Season 5, Episode 4: A Mid-Semester's Night Dream


Charlie cares for Daphne


The credits: scott bairstow, scott grimes, jennifer aspen, adam scott, ross malinger, jacob smith, kim murphy, and heather mccomb, lynsey bartilson, joanna garcia, jim antonio, edited by stephen potter, production designer bill eigenbrodt, director of photography joe pennella, co-producer valerie joseph, producer daniel attias, producer paul marks, supervising producer steven robman, consulting producer p.k. simonds, co-executive producer tammy ader, executive producer ken topolsky, executive producer john romano, written by julia dahl, directed by adam nimoy.
Transcribed by Rachel

Hospital
Daphne's doctor instructs Charlie how to take Daphne's blood pressure. Daphne asks for clarification on bed rest. Can she be on the couch, in a car, in the movie theater with her feet up? The doctor ignores her and tells Charlie how to inject Daphne's medication. She asks why he isn't answering her questions. He states that he is her perinatalogist and he's trying any way he can to keep that baby inside of her. She is obviously grumpy and talks back to him. Charlie tries to make excuses for her; the nurses keep waking her up at all hours of the night, her roommate has been watching Spanish television at a high volume, etc. The doctor says that the medication can cause depression and irritability. Daphne goes off on him. She feels fat, hasn't had a good shower in days . . . . The doctor speaks rather sternly to her. She has eight weeks to go. He's seen pre-term babies go through months and years of complications. The baby's little tea bag sized lungs are not ready to start breathing so he's trying to scare her so she will take the bed rest seriously.

Stanford
Julia is studying in her room when Maggie and Ned come in after yoga. Maggie's sweaty and goes to take a shower. Ned offers Julia candy corn. They both start apologizing about the kiss in the library. Both say it should never have happened. Maggie walks back in and then leaves. They both continue to share their guilt. He's cheating on his high school sweetheart. She's lying to her new best friend. Maggie comes in again. She's sorry and kisses Ned. Julia says he wins. What he did is worse.

Salingers
Bailey is on the phone with a customer trying to make a reservation. He can't understand the guy and asks how he got Bailey's cell phone number. Bay looks up and sees his high school friend Will on the pay phone. They embrace. Bailey asks what Will's doing there. He thinks Will looks like crap. Will helps Bailey with his bartending duties. Bay continues to try to figure out what Will is doing there.

Charlie's bedroom
Daphne is in bed watching television when Charlie and Kirsten bring in her lunch. Kirsten toasted Owen's pumpkin seeds for her. Daphne points out that it's more salt, more water retention. Kirsten tries to lighten the mood by suggesting a baby shower. They could save some money and have a good time. They could have it right there in the bedroom and Daphne could hold court. Charlie thinks it's a great idea. They could have the buffet out in the hallway. Daphne isn't as enthusiastic, but tells them to go for it. Kirsten is happy. Daphne says that Kirsten is lovely, but she's thin, so could she please get out of Daphne's eye line. Kirsten smiles and moves.

Hanover
Claudia and her friends are dressed up as witches. There is a knock at the door. It is opened to reveal Jamie, Claudia's boyfriend from San Francisco. The girls have never heard of him. Claudia tries to cover. Jamie can't believe it. His dad has a meeting in Boston and Jamie begged to come only to get this kind of a reception? Claudia again makes excuses. It's almost mid-terms and they only have two brains between them. Claudia is surprised to see him. They hug.

Loft
Will is at Bailey and Sarah's for supper. He's not going back to college. He's over Greek life, the dating scene sucks and he doesn't love accounting. Unfortunately, if he's not in school, his parents aren't footing the bill so he asks if he can stay with them for a while. The phone rings interrupting their response. It's a girl for Will, a Hannah. He asks Sarah to take a message. She's part of that terrible dating scene, even tracking him down in California. Bay and Sarah say that he can stay, of course . . . he's family.

Stanford
Maggie tells Julia she's having trouble with Ned. He's not sleeping with her. Julia apologizes, but she has to finish her bibliography. Josh interrupts them for some advice about his assignment. Julia's computer beeps. It's a message from a secret admirer.

