Episode 7350

Extended Summary

Maggie is looking at a poster for the gig outside the surf club. Ben comes along and asks if she’s going. Maggie says she’s thinking about it but probably won’t. Ben says he probably won’t either. After he’s gone for a surf, Ryder and Justin come along. Ryder asks Maggie to come to the gig, suggesting as his old school principal she has a responsibility for his education. Maggie says she wasn’t going to but now she will. At the caravan park, Roo sees Evan coughing uncontrollably and doubling up. She goes over to him and asks if he’s fit to perform. Evan says at Byron Bay in 2007 he had food poisoning, was hungover and felt the worst he’d ever done. He did a show and an encore, then fell down the stairwell and knocked himself out: The show must go on and he’s promised Ryder.

Nikau is sitting on the beach and is found by Gemma, who wonders why he isn’t at work. Nikau says that he quit. Tane also arrives as Nikau refuses to give an explanation and storms off. Tane sends Gemma to work, saying he’ll find out what’s going on with Nikau. Gemma runs into Ben near the surf club and tells him there’s trouble with Nikau. Ben feels guilty but Gemma says it’s because of a whole load of things and Nikau misses his dad more than she thought. She asks if he’s planning to go to the gig, talking him into it.

Tane has sat next to Nikau and says he’s got all day for Nikau to say what’s bothering him. Nikau gets a text and Tane snatches the phone from him and sees it’s from Bella. Nikau says the problem is lots of things: His job, Gemma and Ben, and Bella, who he explains is back and wants nothing to do with him. Tane says women complicate things. At Salt, Martha watches with bemusement as Alf is used as a stand-in for the lighting checks, although he refuses to sing. Mackenzie asks Ryder if Evan can actually sing; Ryder admits he’s never heard him, but says he sang professionally and Quinn always said he was good. Roo arrives and tells Alf and Martha that Evan is the worst she’s ever seen him; she’s not sure he can do the gig.

Shortly after, Mackenzie gives instructions to Gemma, as Nikau and Tane turn up: Neither really want to be there but Tane says they’re supporting Ryder. They run into Alf and Martha. Alf offers Nikau his job back but Nikau refuses. Alf says he tried and Tane tells Nikau he’s his own worst enemy. Justin tells Ryder everything’s set up…but Evan isn’t here. Ryder quizzes Alf, Martha and Roo. They dismiss his concerns before Alf goes to find Evan. Gemma tries to talk to Nikau but he walks away from her. Tane says he’s stubborn like his old man. In his caravan, Evan is using an oxygen device. He takes it off as Alf turns up, offering him a lift to Salt. Alf sees the oxygen, and Evan sees that he sees, but neither says anything. Evan notes he’s never played in front of Ryder before so this is the biggest gig of his life.

Nikau tries to talk to Ryder about Bella breaking up with him without letting him talk to her. Ryder isn’t really listening, but when Nikau says he thinks the centre didn’t help her, Ryder says she seems better. Ben turns up and is greeted by a hug from Gemma; Tane tries to get Nikau to leave but he refuses so Tane goes on his own. Evan also arrives. Gemma gets Ben a drink and Nikau shouts at both of them, saying he won’t wait up because Gemma will be in Ben’s room again. Maggie arrives in time to hear this. Ben follows her out, telling her he didn’t sleep with Gemma and they just talked. Maggie isn’t mollified, asking if he did it to hurt her and saying he should have told her. Ben says he kept it from her for two days while she kept something from him their whole marriage. Maggie asks if he was looking for an excuse to leave her. Ben denies it so Maggie asks why he didn’t fight for their marriage. Ben walks away.

Mackenzie finds Gemma outside and tells her she can go home to sort Nikau out. Gemma runs into Ben, who says he’s too angry to care how Maggie feels. Gemma points out he went after her. Ben says it’s just habit and Gemma wonders if wearing his wedding ring is just habit too. She says she knows what it’s like to lose the person you love. Ben says it’s not the same. Gemma says that’s her point. At the Parata house, Gemma has a go at Nikau for embarrassing her at work. Nikau says it’s her fault for flirting with her boyfriend and dismisses her claim that that’s not what Ben is. Gemma initially tries to stop him walking out, but when he refuses to do anything other than harangue her for moving on to another guy, she throws a top at him and sends him on his way. Tane has come in during the showdown and says he hopes it was worth it. Gemma calls him the king of bad choices. Meanwhile, in his motel room, Ben sits looking at his wedding ring.

Evan finishes a song in front of a crowd including Alf, Martha, Roo, Justin and Ryder, the latter of whom is filming it. Evan says he wrote the next song nineteen years, six months and twenty-three days ago, when he found out he was a father. Justin takes over filming and Evan sings the song, asking the moon to watch over his son, which leaves Ryder and Roo in tears. At the Diner, Leah is on the phone, saying a busload of tourists came in for dinner and arranging to meet someone for a drink. After she’s gone, someone breaks in and starts emptying the till. Leah suddenly comes back and, after hiding under the counter, the intruder flees, knocking her over in the process. Leah lies on the floor whimpering.