Fortune

Fortune is the fourth episode of Season One.

Synopsis
While at the school's annual Open House, two parents meet and quickly turn into something dangerous. Melissa devastates Bonnie with news regarding her job that could leave them without a home. Mark and Bailey's relationship is further tested after a rumor begins to circulate around campus, leading Mark to becoming even more curious about her parents' beliefs. Susanna finds it a challenge to prepare for the art show on her own. Miles gifts Ronan a role in the musical. A date nearly turns deadly.

Plot

 * Miles asks Ronan to stop by his office before lunch time as he has a surprise for him. Confused yet eager to hear what he has in store, Ronan pays him a visit. Miles announces Jackson's exit from the musical and that he is willing to pass on the role of Tony to him. Ronan accepts his offer without any hesitation and promises not to disappoint. He shares the news with everyone he knows, the last person being Bonnie. Ronan notices that she is upset and checks up on her. Bonnie assures him that she is fine and leaves. She heads to Miles' office and asks him about Ronan's big news. Miles tells her that he offered him the role after Jackson dropped out of the musical and that she has no reason to be upset. Bonnie agrees, but reminds him of how much she wanted the role. She then barges out of his office with tears in her eyes.
 * The student body along with their parents attend the annual Open House where Nicole and Jonathan meet. They spend most of the night together while their daughters speak with their teachers. They exchange phone numbers and contact each other the next morning. They agree to meet up for drinks within the next few days and when they do, things go farther than either of them expected. Nicole freaks out after waking up in Jonathan's bed and rushes to get dressed before Sabrina arrives. Jonathan tells her that she won't be home for another week as she is on a business trip, calming her. She admits that she enjoyed their time together, but makes him promise not to contact her ever again as she feels bad for cheating on her husband. Jonathan understands, but makes it clear that he doesn't want to stop seeing her despite being married himself.
 * After school, Mark and Bailey meet up at his locker to discuss the rumors flowing around the school. Bailey promises to handle it, but Mark doesn't believe her. He demands that he meet her parents before the end of the week or he will break up with her. Bailey feels she has had enough and decides to tell him the truth. She pulls him into the nearest classroom and closes the door. Before she confesses, she asks him to promise her not to get mad. Mark refuses to promise her anything until he hears the truth. Bailey proceeds to telling him about the time her biological father was murdered. The man who killed him was black, therefore causing a spark of rage inside of Sabrina. Since then, she has urged both her and Jonathan to refrain from making any black friends or romantic relationships. Disgusted, Mark tells her how glad he is that he didn't promise her anything and storms out of the classroom. Bailey rushes after him and follows him out of the building, finally getting him to stop at the end of the block. She tries her best to convince him that she is nothing like her family, but is unable to charm Mark. He leaves without saying another word.
 * Bonnie arrives home from school to see Melissa resting on the living room couch with her face in her hands. Bonnie senses that something is wrong and approaches her. Melissa assures her that nothing is wrong when asked, but doesn't come off as believable. Bonnie puts her arm around her and comforts her, hoping to get an honest answer out of her soon enough. Melissa gives in and decides to tell her the truth. She reveals that she had been fired from her job the week prior and has been unable to find a new, well-paying job within the area. She was also given a warning from the landlord for missing the month prior's rent and threatened to kick them out if she doesn't pay the bill by the end of the week. Bonnie pledges to get a job and everything will be fixed, but Melissa refuses and tells her that it is not that easy. She doesn't one hundred percent know if they will be kicked out, but still wants to be prepared. Bonnie checks her bedroom to see that a good portion of her belongings were already in boxes. Melissa embraces her after she starts crying and lets out a few tears herself. They then promise to be there for each other, no matter what happens next.
 * With the art show less than a month away, Susanna starts an outline of her future art pieces. She sits in front of her painting easel for hours, zero ideas coming to mind. She wants to ask Bonnie for help, but doesn't want to spend too much time around her as she is fearful of falling even deeper in love with her. By the next morning, Susanna realizes she has no one to turn to for artistic guidance and prepares to ask Bonnie when she gets to school. When asked, Bonnie turns her down and tells her that she is busy. She leaves directly after that, worrying Susanna. For the next few days, Bonnie answers her each of her invites with the same excuse, causing Susanna to question her wellbeing. She assures her that she is okay, but Susanna doesn't buy it. While viciously searching through Google for inspiration, she is sidelined by a sudden wave of paranoia. Instead of drowning in her own feelings, she vents to Nicholas. She shares that she has a strong feeling that Bonnie knows about her crush and is weirded out by it. Nicholas advises she calm down before she has a panic attack and tells her that she is probably wrong. He finishes off by reminding her that the only way of knowing the truth is by talking about it. Susanna has thought of telling Bonnie about her feelings in the past, but this time, she is set on actually doing it.
 * As the days go by, Nicole finds it harder and harder to resist the urge of telling someone about her and Jonathan's affair. While washing the dishes alongside Carol, she sparks a conversation about how their weeks went as a start. Carol tells her about Bonnie's eerie antics without mentioning her actual name. She holds back tears as she expresses how annoyed she is that someone is trying to tear her down without having done anything. Instead of sticking to her plan and admitting to her affair, Nicole puts everything down and consoles her. She informs her that she will be calling out of work sometime later in the week to meet with Principal Meyers and discuss the situation. Carol advises she stay out of it and that she will handle it, but Nicole refuses to let her daughter continue being a victim of bullying. She comes to the realization that there is nothing she can do and begins to regret her choice of being honest about her feelings as she hadn't done so in a while. The next day at school, she spots Bonnie at her locker and asks if they can speak in private. Bonnie takes her request as a joke and laughs at her. With that, she walks away. Carol runs after her until she comes to the realization that this could be her wake up call.
 * Teddy and Jake eat breakfast at a restaurant near campus without any interruption. While walking down an alley, they hold hands as no one is around. When they get to the end, they are stopped by two men wearing masks over their faces. They taunt them for looking like a gay couple and soon begin to yell homophobic slurs at them. Teddy can't stand seeing the upset look on Jake's face and pushes one of them. He fights back while the other stands by while cheering him on. Jake tries to pull them apart until he is reprimanded by the second man. Seconds later, they realize that they are going too far and decide to make a run for it, but not before stealing both their wallets. Jake manages to sit up through the pain and checks on Teddy who is unconscious. He immediately runs out of the alley and calls for help, a woman who claims to be a doctor quickly coming to the rescue.