Paramedics bring Todd Mulcahy into the hospital on a stretcher. Felicity races alongside them. The paramedics try to ask Todd questions, but it's hard to understand his answers, since he's wearing an oxygen mask. He manages to say something to Felicity about his jeans, and she grabs a note that was sticking out of his front pocket. Todd manages to tell Felicity that it's a note that she gave him when she was twelve. The medical personnel tell Felicity that she'll have to stay behind, and they roll Todd into surgery. Felicity stands there, stunned, and then opens the note.
FVO reads the note to Sally while the camera pans over the box of stuff that Todd gave Felicity in the last episode. FVO says, "'Dear Todd: I'm sitting in Mr. Dorfman's human biology class. I know summer school is supposed to be boring, but this is worse. I keep thinking how happy I am that I met you. You ask me smart questions, things no one's ever asked me before, including me. I guess I could be an artist if I wanted to, but that would probably mean my dad would never talk to me again.' And then I drew a little smiley face after that." As FVO speaks, we see Felicity eating a Mallomar, and then pulling a sketchpad and some paintbrushes out of the box and looking at them quizzically, then pulling something out of her closet that looks to be an art portfolio and browsing through the contents. FVO continues, "I know some day when I grow up, I'll have to make a decision if I'm going to be an artist or a doctor. I'm just glad that day isn't today." Then there's some business about going to McDonald's after class as the scene changes to Felicity stopping her tape.
Felicity and Elena read a list of names posted outside an office door. Both Felicity's and Elena's names are on the list, and Elena cheers and jumps around. Elena says that it means they are smart. Felicity reminds her that they still have to interview for the seminar. Elena isn't fazed, but Felicity doesn't look so confident.
The camera pans over all of the crap from the box, which is now strewn about Felicity's bed. Noel knocks, and Felicity tells him to come in. Felicity asks if Noel's ever seen Dead Poet's Society, which she is currently watching. Noel says that he has. Felicity, crying, says, "This movie...is so good!" Noel points out that Felicity is eating Todd's cookies, and Felicity tearily hands him her note and tells him to read it. Felicity turns off the TV and then says that she thought Todd was an annoying pest, but if she had listened to him and been less defensive, a bus wouldn't have hit him. Felicity thinks the accident was her fault. Noel tells her that it's not true. Felicity hands him her art portfolio. Noel tells her that they are good, and asks if Todd drew them. Felicity says that she did. She adds that she came to New York, talking about how she didn't want to follow in her father's footsteps, but that's exactly what she's doing. Felicity sits down and says that somehow between getting to New York and the current time, she lost track. Noel sits down and tries, "Well, you have an excellent boyfriend." Felicity starts crying, which I don't think is the reaction that Noel was looking for. She says that some strange guy from her past (Todd) showed up and started criticizing her life, and that she thinks Todd is right. Noel doesn't know what to say, so he just keeps looking at the portfolio. I think it would be hard to be the boyfriend of Season One Felicity.
Felicity sits on a bench in a hallway. Professor McGrath walks out of his office and calls her name, so Felicity stands and slowly follows him in. Once inside, he says, "I have only one question. Why should you be considered for this seminar?" I kind of hate him already. Felicity stammers that her grades are good, and then pauses for a really long time, trying to think of more reasons. Or possibly trying to convince herself that there are any reasons why she shouldn't change her major. Finally, Felicity says that she's thinking about maybe being an artist. Awkward pause, as Felicity realizes that's not what he asked her. Felicity starts over, saying that McGrath wants to know why she should be chosen for the seminar, so she says that there was a time when she genuinely wanted to be a doctor, but she can't remember why. McGrath snarks that, typically, it's not his job to help students remember why they are in his office talking to him. Felicity looks pale, as McGrath wishes her well and announces that he's removing her name from consideration for the seminar. I see his point, but he was kind of mean about it. Felicity doesn't look that upset.
