Within Arm's Reach

The morning after the Easter party, Lila wakes up naked and hungover in Weber’s bed. She remembers going to drink vodka after the party and going back to Weber’s apartment. She tells him not to tell anyone what happened and that this is the only time they will see each other. Weber agrees but says that he knew they would get together eventually. She returns to Gracie’s house and takes a shower before going to the hospital. There, she talks to Belinda, who questions her about what she wants to specialize in and criticizes her for being unable to communicate with people.

Lila then thinks about how she only went into med school because Catharine originally wanted her to be a lawyer like Patrick but, after Lila expressed that she did not want to, Kelly suggested she become a doctor. Belinda is then called into the emergency room, and Lila tries her cigarette. She decides that she will not go to work or school that day and leaves.

On the way, Lila sees her mother leave after getting a haircut from Mayor Carrelli and then goes toward a fire to see Weber. There, she sees Joel, who remarks about her having sex with Weber. Lila confronts him about his being the father of Gracie’s baby. However, he says that he got back together with Margaret and they are in love, not wanting to discuss Gracie or the baby any further. Joel walks away, and Lila worries that Joel, Margaret, Charlene, and Mayor Carrelli will gossip about her and Weber.

Lila then goes to Weber’s apartment and says she will only be with him one more night and then she will go back to her old life. She listens to him talk, and they have sex. Still thrown off by recent events, Lila works for the following two weeks before calling in sick and then faking mononucleosis. She cannot get the apartment and stays with Gracie. In addition, she continues to see Weber.

Catharine walks around her room in the assisted living home for exercise but trips and falls to the ground. She feels pain in her hip and struggles to feel or move her legs. As she lies there, she recalls that the rug belonged to her mother and was where her children played. She then reflects on how she did not play with her children, as that was not what parents did in that time. Parents were to discipline and prepare their children for the world. Catharine remembers feeling frustrated at Pat for crying when Patrick would hit him. At the time, she felt that it was not Patrick’s fault that his mind associated Pat’s birth with the death of his beloved firstborn daughter. She helped Pat leave for a summer job when he was a teenager, which led to him leaving the house for good. Catharine regrets not getting care for her firstborn daughter sooner, not getting Ryan’s psychiatric issues treated, and not standing up for Pat and the rest of her children. She hopes she can fix her mistakes with the birth of her great-grandchild.

Catharine thinks about calling for help, and her dead mother appears to her. She asks her mother for help, but her mother says she cannot. She then tells her mother about her great-grandchild, and her mother bitterly says that Catharine never let her see her grandchildren before her death. Catharine says she could have gone to visit them in New Jersey. Her mother criticizes her for constantly trying to fix her family and make it more ideal, saying that loss and grief are part of love. Catharine then asks her mother for a blanket and falls asleep before being woken up by Nurse Stronk, who asks Catharine questions. Though Catharine is unable to respond, she goes over the questions in her mind, replying to the last question that she is hurt.

Kelly was depressed after learning about Gracie’s pregnancy. Louis had to buy the groceries for her, and she has only been to work, Vince’s barbershop, and her motel room since the party. She laments that her siblings only call her when they need something, and her daughters have not talked to her much in the past two months. She goes to the motel room to think about her life, starting to think more about Vince. She decides she needs a friend and calls him.

After telling him she is not seeking an appointment, Vince tells her that he has fallen in love with her. This shocks and excites Kelly, and she begins to talk about meeting with him when she gets a call on her other phone from Louis. Louis tells her that Catharine broke her hip, and, after hanging up, Kelly tells Vince she will call him back.

Kelly and Louis wait at the hospital while Catharine is being examined. She sees a man with his young daughter, which reminds her of the girls. She confides in Louis that she is worried about Gracie raising her child alone. One of the doctors, Doug Miller—one of Lila’s friends and one of Gracie’s ex-boyfriends—informs them that Catharine will have surgery the next day to repair her broken hip.

Kelly and Louis visit Catharine in her room, and she complains about the doctors giving her pain medication, which she always refuses. She also tells Kelly that she does not need to do everything. After a short while, Kelly soothes her and she falls asleep. Kelly then has Louis go back home and let the girls know about Catharine. Kelly then goes to a payphone. She thinks about how the payphone reminds her of when she and her siblings would go to the confessional as children and she more often than not only talked about her siblings’ misdeeds. Kelly calls her siblings before calling Vince again. She has him meet her at the motel. To her shock, she invites him into her motel room.

Louis wakes up the following morning and goes into their bedroom to see Kelly asleep in the bed. He has not gone back to sleeping in the bed, because he still has nightmares about Eddie and he wants to be completely better when he goes back into their bedroom. He then goes downstairs where he finds a note from Kelly explaining that she spent the whole night with Catharine and asking him to pick up Ryan and meet her at the hospital. He makes coffee and then leaves a note letting her know he left fresh coffee for her and that he and Ryan will see her at the hospital. He does not like dealing with Ryan due to his delusions and cruel statements and feels that it is not Kelly’s responsibility to put up with him. Noting how run-down the apartment building is when he goes to get Ryan, he decides he will eventually tear down the building.

