2×01: Aftermath Part I
The season premiere opens with Monica crying into Dustin’s arms, Derek crying into his hands, and Susan slowly creeping onto the couch, putting her right hand over her chest, consistently trying to catch a full, complete breath of oxygen. Taking in the news she’s just received, she glances over to a picture frame, to only let one teardrop fall from her face as she slowly closed her desolate eyes.
TWELVE HOURS EARLIER…
Scene One: The Smithson Residence, 1423 Seneca Avenue, Liberty City, 01948.
Monica walks down the stairs, wearing her brand new maternity clothing that she recently picked up at a shopping adventure. She suggestively coughs, which makes Susan and Dustin turn their heads to look at the pregnant Monica.
“Oh don’t those look divine on you Monica. You’re really coming into your pregnancy,” Susan remarks. “Yes, they really do. Though, I hope you don’t get too adjusted to wearing them,” Dustin tells to his wife, as he gets up to kiss her and offer her a seat. “Would you like anything to eat?” “Yes, please. Maybe just some toast with light butter and jelly please,” Monica replies.
Monica then sits down on the couch and says, “Susan I want to thank you for everything you’ve been doing around here to help me, Dustin and the kids out.” Susan replies, “Oh honey, it is nothing. Anything for my grandbaby. But you know you should get used to wearing the maternity clothing. It’s coming to the point where hiding your bump isn’t easy, nor possible. This baby wants the world to know that he or she is coming and is going to be a star!”
Monica smiles and assures Susan, “Of course my baby will be a star. But I don’t know if I’m ready to adjust into the clothing. It makes me feel like I’m ashamed of this baby right now when I’m not.”
“Honey, all mother’s feel that way. It’s part of being pregnant.”
Scene Two: The Johnson Estate, 721 San Quentin Avenue, Liberty City, 01948.
Logan walks from her kitchen to her living room with a tray of tea and a sandwich. As she attempts to pour her tea into her cup, she begins to shake unsteadily, immediately dropping the pot of tea and smashing the cup as well. As she begins to collapse down onto the floor to pick up the broken pieces, a knock is heard at the door.
She picks herself up and slowly moves towards the door, hoping that it was possibly Tim arriving to tell his mother he wasn’t gone. As she opens the door, she is greeting by a familiar face.
“Hello mom, surprised to see me?” the mystery person asks.
OPENING CREDITS
“Meredith, I wasn’t expecting to see you,” Logan greets to her daughter with a hug. “Come on in, please. I don’t want you standing outside in the cold.” “Thank you. It’s not too cold out. It’s actually colder in here.” “I hadn’t noticed.” Meredith turns around to noticed the shattered tea pot and glasses. “Mom, what happened? The tea pot is shattered. And you’re shaking, oh my God is everything okay?”
Logan looks at Meredith with a state of emptiness in her eyes.
Scene Three: The Spencer Residence, 12 Mohegan Avenue, Liberty City, 01948.
THE ROLE OF DEREK SPENCER WILL NOW BE PORTRAYED BY TODD ROTONDI
Derek walks out of the kitchen with his cup of coffee and nothing on but his pajama pants. As he sits down to look over paperwork for the hospital, his phone begins to vibrate and ring. “Hello beautiful,” he answers.
Jamie: Hello to you too sexy. How are you?
Derek: How am I? How are you? How’s your mother?
Jamie: I’m doing well, my mother is doing better. Sophie is helping her out now so I can come home and be with you and the kids.
Derek: The only kid you have is Derrick. Jessica is a grown woman.
Jamie: True, but who said I was speaking of just them. I remember us wanting to maybe start a little family of our own before I left.
Derek: Yes, we did.
Jamie: Well, I should go. My bus is about to arrive. I’ll call when I get into Liberty City. I can’t wait to see you tonight.
Derek: Okay baby, I love you. Talk tonight.
As he hangs up his phone, Derek takes another sip of coffee and rushes upstairs. Inside of their bedroom, he opens up a drawer next to the bed. Inside of it, is a big box. Upon opening the box, he takes out a smaller box, which he once again opens to reveal a diamond engagement ring.
Scene Four: Liberty City Memorial Hospital, 1280 Bunker Hill Avenue, Liberty City, 01948.
Brenda walks down the hallway of LCM and is continually greeted by many of the friendly faces she’s come to know over the years. “Good afternoon Ms. Montez,” one staffer greeted to her. “Good afternoon Beth,” she returns. “How’s your family?” asks Brenda. “Tremendous. Little Robby is engaged to marry this Fall. We’re very happy for him, lovely girl he’s chosen.” “Oh wow, that’s great. You’ll have to give him my congratulations.” “Will do!”
As Brenda continues to walk towards the entrance to the Emergency Room, she sees doctors rushing to the doors. “What do we have?” Brenda asks as she tries to tend to the wounded person being brought in. An attending responds, “Crash, force blunt trauma to head.” “From windshield? Airbag?” “Neither, self-inflicted gunshot wound.” Brenda looks up at the attending with a look of confusion and questions, “Self-inflicted? While driving?” “Yes, ma’am.” “Well you don’t usually see shit like this every day.”
On that, Brenda instructs for the nurses and doctors to take the patient into a private room while she go and order an ER to perform surgery to possibly save the patient.
Scene Five: The Smithson Residence, 1423 Seneca Avenue, Liberty City, 01948.
Monica and Susan continue to smile and enjoy each other’s company. Dustin then walks in with some toast with light butter and little jelly. “Here you go baby, you two play nice,” he says as he goes to walk upstairs. Both ladies nod in agreement.
