Flatline

Austin is on the phone. He says, "What's up Paul? How's life in the big bad apple? It's not going so well here in the little rotten apple. Friends... Yeah, I could use one right now. Remember that woman, Carrie, my ex, the one that I let get away? It turns out she was the CEO of a company I took over. I didn't know. I really blew it. I don't know how to fix it." Sami listens.

Lucas and Carrie are at the Java Café. "I needed a friend and you are always there," says Carrie, "Like a lost puppy."

Kate looks at a picture of Lucas and Will on her cell phone, "Oh, Lucas, sorry, but Austin and Carrie belong together."

What timing! Carrie walks up to her table and says, "That's never going to happen."

Shawn asks Belle if it is really true. She has never stopped loving him. Mimi listens. Shawn wants to know why she waited to tell him.

"I was too afraid... too guilty... too stupid."

"So why now," he asks.

"Because I'm still too stupid, and because you are engaged to Mimi. If you marry her I will lose you forever. I can't let that happen," says Belle. She kisses him. Shawn isn't very enthusiastic about it. Mimi scowls.

Billie stops Bo from beating up a wall, or more like, she stops the wall from beating up him. Bo wallows in self-pity. Billie tells him to go home to Hope. He can't. He is responsible for killing his son. Bo insists he and Hope are through, "Shawn hates me. Chelsea doesn't trust me, my boy is dead because of me. I got what I deserved. I'm alone."

Billie says, "It's not true. You have... me. And you always will."

Alex assures Marlena he didn't try to kill Lois. Marlena believes him, "And no matter what happens, I will be beside you all the Days Of Our Lives.

John watches, "If Lois is conscious she will confirm Alex tried to kill her." Lexie comes out and says Lois is weak but wants to make a statement. Stares all around.

Shawn says this is wrong. Belle says, "Claire almost died and Zack did die. Things are different. Life is too precious not to follow our hearts. When I saw that huge rock on Mimi's finger, I knew I had to do something. These are the only lives we get. The clock is ticking. Let's not waste any more time."

"I'm sorry," says Shawn, "but time ran out when you and Phillip had Claire. The fact that you were married before that doesn't count.

Billie tells Bo not to give up on the little snot. She wants to take him to have his bloody hand taken care of. No go Bo. She wants to get him home. He doesn't have a home. Billie asks, "Where you gonna stay? Some cozy park bench? No way."

Austin tells Paul, "Carrie has her own idea about how things should work. She won't give me a second chance. Maybe I should just shut down ARC."

Sami butts in, "There is no way I'm gonna let you give up on our company just because you've hurt Carrie's feelings."

Lucas orders coffee at the counter. Kate says she didn't know Carrie was there. She invites her to sit down. She tells her she knows about her and Austin. Kate thinks it's unfortunate. She knows they love each other. Carrie agrees. Kate says, "You have to give him another chance."

"He destroyed something important to me," says Carrie, "Highstyle was like a family. I knew I could turn it around." Translation: turn it around and drive it into the ground. "Austin ended that."

Kate shrugs it off, "It was a business deal."

"It was more than business," says Carrie, "I loved that company."

"More than Austin," asks Kate, "If you still love him, you can't give up on him."

More great timing! Lucas comes up, "What the hell do you think you are doing?"

John doesn't want Alex to go in for the statement. Alex insists. John thinks Alex will intimidate Lois. Lexie steps in – She says she will clear the room if that happens.

They all decide to go in and intimidate her. Tek asks her to focus, "Look around the room and tell me if someone here is responsible for what happened to you. Lois stares. She hyperventilates.

Eenie, meenie, miney, mo
Alex...
John...
Who is my foe?

JOHN!

Shawn tells Belle they have both moved on. Belle whines, "Don't you still love me?"

"Of course," says Shawn, "I probably always will. And I love Mimi and want to spend the rest of my life with her."

"So this is it," Belle whimpers.

Shawn says, "We can't change what's happened. Only the writers can do that. You are married and the mother of Phillip's baby. Can you find any reason to justify leaving him for me?"

Mimi says, "I can think of something..."

Billie says probably Bo wouldn't want to go back to her house with Patrick there, "Even I don't want to do that." Bo doesn't see what she saw in him. He's worried about her. She deserves someone better. Billie remembers the brat's words. Bo asks, "What are you thinking about?"

"You."

Sami lectures Austin. He can't just shut down to score points with Carrie. He accuses her of eavesdropping. He says he isn't shutting the company down. He was just venting to a friend. He didn't give up a six-figure income to move away from New York for a zero figure income and shut things down. She trusts him. And Nicole is out wining and dining their next investor. She has decided to fix a special dinner for them. She runs out to get all the fixin's. Austin says to himself, "She's right. I can't give up my company. I have to find a way to get Carrie back and I know just the person to ask for help, Mommie Dearest."

Mommie Dearest tells Lucas she is just having a conversation with a friend. Carrie says she started the conversation, not Kate. Carrie's phone rings. Becky. She goes off to take it.

Lucas asks Kate, "How can you do this?"

"Because Austin is my son."

"HEELLLLLOOOO," says Lucas, "So am I, dammit."

"Austin and Carrie love each other," says Kate.

"Maybe I love her too," says Lucas, "She's going to forget about him."

Kate says, "I know this is hard for you. I still love John, but Marlena has his heart. We have to accept all this."

Lucas says, "I'm not allowing you to screw up my relationship with Carrie like you did with Sami."

"I just want my sons to be happy," says Kate.

