A Million Little Things recap: The guys rally together to play dad to Jon's kids
We pick up episode two of A Million Little Things right where we left off last episode: Gary has arrived at Maggie’s place, beers in hand, for a casual hookup. He’s surprised by the disarray of her apartment, but she explains she’s just moved here from Chicago — what d’you bet she ran away from a whole life back there? Gary promptly leaves after they do their thang, but not before Maggie almost mishears his “love that” for a “love you.”
Over at Eddie’s place, he’s putting his son to bed when the kid asks his dad where his necklace is. Eddie flashes back to an amorous meeting in the backseat of Delilah’s Lexus when he last had it. In her own home, Delilah finds said necklace in her late husband’s drawer. Did Jon know about the affair all along, and did he tell Eddie just that in the voicemail he left him right before his death? Guess we’ll find out eventually, but not right now because Eddie is lying to his friends about the existence of any message.
At Gina and Rome’s, Gina wakes up to a note from her husband saying he couldn’t sleep and has gone for a walk. That stroll takes him to Jon’s office to inspect the scene of his death a little further. He fantasizes about ducking under the police tape and climbing onto the glass railing just like Jon did, but snaps himself out of it before he leaps over in his mind.
Later, everyone converges at Delilah’s mansion. Gina and Rome bring bagels, Gary brings paper towels (which he proceeds to make “jokes” about for the duration of the meal), Eddie brings a whole lot of guilt for Delilah to deal with as she agonizes over Jon possibly knowing about their affair. She tells Eddie Jon had found his necklace so probably knew, but Eddie doesn’t agree. Just then, Jon’s assistant Ashley shows up with two cups of coffee; her regular barista assumed, as always, she needed one for her boss too.
At brunch, Gary encourages Rome to get help for his depression, bonds with Jon’s son about his class crush (who he suspects is a boy), and is either uncomfortable or thrilled that Delilah has also invited her brand new BFF Maggie to hang with the gang too. Meanwhile, Jon and Delilah’s daughter Sophie is upset about the upcoming father-daughter dance recital at her school. The guys think they should distract her somehow and come up with the particularly un-catchy “Band of Dads” title for their new joint efforts to father Jon’s kids. Delilah tells her daughter she doesn’t have to do the recital, but she is fixated on her dad’s slogan “Dixons don’t quit” and just wants to be treated normally. Her little brother offers to dance with her instead, but she needs someone a little taller who can lift her, so Rome offers his renowned skills. However, it’s Eddie that Sophie wants to perform with her. He’s all hesitant, what with the guilt of potentially driving her dad to his death, and Delilah agrees Eddie can’t do the dance with Sophie, but neither of them can think of an excuse to get him out of it. Looks like Eddies has some choreo to master.
Since she’s at the house, Ashley decides to work from Jon’s home office. In her boss’ study, Ashley is looking through the folder Jon left on the balcony after he jumped. It has Delilah’s name on it, but for whatever reason, she’s keeping it to herself. The part of Jon’s letter we glimpse, reads “there’s an envelope behind the painting” and also “Ashley had no idea I was going to do this.” Ashley retrieves the envelope, which reads “Rutledge,” and opens it. Inside is a dossier with Orchard Circle Life Insurance on the front and has Eddie, Rome, Gary and Barbara Morgan listed as his primary beneficiaries. WHO IS BARBARA MORGAN WE ALL YELL IN UNISON? Ashley wonders too because she types the name into Google, but it garners no results. Maybe we’ll find out before the season finale. (Recap continues on page 2.)
After brunch, Gary drives Maggie home, and they’re about to head inside to you know, but when they get there a man is waiting on her doorstep, and Maggie asks for a raincheck. As he leaves, Gary watches Maggie hug the mystery man. They sit down and chat, and it transpires he’s someone from that mysterious Chicago backstory we knew was coming. He tells her he’s worried about her, and she agrees she shouldn’t have left like she did, but she can’t be who he wants her to be. I’m assuming he’s the ex? Anyway, he knows her cancer is back and thinks they can fight it together. Maggie’s not saying she’s not going to fight it, but she’s happier than ever now that she’s not playing by the rules anymore. She concludes that she didn’t leave him, she left old herself.
