Original subtitles

I should have texted, but Wanda let me in.

Should I go?

Not before you deliver that gorgeous gift.

Do I get a tip?

Ooh, all yours.

[chuckles]

-A stress ball? -Well, I thought it might come in handy.

[laughs]

Maybe I should have just bought some flowers.

Mona's flowers are lovely, but so is this.

You both have great, kind minds.

What to give when you're expecting cancer?

You heard anything yet?

Nothing new.

Mother has chemo tomorrow.

And who knows when the results of the BRCA test will be in.

So Dani and I have no choice but to wait and see

if our DNA has any hidden twist.

It looked like you were on the brink when I walked in.

I was weepy for different reasons.

Want to share?

Tyrell is debating the merits of a debutante season.

-Because of his sister? -Because of his girlfriend.

Oh.

I pulled out the photo albums from Kat's cotillion

to show the grandkids.

And got all swept up

looking at my baby.

We were so proud to see our miracle baby all grown up.

Well, I would be on the floor, but you found a better way.

Escaping into good memories.

We are all Duprees.

But every Dupree is finding a different way of coping.

Um, when I left here a few short hours ago,

my husband was in boxer shorts watching basketball.

Voilà, I am Chef Andre.

This is pasta carbonara with white truffle sauce.

But the proof is in the tasting. It's hot.

It's hot.

-Mmm! -Mm-hmm.

Okay, have you been seeing some kind

of secret sauté sorceress?

Where is she? I'll kill her.

I may have had an assist-- from Joey Armstrong.

Back up.

Yeah, one of his foodie friends directed me

to Joey's page.

You even mentioned it.

To mock it!

What kind of self-respecting, walks-on-the-dark-side

gambling mogul has an Insta profile?

The one who cooks.

And does it well, apparently-- mm.

What brought this on?

I wanted to make dinner for my wife.

You're sheltering me in an emotional storm.

Dani, if there's something you need or want,

I will find a way to lay it at your feet or on your table.

On your plate.

Why didn't you tell me?

Tell you what?

That I was preparing to woo you with my cooking?

That I married a genie?

-[chuckles] The blue guy who sings? -No.

The sexy one who grants all my wishes.

Where do you keep your lamp?

In my pocket.

This one? [chuckles]

Now, as I remember, when you find the lamp,

you're supposed to rub it, right?

Yeah, but, um, be careful what you're starting.

What if I don't want to be careful?

♪ ♪

Sure, there's no place like Ubrique when it comes to craft,

but can you keep up with our 20% increase?

See? I understand what time it is.

I...

Buenas nochesto you, too-- can you believe that?

Yes-- you're bothering that poor woman with nonsense

when it's the middle of the night over there,

just like you're bothering me

in the middle of this family crisis.

Nonsense?

The award season waits for no one,

and the Golden Globes are basically here.

Speeding up production keeps ChelseaKat front and center.

This is our life's work, remember?

Our work is leather and stitching.

The real stuff of life is our grandmother

who's fighting cancer.

And our moms-- and us--

who may carry that same gene and may have to fight too, someday.

Remember?

I'm feeling for Gran,

but people depend on us for their livelihoods.

So I'm letting you down by dealing

and not hiding behind quarterly reports?

By quiet-quitting and flipping through magazines?

This is the worst thing that's happened to us,

and you're pretending it's not happening.

I picked up those anti-nausea pills for after chemo,

and I left a cornucopia

alongside our new mother-of-all-juicers in there.

Juice is not a cure.

-Juice hydrates. -Yeah.

And what's going on with Rowena?

Whatever she's got cooking, she's using all the pots we own.

I may have asked her to make a special last meal.

We're not calling it that.

We don't know how I'll react to the chemo,

and so I think we should have a delicious meal today,

since we don't know if I'll be able to stomach one tomorrow.

Dr. Bauer said

the way things taste may even change.

Ah, the body is a marvel.

Well, your sarcasm is still healthy.

So about tomorrow.

Is there something we missed?

No, I have the go bag you so lovingly prepared.

But the question is, do you really need to carry it?

What you talking about, woman?

I'll just be sitting in a very comfortable chair

for several hours.