Charlie's bedroom
Daphne is talking about how much of her life is going to be spent in bed while Charlie tries to figure out when to have the shower. Daphne asks if he's going to ask when she wants it. He never asks her when she wants anything. She feels like an alien pod or a receptacle or something. When he says the word "baby" to her, she completely melts, but now when he says it it makes her feel like the baby gets bigger and she is just melting away. She's still there.

Stanford
Julia finds her bibliography completely formatted. Maggie wonders how someone could have done that. She asks Ned. He says that whoever did it would have to be pretty smart. He would have to have gotten her IP address or come into her room when nobody was there. Maggie remembers that Josh was in their room alone the night before while she found money to pay for her delivery. Josh must be the secret admirer. Ned asks why Maggie never carries cash.

Salingers
There's a phone message from Hannah for Will. Bailey thinks he should join the witness protection program. He says Will should call and tell her to get loss. If Will won't do it, Bay will do it for him. Will says he'll call her himself. When he does Hannah isn't there. She left school.

Hanover
Jamie misses Claudia. He asks if he'll see her tomorrow at the dance. It's not a dance, but rather a haunted house Claudia has to work at. She's a host and won't be able to socialize. She thinks it would be better if he didn't come. They wouldn't even have time to talk to each other. She asks if that would be okay. He agrees.

Stanford
Julia meets Ned out in the quad. She asks if he's crazy. He wonders if she found any mistakes. When she asked to meet him in private he figured she had found a way to thank him. Julia says they need to deny themselves to each other. He is, he's ignoring his girlfriend because she reminds him of Julia. But he doesn't think he can do that anymore and he isn't sure he wants to. She says they have to because if Maggie finds out she'll feel terrible and Julia understands what that feels like. Ned wonders why she doesn't ask how he feels. When he thinks of her he gets a feeling in his gut like a roller coaster; scary and exciting and that is not to be ignored. She says they can't just pursue it because it feels good. He needs to stay away from her and she will stay away from him too. He protests, but she tells him to leave her alone.

Loft
It's late and Will can't sleep. He looks out the window over the city. Sarah walks in. She got up because she was thirsty. She asks Will if he wants some tea, but he refuses. She asks if he was pacing. First he says no, but then says yes. He was asleep, but then he woke up with a Charlie horse. He was trying to walk it off. Sarah says that once you French kiss somebody you can read their mind for the rest of their life. Is he okay? Does he want to talk about anything besides school? Will says no. Sarah says goodnight and he turns back to the window.

Charlie's bedroom
It's 4 am and Charlie is up taking Daphne's blood pressure. She says he doesn't have to do it, he looks so beat. It's just fine. No thanks to her, Daphne says. Charlie disagrees. She points out that he's being such a good guy, no thanks to her. She picks fights about every single little thing. Charlie admits that it's not easy, but she's doing a great job. She says that she's made her own bed. If she hadn't been such a jerk in the first place... Charlie says it isn't true, but she interrupts him. He shouldn't be so good about this because she needs to be angry at somebody about this. This is her fault. She did this to him and them and the baby. Charlie says that nothing she did made this happen. She disagrees. She willed it. She wished so many times that the baby would just disappear. She starts crying. Charlie says it was just wishing.

Baby store
Kirsten and Charlie are shopping for baby things. He tells her about what happened the night before. Daphne has always been so strong and independent, that was what initially attracted Charlie to her, but last night he saw a different side of her. She let her guard down and was vulnerable. He saw what she must have been like when she was a little girl and it totally changed the way he thinks of her. Kirsten takes pictures of Charlie with different strollers. Charlie's beeper goes off. It's a 911 from Daphne.

Salinger's
Bailey is dealing with his wine dealer. The guy won't leave the wine without money and the bank says it won't cover his check. Bay doesn't understand, he made a specific deposit just to cover this purchase. He's on hold with the bank as they speak. The wine guy tells him to work it out and call him. He leaves. Bailey asks Will about the deposit he asked him to make. Will forgot to do it. He swears that it's all there. Bailey says he won't, he trusts him. Will apologizes.

Costume story
Maggie and Julia are shopping for Halloween costumes. Julia is trying to get out of it, but Maggie wants to have a girls night out. Julia is surprised to hear that Ned isn't coming with them. Maggie says he's been really elusive recently. The costume lady says all the costumes are reserved except a couple of Gorbachev heads. Maggie says they'll take them. Julia doesn't think it'll work, but Maggie says they can be his conscience. She'll be his good side and Julia can be his bad side. Julia gives her a funny look and Maggie says they can do it the other way too.

