Last week’s “This Is Not a Drill” gave us the resolution to the harrowing lone bomber who was planning on hurting the 126 and more. But this week’s 9-1-1 Lone Star episode still had its fair share of explosions. Paul struggles to move forward in a relationship because he doesn’t want to confront his painful past, and Tommy meets her match in her paramour’s 12-year-old daughter.
Let’s talk about “Tommy Dearest.”
Paul Opens a Door
Owen finds Paul in the 126 dining area. Paul’s phone is blowing up with texts, and he tells Owen that it’s Asha Fulton, the Human Resources employee who visited the firehouse previously for the investigation into Marjan’s actions. Paul says there is nothing serious going on between them, but Owen tells him that anyone who makes his face light up like Asha does deserves to be asked out to dinner.
Later, Asha shows up at the firehouse to talk to Owen about closing the investigation into Marjan. But the only thing everyone can see is Paul and Asha tripping over themselves in each other’s presence like a couple of precious schoolkids. When Asha and Owen leave to go to his office, Nancy, Mateo, and T.K. pounce on the opportunity to find out what’s really going on between Paul and Asha. Paul assures them that there is nothing going on and that they knew each other in grade school. But when they all ask him what reason he has for not pursuing something with someone he already knows and trusts, Paul realizes that he really has no reason not to ask Ash out on a proper date.
We then see Paul and Asha at a nice restaurant, and Paul is telling her about the little boy who somehow got a toy firetruck stuck in his nose and how he lied to the kid to get him to trust him. Asha then pulls out their sixth-grade yearbook from when she and Paul attended the same school in Chicago, and she starts pointing out pictures of the two of them together. Paul is clearly very uncomfortable during this whole exchange but plays it off and doesn’t tell Asha what is really going on.
Back at the 126, Nancy, Mateo, and T.K. ask Paul how things are going between him and Asha. But Paul snaps at them unexpectedly and shouts at them to drop it because they probably won’t be seeing each other again. Owen overhears the exchange and asks Paul to come to his office. When Paul and Owen are alone, Paul explains that while it’s great that Asha knows everything about him, including his pre-transition history, that’s precisely the problem he’s having with continuing to pursue Asha — when he transitioned, he realized that parts of his old life were tied to who others thought he should be (a member of the girls’ basketball team, for example). And if he were going to live his life in full transparency and honesty, he would need to shut off those parts of himself, as if shutting them behind doors. And Owen guesses that Paul “doesn’t want to open any of those doors back up.”
Late one night at the firehouse, Owen throws Paul a basketball and brings him out to the main room where there is a newly installed basketball goal. Owen helps Paul realize that he will remain who he really is, even if he opens one of those doors. The risk will be worth it.
Tommy vs. Melody, Round One
Tommy is at Trevor’s house, and Trevor is obsessing over the level of “golden” and “crispy” his lasagna currently is. Tommy realizes he is very nervous, and we hear girls laughing in the background. Tommy calms down Trevor through some breathing exercises, and she tells him that their daughters will be supportive of their relationship and that there is nothing to worry about.
After dinner, Tommy and Trevor announce to the three girls that they want to make their relationship official … but only with their permission and blessing. Evie and Izzy share their excitement about this news, and Trevor’s daughter Melody tells them that they deserve the best and that she supports them. But as Trevor and the twins are in the kitchen cleaning up, Melody confronts Tommy and tells her she has 24 hours to break up with her father. Tommy thinks she’s kidding … but she isn’t. “We can either end this your way, or we can end it my way,” Melody says.
Confused about what to do, Tommy asks for advice from Grace and Judd. Judd just refers to Melody as a “Bad Seed,” but Grace shows a little more … well, grace. She reminds everyone that Melody has been through a lot, with her parents divorcing and her having to move to another state with her father. Tommy says she wants to cancel their dinner plans, but Grace tells her not to do that and instead just come clean to Trevor about what Melody said.
Tommy vs. Melody, Round Two
Tommy shows up at Trevor’s house for her date, and Grace answers the door. She’s babysitting Melody for the night, and Tommy is clearly relieved to see her best friend there. When Trevor takes Grace to the kitchen to give her the list of phone numbers, Melody reminds Tommy of her instructions: break up with her dad tonight, or things will go from bad to worse. Tommy tells Melody she has no plans to break up with her dad. “Well, don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Melody says.
At dinner, Tommy is about to tell Trevor about what’s been going on when he receives a call from Grace. Apparently, Melody has suddenly fallen ill, so Trevor and Tommy rush back to his house. When they arrive, everyone is worried about Melody’s mysterious stomach ailment … except for Tommy, who sees right through Melody’s act. So Tommy instructs Trevor to make her abuelita‘s homemade remedy that is sure to cure Melody’s illness. It consists of soy sauce, horseradish, hot sauce, a raw egg, and other unmentionables in a tall glass of milk mixed with pickle juice. Tommy turns to Melody and tells her she can either drop her lying or have the worst milkshake of her life. But when Trevor brings the concoction to Melody, she downs it while looking right at Tommy. Tommy realizes that she might have met her match.
Tommy vs. Melody, Round Three
At the 126, Judd is giving Tommy a hard time about the drink she gave to Melody, referring to her as “Tommy Dearest” (while giggling about it like a little boy). “You know, if you’re gonna come for the queen, you best come, correct,” Tommy says. Just then, Melody walks up and asks Tommy if they can talk. When Tommy asks if Trevor is there, Melody clarifies that this conversation is meant just for them.
When they find a private place to sit down, Melody confronts Tommy about her relationship with her brother (something that was mentioned in passing at the lasagna dinner). Tommy corrects her and says that Julius is not her brother but her brother-in-law, and then she realizes that Melody goaded her into defending herself, so she could record Tommy’s words on her phone. Melody explains that if she doesn’t break up with her father immediately, she will play the tape for him.
After talking to Grace about the latest developments in the Melody blackmailing drama — and after Grace wants all the deets about Tommy and Julius, but Tommy refuses — Grace tells her best friend that coming clean to Trevor about everything is Tommy’s only real option here. So, Tommy shows up at Trevor’s house unannounced and tells him that things just aren’t sitting right with her since they announced their relationship to their daughters. She breaks off their relationship, and Trevor is heartbroken. But suddenly, Melody enters the room and is complaining of stomach cramps. Tommy tells her she can drop it because she finally won and broke things off with Trevor. And Melody says that she means it this time and that she’s really in pain.
While Trevor is trying to figure out what the statements “you finally won” and “I mean it this time” actually mean, Tommy asks Melody questions about her pain and realizes that Melody is experiencing her first menstrual cramps. A few minutes later, in Melody’s room, Melody tells Tommy that she misses her mom and wishes she were there. Tommy says she knows what she’s going through because her parents divorced, and she slashed the tires of her mother’s first boyfriend’s Camaro. Melody is impressed — and slightly scared — of this revelation, but knowing she and Tommy share some of the same struggles, Melody apologizes to Tommy and asks her to “un-dump” her dad. Tommy says she’ll talk to Trevor but won’t do it alone. Melody agrees to talk to her dad with Tommy.
At the end of the episode, we see Tommy, Trevor, and their three girls at a fair, sharing ice cream cones and getting along beautifully.
Tune in next Tuesday, March 14, for 9-1-1 Lone Star‘s next episode, “Control Freaks,” at 8 p.m. EST on FOX. And check out the rest of our 9-1-1: Lone Star coverage here.