Given I've spent a lifetime sitting in chairs,

I think I can do that on my own.

And you should stay and work on your lectures.

Don't make me put on a disguise

and hide out in the infusion room

just to keep an eye on my bride.

Now I'll be right beside you and your comfortable chair.

Watching me watching a movie?

We could watch it together, talk or no talk.

What if I want to read or listen to music?

I can work on my lectures.

-Vernon... -But I'll be in reaching distance

whenever you want to hold my hand.

No way you'll do this on your own.

[chuckles]

The committee meeting was canceled.

Let's hit up that place on 14th Street for burgers.

You want good news or bad news?

Bad news first.

I may have told the kids it was okay to go out.

But the good news is someone is ready to make up with his son.

How you figure?

You pick Tyrell's go-to spot for dinner.

I get that this generation

is ready to bump putting on a tux

or escorting a girl to a ball, but...

Yeah, well, putting on that tux

is part of your family's history.

I just can't get over the fact that Tyrell's objections

and words weren't his.

Well, trying on new personas and ideas,

that's part of being his age.

You want to see pictures of my goth phase?

[chuckles] No.

I'm fine with him exploring

anything that's coming from inside of him,

but being with Jessica for only five minutes

and being led around by his...

Hormones?

Yeah, but I can't tell him that.

How about giving a father a few lines

that won't have Tyrell frowning?

You want me to dole out my best dialogue for free?

Uh, remember, he is ours.

I guess I can give you the hot husband discount.

Gran would want us to keep calm and carry on.

She'd want us to handle our business.

Which includes our bodies.

This isn't just happening to Gran.

Our moms may have this gene-- if they have it,

-we might have it. -Might.

But I'm not about to get all bothered weeks in advance.

The Gran part's a big deal,

yes, but the rest is a problem for future us.

You can't just...

I can control what goes on

with our purses overseas.

That's where I'm putting all of my Kat-ness,

so we can have a future when this is over.

There won't be a ChelseaKat if there is no Chelsea or Kat!

This is life or death!

Well, we can't do anything about it now.

We can look after our health the same way

we take care of ChelseaKat.

Okay, just promise me that.

I promise I will handle things in my own way.

You've committed harder to pinky swears.

You're my best friend, my blood, my partner.

We built our whole lives around each other.

Okay, so you don't get to be whatever about a disease

that can take you from me.

You're my ride-or-die.

And I'm here to make damn sure you don't die.

I couldn't talk about it before.

-My Gran is... -No, you two

are extremely close, I get that.

I'm here if you want to talk or just turn off.

Do you have any experience with triple negative breast cancer?

I haven't spent much time in oncology yet,

and I don't have the details of Miss Anita's diagnosis,

but I'll answer what I can.

Well, I read that it's not just aggressive,

but that there's a high rate of recurrence.

Now, my Gran is fierce.

She can fight this-- but twice?

Three times?

What if this is just the beginning of decades

of dealing with this coming back?

There are no guarantees.

But what I can tell you

is that people travel from all over the place

to get treated by Dr. Bauer.

You might be seeing a lot of my family.

Hey, just because you're a carrier of the gene

does not mean that you're definitely going to have cancer.

It just means higher odds.

No, no, I know, I know.

And spare me the Google lecture, please.

Digging for answers is how I deal.

Well, as long as you're asking

actual medical professionals, too.

-Sure, sure, sure. -Okay, yeah.

How's your mom?

I mean, she and your aunt must be dealing

with the most amount of pressure,

worrying about your Gran and themselves

and all of you, too.

Chef Andre, would you like to see my specials?

Mm, mm, mm.

We're not playing that game.

-You have another one in mind? -Yeah.

I'm here to make all your dreams come true.

[laughs]

Tonight and forever.

Lia, you're a godsend.

Thanks. Bye.

Enthusiastic compliment for the chief of staff.

What did she do?

When I saw Lia earlier at the hospital,

I told her we were on tenterhooks waiting

for our girls' test results.

-And she offered to help? -Already done.

We'll have the results as soon as tomorrow.

[sighs] That's good.

It'll bring clarity,

having that information as soon as possible.

But the timing...

You'll get the results while you're getting treatment

or just after.

