babydraco

The real gymnasts do their workouts as The Kemetkos enter the gym. Emily’s still miffed about her mother blabbing everything to Damon and doesn’t want Chloe blurting anything out at her first Rock Mother’s Meeting (oh geez). Chloe thinks Sasha’s hot. Kaylie and Lauren are warming up, doing the stretch where two people sit with their legs wide open and, holding onto each other’s hands, rock each other back and forth like a seesaw. As they do this, Kaylie demands to know if sex hurt.

“I’ve hyper extended both my elbows,” Lauren says. “I survived.”

It wasn’t that bad, Lauren adds. And it doesn’t matter that he never called (not that he could, she has his phone and already spoke to him yesterday anyway), because it wasn’t about the guy, it was about getting over that final hurdle. She believes putting that behind her has made her gymnastics better, and when she demonstrates a new move, it certainly seems that way. Kaylie admits that Carter has never pressured her.
“He probably just doesn’t see you that way,” Lauren opines. Because one thing every girl wants out of a boyfriend is a guy who doesn’t see her as a sexual being. But we, the audience, know that Carter can preserve his precious little virginal princess because he’s doing other girls.

“You’re the kind of girl guys marry, not the kind they have sex with.” Kaylie is a Jackie, Lauren is a Marilyn. And it’s sad that they’re all still buying into this but you can see that Lauren is getting this message from her own father.

The mothers sit in the office and discuss The Rock’s money woes. Steve stops by to foist Summer on them, although they’re actually more welcoming to her than they are to him. The Rock needs about $10,000 to go to Nationals in Boston.

Wow. Um…seriously? Let’s see, Sasha is taking three girls, and probably the equivalent of guys- is he taking a set of kids from every age group or just the Elite members ? They’ll need airfare to Boston from Colorado, round trip, for all the gymnasts, assistant coaches, and baggage (because, of course, baggage fees). There’s the taxi ride to and from the airport. They’ll need hotel rooms for every single person, and three meals a day as well as possible entrance fees . Do they buy new team outfits for each big competition? Most sports teams don’t, but gymnasts seem comfortable with absurd, showy, wastes of money. Do they have to stay at the same hotel as all the other teams, or can they shop around to find one with a good free breakfast? If they left lunch up to each individual, then all they have to pay for is dinner at night. How many rooms do they need if they sleep four to a room? They established in a later episode that the parents have to pay their own way if they want to come along. Surely the competition itself provides incidentals. But remember, these gymnasts are spoiledand won’t want to sleep four to a bed and eat a free breakfast and wear leotards everyone’s already seen them in. They’ll want two to a room, or bunch of suites, and are all on special diets and want new custom $300 leos. And whose to say the y won’t be judged for not traveling in style, “gymnastsics sis a sport of perception” after all and any attempts to budget will broadcast that the Rock is bleeding money.

Kaylie tells Carter that Lauren lost her virginity at the party. Oh good grief. Kaylie is the worst secret keeper ever. Carter looks dismayed. Sasha lectures Payson on the need to be graceful and look like she’s enjoying herself. Payson argues that she’s an athlete, not a girly girl. I don’t think girls should have to “act feminine”, but it wouldn’t kill a lot of gymnasts to make an effort to look like they’re enjoying themselves, instead of plastering on stone faced expressions or looks of terror.

The mothers have agreed to hold a fundraising mother/daughter fashion show. Mrs. Keeler is not a fan of the idea but Ronnie Cruz kind of steamrolls over her. Also, there’s an awkward moment when Chloe Kemetko plops down next to her (because she thinks they’re friends) and cheerfully points out that they have the same bag, “Oh, mine’s a fake but you can’t even tell”. Oh, Chloe, Chloe, then why did you? If she doesn’t know that already (because you often can tell if you’re into designer clothes) don’t tell her. Don’t buy fakes, Chloe, don’t they have a TJ Maxx or a Marshall’s in Boulder? A good designer consignment store? Those places allow you to buy cool designer stuff (either on trend or so great it doesn’t matter) at prices you can afford. The first two sell overstock, or slightly flawed, items, and the third sells the things rich women use once and then get rid of (or everything that belonged to a wealthy grandma). There’s Ebay if you want to risk it. Or Etsy if you want cool stuff that supports struggling small business people instead of multi million dollar international labels. You can shop at small local boutiques, sending out a vibe of “I’m so self confident I only buy what I want and what I want is something no one outside my own town even has”. Or, you can haunt the sales at Macy’s type stores. Or, how about Target’s GO International or The Shops at Target- a woman as rich as Ronnie might make fun of you for shopping there but at least you’re not carrying a fake. There’s a big and important, ethical difference between “inspired by” and “pretending to be”. Fakes are just embarrassing because the very people you’re hoping to impress by carrying one, are the same people who will know it’s not real and judge you accordingly, while the sort of people who’d fall for it may not deserve your attempts to impress them.

