PORT CHARLES EPISODE SUMMARIES: DECEMBER 1997

Monday, December 1, 1997 (Episode #130)
Prior to the memorial service, Lucy helped Jake decide on Danielle's funeral dress. With the trial just weeks away, Scott was
distressed to learn that there was no evidence of foul play to implicate Rex in Danielle's car crash, much less Serena's kidnapping. Gail was called away to deal with a patient and Kevin offered to stay with Serena. After seeing firsthand how upset Serena was at the thought of being taken away from Scott, Kevin warily agreed to let Lucy try and wile her way into Rex's camp. Later, Lucy initiated her plan after the memorial service by lashing out at Scott for his supposed callousness over Danielle's death. Chris slept with Nicole at his apartment and helped her with her decision to proceed with her divorce from Bennett. Eve returned to the apartment and almost found Nicole there. Eve left without seeing Nicole, who was angry to learn that Eve and Chris were roommates. Bennett was grateful that Eve had earlier tried to get Nicole to change her mind about the divorce, even though her efforts had been in vain.

Tuesday, December 2, 1997 (Episode #131)
Karen told Scott that she would sue for custody of Serena if need be. Scott was grateful, but hoped that it wouldn't come to that. Meanwhile, Rex spoke with Rollins and said that Karen would never get custody of Serena due to her past as a stripper and drug abuser. Rex also pointed out that Lucy was not a blood relative to Serena and said that he had ammunition to use to discredit Lee and Gail as well. Later, Rex went to the funeral home under the pretense of clearing the air with Jake. Jake didn't but Rex's story and vowed revenge against him. Later, Jake looked into buying a gun. Lucy told Kevin that her staged fight with Scott had worked like a charm. Lucy, however, also voiced her fear that people would think she had returned to her old flighty ways. Kevin then assured Lucy that she would be seen as a hero once everyone knew what she had done for Scott and Serena. Scott arrived and told Kevin and Lucy that he wanted to let Karen in on their scheme. Kevin was adamantly opposed to the idea and made it clear that no one else could know what they were up to. Kevin and Lucy then went to the Port Charles Grill, where Lucy created a scene with Lee and Gail in front of Rex in order to further her scheme. Chris tried to apologize to an unforgiving Nicole for not telling her that Eve was his roommate. Chris left and ran into Bennett in the hallway, but Bennett bought Chris's excuse for being there. Bennett then spoke with Nicole, who refused the idea of marriage counseling and remained set on getting a divorce. At the hospital, Ellen told the interns that she was sympathetic to Jake's loss, but that they should put the funeral behind them and focus on their patients. After Ellen left, Eve voiced her opinion that Ellen's behavior was due to Grace going out with Matt. Later, Matt was hurt when he heard Ellen tell Grace that she had never had anything but professional feelings for Matt. Karen received her divorce papers from Jagger.

Wednesday, December 3, 1997 (Episode #132)
Scott confided the truth about his and Lucy's scheme to Eve, who agreed to act as a go-between and help deliver information about Rex to Scott. Kevin and Lucy discussed their plan to stage an argument in front of Rex at the Port Charles Grill and then rehearsed their performance in front of Scott. Later, Lucy and Kevin staged their fight for Rex's benefit as Eve spied on Rex.  Eve then reported to Scott that Rex had bought Lucy and Kevin's performances. Jake was frustrated to learn that there was a fifteen day waiting period for buying a gun and became determined to get a gun immediately. Jake then contacted a patient he had once treated and ended up buying a gun from him. Later, Joe was shocked when he saw the gun fall out of Jake's jacket.  Nicole took Frank and Julie to dinner and was mortified when her credit cards were rejected. Later, Nicole confronted Bennett, who admitted that he had canceled her credit cards. Nicole then made it clear to Bennett that she would not back down no matter what he tried to do. Nicole then forgave Chris for their earlier misunderstanding and privately formulated a plan. Grace and Matt had dinner together at the Recovery Room, where they grew closer. Grace gathered her courage and kissed a surprised Matt.

