08x19 - Look Closely and You Might Hear the Truth

[bunniefuu]

You've been helping me do my
job better since you got here.

- I couldn't help it.
- No need to help it.

- [FARTING]
- The fart doctor now. Punchline.

What happened today was a
result of a medical ailment, okay?

Like anyone's gonna care about that.

Jack wants to convert
Med into a for-profit hospital.

He wants to put it to a board vote.

If Jack succeeds, there
goes Med as we know it.

I'm officially in
end-stage renal disease.

Sean would be your
best-possible donor match.

That's not an option.

Your dad, his health is getting worse.

He can't know that you
learned this from me.

[RHYTHMIC KNOCKING]

[CHUCKLES] Hey.

[SENTIMENTAL MUSIC]

♪

- Hey!
- Hey.

- What are you doing here?
- I was in the neighborhood.

- Yeah?
- Thought I'd swing by.

All right. Come in. You hungry?

Got some oatmeal.

Oh, no, I'm good. Thanks.

Got your scrubs on.

Going to work?

It's Wednesday.

What's going on?

Why are you really here?

Can I have a word with you, please?

Yeah, you look like a man on a mission.

- What's going on?
- Sean stopped by this morning.

- Mm -hmm.
- To offer me one of his kidneys.

Whoa, that's... that's an
incredibly generous gift.

Yeah, he just decided to do it
out of the blue, for some reason.

I just felt like Sean needed to
know how bad you're actually doing.

Why, because he's a blood relative,

and so he might have a sh*t
at being a match for me?

You put him up to this.

Offering you a kidney
was all Sean's idea.

He has not thought this through, Hannah!

He has thought through
what it'll be like

- to lose his father. I promise you that.
- He doesn't know what it means

to give up a kidney, and I'm
not gonna let him find out, either!

- Dr. Archer?
- What?

I'm sorry, uh, you have a
patient waiting in trauma .

Be right there.

You went to Sean, against my wishes.

I wanted to help you.

You wanna help me?

How about stay out of my life?

[BREATHING HEAVILY]
I've been really tired

these past few days,

and I can tell something's wrong.

Two years ago, I was
diagnosed with myelodysplastic

neoplasm, unclassifiable.

That's a stem cell
disease, if I'm not mistaken.

Incredibly rare.

And always with the thr*at of turning

into leukemia, unfortunately.

Kira, show Dr. Archer the folder.

Sorry, I must have left it in the car.

Kira, I reminded you three times.

That's all right, Kimberly.

I've got plenty to work
off of here in your chart.

It says here you've been on
steroids since your diagnosis.

That's all I can do
to fight the disease.

For now.

Unless a stem cell donor
comes to the rescue.

But I haven't had much luck with that.

I'm a hard match.

- Kira?
- [SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]

- Kir... Kira!
- Whoa, whoa, whoa!

Let me get her in another room.

[PANTING]

It's official.

My new house opened escrow.

I feel jittery.

Well, I mean, I'd be
worried if you didn't.

It's a big deal.

And cause for celebration.
I'm taking you out tonight.

Any restaurant you want, any restaurant.

My apartment.

- Oh.
- I'm making golumpki.

Don't ask. You will love it.

Oh, and my brother's coming, too...

Pavo.

I was wanting you to meet him.

- Pavo?
- Mm-hmm.

Golumpki? I'm in.

- Okay.
- : ?

- : .
- Okay.

You help me cook.

- See you there.
- Good.

Dr. Charles, do you have a minute?

Yes.

My patient in treatment is deaf.

He was clipped by a motorcycle
speeding through a crosswalk.

Banged up a shoulder... nothing too bad.

- Okay.
- His sister is here with him,

and she asked if they could see
a psychiatrist as soon as possible.

I asked for a certified ASL interpreter,

but they're out today with COVID,

so she's been helping out on that front.

Okay.

- Thank you.
- Thank you.

- [KNOCKING]
- Good morning, I'm Dr. Charles.

