"I'll go in with them," Johnny offered as the ambulance pulled up.

"Shouldn't we both go?" Roy questioned grumpily.

"I can handle it," Johnny assured him. "Your patient is stable, right?" Roy was distracted by the ache in his temple and didn't answer. "Roy?"

"Yeah?"

"Your patient is stable, right?" Johnny asked again. Roy nodded. "Then I think I can handle both of them. Are you okay to drive the squad?" he questioned Roy worriedly.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Roy snapped.

"I don't know, you seem distracted, that's all," Johnny said defensively.

"I'm fine," Roy hissed. "Let's get going."

Roy said nothing else as they loaded the women into the ambulance. "See you at Rampart," Johnny called as Roy handed in the equipment. Roy answered him with a stony glare as he slammed the doors shut.

"So, ladies, how are we feeling?" Johnny asked with a warm smile as he checked to make sure Helen's backboard was securely attached to the bench.

"Woozy," Paula murmured.

"That's the morphine kicking in," Johnny explained as he checked her pulse and respirations again. "Is your shoulder feeling better?"

"Much. They'll be able to fix it, right?" she asked anxiously.

"Yep, they'll just pop it back into place." Paula winced. "It's not as bad as it sounds," Johnny assured her. "I've had it done twice before."

"Good," Paula mumbled as she closed her eyes.

"A little accident-prone, Johnny?" Helen teased.

"No, things just happen to me, that's all," he told her with a shrug. "How about you? How are you feeling?"

"I can't feel my arms and legs," she joked.

Johnny tried to force a smile, but couldn't manage it. How can she joke about something like that?

"I either have to laugh about it or cry about it," Helen told him, reading his thoughts. "I'd much rather go through life laughing."

"How did it happen?" Johnny blurted out, then thought twice about his question. "If you don't mind my asking."

"I don't mind," Helen assured him. "It was a car accident. My husband was driving drunk, he ran a red light, and we were hit by a pick-up. I was lucky, though."

"Lucky?" Johnny asked incredulously.

"You might not think I have much of a life, living like this," Helen said knowingly. "But as least I'm still alive. My husband wasn't that fortunate. He never got to see his daughter grow into that beautiful woman you see over there." She nodded her head in Paula's direction. "He's never going to know his grandchildren, or see another sunset, or go to another Dodgers game the way he loved to. I can do all that."

"I never thought of it that way," Johnny admitted.

"You've never had to," Helen stated matter-of-factly.

"What you said before, about me thinking you don't have a life, that's not true," Johnny insisted.

"Yes it is, Johnny," Helen said gently. "You wouldn't ever want to be like this, would you?" Johnny didn't answer. "I know you wouldn't."

"You're right," Johnny admitted softly. "I could never handle it the way you have."

"I've had 20 years to learn to live with this," Helen reminded him. "In the beginning, I wanted to die every day. But you find things to live for. Thank God I had Paula. Do you have any children?"

Johnny shakes his head. "Not yet. I'd like to, though, if I can find the right person to have them with."

"How old are you?" Helen asked with a mischievous gleam in her eye.

"27. Why?" Johnny asked warily.

"My Paula is 23."

"Mom, don't start," Paula murmured.

"You two would make beautiful grandbabies for me," Helen teased.

"Mom!" Paula gasped.

Helen ignored her embarrassment. "What do you say, Johnny?"

"Uh…I…I…there are rules about that kind of thing," Johnny stammered. "Sorry."

"If we run into you later, when we're not patients anymore, they don't have rules against that, do they?" Helen questioned.

"If they did, I bet you'd break them," Johnny told her with a smile.

"You're right," Helen said with a laugh. "This won't be the last you see of me."