The First Stone

It’s been three weeks at the rehab center, and Leeza is struggling. She hates her body now, and her pain is so obvious and immediate that her friends can’t handle long visits with her, although they try to hide it. Brett tells Leeza that she gave a tour to a cute boy on the floor today, and she thinks Leeza will like him. However, Leeza is uncomfortable about guys, particularly in her current state. She also assumes that he can’t be normal if he’s volunteering there.

Reef is nervous to see his friends. He has quit smoking, and although he’s getting used to Alex’s flamboyance, he knows how Jink and Bigger will react to his housemate. Matheson delivers them, and Scar kisses Reef as soon as she gets out of the car. They’re impressed by Reef’s health and new muscle. He has found time to enjoy the greenhouse work and to find satisfaction in his ability to solve a problem.

He tells them about the rehab center and Brett. Reef had spent the afternoon with Stephen, who screamed throughout their time together, but it wasn’t as bad as he had expected. Reef read a newspaper to Stephen, which included an article about the store that would be replacing The Pit.

Jink and Bigger make gay jokes as Alex walks by. Alex stops and asks them to finish the joke, before asking Reef to introduce him. Bigger glares at Alex until he moves on, but it is a tense moment. When they leave, Alex tells Reef that he doesn’t think his friends like him.

Leeza asks, again, when her fixators can come out. The cast is off her arm, but she is depressed by the rods in her pelvis. She is exhausted constantly and is tired of pretending to be strong.

Carly compliments Reef on his work with Stephen. Then she says she wants him to meet another patient who was in a nasty automobile wreck. He asks for her name and thinks of the Subaru. He thinks the girl whom he hit with the rock was named Elizabeth, but he isn’t certain. He often dreams of her mother pointing at him outside the courthouse. He is relieved to see that the girl’s name was Elizabeth Morrison, but the person he will be helping is named Leeza Hemming.

Leeza is embarrassed by her appearance when she meets Reef, who she finds very handsome. She is more at ease when she sees that he’s as unhappy as she is. As they introduce themselves, her robe accidentally comes open, revealing her catheter. She’s embarrassed, but Reef downplays it. Then they laugh together, uncontrollably.

Reef takes her downstairs to the lounge, and they watch the street. Leeza realizes she hasn’t laughed that hard since the joy of passing her driver’s test. Ellen was diagnosed a week later, and now Leeza can’t stop crying at the memory.

Reef tells Frank about the day on the drive back to North Hills. He wonders about Leeza’s sudden crying. She had told him about her sister’s cancer, and he told her about Nan. In fact, they had used the same funeral home and had each taken dirt home from the plots. Reef surprises himself by telling Frank that it was a good day.

Brett is surprised to see Leeza smiling in the morning and demands details. Later, Leeza tells her mother about Reef, and Diane is happy to hear it. She is busy, and Leeza knows her relationship with Jack is strained. Illness terrifies him because he has seen too much of it in his own family. Leeza tells her mother to go on a date with him because she wants to start helping herself now. She says Reef helped her remember she can be strong.

Reef goes back to rehab earlier than he needs to. He can’t stop thinking about Leeza. He reads the paper to Stephen. He starts to read an article about Rowdy Brewster when Leeza appears. She seems wary. He takes her outside to the public gardens. As they eat at Dairy Queen, Reef sees another girl in a wheelchair, which makes him wonder again about Elizabeth Morrison.

As they wait, Reef tells Leeza stories about Alex’s cooking. Finally, he takes her back when she is worn out. When they’re alone, Leeza tells Brett that Reef makes her want to move on. It finally feels like it’s possible for her to make progress.