Original subtitles

WOMAN: Previously on "Guidance"...

- We've been together since we were eight.

- People change. - Ozo's got you all confused.

STEVE: The girl in the bloody dress, she came with this guy.

- There's a teacher who has everybody fooled.

- You are a singer-songwriter. Let's give it up.

- Two-faced monster... This isn't teaching.

Who needs to be fired immediately.

I need you to delete the video that I uploaded

to The Alliance site. - And dink.

[phones dinging]

[dramatic music]

[slow music]

♪ ♪

- [clears throat]

[door clicks]

- Morning.

- Good morning, Capitol High.

This is your Capitol Catch-Up.

Tickets for the upcoming homecoming dance

are going fast, so don't be...

- Gotta give it to Hilary.

Girl's got balls of steel. - Tickets are only $75

for a couple

or $50 individually,

so save some money and go with a friend.

There's no shame in that.

In other homecoming news,

the homecoming dance committee,

run by me, is looking for a band

to replace our beloved Go To L

due to a recent... - What's the big deal?

Popular people being treated better is not news.

- If you think Ridley's that shallow,

then maybe it's a good thing that we're not together anymore.

HILARY: Auditions on Wednesday. - [scoffs]

HILARY: If you've been practicing in your garage,

this is your chance at rock stardom.

Maybe you've got what it takes.

[no audible dialogue]

And lastly,

happy Monday.

I am always amazed

by the countless friendly faces

I see here at Capitol High.

I consider all of you my closest friends.

This is Hilary Lehane signing off.

Until tomorrow.

- [sighs]

Hilary!

WOMAN: ♪ My own world ♪

♪ Living inside myself ♪

♪ Myself ♪

♪ Living for no one else ♪

♪ And I see your face ♪

♪ I don't wanna face it ♪

♪ No more ♪

♪ So I look away ♪

♪ I don't wanna face it ♪

♪ No more ♪

♪ What I'm thinking ♪

♪ What I'm saying ♪

♪ I don't ever know ♪

♪ Oh, oh ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ So come in ♪

[school bell ringing]

[indistinct chatter]

[somber music]

♪ ♪

- We all knew you thought you were better than us,

but now we have proof in your own words.

- Please, just let me get to class.

- It says an awful lot about a person's character

that they do anything

to get a good grade,

including taking down a great teacher.

The admissions team at Harvard probably cares a lot

about things like character, don't you think?

- You wouldn't. - Mr. Ridley isn't the one

that needs to be fired.

You are.

And by the time I'm done,

Harvard won't want you.

ALANA: Hey, what's going on?

- Hilary seems upset.

Maybe you should ask her why.

- Okay, everybody, show's over.

Get to first period.

- Smiley got all of that, you know.

- Things are getting heated in the hallways.

Sizzle sisters.

BRIANNA: Mr. Ridley isn't the one that needs to be fired.

You are. And by the time I'm done,

Harvard won't want you.

- Lesson of the day, do not, I repeat,

do not announce to the world that cheerleaders

are stupid.

- Good. I'm glad.

It's like you say, I'm the First Lady

of Capitol High.

People wanna know what I think, and what I think

is Hilary's a bitch.

- Bri, I can't protect you if you won't protect yourself.

- I'm trying to protect a good teacher

from getting fired.

- I think Mr. Ridley's the best, but--

- Then you should have spoken up to defend him.

- [sighs]

Like my dad says,

listen, you can't respond to every crackpot

with an opinion, especially on social media.

- Well, I stand up for people I care about,

which is what you should be doing for me

instead of calling me out

in front of everyone.

If you're not gonna take care of this, I will.

♪ ♪

- Sounds like Hilary had plenty of enemies

and plenty of reasons to be angry.

I'd like to talk with her.

With her parents' permission, of course.

Which one is she?

- She's not here.

Don't your guys have more students outside?

- All those kids have already been released.

ALANA: Call Hilary on her cell.

- Everything okay?

- Call her.

[phone line trilling]

HILARY: Hey there, it's Hilary Lehane.

You just missed... - Voicemail.

- Okay, I need to go find her.

Keep calling her cell until she answers

and stay together.

Don't say anything to anyone

about anybody,

you got it?

♪ ♪

Yeah, she's here with me.

Okay.

So before Principal Decost comes in here,

why don't you tell me what happened?

- You haven't seen it yet?

- Seen what?

- The video that was posted.

- No. I, uh...

I had a funeral.

- Oh, right, your dad.

I'm sorry.

- Well, you should be sorry. You've turned this school

upside down.

I've got an inbox full of email from alumni

asking me what the hell is going on here.

- What exactly is going on?

- Well, our A-student here

had some choice words to share

about Mr. Ridley.