Hi, uh, I'm Sandy.

And this is my brother, Aiden.

Nice to, uh, nice to meet you both.

What's... what's going
on? How can I help?

[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]

That.

That's what's going on.

Aiden's hearing voices.

♪

So Aiden, can you, uh...

can Aiden read lips?

He's okay. Not great.

It's usually best if I
just interpret through ASL.

- Got it.
- Aiden.

Hey, Aiden, pay
attention to Dr. Charles.

He's here to help you.

So Aiden, have you... have
you been deaf since birth?

No, I...

when I was a young kid, I
got sick, and I became deaf.

He had meningitis as a nine-year-old.

Got it.

And so these voices that
you've been hearing...

I mean, what are they like?

What kinds of things
are they saying to you?

Yeah, the voices that I hear...

they're gentle and kind.

They ask a lot of questions.

They tell me things.

Like today, they told
me to go outside...

Head to Navy Pier...

[VOCALIZING]

And enjoy the sunny day.

And that's where the accident happened.

I was crossing the street,

and I didn't see a motorbike coming.

I can certainly
understand how this would be

a very intriguing, even
exciting development for you.

Yes. Yes.

I can hear again.

So you know what, Aiden? I'd like
to order some tests to just determine

if maybe there have been
any neurological changes

that you've undergone recently.

You think these are real
voices Aiden's hearing?

Asking him questions, telling
him to go to Navy Pier?

I think it's important for Aiden

that we rule out any
physiological developments

before we do anything else.

Fine. Let's run the test.

I'm just gonna need his permission.

- Yep. You got him.
- Okay. Great.

Hi, Kira. I'm Dr. Asher.

How are you feeling?

Better. I'm not sure what happened.

Well, you fainted.

Your blood work showed
that you were dehydrated.

And it also revealed
that you're pregnant.

[APPREHENSIVE MUSIC]

Did you already know this, Kira?

Are you gonna tell my mom?

No, not if you don't want me to.

Please don't.

She won't understand.

Okay.

Hey, you think maybe
I can do an ultrasound?

So you and I can check
out the fetus together?

Yeah? Okay, great.

I'm just gonna pull this up, okay?

I haven't done this part yet.

Kind of nervous.

Do not worry.
It will not hurt at all, I promise.

Just might be a little
cold in the beginning.

Okay, here we go.

[ULTRASOUND HUMMING] All right.

That is the heartbeat.

From its size, it looks
to be about weeks.

What's wrong?

Usually, the fetus and the placenta

are attached to the
inside of the uterus,

but that's not what I'm seeing.

What are you seeing?

I am not exactly sure,

so we are going to send you for an MRI

to get a more precise look.

This seems really bad.

No, no, no. Let's not get
ahead of ourselves, all right?

And I will be right here with you.

So Kira is awake,
stable, and another doctor

is checking on her as we speak.

It's dr*gs, isn't it?

She's been so out of it
recently, so secretive.

We'll know more about Kira soon.

I do have your results, however.

You have a low -grade fever.

Your white blood count is low,

which means your immune system is weak.

Here on your chest X-ray,

all right, you have
these small infiltrates

in your lungs, which is a sign
that you could have pneumonia.

So I'm gonna start you on
antibiotics, just in case.

Okay, but I need to know
what's going on with Kira.

You have to tell me something.

Please?

Okay, just sit tight.

I'll see what I can do.

- What's the status with Kira Ray?
- Still working her up.

Yeah, well, her mother
would like to be looped in.

Well, when I have something to report,

if Kira gives the okay, I'll share it.

Oh, so now, you're concerned
about confidentiality, huh?

You do realize that Kira
is a minor and Kimberly

has the legal right to know
her daughter's health status?

I'm well aware of the
issues surrounding my patient,

whom you are not treating.

Okay, everyone. Gravity rounds.

We'll start from the top
and work our way down, okay?

Oh, and let's not forget to
welcome back Dr. Tanaka-Reid.

