We got a better understanding of what it's like to be in April's life while standing outside. She needs to stop lying to herself and prioritize the important bits, and that will mean letting people in on her secret.

We picked up in Chasing Life Season 1 Episode 4 with April at the cancer support meeting that Leo Hendrie was attending. He has a brain tumor and it's his second go around.

It's impossible not to like Leo once he starts talking. He's sarcastic, snarky and yet quite insightful. He can whip out an engaging line with little effort. Considering the bump on his noggin, he's not doing too bad. 

Watch Chasing Life Season 1 Episode 4 Online

Of course, April says "let me explain" a LOT. It could be her mantra. Instead of actually saying anything, she just demands that people let her explain. Except, if you don't follow through with an actual explanation, people start to get annoyed. 

April was not explaining to Leo, and not to George, nor was she explaining to her family. There was a lot of not explaining going on. She could explain why she couldn't make the tango lessons with her mom, she could explain why she was at a cancer support meeting, she could explain why she missed the biopsy with George. 

Except it takes a lot out of April to get down to business.

April finally told Leo why she was at the the cancer support group, only to follow it up with some groveling in an attempt to get tickets to his fathers's campaign kickoff party. When he offers her the exclusive on his cancer story, she's over the moon. But she's missing the big picture.

Leo doesn't like lying. All April has been doing lately is lying. Leo also susses out pretty quickly that April hasn't known she was sick  very long, or doesn't realize how sick she is, because if she did, she would know it's the most important thing about her as his tumor is him.

April hates that idea; that her cancer could form who she is. But as she quickly learns, if she doesn't start making it the most important thing, she may not have a life to live much longer. Until she realizes the enormity of her situation and puts conquering it at the top of her priority list, she's going to suffer, physically and emotionally.

After falling asleep on the train so long it frightens her, April is finally honest with Uncle George. She has had other symptoms. He urges her to take some medication and she prepares for the biopsy. She acts as if once she knows exactly what she has, treatment will be a cinch.

It's not like treatment is easy, nor is it something you schedule on Saturdays, as her idiot boss Raquel suggests. While you have cancer, treatment is your life and you do what you can kick its ass. You don't skip treatment for your mom's tango lesson any more than you do for a work event. It's your top priority.

When it's evident that April is hiding her cancer from Dominic at the party, I thought Leo made the decision to spurn his exclusive on the spot. But he had a new motorcycle for giving the speech about his "caring" father and that happened prior to the event. He was probably just yanking her chain for having the audacity to ask such a thing at a cancer meeting. She needs to learn what it means to have cancer.

Dominic got freaked out at the idea of dealing with someone that sick and that doesn't bode well for her telling him the truth any time soon. She should cut her ties with him if she's not willing to let him into her world, but she's too afraid. Thankfully fear and anger are what drove her to spill the beans to Brenna.

Honestly, Brenna was on my last nerve. She's as clueless about priorities as April. Given how intelligent and well spoken Kieran is, you'd think that Brenna would have an interest in learning. Instead, she's willing to do battle on the tennis court to get out of not just one assignment, but all of her history assignments for the remainder of the year. That's a lot of information she'll be missing. Good luck the next year when your schoolwork references things you didn't study, Brenna.

While Brenna was busy sulking and being generally annoying, April felt like it was up to her to keep the family from falling apart so she tossed out the cancer news as somewhat of an insult. 

It did bring Brenna to the biopsy. Finally April has someone in her corner other than Beth. I hope they're on a more solid road going forward. The idea of going through a bone marrow biopsy alone bothers me almost as much as the thought of having one. It's time for April to step back and let people in. 

Is anyone else also wondering why we've yet to revisit the mysterious sister at Dad's grave? Danny even got a name. You're right, I'm just antsy.

If you need to catch up, watch Chasing Life online! Now that we know more about him, let's get your thoughts on Leo. Also, how would you be dealing with everything else if you were April? Hit the comments!

Leo Hendrie: Thumbs up or down?

Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.