Episode 7623

Extended Summary

Ziggy asks Tane if he’ll be heading into the hospital today, since he’s arranged to cover for Mia at the gym. Tane says he might go in later but notes Nikau won’t know if he’s there or not. Ziggy confirms she’ll be at the garage all day. Meanwhile, Kieran arrives home with coffees for himself, Roo and Martha and a tea for Alf. Alf says he could have made one himself before awkwardly saying Kieran’s saved him the trouble, then announcing he has to go to the bait shop despite Martha pointing out he wanted a lazy morning. Kieran stops him, saying him being there isn’t working and wondering what they’re going to do.

Marilyn runs into Tane just after he’s finished a class and asks about his family. Tane says Mia and Nikau seem to be doing okay and Ari’s at the hospital. He then gets a call from Ari. Meanwhile, Ziggy (still in work clothes) is outside Dean’s room. He wakes up and Ziggy says she was just passing. Dean isn’t sure where Bella is and says he sent Mackenzie home. Ziggy notes she saw him wheeled in. Dean asks about Mia and Nikau. He seems to slip off back into sleep and Ziggy quietly says she forgives him for everything.

Tane is at the surf club, having seemingly closed the gym. He rings Ziggy and starts to tell her about Nikau then, apparently sensing something’s wrong with the background noise, asks her if she’s at the garage. Ziggy dodges the question and Tane says he was just checking in. In theatre, the anesthetist gives Christian reports on the blood pressure. Just when Nikau seems to have stabilised, he starts bleeding again. Elsewhere, Tane comes out of a lift and goes to Dean’s room, seeing Ziggy sat by his side. They see each other and Tane walks away without a word.

Ziggy is texting Tane when Jasmine and Bella come in. Ziggy looks panicked about being found there. Bella says Nikau’s back in surgery and wonders if Tane told Ziggy, since he was just there. Dean wakes up but feigns sleep as Bella adds that Tane took Ari home. Jasmine suggests Ziggy and Bella go for a walk. After they’ve gone, Jasmine realises Dean is awake. He declines her offer to call the others back, asking about Nikau. Ziggy and Bella walk through a park area. Bella is worried about Nikau but asks Ziggy about the vibe between her and Dean. Ziggy says she tried to make things clear between them but being with him felt right. Bella says it’s the same with her and Nik: She didn’t want to see him again but now she realises she still loves him.

Kieran says he’s in the way and Alf agrees. Roo protests that this can’t be the first thing the pair agree on. Kieran says he came there to reconnect with Martha. Martha agrees that things aren’t working and asks what they’re going to do. At the Diner, Marilyn serves Ziggy and Bella takeaway. Bella says Ari told her he’d call if there was news so she’s going to eat. She bumps into Jasmine who tells her Nikau’s still in surgery and Dean’s awake. Bella asks her to tell Ziggy. Jasmine collects takeaway for the Paratas and passes the news on to Ziggy, saying she looked like a kid with her hand in the cookie jar in Dean’s room. Ziggy quickly leaves.

Jasmine finds Ziggy on the beach and apologises for making her upset. Ziggy says Tane’s avoiding her and she doesn’t blame him, explaining she lied in order to visit Dean. With a bit of pushing, Ziggy attempts to insist, unconvincingly, that she doesn’t love Dean, adding that Tane hasn’t done anything wrong. Jasmine tells her she should follow her gut if it’s telling her to be with Dean. Meanwhile, Ari visits Dean, who offers his sympathies about the baby. Ari says he started it by driving Nikau away. Dean offers help and Ari says he’ll accept it when Dean can sit up without passing out. He goes to the room where Nikau is recovering. Christian says that the swelling won’t go down for five days and that’s when they’ll find out if his speech and memory are impaired. Jasmine appears and gives Ari the takeaway. Ari goes to Nikau’s room and tells him he has to be all right so Ari can tell him how sorry he is.

Tane has his bags packed as he gets a text from Ari saying Nikau’s out of surgery. Ziggy arrives and asks if he’s going to leave without talking. Tane says he wouldn’t have stopped her seeing Dean and they were supposed to be honest with each other. He notes she can’t be honest about who she wants to be with, even with herself. Ziggy says she didn’t want to be this person. Tane notes that it wouldn’t matter if he didn’t love her. He walks out. Back at the caravan park house, Roo is worrying about Kieran losing his support network. Kieran says he has to stand on his own two feet but isn’t sure where he can go. Martha says he can look after her house in Merimbula. Alf and Kieran are both shocked but Martha notes it’ll help Kieran and she’ll have someone to look after her chooks. Alf agrees it’s her choice and Kieran accepts.

Ari is putting something in the fridge when he notices the ultrasound photo. He takes it down and looks at it. Tane arrives with his bags and says he needs to come home. Ari says of course.