Episode 7542

Extended Summary

The organisers are gathering outside the surf club. Roo and John chat to Dean about him getting surfing practice in. John volunteers to go and collect the tents and only reluctantly accepts Dean’s offer of help, keen to do as much as possible. Alf says there’s going to be a lot of work to do tomorrow and tells John that Leah was looking for him. Roo gets a text that frustrates her. Inside, Leah tells John about the other victims she’s identified and asks him to share his story but John doesn’t want to get involved. Justin reminds Leah that Alf and Roo said he might not be interested. Roo reveals they’ve just had a marshal pull out. Alf suggests Ryder but Roo says he’s working tomorrow.

Ryder has arranged to meet Chloe on the pier and tells her he told Mackenzie he wouldn’t stand for what she’s done. Chloe wonders if she’s got her job back and Ryder explains he quit. Chloe is frustrated, saying that doesn’t fix anything. Ryder asks what he wants her to do and Chloe says if he doesn’t know she can’t tell him. At the farm house, Ziggy is astonished that Mackenzie has sacked Chloe, even more so when Mackenzie says it’s because of what Ziggy said. Mackenzie also mention that Ryder quit and wants to go into work to sort it. Ziggy isn’t keen but does offer to drive her in.

Dean arrives home and asks Jai about the birthday party he went to. Jai and Amber mention that the birthday boy threw up on the bouncy castle. Jai asks about getting the tickets to Movie World. Dean suggests they kick a footy and Amber realises he’s actually nervous about surfing. Later, Ziggy and Mackenzie arrive at the surf club. Dean is surprised to see Mac there and Jai asks her to come to the beach with them but Mackenzie says she has to work. Ziggy tells Dean about Ryder quitting. Amber offers to take Jai to the beach on her own but doesn’t seem keen about the idea of Dean and Ziggy spending time together.

At the Diner, Roo is still trying to find a marshal. Leah is going to be minding the Diner’s stand so Roo asks Marilyn, saying they’ll give her sunscreen, water and a whistle. Marilyn isn’t keen and says the right person will appear. Ryder comes in and Roo asks if he can get out of his shift tomorrow. Ryder says he quit his job and lost the girl. Ryder and Roo go for a walk, with Ryder explaining Chloe wanted him to be honest with her and he thought quitting would help. He laments that he doesn’t know what she was thinking and Roo says sometimes being in a relationship means figuring that out. She asks if he’s apologised. Ryder says that’s what quitting the job was about. Roo says he needs to actually say it.

Dean and Ziggy chat about how Mackenzie’s going to have to handle Salt on her own with all the staff away. Mackenzie calls over, having guessed they’re talking about her. Dean offers for them to look after the bar while Mackenzie gets on the phone and arranges staff for tomorrow. Mackenzie agrees. Later, Mackenzie tells them she’s sorted everything and asks them to stay on to help close up. They agree and Dean rings Amber to explain. Amber gets him to say good night to Jai and is fine with him staying out.

At the Diner, John apologises to Leah for his reaction earlier but still doesn’t want to deal with things her way. Justin cuts in to say that Leah understands and John leaves. Leah asks Justin about his surf competition. Justin says he’s fine and takes another pill. Meanwhile, Ryder goes round to see Chloe and apologises for not having her back. Chloe apologises for her meltdown and says he doesn’t need to protect her. They establish they don’t want to break up and kiss, before concluding that they don’t want to take things slow, moving inside.

Dean returns home and checks on Jai before joining Amber in bed. He is surprised that she’s still awake while she is similarly thrown to learn that Ziggy was also helping out at Salt. Dean says he needs to get some sleep before the competition and they cuddle up. Next morning, Roo and Marilyn are outside the Diner, with Roo still looking for a replacement marshal. They see Chloe and Ryder and note he didn’t come home last night. Ryder is about to volunteer to be a marshal but Marilyn quickly volunteers instead, telling Ryder to spend the day with Chloe, although she has no idea what it involves. Ryder gets a text from Mackenzie asking to talk about the job but ignores it.

John is giving out instructions at the surf club and is amused to see Marilyn in her marshal get-up. Alf and Roo tell her anyone that doesn’t turn up for their heat will be disqualified and John gives her a loudhailer. Alf asks John which of them’s going to brief the judges and John says that’s the president’s job. Nearby, Leah notes Justin looking unwell and suggests another painkiller. Justin says that’s not a good idea and goes for a coffee. At the farm house, Mackenzie tells Ziggy she’ll give Ryder his job back if he ever replies but isn’t going to budge with Chloe. She wishes Ziggy luck for the surf comp and thanks her for her help the previous day. Both think Dean looked happy.

Marilyn is trying to get people’s attention for the first two heats without much success and Alf advises her to use the hailer. Marilyn initially refuses but then uses it to chastise a surfer who nearly hit someone with his board while walking in the wrong place. When even the hailer doesn’t get people moving, she gives them a sharp blast on the whistle. Meanwhile, Justin arrives home looking somewhat woozy. He puts his box of pills on the table and stares at it.

Dean tries to explain how the competition works to Jai but Jai is only interested in the fact Dean’s going to win. Ziggy comes along and agrees that Dean’s going to smash it. Later, Dean is having a practise surf while Jai and Amber cheer from the beach. Ziggy notes she’s surprised it’s taken Dean this long, recalling how he wanted them to travel around taking part in competitions. Amber is surprised and notes awkwardly that he probably still think about doing it.