- I never said his name.

- I should watch the video. - No, no, no, no.

Later, later. You've been through enough

this weekend. We both have.

You, on the other hand-- - I didn't--

- No, I don't wanna hear your excuses.

That video gets taken down

from The Alliance site immediately.

- Smiley is the only one that can take videos down.

- I'll deal with Smiley.

- All right. Fine.

Well, congratulations. You got what you wanted.

You're out of Mr. Ridley's class effective immediately.

Ms. Maynor will process your drop paperwork,

and under no circumstances

are you to step anywhere near that class today.

- Thank you?

- Oh, no, no, no, no, no.

You're not off the hook.

You got two weeks detention.

- Brianna threatened me.

She's the one that should have detention.

- [sighs] Are you telling me

you dragged the cheerleaders into this too?

- I didn't do anything. I told Smiley

to delete that video and he posted it anyway.

- If you hadn't made the video,

there would've been nothing to post!

- Yeah, well, now Harvard can look up my name

and see my rant online

if Brianna hasn't already sent it to them.

- Well, then, Hilary, you should have gone

through the proper channels to file your complaint.

- I did.

Ms. Maynor said it wasn't important enough.

- I didn't understand the severity.

- How dare you.

How dare you turn this around on Ms. Maynor.

She buried her father this weekend.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- I'm sorry.

- Just take the lesson, Hilary.

Start thinking before you speak.

- I didn't-- - Just get to class.

♪ ♪

[sighs]

- We need to get ahead of this, John.

If she made an accusation in that video,

then we need to start an investigation.

- [scoffs] - It's protocol.

- What--investigate what?

The rantings of a spoiled brat?

- We need to be proactive

or it could come back to bite you personally.

And after everything that you've done for Capitol High

over the past ten years,

we need to protect this school and you.

- [sighs]

All right. Okay.

But we do this in-house.

No need to panic the district.

You can't un-ring a bell.

- That's censorship. - As the editor of the site,

it's your responsibility to moderate the material.

- No, it's my responsibility to expose the truth.

- Not if it does more harm than good.

You still need to learn that scandal

isn't necessarily journalism.

Sometimes it's just bullying.

- Did you know that

when I was in the sixth grade

some of these kids used to beat me up?

Call me "fag,"

you know, real original shit.

- Weren't you the one that said

everyone's over it?

They got used to it? - Because I made them.

I filmed the kids that beat me up

and they got suspended.

I didn't wait around

for it to get better.

I fought back.

You know who beats you up when they think

they're being recorded?

Nobody.

Okay? This is more than a phone.

It's a weapon.

- In the past,

maybe you needed that protection.

But now you've turned that weapon

against people who've done nothing to you.

- Great reporters make enemies.

- Is Hilary your enemy?

Or Brianna?

All of this turmoil could've been avoided

had you taken down the video like Hilary asked.

You are the reason that people are hurting

and being hurt.

Think about that.

- I'm not apologizing for what I do.

And I'm not taking the video down.

Okay, we have a right to tell our stories

the way we wanna tell them.

And we don't need permission to do that.

[woman speaking indistinctly]

HILARY: Why do you even care?

You're not even in his class.

- Do you even realize what happens

if Mr. Ridley gets fired?

- Do you realize what happens if I don't get into Harvard?

- You'll get in somewhere else.

- I don't wanna get in somewhere else.

- You don't get it. Guitar Club is the best thing

that has happened to this school and to me.

You're trying to take that away.

- And Mr. Ridley is trying to take

Harvard away from me.

That's what happens if I get a B.

- You have got a mother around.

You have scholarships.

- And an entire school

that has been turned against me.

- The only thing I have is Mr. Ridley.

No girlfriend, no band,

no family to cheer me on.

To him, I'm not just a grade.

I'm a talented songwriter.

- Songs aren't grades.

Grades actually get you somewhere in life.

Where's your songwriting gonna take you?

At a bus stop begging for change?

[grunting]

[groans]

- Look what you made me do.

- You okay?

- Did you get that on camera?

♪ ♪

- You know, Hilary, you're just not pretty enough

to be that mean and get away with it,

but I am.

[phone dings]

HILARY: All right, Smiley. You want the truth

about what's happening at CHS?

Then here it is.

There's a teacher-- I won't say his name--

who has everybody fooled.

I'm the only one that can see

that he's a manipulative, two-faced monster

who needs constant adoration to feel alive.

And if you don't give that to him,

you better watch out

because he will take you down.

- I didn't have anywhere else to go.

I just...

I'm sick of it.

I just don't wanna be attacked anymore.

- Did somebody get physical with you?

Who was it?

