What went down on the latest episode of grown-ish? Get all the tea with Sesi‘s weekly recaps.
And here we are. Another finale, another school year in the books. For real, college goes by so quickly! What’s uncomfortably slow, though? This middle-of-the-night opening scene convo where Zoey tells Luca she booked a job with Joey Bada$$, even though she was initially trying to coach him into snagging the spot. Let’s just say, it does not go well.
Fast forward to the next scene — boxes are strewn about the girls’ apartment, as it’s end-of-year moving time — and we find out Zoey hasn’t spoken to, or even texted with, Luca in more than a week. Still, she wants to invite him to the last day of the Joey B. pop-up shop she’s been working on. At the same time, she doesn’t want Luca to feel like she’s rubbing her win in his face. Nomi and Ana tell her to go for it. Invite sent.
Meanwhile, Jazz and Sky are in the doctor’s office toasting to Sky’s recovery and upcoming cast removal. (#TrackTourneyTurnUp on deck!) But their celebration may have to be put on hold.
Later, at the final pop-up event, Nomi, Ana, and Aaron show up to support their girl. And when Ana has a moment alone with Zo, she tells her she and Aaron are all good now and back to being friends. “Plus, we all know who he’s really in love with,” she says.
On the other side of the room, Doug and Vivek are eyeing the same J.B. jacket, and square up on each other, staring. (Does the winner of the staring contest go home with the goods? We don’t know.)
In other dramatic news, Luca hasn’t shown, and Zo’s convinced they must be broken up. Ever the encouragers (and sometimes instigators, let’s be honest), Ana and Nomi tell her to forget Luca — she killed this pop-up without him. Zoey agrees, and right in the middle of her speech about being a strong Black woman who held it down for her first-ever high-profile fashion event and doesn’t need any dude, in comes Luca. And out goes everything she just said?
The couple link up, Zoey thanks Luca for coming, and apologizes for how things went down the last time they spoke. Luca tells her to show him around, and they’re off.
Doug and Vivek’s staring contest appears to be off, too, but the battle for the Bada$$ merch is still going strong.
But Vivek has an idea: They could split the cost of the coat and share it, kinda like some jacket joint custody arrangement. It’s a deal.
Back in the doctor’s office, we learn Sky has a hairline fracture and won’t be getting the cast off — or running in the championships. Jazz confesses she’s scared to compete alone. “I’ve never done anything without you,” she cries to Sky. “I don’t know if I can do this without you.” In a tone with not even the slightest of her usual shade detected, Sky tells her sister, “Of course, you can,” and promises Jazz she’ll recoup over break, and they’ll be back to running together by fall.
And just when we thought Zuca was back on track — Luca even tells Zo her work is fire and apologizes for the things he said the other week — their run faces yet another hurdle. You see, Luca didn’t stop there. And that’s when the sitch goes hella south.
After Zoey accepts his apology, Luca proceeds to say the only reason Joey Bada$$ hired her was because she’s cute and bubbly — not because she’s talented. (And we ooop!) But Zo let him know real quick. They literally “took it outside” and she went off about how he only provides conditional support, support when it’s convenient for him and when his ego doesn’t feel threatened.
And then she ends things. For real.
We pick up three days later. Zoey is packing up her bedroom when her roomies walk in to cheer her up. Then, she breaks the news to them: She’ll be spending her summer in London working at Joey B.’s flagship store. Props are given, but Ana also reminds her, “You know that you don’t have to go half way around the world just to prove something to Luca.” Zoey: “I know. I just kinda wanna prove something to myself.”
The next day (maybe? They’re all wearing different outfits and hair styles), the whole squad is together for one last hang in Zoey, Ana, and Nomi’s empty apartment. Amidst the fun, Nomi gets a phone call from the school’s independent ethics committee. Apparently, they’ve received complains regarding Prof. Hewson’s inappropriate conduct and want to speak to her about it. Legit shook, Nomi decides to to hide the truth from her crew, brushing the call off as a telemarketer. The girls take one last group #sophomoreselfie and bounce.
Over at Doug’s dorm, he and Jazz are cuddled on the couch when Luca enters looking for Zoey. Jazz’s lips are sealed (because girl code). Doug’s are not.
A sixth call from Luca comes in as London-bound Zoey pulls up to the airport. She hits ignore — again. The camera pans to the driver’s side and who do we see? Yep, Aaron. “You OK there, Freshman?” he asks her. She says yeah and thanks him for the ride. Before exiting, she takes a deep breath and confides in him about her nervousness with the new gig. He tells her she’ll be great.
This causes Zo to reflect on all the other times Aaron’s been there for her. (BTW, we would have loved a montage right about now … but nope.) He smiles, and they hop out the car to get her bags. Here, Zoey notices Aaron’s rockin’ a Joey B. bag from the pop-up. “I just wanted to support you,” he says. Zoey:
Before either of them can say anything, Zoey boards the plane.
On his movie-like mission to win Zo back, Luca drives up right after all this goes down and tries to walk toward the boarding area. It’s too late. Grand gesture, denied.
As the plane taxis down the tarmac, Voiceover Zoey drops this gem: “The reality about facing your fears is that you never know the outcome. Whether you’re scared of opening old wounds, afraid you’re losing the best thing you ever had, or nervous about embarking on a new journey, the truth is, the only real way to conquer those fears is to fly right through them.”
Catch up on the episodes you’ve missed here.
