Chapter Nine
Ethan had been in war. He had seen so much death to break anyone and yet he allowed himself to be surrounded by it everyday of his life. However this was his life, he was a trauma doctor who's job was to be there for people when they needed him the most.

However in his job, both here at home and in war, he had seen many good and brave men bloody and broken. With many of them never making it home. When he had returned home he thought he would have been safe from seeing his friends in those positions. He wouldn't have to treat his friends who were so close to death that he could see them slipping away.

But he was home. He was safe from any physical harm and yet another one of his friends was yet again fighting for his life. And he knew that Will was more closer to leaving them, leaving him alone. Why did this keep happening to him?

It seem that someone up high was against him ever having a family as every time he made a friend or like Will a brother, something would cause him to lose them in the most painful way. Whether that be from a bomb, a bullet or a knife it kept happening. He kept losing them.

The sound of the room brought him back into the room, and as he looked around at the busy department, the new shift had only started to take over the department and the news was getting around about what had happened to one of their own.

Ethan knew that his shift was long over and his scrubs felt like a full suit of armour weighing him down. He knew that he should think about heading home, shower and trying to catch some sleep before his next shift but he couldn't make himself do it. He couldn't make himself leave. Will was his friend and the thought of him not being here incase he was needed killed him. He couldn't push himself to go into the locker room, grab his back and head home.

For one reason, he had parked his car right next to Will's that morning. He had pulled up next to his friend who at the time was busy on the phone. He had smiled when he had lightly tapped the window making Will jump to remind him that they did have a shift that was about to start. Leaving and seeing Will's car just stood there, waiting for Will to come back to move it would kill him a little more. He should be leaving with Will. Maybe with the plan to catch a few beers at Molly's or joking as they both went their separate ways. However that wasn't going to happen.

than rubbed his hands over his face, trying to rid himself of the tiredness that he was feeling, the adrenaline that had flooded his body when he had first seen Will had complete left his body as soon as he had been told the whole story regarding Will's injuries. He knew that Will had a fight on his hands.

He looked over the sea of people when his eyes fell on Ms Goodwin speaking to the security team at the door. Their number had increased over the last few hours and they were joined by uniform and plain clothed police officers. He had a feeling under orders to find the person responsible.

He however did not want Ms Goodwin to catch him still here, knowing very well that she would send him home immediately with orders not to return until his shift. He thought it better for him if she didn't spot him and quickly and quietly slipped into the doctor's lounge and slowly closed the door, hoping that she hadn't seen him.

"Hiding from Goodwin?" The question made him jump and he turned to see Connor laid across the couch looking at him, still in his operating scrubs. He looked as the same as him, tired and emotional. Which he knew from the past was bad mix.

Ethan sighed and dropped himself into one of the chairs and nodded.

Connor sighed and spoke, his voice showing his tiredness. "Same here. Not really in the mood to head home when we are still in the first 24 hours." Connor pulling himself up into a sitting position and put his hands together in front of him. He unconsciously started to rub them together like he was scrubbing in for theatre. Ethan had noticed this when Will had pointed it out to him whenever Connor became stressed.

Ethan understood what Connor meant. If he had been the one to operate on Will, he would make sure that he was close at hand in case anything went wrong and they had to go back in. But also he would be second guessing every move he had made. And by the look on Connor's face Ethan could only guess that those thought had kept the other doctor there.

"What a mess." Connor muttered as he let himself fall back into the couch and closed his eyes again.

If his money could have stopped this he would have spent every dollar he had to save his friend the pain that he was going through. Will had challenged him and wasn't scared about the fact that he came from a rich family. A rich family who donated a lot of money into the very hospital that they worked in. He was just another doctor in the hospital. And he was the closest thing he had to a true friend for a very long time.

Growing up Connor had never been sure if people were just being his friends for his money or were there because they liked him. But with Will, he didn't care. And also he knew that Will was never afraid of speaking his mind. Even when that sometimes got him into trouble.

"We did everything we could. It's up to Will now." Ethan said out loud for the first time something they all knew. He had used the phrase before but he had hoped and prayed that he would never have to use it about one of his friends again. Not after Afghanistan.

Connor nodded, he didn't like the thought that it didn't matter what he did in the operating room if the person wanted to die they normally did. He had noticed that the normally firey red head had been on a downward spiral for some time; he could only hope that Will knew that they would fight for him even when he didn't want to fight for himself.

What else could they do?

They both fell into silence, both trapped in their own minds thinking over everything from their friendship with Will to their trauma room tasks and then to the operating room. Every move they made now was running in front of them seeing if they could have done anything differently that would have increased Will's chances of surviving.

However soon they were interrupted suddenly by the office door been thrown open. They both jumped to their feet and turned to see a very stressed and scared Sarah.

"Doctor Rhodes it's Doctor Halsteads'..." It was all Sarah could say, as she tried to catch her breathe before the spreaker screamed for Doctor Rhodes to report to Intensive Care immediately.

Ethan and Connor didn't wait for Sarah to speak again as they both set off running for the lift which luckily had just opened before pressing the floor that was the intensive care ward. Something must have gone seriously wrong with Will. Connor could also feel his pager go off in his pocket calling him to the intensive care ward. It didn't stop moving in his pocket.

Which only made his heart race even quicker. What gone this badly wrong? He had stopped all the bleeding so unless something broke loses. His mind was running a hundred miles an hour.

As the lift doors opened, Connor and Ethan were greeted to a sight that shocked them both.

What the hell had happened?