Opening Credits
At the restaurant, Claudia is showing Grace Charlie's high school yearbook from 1987. Grace laughs, saying he looked like Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers! His ten year reunion is tomorrow night and he's not really looking forward to it. Charlie was a big hot shot basketball player - a celebrity. Grace tells him he should go and have fun. In a snarky way, he tells her he'll just go and brag about his wife and kids and job. She smacks him.
Julia and Justin are walking together to class and he tells her of his Christmas trip. Julia sees Libby, her old friend who she hasn't been all that friendly with since she *stole* Justin away from Libby, and she overhears someone congratulating her for getting into Harvard! She downplays it, hanging her head and moving along to her class. Justin says to Julia kiddingly that when he broke up with her, it gave her more time to study. He's obviously jealous of Libby's success.
Two of Charlie's friends, Aaron and T.J. are at the house with him, prepping for the reunion. They talk about some girl named Mindy, who is now working as a massage therapist, which they intepret to be a prostitute. They kid Charlie about going after the cheerleaders.
Sarah seated on Bailey's bed, is working on her application for college as Bailey sits nearby reading. She leans back onto the pillows and finds a very long hair on Bailey's pillow. Bailey scoffs her, saying Callie's hair is everywhere all over the apartment. When she returns to her books, Bailey asks if she's trying to pick a fight. Miffed, she shuts her books, yawns and tells him she can't stay awake and should go home. As she moves to the door, Callie comes in from jogging, sweaty and disheveled. She sees the two of them and excuses herself to take a shower, at which point, Sarah has gotten a second wind and returns to the bed to continue her studying.
Charlie, Aaron and T.J. break into the high school gym later that night and re-enact their glory moment when their basketball team won the championship. At the buzzer, last second, Grant High School won and Charlie and his friend were heros. The three of them really got into acting this out.
At the coffeehouse, Julia is sitting on Sam's lap, kissing his cheek when a frazzled Justin enters asking to talk to her. Julia introduces Sam to Justin and excuses herself. They walk a few steps away, where Justin breaks the news to Julia that he's upset because Libby is dead. Julia scoffs at him, saying "she is not" and Justin tells her Libby killed herself. The two of them stare off.
Commercial Break
At school the next morning, Justin looks simply horrible. He tells Julia he didn't sleep all night. The teacher starts class by saying instead of getting to the lesson plan, why don't they just talk about what happened? As the teacher is talking to the students in the background, Julia and Justin confess to each other that Libby called them each of Christmas break, but neither of them returned her call.
At the coffeehouse, Sarah and Bailey are sitting together as Sarah talks of crying over Libby. Bailey tells her he has to go home because he has a paper to work on. Sarah begs him not to leave her. He snaps at her, saying it's okay, Callie isn't there. Sarah gets all defensive, and asks Bailey if he's accussing her of continuing to talk, just to keep him from going home? She tells him to go, but he takes off his coat and after much compromise, he stays.
Charlie is at the reunion party and has been cornered by a guy showing him pictures of his wife, kids and the dog. Charlie manages to excuse himself and make his way over to someone he knows. It's Lori. He sees she's married and he tells her she's still beautiful.
Outside the party, in the parking lot, Charlie is talking to Lori and tells her he thought about calling her many times, but he didn't because he always thought she hated him. She laughs at the memory of him yelling at her, "I love you! Go to bed with me!" He laughs, but tells her he meant it - she was the first girl he said it to that it meant something. She suggests they go back in to the party. Charlie shakes his head, remembering in high school everything was a matter of life or death and now looking back, twenty-twenty hindsight...everything was easy! Lori asks honestly if he could back, would he do it?
Bailey is with Sarah in her room and presents her with her birthday present - a fake ID. Her face drops. She scoffs at the present, asking if there's a card or anything to go along with it? He hands her one and she snatches it quickly and reads it, turning it over and over, looking for more to it. She reads outloud, "Happy Birthday, I love you." She is so disappointed because she writes these really long romantic things to him in any card she gives him. He asks her what's wrong? He details how much time he put into getting her just the right card and it cost money and how he did it so they could spend more time together going places. "Is that not enough?!" he asks.
Julia is sitting with Justin and he explains he just can't focus. He wonders if while they were in the hall the other day, if Libby knew then what she was going to do? She took a lot of pills, then went out to the closed garage. Justin says he's replayed the whole thing, where they stop Libby from killing herself. Julia reaches over and tells him it's not their fault just because they weren't close friends anymore. Julia questions why? Why did Libby do it? She was only 17 and had her whole life ahead of her. Justin asks Julia to explain why to him. She can't.
