Episode 601

Extended Summary

Don is waiting at the bus stop. A coach arrives and the passengers get off. Don asks the driver, Jack, if Bobby was onboard and he says she wasn’t. He confirms that this was the connecting bus from the Gold Coast but says Bobby wasn’t on the other coach in the city either. Soon after, at the Diner, Don asks Alf if Ailsa has heard anything from Bobby. He’s worried that she hasn’t been in contact while she’s been away.  Alf says he’ll check with Ailsa. Don asks where Ailsa is and Alf says she had some news and had to deal with it.

Ailsa is chatting with Emma down by the beach. She asks why Emma wants to leave Summer Bay. Emma says she wants to get a job and says she hasn’t been doing well at school and is no good at studying. She thinks she’ll stand a better chance if she applies now rather than waiting until everyone else is looking for a job and she has poor HSC results. Ailsa thinks more people fail without qualifications than succeed and points out she and Alf have been supporting Emma for the last year. Emma agrees to give it more thought.  At the Fletchers’ house, Ben tells Carly it’s all right that Pippa wouldn’t lend them money and they need to support themselves. Carly doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with asking for help and Ben agrees but says if Pippa said no that’s the end of it. He says it might not have worked anyway, since he’s never run a business and Carly doesn’t know anything about bookkeeping. Carly confirms she hasn’t got to go back to the Diner for a while and they kiss.

Don is fretting at home. He gets a phone call and hopes it’s Bobby but it’s Marilyn ringing from the store, saying she has to work that afternoon and arranging to meet him in the evening instead. Pippa, Steven and Paul are also in the store and Marilyn goes to help Pippa while Paul jokes she’ll be beating Steven with Don coaching her. Ailsa comes in and asks Paul if he and Emma have had a fight. Paul says they haven’t but is unaware of her plans. He meets Emma down by the beach. Emma is annoyed Ailsa told him. Paul thought she liked him but Emma says it’s got nothing to do with their relationship. Paul complains about her wanting to leave but Emma snaps it’s not about him and she needs to do what’s right for her, reiterating it’s not because of them.

At the Fletchers’ house, Pippa and Steven are unpacking the groceries in the kitchen. Carly and Ben come downstairs and Carly asks Ben to take Steven outside so she can talk to Pippa. Steven asks indiscreet questions about what they’ve been doing and ignores Ben’s requests to go outside until Ben grabs hold of him and drags him out. Carly apologises to Pippa for pressuring her about the money and repeats Ben’s comments about not knowing how to run a business. Pippa suggests Carly enrol in a business management course at night class, then a bank might give them a loan. Carly mentions the suggestion to Ben later at the Diner and Ben thinks it’s a great idea. Grant comes over and says he and Jane are moving into Matt’s old flat the next day so they should expect a dinner invite soon. Grant passes Steven and Paul’s table on the way out and makes a wisecrack about them not studying. Paul talks about Emma wanting to leave and says she probably got used to being on her own while he was with Vicki. Steven says he would offer him advice but that was what caused the trouble in the first place.

Alf and Ailsa are eating in the new kitchen; Emma is holed up in her room saying she doesn’t want anything. Ailsa says Emma’s annoyed with her for speaking to Paul and thinks she shouldn’t interfere, since she can’t really stop Emma. Alf asks if she’s heard from Ailsa. Ailsa realises she hasn’t and, worried, goes to phone Don until Alf reminds her what she just said about not interfering. Meanwhile, Don reads part of the text to Marilyn and tries to get her to think about how to put what she thinks about it down on paper. Marilyn seems to be having difficulties. Don leaves her to write, checking his watch worriedly. When Bobby arrives home, Don asks where she’s been but Bobby is in a bad mood and they get into an argument. Next morning, Don apologises, saying he was worried. Bobby insists she’s not unhappy and had a great time but her angry tone suggests otherwise.

Bobby heads to the Diner where she is reunited with Ailsa, Carly and Grant. Carly says Narelle phoned for her earlier and she said she’d ring her back. Grant asks her about what motel and beach she stayed at but Bobby’s answers are increasingly snappy and evasive until she storms into the kitchen. Later, Carly asks her about her attitude but Bobby insists she had a good holiday and snaps at Carly to go and do some work. Ailsa advises Carly to give her some space and wonders about Bobby eating a plain biscuit.

Alf heads to the store where Marilyn has opened up for him and tells her to get off to school. She had been telling Pippa about her essay. Pippa says Steven only spent an hour on his while Alf says Emma just watched telly. He thinks she will stay after what Ailsa and Paul said to her. Meanwhile, Paul finds Emma listening to something on her Walkman in the bush and discovers she’s learning Japanese. Emma says she’s got an interview at a resort up north run by a Japanese company and since she doesn’t have any qualifications or experience she needed some way to impress them. She asks him not to tell Alf and Ailsa but admits if she gets the job she’ll probably go. Paul thinks this is another sign she doesn’t think much of him. Emma makes her excuses and walks off.

Pippa is reunited with Bobby at the Diner but Bobby is once again moody and evasive about her questions and says she didn’t take any photos. Carly tells Bobby Narelle is on the phone for her again and Bobby goes to take it. Ailsa tells Pippa that Carly thinks Bobby’s upset at not meeting any guys. Bobby is slightly annoyed with Narelle for phoning her. She says she hasn’t told anyone and isn’t going to yet. She ends the call, looking worried.