[APPLAUSE]

Glad to have you back on your feet.

- Thank you, Thank you.
- All right.

Let's get it.

[FART NOISE]

[LAUGHTER]

All right, hey.

Everyone get that out of your systems?

Oops. Yeah.

[LAUGHS]

All right, let's go. Come on.

Too bad you didn't
go into anesthesia, pal.

'Cause you really know how to pass gas.

I'm just saying, it's not as cut
and dry as you make it sound.

Well, we're a hospital.
We're entrusted with saving lives.

I don't see how turning a
profit even comes into it.

Advanced technology costs money, Will.

For-profit hospitals are able
to provide better services,

state-of-the-art diagnostics...

While gouging the
average Joe, who just needs

a chest X-ray and some antibiotics.

I'm not saying it's a panacea, Will.

I'm just saying money is
not the root of all evil.

It's like I'm dating Gordon Gekko.

Why do I get the feeling like
I'm sleeping with the enemy?

I've got surgery to get to.
See you in a bit.

What about Abe and Ginny?

Well, they're both backing Jack.

To turn Med into a for-profit hospital?

That's surprising.

Well, Jack can be pretty persuasive.

And he's selling it as the only way

to keep Med on the cutting
edge of medical advancement.

Like OR . .

We've got votes for and against.

Now, Jack needs a / majority

to abandon our non-profit status, so...

It seems I'm the deciding vote.

We're hoping we can
count on you, Vernon.

Yeah.

I've been proud to sit on this
hospital's board for years.

As far as I'm concerned,
if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Well, maybe if it's badly sprained.

Thank you, Vernon. This is a big relief.

Yeah, as long as we won't have
any last-minute defections,

I think we can breathe... easy.

Are you okay?

Yeah, yeah, just a headache
I can't seem to shake.

You look pretty wobbly there, brother.

A couple of aspirin, I'll be fine.

Oh! Vernon?

[GROANS]

I don't know why I got
so dizzy all of a sudden.

[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]

♪

So Aiden's scans came back, all right?

No sign of a stroke, nothing on the MRI,

labs came back clean,

all of which suggests...

- He still can't hear anything.
- Correct.

And so at this point,
I have a strong hunch

that what we're probably looking at

is an early presentation
of schizophrenia

- or schizoaffective disorder.
- What do we do?

There's gotta be some sort of medication

he can take to make the voices go away.

There are a lot of options.
It's a treatable disease, okay?

First thing we need to do, though,
is just to bring Aiden up to speed.

Aiden is wondering why it's a bad thing

for him to hear voices.

Look, you're hearing things
for the first time in years,

and it's wonderful, right?

These voices, they're
kind, they're gentle.

Problem is, that's very
likely gonna change.

Chances are good that these voices

could become unpleasant.

They might even ask you to do something

that could put you in harm's way.

Aiden's wondering if
medication is the best treatment.

Medication is an excellent treatment.

Okay, I've had countless patients

who have been helped
tremendously by medication.

Will the voices go away completely?

You know, there's no ironclad guarantee.

At the very least, they
will be tamped down,

if not suppressed altogether.

Then yeah, I want to do that.

Can we start now?

Absolutely. Yeah.

We can absolutely start now.

Okay.

- Well, great.
- Thank you.

Wonderful.

Well done. It's a big step.

A nurse will be in
shortly, and I'll be back

to check up on you
later in the day, okay?

So you said you've been
experiencing headaches recently?

Uh, off and on for about ten days.

Okay, well, Vernon,
I'm inclined to send you

for a head CT, just to be safe,

but in the meantime,
here, follow my finger.

Morning, Tess.

Oh, wow.

Who are you looking to impress?

Impress? [CHUCKLES]

I had to get my
driver's license renewed.

You know I have to live with that thing
for, like, five years.

True. You look fabulous.

Thank you. Better go get changed.

All righty.

[MACHINE BEEPING]

Seizing!

milligrams of Ativan, IM, stat.

It's okay!

