Episode 541

Extended Summary

Steven, Viv and Tammy are walking, with Tammy skipping away to make a daisy chain necklace. Viv tells Steven that she feels bad about leaving Tammy before and isn’t going to do it again. Tammy gives her the necklace. Back at the house, Viv and Tammy meet with the social worker, Helen Wakefield. Helen tells Tammy that Viv has spoken to her about their father but she needs Tammy to tell her. With some hesitancy, Tammy says that her father used to say that God hated naughty people and she needed to suffer on earth to be allowed into heaven. She says that he used to lock her in a cupboard and starve her. Helen asks if she believed what her father told her. Tammy says she used to but doesn’t anymore because he said suffering would make her happy and it didn’t.

Marilyn is making various requests of Adam, asking him to make her a snack of eggs on toast and to prepare a cool handkerchief for her and rub camomile lotion on her. Adam takes advantage of the fact they have no bread to head off to the store. He begs Matt to take over from him but Matt points out he looked after Marilyn the previous day. Adam thinks they should take it in turns. Alf appears and, while he doesn’t care who works there, wants the matter settled. He tosses a coin and announces Matt will work at the store while Adam goes home and snaps that Matt should get a move on serving him. When Matt says Alf’s been like that all morning, Adam thinks he’s better off with Marilyn.

At the Diner, Carly congratulates Bobby on playing the trick on Ernie although Bobby thinks he might tell people not to eat there. Grant comes in and tries to get both of them to enter the talent night but they hastily refuse. Carly goes to serve a customer who turns out to be Megan Williams, now Tierney, an old friend of hers. She says she’s been married eight months to a wealthy man she met while working in the city. Carly reveals she’s engaged as well. Megan also recalls Bobby and tells her she met Frank and heard they used to be married. Once Bobby has gone away, Megan notes she doesn’t know what Frank saw in her. Megan isn’t staying with her parents but at the resort and, since she doesn’t fancy anything on the menu, she asks for a coffee while she waits for her husband Julian.

Don and Steven join Helen, Viv and Tammy in the front room. Helen assures them that Reverend Newton won’t be able to get Tammy back now. She’s going to talk to Tammy’s teachers and neighbours to get more information. Tammy thinks they won’t say anything because they all like the reverend but Helen says she might be surprised; there was already plenty of notes on Tammy’s file but they couldn’t do anything until she spoke to them. She says Don has agreed to look after Tammy for the time being and would have done so permanently but they think she needs a foster mother. Viv asks if it will be somewhere nearby and Helen isn’t sure. Viv says that wherever Tammy goes, she wants to be fostered with her. A short while later, Viv finds Steven sulking in the kitchen. He’s upset that she just announced she was leaving without talking to him about it first. Viv says they don’t have to break up but Steven doesn’t think a long distance relationship will work. Viv asks him to understand that she can’t leave Tammy but Steven thinks she’s selfish for not thinking about him and storms out.

Megan has gone home with Carly to meet Pippa and Ben. Megan says she doesn’t regret leaving Summer Bay, despite Pippa pointing out her parents live there. Megan is exasperated at her parents’ refusal to buy a dishwasher, even though Pippa points out she doesn’t have one either. When Megan asks what Ben does, he bluntly tells her he drives a bulldozer. Megan says she’s bought her parents a new bedroom suite for their anniversary, since they’ve had the old one since they were married. At the store, Alf continues to snap at Matt for not doing things fast enough, despite Matt pointing out the large number of jobs he’s had to do. Grant appears with one of his posters for the amateur night and Alf gives him permission to put it up but continues to snap at Matt for taking too long helping him.

Pippa invites Megan to have dinner with them but Megan has to meet Julian at the resort so agrees to come the following night instead. As she’s leaving, she bumps into Steven and comments on how much he’s grown and how he must be getting attention from the girls but he bluntly tells her to mind her own business. Carly and Pippa both think he was rude and should apologise but Steven says he always thought Megan was stuck up and storms out. Ben follows him outside and asks him what’s going on. Steven tells him about Viv leaving. Ben points out Viv’s point of view, that she doesn’t want to be apart from Tammy, and suggests Steven make the most of the time they have left. At Don’s house, Bobby tells Viv that things seem to have worked out. Viv notes that she’s going to miss Bobby and everyone else in Summer Bay. She’s worried Don will think she’s ungrateful for leaving but Bobby assures her he’ll want her to be happy.

At the store, Matt is serving a customer, Mrs. Mac, who has just been on a cruise looking for a husband. As he is about to take her shopping out to her car, Alf appears and Matt and Mrs. Mac both notice his face is covered with spots: He must have caught the chickenpox off Marilyn. Matt takes Alf home where he grumbles about catching it and apologises for how bad tempered he’s been during the day. He worries that there’s no-one to look after the shop for him. Matt says he and Adam will look after it, which doesn’t make Alf feel any better, but he agrees so long as Matt’s in charge. Matt goes to run him a camomile bath. Later, at the beach house, Matt tells Adam about the situation. Adam instantly starts dreaming up ways to double Alf’s profits but Matt makes it clear to him there isn’t going to be any of that. Marilyn comes in and they tell her they won’t be able to nurse her anymore because of looking after the store. Marilyn feels guilty about giving Alf chickenpox.

At the Fletcher house, Ben is on the phone to someone. Carly asks him what it was about but he tells her it’s a surprise and refuses to give her any details. He leaves, giving Steven a lift to see Viv. Carly asks Pippa for information but Pippa doesn’t know what it’s about either. At the Stewart house, Alf is on the phone to Ailsa and notes it’s a good thing she’s away since he doesn’t want Duncan to catch the chickenpox off him. Marilyn suddenly arrives and explains she’s there to nurse Alf. Alf looks bewildered. Pippa is outside at the caravan park when Ben draws up in his combi. Pippa confirms that Carly has gone to work and Ben is pleased since it lets him set up his surprise: He’s bought Megan’s parents’ old bedroom suite for $30.Pippa awkwardly suggests he should have told Carly first but helps him take it inside.

Steven and Viv settle on the couch. Viv apologises for just announcing that she was leaving but Steven now understands she has to be there for Tammy. Viv reminds him what he said on their picnic, that they were soul mates and are going to get married one day, and asks him if he still believes it, because she does. They hug and smile at each other.