Episode Report Card Niki: A+ | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Aaron's Gettin' Better
By Niki | Season 2 | Episode 16 | Aired on 03.20.2001
Cut to Zoe in the kitchen, scrunching up her nose as she pinches a salmon steak between her thumb and finger and asks, "Is salmon the same thing as smoked salmon?" Grace asks if she really expects an answer to that question. Zoe informs Grace that she's ignoring her, and then asks what is possibly one of the ten most important questions in life: is there dessert? Lily says of course -- apple cobbler. Zoe asks if she can go and see if Aaron's awake, but Lily says he needs to rest and that Zoe shouldn't bother him.
Unfortunately, someone else already is bothering him. Aaron's perched warily on the edge of the bed, casting his eyes left and right, ready for the attack. The camera swoops back as Soliloquy Aaron offers us a glimpse inside his head: "So when they come, sometimes you don't know, sometimes, so you wait. They always know where you are. Or, he does." He's interrupted by the sound of the doorbell downstairs. On the bed, Aaron jumps and looks over his shoulder.
Rick has arrived for dinner. He asks after Aaron, and Lily tells him that "he's doing so much better." She says she told Aaron about their engagement, and that she wants him to be at the wedding. Lily explains that he didn't get to go to the first one because "he was so sick, and Jake didn't want him there, and neither did I." Rick just looks at her and deadpans, "You think he'll behave?" I think he's kidding, anyway. Lily reacts as if he is and they both smile and head for the kitchen.
Upstairs, Aaron is still hunched up on the edge of the bed like a frail old man. There's a strange, rushing white noise in the background, which is getting louder. He flinches a little and moves to cover his ears before Soliloquy Aaron takes over. He keeps looking from side to side, never letting his eyes stay still for a second and explains, "When he's there -- which is less if I stay very still -- but when he is, he talks about me. He was in Nixon's cabinet see, so he knows all about me. When he's there, and when he's not."
On the bed, Aaron straightens up, tense, as if someone is approaching him, and he's expecting trouble. There's a sound of rushing air, and then a shadowy figure passes across the screen. It slowly becomes solid, and we can see that it's a man in a long black coat. Aaron follows the man's movement with his head, but keeps his eyes cast down, intimidated. A voice like something out of The Exorcist says, "Aaron? Aaron?" He flinches and jumps back a little, turning to the doorway. Lily's leaning in, repeating his name. Dude, I bet he's never been so happy to see someone in his life. It's like waking up from a nightmare, but you weren't asleep in the first place. Except that he's still not "awake." He stares at Lily, and a creepy, metallic man's voice orders him, "Talk to her." Aaron says her name. She asks if he's okay. "Oh, yes," he lies, looking away. His face is almost entirely shrouded in shadows. She asks if he's sure. "Tell her!" Nightmare Man orders. We get a flash of Soliloquy Aaron looking terrified. Aaron forces a smile, struggles to breathe normally, and manages to say, "I'm sure." He says he guesses that he closed his eyes and dreamed. She asks what he dreamed about. He stares at her blankly, until Nightmare Man barks, "Trees!" Aaron repeats the word. "I dreamed of trees," he says, his voice thick with fear and choked tears. Lily tells him that if he wants to rest more, it's fine, but he insists, "No, I want to be with you, Lily." Lily beams and tells him that Rick's there. Aaron forces out an enthusiastic sound and promises to be down in a minute. She leaves, and Aaron's head sadly slumps forward, as if suddenly relieved of a heavy weight. He looks like he's about to cry. He sadly shakes his head and bolsters himself to face dinner downstairs. He walks slowly toward the bedroom door and pauses, looking back into the room for any signs of the Nightmare Man. Finding none, he looks puzzled, and then heads downstairs as we head to commercials.