Nashville – Hurricane

Rayna (Connie Britton) comes home to find her husband Deacon (Charles Esten) working on a song for their album together. He tells her that the song he is working on is about their first kiss, but when he tells her it happened at the Exit Inn. Rayna says their first kiss did not happen there, but in his car when he drove her home from Stewart Osborne’s party. When Deacon concedes her point, she tells him that Zach hired Gene Buckholder (Ian Hoch) to film them as they work on their album. Deacon is not pleased with the idea, but is polite when Gene shows up. Rayna gives Gene the guidelines on where and when he can film them but she does not leave him with many options. The couple show Gene their music room.

At a diner, Scarlett (Clare Bowen) asks her boyfriend and band mate Gunnar (Sam Palladio) what he would be doing if he was not a musician and his answer is simple: he would die. For Gunnar, music is everything. It is essential as breathing. Scarlett does not feel that way. Music was something that found her and she is good at it, but her life would look differently if Gunnar had not found her book of poems, made one into a song and coaxed her on stage to perform with him. Gunnar checks his phone again and is stunned to see that their music video already has over one million views on YouTube. Both of their phones ring at the same time. NBC Nashville called Scarlett for an interview while After Buzz Nashville called Gunnar for the couple to be on the cover of their magazine. They are both stunned with all the positive feedback they are getting for the music video.

After Deacon and Rayna give Gene a tour, the couple is eager for him to leave. After he does, Deacon tells her that this is a crazy idea and Rayna agrees. As they talk about their album, Deacon sees Gene standing outside pointing the camera at them. Rayna opens the door and reprimands him for snooping and he assures her that he could not hear anything they said, but thought the moment looked sweet. Later, Rayna calls Zach Welles (Cameron Scoggins), Silicon Valley tech genius and Highway 65 investor, and tells him that she is nixing Gene and his camera. Zach tells her that she has to try it. Times have changed. Albums do not sell on their own anymore and artists need a hook to get consumers to buy. He believes her fans will love to see the behind the scenes of the record being made. Reluctantly, Rayna tells him that she will give the process a try and holds him to his promise that she and Deacon have final say on what is being filmed.

As Maddie (Lennon Stella) and Clayton (Joseph David-Jones) listen to music at his place, he tells her it is time to take her home. She tells him that her parents are already asleep and she can stay. Clay has a feeling that Maddie wants to annoy her parents by using him. When she denies that, he is honest with her about his bad track record with relationships and tells her that he does not want to fall for her and she lets him know that he already has. Back at home, Rayna is having trouble sleeping. She has a lot of things on her mind and she wants to share all of her concerns with Deacon. She is worried about Maddie’s relationship with Clay. She has an idea for their album as well, but the problem is that it is three in the morning and Deacon would be rather be sleeping than talking. He talks a bit, but Rayna continues to toss and turn.

Damien George (Christian Coulson), Scarlett and Gunnar have a chat on Kathie Lee Gifford’s and Hoda Kotb’s morning program. Gunnar is surprised to see Damien and Scarlett being friendly towards each other during the interview. Also, he notices that all the focus is on Scarlett’s transformation in the video and he is being pushed to the side. After the interview is over, Gunnar asks Scarlett what changed between her and Damien. They hated each other and now they do not. Scarlett says nothing has changed. Damien comes to talk and invites the duo for dinner. Gunnar says he has plans to write a song with Avery (Jonathan Jackson) and Scarlett says she cannot make it. Gunnar says that Scarlett is not busy and she should be free for dinner. Damien can sense the tension so he tells them to figure it out. After he leaves, Scarlett asks Gunnar if he wants her to go and he tells her that she can do whatever she wants and leaves the room.

Deacon and Rayna brainstorm on song ideas in the living room while Gene sits down further away from them. Rayna is touched when Deacon reveals he has been working on a song about their time apart. He tells her that even when they were apart he still felt her presence in his life. Scarlett decides to have dinner with Damien. Damien tries to apologize and after a little groveling, Scarlett decides to let things go. Rayna and Deacon continue to share ideas. When their youngest daughter Daphne (Maisy Stella) calls Deacon to put more ink in the printer for her school report, he bends down to kiss Rayna. Immediately, Gene gets up and wants to recapture the moment. Rayna is shocked. She does not want to kiss her husband on camera, but Deacon decides to play along and kisses her again much to Rayna’s displeasure. As Scarlett tells Damien more about her hometown in Natchez, Mississippi she finds herself enjoying his company. When Deacon returns from helping Daphne, Rayna needs a breather from writing. Deacon suggests they go outside and take a break.