Everything's gonna be all right, Vernon!

Hold on!

I don't understand.

He was fine this morning,
and now you're telling me

he has some kind of brain tumor?

A noncancerous tumor.

"Acoustic neuroma"
is the technical term.

It's most likely been growing slowly

over the past few months,

compressing your husband's brain stem

and impacting his hearing and balance.

So how do we fix it.?

I go in and take it out.

But it is open-brain surgery, right?

What are the potential risks?

Well, because of the tumor's location,
it might be tricky to resect.

There's an elevated risk
of asymmetric paralysis.

His face?

Phyllis, Dr. Abrams is the
best neurosurgeon in the city.

That's true.

[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]

Are there any other options?

- Any updates?
- Not yet.

And I guess with this development,

the vote's gonna need
to be canceled now.

[SIGHS] Jack's looking
to push the agenda as is.

- You're kidding.
- No.

He's eager to come to a quick resolution

so that everyone can
have an extended break

while Vernon recuperates.

Yeah, and he can
secure his / majority.

Well, Jack didn't make his fortune

by not taking advantage
of opportunities.

She's electing to forgo surgery

and move forward with a
noninvasive radio treatment.

Abrams is hopeful that will
shrink the tumor over time.

- When can he be extubated?
- I don't know.

Even intubated, we're still having
trouble controlling his seizures.

[SIGHS] Well, I'll
go whip the vote again.

See if I can flip someone.

They're still gonna have the vote today?

Don't even concern yourself
with that, Dr. Halstead.

Just see that Vernon gets
the best care possible.

[ALARM BEEPING]

What do we got?

-year-old Brendan
Metz, took multiple GSWs

stopping a bank robbery.

Hole in right thigh, actively
bleeding when we got him.

Pressure stable.

Lost about mils of blood
before we got the tourniquet on him.

Pushed mikes of
fentanyl on the way over.

Okay, hey, Brendan,
you're at Chicago Med.

We're gonna take good care of you, okay?

Hang in there for me, bud.

Nice and easy, on my count, okay?

One, two, three.

[GRUNTS, GROANS]

Thank you, Matt, Juliette.

So Brendan, seems you're
some kind of hero, huh?

I feel more like a fool at the moment.

Well, the world could use
a lot more fools like you.

- What are we looking at?
- Hole number one, right anterior axillary line

at the umbilicus.

Number two, midaxillary line
at the flank at the same level.

Okay, do they connect?

Uh, yeah, I think so.

Let me swab.

♪

Definitely connecting our superficial.

How about the leg? Thank you.

Um, two holes here as well.

Number three, mid-medial
thigh, four, lateral mid-thigh.

No pulses with a tourniquet up,
so let's go ahead and loosen that,

see what we're working with.

Type and cross him for and
, and push one of each for now.

[GROANS]

Definitely arterial.

It's a hard sign. Go ahead
and retighten the tourniquet,

and get me X-rays of the leg and torso.

Come here.

What was that?

Rookie mistake, putting yourself
in the line of fire like that.

I guess I'm just a little off my game.

All right. Go get
changed and cleaned up.

Kira, have you ever heard of
the term "ectopic pregnancy"?

It's when a fertilized egg implants

in the outside of the uterus.

Is that what's happening to me?

Mm -hmm.

Your MRI revealed that
you have a rare type

of an ectopic pregnancy.

It's called an abdominal pregnancy.

The fetus has attached to the vena cava,

which is a huge vein
that leads to your heart.

But the baby's okay, right?

I mean, we saw its heartbeat.

Yeah, at the moment, it is.

But if the placenta damages
the vena cava for any reason,

that could cause severe
internal bleeding,

which would, in turn,
put your life in jeopardy.

So what are you saying?

For your safety,

you need to have surgery
to remove the fetus.

Will the baby survive?

At only weeks, no.

I'm so sorry.

[SOBBING] No. No, you don't understand.

My mom needs this baby.

What do you mean?

