Episode list

Natalie will learn the results of her latest scan - the first scan done since she started the drug trial - at the end of the working day, the results which could provide some clue as to her prognosis. As such, she is a bit anxious as she tries to take her mind off the appointment. Of her two offspring that know about the appointment, she has told Emma and Romy that they need not accompany her. Emma has to work anyway, and Romy is still secretly trying to eke out an independent life if and when her mother passes. Beyond the bittersweet task of returning Jude to his rightful owner, Natalie, in mapping out her day, has decided to help Matthew in the move to his new apartment, and in a separate visit talk to Nicole about an issue in light of her and Matthew's separation. But it's an unexpected stop in her travels for the day that may bring the issue of the scan home for her. Meanwhile, Maggie confides in Raza her concern about Oliver, that concern based on what she saw of his apartment. What Maggie is unaware of is how desperate Oliver is in making good on the one window of opportunity he has found in making a go of his art career in Montréal. Maggie's concern for her brother takes a back seat to a last minute item in her day: a lunch invitation which Raza has accepted for the two of them with her parents. Janine's efforts to place Maggie and Raza's marriage into a context she can understand and accept may not sit well with her rebellious daughter, especially based on what Maggie saw of her own parents' marriage while she was growing up.

Natalie begins to think about Maggie's assertion that she focuses too much of her life on her children, while she should spend more time thinking about herself. Natalie may disagree. Something that Natalie does not yet know is that Caleb is contemplating going to Africa for the summer on a work term, while figuring out what to do about his relationship with Ariel. Emma has just started a triathlon program - something that Natalie feels will take up too much of her precious time - while she adjusts to being in the same class as Romy. Gifted Romy may have problems adjusting to the social aspects of her new school situation. And her unofficial fourth child, Maggie, has just found out that Simon, her new sex partner, wants to continue their relationship despite he already having a girlfriend, about who Maggie didn't know before sleeping with him. Natalie may change her mind about Maggie's assertion when she meets Emma and Romy's new principal, Andrew Wallace. And Natalie decides to broaden her horizons by joining Maggie in her new aggression therapy. This all may change for Natalie when she learns that her cancer has returned in a much more aggressive form than the first time...

It's the day after Maggie's housewarming and Natalie's special day out with Tia. Natalie is not feeling well to the point of being incapacitated, she and Dr. Basra believing the symptoms side effects of the trial drug. On Dr. Basra's orders, Natalie, who does not want her parents involved, calls in her siblings for support, which may be difficult for Matthew and Maggie, who still are not talking to each other. Natalie doesn't want to burden her children, each who is going through his or her own issue. The one offspring of who she does request something is Caleb, which is to provide testimony against David in any legal proceedings involving Emma and Romy's custody if and when she dies, David who has been trying to negotiate with Natalie without lawyers without she even taking his calls. Caleb also decides to act the head of the house by tackling the broken refrigerator on his own without professional assistance. Emma is preoccupied with the one job for which she has an interview today, which she doesn't really want to admit she wants for self-esteem. And Romy decides to be more proactive in dealing with her anxiety. Natalie is unaware that her siblings are in turn dealing with their own issues, about which they probably would have turned to her for support. Matthew believes he may have opened a door with Nicole in dealing with their marital problems, that belief which may not be reality. Maggie may not be as emotionally prepared for her "marriage" to Raza as she thought. And Oliver learns that he and Romy are not quite on the same page regarding her custody following Natalie's death, Oliver who is reconsidering Romy's want to be his ward instead of Matthew's.

At Janine's funeral, which takes place five days after Natalie's surgery to repair her ruptured intestine, there is a late arrival in the form of Caleb, who finally gets the messages left for him regarding the goings-on in the family, including what happened to his mother. Caleb comes with unexpected "baggage". Janine's death marks a turning point for many in the family. Oliver, who has been the lost one in the family of late, knows that he has to be there for his father, and makes a decision concerning his new relationship with JD in light of all that is going on, including his continued financial issues. Maggie has to decide what to do about her fake marriage to Raza in light of the fact that she is in love with him while he doesn't return her affections in that way. Matthew is blindsided by a declaration by Nicole despite the resumption of their sexual relationship. Matthew also receives some news from Béatrice which adds an extra layer of complexity with regard to his two families. And Natalie learns that the ruptured intestine was probably the result of her body unable to tolerate the increased dosage of the trial drug. As such, she is removed from the trial indefinitely. Viewing this as a setback in her recovery, Natalie has to make some tough decisions regarding what she feels is best for herself, both with regard to her health and her family, especially Emma and Romy. Emma shows that she is growing up faster than she had previously demonstrated as witnessed by a decision she makes regarding work. And in light of Romy's decision that she wants to live with her father instead of Matthew if Natalie passes away, Natalie decides to give Romy some freedom to make an informed decision regarding all aspects of her life.