And I want to be there when they receive that news.

They might need me and I'll either be nauseous or exhausted.

If you haven't noticed,

they're grown and capable of holding each other up

just like we taught them.

Well, just because you're right doesn't make it any easier

for me to step back.

-I have to get a move on. -I'll get the car.

No, no, I need to do this by myself, I'll be right back.

How many times was Martin a cotillion escort?

[laughs] Three.

Kids are all about prom-posals now-- not back then.

But Martin was so popular with all the girls and the moms,

there were a couple of over-the-top asks.

Navigating that bit

of Fairmont Crest society had to prepare him

for his life in politics.

Connections that will last a lifetime for Martin and for Kat.

We couldn't have imagined any of this back then.

Cancer. Genetic test.

I know you're going to tell me that I could get lucky,

and I should stop worrying.

With what you are facing,

it makes perfect sense to be scared.

I just want to make sure that you are not scared alone.

My body, my choice, remember?

Okay, just say future you will test if it comes to it,

and I'll shush.

And what if getting tested isn't right for me?

I know we're not the same person,

but we were raised in the same family.

If that's all it takes to ease everyone's worry, why not do it?

I don't need a test to tell me

to eat right and exercise, Chelsea!

There's more to it than that.

Yeah, like what?

More screenings or whatever.

Yeah, and?

And-and we should probably

check for symptoms.

I will screen, okay?

And I'll do the monthly self breast exam.

But I am not about to live the next 30 years of my life

thinking that every ache is cancer.

Thank you, next!

Even if it'll take away everyone's worry?

And if it doesn't?

What about Tomas?

He has nothing to do with this.

Don't deny you have wedding dresses

dancing in your head, okay?

A life together is more than just the pretty parts.

And you think he'll dust me if I'm damaged goods?

It sounded more like a catfight than ChelseaKat in here.

Chelsea's inner momager is activated.

-It's all love. -Like when

you thought it was time for Madison and her mom

to make up, even though you didn't know the full story?

Madison's aunt died because she didn't listen to science.

We are not dying!

We're young!

And I am not about to hop on the hereditary anxiety express!

Hard pass.

Help her find some sense.

Chelsea wants to know if she's a carrier, I say go for it.

We should all be able to handle things in our own way.

And in her own time.

You're doing that thing where you think

-I might change my mind. -I'm not telling you what to do.

You never needed help knowing your own mind.

Yeah, well, can you explain that to Chelsea?

And to Mom and to Martin?

They're all worried.

They just want a say on what's going down.

But with this, powerful as they are, clout doesn't count.

I don't need to get prodded to ease their fears.

No, but maybe you can give each other a little grace.

When I was little,

there were lots of hurricanes.

Papi would board up the house,

then watch TV like nothing was going on.

Mami was the opposite.

She couldn't sleep because she was listening

for every update and I just wanted to go out and play in it.

Why?

I thought I could stop the storm.

I don't want to board up the windows

or listen for every update.

Or face the storm head-on.

[sobbing]: Why can't they let me pretend it doesn't exist?

You know it's about more than just the ball, right?

In one breath, our kids who need stability

found out that their great-grandmother,

who they love, is sick.

And one day other members of their family could be sick, too.

Including their father.

[sighs] The PTA moms, they call it soiling the nest.

It's when a kid picks a fight out the door

so that they don't miss their nest so much.

The ick.

Tyrell acting out is just his way of

showing that he loves us.

Great, we have so much to look forward to.

Hmm, yeah.

ASHLEY: Okay.

So your mom isn't melting down.

She's mom-ing up.

She's been amazing.

I mean, taking care of Chelsea and me,

it's her default setting.

But?

Gran defies gravity.

And seeing her brought down by the most

human thing in the world, being sick?

Mom's not prepared for that-- I-I don't think any of us are.

Like when your dad had a stroke.

I had never been so scared.

Well, now it's his turn to be there for all of you.

Yeah. Mom told him.

And he'll step up if I need him to.

-If? -Well,

there's no reason to panic yet.

There's still a 50-50 chance that Mom doesn't have the gene.

And what if she does?

Then we will figure it out.

It's okay not to be okay.

