UK Air Date: 12th November 2008
Is Melody ready to go back to school already? Ruby finds comfort in an online chat room. Charlie’s treating her father like a helpless child.
Extended Summary
Charlie and Morag are at odds over their methods of dealing with Ross. Morag believes their duty is to support him, Charlie thinks he has to be protected, with one of them watching him at all times. When she learns that he’s gone fishing with Alf she freaks, interrupting Ross’s nice calm day soon after, insisting that he must be tired from so much fishing and that she should drive him home. Ross, having a great time, refuses, and Charlie is forced to back down.
Charlie finds vindication however, when by coincidence she comes across Ross later at the hospital. He has cut his hand while cleaning fish and has required some stitches. Charlie sees this as proof that she was right, but Ross can take no more of her fussing, and tells her that until she can stop treating him like a helpless baby, he doesn’t want to see her. Finally Charlie realises she has been taking it too far, that her way of coping was to take control, and apologises.
Still hurting but unwilling to speak to her sister, Ruby decides to search a local chat room for someone her own age also dealing with a relative with Alzheimer’s. She soon exchanges emails with a girl named Skye, and quickly becomes addicted to the chat room.
Christine’s decided that Melody’s ready to go back to school, and though Bartlett’s not so sure, he agrees at her insistence that melody is fine now. She certainly seems confident enough when she arrives, and during class she’s back to her old self, a veritable well of knowledge. But in truth, things aren’t quite so perfect. It’s been a week since Melody has eaten anything substantial, and her mother has no idea there’s a problem.