"No," says Lucas, "you want Austin and Phillip to be happy. At least Phillip is happy. He has Belle. That's a sure thing."

Unfortunately," says Kate, "There is no such thing as a sure thing."

"What's that supposed to mean," asks Lucas, "You did something to come between Phillip and Belle, didn't you?" Kate stares.

Lois points the finger of death at John. She thinks, "He helped me when Alex hurt me." Flashback to John administering truth serum, then to Alex threatening her and choking her. Shoot. I wanted to see him string her up.

As she points to John, she gasps, "You..." She thinks, "You have to help me again."

Alex turns to John, "AHA! You are the one responsible!"

Belle stammers and whines. She loves Shawn. She will never stop loving him. She should have trusted him. He shouldn't have left Salem. They have to accept the consequences. Shawn says, "It will get better because you are with Phillip and I am with Mimi. We will all stay friends and live happily ever after. I am not gonna break up your family. And I am not gonna break Mimi's heart."

Belle bawls, "What have we done?" Hugs.

Bo tells Billie not to worry about him. "That’s what friends are for," says Billie, "I want to help you. I'm taking care of your hand and taking you to a motel. Just stay here." She goes in to get a towel and some ice.

Bo picks up his cell phone and dials, "Hey, Fancy Face, it's me. If you're there just pick up... OK, when you get this call me. I love you."

Sami comes home with the groceries. She calls for Austin. No answer. She sees a note. He had to run for an errand. Sami says, "Now that he has acknowledged Carrie won't forgive him, he will see me as more than a business associate."

Carrie tells Becky she can come to work for Titan, "But that would mean moving to Sale..." She sees Austin go into the Java Café. She remembers telling him they were never meant to be. Then she remembers dancing with him and talking about their future. As they talk, the sap drips from the TV screen. Back to Beck, "Oh, sorry... I'm here, Becky. I was just distracted for a moment."

Kate says she hasn't done anything to come between Belle and Phillip.

"Then why are you so worried about them," asks Lucas.

"They have been under a lot of stress about Claire," says Kate, "Now that the crisis is over, different emotions could surface."

"That doesn't make any sense," says Lucas.

"This is Salem," says Kate, "What does sense have to do with anything? "

Lucas says, "If you have done something you will regret it. And if you continue to push Carrie in to Austin's arms, you will never see Will again. If you succeed I'll dedicate my life to wreaking revenge on him. That will be on your conscience."

He storms out and finds Carrie. He says something came up with Will. He has to talk to Sami. She says she will meet him, "That will give you a chance to talk to Sami while I go to the bookstore. The new 'Dick and Jane Reader' is out and I can't wait to get a copy."

Kate wonders how she will get Austin and Carrie together without destroying her family. Austin comes up, "Mom, what's wrong?"

John says, "This is ridiculous. Come on Lois, you know it was him. Why did you point to me?"

Lois thinks, "You're the only one who can help me..." Lois gasps. Flatline.

As Lexie works on her, Marlena, John and Alex go into the hall. John growls, "You wont get away with this, North."

Alex says, "It wasn't me, it was you!"

Marlena chimes in, "John shouldn't have given her the drugs."

Lexie staggers out, "There was nothing I could do..."

John grabs Alex, "YOU SOB!" Tek and a couple of cops walk up to them, "AHA!," says John, "Lois retracted her statement! You're going down, PAL!"

"No," says Tek, "They are here for you, John."

Dinner is ready at Sami's apartment. She turns down the lights. She hears footsteps and hides as someone comes to the door. He walks in and Sami plants a big kiss on him. Then she steps back and looks up, "LUCAS!"

Carrie watches Austin and Kate, "Oh Austin, if only you hadn't done what you did. Maybe we could work things out."

Kate tells Austin all she's ever wanted was for all of them to be happy. "That's why I could use your help now," says Austin.

Shawn consoles Belle, "You have a great life, for a ree-tard."

"It's not the life I've wanted," says Belle.

"We can't be together," says Shawn, "I'm sorry. I will be there for you as a friend."

Mimi crawls back into the apartment. She sits on the couch and says, "Shawn loves me. He told Belle." She forgets her lines but, no problem. There just happens to be a script from last year laying on the coffee table. She picks it up and reads, "If he finds out the truth that would all change. My nightmare would come true. Mom is right. I can never tell him the truth."

There is a knock at the door. Mimi gets up and looks through the peephole, "OMG, not you!"

Bo says, "You're never gonna answer my calls are you Fancy Face?" He stares into he abyss and remembers Hope kicking him out. He gets on his bike and roars off as Billie runs out.

Billie screams, "Bo! Wait, dammit! Bo!"

John yells, "Dammit Tek, North is responsible." Tek has Perkins take John aside to question him.

Tek asks how Abe is doing. "Fine," says Lexie.

Tek says, "The transplant was a success but, it didn't change anything in the bedroom. I hate to say I told you so."

"Then don't," she turns on her heel and walks off.

Alex suggests he and Marlena go home. They leave arm-in-arm as John goes nuts and struggles as the cops hold him back. FF.


Previews
========

Austin tells Kate, "I will lose Carrie, and I'm afraid the one I will lose her to is Lucas."

Carrie says to Sami and Lucas, "Do I have to draw you a picture? It's so obvious the two of you are still in love."

Shawn says, "Belle..." Belle says, "I still love you. There has to be a way to make this work. There just has to be."

Bo says, "I never would have made it through this night without you." Billie says, "I'll always be here... no matter what."