Dean & Deluca. Jazzy music plays as Ben sniffs something. Some sort of food product, perhaps? Julie comes by and tells Ben that she mailed the tape to Carol Anderson, her birth mother. I really could not care less about this storyline, or Julie. To me, the sooner Julie is out of the picture, the sooner Ben and Felicity can get together. Anyway, Julie dropped the tape in the mailbox, and then decided that she wanted to get it back. She asked three different mail carriers to get it out, but none of them would. I can't imagine why not.
Elena thinks Felicity is nuts for telling McGrath that she's thinking of becoming an artist. And Elena is right, since Felicity shouldn't have burned her bridges before she was sure what she wanted to do, or even if she could change majors right then. Felicity tells Elena to stop making her feel bad about it. Elena tells Felicity that she's going to kick Felicity's ass, and that it's the biggest mistake of Felicity's life. I wonder if Elena would still be saying that in the fourth season. Felicity had made a lot more big mistakes by then.
Felicity, Noel, Ben, Julie, and Elena go to see Todd at the hospital. Felicity talks to the doctors and finds out that the transfusions went well, and that Todd could be moved to the critical care unit tomorrow; once that happens, he'll be allowed to have visitors.
Noel walks into the dorm lobby. There are a bunch of women sitting there. One of them studies her nails at length. Several of the other women are wearing long white gloves. Noel looks puzzled, and then approaches the group. He asks them if he can help them. One of the women says that she's waiting for Richard. Cut to Noel bursting into Richard's room, where Richard is talking to some lady. Noel says that he has to talk to Richard, who protests that he's in a meeting. Noel isn't having it, so Richard excuses himself. Noel asks Richard who all the women are in the lobby. Richard says that they are potential clients. Noel asks what that means, and why they are all wearing gloves. Richard explains that the women's hands are their livelihood, and worries that Noel is going to shut him down. Noel still doesn't know what Richard is going on about, so Richard hands him a business card, which Noel reads aloud: "'Prime Digits Hand Modeling Agency'?" Richard says that there is a lot of money in hands. Noel asks if it's a joke. Richard tells Noel that the woman he's currently interviewing has been in tons of commercials. Noel tells Richard that it's against university policy to run a business from a dorm room. Richard reminds Noel that he knows about Noel and Felicity's relationship. Noel purses his lips and then leaves.
Felicity goes to an art studio on campus and wanders around, taking it all in. Various students paint, draw, or sculpt. Eventually, she stops to an easel where Simon Rex is painting. Felicity says hello and that she's just watching him. He says it's okay. She asks if his painting is for a class. Simon says that it is, and names the teacher of the class. Felicity asks if the teacher is any good, and Simon says that she's great. Scintillating conversation, here. I can see why these two end up sleeping together. (Hope I didn't spoil that for you.) Simon takes a break and asks Felicity if she's a freshman. Felicity asks if it's that obvious. Simon says that she "sort of has that wide-eyed thing going on." Felicity is embarrassed that her naïveté is that obvious, but Simon tells her that it's fine, and that a few years back, he had that same look. He really is a horrible actor. I'm glad they didn't really make him a recurring character. ["No, they just gave him a job on Jack & Jill." -- Wing Chun] Felicity pauses and then asks if there are any openings in any of the studio classes, in case she wants to transfer in. Simon tells her that all of the studio classes are filled until the end of the year, but that she should apply for semester. Okay, Simon Rex is basically a piece of wood. A decent-looking porn star piece of wood, but a piece of wood nonetheless. Felicity says that semester seems like a million years away. Felicity compliments his painting and then walks away. Simon calls after her, as you knew he would. He tells her that the studio is open all of the time, and if she wanted to "hang out and use some of the materials, [he] wouldn't say anything." Felicity brightens at this news.