Listen, knowledge is power.

I really believe that.

So I can't be bothered.

Mission accomplished.

Whatever you did, I love it.

Because the twinkle is back in your eyes.

Well, that's because I'm looking at you.

[chuckles] So, what's in the bags, huh?

Everything's better when you share it.

Why the secrecy?

I'm your partner in crime, not your accessory after the fact.

I thought you might try to talk me out of it.

Ah, there's no reason you can't get a little rest

and have a little company.

Now I can help you wrangle all the usual suspects.

Okay.

I will believe that you are completely fine

until you tell me that you're not.

How's Jacob?

You know, pretending he's not worried.

And the newest member of the Dupree fam?

Andre?

Endlessly supportive and all about Mom, according to Mom.

I'm sorry, is it okay that I say that?

Yeah, we're good.

Okay.

Okay, this is so not my place,

but with him losing his parents the way that he did,

and now with Dani being in danger

of this future diagnosis...

This might hit different for him.

I try not to think about Jacob being in danger.

Well, you are a cop's wife, so that's why you are completely

chill about all of this.

[chuckles] I've learned to manage.

But Andre, he never imagined

he'd be staring down something like this.

There's no need to panic-- yet.

But I can check in.

[phone vibrates]

[moans] Oh, my God.

I am so glad we don't have a don't-eat-in-bed policy.

We have no rules in our bed.

You are so good for me.

Hey, that's my line.

Honored.

You have been awfully quiet

about that little test Nicole and I had to take

to see if I have the bad gene.

You want to check your return policy?

No, I never, ever want to lose you.

It's been on a loop in my head like a prayer,

or a bargain with whoever will listen.

To keep having and holding you for several more decades.

I'm not going anywhere.

[phone vibrates]

It's Daddy.

This pickle juice will change your life.

Spray on.

I don't hate it.

[laughs]

You ready for our movie, now?

First, you have to tell me how you have been

to every single one of my Halloween parties

and never mentioned once that you're a horror fan.

Plastic surgeons who cut open faces for a living

should not lead with loving horror flicks.

But I was the only one

not hiding under my chair during Carrie,

and I have seen everything from Psychoto Them,

loving every jump scare.

Thank you for this.

I really needed to scream my head off today.

Very therapeutic.

Maybe I'll take you to a rage room for our next date.

You're on.

[phone chimes]

-Oh, it's Mother. -Take it.

Ah, you cleaned up everything from dinner?

Yeah, you were busy with work.

I guess that phone call was important.

Just a story I'm working on, beginning stages.

Hmm, scandalous, ridiculous, or criminal?

To be determined.

Now, whatever will we do with all of this privacy?

Hopefully, it's involving

-fewer clothes. -Yeah.

[phone vibrates]

It's Granddad.

Why don't I get you out of here,

and take you to my place after dinner?

Perfect.

[phone ringing]

We're not in a hurry, take it.

Not tonight.

Time for some self-care with you.

I'm self-care?

Yeah.

Yeah, you are.

Daddy, is everything all right?

Your mother's fine.

No anxiety about the first day of chemo tomorrow?

From here on, let's call it the start

of your mother's comeback.

And the day we find out about you and Dani and that gene.

The chief of staff?

Will give us the results tomorrow.

But you didn't have to deliver this news in person.

Why did you want me to come over?

You're not the only person we called.

You see, your mother wants us to feel

something other than fear and worry tonight.

Okay. Should I see if she needs help?

[chuckles]

She's fighting cancer.

She's not rewriting who she is.

Anita Dupree makes an entrance.

Mother!

Daddy called.

And who would have thought it would take cancer

for my baby girl to finally find her inside voice?

I blame you for teaching me to project!

-[laughs] You look beautiful! -And festive.

I'm starting to realize why Vernon asked me

to bring my camera.

Oh, thank you, and thank you for coming

on no notice.

Your father turned my mood right side up, and I wanted to share.

Well, I love a Dupree gathering.

I've been sneaking down those very stairs

to join your parties since I could walk.

Let's do this.

Oh, just a second, handsome.

You have a little lipstick right there.

Thanks.

Thank you.

Thank you for making our baby girl light again.

