Rocky and her husband Nick have just arrived at the Cape Cod cottage they've been renting every summer for twenty years. Within an hour, the toilet overflows, despite a framed warning about the ancient septic system. Rocky stands on the edge of the tub, screaming and laughing, while Nick wrestles with a plunger. A massive air bubble pushes the bowl's contents onto the floor before Nick finally manages to stop the flow and refill the bowl.

Their daughter Willa shouts through the door, asking how bad it is and relaying questions from her brother Jamie about the Wi-Fi password (chowder123). Willa also asks about a missing bag containing the family's swimsuits. Nick admits he likely left it in the hallway at home, despite Rocky having specifically asked if he'd gotten all the bags.

Rocky becomes irritated, attributing her surge of anger partly to menopause, and accuses Nick of never listening. They bicker briefly while standing in the soiled water; Willa, overhearing, tells them to stop having a meta-fight and tells Nick to just apologize. The tension diffuses with humor.

As Rocky tells Willa they have things under control, the shower curtain rod pops off the wall. Rocky loses her balance, falls onto the bathroom floor, bangs her head on the sink, and accidentally hits Nick in the face with the rod. Tangled in the starfish-printed curtain like a shroud, she lies on her back as Nick, unfazed, jokes about her vacation and reaches down to help her up.