Episode Report Card Niki: A | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT If You Love Something, Let It Run Free
By Niki | Season 2 | Episode 18 | Aired on 04.03.2001
Karen and the kids have just finished dinner. As she scrapes their plates, she asks who wants dessert. Eli counts himself out, saying he's going to go practice. Karen moms about his paper. "I blew it off," he says, just to yank her ass-pole. Of course it works. Before she can launch into a lecture, though, he assures her that he's finished it already. The phone rings.
"Hi, Karen?" Judy says softly. Karen says it's her. Judy whispers (why is she whispering?), "Hi, this is Judy." Nothing. "Judy Brooks." Karen clicks and asks how she is. She wonders if she forgot to pick up an order at the bookstore. Weren't they just at lunch, like, the other day? Suddenly Karen's all business again? The hell? No wonder she has no friends. Judy says that she actually has to talk to her about something "kind of personal." Karen watches Jessie anxiously. Judy asks if it's a good time, and Karen distractedly says, "Sure," as we fade to commercials.
When we return, Karen's hanging up the phone. She braces herself against the wall and tries to stay calm. She takes a breath and tentatively says, "Jess? What happened at school today?" Jessie quickly answers that nothing did. Karen's voice has an edge: "Jess?" Jessie's "nothing" isn't so sure this time. Karen chokes out, "Did you faint?" Jessie spins around and asks who was on the phone. Karen doesn't answer, but asks again if Jessie fainted. Jessie looks overwhelmed and says that she just got dizzy. She asks again who called. Karen tries to hold Jessie's head in her hands, pleading with her to admit that she fainted. Jessie shrinks away from Karen and looks repelled. Again, she denies fainting. Karen studies Jessie's profile closely, and her eyes are full of worry as she asks whether Jessie ate lunch. Jessie doesn't answer, so Karen asks again. Jessie closes her eyes, grits her teeth, and says that she just got dizzy for a second. Then she's off, pacing away from Karen and inventing some excuse about not having a drink before the game like she's supposed to; in fact, she didn't have anything to drink all day. Karen is reeling. Her voice shakes when she finally asks why Jessie didn't tell her. Jessie's voice is quavering, too: "Because it's nothing." Karen swoops over to Jessie, shouting, "Fainting is not nothing!" Jessie flips out. She shakes her fists up and down in frustration and bounces as she screams, "I didn't faint! Why do you have to make such a big deal about everything?" She gets hold of herself when she sees Karen staring at her looking wounded. Karen sinks against the table, shaking her head sadly and breathing heavily. Jessie watches, contrite, and says in a small voice, "Mom, I'm okay." "Okay," Karen says, getting up and walking over to the sink to distract herself: "Okay." But she doesn't look convinced. In fact, she fights back the tears as she scrubs the dishes with her back to Jessie.