When Louis arrives at Ryan’s apartment, he informs him that Kelly will meet them there after sleeping in for a while. Ryan says that Catharine told him Kelly was gone when they talked on the phone last night, but Louis dismisses it as painkiller-induced confusion. They arrive at the hospital and talk to Catherine as she is being prepared for surgery. After Louis goes to wait outside the room, he begins thinking about Eddie’s fall again, making him feel sick and depressed. He also recalls coming home to see then-15-year-old Gracie naked by her bedroom window before going to have sex with a boy. Though he wanted to stop it, he found himself walking away, disturbed.

Lila and Gracie then arrive at the hospital. They visit Catherine, and Louis recognizes one of the nurses as Eddie’s wife, who goes by her maiden name Noreen Ballen. She apologizes for being so emotional at the funeral. Kelly arrives, as do several other McLaughlins. Louis says he will leave to check on his men, but Kelly accuses him of only pretending to care about her. Outside, he sees Weber James in the parking lot, learning he took Lila to the hospital. Louis wonders what Lila sees in him and he leaves. As he does, he sees Lila walk outside for fresh air before going to see Weber, though, it seems, not happily. He then learns Noreen Ballen is off and follows her to her house.

Gracie reveals that she has not gone to work or talked to Grayson in the week since Catharine’s fall. She has not answered Grayson’s messages and keeps mostly to herself when she is not visiting Catharine. Catharine has not been fully herself since the surgery, appearing weaker. Meggy and Gracie both believe the nurses are getting her up too soon and the family is figuring out Catharine’s living situation after recovery. Meggy has been aggressive and unkind to Gracie, still trying to get her to give away her baby. However, Angel has remained kind and supportive toward Gracie.

During their conversation about Catharine, Kelly tells Gracie that she has always been responsible as the oldest child, even when she did not want to be. Gracie then reveals that Meggy had been trying to get her to give up her baby. This angers Kelly. Louis then reveals to Kelly that he had talked to Noreen Ballen about her being Catharine’s nurse, allowing her to stay in her room at the assisted living home. Gracie goes to tell Catharine, but she does not respond.

After the nurse announces the end of visiting hours, Gracie returns home where Lila is drinking peppermint tea. Lila reads the columns submitted by Grayson and Gracie is frustrated, believing that it is not good enough advice and says she misses her old life and writing good columns. Soon after, she sits outside on the porch when Grayson arrives, saying she has not been answering his messages. She thinks he wants to talk about her columns initially, but Grayson then says he still wants to marry her so he can help provide for the baby. She says she will not marry someone who pities her, but Grayson says that he wants to have a family. He also says he believes he might love Gracie and has always tried to be involved in her life, including as a friend.

Grayson also tells her he will love her baby as his own. She tells him that she deserves to be alone and that they both deserve better. But he tells her marrying would be better for both of them. He then asks if she knows who she is and says he does. When he asks her if she wants her baby to have a mother who knows who she is, Gracie says yes.

After the start of her crisis, Lila goes to the library and writes letters in which she details her thoughts and feelings about the turn her life has taken. In her latest letter, she writes about how ridiculous it is that Weber and so many other people need things in which to believe. She does not believe in God, destiny, soulmates, or staying in a relationship or marriage for the children. She feels ridiculous for writing these letters and ends up disposing of most of them.

After writing this letter, Weber surprises her by touching her on the shoulder, something that he does frequently and that annoys her. He then says he met Catharine in the hospital and talked to her about life. This further angers her. He then suggests going over to Dairy Queen and talking more. She goes with him. There, she is irritated by a woman crying next to her. Weber asks her what is wrong, and the woman says she failed a test and an important person at her work does not like her. He tells her to go and rest her mind. When she hears he is a firefighter she looks up admiringly. Lila realizes the woman is Belinda and begins chastising her for letting herself fall apart. Belinda says she is hateful, but when Lila says they are classmates, Belinda says Lila is the top of the class and says she must stop comparing herself to Lila before walking away. Lila realizes she will go back to medical school and ends her fling with Weber.

Weber drives her back to the library, from which Lila goes to Gracie’s house. There, she finds Gracie in her room and tells her she is going back to medical school. Gracie asks Lila if she will be her birthing coach, which reminds Lila of when she accompanied Gracie to get her abortion. She agrees to it. After getting a call from Weber’s radio, which he left in her purse, Lila realizes Ryan’s apartment is on fire. Lila and Gracie drive to the apartment building.

Gracie briefly sees a drunken Joel and confronts him before learning that their father is there. Louis saves Ryan, but does not save the birds, who soon go out of the window. Weber emerges from the house and excitedly tells Lila that he and the crew saved everyone inside and were able to put out the fire. Seeing Weber’s bravery and love for his job, Lila realizes she needs a career that gives her joy and decides she will drop out of medical school.