Noel catches Meghan as she is entering her room, and asks if she's seen Felicity Meghan snarks that she can't wait until he stops asking her that question. Noel asks if that's a yes. I can't believe I thought Noel was cute during the first season. He's so annoying. I thought he was, like, dorkily endearing, but he's just dorkily dorksome. Meghan says she hasn't seen Felicity, and then asks if Todd died yet. Noel sarcastically says, "Oh, that's nice," and then reports that as far as he knows, Todd is making a recovery. Noel keeps glancing around and seems really antsy. Meghan is still trying to open her door and reports that her lock is stuck. Noel promises to report it, and then says that he and Felicity have a date tonight, and asks Meghan to remind Felicity if Meghan sees her. It's pretty sad when you have to remind your girlfriend that you have a date. Meghan suddenly gets interested and asks if Felicity blew Noel off. Noel denies it. Meghan says that it's a bad sign. Noel still denies that Felicity blew him off, despite evidence to the contrary. Meghan finally gets her door open and slams it in Noel's face just as he asks her to tell Felicity that he's in his room. Just then, one of the gloved women walks down the hall while talking on the world's largest cell phone.
Julie and Carol walk down the street. Carol says that she was telling her husband about Julie, calling her "this new girl in the office that reminds [Carol] of [herself]." Carol says that she told her husband how Julie plays the guitar, so he went into the storage room and brought up Carol's guitar from college, and Carol played it for hours. Carol offers to give Julie a ride home. Julie says she has some books on guitar if Carol wants to borrow them. Carol says she'd love to, but then she wouldn't get anything else done. Carol drops her bag getting into the car, and the package containing Julie's tape drops out. Of course. Julie picks up the bag and stuffs everything back, then looks at the tape for a second, and stuffs that in too. I'm not sure if Julie had the opportunity to pocket the tape, or if Carol saw the package before Julie could steal it. Julie tells Carol that she's decided she wants to walk. Carol accepts this and says goodbye. Julie watches the cab pull away.
Felicity sketches with some pastels in the studio as Simon watches her and smiles. Felicity is so absorbed in her drawing that she doesn't notice how much time passes. I wonder if Keri Russell is really a decent artist or if she is just tracing. thing you know, she's dropped the pastels for some paints. She rips one page off her pad and drops it on the floor, then walks away, and we see that it's dark out. To indicate time passing, the room starts lightening as the sun comes up. The camera pans back over to reveal Felicity, asleep at her drawing board. A door opens, which wakes her up. The woman who enters tells Felicity that she knows what that feels like. Felicity sits up, her face covered in dark smudges from where it was resting on the paper, and smiles.
Back in the dorm, Noel asks Felicity what's going on. Felicity says that she's going to see Todd because the doctor just called and said he was stabilizing. Noel asks if Felicity got any of his messages. Felicity explains that she just got home and hasn't checked the machine. Noel manically explains that he thought she might have gone to the hospital last night, so he went there to find her, but she wasn't there, and then reminds her that they had plans. Okay, yes, it was rude of Felicity to totally forget about the plans and not call Noel to cancel. But Noel is so insecure that he went to the hospital to look for her? Wow. Felicity ignores Noel's diatribe, shoves some of her artwork into Noel's hands, and orders him to look at it. She explains that she went to a studio in the art school and drew all night, and that it was like she couldn't stop. Felicity hurries out the door and Noel follows her. He asks what's in the bag she's carrying. She explains that it's some stuff for Todd that he used to like. Noel remarks that they have switched places. Felicity asks what he means. Noel walks down the hall with her as he explains that now he's the one leaving the messages and Todd's the one she's running off to be with. Felicity denies that is happening. Noel says he doesn't have a problem with Todd, but that Felicity is being different. Felicity apologizes, but doesn't seem to see what the big deal is, because she was just drawing. Noel says he doesn't care that she was drawing. That finally gets Felicity's attention, as she whirls on him and says, "You don't care?" Noel says that if she's going through something, he needs her to tell him. Felicity says that not every problem can be solved by her running to him "all wide-eyed" and asking for advice. She concludes, "There are some things you cannot help me with." I like that there is continuity throughout the series with Felicity hearing something about herself from another character, and then using that information against her boyfriend, and the boyfriend has no idea what she's talking about. She did the same thing in the fourth season when her dad told her that she had already spent too much time following Ben around. If I were Noel, I would just be like, "Bitch is crazy," and then call Hannah and see if she's still available. Felicity stomps out as Noel stands there stunned and angry. Richard comes up behind Noel and asks if he and Felicity are breaking up. Richard adds, "Because that would really screw up my life." Noel says, "You know what? Yeah, I think we are."
