"Hoping that Hayley hadn't heard his argument with Trevor, Adam wore a concerned expression as he told his daughter that Trevor had just told him about her split with Mateo. He offered to let Hayley stay at Chandler Mansion, but his offer was rejected. "Do you think I'd live with you after what you've done?" Hayley asked coldly. Hayley accused Adam of "playing God" with her life. "You trash everything you touch," Hayley snapped when Adam tried to convince her that he'd only wanted to help her. Adam would later explain that he thought giving Mateo sole custody of Max would make things easier on both Hayley and Mateo. Things would be easier for Mateo, in Adam's mind, because he wouldn't have to worry about not being able to see his son. And for Hayley, well, Adam thought that Hayley would be happy if Mateo was happy. Trevor broke his silence by muttering that Adam should face jail time for what he'd done. He announced that he would report Judge Charles' actions to the Bar Association. After Trevor left, Hayley continued sticking it to her dad. "You ruined my life," she snarled. "I was trying to help," Adam said again. "I didn't expect you to rip a child away from his mother on my behalf," Hayley said tearfully. Adam apologized over and over, but this time his "I'm sorry"'s wouldn't cut it. Hayley laughed when she thought about the reason she'd dropped by to see her father. Hayley had felt badly for not telling him the truth about her separation from Mateo. "The truth," she snapped, "is something that is completely wasted on you." From the doorway, a voice ordered Hayley to stop her tirade. "That's enough," said Liza. Hayley instructed her father to explain why she was so angry. Hayley was stunned to learn that Liza already knew all about the fixed custody arrangement. Liza said that she doesn't approve of what Adam did, but at the same time she couldn't condemn him either. "The ever popular 'I did it out of love' alibi," sassed Hayley. Liza assured Hayley that her father had changed since he'd finagled with the judicial system. "Oh Liza," Hayley responded. "Don't be a fool." Hayley walked out of the room leaving Liza to help her husband pick up the pieces. She was angry with Hayley for attacking him. Adam apologized to Liza for involving her in his problems. Liza smiled and hugged Adam, saying that Adam knew better than to lie to her.
Tad, Dixie, and the boys traveled to the lake for a pre-Independence Day picnic. Dixie groused repeatedly about Tad's over-protectiveness. To a certain extent her complaints were justified; Tad wouldn't even let her stoop to lay the blanket down on the ground. Junior and Jamie plodded back to the picnic site from a frog hunting expedition. Either there were no frogs to "liberate," as Jamie once said, or the critters were too fast because the boys returned empty-handed. Jake and Gillian put in an appearance, but they stayed for only a short time. Gillian handed out miniature American flags to Jake's family. Tad and Jake stepped aside for a few minutes to discuss the latest on Dixie's condition. Tad informed Jake that Dixie was "determine to have this baby." Both men concurred that Dixie was thinking with her heart rather than her mind. After the serious talk was out of the way, Tad flashed a very big grin and asked his brother what was going on between him and "the princess." Jake smiled almost bashfully and professed that he and Gillian were just friends. "It's not like I'm asking her to move in [with me]," Jake chuckled. "You already live together," Tad replied wittily, pointing to their shared digs at Myrtle's boarding house. Jake and Gillian had plans for a swim at the beach and went on their way. Later, Dixie seemed unimpressed with Jake's latest belle. It wasn't that Dixie didn't like Gillian---she said that she thinks Gillian is very nice---but she wondered if a rebound relationship was wise for Jake. The mosquitoes moved in and started feasting on the Martin clan. Dixie looked crossly at Tad and scolded him for not bringing bug repellent. Tad tried to apologize, but Dixie's anger had little to do with Tad's forgetfulness. Dixie watched the boys wrestle and let her mind drift off to the future. She imagined a future Fourth of July when she, Tad, and the boys shared their celebration with a little girl---her daughter. Tad, however, had another vision of Independence Days to come. Instead of a festive mood, he and the boys found it difficult to find anything to be happy about: Dixie had died from complications during her pregnancy.
