Bob takes down the notice that Cookie has posted in the Club, Post Office, and Milk Bar. He doesn't think they need a cleaner. Cookie thinks they should split the cost 50/50. Gabe arrives as they're bickering and asks about the cleaning job. Shirley drops by Vicky and Simon's flat and have tea and a chat. Shirley thinks Vicky needs to spruce up her image. She also worries about dealing with Gabe. She invites Vicky and Simon to dinner with her and Frank and tells Vicky what was in the package that Simon sent to Sally. She warns Vicky that she has a real rival in Sally Wyndham. That night at dinner, they wait for Simon to show up (Vicky left him a note on the fridge) and Bob compliments Vicky on the new blouse she's wearing. Cookie tells them about Gabe applying for the cleaning job. Simon arrives a little late and asks Vicky if she's wearing a new blouse. When she says no, he rather callously points out the price tag still hanging down from the back of it, much to Vicky's embarrassment. Maggie tells Brendan about the board meeting last night. She tells him that the board has decided to hire a new nurse, Judy Loveday. Her proposed marriage to the underwear salesman obviously didn't turn out well. Maggie also tells him that the board has also decided on extreme budget cuts. Mr. Downer interrupts them looking for his teeth and a female patient begins shouting -- Brendan left her on the bed pan. Brett tells his mother about all the things he saw at the circus. He saw someone called the Birdman and has strapped cardboard pieces on his arms to pretend he's like him. Terence and Simon discuss Maggie and the board meeting (and about the return of Judy Loveday). Several patients in the clinic waiting room discuss Simon, Vicky, and Sally. Brett decides to try to emulate the Birdman even more. He's filled a wading pool with water and climbed up a tree. He calls to his mother, who freaks out when she sees him so high up. To her horror, he leaps into the pool feet first.

Terence arrives with the ambulance and they take Brett and his mother to the hospital. Brett continually asks for his mother, who waits outside the hospital room while Terence examines him. Brett has fractures on both ankles and his pelvis and will require surgery on at least one of the injuries. Cookie and Bob interview potential cleaners. A middle-aged woman, Glenda Saunders, arrives to be interviewed. She's from Lithgow and has just moved to the Valley. Her aunt Mabel Roberts left Glenda a house and Bob tells her that Daisy and Mabel were good friends. Cookie asks about references but Bob, obviously taken with her, offers to show her around the house without any further ado. She asks for $6 per hour and Bob agrees immediately. Brendan comes out to the Waiting Room to tell Carmel Hutchins how Brett is. They are interrupted by a pregnant patient who is concerned because her pains are down to 20 minutes. Judy arrives in time to take the pregnant woman off Brendan's hands. Bob shows Glenda the house and offers her the job right away. Carmel comforts Brett. Maggie insists that Carmel leave so that Brett can go into theatre for surgery but Brett fusses. Terence decides to give Brett the anaesthetic in the hospital room, while his mother is there, so that he won't get more upset. Maggie is obviously against this but doesn't have a choice. Simon arrives back at the flat to find that Vicky has made dinner. Simon tells her all about Brett and his injuries. He worries when Vicky agrees with everything he says. The table is set with candles and they share a bottle of claret. Simon is very pleased with himself at this domestic (and rather promising) side of Vicky.

After the operation, Brett asks for his mother. Maggie again insists that Carmel go home for a rest against her wishes. Back at the Matron's Office, Brendan thanks Judy for helping out and welcomes her back. She leaves before Maggie sees her. Maggie chastises Terence for overriding her decision that morning regarding the Brett's anaesthetic. Bob brings Glenda back to the Club two hours after taking her to the house and tells Cookie he'd like to get to know her better. He buys her a drink and offers to buy her dinner. He tells her she has the job if she still wants it. Simon tells Vicky more about his childhood and they make plans to check out a spanish restaurant. Simon valiently tries to stay awake but he's exhausted and begs off before dessert. Brett cries out for his mother in the night and Brendan tries to comfort him by telling him all about the Jones farm and doing magic tricks. The next morning, Gabe stops by the clinic to get money ($2) from Shirley for a field trip. Bob and Cookie haven't told her yet that they've already hired someone else and Gabe despairs of ever finding a job. Bob has cleaned the whole house because he didn't want Glenda to think they were pigs (as if she didn't see what the place looked like before). Cookie is not pleased to learn that there are a load of things Glenda won't do -- windows, oven, grill pan, behind the fridge and stove, bathtub (nothing below the waist), she'll do the wash but won't take it out of the machine or hanging it up. Carmel's visits with Brett. He wants to know when his daddy will come to live with them again. He worries that if he goes to sleep, she'll go away. Maggie sees Brendan wheeling a cot down the hall for Carmel and vetoes his idea of having the mother sleep with her child. She orders him to take the cot away.

The next morning Brett complains of the pain in his legs and his mother talks to Brendan about not being allowed to stay with him. Simon arrives at the clinic in a very chipper mood. Both Vicky and Simon have received scented notes from Sally and Shirley tries to see what's in the one for Vicky after Simon retreats to his office. Molly walks in on her while she's trying to peek and teases her about it. Shirley tries to find out from Molly about Simon and Vicky. Sally calls for Simon and Shirley is bursting with curiosity. Frank stops by the Club to ask Cookie to keep an eye open for a job for Gabe. He's also looking for Bob who seems to have gone missing (everyone is looking for him). It's Glenda's first day cleaning and Bob is very solicitous. He shows her the new canister vac he's bought for her to use.