Elsewhere, Rome is working on a commercial for soda. The producers think it could be bigger in some way; they want the actor to smile more after he sips from the can. Rome starts zoning out, clearly over this line of work, but nonetheless goes and tells the actor to give him the biggest smile he has, not to worry about basing it in reality. The actor’s all dude, as long as I’m getting paid, I’ll do whatever you want with the soda. Later at home, Rome searches through footage of Jon to find somewhere he’s not smiling and gets annoyed when he can’t. His smile belied his true feelings and that lie hits a little too close to home for Rome. He then finds one of the pills he almost killed himself with on the floor. Rome is not in a good place.
Back at Delilah’s, the ladies go over the contract for the new restaurant space Jon bought for Gina. Turns out, Jon bought the place in both Gina and Delilah’s name. D was an interior designer before she was a mom, so he wanted her to have this as a project too. Lovely, thoughtful Jon. Not so fast; Sophie is pissed her dad seemingly had a plan for everyone but her. She flashes back to a game of softball where she plays poorly, and her dad tells her she doesn’t have to win just not quit. She cries in her bedroom, asking her mom that if Dixons don’t quit, why did he? Regardless, she doesn’t plan on quitting.
Speaking of determination, Rome stalks Maggie at her office, initially telling her he wants to pick her brains for his movie, but when she blows him off he tells her the truth about almost killing himself. She tells him she cannot be his therapist because she’s friends with his friends and the sex with Gary, but he starts sharing nonetheless. He tells her he’s worried he and Jon are the same; they’re both hiding behind a fake smile. He’s been looking for ways they could be different but can’t find one. Maggie reiterates that she can’t be his therapist, but tells him they differ because Rome made the decision to live by picking up the call from Gary that day. She refers him to her partner and tells him he’s the gardener to Gina’s flower in their relationship.
It’s the day of the big recital, and Gary stops by to pick up Danny, Jon’s son. Little Danny asks Gary if his dad killed himself because of him. Realizing he’s talking about his sexuality, Gary tells him that they know his dad and they know he definitely didn’t do it because of him. He tells Danny that if Jon knew, his reaction would’ve been the same: to love Danny even more.
Gina hasn’t signed the lease yet. She doesn’t know why this was the last thing Jon did and wonders if Jon believes in her or just left her with it because they’re friends. Delilah shows her a Tupperware of treats Gina made Jon for his birthday that still remain. He froze them and would eat one every time he closed a big deal. Apparently, that means he believed in her. (Recap continues on page 3.)
Finally, the moment has arrived and it is one fancy dance recital — there are some very good schools in Boston, it would seem. The gang has bought a whole table in a ballroom-like setting. Gary asks Maggie who the guy at her door was and she replies it was just someone from the past. Insightful Danny points out that Gary likes likes Maggie.
Backstage, Sophie is chanting “Dixons don’t quit” over and over. In a flashback, we see Delilah and Eddie bonding over their late-working spouses. Delilah suggests they have dinner, just the two of them, that week. So that’s how it all started. Back in real time, Eddie is freaking out about going on and texts the guys saying it doesn’t feel right, he’s not her father and that it can’t be him. Gary is like we’re the band of dads, so one of them has to. Eddie is adamant he can’t be Jon right now. Luckily, Rome can and — as he informs Sophie — he knows the dance already because he was secretly coaching Jon. He’s the dancer of the group, you see. Sophie realizes her dad didn’t forget about her after all, he always intended for Rome to partner her and that’s why he had his friend coach him.
Outside in the hallway, Eddie tells Delilah he loves her, and Jon, and Sophie, and everyone but himself right now. That’s why he can’t be the one to dance with Sophie, even if she never finds out, he knows what they did. She thanks him, returns his necklace, and heads back in to watch Sophie and Rome dance to David Bowie’s “Modern Love,” complete with arm-ography and lifts. Outside, Eddie plucks up the courage to listen to the voicemail from Jon. “Hey it’s Jon,” says the recorded message. “I was hoping to speak to you, not just leave a message, but…I need you to do me a favor, love each other.” Okay, FINE, I’m tearing up a little.
Check back next week to see if Eddie shares his late bestie’s message with Delilah.
Related content:
