Episode Recap
Adult Sheldon explains that waiting in line for concert tickets is a rite of passage for many college students, and he was no different. Except, instead of rock and roll music, his concert was a lecture on black hole topology. Instead of a stage dive, he would dive into knowledge. Instead of guitar-shredding solos, he would witness universe-shredding hypotheses. And instead of a charismatic frontman dazzling the audience, there would be... Well, actually, the exact same thing, Sheldon claims.
When Sheldon’s old friend/rival Paige finds him in the line, he wonders what she’s doing there. Paige explains she’s there for the lecture. In fact, she’s part of it because the speaker is her mentor at UT Austin. Sheldon is surprised to hear she is part of the quantum gravity team. As Paige starts to say her work is really exciting, Sheldon stops her to say he knows what it’s about. It’s why he’s been waiting in line for three hours. “Wow, three hours to see me speak? I didn't know you were such a fan.”, Paige jokes.
As Georgie carries a mattress into an unfurnished apartment with Mandy, he says it’s a nice place. Mandy admits it’s not really, but at least her parents won’t be in the next room. When Georgie asks if she wants him to take the mattress into the bedroom, Mandy points out it’s a studio apartment. This is the bedroom. After Georgie drops the mattress down on the floor, Mandy wonders how she can ever thank him. Georgie points out they are in the bedroom… Mandy is coy and asks if he’s suggesting a nap. Maybe after, Georgie says. Deal, Mandy says as they begin to kiss.
When Mary asks Missy how school was as she arrives home, Missy replies “so good” as she explains Meemaw picked her up in her new car. Meemaw is happy Missy loves her car, wondering what Dale’s problem is. When Missy says her grandmother is too good for Dale, Mary wonders if Missy should be hearing all this relationship talk. Missy argues it’s what you do when you get dumped. After Missy asks her grandmother if she has any of Dale’s belongings at home which they could set on fire, Mary tells Missy to go. When Mary tells her mother that Missy doesn't need to hear about her love life, Meemaw argues Missy’s got to learn sometime: men suck. Mary realizes her mother is hurting and asks what she can do. Meemaw wants to go drinking, but Mary points out it’s 3:30 in the afternoon. After Meemaw says she’ll go to a bar alone and hopefully come home with a bartender, Mary tells Missy she’s going out with Meemaw.
At the sporting goods store, Dale asks George if he’s seen Connie’s “ridiculous” new car. George hasn’t, but he’s sure heard a lot about it. Dale wonders if she thinks she can do better than him. Dale insists he’s a catch. Although George initially offers a tepid response, he eventually agrees with his boss, telling Dale he’s very “catchable.” After George points out Dale was the one who ended things with Meemaw, Dale admits he didn’t expect her to be okay with it. George says there’s something better than going on and on about it… Dale grunts as he hits a punch bag in the store. George tells him to visualize punching Meemaw’s car, reminding him it’s yellow.
After a knock on his college dorm door, Sheldon is surprised to find Paige there. When she questions why Sheldon didn’t stick around for the Q&A, he says he had no Qs and therefore needed no As. Paige says she thought they could just hang out, but Sheldon wonders why they would do that. Paige argues they’re friends, but Sheldon points out she punched him in the face once. That’s what friends do, Paige says. When Paige explains the professor and his team went out drinking, leaving her on her own, Sheldon invites her in. As Sheldon starts to show Paige around his dorm, Sheldon’s neighbor Darren comes around to ask Sheldon if he wants to come play Mario Kart. Sheldon tells Paige it’s pretty fun, they do it a few times a week. After Darren asks Paige if she wants to join them, Paige admits she’s never played before. As Darren returns to his dorm, Paige is surprised Sheldon’s neighbors let him hang out with them. Sheldon claims he’s the social glue that holds this floor together.
Back in Mandy’s new apartment, Georgie is wearing just his jeans and a t-shirt as he lays on the mattress, looking through Mandy’s yearbook. As Mandy returns from the bathroom in her bathrobe, Georgie jokes that she had some big hair. Mandy can’t believe Georgie of all people is talking to her about big hair. After Mandy asks when she gets to see Georgie’s year book, he’s forced to come clean and admit he dropped out of school during his senior year. After Georgie apologizes for not telling her sooner, Mandy insists it’s okay. Mandy jokingly wonders what other secrets he’s hiding from her. Does he have a wife and kids? Georgie doesn’t laugh as he tells her he’s not 21. He’s 17. Mandy laughs before seeing that Georgie is serious. What the..?!
