaven's sake!
CLIVE: Gone, but not forgotten. You seemed pretty upset when I found you with Mark.
SHEILA: It was just memories of a sad time - not because I still have Feelings™ for Russell. I mean, we barely had a relationship.
CLIVE: Okay. Well, to be honest, last night brought up a few memories for me too (...) You split up with me, to see if you still had something with Russell, and then got together with Hamish. And it smarts, I guess.
SHEILA: None of that matters! I'm with you now.
CLIVE: Once all the others had disappeared.
SHEILA: Oh, Clive Gibbons - I love you. You know that.
CLIVE: Yeah. You're right. I'm being stupid.
He kisses Sheila and heads to work, but she looks worried.
No 22
Piper and Cassius are discussing their plans for the day - there's a Melbourne writers' festival on in The City™ and Cassius seems keen when Piper suggests it. Ned emerges; he's very tired and has slept in by accident. Cassius suggests he call in sick, but Ned says he can't - he agreed to take a table-waiting shift as a favour to Chloe. Cassius offers to cover, as he's not at the nursery today.
CASSIUS: I've done waitering before. And also, my RSA is still valid.
NED: (...) Oh, you are a life-saver!
PIPER: Since when were you a waiter?
CASSIUS: I've done it here and there. Between gardening work.
Cassius checks whether Piper is okay with him working Ned's shift, rather than spending the day with her. She says helping her brother is worth bonus points. Cassius looks pleased with himself.
The Flametree Retreat
Sheila moans to Gary and Susan that she's messed things up with Clive.
SHEILA: I mean, I saw his heart break right before my very eyes!
GARY: Then he's reading too much into it.
SHEILA: I was just talking about Russell - and that's normal, isn't it, on anniversaries like this?
SUSAN: It was completely innocent, and understandable (...) but Clive's obviously feeling put out. Maybe you could do something to show how much you're invested in the relationship?
Susan leaves to meet Karl, and Sheila tells Gary that Susan's right - she wants to show Clive how committed she is.
SHEILA: It needs to be something personal, that just screams Clive.
She rings 'Moneybags' for some ideas!
No 28
Elly is surprised and pleased when Bea asks if they can work on some strategies together for dealing with her dyslexia. Bea apologises for losing her temper over the issue the other day; she was just embarrassed that Elly and Mark had been talking about it. Elly says she didn't intend to make her feel that way, and Bea admits she overreacted. Susan earwigs from the kitchen.
BEA: Look, I've held a lot back from you lately. I want to change that.
ELLY: That's fantastic. Can I ask, where's this come from?
BEA: ... It's just been on my mind.
Karl remarks to Susan that her family seems to be well and truly on the mend. Susan smiles.
Lassiter's Complex
Amy, David and Aaron are tasting wines outside the hotel, to help them pick some options for the wedding. David is trying to get Amy and Aaron to take it seriously, but they're just gargling the wine and seem a bit sloshed!
AARON: I can taste a subtle hint of... fermented grapes? Can you taste that?
Cassius, who is working Ned's shift, turns up with a bottle of champagne for them and some glasses. Aaron asks if he can pop the cork himself for good luck.
CASSIUS: Yeah, err, just don't take anyone's eye out, or I will get into trouble.
But when Aaron pops the cork, the sound appears to remind Cassius of something. He flashes back to seeing fireworks, and suddenly looks unnerved. He snaps out of it when he realises the others are waiting for him to pour the glasses, but he seems troubled by the experience.
No 22
Ned is still suffering from tiredness. Piper asks him why he's having so much trouble sleeping lately, but he's evasive, not mentioning his late-night walks with Bea.
PIPER: No, no - you wrecked my day with Cassius, okay? So you have no right to be mysterious and secretive with me now.
NED: Alright - I thought you liked secretive and mysterious! It worked for Cass.
PIPER: Oh, ha-ha - hilarious.
She states that Cassius is 'an open book' with her these days. Ned points out that he must have been right about giving Cassius time to open up.
PIPER: Feel free to toot your own horn!
NED: (toots)
PIPER: (...) Okay - you were right!
NED: A little louder?
PIPER: Shut up! But no, it's good - we're good. No more secrets.
Lassiter's Lake
Clive is leaving a message on Sheila's voicemail, apologising for overreacting earlier. He strides towards the courtyard, on his way to meet her - but is terrified when someone in a gorilla suit appears in the alleyway to the side of Harold's!
GORILLA: Rrroar!
Clive instinctively lashes out with his briefcase, knocking the gorilla to the floor! We hear Sheila from inside the costume, crying out! Clive looks horrified...
The Waterhole
Ned turns up to find Cassius at the bar, and asks how his shift went.
NED: No dramas?
CASSIUS: Nah. It's just waiting tables, not rocket science.
Ned thanks Cassius for covering, and Cassius heads towards the door - but his phone rings again. He cancels the call, looking agitated.
Elly comes in as Cassius leaves, and finds Mark sitting at a table. She's remembered that it's the anniversary of Russell's death, and asks how he's going.
MARK: I'm okay. It's weird, and - I dunno - complicated. He wasn't the world's greatest guy.
ELLY: That doesn't mean you have to forget he was here.
Elly relates her good news - that Bea has reached out for help with her dyslexia.
ELLY: It's like she just woke up and decided she didn't want to hate me anymore.