Thursday, December 4, 1997 (Episode #133)
Joe was shocked when he saw the gun fall out of Jake's jacket.  Joe thought that Jake was contemplating suicide until he learned that Rex was on his way over to Jake's. Joe then realized that Jake intended to kill Rex. Rex arrived and an angry Jake held him at gunpoint and told Rex he would pay for what he had done to Danielle. After several heated moments, Joe convinced Jake to put the gun down and Rex's life was spared. Rex left, but Jake still wanted him dead. Karen invited her friends to a "divorce party" she was throwing and the interns were impressed by the way Karen seemed to be holding everything together. Later, however, Karen allowed her real feelings to surface once she was alone on the hospital roof. Nicole formed a plan to use Chris to get back at Bennett for canceling her credit cards. Nicole invited Chris to her hotel room and then manipulated an unsuspecting Bennett into stopping by. Bennett arrived at Nicole's room and found her in a compromising situation with Chris. Chris was furious with Nicole and realized that she had set him up.

Friday, December 5, 1997 (Episode #134)
Lucy and Kevin took the next step in their plan against Rex by purposely gossiping about problems in their relationship.Lucy and Kevin wanted the gossip to spread so that Rex would eventually hear about it. Kevin lamented about Lucy to Ellen as Lucy complained about Kevin to Alan, with nurse Amy Vining overhearing everything. By the end of the day, Lucy and Kevin learned that their plan was paying off. Scott worried about his upcoming trial, which was scheduled to start the next day. Scott instinctively went to the gazebo, which had been a special place for him and Dominique, and began to talk to Dominique's star.  Scott, however, was unaware that his emotional plea had brought Dominique's "spirit" close to him.  Karen's "divorce party" was a rousing success and Karen was able to convince everyone, and almost herself, that she had made peace with ending her marriage. After the party, Joe and Karen found themselves in each other's arms sharing a passionate kiss.
 
Monday, December 8, 1997 (Episode #135)
The jury selection for Scott's trial began and Lee was articulate in his questioning of the potential jurors. Scott, however, was
distressed that so many people in Port Charles had already made up their mind about him and thought that he was guilty. Lee did his best to try and seat jurors who matched the profile Kevin had come up with, specifically women who had children themselves. By the end of the day, however, Lee had run out of preemptory challenges. Meanwhile, Lucy and Gail helped decorate the house for Serena's birthday and Gail questioned Lucy about their earlier confrontation. Lucy desperately wanted to tell Gail the truth about her scheme, but stuck with her story that she didn't think Serena was being properly cared for by Lee and Gail. Serena refused to celebrate her birthday until Scott could be there. Scott finally arrived and Serena was overjoyed to see him. Scott then gave Serena a locket with a picture of Dominique and a picture of him and Serena inside. As Serena slept, Dominique's ghost sat by her side and watched over her. Chris faced Bennett's wrath at the hospital because Bennett had found him in Nicole's hotel room. Bennett criticized Chris's work in front of the other interns and refused to allow Chris to assist him in surgery. Later, Chris confronted Bennett and told him that he would file a harassment suit against him and threatened to tell everyone about his affair with Nicole. An angry Bennett then told Chris that he would back down, but privately seethed.

Tuesday, December 9, 1997 (Episode #136)
Kevin, Lucy, Jake and Karen were on hand to lend Scott some moral support as his trial began. Rex was at the courthouse as well and he taunted Jake about his own upcoming assault trial. Karen, however, warned Jake not to rise to Rex's bait. Jake wanted to testify on Scott's behalf, but Lee advised against it. Scott's trial got underway and the Prosecutor alluded to Scott's unsavory past. As his first witness, the Prosecutor called the nanny who planned to testify about Scott trying to appropriate Jason Quartermaine's trust fund after marrying Susan Moore. Julie went to Nicole's hotel room and they planned to go shopping together. Bennett arrived, but Nicole refused to allow him in. Without knowing Julie was in the room, Bennett then mentioned Nicole's affair with Chris. Julie was devastated to learn that Nicole had slept with Chris and Julie rushed off to confront him. Chris was chagrined to learn that Julie had found out about him and Nicole and Eve walked in on their confrontation. After Julie left, Eve warned Chris that his indiscretion would probably come back to haunt him. Dominique's ghost appeared before Serena, who was awestruck and overjoyed to finally meet her mother. Dominique and Serena enjoyed a pretend tea party and Dominique tried to comfort Serena about Scott's absence. Later, Gail became concerned over Serena's reasons for creating an "imaginary" friend.

