Episode Report Card Niki: D | 1 USERS: B YOU GRADE IT Sneaky Feelings
By Niki | Season 1 | Episode 14 | Aired on 01.30.2000
Jessie's the one who comes to get Eli, however, and she stands unsmiling at the top of the stairs as she tells him he's wanted on the phone. When he asks who it is, Jessie just stares at him, and he clues in, saying, "Never mind, I'll get it." Jessie looks uncomfortable, so Jennifer asks if she's okay and then offers to paint her toenails. Jessie grins widely and bobs her head up and down. Jennifer sits up on the bed, and her pants come into view. Apparently they were designed by someone with an abiding love for Aerosmith and sixties sofas.
B/W Jessie's back, leveling her gaze at the camera. "I'm not getting married until I'm thirty-four," she proclaims. Okay...
We return to the basement, where Jennifer is busily painting Jessie's toenails. When Eli returns, Jennifer absently asks who was on the phone, and he answers, "Nobody. The coach." Jessie's face falls as Jen continues painting, blissfully unaware that Eli's a liar and his pants should, by rights, be going up in flames.
After commercials, we find Jessie and Karen in the kitchen the following morning. Jessie says she wishes that Karen had asked what "that girl wanted with Eli." Then she asks if Karen "at least listen[ed] in on their conversation." Karen asks if Jessie really thinks that would have been "appropriate." "Absolutely," Jessie answers without hesitating, "It's almost your responsibility." Karen says it's her responsibility to "respect Eli's privacy." Jessie tries a different tack, saying, "I guess it's okay to lie, then, because that's what Eli did to Jennifer." Karen pauses for a moment before saying that Jessie needs to "let Eli run his own life." Eli enters the kitchen, and Jessie leaves, looking disgusted. Jessie's needling has gotten to Karen, though, and she brings up the phone call. Eli is immediately defensive. Karen says the last thing she wants to do is pry but asks if everything is okay with Jennifer. Eli says things are just getting complicated. Karen asks if he'd like to talk about it. Amazingly, Eli's not interested in discussing his love life with his mother, and he gets up to leave. With all the subtlety of a falling anvil, Karen stops him at the doorway to remind him that girls his age are "very sensitive."
And speaking of sensitive, we cut to Leo, who's in the midst saying, "I don't like this," while waving around Karen's proposition for the building. Karen's sitting on the edge of her desk, calmly sipping coffee. She asks him to be more specific. Leo starts to make a suggestion but stops. Karen urges it out of him, assuring him that she'll "be sure to let him know if she thinks it's crazy." Leo says he "can't help but think they could turn over the legislation." "See, that's a double negative," Karen responds, as if that's the worst of their problems. She moves around to her chair, no doubt to better accommodate that pole of hers, which must have been aggravated by that raging case of careless grammar. As she settles into her chair, she shares with Leo the proper way of stating the phrase: "Can't help thinking." Leo thanks her and then snips that they "weren't all that concerned with grammar in med school; [they] were a little more concerned with saving lives." Oh, get over yourself, Dr. Ego. Karen tells him that overturning legislation would take years. He throws out a couple more ideas, which she shoots down in rapid succession. Frustrated, Leo says, "What about paying somebody off? You've got connections..." Karen levels him with a stony stare. Leo says maybe they should order lunch, and Karen's all over it. She pulls a stack of menus from her desk and asks what he'd like. Leo tells her he's not picky -- she should just order whatever she likes. Karen says she'll order Indian. Wait a second, it seems that Leo meant he'll eat anything except Indian. So Karen opts for Italian instead. "What, like pizza or something?" Leo asks. Karen thrusts the menus at him and tells him to pick something. He still insists that whatever she gets will be fine -- are you ready for it? -- "as long as it's not Greek." Right, but who's on first?