She does the same for me.

And this party is just what she needed tonight.

All right.

Hi.

Oh, I hope I didn't interrupt anything important.

Nothing is more important than you, Gran.

-Aw... -You call, we come running.

Agreed.

Feeling a little underdressed, though.

Oh, no, you're all perfect.

Tonight is going to be brimming with surprises,

but only the good kind.

Is the whole family here?

Naomi's on her way, and Jacob and Madison

have night shifts.

And I left a voicemail for Kat.

And since she's not with you, I imagine she's with Tomas

or maybe at the gym-- I do hope she makes it.

Me, too.

Well, come on, join the party.

Uh...

I don't think Kat's going to make it.

It's unlike her to ignore a summons from Gran.

It's not about Gran.

She's trying to stay away from me.

We had a fight.

The fight with Chelsea's got you distracted.

You know, ChelseaKat is Granddad's nickname for us.

Because we've been inseparable since we were tiny.

And right now, we couldn't be further apart.

Which is why you shouldn't be worried.

You can't stay mad at each other.

Chelsea didn't say it, but the selfishwas silent.

That's what she thinks I'm being.

And my mom probably does, too. And Martin.

What do you think?

That I want to cover my ears and sing the latest SZA drop

and never hear the word cancer again.

I'll sing it with you.

You would.

It's like those sci-fi books you read.

If you could know the future, even the bad things,

would you want to know?

If I could change the bad things, I would.

Yeah, if there was some magic scientific therapy

that could fix my possibly bad genes, I'd get tested.

Because then there would be a point to it.

Your Gran has a fighting chance because of real-life science

right now, not what's in my books.

And if we ever

get there with you, there will hopefully be

even more science to cure what ails you.

-We? -Yes, we.

Thanks for backing me up.

And maybe, for now,

you and Chelsea just agree to disagree.

And focus on your Gran

and get her through this.

That's what matters.

This cocktail is called the Hurricane Anita.

Hold the alcohol and double the passion fruit.

Always the romantic.

Rowena's going to rue the day you bought her that juicer.

[laughter]

Gran, quick-- tell me what kind of family meeting this is.

-Shall we? -No more suspense.

Kat's going to have to catch up when she joins us.

Well, you know how much

your granddad and I love New Orleans.

And at some point or another,

we introduced each and every one of you to our favorite haunts.

The history, the music, the food.

Oh, my feet start tapping and my stomach starts growling

every time I think about it.

Don't be modest, Mom.

Your Gran was so big back in the day,

she would pack those little clubs on Bourbon Street tight

and people would be spilling out, right, Daddy?

Oh, yeah, then she'd take the main stage

at the... at the Jazz Fest,

and all the other acts would be in the wings

just watching her own it.

ANITA: Yeah, those are good memories.

Well, you know, your granddad and I planned

a trip to Mardi Gras this year.

You'll get there next year.

Yes, we will.

But this year,

we decided to bring New Orleans to us.

Right now.

I like the sound of that.

Tomorrow, I have a date with destiny.

But tonight,

we're going to bring the spirit of the Big Easy

right here to Fairmont Crest.

Mardi Gras is about the last big blowout before Lent.

And so I figured,

well, that's a perfect theme for my pre-chemo party.

I had already requested Rowena's famous gumbo.

I pulled some strings and got a king cake,

and Granddad tracked down

some fabulous second-line parasols for the ladies

and handkerchiefs for the gents.

And, of course, everyone will have beads.

And before anyone says anything differently,

a second line is about any celebration,

not just a final one.

This marks a new beginning for all of us.

Tomorrow, things will get harder.

But tonight, we celebrate what we have.

And I have more than most.

I have all of you.

On behalf of King Bacchus and all of Carnival,

laissez les bons temps rouler, y'all!

Let the good times roll!

[cheering]

[jazzy music playing]

♪ ♪

[laughter]

-Go get that gumbo! -[cheering]

Only Mother would throw a party to make us

feel better about her being sick.

We're going to have to come up with ways

-to do the same for her. -Only Daddy can do that.

He's the only one she'll let tell her to rest,

and the only one whose shoulder she'll lean her head on.

Then we'll have to be there for him.