The spicy sounds of salsa music filled the air at SOS. The club instantly captivated Becca and she couldn't wait to start dancing. Scott introduced his co-producer to Ryan and Mateo. Scott was granted permission to interview patrons just as long as he wasn't pushy. A little while later, Dimitri and Edmund popped in. As a result of a bet, Edmund was forced to cough up money for Pine Valley's fireworks display. The nice guy that he is, Dimitri nixed the bet and went "halvsies" with his brother. Ryan asked the two men if Eugenia would be dropping by later with Gillian. It was a surreptitious was of trying to find out if Gillian would be dropping by. Edmund told Ryan that Eugenia was out of town and Gillian, well, he hadn't heard from Gillian in some time. Patrons continued to stream into the club. The most festively attired couple of the evening was Marian and Stuart. Marian had somehow gotten the idea that SOC was having a costume party. So, she dressed up like the Statute of Liberty and Stuart donned an Uncle Sam outfit. Stuart approached Ryan and asked him if Gillian was going to be coming by later. Ryan broke the news that he and Gillian had gotten a divorce. Stuart seemed disappointed, but he was convinced that the divorce was only a piece of paper and that Ryan and Gillian were still madly in love with one another. Scott and Becca descended upon Jack and Brooke's table. Jack was the first to speak out about a break-up. As one might expect, Jack's tale had a humorous twist. He claimed that he'd lusted after a particular cheerleader in school, but that when he met her he realized that "she didn't have all the dots on her dice." By that time she'd become smitten with him, the school's all-star track star. Jack concocted a tale about his lack of interest in physical relationships and claimed that he was going to enter the monastery immediately after graduation. Brooke's take lacked the easy flow of Jack's. In fact, she forgot many of the details of her story prompting Jack to rib Brooke about her failed attempt at standup comedy where she also had trouble keeping her story straight. Raquel and Max arrived at the club. This was the first time that Raquel had been in the club since the accident that nearly left her paralyzed. Ryan pulled Scott aside and asked him about his relationship with Becca. Scott insisted that he was involved solely on a professional level with Becca. Ryan smiled devilishly and nodded his head. His body language signaled that he didn't believe a word that Scott was saying. Dimitri and Edmund huddled near the bar. Dimitri complained of a nagging headache, but he vowed not to let his discomfort spoil the evening. Leslie Coulson wandered over to Edmund and greeted him. The two had met briefly at SOS's grand opening. There was no mindless banter or even any expression of interest on Edmund's part. He smiled and simply walked away. David walked up to the bar and asked Mateo if Erica had been by. Mateo shook his head and said that he didn't think Erica would ever return to the club after the way she'd been ambushed at the grand opening. David sat alone at the bar trapped in his own mind. Leslie sat beside him and told him that she'd thought he'd been the victim of foul play. "What have you been doing?" she asked. After a second of thought, she blinked her eyes and changed "what" to "who." David said nothing and appeared irked by Leslie's crude remark. He rose from the barstool and walked out of the club. Trevor and Janet briefly greeted Max and Raquel before sliding off to the side of the club. Mateo took time out from chopping fruit to sit with his son and former wife. As they sat together laughing and joking, they were unaware that they were being watched. Hayley was about to enter the club when she spotted the happy group through the front window. She stood frozen, transfixed on the seemingly perfect family portrait. She bowed her head and walked away. Ryan saw Hayley through the glass and took off after her. Ryan might have been right about Scott and Becca's relationship. Scott wanted to call it a night and return home. Becca, however, grumbled that Scott had to think about more than his work. She flashed a smiled and asked Scott to dance with her. Feigning reluctance, Scott put down his camera and agreed. Brooke and Jack also shared a dance. Brooke joked that she was going to start calling Jack "father" because of his breakup story. Forget about father, said Jack. "I would [just] like you to start calling me," he said bluntly. Mateo took to the microphone and informed everyone that the fireworks display was about to begin. Everyone filed out of the club and onto the sidewalk to watch the spectacle of lights.
Erica returned home and was greeted by her housekeeper, Coral. Erica reviewed her messages and asked Coral if she'd received any calls from "a Dr. David Hayward." The housekeeper shook her head and said that unless there was a message on the pile, the doctor hadn't called. Erica gave Coral the rest of the night off. Once alone, Erica placed a call to The Valley Inn and asked to be connected with David's room. While she was waiting, she flashed back the kiss she and David shared after she received the good news about the success of her surgery. Erica was told that David was not in his room, but she would not leave a message. Erica caught a glimpse of the fireworks out of the corner of her eye. She walked to her front porch so that she could get a better view. For some reason she cast her eyes down from the dark sky. When she did, she saw that David was outside waiting for her.
Back by the lake, Tad and Dixie looked towards the heavens. Tad compared the fireworks to love, saying that people need to make every effort to ensure that their relationship doesn't end as quickly as a fireworks display.
On the beach, Jake urged Gillian to sing another chorus of "The Star Spangled Banner." Gillian agreed and twittered at the top of her lungs, "Jose can you see!" Jake broke into hysterical laughter and explained to her that the song didn't start with Jose. Finally everything made sense. "I couldn't figure out what Jose could do to inspire the National Anthem," she said. Gillian's cute blunders continued. She pulled out a plastic container from the picnic basket. She said that she'd spoken to Scott and learned that American's like to eat "fried chickpeas" on the holidays. Gillian said that she'd gone to a gourmet food store, but no one there knew anything about friend chickpeas. What Gillian didn't know was that Scott had said fried chicken. Rather than break the news to Gillian, Jake suggested that they take a quick dip. After their brief swimming session, things turned romantic. Jake leaned towards Gillian and kissed her passionately. Gillian suddenly began trembling. She pulled away and told Jake that she needed to return to the truck and get a towel.
Elsewhere on the beach, Ryan ran across the sand looking for Hayley. He called out to her, but there was no response. He panicked when he looked out into the ocean. Ryan dove into the water and swam out to where Hayley was wading. He hoisted Hayley into the air and carried her back to dry land. Hayley assured her friend that she was fine. She reminded him that she liked to go swimming when times were tough. She blasted herself for allowing everyone in her life to constantly disappoint her. Hayley began to shiver in the cool night air. Ryan wrapped his shirt around her. He held her arm and promised her that everything would be okay. Words, however, didn't seem to comfort Hayley. He slowly moved towards Hayley. Eventually their lips touched and they kissed. On her way back from the truck, Gillian passed by. Upon seeing her former husband and new friend engaged in a kiss, Gillian nearly fell over. A few yards away, Ryan and Hayley continued their steamy kiss."
- Soap Central