Commercial Break
Charlie reports in to Grace that he had a nice time at the reunion. His friend Aaron wants him to come to work with him in the corporate insurance business and Charlie is seriously considering doing it. This reunion has conjurred up a whole nest of feelings and especially feelings being around these people again. Charlie says those were the best years of his life. Grace tells him it certainly wasn't for her.
Julia rings a doorbell and Libby's mother answers. Surprised to see Julia, she pulls her towards her and hugs her. Mrs. O'Hare takes Julia into Libby's room and they are looking at pictures. The doorbell rings again in the distance, but Mrs. O'Hare ignores it and begins sobbing. She doesn't know what to do....how should she feel? "Why didn't we know? Why wasn't there a note?" She walks to the closet and hands Julia a sweater, saying it was a Christmas gift that Libby never wore and she thinks it will look good on Julia. Julia sits back on the bed and tells Libby's mother she remembers Libby keeping a journal when they used to hang out together and she kept it under her bed in the box her cowboy boots came in. Mrs. O'Hare stoops under the bed and pulls out the box, finding a journal. She hands it to Julia, telling her she just can't look at it. Julia takes it.
Julia is sitting in her car, reading a passage of Libby talking about watching "Love Story" and how it was set at Harvard and she can't think of not getting into school there....
Out at a dance club, Bailey is trying to talk to Sarah over the music. She's acting snarky to him, like she wants to be anywhere but there and tells him she doesn't want to stay, but he goes to get them drinks. Some guy comes up to Sarah and asks her to dance. She says no at first, then she decides to do it afterall. When Bailey returns with the drinks, he sees her on the dance floor with this strange guy and knowing Bailey is watching, Sarah starts to dance more provacative with this guy, sliding up against him and looking all wanton. She makes sure Bailey is watching...which he is.
Still reading from Libby's journal, Julia speaks of a passage where Libby is talking about the weight of being accepted to Harvard. She is crushed and realizes she can't do this. She's never going to be "one of them" and the weight of this was more than Libby could take. Julia finishes reading - and Justin is there - she was reading the last passage to him. Then, she closes the journal, telling him that's the end.
Outside the night club, Sarah is walking fast away from Bailey when he stops her and raises his voice, asking if she's trying to make him feel like crap, because if that was her intention, it worked! "You want to cheat on me?!" he yells at her. Sarah says, "yes" and admits she wants to cheat, too. He tells her this has to stop and pleads that he is trying to make things up to her. Sarah doesn't want to hear this and screams that she just wants to get even and "I want to be in love with someone else!"
T.J. is playing basketball with Claudia, telling Charlie he's going to marry her when she gets older. Then, the friends start bickering. Aaron starts in on how selfish T.J. is because he wouldn't pass the ball in the last six seconds of the basketball game and because of that, he's been stuck in a lousy boring job. Charlie tries to stop them from fighting, but it doesn't work. T.J. shouts back, "this from the guy who slept with his best friend's girlfriend!" Charlie is shocked. "You slept with Lori?" Then, Charlie shakes his head, walks off and says, "You know, it's really too bad we don't see each other more often." He leaves the room.
Commercial Break
Charlie is visiting with Lori and they are talking about her young daughter who is nearby playing. They are sitting on the porch drinking coffee. Lori laughs at the Three Stooges together again and asks Charlie how it's been going with Aaron and T.J. at his house. Charlie is curious and can't help but broach the subject of her sleeping with Aaron. She's shocked and then explains to him she was seventeen and an idiot. They were at a party and got really drunk. She then tells Charlie this is why she didn't sleep with him because it wouldn't have been her first time. Looking at him, she asks if this really matters now? He says they will always have senior year - a perfect time....but it really wasn't.
Everyone pours into the church for Libby's funeral. Julia and Justin are seated together and he asks her to not ever die. Sarah is sitting in the back by herself when Bailey slips in and apologizes for being late. He realizes this is the first time she's ever been to a funeral and reaches for her hand. The service starts and friends get up to speak of Libby, saying she would want them to "keep going." Julia stands up and goes to the front to speak. She disagrees with the previous speaker, Gail, who said Libby would want them to "keep going." She thinks Libby would want them to stop and make sure that everything you're doing right now is what makes you happy. Julia says she's trying to find something in this and explains how Libby got on a road with signs pointing "This Way" but as she got where she was going, she realized all the things there were wrong. Bailey looks to Sarah during this speech. Libby's mother seems pleased with what Julia said.
