Stuart and Taj are at a Life Mechanics meeting in the park. Lou is telling Susan off about her dislike for Izzy...

At the Coffee Shop, Susan comes in and tells Harold about her lecture from Lou. Harold agrees with Lou, and Susan is shocked. He explains that the scene in the shop was embarrassing, especially for Izzy. He goes on to accuse Susan of being jealous of Izzy because she’s young. Susan storms out at this remark, while an incredulous Sky watches.

Stuart is singing, badly, at the garage, when Jonathan arrives in a classic car, asking Stuart to take a look at it. Stuart tells him his bearings need replacing and Jonathan says he’ll wait while the work is done.

..

At number 24, Sky is trying to find out why Harold had a go at Susan. She suggests that Susan’s seeing something in Izzy that other people don’t. Harold gets annoyed about the rumours that are being spread, then Lou comes in and they both compare notes on Susan, deciding that they did the right thing. Lou asks Harold about David’s BMW and says there’s a scratch on the door. Harold and Lou go outside to take a look.

Back at the garage, Lou and Harold arrive and Lou tells Stuart that the scratch needs urgent attention before David arrives in town that night. Stu says he’s busy, but Lou talks him round and Jonathan tells him he shouldn’t let people walk all over him.

..

Harold and Sky are cleaning number 24 when David, Liljana and Serena arrive an hour early. They all go through the greetings, though things between Harold and David seem very awkward, but they laugh it off. Liljana is embarrassed to have arrived early, explaining that they mixed the flights up, she then complains about the food on the plane. She compliments Harold on his home and David says it’s not quite as pristine as he remembered. Lil then says she’s brought all the food on the way and will be cooking dinner for them all. David asks about his car, but Harold quickly changes the subject…

..

At the pub, Stuart explains that he didn’t have the right colour for David’s car and Lou says it’s priority first thing in the morning. Jonathan asks Stu if everyone walks all over him like that and tells him he has a rare empathy with other people. Stu says he’s starting to get sick of it.

..

David is annoyed about the scratch and Sky tells him it’s not Harold’s fault. David insists he’ll pay for the repairs, as his new business will mean he’s raking it in. Lou arrives with a package from the doorstep – a welcome gift from Izzy. Lou meets Liljana and tells David he can pick up the car in the morning. Sky is drawing cartoons of Lou and Harold and she and Serena run off laughing, leaving Harold confused.

Jonathan tells Stuart he shouldn’t always be the one doing things for other people and that he should take control of his life. Jonathan says he can change his life, but Stu isn’t so sure. Jonathan insists that you can take your life apart and change it.

..

David tells Lou about his new company – Morgan and Bishop Financial. He tells Harold about Thomas Morgan, who he went to school with. Harold isn’t sure that Thomas is trustworthy. Liljana has cooked a Serbian feast for everyone, with a special chicken meal for Harold. He says he doesn’t eat poultry either and she’s embarrassed, so she sends Sky and Serena out to the supermarket.

..

Jonathan asks if any of Stu’s friends are coming to the Life Mechanics intensive weekend. Stu wonders why Jonathan does this work when he gets very little out of it and checks that there won’t be any bells and chanting at the weekend workshop.

At the Coffee Shop, Sky and Serena are waiting for their order, and Sky goes round and gets it herself. Serena is shocked until Sky explains that it’s Harold’s shop. Serena says it needs some style and goes on to talk about Eden Hills’ Girls’ Grammar. Sky and Serena are confused about the atmosphere between David and Harold and are worried that there’ll be fireworks.

..

Susan and Karl finish dinner and then notice and strange smell in the kitchen, coming from under the lino. They pull it up and find a letter addressed to a Jamie Clarke. Susan reads it out:

“As I write this Jamie, you are sleeping in your cot, my little bundle of joy. But when you find this, you’ll probably be much older, with the job of pulling up the old lino to replace it. What better way for you to discover this surprise from me and your dad. Open the envelope and we hope what you find will help give you the start in life you deserve. Your loving mother, Daphne.”

..

They wonder who the Clarkes were and whether they lived there before the Willises. They try to work out what’s inside and think about asking Harold, wondering where these people could be now. Susan thinks Daphne had expected to live there for years and years, but Karl is glad she didn’t, or they’d never have moved in.

At number 24, everyone is talking at once, with Harold looking very confused. Liljana insists to him that there’s no meat in his food and then she proceeds to quieten everyone down and asks Harold to make a speech. Just then, the phone rings and it’s Liljana’s mother. Lil grabs the phone and Harold sits down while everyone else talks noisily…

..

The next morning, Harold wakes up to find Lil making Serbian coffee. Sky says you just need one cup and you don’t need to eat all day. The phone rings and Serena answers. It’s Liljana’s mother again. David talks about the curse Svetlanka threatened to put on him if he ever treated her daughter badly. Harold pours the coffee back and pretends to have drunk it, while Sky tells Liljana to read Harold’s coffee grounds. Harold says that as a Christian, he doesn’t believe in that sort of thing, and promptly escapes to work. Lil has a look anyway, and says she sees a man with people inside his house, but he’s outside the house, looking in…

Lou sees Harold in the Coffee Shop and asks why he isn’t at home with his family. Harold confides that Lil has taken over the kitchen, David talks real estate at the breakfast table and Sky and Serena bicker all the time, it’s like they’re in their own home. Lou says it’s not surprising that he feels like an outsider, he hasn’t seen them in years. He tells him to embrace this second chance he’s been given with his son…

..

Summary by Steve. Captures by Karl

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