As Mandy paces around her apartment, she panics about what she’s just done. Georgie doesn’t think it’s a big deal, but Mandy can’t believe she just slept with a 17-year-old. Mandy can’t believe he lied to her. After Georgie says it’s only because he likes her, Mandy tells him to get out. Georgie insists he’s the same guy he was five minutes ago. A liar, Mandy points out. Georgie reminds her she lied about her age too, but Mandy says she felt really bad about it and told him the truth. Georgie argues that’s because she’s more mature than him. When Mandy tells him again to go, Georgie asks if he can at least put his shoes on. After Mandy says no, Georgie picks up his sneakers and socks and walks out.
Over in Darren and Oscar’s dorm room, when Paige tells them she goes to UT, Darren says Austin is a great city, she must have fun. Paige flatly says it’s one big party. After Paige asks if Darren and Oscar were assigned to look after Sheldon, Darren says no, they just ended up in the room next door. “So we took him in, like a dog.”, Oscar jokes. Paige is surprised that Sheldon being so young isn’t weird. Sheldon argues he’s basically 50, and Darren and Oscar joke they’re basically 12, so it all works out. After Darren mentions D&D on Friday with Abby, Paige is surprised to hear a girl is part of their group, as well. After Darren asks Paige if she plays D&D, she says no, admitting she just studies alone in her dorm because she has no friends. “That’s a bummer”, Darren says, before Paige excuses herself. Darren tells Sheldon to go after Paige, but he can’t see why he would when Darren just said it himself, “she’s a bummer”.
When Meemaw returns from the bar with another round of drinks, Mary says she’s still working on her previous one. Mary knows her mother keeps saying she’s fine, but is she? Meemaw picks up a peanut shell with two nuts inside, describing them as “trapped”. She points to a peanut out of its shell, calling it “solo” and “happy”. So she’s a solo peanut? Damn straight, Meemaw says. In fact, she snaps the double shell and tells the nuts to enjoy their freedom. Mary says if Meemaw’s happy, she’s happy. Meemaw points out she’s maybe not as happy as a peanut shell with three peanuts inside…
When Sheldon finds Paige sitting alone on his dorm room bed with a tissue in her hands, he asks if she can settle an argument. He thought she was fine, but Darren and Oscar claim she’s okay. Paige sarcastically wonders why she wouldn’t be fine. She’s completely alone and the one person she thought would understand is having the time of his life. After Sheldon still needs clarification, Paige tells him he was wrong. Paige wonders how Sheldon has more friends than her. He doesn’t know himself, claiming he doesn’t even want them. Paige admits she thought college would be an amazing experience, but she hates it. Sheldon points out she’s doing great work, but Paige scoffs at the idea the professor wants to take suggestions from her. She’s not even a woman in science. She’s just a little girl they trot out like a novelty act to get funding. Sheldon admits they did that to him, too. He was rude to the donor, who appreciated his honesty and gave a bunch of money to the school. Of course he did, says Paige, as she decides to return to her chaperone.
That night in the Coopers’ dining room, Meemaw is offended when George comes in wearing Dale’s uniform. Mary explains her mother’s upset about the break-up, but Meemaw insists she’s not upset about jack squat. As Mary tries to end the conversation by saying they should eat, Sheldon points out they’ve not said a prayer yet. “How silly of me.”, Mary says. When George wonders if she’s okay, Meemaw points out Mary had a whole beer, so who knows. After Mary says a prayer, Meemaw wants George to tell Dale she wants her Meemaw left a purple bra at his place, and she’ll need it if she’s going to start dating again. George wants somebody else to talk, so he turns to Georgie, saying he thought he’d be out with his girlfriend. After a glum Georgie says he’s not, an inebriated Meemaw wonders if someone found out how old he is. As Missy senses gossip, Meemaw indiscreetly mentions that Georgie has been dating an older woman and lying about his age. Mary is upset, but Georgie says it doesn’t matter now Mandy has dumped him. Sheldon can sympathize, saying a young woman brought chaos into his life today. Sheldon explains that Paige was visiting the university and got mad that he has college friends and she doesn't. George notes that Mary’s drunk and Sheldon has friends, calling it a “crazy-ass dinner”.
When Mandy walks into the laundromat, Meemaw tells her Georgie’s not there. Mandy tells Meemaw she’s come to see her. When Meemaw asks Mandy to take it down a notch, Mandy wonders if she doesn’t want people to overhear. No, Meemaw says, as admits she’s a little hungover. Mandy makes a racket by shaking a laundry trolley, before asking why Meemaw didn’t warn her that Georgie was just 17. Meemaw says she told Georgie to tell her the truth before things went too far. Well, they did go too far, Mandy reveals. Meemaw insists she gets it, saying men are the worst and she’s going through stuff herself. Mandy makes clear that she’s not there to bond over their relationship troubles. After Meemaw tells Mandy to calm down, Mandy tells her good luck with her hangover before slamming a dryer lid down and storming out.
