ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE:
Jake went ballistic in Sassy's trashing the bar and throwing bottles. Chris tries to calm him and they almost come to blows. Grant watches in glee and tells the bartender to call the police. Ryan comments on how much Grant is enjoying all of this and then berates Jake for his childish behavior. Ryan tells Jake if he really loved Vicky as much as Jake says he does, then he would be looking for the problem (Grant) and a way to protect her. Grant goads Jake about Vicky and Bobby, telling Jake that Vicky has cheated on every guy she's been with, Ryan, Grant and now Jake. Jake almost takes a swing at him but stops when Cass reminds him that Grant would like nothing more than to throw a law suit against Jake. Joe arrives and listens to Jake insult him in various ways ("Defective Carlino" "Fatfoot") before he has enough and ends up arresting Jake.
BOY, ARE YOU DENSE!
Lorna told Gabe she is sick and tired of Cindy always hanging around Gabe and finding some way to come between the two of them. She announces that Cindy has a great big crush on him and he encourages her by always catering to Cindy's every whim. Gabe told her she was being ridiculous, saying she was jealous. Lorna replies that hell yes she's jealous and she's angry at Cindy but more angry at Gabe for letting it happen. Gabe gets somewhat upset when Lorna points out they should have gotten Cindy a present together as a couple and he sarcastically asks if he needs to check in with "his girlfriend" every time his "sister in law" wants to have lunch. Lorna told him she was hurt because she had planned a Chanukah celebration for the two of them and it looked like he had chosen to spend the holiday with Cindy. Seeing how upset she is, Gabe takes her in his arms and told Lorna she has nothing to worry about because he loves her and only her. They are just about to leave Lorna's office, when who shows up but Cindy who drags Gabe away in the pretense of needing his permission to treat Jake in jail. Lorna follows fuming.
NOT EASY FOR ANY OF THEM:
At the farm, Sharlene attempts to stand by herself when Michael comes in and tries to help. They have a heart to heart about her accident, recovery etc and Michael says he will even allow Grant to visit if it helps her. They hear Greg cry out and Michael runs upstairs, while Sharlene calls to him helplessly. Meanwhile, Felicia and John finish a night of lovemaking and she joyfully told him she finished the first draft of her book about Frankie. They are interrupted by a phone call from Michael who says Greg was frantic b/c he had a nightmare and wanted his dad. Greg begs John to come over, which he does at Felicia's urging. Greg tells his dad he was so scared because he thought he had lost his dad in the snow and his mom couldn't help because she can't walk. John told him that Greg will never lose him and agrees to stay the night, much to Greg's happiness. Felicia assures John she was okay with it, but when she's alone, its obvious she's upset.
BUSTED:
Paulina sees Jake and Joe arrive and she demands to know what happened. Joe tells her that Jake pushed and pushed until he had no choice but to arrest him. Cindy fixes Jakes hand and Cass agrees to act as his counsel. Paulina tries to convince Joe to help Jake get out of this mess, reminding Joe that Jake had his heart broken tonight. Joe asks why Paulina was constantly defending Jake but still tries to work things out with the bartender at Sassy's. Jake told Paulina that he'd rather sit in jail for the rest of his life now that Vicky doesn't want him. He told her that he believes Vicky slept with Bobby because when he asked Bobby, Bobby didn't deny it. Jake is released and Chris says he'll make sure he gets home.
A "TEST":
Vicky told Bobby that she can't figure him out and told him he has always had an effect on her. She admits that she fainted when she first saw him because of something she felt between them. Bobby asks if its Ryan and she says that at first it was but now its something more. Vicky says that he doesn't look or act like Ryan, so Bobby having ryan's corneas can't be the source of everything. She explains she had to hurt Jake, whom she loves because she can't stop thinking about Bobby. Bobby seems happy at her remark and proposes they do a little "test". He asks if she trusts him and she says she does. They go off in his truck but first he stops and brought her a bouquet of violets because he said they reminded him of her eyes. Bobby then asks if Ryan ever gave her those kind of flowers and she says no. Again,he seems happy and he takes her to a hilltop which overlooks Bay City. Bobby points out familiar places and then shows Vicky her house. Bobby explains that he watches until her light goes out at night so he knows she's safe. bobby then hesitantly asks if she'd like to go out on a date with him. Vicky smiles and says she'd love to go out with him. A smile lights up Bobby's face as they sit side by side (FREEZE FRAME)
HERE'S SOME ADVICE, BROTHER:
At the gym, Paulina convinces Matt not to give up on Sophia. She told him that she saw how Sophia looked at Matt during Thanksgiving and vice versa. She reminds him that Sophia was young and just had her heart broken and he shouldn't expect her to act like she's 30. Paulina informs him that she believes Sophia is old fashioned and that she was not going to pursue Matt, but that Matt should do the pursuing. Matt gets excited and leaves for the Herald.