As Monica takes a bite into her toast Susan says, “That baby is going to need more than toast if he or she is going to grow up strong and healthy. Do you know whether it’s a boy or girl?” “No, I don’t. We want it to be a surprise.” Susan smiles and says, “We decided to let Dustin be a surprise to us. Dan and Natalie we both wanted to know.”
Monica smiles and says, “Who knows, maybe this baby will be a Dustin Jr. and can be just like his daddy.” Susan licks and presses her lips together, as if not happy with the latest remarks by Monica.
In an attempt to change the subject Susan asks, “Honey, you’re not looking big enough to be as far along as you say. You sure you’re eating alright?” Monica feeling offended says, “Yes I’m eating fine, and my baby is where he or she should be.” And with that she forcefully puts her toast onto the table and begins to walk away.
“Monica, I didn’t mean it to come out in an offensive way. I’m just trying to have the baby’s best interest at heart,” Susan tries to explain. “It’s not your interest the offends, it’s the sheer idea that you’re trying to get at.” “And that is?” “That you think I’m not carrying Dustin’s child, when in fact I am. We were having such a beautiful time together and you go and ruin it with your pushy self.” “Monica, darling, I didn’t mean harm. I’m genuinely trying to welcome this child into my life, no matter how hard it may be for me.”
Scene Six: The Johnson Estate, 721 San Quentin Avenue, Liberty City, 01948.
“Mom, is everything okay?” Meredith once again asks. “I’ll be fine. It’s just hard adjusting to life without Tim and Theo.” “Theo? Did something else happen?”
As Logan begins to try and respond, Cristina walks into the home. Logan in an intense response says, “Ask her, she’d know.” Cristina confusingly responds, “I know what?” Meredith responds, “You’d know about what happened to Theo. So tell me Cristina, what have you done to a second brother of mine?” “Oh hello Meredith. So kind of you to finally show your face in Liberty City. After all, you were missing at my wedding. Not even an apology note for missing it.” “Sorry, but I wasn’t feeling polite that month. And wasn’t up to seeing my brother marry a tramp.”
Logan questions, “Why are you here Cristina?” She responds, “Well I most definitely did not come over to become attacked. I actually came over to discuss Tim’s funeral services.” “I’ll take care of them, thank you. He was my son.” “And he was my husband, till death do us part.” “And death did you part, now leave my mother and my family alone,” Meredith interrupts.
Cristina turns to Meredith and spits out, “I believe I was speaking to your mother, not you.” “And I believe my daughter has made my feelings clear. I’m over dealing with you. You’re more than welcome to the funeral, as well as Theo. But other than that, I don’t wish to see either of you.”
Cristina trying to fight back her angry says, “Well thank you. I’ll leave you two to catch up. Nice to see you Meredith.” As Cristina leaves Meredith says to Logan, “Does she ever learn?” “No, she doesn’t,” Logan responds.
Scene Seven: Liberty City Memorial Hospital, 1280 Bunker Hill Avenue, Liberty City, 01948.
“Hello this is Brenda Montez. Yes, I need an ER booked stat. Okay, thank you,” Brenda says to someone on the opposite end of the phone. As she hangs up the phone, an attending comes running out and screams, “We’re losing her!” Brenda rushes into the room, and quickly applies more pressure onto the wound. “Hold this, hold it!” Brenda exclaims to one of the attendees. “Where are you going?” ones asks her. “I can only perform the initial surgery to stop the bleeding, but I need someone else to take the bullet out. I’ll be back.”
As Brenda walks out, she quickly goes to the main desk and questions, “Nicolette, please get me the number to Dr. Connolly, immediately.” The nurse returns the number to Brenda which she dials. “Hello Brian? Yeah, it’s me Brenda. Listen, I have a patient you needs a possible bullet removed from their brain and knew you’d be excellent at such care. Really? Okay, that’s amazing. Liberty City Memorial Hospital. Yes, Liberty City. Okay, see you soon!”
As Brenda reenters the room, she begins to uncover the patient’s face. Upon seeing and cleaning a bit of the face, her own emotion turns into horror. Oh no, could it be? It couldn’t, Brenda says to herself.
Scene Eight: The Smithson Residence, 1423 Seneca Avenue, Liberty City, 01948.
“How hard it is for you? How hard should it be to accept your own grandchild Susan?” Monica asks in a harsh, piercing tone. “Well, for Jessica and Derrick is came easy because they were actually my grandchildren. But this little fetus, who knows the sperm went into you to get you this baby,” Susan replies in an even harsher tone.
“Are you calling me a whore?” “Well if it sounds like a whore, smells like a whore, walks like a whore, it most definitely is beyond likely to be a whore. So I’m sure you could answer your own question, you’re smart enough not to lie about that?” “I don’t know, maybe when you start to butt out of your children’s lives then we’ll talk. Because unlike you, I won’t be an overbearing mother who smothers her children to the point where they suffocate.”
“I hardly call parenting smothering. Maybe you could pick up a tip or two, I mean I know Jamie did. Maybe that’s why her children are much more responsible than your little fetus ever could,” Susan so coldly says. Monica scowls at Susan and immediately walks up to her and gets ready to slap her, to which Susan grabs her arm and says, “Wouldn’t be the greatest move to hit your husband’s mother now would it Monica? Wouldn’t help your cause at all.”
Monica struggles to relieve herself from Susan’s grip, which she releases jolting Monica back but not enough to fall over. Both Monica and Susan look at each other with looks they only could share with each other, showing their distaste for each other’s role in their retrospective lives, and in Dustin’s as well.