Episode 6989

Extended Summary

Alf comes downstairs, with Ryder trailing him, and shows Roo the bottle. Roo realises that’s why Ryder offered to clean up. Ryder wonders when Alf got back while Alf wonders how long Ryder’s been drinking. Roo sends Ryder to have a shower, telling Alf that any lecture he gets while drunk won’t sink in. Meanwhile, at Salt, Brody tells Ziggy that they’re fully booked again. He has a long list of things to do but Ziggy adds another one: Go and have breakfast at the Diner.

Outside the Diner, Leah chats with John and Marilyn about the success of the vlog she did with Brody, with Marilyn complimenting her on the tribute to Raffy. Brody and Ziggy appear and order pancakes. Marilyn asks Brody about Raffy; he says she’s getting better although they’re not sure when she’ll be home. The Palmers offer to help out but Brody says they’ve got a roster sorted out between them. John tries to reassure Marilyn that they’ve made it clear they’re available. At the farm house, Maggie is doing marking at the table while Ben watches. Coco enters and says Maggie looks like she did while studying for exams and now she has the day off. She tries to sneak a look at the marking and Maggie snaps at her before saying she has to get some air.

Roo is collecting empty bottles from Ryder’s room. Ryder comes in and complains that he can clean his own room. He invites Roo to give him a serve but she’s too worried. She brings the bottles down and shows them to Alf: They include Alf’s beer but Ryder got others from elsewhere. Alf thinks they should keep grog away from Ryder and admits Ryder seemed to have problems when he left. Meanwhile, John and Marilyn go for a walk on the wharf. John points out Raffy isn’t going far and they’ll still see her. Marilyn thinks they brought children into their home to be a family and Jett, Ty and Raffy brought out the best in them, but now they’re being sidelined.

Brody tries to check on his phone for what foods Raffy can’t eat but Ziggy takes it off him. Leah comes over and says the video of Brody has got 50,000 views and he should be proud. Back at the farm house, a stressed Maggie is still doing the marking. Ben gets her some green tea but spills it over the papers. Maggie says she has to finish the marking by five o’clock and tells Ben to go out and leave her alone.

As Brody and Ziggy pay their bill, Leah asks Brody about doing another video. Despite Ziggy being concerned he’s doing too much, Brody mulls it over and then agrees. The pair walk back to the surf club and Brody says Ziggy was right about him needing a break: However, he doesn’t want to let Leah down. Ziggy protests that the vlog was meant to be fun. They run into Ben and Ziggy can instantly see he’s unhappy.

At the Diner, John and Marilyn welcome Alf back. He tells them that Ryder’s struggling and has been since the accident. When he asks them when Raffy’s coming home, they explain that she’s not coming home to them but to the Morgans and they’re not sure where they stand. Alf suggests they ask. Meanwhile, Roo brings a drink and a sandwich in to Ryder but finds him asleep. Looking at him fondly, she puts the snack down on his table and leaves.

At Salt, Ben tells Ziggy about finding Maggie’s list. Ziggy thinks it’s a good thing, and that moving to the outback would be something she and Ben could do together, but Ben doesn’t think they’re included. Ziggy thinks they need to show Maggie she still has great things in her life, although Ben is less certain. Back at the Stewart house, Ryder brings his plates down. He asks Roo if she’s going to say anything and Roo says she doesn’t know what to say. Ryder says she can ask anything. Roo asks how long and Ryder says about a week. Alf comes in as Ryder confirms it was after Raffy’s accident: He saw the beer and wanted to forget.

Brody is taking another booking as Leah turns up with a schedule: She wants to film a video every day. Brody says he can’t fit it in; Leah is disappointed but understands. Brody then gets a message saying Raffy’s coming out of hospital; John comes in in time to hear the news as Brody rushes out. Although John hoped to get a takeaway, Leah drags him off to tell Marilyn. At the farm house, Ben, Ziggy and Coco surprise Maggie and take away her work, despite her reminding them of her deadline, saying it’s champagne o’clock. Brody has provided a bottle of Maggie’s favourite. Maggie says she was trying to get back to a normal life as instructed but Ben tells her to have one sip. Maggie obliges, then sharply says her tastes must have changed and asks to get back to work.

Alf and Roo try to convince Ryder he’s not to blame but Ryder doesn’t think anyone else is. They say he can’t control everything and needs to move on. However, when they ask why he didn’t come to them, he snaps that they weren’t there and goes up to his room. Roo knocks on the door and apologises but Ryder tells her to go away. He gets a text from Raffy saying “Happy 18th, old man!” but it doesn’t seem to make him feel any better.

Maggie joins Ben in Salt. She apologises for what she said earlier and Ben apologises for trying to fix things with champagne. Maggie says she’s frustrated with everything, not just him. Ben wonders why she’s making plans that don’t include him and the girls. Maggie struggles to answer so Ben leaves.