The girls talk as they tape up their hands. Lauren’s mother won’t be able to make it, as she’s saving sick children in Darfur. Kaylie grouses that her own mother is just trying to recapture her glory days (as a disco one hit wonder). Lauren would rather stuff a tube sock in her mouth than walk down a runway with Summer, but asks her anyway. Summer agrees.

Payson tries to get Sasha to let her out of the show, but he won’t and tells her to consider it part of her training.

Lauren and Carter are talking in his car. He apologizes for not knowing she was a virgin, saying that he thought she was-you know-

“A slut?” Lauren asks. “Would it have been okay to have meaningless sex with me if I was?” Carter is backpeddling now, saying that he wishes she could’ve lost it to someone who had feelings for her, because he doesn’t love her he loves Kaylie and you keep telling yourself that, Carter. Lauren does the subtle shift of all natural manipulators and points out that it’d be a shame if Kaylie found out. They part on somewhat bitter terms, even though Lauren promises that she’s available if he wants to be “friends with benefits”. Summer watches her get out of the car with a look of concern on her face.

Sasha tells Kaylie to stop acting like a little girl and act like an athlete, to get some fire in her moves like Lauren. In the office, he puts his foot in his mouth when Mrs. Keeler wonders why Payson isn’t comfortable with her femininity.

“It’s been my experience that girls get their cues about femininity from their mothers. From-from their strong, opinionated, efficient…mothers.”

“Thanks,” she says sarcastically, but there’s no real bite to it.

Steve and Summer have lunch in a café downtown. Summer tentatively broaches the subject of whether or not Lauren has a boyfriend. Steve insists she doesn’t, she’s not interested in boys, she’s an elite athlete. Summer thinks he should talk to her about sex anyway, but he convinces her to do it instead.

Ugh, Pizza Shack scene. Skip! Mostly, Damon and Emily flirt and then kiss. Emily comes home furious that her mother told him Emily had never been kissed.

Kaylie’s mother comes home with bags full of designer clothes for the show. Kaylie wants to start a serious talk about sex. She asks her mother if she was very young her first time, and her mother says that yes, she was but then she and Alex got married and had kids, so it was all okay.

“But how did you know you were ready?” Kaylie presses.

“To get married?” She explains that she’d been a professional performer since she was sixteen, and had seen the world and had a top forty hit, and sure she could’ve gone on to do more things but then she would’ve missed out on Alex and the kids. “But you have your gymnastics, there’s no reason to be interested in boys yet. Someday, when you are, and you have safe sex, just make sure it’s someone you love. OOoh, Statement Jewelry!”

Kaylie is painting her toes in her room later, when her mother calls that there’s a visitor for her. It’s Lauren, complaining loudly about “Bible thumping hootchie mamas” who make you say Grace in restaurants. Kaylie interrupts her to announce that she’s ready to have sex with Carter, and Lauren looks like she’s going to throw up.

The women are picking out clothing for the show. Chloe is enamored of a pile of gaudy bangle bracelets. When Ronnie tries to advise her that “Coco Chanel said ‘elegance is refusal’” Chloe blithely ignores the advice. Lauren won’t let Summer help her pick outfits.

Meanwhile, Payson is complaining about missing resistance training and wanders off. Ronnie comes over and shows Mrs. Keeler a low cut plum chiffon dress, which Mrs. Keeler makes jokes about. Ronnie gently reminds her that it’s not weakness to embrace your looks and show them off. Meanwhile, her own daughter needs help with a zipper and gets ignored because Ronnie has to rush off and yell at someone about waffle organza. Chloe shoves a purple slip dress at Emily and makes her try it on. Lauren is still being obnoxious and walks out of the room. Summer follows.

“If it was up to you, we’d be in turtle necks,” Lauren says.

“A turtleneck can be sexy. It depends on who you’re wearing it for. Yourself or some guy.”

“A guy, duh,” says Lauren. And that is just so sad, you know.

They sit in an alcove and Summer tells her a story about how she wanted attention as a teenager, and wanted to feel grownup. So she flirted with too many guys, and implies that she kind of slept around. Then one night at a dance she overheard some boys making fun of her. “I was just a little girl, looking for attention”. Summer felt like she’d given up too much of herself to boys. And I want to say that this is the kind of sex talk people should have with teenage girls, but only if the adult themselves is giving that lecture for the right reasons.

When Summer leaves, Lauren sits in the alcove and quietly cries.