My mom has a rare stem cell disease.

It's why we came in today.

She needs a donor, but the
doctors couldn't find one,

and I'm not a match for her, so...

so I got pregnant.

Okay, in hopes that this baby would be

a stem cell match for your mom?

Yeah.

Okay, Kira, this is a human
being that we're talking about.

I know, but I'm gonna raise the baby,

- and I'm gonna be a good mom.
- You're so young, Kira.

Being a mom right now,

your life would never be the same.

I can do this, and I want to!

And you know, I always
planned on having kids,

so why not start now?

Because it's just too
dangerous right now, Kira.

But what if we waited a
little bit and let the baby

grow a little more before the surgery?

I mean, would it survive then?

♪

Hey, you're free, right?

- Yeah.
- I'd love your eyes on this acoustic neuroma.

- Hmm.
- You think your mapping tech could help,

you know, someone like
Abrams confidently resect that?

Abrams wants a second opinion from . ?

That's hard to believe.

I'm just doing some
extra legwork for a patient

I'm concerned about.

Well, let's upload the CT
and MRI and see what they say.

- [YELLING]
- Whoa, whoa, whoa!

- [ALARM BEEPING]
- I know, I know! It's okay!

Aiden! Stop, please, look at me!

Aiden, Aiden, Aiden!

- What happened?
- I don't know!

[YELLING]

It's okay, buddy!

What's he saying? What's he saying?

- I don't know!
- Take it easy, buddy.

- Wait!
- Soft restraints, please!

[YELLING]

- Calm down!
- of Haldol.

Calm down, Aiden!

♪

Uh, care to explain your plans

for this abdominal pregnancy?

Of course you checked Kira's chart.

She needs surgery immediately.

Move her upstairs.

- I'm holding off for now.
- Why?

Kira wants to delay the surgery

until the baby is viable.

She hopes that it could be
a stem cell match for her mother.

Oh, you're joking. You're joking.

- It's the reason Kira got pregnant.
- That is absurd!

And morally repugnant.
She might as well be organ harvesting.

She's operating from a
place of care and concern,

not just about her
mother, but for the baby,

and she seems pretty
clear-headed about it.

That cannot possibly
be what her mother wants.

If you can't convince
Kira to change her mind,

then Kimberly will.

Kira doesn't want her mother
knowing anything about this.

And she has medical emancipation

because she's pregnant,

so she can do anything she wants.

So good news, Brendan.

The b*llet you took in your side
passed through your love handle.

It's superficial, and
there's nothing more to do.

It'll heal on its own.

Your leg, however...

it's gonna need surgery
emergently, okay?

We're gonna have to fix the artery,

- or you will lose your leg.
- The OR is ready right now.

We just need you to
sign the consent forms,

and we'll bring you up, okay?

You're in good hands, all right?

Is my leg gonna be all right?

Excuse me?

Well, I prom... [GROANS]

I promised my kid

I'd coach his soccer team next season.

I'll be able to do that, won't I?

We can for sure fix the artery.

But the nerve runs right next to it.

We won't know if you'll have full motor

and sensory function until after...

Walk in the park for us, Brendan.

Don't you fret a lick now, okay?

Okay.

[APPREHENSIVE MUSIC]

♪

What was that?

I was just answering his question.

No, you were raising a patient's

stress level unnecessarily.

He needed to be informed.
Things happen in surgery.

Why would anything go wrong?

For any number of reasons. I don't know.

Is this about the teasing?

Is what about the teasing?

All right, look.

You've been lording over
Liam and the other residents

for almost a year now.

You had to assume they'd
try to knock you down a peg

if they found a vulnerability, and well,

you gift-wrapped them a doozy.

Whatever. It happened.

Proves you're human.

Laugh it off, and don't
let them get to you.

I'm not letting them get to me.

[SIGHS]

Maybe it's best if I sit this one out.

I'm sorry.

I don't have the manpower to spare.

Sorry to interrupt.

