Seven-Spotted Ladybug

Seven-Spotted Ladybug is the first episode of Season 1 of the Freeform series, Everything's Gonna Be Okay. It premiered on January 16, 2020 in the US.

Synopsis
Nicholas' single dad has very bad cancer, and he’s going to die, soon. So, Nicholas offers himself up to be the guardian for his two teenage half-sisters Matilda and Genevieve. They already know not to put their heads in the oven. What’s the worst that can happen?

Recap
Nicholas and Alex are on a date. They are flirty with each other, and Nicholas suggests they go back to his father’s house since he will be going home to Australia tomorrow. When Alex asks why Nicholas’ father lives in America and not in Australia, Nicholas tries to deflect with humor. He eventually tells Alex that his father left them years ago and had a child with a woman in America.

The daughter, Matilda, was later diagnosed with autism. He then wryly comments, “I’ll never be able to compete with that.” Alex tries to backtrack, realizing this veered into personal territory way too soon, but Nicholas brushes it off using sarcasm as a defense mechanism. As Nicholas gets more buzzed, he reveals his father then had a second daughter with his new wife, who died eleven years ago. He also notes that his mother offered him money not to leave her when he was twelve, which is why he didn’t move to America. Despite all this, Alex agrees to stop by and visit tomorrow before Nicholas leaves.

The next morning, Nicholas greets his father Darren and half-sister Matilda in the kitchen. Matilda has autism, and doesn’t have the reaction Nicholas is looking for when he reminds her he’s leaving for Australia. Genevieve, their younger sister, enters carrying laundry. Nicholas tries to get a reaction from her, but she is silent as she puts her sheets in the washer, clearly embarrassed. After some teasing, she admits she got her period for the first time. Darren acts overjoyed and even offers to order cupcakes for breakfast.

Genevieve and Matilda go bike riding to the bus stop, where Matilda shares that she is “in love” with Luke. Genevieve notes that “everyone” loves Luke because he is popular, which confuses Matilda when she takes her statement literally and frets about ruining her relationship with Genevieve over a boy. Genevieve reassures her that it was just a figure of speech, saying that she doesn’t have a heart before Matilda gently teases her about a boy she knows Genevieve likes.

Genevieve tries to tell Matilda that she can’t just ask Luke out since he doesn’t know her. Matilda knows he might say no and it wouldn’t bother her, but she feels she needs to make herself vulnerable to find love. Genevieve tells Matilda to try to flirt and asks if she knows how, to which Matilda replies, “you just have to ask them questions about themselves and pretend that they’re smarter than you” (a technique she learned from YouTube videos).

Back at home, Darren is still at home when he should be at work. Nicholas asks why he’s still here, and his father tells him he has incurable cancer and doesn’t have long to live. Nicholas is shocked and walks outside. Genevieve and Matilda arrive at school, where Genevieve joins her friends Tallulah, Barb, and Nikita. Tellulah, the ringleader, tries to get Genevieve to make fun of Barb’s hat, but she declines. Tellulah storms off as Barb removes the hat. Genevieve tells her the hat looks nice and that Tellulah was being mean, but Barb leaves the hat off.

Back at the house, Nicholas is trying to process what Darren told him as his phone chimes. It’s Alex, whom Nicholas has forgotten about after his father’s announcements. He rushes to let him in and tells his father to “be somewhere else,” to which his father retorts, “nonsense, if you’re in love with a boy I want to meet him before I die.” Alex enters the house and immediately starts talking about having sex before Nicholas can tell him his father is still at home, which is a hilariously awkward moment when Darren reveals himself. When Alex says he’s embarrassed, Darren says, “I already knew my son does anal sex, probably terribly. Iced tea?”

Matilda waits to go into school until all the other students are inside, fixing posters and closing partially opened lockers. Jeremy, a friend who is also on the autism spectrum, asks her out, but she turns him down. It seems this is a common occurrence for him. Darren joins Alex and Nicholas outside with iced tea. They make small talk, but it soon comes out that Nicholas is not going back to Australia because Darren has cancer. Alex, who by this point knows way too much about someone he has been on a few casual dates with, offers to leave, but Darren tells him to stay, thinking their relationship is more serious. Alex mentions that they’ve only met three times and ultimately gets up to leave.

Matilda is staring at Luke across the quad, working up the courage to approach him. She finally does and declares to him and his friends, “I want to get to know Luke.” She “flirts,” following the tips from the video and declaring, “you’re so much smarter than me.” Matilda is sweet, and it seems Luke and his friends are playing along to spare her embarrassment. She tries a joke about autism and vaccines, which gets a laugh out of Luke when she immediately follows it with, “that’s a joke.” She then says, “I’m also only into black men, is that appropriate?” Luke chuckles and tells her she’s awesome as she skips away, happy. She does a unique happy dance as Luke looks on, puzzled but smiling.

Darren shows Nicholas the many legal papers he’s prepared regarding his death, and Nicholas is overwhelmed. But when Darren asks if he will be Matilda and Genevieve’s guardian, he says yes with no hesitation. He tries to get his father to stop talking, offering several “bucket list” ideas they could carry out together instead, but Darren gets angry. He’s obviously worried about his daughters and declares that all the legal paperwork is his bucket list. He leaves to make lunch as Nicholas ponders this. It’s clear he still hasn’t fully processed the news.