Mark is happy for her, and asks if she wants to grab dinner to celebrate the turnaround. Elly says she'd love to, but that she really wants to focus on helping Bea. Mark says he understands, but looks disappointed as Elly leaves.
Lassiter's Complex
Sheila has the gorilla mask off and Clive is tending to her bruises, apologising and saying he had no idea it was her in the outfit. He asks her what she's doing in the suit.
SHEILA: Well, you're ten times the man Russell was (...) I wanted to make a big gesture to show you what you really mean to me.
CLIVE: By dressing up as a gorilla?!
SHEILA: Moneybags told me that you had a job as a gorilla-gram, and so, I thought it'd be cute, you know - to use a piece of your history!
CLIVE: Well, that is the nuttiest thing anyone's ever done for me.
He kisses her.
SHEILA: There's more. I wrote you a gorilla-gram. Do you want me to recite it for you?
CLIVE: I'd be devastated if you didn't.
Sheila embarks upon her recital.
Clive,
You make me feel alive.
I couldn't survive,
Without you.
Gibbons,
My heart is tied up in ribbons,
No way could I keep... livin's,
Without you.
SHEILA: How am I going?
CLIVE: I can't speak.
SHEILA: Oh, it gets better.
CLIVE: Really? (!)
SHEILA: Yeah!
CLIVE: Cos I mean, it's really good (!)
She continues...
It's so simple to me,
That I am giving you a key,
So that I will never be,
Without you.
She opens her gorilla paw, in which she's holding a key. He takes it.
CLIVE: Key to your heart?
SHEILA: No, silly - it's the key to my house! And I've even cleaned out a drawer in my boudoir for you. I am really serious about us, Clive. I mean, the others - including Frank - were important in different ways. But it's you I want a future with.
Clive thanks her for the gesture, and kisses and hugs her, looking at the key over her shoulder.
The Waterhole
David and Aaron are discussing their wedding plans and being all couply. Mark is with them, but distracted. When they ask him what's wrong, he admits that Elly has turned down a date with him, yet again. Ned appears from nowhere, much to Mark's chagrin.
NED: Mate, you need to stop talking and start doing!
MARK: Thanks for the input, Ned, appreciate it (!)
NED: Seriously, though - from what I hear, you've overanalysed the whole thing. But talking's got you nowhere. Just saying.
Ned disappears again!
MARK: Great - now I'm getting romance advice from Elly's ex (!)
AARON: He does sort of have a point.
MARK: No he doesn't!
AARON: Bro - you and Elly have been into each other for a long time, right? And you're holding back. I get it - it makes sense, after everything you guys have been through. But you're never gonna know if it's actually gonna work, unless you just stop worrying and you actually go for it.
Erinsborough Backpackers
Cassius is in the attic, on the phone.
CASSIUS: I'm sorry I've missed your calls. I've just been busy... You know, like work, and hanging out with Piper... Yes, of course I think about it... I dunno. Stuff gets triggered. The longer I'm here, the more it's been happening... No, I'm fine... No, I *said* I'm fine. I've got a new job, I've got a great girlfriend... No, I can handle this, okay?! I'm not going anywhere!
He hangs up, and looks pensive.
The Waterhole
Ned is trying to wake himself up with a coffee when Bea comes in. He asks if he wants to join her, but she says she's going to see Elly once she's got a coffee. She says they had a good chat this morning and are working through things. Ned is pleased for her.
BEA: Hey - umm, you haven't told anyone about our night walks?
NED: No.
BEA: Cool. Neither have I. Is it okay if it stays that way?
NED: Yeah, sure - suits me.
BEA: Thank you.
NED: How are you doing that?!
BEA: What?
NED: Smiling - being chirpy? I am exhausted over here - I feel like the walking dead!
BEA: I guess I'm used to living off no sleep (...) I guess my body clock just lucked out. Hey, you should stay home tonight - you should get a decent sleep.
NED: What? No - no. Six more coffees, I'll be fine. Trust me. I'm good - I'll see you there tonight. Same place, same time, yeah?
Bea agrees. Ned smiles as she leaves.
No 28
Elly is working on some strategies for Bea, when Mark comes in. He is in a stern mood.
MARK: Do you feel we have something?
ELLY: What?
MARK: Am I the only one that thinks we fit perfectly together? Are you just scared, or are you too nice to tell me to get stuffed?
ELLY: No, I'm just busy.
MARK: What? You don't have two hours to have a meal together?
ELLY: Bea is really important to me.
MARK: And I'm not?! If that's the way you feel, just tell me.
ELLY: Okay, that is not what I said. Can we talk about this another time?
MARK: No, Elly! We've been talking about this for too long! Even though we really like each other, somehow we keep talking ourselves out of it.
ELLY: What do you want, Mark?
MARK: I want to be with you, Elly. More than anything. And I want you to decide if you can give it a shot. If you don't want this now, I don't think you'll ever want it. If the answer's no, I'll leave you alone. I want an answer by tomorrow.
He walks out, leaving Elly looking alarmed.
Coming up on Neighbours
- 'He laid it on the line,' Bea tells Xanthe
- Mark asks a smiling Elly if she really wants to do this
- Leo asks Terese not to avoid him
- Leo tells Chloe that Terese has already said no; Chloe says she needs to show her the potential
- Chloe takes money from an unknown man
- Paul and David are looking at something; Paul asks what's going on here