- I can't tell you. It'll only make it worse.

I just shouldn't have opened my stupid mouth.

I wish I could take it all back.

- Well, there is no taking it back

unless you formally recant.

- Okay then. I recant.

I lied. - Well, you have to mean it.

- If this will all go away,

I mean it.

- Then let's write your statement.

Hilary, your video has started an investigation.

- Well, that's good then, right?

That means that Principal Decost is taking this seriously.

- Of course.

Accusations have real consequences.

- Okay, so he needs to be looking at the transcripts

of all the popular kids.

He needs to compare their AP Psych grades

to the other classes.

Then we'll see who's actually crazy.

- Okay. I'll look into it.

- Wait.

Are you heading up the investigations?

- Is that a problem?

- [scoffs]

You've already chosen a side.

- Of course I haven't.

- I saw you and Mr. Ridley last week.

I know you're together.

- We're not...

We're adults.

And nothing happened.

And it's absolutely none of your business.

- Wow.

He's really something.

First he has all the students protecting him,

then Principal Decost, and now you?

Who's protecting me?

[phone dings]

My mom's here.

- Let me walk you out and make sure you're safe.

- It's too late for that.

JOHN: Well, what's done is done.

- Sounds like everything's being handled.

- Yeah, but since Hilary's not taking back what she said,

we have to open up an investigation.

- What, into me?

- It's standard procedure

when an accusation is made against a teacher.

- Yeah, this is all gonna blow over soon.

It's just for your protection.

- John, as you know, I'm an open book.

All right, I'll fully cooperate.

- And I'm concerned about the retaliation

against Hilary.

- You know, if you open up the floodgates,

you got to expect to get wet.

- Well, this is more than criticism.

Hilary was in my office earlier

and said somebody got physical with her,

but she wouldn't say who.

- Okay, we got to nip this in the bud.

- Look, I'll talk to my students about it,

make sure they know that harassment is unacceptable.

- I think that could really help de-escalate the situation.

- Okay, and I'm sure you'll keep this investigation

as brief and as painless as it can be for Kev, yeah?

- What, you're heading this up?

- I'll need to see the progress reports

from this semester.

- Wow.

- Okay, look, let's just get this

cleaned up fast, all right?

I don't want this tarnishing homecoming.

- Thank God you're here.

Hilary, are you hurt?

- This is all my fault.

Everything.

This is because of me.

[eerie music]

♪ ♪

- Let's address the elephant in the room.

- That elephant is so not in this room.

- Hey, stop right there.

Okay, I'm not gonna stand here and let you bash Hilary.

- Why not?

She did a pretty good job at bashing you.

- I watched her video.

I saw a lot of your responses online.

Brianna, this is getting out of control.

Look, I appreciate

you guys are protective of me.

But I am a grown man.

All right, and I can take care of myself.

It's my job to take care of you.

All of my students.

Even ones that make it difficult for me.

- Are you actually defending what Hilary did?

- No. No.

They're false accusations, and it's irresponsible.

- But you'll handle it.

- Yes. Yes, exactly.

It is not your job to be judge and jury.

And it's definitely not your job to punish Hilary.

That's unfair.

- She didn't fight fair when she started this.

- Have you ever been so angry that you said something

you wish you could take back?

- But she can't take those things back.

- Yes, again, my point.

All right, your words,

your posts,

these things last forever.

All right? And you have to think

before you lash out.

It's like my dad always says.

We've got to kill them with kindness.

[mellow music]

♪ ♪

If you guys wanna win...

♪ ♪

You're gonna have to rise above your gut responses.

You have to think with your brain

and you have to choose

to turn the other cheek.

♪ ♪

- But why wouldn't you defend yourself?

- Nobody can argue with silence.

A one-sided fight,

that's not a fight.

Those are just words.

♪ ♪

MAN: I'm as patient and persistent

as you all are stubborn.

Look, if I don't have the story straight,

I can't help anyone.

If people are keeping secrets for each other,

you better believe the truth is gonna come out.

And when it does, your friends won't be your friends anymore.

♪ ♪

I haven't been on the force that long,

but let me tell you, I've already seen moms

rolling their own kids.

- But that's not us.

- Why not?

- Because they haven't been through what we've been through.

♪ ♪

KEVIN: That's what I wanna ask you guys right now.

Who are you?

What are you made of?

Are you ordinary?

Will you be manipulated

by someone's fears and angers?

Or will you...

be extraordinary?

You kill them with kindness.

- Oh, my God, Hilary.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- These are the same kids that kicked her around

and now it's a love fest?

What am I missing?

♪ ♪

ALANA: The same thing I was missing.

♪ ♪

That Hilary was right.

♪ ♪