Payson’s mother finds her sulking in the room they’ve set aside for the catwalk. Wait, I thought they were doing the wardrobe selection at Kaylie’s house- Kaylie’s house can’t possibly have a catwalk. Where are they? Anyway, Payson’s mother admits she might have passed on the idea that strong and feminine can’t exist together, to Payson. Payson admits that she feels like the Hulk among a bunch of pretty little Barbies and she doesn’t think boys notice her. Her mother disabuses her of that and says Payson never looks back at them. Then they practice their catwalking together.

The night of the fashion show. The rest of the Rock people wait excitedly in their seats while everyone rushes around backstage. Ronnie overhears Kaylie complaining to Emily that her mother is so busy with the show that she feels ignored. The first models are Kaylie and Ronnie in “Urban Safari”. They have semi professional mode walks. While Emily and her mother model golf outfits, Kaylie excitedly confides in Lauren that tonight, she will “do it” with Carter and this sequined mini dress she’s holding will get his engine running. When Kaylie leaves, Lauren stares at the purple dress Emily’s mother picked out for her, and then steals it off the rack. Summer finds her, and points out that they’re supposed to model “business casual” and “isn’t that Emily’s dress?”

“We switched,” says Lauren.

“I am not walking out with you in a dress you stole.” Wow, Summer completely has her number, doesn’t she. Every time Summer hits a nerve, Lauren acts out.

“Fine, I’ll walk out by myself,” Lauren says flatly. Ronnie is announcing them in the background. Lauren prances out by herself.
“I’m not really sure what business this is,” Ronnie chuckles nervously. The dress is bright purple and very short, with thin fabric. Lauren is a great model and the audience doesn’t seem to care that her outfit is not as described. Emily is furious about the stolen dress, and Lauren is completely unapologetic, pretending it was “in my section, I thought it was mine.” Emily is so upset she wants to go home and accuses her mother of not knowing when people are making fun of them. Chloe counters that yes, she knows Ronnie Cruz isn’t that interested in being her friend but you can’t let other people put labels on you.

It makes Emily feel more confident, at least, but she doesn’t know what she’s supposed to wear now, “am I supposed to rock business casual?” Kaylie and her mother walk in party dresses, and Ronnie seems a tad bit jealous of how well Kaylie is received. Emily walks out in what appears to be nothing but a tightly wrapped blazer and a pair of bright red heels while Lauren looks on angrily from the wings.

After the show, Steve scolds Lauren for what she did, and Lauren snaps that Summer should mind her own business. Lauren! She was! You didn’t just nearly ruin Emily’s walk, you torpedoed Summer’s by refusing to wear the same outfit, making her unable to walk out at all.

Lauren blurts out that her real mother doesn’t care at all, and then runs away. Steve explains, deeply ashamed, that Lauren’s mother is not a relief worker, she’s an addict who cared more about drugs than Lauren or her husband.

Damon brings Emily flowers and admits he bid on her outfit.
Ronnie delicately tries to get Lauren to explain what happened with the outfits, but instead, Lauren rats Kaylie’s sex plans out to her mother.

At Castle Cruz, Kaylie is dabbing perfume and lighting candles when Carter crawls in through the window. They’re just about to get it on when her mother knocks at the door. Carter jumps into a closet.

Ronnie enters, pointedly observing the candles. She and Kaylie have a real heart to heart about waiting for sex. And…look. Yes, true love can wait, sometimes its even romantic, but unfortunately, the whole “True Love Waits” movement is not about love, but about controlling when and how, people, particularly girls, have sex. Because it’s rooted so much in that medieval concept of a girl being like a package from a store, property that you don’t want anyone else to have fiddled with first, it wasn’t, and still really isn’t, about protecting your own emotional integrity and belonging to yourself first. And very often these innocent virgins were put under so much pressure to get married that they ended up with men they didn’t love or sometimes didn’t even like. So it’s hard to tell a girl to wait for herself so she won’t lose everything she’s worked for, when so many other well intentioned but nosy and creepy, organizations out there bombard her with messages that she owes it to other people or that she has to toe some vague religious line or she deserves the bad things that will undoubtedly happen to her.

When her mother is gone, Carter pops back out and they start making out again, but he tells her he agrees with Ronnie and that they should wait at least until after nationals. She’s his “Dream girl” and Kaylie tells him they’ll be together forever.

Oh ugh.

Labels and fakeness were certainly a big underlying theme here. Lauren fakes sexual confidence and a lack of interest in a serious thing with Carter. Payson runs from being labeled as a feminine person. Emily doesn’t know what her label is, although her mother claims she won’t let anyone choose a label for her, all of her choices have boxed her into a label. And she pays the same price for a fake designer label that she could’ve paid for a real one on sale at a bargain basement. Nobody falls for it in the slightest, so it’s sort of like saying “Look, if you want to impress people , they’ll respect you more for being authentically yourself than for trying to make yourself over into what you think they want you to be.”