Wednesday, December 10, 1997 (Episode #137)
At Scott's trial, both Jason's former nanny and Monica Quartermaine testified about the way Scott had appropriated Jason's trust fund. Lee then did his best to do damage control during his cross-examination, but Scott figured that the trial could still go either way. Lucy and Kevin staged the next phase of their supposed estrangement in order to prime Rex in preparation for trying to win his confidence. Gail told Scott about her concerns over Serena's newfound obsession with her "imaginary" mother. Despite the pressure of the trial, Scott was determined to help Serena. Julie and Nicole failed to agree on Nicole's decision to divorce Bennett. Julie then berated Nicole for the way she and Bennett had been making her life a living hell and for airing their dirty laundry in front of Julie's friends and co-workers. Afterwards, Frank arrived and comforted Julie.

Thursday, December 11, 1997 (Episode #138)
Scott and Eve visited Serena because Scott was concerned over her new invisible friend. Serena told Scott that she called her new friend "Mommy" because she looked like Dominique. Serena then asked Scott about the sweater Dominique had knitted for her when she was a baby. Scott was taken aback by Serena's question because he didn't remember ever telling Serena about the sweater. Serena added to Scott's bewilderment when she told him that "Mommy" had told her about the sweater.  Later, Dominique made a bedside visit to Serena. Joe surprised Karen with a drive out to the country to cut down a Christmas tree. Joe told Karen how he and his family had come to the same place every year to cut down their own tree. Just as Joe finished cutting down the tree, a State Trooper arrived and told Joe that the area had recently been turned into a forest preserve and the officer gave Joe a ticket. Meanwhile, Grace showed up at the Recovery Room with a tray a homemade vegetable lasagna to share with Matt. Grace and Matt were then joined by Mike and a somewhat uncomfortable Ellen. Matt and Ellen both avoided answering questions about their childhood and Grace was aware that the bond between Ellen and Matt still existed.

Friday, December 12, 1997 (Episode #139)
Nicole stopped by the hospital and told Julie that she was going back to Chicago. Nicole then ran into an unforgiving Chris and
apologized to him. After Nicole left, Bennett approached Julie and told her that she should have done more to keep Nicole in Port Charles. After her frustrating meetings with her parents, Julie then lashed out at both Chris and Eve. Eve defended herself and told Julie she was overreacting. At the courthouse, Scott and Lee planned their strategy before Conklin took the stand and Karen, Joe and Jake arrived to show their support for Scott. Conklin took the stand and the Prosecutor lead him to testify against Scott and clearly established the fact that Scott had not acted like the typical parent of a child who had been kidnapped. Lee then cross-examined Conklin, but the damage had already been done. Before Conklin left the witness stand, he also said that he had a witness who would testify that Scott was a habitual drug user. Eve continued to establish her therapy sessions with Kevin as a cover for her spreading information between Kevin, Lucy and Scott. Ellen told Kevin that his suspension from GH had been lifted.

Monday, December 15, 1997 (Episode #140)
At Scott's trial, the prosecution revealed that they had a witness who would testify that he had sold drugs to Scott. Scott was
outraged by the extent of Rex's treachery and Lee's request for a mistrial was denied. Later, Scott was devastated to learn that his friends had been subpoenaed to testify against him. Gail became increasingly concerned over Serena's obsession with her
Mommy. Gail called Kevin and asked him to come over to ascertain his take on the situation with Serena. Kevin then visited with Serena and told Gail that he thought Serena's behavior was normal under the stressful circumstances. Later, Serena helped Gail find her missing address book and Serena told Gail that Mommy had told her where the address book was. Karen decided to go away with Joe for the weekend after all. Karen told Julie about her decision and Julie supported her. Julie and Karen both realized that neither one had yet been intimate with their boyfriends. Eve helped Julie take care of a patient and Julie apologized to Eve for the way she had been treating her.