Not sure if you heard, but Vernon's
wife okayed the craniectomy.

She's moving forward with the surgery?

Dr. Abrams and Song are
prepping OR . as we speak.

What got Phyllis to change her mind?

Once Dr. Song confirmed .
could reduce much of the risk,

I guess she felt the assurance
she needed to go ahead.

Wow.

When can we expect Vernon to
come out from under anesthesia?

From what I understand,
about three or four hours.

Ha!

Perhaps I can delay the vote.

At least until Vernon wakes up.

Good job, Dr. Halstead. [CHUCKLES]

Hey, Mags, if I recall correctly,

you know ASL, right?

That means yes.

Okay. What does this mean?

Something like, "You take voices away."

Huh.

You know, I'm treating a deaf patient,

and his sister's been
interpreting for us.

I'm starting to wonder if...

I don't know... we're
getting our signals crossed

or something like that.

You want me to spy for you?

Too strong a word.

How are we doing?

You think it might be time
to get these restraints off?

See if we can maybe figure
out what happened earlier.

- Aiden's calmed down a lot.
- Great.

Uh, Aiden's upset because
the voices told him the nurses

were gonna make his shoulder pain worse.

Um, Aiden, I'm sorry.

Risperidone is typically one of
the faster-acting medications,

but sometimes takes a little longer.

So how about... how about
we check back in a bit,

and maybe we can have a chat then?

Okay?

[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]

♪

He didn't say anything
about a nurse, did he?

He's upset because
he can't hear the voices

in his head anymore.

And he suspects it's because
of the pills that he's been given.

Yeah, the antipsychotics,

which I dispensed with his permission.

Or so I was told.

He thought it was painkillers,

not antipsychotics.

Huh.

- [ALARM BLARING]
- [CRYING, SCREAMING]

Her BP is dropping, and
her hemoglobin's down to .

- Kira?
- It hurts! It hurts!

Free fluid in the belly, likely blood.

Kira, we can't hold off
on the surgery any longer.

Call the OR, tell them to open it stat.

- We're bringing Kira up right away.
- No! Please, no!

♪

I need to talk to you about Kira.

- I need you for a second.
- Please, no! [SOBBING]

If at any point during the surgery

you have to make the call
between Kira and the fetus,

please, please, save my little girl.

We have every intention
of doing just that.

We'll have someone keep
you in the loop, Kimberly.

I thought you should
hear that for yourself.

I cannot believe you told her.
What about HIPAA?

Her daughter is heading
into emergency surgery.

If there's a crisis and a
decision needs to be made,

it's Kimberly who'll do it.

[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]

♪

Just came from the pharmacy.

They wouldn't fill Aiden's
prescription for Risperidone?

Well, I canceled it,
Sandy, because it turns out

it was prescribed without
the permission of the patient.

We should probably have a talk.

She knows ASL?

She does.

♪

What's he saying?

He's saying that he knows
that she's been lying to him.

Take the medication.
I was trying to help you.

But the voices...

they aren't real.

Aiden says that he doesn't
care that the voices are not real.

Sandy, the only way that
we're gonna forge a path forward...

I'm not sure there
is a path forward here.

Aiden only cares about
hearing the voices in his head.

And I won't stand by and watch

if you won't do anything about it.

Okay, great.

Looks like we have enough length
to sew the two ends directly together.

- Prolene stitch.

- I'm sorry, Dr. Marcel?
- What is it?

I was told to inform you that there is

an emergent situation in the OR .

that requires your immediate attention.

They're aware I'm in
the middle of surgery?

They are aware, yes.

Oh, come on. All right, everyone.

Dr. Tanaka-Reid will continue
on with the anastomosis

until I return. Follow his lead.

We can wait until you get back.

No, I don't wanna
prolong his ischemic timing

any more than necessary.

Get the anastomosis done.

I'll be back as soon as I can.

♪

That's great. Thank you, Trish.

Go ahead and pull up the
feed in there so I can watch.

Sure.

All right.