As Deacon and Rayna are trying to figure out what to do, Deacon realizes that Gene is following them. He turns the car quickly and they are able to ditch him. The two decide to have a bowling date filled with plenty of laughter and cuteness. Back at home, their daughters Maddie and Daphne bake and talk about boys. Daphne tells her older sister about Flynn and Maddie gives her advice about guys. When Clay stops by, Maddie lets her sister know that she does not want Daphne hanging around them the whole time. As Deacon and Rayna make out after their bowling date, they get a call from their security company. Apparently, the fire alarm went off and no one at home answered. They race home to check on their girls.

When they arrive at their house, there are multiple fire trucks but the firefighters assure the couple that there is no severe damage – just smoke. When they go inside, they find Maddie and Clay cleaning up the burned cake in the kitchen. Rayna confronts Maddie about Clay being in their house around Daphne without their permission and Maddie fights back saying her mother is being unfair. While walking to the front door, Clay tries to bond with Deacon by telling him that he is a huge fan of his music. It is very awkward and it seems like Clay wants to see what is going on between mother and daughter more than talking to Deacon, but finally he heads home.

The next day Scarlett goes to Highway 65 to check in with Rayna. Scarlett shares with Rayna how frustrating her relationship with Gunnar is at the moment. Rayna can relate. It took so many years for Deacon and her to find their way back to each other. Maybe there is hope for Scarlett and Gunnar. After the meeting, Scarlett bumps into Damien. He tells her after he says goodbye to Rayna, he will be traveling to film festivals and shooting a commercial. Scarlett thanks him again for the music video and he says that she should be proud of herself. After their hug, Damein kisses her and walks inside Highway 65. Scarlett is left speechless.

While Gene is filming Daphne’s thoughts on her parents working on the album, Deacon and Rayna are at their spot: the John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge. They are both stunned that it is so hard to write together. Since they have been a couple or even when they were friends, they have always been able to collaborate. They wonder if being married has dulled their creative spirit. When Deacon suggests they work individually on their album for a while, Rayna accuses him of quitting. Deacon admits that their past is painful and it is hard for him to embrace the hurt of it all. Rayna feels that they cannot run away from the pain but they have to face it together. Deacon points out he was always reluctant to do this but he is trying for her. Rayna tells him her fears of falling back into their old patterns and she is afraid of them breaking up. She wants to do with this with him but she does not want to lose him. They are both at loss on how to move forward.

The next morning, Deacon and Rayna are not talking to each other and the girls notice. When Gene sees good material for his video, Rayna is quick to say that he cannot film them right now. Scarlett admits to Gunnar that she had feelings for Damien and he lets her know that he is not surprised. When pressed on how she will act on those feelings, she tells him that she will not pursue them. Besides, Damien is gone anyway. Gunnar has a hard time believing that Scarlett’s feelings are gone and decides to walk away from the conversation.

Maddie goes to check in with Daphne. She asks Daphne if she was uncomfortable with Clay being in the house with them. Daphne wants to know if being in love hurts. Maddie tells her the truth. It does. The way she described love was interesting. Love feels like someone’s skin is sewn on top of yours so when a love is lost, it feels like your skin has ripped apart. It’s graphic yet the imagery is immediate and one can imagine how painful that would be. Rayna and Deacon continue to avoid each other.

The next morning, Rayna makes the first move. Deacon spent the night in the music room. They both admit that this will be a hard process. During their “fight,” they have been both been busy writing. As they work on turning their two songs into one, they laugh, kiss and push each other to create something beautiful. On the way to get some lunch, Gunnar is moody and things get worse when a fan recognizes Scarlett and asks for an autograph, but does not notice that Gunnar is her bandmate. When they sit down at the restaurant, Scarlett is fed up and tells Gunnar to grow up. Yes, she had a tiny little crush but she wants to be with him. Over the years, he has hurt her as well and she was able to dig down deep and forgive him so now it is his turn. Is Gunnar’s pride worth more than his relationship with Scarlett?

As Rayna and Deacon record their song Hurricane, Damien texts Scarlett telling her that he never left town. While those texts are left unanswered, Scarlett is in bed with Gunnar.