At the hospital, Felicity slowly walks towards Todd's room. She enters. Poor Todd is all bandaged up like a mummy. In fact, it could be a totally different actor than the one who played Todd in the episode, and you wouldn't know. Todd says hello and thanks Felicity for coming to visit him. Felicity says she would have come sooner, but he was still in surgery. Todd says that he fractured his liver, which he didn't even know was possible. Ouch. Me neither. Felicity smiles slightly and says she brought him some stuff. She pulls some goldfish crackers out of the bag. Todd says he still loves them. Felicity adds some Whoppers to the pile. Todd groans with happiness. Of course, he's probably not going to be able to eat any of those things for another few months, but it's the thought that counts. Felicity says she couldn't remember which comic he used to read, and Todd tells her, and Felicity grins because she bought the right one. Todd tells her that her gifts are awesome and thanks her. Felicity plays with her hair a little bit and then says she wanted him to know how much his visit means, and that because of him she's been thinking about things she hasn't thought about for a long time. Todd reminds her that he just got hit by a bus, and wants to know if he can ask a favor. Felicity guesses that he wants a kiss. Todd says that they'll know immediately, because it will either be electric, or it'll be nothing, and he'll go home "physically decimated but spiritually satisfied." Felicity laughs. I'm really impressed that he's so lucid given the huge amount of painkillers he must be getting. Mmm, painkillers. Todd begs, and Felicity relents.
Felicity leans down and kisses Todd on the lips. Suddenly, all of his monitors start going beeping. Felicity stands up and asks what that is, and then realizes that Todd is unresponsive. She starts freaking out. A doctor comes in and hits some alarm that causes a bunch of other doctors to run in and start using words like "crash cart" and "intubate." One of them tells Felicity to wait outside. The doctors start doing CPR and then shock Todd with the paddles. One doctor says that she's not getting a pulse, and they roll Todd off to the operating room "stat." I've always wondered if real emergency room doctors say "stat" as often as the ones on television do. Felicity, still kind of stunned, stands there. A blonde woman carrying flowers walks up and asks if this is Todd Mulcahy's room. Felicity asks who she is, and the woman replies that she's his fiancée. Felicity's all, "Wuh?" The woman says, "You must be Felicity." I remember the first time I saw this, I was almost as shocked at that revelation as I was when the bus hit Todd. I said "almost."
Ben struggles with the espresso machine at Dean & Deluca. Javier watches him for a minute, and then walks up and tells Ben that if he doesn't respect the machine, he'll never get quality mochas. Ben protests that he respects the machine. Javier says that Ben clearly has contempt for it, and that he should turn the knob the way that he himself would like to be turned. I just went to a bad place in my mind for a minute there. Okay, I' m back. Javier adds, "If you were to be a knob." Javier demonstrates how to use the machine, and adds that he doesn't drink coffee, but you will never find a better mocha maker. Ben thanks him. Javier yells at Ben to put his hat on, and Ben heaves a sigh before handing off the mocha to a customer. Noel walks in. Ben says hello and asks if something went wrong with Todd. Noel say that Todd has apparently stabilized, and Ben is happy to hear it. Noel says he needs to know what Felicity was like in high school. Ben says that they weren't really friends in high school. Noel explains that he thinks Felicity is having "some mid-freshman crisis," because as long as he's known her she's been "a pre-med workaholic," and then Todd showed up and reminded her what she used to be like. Okay, Noel has known Felicity less than six months. Ben looks puzzled and asks Noel if he wants a coffee on the house. Noel wants a mocha. Ben goes to make it and says that he can sort of relate to Noel's issues, because Julie is going through "that whole thing with her mom." Noel apparently got the memo. Ben explains that Julie sent her mom that tape, so Ben asked her what happened with that, and Julie snippily said, "Nothing!" and then barely talked to him the rest of the night. Ben's imitation of Julie's snippery is hilarious. Noel asks what's going on with the women. Ben doesn't know. Noel suggests that they are acting a little crazy. Ben agrees. Noel sips his mocha and says that it's excellent. Ben laughs and thanks him.
