4th Floor Nurses Station

Burke sees Cristina standing by herself reviewing a chart at the nurse's station and walks over. He doesn't notice the ice pack she's holding on her hand.

"Are you okay?"

Cristina gets nervous when he walks up and drops her ice pack in the trash "Yes". She doesn't even look up from the chart.

"What happened this morning?"

Cristina read through her chart ignoring him in spite of hearing the concern in his voice. She wasn't used to being this Cristina with him anymore. She had been showing a softer side lately more than the guarded side. She knew that this was the side that drove him insane but she needed distance between them right now and this was the only way she knew how to get it.

"Okay, how'd it go with Bailey?" He refused to let her shut him out completely. He recognized this Cristina and, although it was not his favorite side of her, he was no longer afraid of the walls that this Cristina put up.

"Anymore problems and I'll be banished from the OR to the land of vomit and enemas for a month."

Burke tried to bring a little levity to the situation "You hate vomit."

"Well I'm not too fond of enemas either!"

She looked at him and he saw the smallest glimpse of a smile and he knew that he had punctured one of those walls. He was going to take this opportunity to push her a little bit further.

"Cristina, are you freaking out because we're going to dinner with my friends tonight?"

"I'm not freaking out."

Burke grins "You're definitely freaking out."

Two nurses walk up to the desk and Cristina goes back to reviewing the chart in front of her hoping Burke would just go away.

"Walk with me" Cristina sighs not even looking at Burke.

He repeats himself but this time it is more of a demand than a request "Walk with me"

As they walked into the lounge, Burke's voice is starting to give away his frustration "So are you going to tell me what's been happening the past two days or are we going to continue to play this game?"

"I'm not playing any game."

"No? The other night you were fine then suddenly stopped talking and went to bed while I was in the shower. Last night you were out until 2:00 in the morning when you knew you had to come to work this morning. So you tell me what's going on?"

Burke touches her injured hand and she pulls away. He gives her an odd look not understanding what is going on with her or why she rebuffed his touch. Her eyes were filled with tears and it killed him that he didn't know why. That she wouldn't let him in. Wouldn't she let him help her.

She starts to walk away and stammers "I've got to go". Cristina could feel the tears burning in her eyes and didn't know if it was the pain in her hand or in her heart. She saw the hurt expression on his face when she pulled away but knew this was not the time for him to find out about the ring and once he saw it they'd definitely have to have the talk and she wasn't ready for that.

"Cristina!"