- Here goes.
- Awesome. Thank you.

Trust me, I get how
frustrating it can be

to try and help somebody
who doesn't want it.

He has no idea what he's doing.

You know, I'm not sure any of us

can really understand what
he's going through right now.

You must think I'm a horrible person.

Do not.

Not at all.

I understand how difficult
it can be for family members

to get this kind of news.

And I completely get the impulse to just

wanna fix it immediately.

You know, I had my own issues
with mental illness before.

I know it's not schizophrenia,
but I suffered with depression.

Really?

It was especially bad
after our parents d*ed.

Car accident.

Aiden was still in
high school at the time.

Oh, man.

I can't even imagine.

Aiden got by somehow.

Maybe it was because
he had already suffered

his own personal tragedy,
losing his hearing,

but he was more resilient.

[SENTIMENTAL MUSIC]

I was such a mess.

My meds saved my life.

I don't know what I would
do without them, honestly.

And I can't stomach the
idea of watching Aiden

go through anything like what I did.

[CRYING]

I get it. I do.

Have you ever told Aiden
about any of this stuff?

The last thing I'd ever wanna do
is burden Aiden with my problems.

He doesn't need that.

I think you might be surprised
by what he's capable of handling.

You know, people who learn
to manage this disease,

I mean, they live
full, productive lives.

I mean, they can, really.

You know, listen, outcomes
improve significantly

when loving family
members stay involved.

So you know, he's
gonna be relying on you,

especially at first.

But with a little luck,
sooner rather than later,

he's probably gonna be
able to return that favor.

And, um, how wonderful would that be?

♪

Vernon should be out
of surgery any minute now.

Strange how Phyllis changed her mind.

Happens pretty frequently, actually.

A big decision like that,

sometimes people need a
little time to process.

[TENSE MUSIC]

♪

So how'd it go?

Fairly certain we got
a complete resection.

No problem with the margins,
as far as I can tell.

Electrophysiology looked perfect.

But you don't know for sure yet, right?

So how long exactly until he wakes up?

I'm a brain surgeon, Jack.

Not a soothsayer.

- Is it gonna be today?
- What can I say, Jack?

When he's ready to be
extubated, he will be.

♪

Jack seems awfully interested
in Vernon's recovery time.

Pretty sure it's about
the board meeting later.

He's probably sweating
now that Vernon might

be able to vote against him.

Vernon's the deciding vote?

That's what I hear.

Were you aware of that when
you urged me to get involved?

I heard rumors of you
acting like a cowboy.

That's not what happened today.

I came here out of
concern for the patient.

Who are you trying to
convince with that? Me or you?

♪

Well, your facial
movement's symmetrical,

and your hearing appears to be intact.

What a relief. Thank you all.

Well, I understand a
celebration is in order.

It appears so.

My apologies to everyone for the scare.

The board is gonna be
excited to hear the news.

Speaking of, the
meeting's about to start.

Look, Vernon, no one would question you

if you opted to sit this one out.

Well, I certainly
don't feel like I'm ready

to get out of bed, but I
wonder if it'd be possible

for me to video-conference in.

Of course, we can make that happen.

Great.

Well, I'll see you then.

[BEEPING]

Triphasic signals.

- Well, is that good?
- Pulse is strong.

Exactly what we were hoping for.

In a few weeks, you can start
getting ready for soccer season.

Man, thank you.

Thank you both.

You bet.

Nice job, by the way.

Like you said, I could
handle it on my own.

Indeed.

I checked the board
when I got out of surgery

and noticed that Abrams was
using the OR . this afternoon.

No record of you stepping in at all.

Yeah.

Wires must have gotten
crossed somewhere.

It was actually Onc
Surg that needed a hand.

I know you're probably lying to me.

But I'm appreciative nonetheless.

[SENTIMENTAL MUSIC]

- It'll be okay.
- Kira!

Mom?

- Is she gonna be okay?
- Yes.

She has some recovery time
ahead of her, but she'll be okay.

