Episode 4888

Australian Air Date: 1st July 2009
UK Air Date: 15th July 2009

While Lachie wrestles with the possibility of being paralysed, Claudia stuns Geoff. Trey’s public apology to Nicole is sabotaged. Belle makes a mysterious visit to hospital.

CLAUDIA HAMMOND (ALEXANDRA PARK)
LACHIE CLADWELL (JACKSON HEYWOOD)
CLINT MAILER (MATT ZEREMES)
TREY PALMER (LUKE BRACEY)
COACH FRAZER (MICHAEL JOHN BROWN)
JOHN PALMER (SHANE WITHINGTON)
MARTIN BARTLETT (BOB BAINES)

Written by Andrew Osborne
Directed by David Gould

Extended Summary

On the football field, the medics have arrived to take Lachie away, and Claudia goes with him. Despite the tackle being legal, Geoff still gets hassle from Lachie’s coach and his team mates. Claudia barely leaves Lachie’s bedside and convinces Geoff to keep accompanying her to the hospital. While the CT scan isn’t encouraging, there’s still no certainty that the paralysis is permanent, but that doesn’t stop Claudia going off at Geoff, blaming him for Lachie’s situation. She later apologises, but gets huffy when he tells her he can’t go with her to the hospital tomorrow, as he’s agreed to accompany Nicole to the assembly in which Trey will apologise. Claudia isn’t happy, and pours scorn in his direction until he agrees to go with her. When Claudia leaves Lachie alone, Geoff plucks up the courage to goes in and apologises to him, but Lachie won’t have a bar of it. The whole incident has been an emotional rollercoaster for Claudia who is fighting her own demons. Eventually she comes clean and admits to Geoff that the baby she’s carrying isn’t his – it’s Lachie’s, and Geoff is shattered.

Nicole has come to terms with the idea of Trey offering her a public apology at a school assembly, for showing a video of them making love at the Summer Bay Film Festival. Nicole knows the day will be difficult for her, but hopes the apology will give her some closure. Only Jai doesn’t think the punishment fits the crime. Despite and initial reluctance expressed to John about the apology, Trey shows genuine remorse when he addresses the assembled student body, and Nicole is impressed – but as Trey concludes his little speech the students, led by Jai, laugh and jeer at him. John pushes him to make the apology more heartfelt, but the students continue jeering, and start throwing things at him, with only Nicole showing any kind of sympathy. Trey is humiliated, and something deep inside of him cracks, and he begins making a list of all those that he considers to have wronged him. Miles realises Jai is responsible for the prank and chastises him for it, but Jai remains defiant, believing Trey only got what he deserved.

Aden, having conceded the first penalty of the rugby game as instructed by bookie, Clint, believes he will get the ring he has bought for Belle back from him, and is feeling good about himself. At the hospital, Rachel has done some tests on Belle, after her dizzy spell and it seems like there is some problems with the results, though Belle isn’t revealing what the problem is. Belle’s hospital visit would have remained a secret except she was still there when Lachie was brought in, and she couldn’t avoid Tony and Geoff who accompanied him. When Tony lets slip to Aden that he saw Belle there, Aden begins to get worried, but Belle convinces him that it was all just a pregnancy scare. Aden buys the explanation, but has other things to occupy him when Clint tells him that as the rugby game was called off, Aden’s debt to him remains, and the ring stays with Clint. Later, Aden calls Belle but she ignores the call, breaking down in tears when she see’s who it is calling.