Todd's fiancée (who we find out later is named Rebecca) sits in a waiting room. Felicity walks in, holding a bag of M&Ms, and sits to Rebecca. Awkward pause. Felicity offers some M&Ms to Rebecca, who turns her down, so Felicity sets them aside. Rebecca says, "I know all about you, you know." But not in a mean way. Felicity is surprised to hear this. Rebecca says that before Todd left, he confessed what he was up to, explaining that he wanted to resolve this Felicity thing once and for all. She continues, saying that Todd has been pretty depressed for about six months, and that when he saw Felicity over Christmas, it was like he woke up again. At first, Rebecca was mad that Todd was going to see Felicity, but then she realized that if Todd is really hers, all she can do it let him go. Rebecca starts crying and says that he could have lied, but he was honest about Felicity. She concludes by asking Felicity, "Do you love my Todd?" Felicity earnestly says, "No!" Rebecca sobs even harder and asks if Felicity is telling the truth. Felicity says that she likes Todd, but she's not interested. Rebecca says that really loves Todd, and she knows that he's a little eccentric, but you'll never find a guy with a bigger heart. A nurse appears and tells Rebecca that the doctor is ready to see her now. Rebecca says that she's too terrified to see Todd, in case something happens. Felicity offers to go with her. Rebecca thanks her but refuses, and tells herself that she can do it. Felicity watches Rebecca walk through some double doors into what I assume is the ICU. Felicity walks over to the double doors and watches through the window as Rebecca talks to a doctor. At first, Rebecca covers her face with her hands like she's crying, so you can't tell if it's good news or bad. But then she hugs the doctor happily, so it must be good news. She turns and sees Felicity watching and grins, giving her the thumbs up. The doctor continues to hug Rebecca, and Felicity continues to watch and smile.
Felicity hurries down a hallway and knocks on McGrath's door. He tells her to come in. Felicity walks in and says quickly that she remembers now why she loves medicine, and she would love for her name to be put back on the list because she wants to be in the seminar. McGrath smiles indulgently and says that he thought she was an artist. Felicity repeats very seriously that she wants to be in the seminar. McGrath asks if she's committed to being a physician. Felicity doesn't reply and McGrath snarks that she doesn't have the commitment he was looking for. He brushes past Felicity on his way out the door. Felicity turns and slowly asks if she's required to commit to becoming a physician in order to be eligible for his seminar. McGrath thought that was implicit. Felicity tells him that's ridiculous. Instead of walking out like a normal person, McGrath shuts the door behind him. Felicity apologizes for saying so, but reiterates that it is. She goes on to say that the thing that made her come back to try to get into the seminar was that she remembered "medicine isn't just about research or grades or making your parents happy." Felicity knows now that being a doctor is about people. Thanks, Patch Adams. She looks at McGrath, apparently expecting him to go, "Wow, I never thought of it that way. You're in! And can I write you a recommendation for medical school right now?" Instead, he just thanks her. Felicity says quickly that she will commit to the seminar; she still wants to pursue being an artist, but she won't let it interfere with her class work. McGrath asks if she's finished. Felicity echoes the letter she wrote to Todd when she says, "I know that one day I'll have to make that decision, whether I'm going to be a doctor or an artist. I'm just happy that day is not today." McGrath says he'll take it under consideration, then lets Felicity out. After she walks out the door, he raises his eyebrows like, "Cheeky lass." I still hate him.
