Episode 6998

Extended Summary

Alf and Roo walk near the caravan park house. Alf notes Ryder is taking what’s happened to Raffy hard but Roo is more interested in him picking his HSC subjects; Alf protests he’s only just done his Year 11 exams but Roo reminds him HSC starts in term four. They find Ryder outside the house: He is looking at the nasty comments about Raffy on his phone (although one from Ty defending her is also visible) but Roo talks him out of posting a response. She asks him about his subjects but he says he isn’t even sure he’s going back to school. He texts Raffy saying “Hey amigo – call me if you want to.” Raffy gets an alert on her phone but Marilyn takes it away from her, assuming it’s another nasty message, but also tells her not everyone is against her. She offers to talk to Roo and Maggie about school or arrange a counsellor but Raffy isn’t keen.

At the surf club, Justin tells Willow he never wanted things to go the way they did with Dean. Willow believes him. Ziggy comes in and says Dean didn’t turn up for work again. Justin tells her he quit. Although he insists it was Dean’s choice, Ziggy seems to blame him. At the caravan park, Ryder is chatting to Dean about Raffy. Ziggy comes up and angrily asks Dean why he quit. Ryder makes himself scarce and Dean notes Ziggy has crazy eyes when she’s angry. Ziggy thinks Dean doesn’t understand what’s at stake and that if he breaks his probation he’ll go to jail. Dean says that’s why he got beer, handing her a bottle.

John asks Justin if he sorted things with Dean and Justin admits he didn’t really. He wants to take Willow away while she has a break in community service but isn’t sure about leaving Raffy. John says he and Marilyn can look after her, and after two weeks with Justin she’s probably ready for a break. He then gets a call from Marilyn. At the Diner, Alf, Leah and Roo discuss Ryder; Alf is in favour of dragging him back to school while Roo thinks they could cheer him up by properly celebrating his eighteenth. Ben and Maggie come in and ask to see Irene. Maggie tells her and Leah that she’s decided on a morning tea fundraiser with gold coin donations and asks them to help with cooking, adding she can only fit thirty in the front room. Roo suggests putting up a marquee outside and getting local businesses to donate and Leah adds she can mention it in her vlog and get the local papers involved. Alf and Ben wryly comment on how big the morning tea has got but Ben is glad to see Maggie excited again.

Dean tells Ziggy that he needs to find another job before his next meeting with his probation officer. Ziggy starts googling jobs while suggesting he could patch things up with Justin; Dean points out that he slept with Justin’s girlfriend. Ziggy finds a bar job at the RSL (but Dean doesn’t have the right license), a sales rep and telemarketing. Dean reflects on the likelihood of someone hiring a surf bum from Mangrove River who’s on probation. Ziggy gets an idea. At the Diner, Irene talks to Ben about getting local musoes to play at the fundraiser. Willow comes in and asks Ben how much he loves her, saying she needs a really big favour.

Roo has gone to the surf club to tell Ryder her idea, dismissing the fact his eighteenth was a week ago and suggesting a quiet family evening or, which she thinks is more appealing, a party. Ryder doesn’t want to celebrate without Raffy. Nearby, John and Marilyn are discussing wanting to help with Raffy’s cyber bullying. Dean comes in and sees Willow but ignores her, instead inviting Ryder, who has just finished his shift, for a drink. Meanwhile, Ben arrives home with Ziggy in tow trying to get him to give Dean a job. Maggie shares Ben’s lack of enthusiasm. Ben says he’s barely making enough to pay himself but Ziggy says he doesn’t need to pay Dean, just keep him out of jail. Ben says Dean told his last boss to get stuffed but Ziggy points out they’ve got that in common, plus they both surf. Ben says the matter’s closed. Ziggy agrees, but in a manner so unconvincing that, after she’s gone, both Ben and Maggie say there’s no chance she’ll actually let it go.

Ryder and Dean go into Salt. Ryder doesn’t think he has a right to celebrate, saying he should be punished for what he’s done to Raffy. Dean finally loses patience and tells him to do something about it. Ryder thinks Raffy won’t want to see him but Dean reminds him Raffy sent him a load of messages when he ran away: She obviously cares about him, and if he feels the same he should go see her. Next morning, Justin finds Raffy lying on the couch, refusing to do anything. Ryder turns up with cakes and Raffy brightens up but when he apologises for not coming round once Abbi sent the tag her mood falls again, with her saying she was hoping he hadn’t seen it. She shuts herself in the bathroom and Ryder curses messing up so quickly. Justin suggests he go home but Ryder insists he’s staying until she emerges…then checks that’s okay. Justin says it is. Ryder calls to Raffy that he’s parking himself outside the bathroom until she comes out.

Ziggy takes Dean to the board shop, having told him Ben’s agreed to give him a job. She leaves him with Ben, quickly making herself scarce. Ben is bewildered when Dean starts looking over one of the boards, saying he’ll do anything Ben asks and wondering if there’s paperwork they need to do. Shortly after, they’re in the Diner with Ben having put Dean straight. Dean agrees Ziggy shouldn’t have done it and Ben explains about not being able to afford the wage. Dean says he just needs a job for his probation before adding he also needs it to keep him on the straight and narrow. Ben asks what he’d recommend for a 14-year-old who’s been surfing since he was eight. Dean says a fisher board, 6’-6’4” so he can grow into it. He suggests Ben doesn’t pay him a wage but gives him a commission on sales. Ben agrees.

Justin gives Ryder a drink of water and checks he’s okay doing his vigil. Ryder calls through to Raffy, saying everyone will forget what happened soon enough. He says people get over public humiliation, listing a series of incident involving Britney Spears, Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Lawrence. Raffy eventually gives up and comes out. Ryder suggests they go for a walk; Raffy says she isn’t up to it but Ryder offering to hold her hand is enough to spur her on again (whilst vehemently turning down the offer). At the surf club, Willow stops Ziggy and asks her about Dean. Ziggy says he has another job and is doing perfectly fine without her…or better, even.

Justin finds Willow at the gym and she tells him about her run-in with Ziggy, saying she wishes she could get away. Justin tells her he’s booked them a couple of nights in a shack down the coast and Ryder, John, Marilyn, Tori and Mason can look after Raffy. Willow happily accepts. Meanwhile, Raffy arrives at the Diner with Ryder. Marilyn wants to approach her but John convinces her to let her do it on her own. Raffy just wants to sit: She gets a phone alert but it isn’t abuse but her Year 11 test results. She was given special consideration and awarded the average so has passed. John and Marilyn congratulate her but she doesn’t feel she can go back to school. They tell her Ryder will be there. Ryder checks his phone and sees he failed to make the requirement to continue into Year 12 but agrees that he’ll be there. Raffy says she couldn’t do it without him.