Charlie's bedroom
Daphne is worried because the baby hasn't moved in about 3 hours. Charlie tells her not to panic. Owen comes in dressed as a Blues Brother. He says that maybe the baby is in a coma. Charlie says she isn't in a coma and takes on of Owen's two candy bars. He gives it to Daphne over his little brother's protests. The sugar will wake the baby right up. Owen complains. If they don't go trick or treating soon there will only be apples left. The baby moves. Owen asks again if they can go. While Daphne tells the baby not to ever do that again Charlie explains that he can't leave Daphne right now. He tells Owen to go ask Griffin to take him trick or treating. Owen doesn't care, he just wants to go before he's ten. He leaves. Charlie gets back on the bed and says he's going to stay right there with Daphne.

Stanford
Julia and Maggie make their way into the party in their matching Gorbachev costumes. Maggie tells Julia to go talk to Josh. She says she'll go say hi for Julia. Julia asks her to play it cool about them thinking he's the secret admirer. Julia turns around to see Ned enter the party. They make eye contact and then she disappears into the crowd.

Charlie's bedroom
Charlie comes in with a cart full of food, magazines, clothes, etc. Daphne asks what it is. Charlie says it's the stockpile for the duration, for the fort. The fort she asks. Charlie says that since Daphne has to stay in bed for the rest of the pregnancy he'll join her. He'll be pregnant with her. He has food, delivery menus, fresh socks, breath mints. The world is going to have to come to them, because he is going to be pregnant with her. They both laugh.

Loft
Will is packing his things when Bailey and Sarah come home. They ask what he's doing. He says he can't stay there when he's messing things up so bad. They should throw him out. Bailey says they won't throw him out. Will doesn't know why they shouldn't. He can't sleep, his heart is pounding, he can't think straight. He thinks he made a terrible mistake. Bay asks what, but Will won't stay. He has to leave. Sarah asks where he will go. He's going to walk around the block, get some fresh air. Will leaves. After he goes Sarah points out this is not just about forgetting to do an errand.

Hanover
Claudia is walking people through the haunted house. Jamie unmasks himself. She asks what he's doing there. He's gathering evidence. Of what, she asks. Jamie wants to meet the other man. It's obvious that she's having an affair. Claudia says that she isn't. Jamie points out that she hasn't told anybody about him, doesn't want to spend time with him. Why else would she be doing this? He walks out.

Stanford
Ned hunts down "Julia". He starts apologizing and says she means too much to him for things to stay this way. Julia is behind him and says his name in warning, but he either ignores her aor doesn't hear him. Finally she pulls her mask up and calls out Josh' name. Realizing he was talking to Maggie, Ned stops talking and they both watch while Julia accuses Josh of being her secret admirer and asks him to stop acting that way. She tells him to get over her, but she looks at Ned as she says it.

Hanover
Claudia chases Jamie out of the building. She admits that she's having an affair; an affair with the school, her life there. She loves it all, October in Massachusetts. She only has regrets about being there when she starts thinking about him. She doesn't want to miss him anymore. He's being dumped for a campus?

Charlie's bedroom
Charlie shows slides of the baby items on the ceiling while they both lie in bed. We see Charlie with a stroller and then modeling a fine leopard skin outfit which Daphne likes. Charlie questions how it will look with plaid. Daphne states that they are not having a preppie baby. They move onto high chairs only it seems Charlie didn't finish putting the rest of the slides in. Instead there are slides of Charlie when he was about 5 or 6 years old. The first one has him on a little Schwinn bike. Daphne says she had one just like it. The next slide is of him and a little girl. She comments on his Romeo ways. The final slide is a serious looking headshot. Daphne comments that he looks ready to carry the world on his shoulders. He has great eyes, she hopes the baby gets his eyes. They face one another and she comments that they haven't changed a bit. He leans in and kisses her.

Loft
It's one am and Will hasn't returned yet. Sarah is worried. Bailey says Will is a big boy. Sarah thinks they should wait up and Bailey should confront him. Maybe Will doesn't even realize that he's totally whacked out. Bailey sees it, but the last thing Will needs is pressure from them. They should just let it lie. They hear Will come in, but instead of going out, they turn out the light and go to sleep.

