Mac and Levi are devastated. The weight of the day clings to them like a heavy fog, and the silence in the car on the ride home feels louder than any words they might have spoken. By the time they step through the front door, the composure Mac had been trying so desperately to hold onto crumbles. The moment the lock clicks shut behind them, the emotions she has been bottling up surge forward, unstoppable. She collapses into Levi’s arms, her body shaking as sobs break free.

Levi holds her tightly, one hand on her back, the other cradling the back of her head, whispering words of comfort that he isn’t even sure she can hear through the storm of her grief. He feels his own chest tightening with sorrow, his throat burning with words he cannot find. All he can do is be steady for her, letting her grief pour out against him, silently promising her that she won’t have to carry the pain alone.

Mac buries her face in his shirt, tears soaking the fabric, her breath ragged and uneven. “I can’t do this,” she whispers between sobs, her voice broken and raw. The weight of disappointment presses on her chest, heavier than she thought she could bear. Levi pulls her even closer, his voice low and steady, telling her that it’s okay to let it out, that her pain is real and valid, that they will get through this together.

Minutes feel like hours as they stand there in the dimly lit hallway of their home, surrounded by the quiet familiarity of the space that now feels strangely hollow. Yet, in the midst of their despair, the simple act of holding each other provides a fragile sense of safety. It doesn’t erase the pain, but it keeps them grounded, reminding them that even when everything else feels uncertain, they still have one another.

Slowly, as the intensity of her sobs begins to ease, Mac leans into Levi’s chest, exhausted but comforted by his presence. The devastation remains, but in his arms she finds a sliver of strength to face whatever comes next.

Will they have the strength to try again?

Elsewhere in Summer Bay, Mali (Kyle Shilling) returns to find his business in chaos.

In one of many questionable business decisions of recent times, Mali left the board shop in the hands of new assistant Lacey (Sophea Pennington), as he headed to his hometown of Mantaray Point to help out with sister Lowanna’s childcare.

Mali hadn’t long taken Lacey (Sophea Pennington) on board, giving her a chance at the surf school despite not knowing her very well. At first, it seemed like a harmless decision, but it didn’t take long before that choice came back to haunt him. To his surprise and growing frustration, it was revealed that Lacey didn’t actually know how to surf at all—a shocking fact considering the very nature of the job she had been hired to do.

Rather than admit the truth straight away, Lacey attempted to cover her tracks. She managed to rope in her boyfriend Theo (Matt Evans) to step in and run the lessons on her behalf, hoping no one would notice that she lacked the most basic skill required for the role. With Theo’s charm and easy confidence on the board, the students were none the wiser, at least for a short while.

When Mali eventually uncovered the truth, he was caught between anger and disappointment. Yet, instead of letting his frustration boil over, he surprised Lacey by agreeing to keep the arrangement going for the time being. It was a compromise that spoke volumes about his patience and willingness to give her a chance, even as doubts about her honesty and suitability for the job lingered in the back of his mind.