Genevieve goes to sit at her friends’ table, but Tellulah stops her. She asks why she would want to sit there since Genevieve told Barb she hates Tellulah. Genevieve, who had said that in the context of making Barb feel better, says that a teenager wouldn’t be normal if she didn’t hate her friends occasionally. Just then, Matilda arrives. She excitedly tells Genevieve about her conversation with Luke. Tellulah and the other girls laugh, but Matilda takes no notice. She mentions Genevieve’s period, and Barb reacts in confusion. Genevieve had told her friends that she already had it. When Genevieve tries to lie, Matilda becomes confused and starts berating herself for not understanding what’s going on. As Genevieve’s friends start making fun of Genevieve for lying, Matilda panics and runs away. She runs to the empty and dark auditorium to calm herself down by playing the piano.

As Matilda plays, Darren and Nicholas talk about the guardianship issue. Darren wants to let the girls decide, while Nicholas says he absolutely wants to be their guardian. They review a list of candidates Darren put together. Genevieve sits in class as her classmates throw tampons at her: obviously Tellulah has spread the word. Nicholas wants to know why his father isn’t more enthusiastic about his being the girls’ guardian, and after some discussion about how he hasn’t spent a lot of time with them, Nicholas realizes his father thinks the girls won’t want him.

Genevieve’s teacher notices and holds up a box of tampons. She asks the ringleader boy what he thinks is so funny about them, and then proceeds to lecture the class about how tampons are completely normal. Genevieve is more embarrassed than before. Nicholas walks away from Darren when he feels hurt that he is not Darren’s first choice, as Matilda finishes her song and slams the lid of the piano.

On the bus home, Matilda apologizes. She is confused as to how the others found out, since Genevieve’s friends must have spread the rumor. She doesn’t understand how they could be her friends and also do something so mean. Genevieve says they’re the best she’s got, and it beats sitting alone like Matilda. Darren goes to Nicholas. He says the real reason he worried about making Nicholas the guardian was that he was embarrassed to ask such a large favor when he hadn’t been there for Nicholas. He’s emotional and tells Nicholas he loves him. Nicholas, uncomfortable with open emotion, quietly says he loves him, too, and reassures him that those concerns are silly.

The girls arrive home, with Genevieve announcing her presence by screaming, “I don’t like being a teenager that exists!” They notice something is wrong. Darren tries to cover by asking if they want to go out and get pudding (Matilda, not reading the cues, is very excited by this). They head out, with the best musical cue playing on the radio (“S Club Party” by S Club 7). It’s incredibly awkward, and Nicholas stops his father as they go in, wanting him to tell the girls what’s going on. Genevieve quips, “If you’re going to tell us Nicholas is gay, we already know.” The family gets their pudding and sits at a picnic table.

Darren tells the girls the truth. Genevieve is silent as Matilda asks a barrage of technical questions, seemingly to cope. She doesn’t react well when she realizes there is no exact timeline for the situation. She breaks, her voice cracking as she says, “Well, this is very upsetting.” Nicholas gives a heartfelt speech explaining why he wants to be their guardian, despite his flaws, and reassuring them they will have him to lean on. The girls agree to the plan. That night, as Darren goes to bed, Genevieve cuddles up next to him. The rest of the family comes in, and they spend the night together.

After a flash-forward in time, the day of the funeral arrives. Matilda is playing the piano to cope, and Nicholas goes to find Genevieve. She’s dressed in a black dress more suited for prom than a funeral. As Nicholas frantically tries to find a safety pin to fix it, she remarks that she looks like "a child whore widow,” which gets a big laugh out of Nicholas. She’s self-conscious, and it seems their relationship is a bit rocky. Matilda, oblivious, arrives in the doorway and tells Genevieve she looks beautiful.

Their ride arrives; it’s a limo more suited for a party than a funeral. When they arrive at the funeral, Genevieve’s friends whisk her away as an overwhelmed Matilda puts on headphones. As Nicholas awkwardly deals with the guests, Jeremy finds Matilda and asks her how she is doing. She says her father asked her to do the eulogy, and she’s nervous. She puts her headphones back on, and Jeremy walks away, disappointed that his efforts at conversation have failed. Alex arrives, and Nicholas is relieved to see him. They joke until Genevieve interrupts, asking where she needs to be.

Matilda takes the stage for the eulogy. She jokes about her father and his relationship with her. She then goes on to talking about how he believed in her abilities when no one else did. She tells Nicholas and Genevieve that they make her feel the same way she felt about him. It’s moving and heartfelt. They leave, with Nicholas trying to reassure Genevieve that he’s not trying to replace their father. She’s angry and lashes out at both him and Alex. Alex tells him to go to his sisters.

Looking for comfort, Nicholas asks Matilda for a hug. She informs him that she only did hugs for their father and hates them, but she will dance with him instead. They have a dance party, and Genevieve joins in when she hears the music. The episode ends with all three siblings in bed together.