Tuesday, December 16, 1997 (Episode #141)
Scott was worried about the outcome of his trial. Rhonda paid Scott a visit after receiving a subpoena to testify at the trial and told Scott that she wasn't sure what to say in court. Scott realized that he couldn't expect his friends to perjure themselves for him and told Rhonda that he and Lee had already figured out that Rhonda was being called by the prosecution. Meanwhile, Serena and her classmates sang Christmas carols outside of Karen's apartment. Karen invited the children inside and noticed Serena's lack of enthusiasm about the upcoming holiday. Serena then told Karen that Christmas wasn't any fun without Scott and Karen tried to comfort Serena. Later, Serena and her classmates went caroling at the firehouse and Scott held Serena in his arms. After the children left, Scott wished that Dominique were there to help him. Scott, however, didn't realize that Dominique was in the room watching over him. Chris and Eve settled in for a quiet night together at Chris's apartment and Chris pretended that he didn't have any money problems. Later, both Chris and Eve were surprised when they found themselves sharing a kiss. Frank and Julie prepared to spend a romantic evening at home together but their plans were ruined when the furnace broke down. Julie and Frank then showed up at Karen's, where they hoped to spend a warm night with Karen and Joe. Karen's impromptu "slumber party" was interrupted by her landlady, Alice, who complained about the noise. Alice then quickly joined in the fun when Frank asked her to dance. Later, Frank, Julie, Joe and Karen all fell asleep on the floor.

Wednesday, December 17, 1997 (Episode #142)
Chris and Eve discussed their kiss from the night before and Eve told Chris that the kiss had meant nothing. Chris then found out that his car had been repossessed, but he lied and told Eve that his car had been stolen. Chris was forced to sell a painting to raise the cash to reclaim his car. Later, Chris asked Eve to move out so that she wouldn't find out about his money troubles.  Lucy was served with a subpoena to testify against Scott. This prompted Lucy and Kevin to move ahead with their plan and they staged a fight in front of Rex to try and convince him that they had broken up. Later, Lucy moved out of the lighthouse, but not before making love with Kevin one last time. Joe and Frank learned that their old furnace needed to be replaced and that it would cost more than they could afford. Julie offered to loan them the money for a new furnace, but Frank didn't want to borrow money from a friend. When Frank and Joe couldn't get a bank loan, however, they agreed to accept Julie's offer as long a repayment schedule was set and a loan agreement signed. Joe and Frank then decided to rent out a room in the house in order to meet their loan payments.

Thursday, December 18, 1997 (Episode #143)
Kevin and Lucy were miserable after spending their first night apart due to their previously staged fight. Rex saw Lucy eating
breakfast alone and Lucy later confirmed that she had moved into the Port Charles Hotel. Rex then sent flowers to Lucy. Scott
learned about Lucy and Kevin's phony break-up and paid Lucy a visit. Lucy then told Scott that she was going to throw herself into her work at Jacks Cosmetics since she couldn't be with Kevin. Lucy was thrilled that Rex was taking the bait and anticipated Rex's next move. The interns received their six month evaluations. Jake received poor evaluations from Bennett, Boardman and Ellen. Joe's evaluations were mixed while Karen received a bad review from Bennett, but good reviews from Boardman and Ellen. Eve and Matt received excellent reviews all around, but Julie and Chris both got poor reviews from Bennett. Later, Chris vowed to knock his chief rivals for the Quartermaine Residency, namely Matt and Eve, down a notch or two.

Friday, December 19, 1997 (Episode #144)
Eve acted as a go-between for Kevin and Lucy. Rex was surprised when he saw Eve and Lucy together and wondered when they became such good friends. A quick thinking Eve, however, claimed that she and Lucy were just discussing Jacks Cosmetics business and Lucy was impressed by Eve's improvisational skills. Kevin paid Lucy a surprise visit at her hotel room disguised as a room service waiter. Lucy was convinced that Dominique really had come back from the dead to watch over them. Later, Scott admitted to Gail that he had never really gotten over Dominique's death. The interns reacted to their evaluations from the Quartermaine Residency Review Board and Eve and Matt were happily surprised when they emerged as the front runners. The other interns felt a renewed sense of determination to become good doctors and Jake told Ellen that he was ready to come back to work. Karen threw a beer and pizza party at her apartment to celebrate the evaluations being over with. Karen's landlady, Alice, joined in the celebration but soon suffered a heart attack. After Alice was taken to the hospital, Karen and Matt learned that Alice was Ellen's mother.