BACK OFF, NICK!
At the Herald, Nick continues to do whatever he can to be close to Sophia. She told him to lay off and if he doesn't stop sidling up to her, he's going to get an elbow in the solar plexus. Sophia reminds him that she doesn't even want to be there and that he's preventing her from doing her job right. Nick asks how she can ignore the feelings they still have for each other and reminds her that she gave him until Christmas to prove himself to her. Nick gets an idea when another co-worker complains about having to go to a conference in New York.
I NEED A HOBBY:
At Carlino's, Felicia meets Cass, who seems to be in one of his "manic" moods. He asks her a lot of cryptic questions about what would be a good place for people to go. Felicia's curiosity is piqued but Cass laughingly told her to wait and see. Later, Cass was on the phone with a realtor, excitedly asking about restaurants, bakeries, etc. to rent. Paulina hears him and asks him to come inside. Commenting on how wonderful Carlino's is, Cass gets an idea. He tells Paulina he want to speak with her and Joe and that he was going to make them an offer they can't refuse.
BROKEN HEARTS:
Steven and Kirkland are having a snowball fight at the Cory mansion. they ask Rachel where Grandpa Carl was and she tells them he was gone for awhile. Just then, Carl arrives on the pretense of talking about Cory publishing business. He tries to reach Rachel again, but she remains steadfast in her decision. Carl tells her that he still loves her but she told him that he can't come back. After Carl leaves, Rachel remembers the fight they had when she threw him out. Meanwhile, Carl went to see Paulina to talk about Rachel. Paulina informs Carl that his anger was really hurting Rachel, and she's not sure she can help him. Later, Rachel visits Matt for some support. She told him she doesn't want him to badmouth Carl, she just needs him to listen. When Rachel leaves, Matt calls Paulina and told her to go check on Rachel because she was feeling down about Carl. When Paulina arrives at the mansion, they talk about things with Carl and Rachel says she hasn't been feeling well lately and all she feels like doing was sleeping (uh oh!! could this be the pregnancy rumor we've been hearing about?)
MORE THAN FRIENDS:
Matt asks Sophia to come into his office. He told her that he's rethought his decision about the two of them and that he wants to date her for real now. Sophia happily agrees and asks what he has in mind because he's obviously thought about it. Matt told her that he wants to go to dinner and movies and more Cory family gatherings. Meanwhile Nick tells his disgruntled co-workder he has an idea of how she can get out of going to the conference in NY. The co-worker later approaches Sophia and asks Sophia to do her a favor and go to the conference in her place because the co-workers son was sick and she doesn't want to leave him. Sophia was reluctant at first, saying she's only an intern. But she allows herself to be convinced and excitedly told Matt that she's going to NY. Nick listens smiling in the background when Matt asks Sophia, "Says who?" (or something to that effect) (FREEZE FRAME)
THE BIG DATE:
Vicky stands in front of the mirror trying to decide what to wear. Donna comes in and was disappointed when Vicky says she was going out with Bobby. Reminding her daughter that she knows nothing about Bobby's past, Donna maintains that this attraction was related to Ryan. Vicky says that may have been true at first, but now things have changed. She reminds her mom that Bobby's scrapes with the law were as a juvenile and that growing up in Lassiter, Vicky could have been in much of the same position. Meanwhile, Bobby meets a man in a bad part of town and gives him money. The man tells Bobby he will take care of everything. Later, Bobby arrives at Vicky's with more violets, only to be bet by a disapproving Donna. She grills him about his background, intentions, etc. to which Bobby holds his own. Bobby then makes a pointed remark about Donna's past with Michael to which Donna can't come up with a comeback. Vicky comes down and admiration shows in Bobby's eyes. They arrive at the bad part of town and Vicky seems nervous. She is presently surprised when they enter a jazz club and meet the man Bobby had met with earlier. His name was Dustin and his was a blind sax player who knew Bobby when Bobby was blind. Vicky gets along with him well and is interested when Dustin and Bobby talk about how losing your sight, causes one to rely on the other senses. Dustin told Vicky that the man who gave Bobby his eyes has a special place in heaven. Vicky looks wistful and agrees. They then enjoy the evening and come close to kissing a few times. When they leave, Vicky told Bobby now its his turn to be ambushed. She drags him away as he laughs.