At the sporting goods store, when Dale asks George if he saw Connie last night, George confirms she joined them for dinner. After Dale wonders if Meemaw said anything about him, George insists he doesn’t want to get in the middle of this. After Dale tells George they’re friends, and he’s his boss, George reveals that Meemaw wants her bra back. The purple one that opens in the front? George doesn’t want to hear about it.
Adult Sheldon says that Paige made him realize he might not be the loner that he thought he was. Perhaps he’s a social butterfly. Or a social animal less horrifying than a butterfly. Although Adult Sheldon claims he was becoming a people person, Sheldon is less than friendly when he finds Paige waiting in front of his dorm room. As they walk inside, Sheldon says he thought she was going back to Austin. Paige admits she’s not going back and has decided to drop out of college. After Sheldon wonders where she will go, Paige says she was thinking here, in his dorm room. Just for a couple of days, until she figures out how to tell her mom. Sheldon is uneasy with her plan, but Paige says she doesn’t have anywhere else to go and, as embarrassing as it is, he’s the only person who can help her right now. Sheldon sighs and says okay, arguing it’s the least he can do since his life is going so much better than hers.
When Georgie shows up for work at the laundromat, Meemaw calls him into the broom closet. Meemaw tells him Mandy came by and was pissed. Georgie says that’s what he gets for telling the truth, but Meemaw corrects him and points out it’s what he gets for lying to her. When Georgie says he doesn’t need his grandmother yelling at him, too, Meemaw tells him Mandy was yelling at her so now she’s yelling at him. Georgie says just because she’s having “men problems”, she shouldn’t take it out on him. Meemaw holds her tongue for a minute, before telling Georgie he really screwed up. After Georgie wonders why they’re still talking about it after he apologies to Mandy, Meemaw tells Georgie to think how he’d feel if someone did this to his sister…
When Sheldon goes to Missy’s room to ask to borrow a girly magazine, Missy says “I knew it!”, telling Sheldon she’s okay with it but he shouldn’t tell Dad. Sheldon, unaware of Missy’s insinuation, explains that Paige is staying in his dorm room so he’s making her a care package. After Sheldon reveals that Paige dropped out of college and hasn’t told her parents yet, Missy is surprised she went to Sheldon. Sheldon says Paige thought he was the only one who’d understand. Does he? Nope. After Missy hands Sheldon a magazine, she asks what else he’s putting in there. Toothbrush, toothpaste, pajamas, and feminine napkins. Sheldon wonders if one box is enough, but Missy says it should be fine. After Sheldon makes an insensitive remark about Paige’s moodiness, Missy suggests he might not be the best person to be handling this. Sheldon agrees, but says he’s all Paige has got. Missy thinks this is serious and he should tell their mom, but Sheldon says he promised he wouldn’t.
When George gets off the phone in the kitchen, Mary wonders where he’s going. George says he’s going to meet Dale at a bar, but he really doesn’t want to hear anymore about this relationship anymore. Mary thinks it’s a good thing Dale wants to talk, as her mother just wants to drink and pretend she’s fine. George likes the sound of that and suggests they switch. When Missy comes into the kitchen to talk to her mother, she tells Mary she’s worried about Paige.
That night, as Mary drives with Sheldon and Missy in the car, Adult Sheldon says he may have promised Paige he wouldn’t tell his mother, but thankfully Missy didn’t. He doesn’t know what lip gloss flavor says “mature”, but that would be his sister. When they arrive at Sheldon’s dorm, Paige is nowhere to be seen. Sheldon finds a note from Paige thanking him for letting her stay there, but saying she has to go. Paige was happy he’s doing well and hopes to find that for herself. The note is signed “your friend, Paige.” As Mary drives home with Sheldon and Missy, Adult Sheldon says after a few frantic nights, Paige showed up at her mom's. They had a lot to figure out. Adult Sheldon says being a parent isn't easy. He admits he made life difficult for my family. And his own kids do the same to him. Just yesterday, he had to take his son Leonard to the skate park. Like a regular park isn't bad enough. It's safe to say, having children is challenging.
After Georgie knocks on Mandy’s apartment door, he asks if they can talk. An overwhelmed Mandy says they better. After Georgie wonders what’s going on, Mandy says she’s pregnant.