Monday, December 20, 1997 (Episode #145)
Lucy received a surprise visit from Rex and "reluctantly" let Rex sway her into meeting Dewey, the drug dealer who claimed he had sold drugs to Scott. Scott, having been alerted by Kevin about Rex's surprise visit, then showed up at Lucy's room. Lucy then accused Scott of having kidnapped Serena and a major fight ensued, all of which was staged for Rex's benefit. After Scott left, Rex offered Lucy comfort but she put him off. Ellen tried in vain to keep anyone from finding out that Alice was her            mother. After a strained meeting with Alice, Ellen opened up to Matt a little but did not explain why she and Alice were estranged. Later, Ellen's brother, Winston, arrived at the hospital after receiving a call from Frank and the animosity between
Winston and Ellen was evident. Chris jokingly reminded Eve that he would do whatever it took to beat her and Matt out of the Quartermaine Residency honors. Later, Chris overheard Eve acting as Scott and Kevin's go-between.

Tuesday, December 23, 1997 (Episode #146)
Continuing their charade, Scott was forced to lie to Karen and told her that Lucy thought he was guilty of kidnapping Serena. Later, a livid Karen confronted Lucy, who had no choice but to go along with the scam. Rex invited Lucy to Christmas Eve dinner, but she declined. Rex told his attorney that he didn't completely buy Lucy's story, but was intrigued by her nonetheless. Lucy accidentally ran into Kevin while he was having a counseling session with Gail. Later, Lucy told Scott that he had to cut her off from seeing Serena in order for Rex to fall for their scheme. Eve wanted to rent a room from Frank and Joe, who both thought that Julie wouldn't approve of Eve living in the house. Julie, however, decided to turn over a new leaf and gave Eve a key to the Scanlon home. Ellen told Winston that she was one of Alice's doctors and that he couldn't order her to stay out of Alice's room. Alice asked to see Winston alone and Frank and Matt learned that he was Ellen's brother. Later, Ellen told Winston that she and her husband were no longer together. A curious Matt tried to question Ellen about her husband, but she refused to talk about him.
 
Wednesday, December 24, 1997 (Episode #147)
A tearful Lucy reiterated to Scott that in order for Rex to believe that she's crossed over to his side, Scott must forbid her to have any contact with Serena. Later, Lucy told Serena that she was going to start work on an important project and that she wouldn't be able to see Serena for awhile. Lucy, however, assured Serena that she would always be thinking of her and promised to send her cards and presents. Lucy returned to her hotel room and was frightened by an intruder, who turned out to be Kevin dressed in a Santa suit. Kevin told Lucy that he had a surprise for her and then reached in his bag and pulled out Sigmund, which delighted Lucy. Julie watched as Chris confronted Bennett for the poor review he had given him. Julie then interrupted Chris and Bennett and surprised both men when she sided with Chris and blasted Bennett for not being able to separate his personal feelings from his professional ones. After Bennett left, Chris told Julie that he was impressed by how she had stood up to her father and Chris and Julie reached a new level of understanding. Bennett asked Julie to spend the holiday with him, but she refused. Later, a lonely and guilt-ridden Bennett bought Christmas Eve dinner for the hospital staff on duty in the hope of getting back in Julie's good graces. Alice made it clear to Ellen that she wasn't interested in spending the holiday with her, although Alice was thrilled to see Winston. Ellen then felt like an outsider as she watched Winston and Alice celebrate Christmas Eve together. Karen told Scott that she was going away with Joe for a few days and Scott gave her his blessing.