AT THE PRECINT:
Gary told Josie something fishy went on with Mrs. Mercer. He asks her how a woman without a penny to her name would show up, clear Grant and then disappear. Josie asks Gary to lay off but Gary insists Grant was involved. Just then Grant shows up and Gary steams when Grant thanks Gabe for his support in helping Grant get reinstated in the bar. After Grant leaves, Gary blasts Gabe for publicly supporting Grant saying it makes everyone in the department look bad and ruins morale. Gabe argues he only told the truth and that although he himself has suspicions too but there was no proof. He then told Gary he was revoking his original decision to allow Gary to work on the Mercer case on his own time.
SOMETHING INTERESTING:
At the hospital, Grant finds Cindy in the lounge and they make small talk about the donated therapeutic equipment. When Cindy was called away, Grant goes through her purse and finds a picture of Gabe covered with lipstick kisses. Grant looks pleased and disappears before Cindy returns.
THE CONFERENCE IN NEW YORK:
Nick's co-conspirator gets nervous when Matt questions her reasons for not going to the conference. Matt then asks Sophia privately if the reason she wants to go has to do with his request to date her. She told him no, that she's pleased about his intentions and just wants to visit family and friends in NY as well as gain some new experience. Nick doesn't like what he overhears between Matt and Sophia but was pleased when Matt announces Sophia will be going to the conference.
TROUBLE ADJUSTING:
Greg has a tantrum about staying with John and Felicia and told Felicia he hates her before he runs from Sharlene's room. Felicia was hurt but she tells John his first priority was Greg. John and Felicia both go to find him and John finds him first. John told Greg AGAIN that things have changed between him and Sharlene but that John will always love Greg. It was decided that Greg will return to the farm with Sharlene. He was sullen and uncooperative back at the farm and refuses to listen to his mom. After breaking some plates, Greg yells that he hates Felicia, he hates John and he hates his mom before he runs from the room.
THE RUNAWAY:
Josie finds Sharlene on the porch of the farm. She has fallen out of her
chair and told Josie that she has to find Greg. Josie tries to call a
frightened Sharlene who feels helpless at her inability to go after Greg.
Meanwhile, John and Felicia make love in his office. He told her she has
been so understanding. Again, they are interrupted with a call from Josie
informing him that Greg has run away. John arrives and assures Sharlene
they will find him. John and Josie return later with Greg. Sharlene cries
for him never to do that again. John told Sharlene he was going to stay
tonight. She says that sends the wrong message to Greg but John says he
can't stand to see Greg in pain.
MAKING REPARATIONS AT SASSY'S:
Jake pays for the damage he caused at Sassy's. Chris tries to give him some
advice that getting drunk and arrested won't impress Vicky. Jake says Vicky
probably doesn't even care. Chris told Jake he needs to work out his own
anger and points out to Jake that Grant probably lied about Vicky and Bobby
sleeping together. Chris told Jake that if he loves Vicky as much as he
says, he should fight for her. Grant arrives and was informed by the
bartender that Vicky was out on a date with Bobby. Grant makes a call to the
farm and offers his assistance with Greg but Josie brushes him off. Grant
then proceeds to insult Jake and to goad him about Bobby. Chris told Grant
to leave and he then approaches Cindy and invites her for coffee.
THE DATE CONTINUES:
Back at Vicky's house, Vicky has Bobby collect some snacks and they head to
the tree house. Vicky says they are going to have a tree house warming
party and Bobby was touched by her appreciation. They enjoy some champagne
and peanut butter and crackers. Vicky shows him her photo albums of when
she was a child, telling Bobby she has never shown the pictures to another
soul. He listens to her reminisce about her childhood and Bridget. When
she laughs at a picture of herself, he told her in a serious tone that he
doubts she ever had a bad-looking day in her life. Seeing another picture
of Jake, Bobby asks if Jake loved her as much then as he does now. She says
they were better as friends. Bobby then admits that he opened up to Vicky
b/c he was afraid of losing her to Jake. She changes the subject and tells
him about her life on the run after Grant tried to kidnap them. Bobby
explains that he's been fascinated with colors since he was blind especially
by the color red, which he says he was drawn to as he stares at Vicky's
mouth. They lean in for a kiss and stop before they do. Vicky says that
although she doesn't want to, she should go. Vicky told him that Bridget
would have liked him. Vicky told him this was one of the nicest nights she
ever had.
FRIENDS WHEN YOU NEED THEM:
Cass and Felicia meet at Carlino's and Cass told her that he was going to
start practices law again. He told her he's going to rent a table at
Carlino's for his office. When Cass asks if she's okay, Felicia confides
that she believes Greg was pushing everyone's buttons to get his own way.
