'Hole'

Ruth lies asleep in her room at Beeches House. Her dream is a mixture of Daniel’s angry face, Michelle as a blue goddess and then as a gold diva, Julia, Melody and then Ruth’s own face as Vicky. She wakes screaming. Trudy then enters with her medication, and Ruth suddenly sees a stream of golden light coming round the door and the opening lines of the song ‘Girls’ (Sugababes) blasts in. Then, just as abruptly, it stops. Trudy hasn’t noticed anything and Ruth wonders what it could have been. Trudy takes Ruth to the bathroom and Ruth tentatively walks through the doorway.

Julia thumps her fists down on her desk at the Mill, and over at the Beeches Ruth jumps at the sound. Trudy again has heard nothing and reassures Ruth. At the bathroom door Ruth meets Noah ‘Smithy’ Smithson (mid 20s). It’s not clear whether he is a patient or a member of staff. As he says goodbye Ruth sees a flash of Vicky’s eyes snapping open. Trudy leaves Ruth alone in the bathroom.

Suddenly the second segment of ‘Girls’ starts and looking at the door, Ruth again sees the golden light. Then looking at the mirror Ruth sees it is suddenly smashed and fragments of her face eerily look back at her. She screams again as Julia slams her fists down on her desk for a second time.

An orchid sits in front of Julia and she tells Karen she’s frustrated because it’s not flowered yet, and it was going to be a present for Ruth. Karen makes Julia feel even worse about her failed efforts to visit Ruth by telling her that Melody is on her way there.

Ruth leaves the bathroom and Trudy points out she has forgotten her towel which is hung up completely covering the mirror. When she retrieves it we see the mirror is whole again. Ruth wonders to herself where all her friends are.

Meanwhile Melody is talking to Dr Salisbury trying to convince him to let her visit Ruth. He thinks she wouldn’t have a positive impact at the moment given that is was her that sectioned Ruth. She returns to her car frustrated and the radio automatically turns on playing The Ting Tings ‘That’s Not My Name’. The music is still playing as Ruth, now dressed, follows Trudy into the day room. She is left there with Smithy, who makes her a cup of tea and the music continues in the background as if coming from the TV.

Melody arrives at work, still annoyed that she couldn’t see Ruth, and explains it all to Karen, Jimmi and Julia. They put pressure on Julia to make a visit.

Ruth and Maggie (another patient) stare at each other. Ruth again sees a flash of Vicky’s eyes opening causing her to suddenly bolt for the door. Out in the corridor ‘Girls’ blasts again and in full R&B video mode Ruth sees Michelle as the gold diva coming towards her flanked by two other girls in silhouette. Ruth sinks to her knees in awe – she both fears and adores them. As the song ends Trudy runs over and turns Ruth’s head towards her and the girls snap out of existence. Looking back down the corridor Ruth is upset to see that the girls have gone. Meanwhile Julia leaves to go see Ruth.

Dr Salisbury asks Ruth to describe the girls she saw. Ruth talks about Michelle, saying she hopes to be her one day because she is better than who she sees in the mirror – Ruth. With a flash of the girls we see that Ruth is one of them. When asked about the third girl Ruth again sees the red face of Vicky screaming her name. In horror Ruth tells Dr Salisbury it is Vicky, and Vicky wants Ruth to die. Ruth uses three coloured bricks to demonstrate the three girls that she sees and explains that Vicky’s death left a hole that she cannot fill.

Like Melody earlier, Julia struggles to gain access to Ruth. Dr Salisbury agrees that she can have five minutes with Ruth. While she waits she meets Smithy. Ruth is lying on her bed bathed in blue light and the introduction to Atomic Kitten’s ‘Whole Again’ is playing. The light and music snap off as Trudy enters with Julia. Ruth tells Julia she doesn’t know who she is anymore and gratefully takes the orchid. As Julia goes to leave Ruth hugs her goodbye and whispers in her ear that she needs Michelle to get her out of the hole she is in. Outside Julia says she will help Trudy by contacting Ruth’s parents.

Dozing in bed Ruth is bathed in a blue light and sees Michelle as a blue goddess at the end of her bed who sings ‘Whole Again’ to her. She takes Ruth’s hand as she sings. On the second chorus Ruth and the blue goddess Michelle sing together but at the end of the song she fades away. Ruth watches with tears streaming down her face.

Later in the treatment room Ruth tells Dr Salisbury how Julia and Michelle both visited her that day. But as she explains about Michelle she realises she was hallucinating. She’s in tears; she does not want to have to say goodbye to Michelle.

Back at the surgery Julia is also crying. She tells Karen and Melody how horrible it was to see Ruth because it seems like she has broken apart. Jimmi walks in to find all the women sniffing and quickly retreats. Julia is even more resolved to trace Ruth’s parents.

Later in the bathroom again Ruth is running hot water into the sink and singing to herself. In the steamed up mirror she writes ‘Ruth’. Back in bed, we see on the window sill that a flower has opened on the orchid.