After receiving her terminal cancer diagnosis, Natalie needs to turn to her loved ones for support, most specifically all of her siblings and Danielle, but most specifically not her children, the news which she wants to hide from them until she has a plan in place about what to do about them following her death. This task takes on additional emotional gravitas as she learns about the continued issues in each of her children's lives. But Natalie becomes emotionally distraught when she can't get a hold of any of the people who she tries to contact, unaware of what's going on with each. Maggie, who has left her phone at work, is preoccupied with what to do about a request from Simon and his girlfriend Sarah. Oliver, in Los Angeles, he who has decided to go back into couples therapy without his other half, Tom, isn't answering his phone as he deals emotionally with the relationship. Matthew is off organizing a special night for him and Nicole for her birthday. And when Natalie does find Danielle, Danielle is distraught herself about what looks to be the end of her marriage to Jim. Once Natalie is finally able to tell one of those loved ones about the situation which overtakes what he/she is going through in his/her own life, the sense of release of the emotional burden comforts Natalie enough that she doesn't want the news spread to others, which may be more difficult to contain than she envisions. One still somewhat outstanding issue is what to tell Andrew, who is continually pressing her, especially as she missed what was supposed to be their first date.

Natalie organizes a birthday dinner for Emma that nobody wants.

It's the summer. Caleb, who is supposedly taking classes toward his architecture degree, has told no one in his family that he has dropped out, wanting to do something else with his life. Natalie wants Emma to get her first ever summer job so that she can feel comfortable that Emma will have some sense of responsibility after she's gone, something that Emma does not understand in her want to have yet another fun, relaxing, work-free summer. And Romy is in summer school. Natalie has entered the drug trial, which she is writing about in her column. Beyond the positive feedback she has been receiving about those recent columns, Natalie will discover there are negative consequences to her writing about it. In general, Natalie is feeling good health-wise, which is a double-edged sword in that she has not felt any of the trial drug's known side effects, which in her mind probably means that she is in the control group taking placebos. Romy takes it upon herself to find out as much as she can about her mother's position in the drug trial to have a sense of comfort. What is causing Natalie grief is that David has retained legal counsel so that he will have some say in what happens with Emma and Romy if Natalie passes. Natalie is determined to keep the fact that Matthew and Nicole are having marital issues from David, that fact which David would probably use against her in the guardianship issue. Meanwhile, Nicole will still not speak to Matthew unless necessary in her anger about his infidelity. Matthew, who is living with his parents, wants truly to be a part of Julian's life as his father, while wanting Nicole and he to reconcile, the two which may be incompatible. And Oliver has moved out of Maggie's apartment, leaving her in a financial bind in making rent. Beyond working extra shifts at the restaurant to earn more money, Maggie may find an alternative to her problem.

It's the day of Maggie's housewarming party, to which she's invited the entire family minus Matthew, the two who still are not speaking to each other. Despite Maggie having moved frequently in her life, she has ulterior motives for holding this party, which the guests will discover, her family members who may or may not tell her to her face what they think about her decision based on that motive. Prior to the party, Natalie, believing that her dizzy spells are signs that she is actually taking the experimental drug in the blind drug trial, wants to have what she considers a perfect day - a "normal" day doing something special - which means spending time with her kids. As they are all busy - most just wanting to avoid issues they are hiding from her - Natalie instead turns to Tia, her new friend from the support group, who may have a different view of what a perfect day constitutes. The offspring who truly does have a planned morning is Emma, who has probably decided to accept her father's invitation for lunch, the invitation which she has not told her mother. Matthew, in trying to mend his own broken family, has a day outing planned with Abby, and figures the best way to get back on Nicole's good side is accommodation. Following the party, Matthew decides to confront David in learning what he is trying to do in reentering Emma and Romy's lives. In the process, Matthew may get a better picture of his own family dysfunction. And Oliver seriously considers Romy's request to live with him instead of Matthew if her mother passes away.

Oliver returns to Montreal on the news of Natalie's diagnosis. Although Natalie appreciates the support, Gerald can't help but wear his feelings about who he considers his irresponsible son on his sleeve, much to Janine's chagrin. Janine feels the need to defend Oliver, to Gerald or anyone else who may take issue with his lifestyle. Oliver's return also has a profound effect on Maggie, who makes a couple of impulsive decisions, one which makes her relationship with Simon and Sarah more complicated. Natalie and Andrew do end up going on a date, which doesn't sit well with Romy, who takes her frustrations out on an object representing who she sees as the problem. Because of Natalie and Andrew dating, Emma feels that she has to be big sister to Romy about her school woes while she comes to terms with her own burgeoning feelings for Jayden. And Caleb contemplates moving out of the house and in with Ariel, especially as he can see that his mother still worries about him when he isn't home.

Natalie finally tells her children about the return of her cancer without ever using the words "die" or "death". Each of the three takes the news differently based partly on other things happening in their lives. As Caleb already knew seeing news of Natalie's biopsy on D.'s refrigerator, he wants especially Emma to step up more this time around than she did during Natalie's first bout of cancer, as he is currently preoccupied with Ariel's pregnancy and what it means holistically for his life, the pregnancy about which he has not yet told anyone. Romy wants to know everything so that she can prepare herself for what is to come. Emma is the one who takes the news the hardest, the news which she wallows in with other issues going on in her life. With her children now in the know, Natalie reaches out for emotional support of her own from wherever she can find it, even from her extremely devout mother. Maggie takes some steps to get back into the workforce, while she receives an unexpected proposition from Simon and Sarah. Matthew continues to hide a certain aspect of his life from Nicole, who begins to suspect that he indeed is keeping something from her, not knowing what that something is. Oliver begins to suspect that his parents know about Tom, not having told anyone in his family except Matthew. Gerald has his own thoughts about Oliver in light of the situation. Oliver also runs into Lucas, Romy's therapist, socially.