Bailey is sitting at the kitchen table at his apartment after the funeral when Callie comes in and asks about it. He tells her Sarah didn't say two words to him and that she's still mad at him. Bailey stresses he can't keep apologizing - but he has too because he's wrong and he had to keep saying it and give her the time she needs because he loves her. Callie sighs and walks off. Bailey says he lost sight of his love for Sarah.
At Salinger's, Charlie is cleaning off the bar with some help from Owen. He talks to Owen, saying he's going to put him to work and teach him the business and one day the two of them can run the place together. Tells Owen that the name of the restaurant belongs to him too. Charlie is truly happy for the first time in a long time.
Sarah and Bailey are walking together that evening and she asks him who is the strongest person he knows? When he answers with a a guy he wrestles with, she corrects him, saying she means strongest - not physically. Bay answers Claudia because she's a great kid, despite all she's been through, even though most of it's been bad. She always stands up for herself and isn't a push-over. Sarah says she's a push-over and doesn't like herself very much and she does not, especially, like herself with him. Bailey tells her it's not like her to be a cold and angry person. She looks at him, saying if she forgive him, she's a wuss with no self respect. She can't win unless she ends it. She thought at the funeral - "what's the point?" and the hurt has to stop. Bailey stresses to he that you can't just give up and she says, through tears, "Yeah, you do." She tells him life is too short not to try. With a long sigh of relief, she can't believe she just did it...she broke up with him and she's surprised at herself.
Julia is at the Post Office getting postage for her college applications. The clerk reads off the names of the schools and the amount of the postage. She takes them back from him and walks outside to mail them. At the mailbox, she hesitates for a long while, then shoves the envelopes inside the box and walks off into the night.
Claud is showing Grace Charlie's old yearbook. Claud is checking out Charlie's friends who are coming into town. Charlie isn't too hot cuz he doesn't have too much to brag about.
Justin and Julia are talking. They pass Libby in the hall. She got into Harvard on early action. Julia and Justin can't believe it but she tries not to make much of a deal out of it. She doesn't seem too excited. Justin said that she was being smug. Julia says that they should know soon whether or not they got into Stanford.
Two guys are over at the house talking and drinking beer. T.J.'s talking about some girl named Laurie. They start talking about women.
Sarah and Bai are over at the apartment. She's looking at college applications. She leans back on the bed and finds a long red hair. "Her hair is all over the apartment." Bai asks if there's something she wants to talk about because it seems like she wants to pick a fight. She says no and that she better go home because she's tired and she's afraid she'll fall asleep behind the wheel. As she's about to leave, Callie comes in from a run and says something about her endurance is okay but her form sucks. She sees Sarah and leaves to take a shower. Sarah gets her second win and decides to stay.
Charlie and his two friends break into the old school gym and start shooting hoops doing that "play by play" thing that guys always do.
Julia is sitting on Sam's lap in the coffee shop when Justin walks in. "Can I talk to you," he says. Julia introduces them and they walk off. "You didn't hear. Gayle called me. Libby's dead." Julia says that's ridiculous. "No, Julia it isn't. She killed herself."
It's the next day at school. Justin said he didn't sleep at all last night. The teacher comes in and says they're going to skip the lesson and just talk about Libby. Justin tells Julia that Libby left him a message over Christmas break and he didn't call her back. "She left me one too," Julia said. Justin asks if she called her back and she says no.
Sarah and Bai are talking at the pizza joint. She's upset about Libby and they talk about it a little. Then Bailey says he has to go because he has to do a paper. Sarah says, "Can't we spend a little more time together?" she asks. Then Bailey tells her that Callie's not at the apartment if that's what she's worried about. She can't believe that he's being that self-centered.
Charlie is at the big class reunion talking to people. He sees Lori, who's married. He says he thought about calling her but he thought she'd still be mad at him. He apologizes for pressuring her. Apparently it was after the "big" basketball game. "You're not going to scream 'I love you, why won't you go to bed with me?'" she asked. He says that he meant it though. "It seems like everything was life or death in high school. Everything was such a big deal."
Bai gives Sarah her birthday present-it's a fake ID. "So it's so I can go drinking with you?" He says no, it's so they can hang out. She says she can't go out with him tonight, celebrating wouldn't seem right. "So is there a card with this or anything?" she asks him. Then she gets upset that all he wrote on the card was "Happy Birthday. I love you."