Thursday, December 25, 1997: Christmas Day (Pre-Empted)
Friday, December 26, 1997 (Episode #148)
Lucy continued with her plan to infiltrate Rex's camp and asked Rex to give her more proof about Scott's guilt. Lucy and Scott staged a fight in front of Gail and Lee at the hospital in which Lucy accused Scott of kidnapping Serena and Scott publicly forbid Lucy to ever see Serena again. Lucy then told Rex about her fight with Scott and said that she was ready to do anything to get Serena away from Scott. After Lucy left, Rex told Rollins that he didn't believe Lucy. Rex then said that as long as Lucy thought she had him fooled, he would be able to effectively manipulate her. Scott told Lee and Gail that he was still in love with Dominique and didn't feel like he would ever be able to fall in love again. Meanwhile, Eve complained to Chris that she thought she would ever find love herself. Scott felt  horrible about deceiving his parents, and Eve lent him a sympathetic ear. Scott gave Eve a bracelet with a pizza charm commemorating the first time Scott was nice to her. Then, Scott and Eve almost kissed, but he pulled away. Eve then returned to Chris and they ended up sharing a kiss. Meanwhile, Dominique visited Scott in a dream and warned him that he was going to "lose her." When Scott awoke, he tried to figure out who Dominique had been referring to. Joe and Frank discussed New Year's Eve. Joe was planning to be with Karen alone in the cabin in the woods and Frank planned on being alone with Julie at home. Both Joe and Frank agreed that the potential for romance existed. Joe and Karen set off on their trip and it started out disastrously. First, Joe and Karen lost their way, then got a flat a tire and were forced to spend the night in Joe's car. 

Monday, December 29, 1997 (Episode#149)
Lucy poured on the sex appeal as she "allowed" Rex to convince her of the need to come down hard on Scott's drug use when she testified at his trial. Kevin was concerned that Lucy was using her sexuality as bait to trap Rex, but Lucy's dismissed Kevin's warnings. Later, however, Lucy became jealous when she saw a woman flirting with Kevin at the Port Charles Grill and Lucy "accidentally" dumped a tray of food on the woman. Lucy and Kevin argued about her behavior when they found themselves alone together in the elevator and their anger gave way to passion. Scott told Gail that he thought Dominique's dream appearance was meant to be a warning about either Serena or Lucy. Later, Scott received another visit from Dominique, who wanted to take Scott on a special journey. Eve found herself attracted to Chris, who changed his mind and wanted Eve to stay in the apartment. Eve, however, reluctantly told Chris that her moving out was for the best. Joe and Karen faced a series of mishaps as they arrived at the cabin in the woods. Joe and Karen seemed poised to consummate their relationship, but Karen fell asleep instead. 

Tuesday, December 30, 1997 (Episode #150)
Dominique took Scott on a dream journey of his life. Their trip examined Scott's past, present, and future, and his lingering problem with letting love into his life. Scott's soul-searching journey made him realize that the future looked bleak for everyone in his life, unless he made some changes. Frank and Julie's evening together was interrupted by a call from Mario, who wanted Frank to know that Lark had been sneaking back into the restaurant after closing business hours to sleep there. Later, Lark told Frank and Julie that her mother was out of town and that her mother had forgot to give Lark a key to their house. Frank and Julie didn't believe Lark's story, but they didn't press the issue for fear of scaring Lark off. Frank and Julie then took Lark back home with them and let her spend the night in Eve's old room. 

Wednesday, December 31, 1997 (Episode #151)
 In light of his dream journey with Dominique, Scott became determined to open his life to people and decided to throw a New Year's Eve party. As midnight struck at Scott's party, Grace kissed Jake, and Matt kissed a surprised Ellen. Scott and Eve then shared an electric kiss as Dominique's spirit looked on approvingly. Meanwhile, Rex invited Lucy to Mario's to ring in the new year. While at Mario's, Lucy invited Rex back to her hotel room and was unaware that Kevin was hiding in her room waiting to surprise her. Later, outside her hotel room, Lucy allowed Rex to kiss her as Kevin waited for Lucy inside. At the cabin, Joe and Karen's clothes were soaked and they sat huddled around the fire wrapped in blankets. Lovemaking seemed imminent between Joe and Karen, until Joe realized that he hadn't brought along any protection. Lark was no where to be found after spending the night at the Scanlon home. Frank, however, finally met Lark's mother and she verified Lark's story.  Later, Frank and Julie realized that they both wanted the same kind of relationship and they made love.
 

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