She says that she doesn't want Greg to be in any pain but someone needs to
straighten him out. Cass told her she needs to talk to John. Grant and
Cindy arrive at Carlino's and Cass told Grant he was going to be practicing
law again too. Cindy asks Felicia if there was something wrong and asks if
it has something to do with Lorna. Grant says they already have one thing
in common - Gabe. Cindy looks uncomfortable and leaves.
NEW PARTNERS:
Later, Bobby meets Gary to talk about Grant and Cody Mercer. Before telling
Bobby anything, Gary asks what's it to him. They both wonder whether they
should trust each other. Ryan appears and told Bobby to trust Gary and ask
the right questions to get information. Gary told Bobby about the letter
from Mrs. Mercer exonerating Grant. They try to figure out what Grant's
plan was and Bobby says Grant will do anything to improve his image and get
custody of Kirk. Gary asks what Bobby's intentions are with Vicky to which
Bobby gets angry and says the conversation was over. Ryan tries to stop Gary
from leaving and told Bobby Gary was someone he can trust and needs. Ryan
then told Bobby to go check on Vicky and follows Bobby in exasperation when
he walks away.
FINAL SCENES:
Bobby returned to Vicky's and reprimands her for opening the door without
knowing who it was. He told her she has to be careful because Grant was up to
something although he doesn't know what yet. Gary arrives at the farm and
he and Josie make up from their argument. She told him about Greg and he
says he may have a new informant. Bobby makes plans to sleep in the
treehouse. Ryan was there and told im that he was doing great. Ryan says
Bobby has to protect Vicky now because he can't and that Bobby was Ryan's arms
and legs now and must stand up to Grant. John arrives at Carlino's and
tells Felicia he's staying at the farm again. She assures John it was okay
with her and she will be waiting for him. Jake imagines Vicky comes to him
at Sassy's and told him they are meant to be together. Chris interrupts
his daydream. Grant was on the phone with his mysterious partner, explaining
they now have 3 targets, two of whom just said a tender goodnight. He then
says for his partner to gather info. on Cindy Brook as Ryan listens from the
passenger seat.
IN NEW YORK:
Matt calls Sophia from Carlino's and he asks about the trip and the
possibilities for their first date. Someone leaves a note for her that says
"For a beautiful woman"
Sophia told Matt she wishes he was there with her. She finds the note and
throws a glass of water on Nick. She was upset he followed her and then
realizes he set up the whole trip. Nick told her he lives for every minute
he spends with her and she told him nothing he says will change her mind.
After sharing lunch, Sophia tries to tell Nick that her favorite food aren't
going to make her change her mind. Realizing she's late for the conference,
Nick assures her that he won't try and follow her, then smiles to himself
and says "I won't have to." Meanwhile, Matt books a flight to New York.
Sophia later meets with one of the nuns from her old convent school. The
nuns told her about how the convent school was about to close if it wasn't
for a large donation made by a friend of sophia's in sophia's mother's name.
When the nun leaves, Nick arrives.
SHOPPING FOR TREES:
Cass and Charlie look at Christmas trees and Charlie wants to get a small,
sorry looking tree because "it needs them." Jake and Chris arrive and Jake is
in a sour mood. Charlie laughs at him and calls Jake Ebeneezer Scrooge.
IN THE TREE HOUSE:
Ryan tries to figure out who Grant's other 2 targets are, saying he knows
one was Vicky. Vicky opens the door and seeming to look straight at Ryan,
asks "what are you doing here?' But really she was looking past him to
Bobby. She says she's glad she has someone around she can trust. Ryan
watches the two of them with a smile, always looking at Vicky with love.
Bobby and Vicky leave for breakfast and Ryan tries to recall the name Grant
mentioned last night. When he does, he asks "who the heck was Cindy Brook?
TWO OF A KIND:
Gabe arrives at Cindy's apartment and she pretends she's been crying, upset
that Lorna hates her. Gabe tries to comfort her and she snuggles in his
embrace. Meanwhile Grant visits Lorna and makes pointed comments about
Cindy, complimenting her to Lorna's irritation. Grant tries to undermine
her confidence about Gabe and Lorna's own self esteem and then leaves. Gabe
arrives at Lorna's office and she thanks him for the flowers he sent. She's
happy until he brought up Cindy and how upset she is. Cindy listens happily
as Lorna gets upset again about Cindy. Gabe assures her that nothing will
come between them except her fear and asks that she trust in his love.
