Episode 8466

Extended Summary

Harper and Eliza are out in the bush together. Harper gets a phone call from Marilyn but rejects it and turns the phone off. Eliza checks it’s just the two of them there, then screams loudly, with the sound echoing around. She says she never gets to feel free like this. Harper suffers a twinge that she calls a big one. Eliza suggests the baby wants to come out but Harper says he’s staying where he is for now. She takes a photo of the two of them on her phone.

At the Diner, Tane tells Leah he’s focusing on the fact Harper and Eliza are at home and Marilyn will call if there’s anything wrong. Roo returns and tells Alf the meeting was very rewarding. Tane accuses her of palming her foster kid off on someone else, saying Harper’s booked in for a caesarean tomorrow and should be at home resting. Roo points out she asked Harper, who said yes, and she didn’t force her. Alf thinks Eliza should have finished her punishment. Roo says Eliza needs people to talk to who will support her and thinks Harper is making progress.

Kirby is finishing off a lesson on the beach and runs into Justin and Theo. Justin wonders when her last lesson is and she says twelve days, six hours and twenty-two minutes. Theo gets a text that he won’t show them and Justin guesses someone’s sending him raunchy pictures. He asks Kirby if they can meet to discuss strategy.

At the surf club, Tane runs into Marilyn and wonders where Harper and Eliza are. Marilyn admits that they went out about an hour ago and she’s been looking for them. Tane leaves a voicemail for Harper checking that she’s okay. Meanwhile, Harper suggests she and Eliza stop and put a picnic blanket down. Eliza asks if she’s excited about the caesarean and wrongfoots her slightly by asking if they’ll use the same incision from her last surgery. Harper tries asking about her collecting momentos. Eliza calls it stealing and says she thought they were done with that. She starts to walk on but then Harper doubles up in pain and says she’s having a contraction.

At Salt, Justin talks to Kirby about publicity prior to going into the studio. Kirby thinks it would be hard to launch a campaign while she’s still working at the board shop. Justin says he was thinking of something small that they can build on. He produces a music magazine, Tempo Overload, and tries to get Kirby to look at page 15. Kirby says she’ll do it in two weeks after she’s finished work.

Harper is leaning against a tree and says she needs to go to hospital. She gets Eliza to pass her the blanket to sit on and tells her to call an ambulance. Eliza says her battery’s dead so Harper tells her to use hers. Eliza gets rid of the notifications of Tane’s missed call and voicemail, then pretends to make a call, saying they’re at Summer Bay Reserve on a walking track near the river. Harper asks to talk to them. Eliza said they’ve hung off but are on their way.

At the surf club, Justin sits by the board shop, reading the magazine and making interested noises. Kirby gives up and asks to look. The article is a “day in the life” piece on Keith Harking, who just released an album called Domesticated; he works as a vet assistant and thought of the name while cleaning out a cat’s cage. Kirby agrees she could do this and she wouldn’t have to stop working.

In the kitchen at the Diner, Roo and Leah discuss the fact Eliza has done some strange things. Roo calls her special and vulnerable and Leah accepts anyone in the foster care system will have issues. Roo says she wishes everyone could see her potential. Leah takes some food to Theo, guessing he’s checking his phone because of a girl. Theo admits there is someone but says he just met her around and Leah doesn’t know her.

Out in the bush, Harper wonders where the ambulance is. Eliza suddenly starts looking for food. Harper asks her to help her to the car, saying she can’t give birth out there. However, when Eliza reluctantly tries to help her up, she cries out in pain. Eliza looks concerned for a moment, then just asks if the baby will have a scar from the previous surgery. Harper looks at her in disbelief.

Leah asks Theo if he’s off to see his girlfriend. Theo says she’s not officially his girlfriend and admits she has a boyfriend who doesn’t treat her well. Leah advises him to be careful. Marilyn comes in and asks Roo if she’s seen Eliza. Roo thinks she’s still with Harper, and says Marilyn should have come to the seminar since they talk a lot about being non-judgemental. Marilyn sarcastically says it sounds interesting.

Harper tries to get Eliza to help her up again but collapses back down. She grabs her bag and tries to find some painkillers, then finds the phone and discovers missed calls from Tane. She calls him at the surf club and he quickly realises she’s in labour. She says they called an ambulance and Eliza’s with her and they’re at Summer Bay Reserve. She passes the phone to Eliza, who ignores Tane’s attempts to get her to identify any nearby landmarks.

Alf approaches Levi outside the surf club and he comments on having a day off. Tane comes out, unsuccessfully trying to get a response from Eliza. He tells Levi to come with him, explaining about Harper having gone into labour on a bushwalk with Eliza. Down on the beach, Justin helps Kirby record a video pitching what an article on her would be about. She is confident she’ll get a response. He approaches Theo who asks what he thinks of cheating. Justin says it’s always a bad idea. Theo says love can be messy and Justin guesses it’s about his texting buddy. Theo says she has a boyfriend that he thinks she should break up with and admits they’re already hooking up. Justin advises him to find out what she wants.

Roo tells Leah and Marilyn that she’s found all foster parents are having trouble. Leah goes to help Irene. Alf turns up and tells them about Harper going into labour in the middle of nowhere with Eliza and that Tane and Levi have gone after them. Marilyn thinks Eliza took Harper out there and Roo tries to argue that they don’t know that. Marilyn hopes Harper and the baby are all right and Roo hopes they all are.

Harper tries to insist that she can’t have the baby out there. Eliza wonders if one of them won’t make it if she does. Tane and Levi arrive and Eliza steps aside. Levi says they’ll see what they can do until the ambulance gets there and Harper tells Tane she’s glad he’s there. Eliza continues to look on dispassionately.

Roo tries unsuccessfully to get through to Eliza on the phone, saying she’ll come and get her. Marilyn wonders why she’s worrying about Eliza when Harper’s there. Roo argues that Tane and Levi are on the way. Alf says they won’t leave Eliza out there on her own and Marilyn suggests she might make things worse. Roo asks if she’s implying Eliza would deliberately hurt Harper. Despite a warning look from Alf, Marilyn says maybe and thinks she has a right to be concerned.

Tane asks Eliza how long the ambulance said they’d be and Eliza says they didn’t. Levi says it’s too late to move Harper since she’s fully dilated. Eliza asks if he’ll have to cut her open there. Levi says there’s not going to be a caesarean; she’ll have to deliver naturally. Harper protests that it’s too dangerous but Levi says there’s no choice.