Next week on Home and Away in the UK, Bree overhears Mercedes admitting to kissing Remi, and John and Irene’s romantic prank upsets Marilyn.
The rumours of a relationship between John (Shane Withington) and Irene (Lynne McGranger) last week had people talking.
The two have enjoyed having some company since Irene offered to let John stay with her while he recovers from his recent operation. Since Cash left the Beach House in October of last year, Irene has been living alone there, while John has been rattling around his Saxon Avenue home since he divorced his ex-wife Marilyn (Emily Symons) back in 2020.
It is undeniable that John and his friends became closer after his horrifying hospitalisation, which Irene witnessed, but it is obvious that their friendship is strictly platonic—or at least that’s what they believed!
Before Alf (Ray Meagher) and Marilyn noticed John and Irene eating together in Salt, it was Theo (Matt Evans), who squirmed after overhearing the two joking about it.
Marilyn believed they appeared to be quite intimate and grew increasingly uneasy around them as she started to suspect anything might be going on.
John and Irene didn’t understand why people had been so interested in their living arrangements lately until Mali (Kyle Shilling) revealed the rumour to them. Xander (Luke Van Os) and Mackenzie (Emily Weir) had reached the same conclusion after conducting their own research.
The following morning, John was about to tell Marilyn the truth while Marilyn quietly dug for information when Irene intervened.
Irene suggested that should teach their pals a lesson by actually giving them something to speak about because she reasoned that if Maz was so interested, she should just ask outright.
The tension will increase next week as “Jirene” (as named by Seven; we would have chosen “Jorene” ourselves) does everything in their power to persuade the bay that they are a couple… without saying so out loud.
Irene advises John to just follow her lead because she is more confident than he is about the plan. Irene hands John his coffee and says, “I drew a love heart on top for you,” making sure Marilyn can hear her.
Marilyn is shocked to learn how much Irene is looking forwards to becoming John’s plus one at Jett’s (Will McDonald) wedding.
John notices Marilyn uneasy and worries whether they’re going too far as she excuses herself. Irene points out that it’s really just a matter of Marilyn asking them directly if they’re dating.
When John subsequently returns to tell Irene that he’s notified Jett about her attending the ceremony, it appears that he didn’t exactly get the memo about “pretending.”
Given that she had anticipated that she and John would be attending together as Jett’s parents, Marilyn is a little miffed.
In order to maintain her composure, Marilyn ends up pretending that she has another date scheduled for later by telling Irene about a “former boyfriend” who resides in Yabbie Creek.
When Marilyn complains to Alf about the scenario, he assumes she is away with the fairies, but when Irene then makes a showy gesture by kissing John on the cheek in front of them, the evidence seems to speak for itself.
When Alf questions Irene about the kiss, she admits that she and John are getting along far better than they ever thought. Alf can hardly believe his eyes and wonders what in the world Irene is thinking.
The following day, Irene sends some flowers to work and tells Marilyn and Alf that they were gifts from John. Marilyn then takes an exit to go outside.
Marilyn states that she is not envious of John’s relationship with Irene, but Alf questions her about it and finds out that she is wounded because none of them could be honest with her. She believed that their friendship was superior than that.
Will John and Irene’s revenge trick turn out to be unsuccessful?
Mercedes’ (Amali Golden) effort to kiss Remi (Adam Rowland) somewhere in Summer Bay raises serious concerns for Remi and Lyrik as a whole.
Remi’s girlfriend Bree (Juliet Godwin), who could tell that Mercedes had affections for her old boarding school classmate, could see that Mercedes had joined Lyrik as a guest violinist on their debut album, but Remi rejected Bree’s worries and begged her to believe him that nothing would happen.
Bree was reluctant to give Mercedes the chance to spend any alone time with Remi after Mercedes revealed to her that she had nothing in common with the musician, not understanding why they were even together. So, Bree came up with the idea of going with the band to their first recording session in the city.
Bree gave in and stayed in Summer Bay when Remi brought up the trust issue once more.
Bree’s worries were not unjustified, however, as Mercedes created a scenario in which Remi would be left alone by remaining behind to record a second take of her song while the rest of the band went home.
Remi informed Mercedes that she had misread the situation when she planted a kiss on him, and Mercedes quickly left.
Remi told her irate bandmate Eden (Stephanie Panozzo) what had transpired, admitting that she had forewarned him all along that Mercedes would be trouble, and asked her to tell Bree the truth while they waited for word on whether Mercedes would be coming back to record the remaining songs for the album.
As the second studio session approaches next week, no one has heard from Mercedes, leaving teammates Kirby (Angelina Thomson) and Theo (Matt Evans) perplexed as to what is going on when Remi admits she might not appear.
Eden declares that she’s going to the motel to confront Mercedes since the band put too much work into the CD for Remi to spoil it.
When Remi gets there, Mercedes just wants to talk about what transpired between them, so he reluctantly tells Eden that he will go alone. Remi wants to put it behind him and focus on the forthcoming studio session, but Mercedes won’t let him.
After much discussion, it’s still unclear whether Mercedes will show up as the band travels to the city, but when she does, the day is saved and they can resume the session.
Bree decides to visit the recording studio in the meanwhile because she has been having trouble sleeping and is suspicious after learning about Mercedes. She arrives as the band is taking a break.
Remi and Mercedes continue to discuss the kiss after they are left alone in the studio. unaware that in the control room, Bree can hear everything!
Bree silently leaves without being spotted after hearing what she has and returns to Summer Bay startled. She lies there pondering exactly what she should do next as Remi later comes in and informs her that the session was unremarkable.
The following day, Bree is upset with Remi, and after giving him several chances to confess, she finally confronts him and admits that she was in the studio the night before.
Remi explains, but Bree assumes that if it really was as innocent on his part as he claims, Remi would have told her. As a result, Bree gathers her belongings and departs.
Bree points her that she endured years in an abusive marriage where Jacob (Alex Williams) often apologised to her while Remi chased after her and tried to apologise.
After working to overcome her painful history, Remi’s refusal to be honest with her from the beginning has stripped her of her power.
Remi speaks candidly about all that transpired, acknowledging that the day prior, he visited Mercedes at the motel in an effort to persuade her to reunite with the band.
Bree eventually gives him the benefit of the doubt when he reassures her that he didn’t have a sexual relationship with Mercedes.
Bree is given assurance by Remi that he won’t lie to her again, and it appears that the issue is passed.
Bree notices a text from Mercedes arrive on Remi’s phone as he leaves to fetch some coffee.
Bree picks up the phone and records Mercedes’ number in order to use it later; she obviously has a plan. then what?