Stanford
Maggie comes home and asks if Julia is awake. She is. Josh thinks that Julia is out of her mind and Maggie agrees with him. Julia just isn't ready yet. Maggie points out that it doesn't have to be love. She should just do some kissing. That doesn't hurt anybody. She needs to stop making her bed. Julia wonders what she's talking about. Maggie says she's living a life with hospital corners, so controlled and all because she's afraid of falling in love again. Julia considers this as Maggie turns out the light and goes to sleep.

Charlie's bedroom
Charlie and Daphne are looking at each other soulfully. Daphne says she likes his pajamas. He likes hers. She recommends that they trade. He agrees. She asks him to slide over and they start to kiss again. She's worried that this won't be good for her heart rate. She asks him to go downstairs and check out one of the baby books. He can't, he's pregnant too. He instructs her to call the doctor. The person who answers asks if it's an emergency. She asks Charlie and he says it's a 4 alarm fire. They both laugh.

Loft
Bailey wakes up to the sound of someone knocking on their door. He opens it up to find a young woman. It's Hannah and she's looking for Will. Bailey asks if she's crazy. It's 2 am. Sarah comes to the door and finally Will gets up as well. Hannah says that he left and she couldn't get a hold of him. Will says he doesn't know her. She agrees but says they can talk in private or in front of his friends. Will doesn't move so Hannah continues. She understands that he's scared. She is too. She's sorry she didn't tell him herself. Bailey asks what's going on. Hannah understands that this is why he left, but they have to talk it over. Does he think she's happy about this. It was a one night stand after a couple of lousy beers and she is and it's his; it's theirs. Bailey invites her in.

Stanford
Julia gets up and puts a sweater on over her pajamas. She walks over to Ned's dorm and knocks on his door. He apologizes for what he did. She asks if his roommate is there. He went home for the weekend. She says that's good and walks into the room and starts to make out with him.
Notes:

Daphne=tears. I did not see a single moment of a scene with Daphne that did not make me cry. Every single one. I loved this plot line. The relationship between Daphne and Charlie is a very complicated one. They are each people with baggage (heck, who isn't?), but they are somehow learning to have a life together. It was so touching when Charlie brought all his things in so he could share Daphne's bed rest. Here's Rachel's devil's advocate comment for the night: doesn't Charlie have a job now? Loved every single moment of it.

I'm beginning to like Julia's story more. It's unfortunate that she seems to only involve herself in complicated, often inappropriate relationships. The sad thing is she would do well to develop a strong healthy relationship with her roommate rather than the roommate's boyfriend. Julia needs some girlfriends. This would be a much healthier way for her to move past her relationship with Griffin, although quite frankly I'm not sure she should be moving past that relationship at all.

Which brings me to my next point: why the heck have a great actor like Jeremy London if you aren't even going to use him! I miss Griffin and I'm sure there is more for him to do than be an off-screen babysitter for Owen. I think a trick or treating scene would have been terribly cute! At least we got to see Owen for a moment or two. Nice joke about turning ten because I swear that kid is going to be in junior high before I know it.

Anyone who reads the newsgroup or subscribes to the Po5 discussion list has been privy to much discussion about whether or not Claudia's big bomb was that she was a lesbian. Why is anybody fooled by Fox's promotions anymore? With no other indication, Claudia is going to have a school girl fling? Have you all been reading "Crush" too many times? Much like the possible suicide of Mrs. Reeves a couple of weeks ago, the truth turned out to be a pretty pedestrian thing. I'm glad Claudia's in love with school, she's way too young to have a long-distance boyfriend anyway. Of course I still can't figure out what she's doing in boarding school!

Good to see Scott Grimes back. I knew what the deal was with his girlfriend before the episode, but I still found myself wanting Bailey to get to the bottom of his friend's problems. It was also great to see Bay giving Will a hand after Will stuck by him during Bay's struggles with alcohol. They haven't always been close geographically, but these two are friends in a way that allows them to hold each other accountable. I can't wait to see the fall-out from Hannah's news.

Nice script from Julia Dahl. She's been around the block with these characters a few times and that always shows in the script. The pay-off is coming folks. The next couple of weeks promise to be full of some serious Salingerangst, the kind that we've grown to love and expect.

Copyright 1998 by Rachel Vagts. All rights reserved
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