Episode 6437

Extended Summary

It’s Maddy and Matt’s last day in Summer Bay. They’re doing the rounds, soaking up the bay and saying goodbye to friends. Maddy is pumped, and excited to talk about her travel plans with Evelyn and Josh. They’re shocked to find out that Maddy is thinking about going away forever. Matt nods a long, but ‘forever’ may not be sitting well with him. They all attend the going-away party at Angelo’s that afternoon. As Maddy and Matt soak up the party, there’s one person Matt’s forgotten to tell – Leah. She arrives and gives him a light berating. With the gang all together having fun, Matt looks on, unsure if he can leave this group so soon.

Tanya arrives, thanking Roo for the party and apologising for the difficulties they’ve had. She really does respect Roo.
Struggling with the prospect of Maddy leaving, Roo’s determined to stay strong for her sake.

Ash is a little peeved he’s being left in the lurch by Matt, telling him that he would’ve made a good mechanic. Maddy overhears Matt explaining he’s only doing it for her. As Alf tells Maddy how proud he is of her, Evelyn flees the party. Distraught that her two closest friends are leaving the bay, she pleads with Josh never to leave her. But Kat has her eyes on Josh. He knows it’s only a matter of time before his involvement in Charlotte’s death is revealed.

As the party comes to an end more memories are shared. A touching farewell between Matt and Leah leads Maddy to make a decision. Back home Matt talks of how much he’ll miss everyone and his dream of one day getting another apprenticeship. Left alone, Roo and Maddy finally talk. Maddy’s concerned for Roo. Roo admits she’ll miss her like crazy, but doesn’t want her to worry. Maddy thanks her for everything and apologises for the years of trouble she caused. But Roo wouldn’t have missed a second. They share a hug, putting off saying good-bye until the morning. Roo is aching with grief, when she discovers Maddy’s left some of her pain medication around. Will this be the answer to stop the heart ache she feels?

Matt wakes the next day to find a note, which explains Maddy’s reasons for leaving without him. Maddy is driven away by her mother. He tries to run down the street to catch her but is left devastated.

Ricky arrives at the hospital as Nate is leaving. She’s hurt that he didn’t show for their marriage counselling. Nate pleads his case, explaining there was an emergency. But Ricky’s tired of his excuses, especially after he lied last week – that’s the problem with lying, you lose trust. It always feels like something else is more important than them. Nate denies this – needing to go for a walk to clear his head. Tori finds Nate and apologises for leaving him to deal with the emergency. The people from that shooting looked uncannily like her parents. She realises it’s caused more problems for him and Ricky. With Tori’s encouragement Nate returns home, with gifts and flowers this time, determined to make more of an effort. He and Ricky take tentative steps to repairing their relationship, scheduling another counselling session. Although they’re not arguing there’s still a deep rift between them.

Phoebe, on the other hand couldn’t be happier. She and Dom have been locked in a love bubble and Phoebe finds herself falling hard for him. However, on the way to pick up Bella from school, they run into her at the Diner, followed through the door by Dom’s wife. She is back from the Navy early and she has an agenda. Caught between the women in his life Dom struggles with introductions, calling Phoebe his ‘friend’. Phoebe’s hurt and demands to know what he’s hiding – even questioning if they’re actually separated. Dom assures her they are and finally reveals the reason they broke up – Tess slept with someone else. It also becomes obvious Tess is here to win him back. Phoebe’s not sure how to handle this.