Judy is called into the Matron's office on her way out of the hospital. Maggie welcomes her back and then remembers that Judy worked under her at St. Agnes in Sydney. She says she'll be keeping an eye on her and Judy retorts, in her usual brash and tactless manner, that she'll keep out of Matron's hair if Matron will keep out of hers. Brendan talks to Terence about the difference of opinion that he and Matron are having regarding parents sleeping with the children. Terence plays Devil's Advocate but essentially agrees with Brendan. He won't do anything, though, because the hospital is Maggie's domain. Nurse Trent comes in to give Brett a sponge bath and feed him. She shoos Carmel out of the room and Carmel pleads with Brendan to help her stay with Brett. Bob compliments Glenda on her cleaning job. She says she won't have to come back for a week and Bob scrambles to find an excuse to see her again. He invites her to dinner at 7 and pays her for the 4 1/2 hours she worked. She almost runs into Cookie on the way out. Shirley leaves the clinic to do some shopping and stops in to ask Simon if he wants anything. They end up talking about Sally and Simon and her ex-husband Warwick. Sally and Simon were close to getting married when she changed her mind and married Warwick instead. He says that it took a long time for him to get over her and wonders if you ever get over your first love.

Brendan tends to Brett and sends for Carmel to come in to help Brett with his physical therapy. Vicky comes into the clinic looking for Shirley and Simon gives her the note from Sally. It's a thank you card on personalized stationery but Vicky doesn't even want to read it. She makes a bitter comment about what Sally might have been thanking Simon for and Simon retreats into his office. Carmel is reading to Brett as the bell sounds to signal the end of visiting hours. After she leaves, Brett hides under the bed covers. Simon tells Shirley he's heading to Sydney after a few house calls. He's made some decisions; he's been drifting too long. He tells Shirley that he'll be taking the back roads, the Pike Road turnoff, rather than the main road because it's easier driving. Shirley stops by the flat to tell Vicky that Simon has gone to Sydney. When she hears how Vicky acted earlier, Shirley tells her that her vinegar tongue has gotten her into trouble and that it's too late for her now. Vicky surprises Shirley by telling her to shut up -- she obviously doesn't need her mom to tell her the mess she's made of things. Vicky is angry at Simon's leaving and she vents her frustrations on Fatso. She decides to go after him and rushes out the door, only to return moments later to change out of her overalls. Terence talks to Brett about the necessity of doing his exercises. Brendan asks Terence again to step in and talk to the Matron -- Brett is so scared he isn't eating. Simon has pulled over to the side of the road and removes one of his rear tires (as if he has a flat but there's nothing wrong with the tire). He looks back down the road but it's empty. Frank, Shirley, and Gabe stop in at the Club for a drink. Gabe tries to get away with ordering a pina colada but Frank orders her a lemon squash instead. Cookie talks to Frank about Bob, how Bob is lovesick and nuts. Bob suggests that he show Glenda around the Valley next week and she tells him her husband arrives on the weekend. Bob is surprised -- he thought she was a widow -- and disappointed. Glenda is totally ignorant of how Bob had been feeling and says she thinks Bob and her husband would get along really well. At the side of Pike Road, Simon has just about given up waiting. He starts to put the wheel back on the car just as Vicky's ute finally pulls up. They are both speechless at first and then Simon smiles and asks "What kept you?". Vicky suddenly realizes he'd planned the whole thing and asks him "I suppose you think you're very clever?" and Simon shakes his head and replies "Desperate." They finally embrace and kiss. Judy brings Brett his tea but he refuses to eat. Brendan decides to tell him a story, about Cooka and cookaburra. It doesn't help. Simon and Vicky trip over their words trying to say everything to each other. They're in a seedy road side diner and are so engrossed in each other that they ignore the waitress. Simon swears he would have driven back if she hadn't followed him. He's on cloud nine and Vicky is giggling like a school girl. Brendan tries to have another talk with Maggie about allowing Carmel in with Brett but they end up arguing again. He quotes an article about separation anxiety and the way that things are done in city hospital wards but it doesn't sway Maggie's opinion. When Judy turns out the light in Brett's room and shuts the door, he gets very frightened by the shadows and noises and climbs out of bed. Back at the diner, Simon and Vicky are gazing lovingly at each other but not saying a thing. She's waiting for him to say something and won't let him off easily -- she's going to make him say the actual words "Will you marry me?" He stumbles over his words but finally gets the whole thing out. They kiss under the watchful gaze of the waitress, who asks "Is that a yes?" when Vicky doesn't actually answer Simon's question.

Maggie comes into Brett's room to find him cowering under the bed. She suddenly realizes that he is terrified and only then does she truly see what Brendan had been trying to tell her. She gets Brett back into bed and rings up his mother. Cookie teases Bob about Glenda but Bob insists that there was nothing there, that Glenda is a respectable married woman. Terence examines Brett to make sure he hadn't hurt himself by getting out of bed. When Carmel arrives, Maggie tells her that she's arranges for a folding cot to be brought in. Since Brett is wide awake now, Maggie pulls out her deck of cards and begins dealing out a game of Snap to play with Brett while his mother watches. She offhandedly tells Carmel the very facts about the city hospitals that Brendan had spouted off to her earlier in the evening. At the Club, Shirley and Frank talk about Simon and Vicky. Shirley is upset about tearing strips off of Vicky. Frank says he thinks Simon and Sally are ideally suited. Terence joins them at their table (Gabe is in the ladies') and wonders what's going on with Simon -- he only knows that Simon was going to Sydney to take care of personal business and he thinks that might mean that Simon will be moving back to the city. Gabe returns and tries to convince Terence to play the pokies while she watches. To the surprise of all, Simon and Vicky walk in then, hand in hand. Simon orders champagne to celebrate and Vicky tells them that Simon proposed. Everyone is shocked but thrilled. While everyone is busy congratulating the happy couple, Gabe takes advantage of their distraction to quickly down Frank and Shirley's (acoholic) drinks. When the champers arrives, she starts drinking that as well. No one notices.