Unfortunately, we were
not able to save the fetus.

I'm so sorry, Mom.

Oh, Kira, honey, what were you thinking?

You need a stem cell donor.

I thought that maybe
if I had a baby, then...

Look at me, honey.

I'm gonna be...

we're gonna get through this.

We haven't found a donor yet,

but these things, they take time.

What if we can't?

We just have to be brave.

I know that won't be hard for you.

We're gonna give you some privacy.

- Boy, is she lucky.
- Oh, absolutely.

- Kira could have d*ed today.
- I'm talking about Kimberly.

How unbelievably lucky
she is to have a daughter

willing to make such
a generous act of love.

♪

How are Aiden and Sandy doing?

Yeah, it looks like
they're working it out.

Aw, looks like they made up.

Yeah.

Nothing like coming clean
to re-establish trust.

Hey.

Can we talk?

- Yeah.
- Yeah?

All right. Uh...

This morning, your offer...

you realize what this could mean, right?

If you have some sort
of health crisis someday

- with only one kidney left...
- I know what I'm risking.

You do not have to do this.

Dad, you don't understand.

I need to do this.

If you turn out to be a match, uh,

I won't say no.

♪

BOTH: Na zdrowie.

And golumpki?

- Oh, my gosh, delicious.
- Thank you.

Liliana is a wonderful cook.

And you know what?

She can clean.

A professional.

You don't need a maid now.

- Pavo.
- What?

It was a joke!

- Here.
- No, I'm good.

Thank you very much. It's delicious.

I gotta drive, gotta drive.

Oh, good!

Responsible.

So.

Pan Daniel.

- Pan? Pan Daniel?
- It means "sir."

You are an important
man with an important job.

Oh, I don't know about that.

Um, can't imagine doing anything else.

Certainly keeps me on my toes.

A lucky man who doesn't hate his job.

Say that again. Lucky indeed.

So tell me, Doctor.

You deal with any crazy people today?

You know what, Pavo?
Even if I wanted to,

I wouldn't be able to tell you.

And honestly, I don't love that word.

I don't know, maybe it's a shrink thing.

- Anyway.
- I'm sorry. My English is not so good.

- It's okay.
- Not so correct.

I didn't mean to offend.

None taken, whatsoever.

But you must have some good stories.

- Pavo!
- What?

He doesn't want to talk
about his work. I get it.

I think I'm going to check on the babka.

And I'm gonna get rid
of some of these dishes.

[BOTH SPEAKING POLISH]

[TENSE MUSIC]

♪

What did he, uh... what did he say?

Oh, he was, uh...

he was just wondering
if we had any more vodka.

♪

Hey, Sharon.

Do you have a minute?

Oh, is it important, Maggie?

This is really not a good time.

It kind of is.

Okay, come. Come here.

What's up?

I lied to you earlier,
and I feel horrible about it.

Lied? About what?

I didn't get all dressed up
to renew my driver's license.

I was meeting with a headhunter.

About maybe finding another job.

Okay.

I was frustrated
last week in ED, and I...

I called them.

I instantly regretted
it, and I feel guilty

even thinking about leaving.

With all the changes that
are going down in the ED

and all this chatter
about going for-profit...

I have a bad feeling about the
direction that Jack is taking us.

I get your frustration, Maggie,

and I promise you, we're working

on a course correction as we speak.

The board is in the process
of defeating Jack's agenda,

and we're going to hold the line.

Good.

I really don't wanna leave Med.

♪

It's a great day for Gaffney, everybody.

Thank you.

I'm gonna make sure to
have an even brighter future.

Thank you.

George? What's going on?

[SIGHS] Jack.

He got the votes.

We are now a for-profit hospital.

How?

Who flipped?

Vernon!

Apparently, he was
so impressed with . ,

he decided to be
supportive of any measure

that would bring in more
advancement in high-tech medicine.

Sharon, I am so sorry.

♪

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪

[WOLF HOWLS]