Julia is over at Justin's helping him with some essay. He can't think because he's obsessing about Libby. He keeps picturing her and imagining them finding out and going in and saving them. Julia says there wasn't any way fro them to know. "It's not our fault." Justin doesn't understand why she did it. "She's 17. There's her whole life in front of her. Why Julia? Explain it to me," he says. "I can't," Julia says.
Charlie and Grace are getting coffee. One of Charlie's friends offered him a job-something in corporate insurance. She thinks it would be a little dry. He says it's not really the job, it's being around the people. Charlie says they were the best years of his life.
Julia goes over to see Libby's mom. She gives her a hug. Then they're up in her bedroom. She's looking at a picture. Her mom says it was her sweet 16 and that Libby wanted to invite her but it was right after Justin. Libby's mom can figure it out. She says that she wishes she had left a note. She gets a sweater out of the closet that they had given her for Christmas and offers it to Julia. Julia said that Libby kept a journal, or used to, and maybe she still did. Libby's mom pulls out her cowboy boot box and finds a journal. She can't read it and asks Julia too. Julia sits out in her car reading some of her entries. Libby wrote about how much she wants to get in.
Bai and Sarah are at a club. They're trying to talk (yelling). He asks if she wants something to drink and she says, "What, we're staying here?" Then Bai says he thought she liked it and she says, "No, you liked it." He goes off to get something to drink. A guy comes up and asks her to dance. She says no at first but then decides, what the hey. Bai comes back and sees her.
Julia is reading a journal entry to Justin. It's about how after Libby found out that she got into Harvard she didn't think she could ever be one of them and fit in.
Bai and Sarah storm out of the club. Bai wants to know what she's doing and if she's trying to make him feel jealous than it worked. He asks Sarah if she wants to cheat on him and she says maybe she does. Bai can't believe that nothing he does is good enough; nothing he buys is good enough; nothing he says is good enough.
Claud and T.J. are playing horse. The other guy wants to play but T.J. won't let him. He starts joking about high school and how T.J. was a ball hog. Then it turns serious. The argument moves into the house and Charlie can't believe they're fight about a 10-year-old game. Then T.J. says, "So I took something of yours. At least I wasn't off sleeping with my best friend's girlfriend." Charlie can't believe that he slept with Lori. "Gee, it's really too bad we don't see each other more often," Charlie says and walks off.
Charlie goes over to Lori's house. Her little girl is playing in the front yard. She says that it must have been fun, The Three Stooges, back together. Then he asks her, "You slept with Aaron?" She's surprised he told her. "I was 17, I was an idiot." She says she was at some party and the punch got spiked. She asks him if it really matters and he says no. Charlie says that all this time he's looked at senior year as a perfect time, and it turns out that it wasn't.
Julia and Justin are at Libby's service. There's a lot of people there. "Hey Julia. Do me a favor. Don't ever die." Bailey slips into the seat by Sarah. "I'm sorry I'm late," he says. "You're not that late," she says. Sarah admits that she's never been to a funeral.
One of the classmates is up talking. After she finishes the priest asks if anyone else would like to say something. Julia gets up and disagrees with what the other girl said about keeping going. Julia says Libby would have wanted them to stop and make sure that whatever they are doing right now is making them happy. "You just can't live for some goal in the future and have that be everything and have that be it. Because that's what she did. It's like she got on this road and there were all these signs that say 'This Way' but what happens if you get there and all the things that were wrong are still wrong. Then what?"
Bai is at the apartment. Callie walks in and asks if it was awful? She realizes that was a stupid question and asks if Sarah was really upset. Bai tells her how Sarah is still mad at her. Bai says yesterday he reached his limit and it "was like enough. How many times can I say I'm sorry." Callie says that there's only so many times you can say you're sorry. But Bai says she's wrong. He's going to keep saying it.
Charlie is at the restaurant. Owen's helping him clean up. He jokes about starting him at the restaurant.
Bai and Sarah are walking around. Sarah asks who the strongest person is that he knows, character wise. Bai says Claudia. "She's had all this bad stuff happen to her but she's still such a great kid...If there's one thing she's not, it's a push over." Sarah says that she's a pushover and the she doesn't like herself much lately. "And I really don't like myself with you," she says. She says she can't win...unless she ends it. "You want to break up?" Bai asks. Sarah says she was sitting at the funeral thinking about what the point of all their fighting and breaking up and getting back together. He says you can't go through all that and give up. "Yes you do. Sometimes you do," she says. "Don't you want to be happier than this."
Julia goes to the post office to mail her college applications. She pays for the postage and then takes them outside to the mailbox. She hesitates and then puts them in the mailbox.
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Season 3 Episode Guide.