Author's Note: Okay, I'm back to my regular format :) This chapter deals with some unwritten scenes in "Foreign Affairs". Because of what happened in the episode, I thought it was necessary to introduce Dorsett as a character, but I promise he won't have that big of a part in the fic as a whole. Anyway, when you're done reading, I'd appreciate any feedback- good, bad, whatever. As long as it's constructive, it's completely welcome. Enjoy!  

***

Robert sat on the bed in the exam room, trying to distract himself. His charred arm was resting on a stand next to him, smothered in burn cream and wrapped in gauze. He kept trying to avert his gaze, but he couldn't believe what had happened. His arm had been on fire for several seconds, and he couldn't feel a thing.

For weeks he had been trying to convince himself that somehow, by some miracle or act of God, his arm would heal and he would be able to operate and live his normal daily life again. But now that his arm was burnt, more well-done than he liked his steak, he had to abandon his last shreds of hope. It wasn't getting better. He wouldn't recover. Surgery was no longer a career option.

Looking away from the pile of senseless and burnt flesh that had been the source of so many nightmares, he caught sight of the baseball player he had treated earlier in the day. Moving his arm into a new sling and pulling his lab coat tight around him, Robert got off of the bed and left the room.

As he approached the young man and his wife, Robert fell back into doctor mode. ER doctor mode, he reminded himself. His future, if he decided to stay in medicine.

"Well, if I'm going to be an ER doc, I'm going to be a damn good one," he told himself, and began to treat the patient.

***

Several hours later, Elizabeth was nearing the end of a marathon surgery on a young Croatian boy with a heart defect. As she irrigated the incision, she felt a hand on hers, guiding it. She looked up into Dr. Dorsett's eyes, or rather, goggles. Blushing, she turned away and slid her hand out from under his, leaving him to finish the irrigation.

"All right, that's it, everybody. Great work," the vascular specialist said, tying off the last suture on little Ante's chest. Elizabeth stepped back from the table, amazed at what they had done. A little boy with no apparent chance at survival was going to be okay. Soon, he would be breathing on his own, and in a matter of weeks, he would be running around and playing with his friends again. And she had been a part of it.

She pushed open the OR doors and walked into the scrub room, where she was joined a moment later by Luka.

"So, the surgery went well then?" he asked hurriedly, glancing over her shoulder into the operating room, where the nurses were finishing up.

Elizabeth smiled. "Yes, the surgery was very successful. Ante is very lucky that you got him here, Luka."

Luka gave a sheepish smile. "Thank you for helping, Elizabeth."

Elizabeth nodded. "It was my pleasure."

"I'm going to go call Ante's mother and find Gordona. I want to be there when he wakes up," Luka said, turning to leave. "Thank you again, Elizabeth." Elizabeth waved as he left the scrub room, then pulled off her bloodied gloves and gown and began to scrub her hands.

A minute later, Dr. Dorsett appeared at the sink next to her. "That was fantastic work in there, Dr. Corday," he said, picking up a bar of soap and scrubbing his own hands.

"Thank you," Elizabeth said, rinsing off her hands. "You did good work too."

"Thanks," Dorsett said, scrubbing his hands faster. There was a brief silence between them. Abruptly, Dorsett broke the silence.

"So, are you off now?"

Elizabeth hesitantly nodded. "Yes, I am. I stayed after my shift was over to do the surgery."

"Me too." Dorsett said, drying off his hands. Elizabeth began to walk out of the scrub room, and Dorsett followed her. When they came to the locker rooms, Dorsett stopped her before she could walk in. "I was wondering if you wanted to grab that cup of coffee."

Taken aback, Elizabeth turned around. "I'm sorry, I don't follow you."

"A couple months ago, take a rain check I asked you if you wanted to grab a cup of coffee, and you said some other time. I was just wondering if you wanted to get that coffee now."

Elizabeth's heart jumped. Here was Dorsett, asking her out on a date when she was so confused about her feelings for Robert. Confused if she even was ready for a new relationship. If she turned him down again, he'd probably stop asking. Was that what she wanted?

"Um, I'm not sure if I have the time tonight…" she said, planning to make an excuse to get out of it. Dorsett nodded and turned to walk away. "But on second thought, if you wait for me to get changed, I might be able to work something out," she blurted out impulsively.

Dorsett turned around again, surprised by this reply. "Really?" he asked, still unbelieving.

"Er, yeah," Elizabeth replied, just as surprised as he was.

"Okay then. I'll meet you out here in ten minutes?"

Elizabeth nodded and smiled. Dorsett smiled back, and turned to walk into the men's locker room. Elizabeth pushed open the door to the women's locker room and walked inside. 'What did I just do?' she asked herself, looking at her reflection in the mirror. The Elizabeth staring back at her looked just as shocked as she felt. Quickly crossing to her locker, Elizabeth rummaged around for some good clothes and makeup. If she was going to go out with this guy, she was going to look good.

***

Robert stood on the bridge, looking down at the river, not thinking about much of anything. The cool breeze of the Chicago night was a welcome change from the busy and frantic ER. Dozens of people had walked past him in the twenty minutes that he had been standing there, but not a single one had given the lonely man a second look.

Robert absentmindedly picked chips of paint off of the green railing, letting them float down and peacefully rest on the surface of the river. If only his life was that easy. He hadn't floated down and peacefully landed on his troubled river. He had cannonballed into it that summer night.

Robert shifted his weight from his right foot to his left and sighed. He didn't want to go back into the ER. Not now. All he wanted was someone to talk to. But that wasn't happening right now. So he took a deep breath and let the peacefulness of the night wash over him.

***

A/N: As you can probably guess, the next chapter is going to deal with the "Foreign Affairs" bridge scene. I've already transcribed the scene from my tape, but I won't have much time to write during the next week, so it could be a while. In the meantime, please read and review! Thanks!