Yeah.

We will.

So, how are you holding up?

I am great.

Yeah, your family sure knows how to do it up.

Mom and you went from Honeymoon in Vegasto genetic testing.

Not exactly what you signed up for.

It's exactly what I signed up for.

[laughs]

You're good for her, Andre.

I mean, she's shining

just as bright as Gran,

even though she's aching on the inside.

Yeah, that's our girl.

And you're her rock.

It's nothing compared to what she's given me.

So, how are you handling things?

Well, we all have our ways.

My sister over there is making sure

we all get tested.

Martin is soaking up every minute with Smitty and the kids.

Kat's pulling a disappearing act, and me?

Well, I've become quite the Internet doctor,

so if you have any questions

or you need to unload, I'm here.

Yeah. You just make sure you spend some of that research time

taking care of yourself, Naomi.

Right.

All right, so, uh...

-You and Jacob good? -Yeah.

Yeah-- but you've never been to a pre-chemo

Mardi Gras party, huh?

You've really joined the Carnival now.

[chuckles] I could get used to this, though.

[gasps] I got the baby! I got the baby!

-Let me see, let me see. -There...

Ah! Well, that means you have good luck coming your way.

And you have to throw the Mardi Gras party next year.

Well, as long as you'll be our queen again.

Nothing and no one is going to remove me

from my throne anytime soon.

Well, I look forward to it, Your Majesty.

[laughing]

Hey, little sis.

I know you're licking your wounds right now,

but you'll never forgive yourself

if you miss showing up for Gran.

Whenever you get this, honey,

I need you to head over to your Gran's.

No one outside of this room understands

what you're going through more than the people in it,

and Gran being Gran, she figured out

a way to cheer us all up.

It's supposed to be a surprise,

but I'm going to give you a big hint.

The only thing that would make the gumbo perfect

is a big dash of Kat, so just come over, okay?

I love you.

Your phone's blowing up-- is it still work

or is there something else going on?

Chelsea's groveling.

I told you, you two couldn't stay mad at each other for long.

You should call her.

I said she's groveling.

I didn't say I was ready.

Besides, all of that can wait.

We're on a date.

Can I have your attention?

New Year's Eve is supposed to be about fresh starts,

so I hope this party makes up for that one.

There is nothing to make up for.

Like Daddy said, finding out is the first step,

and here you are bringing us all together because we needed it.

Well, this wasn't just for you, this was for me, too.

And I would like to make a toast with my mocktail.

I'm having a virgin Sazerac.

It's been a while since I've heard that term

in connection with you.

Mother!

I am proud of you, baby. Cheers!

Cheers!

I am not going to pretend like I'm not angry.

I am pissed off.

I don't like the idea one bit that my daughters

have to be tested for this... intruder.

And I am worried that I won't

be 100% there when you might need me the most.

Gran, your 50% is more than most people's 100.

And I think I can speak

for everyone in this room when I say,

it's our turn.

So please, let us take care of you.

I am going to allow each of you to take turns

fawning all over me.

[chuckles]

But we all know that tomorrow

may bring some unwelcome news

with the results coming in from the genetic testing.

And I need you to promise me

that you will lean on each other through whatever happens.

We will.

Of course.

The one thing your father and I are most proud of is...

We raised you right.

So I want you to take some

of that energy you want to use on me

and use it on each other.

Take notice.

Who's down, who's sad,

who needs a hug,

who's running around like a whirling dervish.

Who just wants

a night at home watching horror movies

and eating ice cream.

Cover for me until I get through this,

and I am ready to whip you all back into shape.

So now let's get back to the party.

Who needs more beads?

[cheers, laughter]

Last time someone threw this many beads at me,

I took my top off.

Give them back!

Those must have been some pretty nice beads.

I usually just give them a little flash.

There was this one time in college...

[clears throat]

Let's hang on to those stories,

and our tops, and capture this stunning moment, okay?

Andre, would you be so kind?

[chuckling]

Oh, wait.

How can I wear this crown in the presence of our queen?

Aw...

Okay.

All right, everybody say "Big Easy"!

Big Easy!

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Captioned by Media Access Group at WGBH access.wgbh.org