Julie is working at Carol's office. Carol comes by and asks Julie to come into her office. Julie looks worried, but follows. Julie is also wearing these ridiculous purple tights with a brown suede skirt, dark red shirt, and brown jacket. Ew. Carol sits behind her desk and then says that she got Julie's tape. Before Carol can go any further, Julie quickly says that she knows it was really stupid of her to take the job, but she wanted to see Carol. Julie hopes that Carol's not mad at her; she was going to tell Carol yesterday, and she knows that she's put Carol in a really awkward position. Julie says that she doesn't blame Carol if she hates her. I would never blame anyone for hating Julie. Carol quickly interjects, "I'm not your mother. There's been a mistake. I never put a baby up for adoption." Julie explains that she paid an investigator and got Carol's name and address. Carol says she doesn't know what to say, but Julie has the wrong woman. Julie chokes up and says, "But...look at me," referring to how much alike they are. Carol says she wishes there was something she could do to help. Julie starts crying and says in a five-year-old's voice that she really thinks she's Carol's daughter. Carol points out that you don't forget giving up a baby for adoption. Julie, grasping at straws, points out that Carol played guitar. Carol says, "Julie, I'm sorry. I'm not your mother. I'm just not." Julie apologizes, and stands up. Julie emotionally explains that she took the job to be near Carol, so she's going to quit. Carol calls to her, then wishes her luck. Julie leaves.
A van door opens and a wheelchair lift slides out. Rebecca walks out on the van and joins Todd, who is in a wheelchair, on the sidewalk. Felicity is also there. Felicity and Rebecca work together to get Todd into the van. Rebecca grabs the bags and heads over to the other side of the van, leaving Felicity and Todd alone. Felicity clears her throat and tells Todd to have a safe trip home. Todd jokes that the odds of their van getting hit by a bus are pretty slim. Felicity apologizes. Todd says that he's not sorry, because he needed that push to get his life back on track. Felicity says that she did, too. Todd asks about the art thing, and Felicity says that she doesn't think it's going to work out. Todd says conspiratorially that he thinks their kiss was "pretty damn good." Felicity tells him that he needs to go home. The lift starts moving and Todd gets loaded into the van. Felicity waves goodbye.
Felicity knocks and enters McGrath's office. She apologizes for the way she talked to him the other day. She explains that she had just seen a doctor save someone's life and she got a little carried away. McGrath looks like he's barely paying attention. He rifles through some papers on his desk and holds an envelope up, saying that he can drop it in her mailbox or she can take it now. Felicity slowly walks in and takes the envelope, then opens it. McGrath tells her that the seminar begins on Thursday. Felicity reads the paper and breaks into a smile, but tries to play it cool, and says she'll see him on Thursday.
Noel sees Richard posting a flyer on the bulletin board offering his satellite dish for sale, and asks what that's about. Richard says he dismantled the satellite and put the hand-modeling agency on hold. Noel asks why. Richard says that with Noel and Felicity breaking up, he needs to get his act together. Felicity walks up and asks Noel if she can talk to him. Richard pulls his flyer off the bulletin board and advises Noel to talk to her and try to work things out. Noel advises Richard to leave the flyer on the board, and he walks over to Felicity.
Noel tells Felicity that before she says anything, she should know that he took one of her sketches and scanned it into his computer, and he doesn't know if she's ever drawn using the computer before, but she can use his computer whenever she wants. The whole time they are talking, Richard is trying to listen in and keeps putting the flyer back up, then taking it off. Felicity smiles and moves in for a kiss. Noel ask if Richard is watching. Felicity says that Richard is. Noel says that he's going to yell at her and she should just go with it. Felicity agrees. Noel yells at her like they are having a big argument. Richard resolutely pins the flyer back up and walks off. Felicity reports that Richard is gone, and Noel gives her a big kiss.
Sally begins a voice-over as we see Elena reading her seminar acceptance letter and grinning. SVO says that she's glad that Felicity and Elena got into the seminar, but mostly, she's happy that Felicity remembered that she's an artist. The camera pans over Ben comforting a crying Julie as SVO says that she's been thinking about what Felicity said about how one day she'll have to figure out what she is. SVO says that she's thirty-four and she's still trying to figure out what she is. Sally? Word. SVO says that maybe the search isn't just something that happens in college, but it's a search that continues the rest of their lives. The final shot is Noel showing Felicity how to use the computer and then kissing her.