Cindy interrupts and told Lorna she wants to be friends. Meanwhile, Grant
evilly laughs at what he reads in the dossier on Cindy, saying its better
than what he thought. Lorna told Cindy she was tired of Cindy always
showing up when Lorna and Gabe are trying to spend time together. She tells
Cindy to get a life and stop depending so much on Gabe. Cindy says she's
tried to meet new people but its hard. Cindy knocks down the flowers Gabe
gave Lorna and Lorna yells at her. When Gabe comes in, Cindy cries and runs
out. Lorna told Gabe to go after her like he wants to. He asks her why
she's trying to make him take sides and she says he's already chosen a side.
MEETINGS AT CARLINO'S:
Rachel meets Matt at Carlino's and told him she tried to get her mind off
Carl by Christmas shopping but nothing worked. Jake finds Chris and who ask
if Jake has been visited by the ghost of Christmas past. Jake has a series
of flashbacks of times he and Vicky shared. Chris fills Jake in on the
moral of a Christmas Carol - that a man can change his future if he starts
acting differently now. Jake said he's ready to embrace Christmas and bring
joy to the masses. Jake told Chris how he's going to get Vicky to biggest
tree possible and it'll bring them closer together.
A PERSISTANT GHOST:
Bobby and Vicky have breakfast while Ryan continues to try and reach Bobby.
Ryan keeps repeating, "three, three, three targets" He told Bobby to come
on and hear him because they have a connection. Bobby and Vicky continue to
talk, unmoved, and Bobby makes notes about house plans. Ryan gets
frustrated and decides to try his luck with Kirkland. Vicky asks Bobby how
many sugars he wants in his tea. He answers "three" but when she went to
give him some, he says he doesn't take sugar in his tea. She asks him why
he said three. Bobby looks at his notepad and sees he's scribbled 3 over
and over and says he has no idea. Vicky told Bobby she wants to do the
house up for Christmas. Going over to the fire place and picking up Ryan's
picture, she says last Christmas wasn't a good one for her. Bobby says he
knows and asks about how now is. She puts Ryan's picture back and says now
is good. Bobby says he's going to get Rhonda fired up so he can go get
her a tree and Vicky says to make sure she doesn't leave them stranded again
with nothing but a pile of pumpkins. Bobby remarks that she remembers and
she smiles and asks what are the chances of that happening again.
Meanwhile, in the tree house, Kirkland shows Ryan a mood ring he got for
Vicky. Ryan told Kirkland about the ring he once got Vicky. She called it
the sun and the moon and the stars and said it was symbol that their love
would never end. He says that sometimes when he sits really close to Vicky,
he can hear her heart beat. Ryan then says that there are a lot of things
he'd like to give Vicky if he was alive, his love, his hope, his dreams, the
warmth of her body, everything he'd hoped their lives would be. He says
he'd still like to give her peace at Christmas and that it seems like when
he died, Vicky did too and that's not the case. Then Ryan points at
himself, then draws a heart in the air and points at Kirkland. Kirkland
repeats the gesture and Ryan says he's a fast learner. Kirk then shows Ryan
a picture of Grant. When Kirkland leaves to go play with a friend, Ryan
asks how he's going to communicate with Bobby again. He remembers Bridget
saying he could do anything if he wanted to bad enough. At the base of the
tree house, Kirkland repeats the "I love you" gesture for Vicky and she asks
where he learned that. Kirkland told her his friend taught him. As Bobby
watches them, Grant's picture floats down from the tree house. Vicky asks
where the picture came from and Ryan tries to get them to understand the
picture was a sign. Later Ryan, visits Grant to try and figure out what
he's up to. He sees Grant's book about the perfect crime.
MORE TREE SHOPPING:
Vicky picks out a tall, tall tree and she thanks Bobby for helping her.
When Vicky offers to get Bobby a tree of his own, he declines and says he
likes trees better in the forest. She told him she wonders about him
sometimes and he says that he wonders about her too. Bobby gives her some
earmuffs he bought her. She shows him a little tree she got for him and
promises she and the boys will help him decorate it. Vicky asks him if he
knows what he's missing and Bobby replies that sometimes he does. The tree
vendor asks if they're interested in some fresh mistletoe. They almost kiss
again when Jake arrives. She told him she's picking up her tree and Jake
looks stricken.
FINAL SCENE:
Ryan tries to will the book on crimes to crimes to open. Meanwhile, Cindy
arrives at her apartment to find Grant waiting for her.
Thursday, December 12, 196, 1996
Friday, December 13th, 1996