He couldn't stop his knee from jumping up and down as he and Lindsay waited patiently in Dr. Reese's office.
"Danny would you stop that? You're driving me nuts." Lindsay said, putting her hand on his restless knee.
"Sorry, I'm anxious." He said not looking at her.
"Can you explain to me why we had to make an emergency stop for a CT scan during our lunch break?" She questioned, noticing that Danny wasn't looking at her, and hadn't since the scan. "Danny?" She said, trying to move into his line of sight, but saw him look away once again.
"Just being cautious." He said, as his knee began jumping again. "Why is this taking so long? I told Mac I'd be back by three." He checked his watch again for the third time.
"Is there a reason why you won't look at me or are you going to continue to act like nothing is going on here?" She said angrily.
"Nothing is going on here." He rolled his eyes and shook his head.
"Danny, be realistic." Leaning forward towards him, she put her hand on his chin and made him look at her.
"I have a bad feeling and I want to take care of it before it turns into something." He was acting childish, after everything that had happened he still couldn't admit something was wrong.
"When?" Her voice was plain, and impatient.
"Well that's why we're here." He looked away once again.
"No I mean, when did you start to have these feelings?" She said letting out a sigh.
"Since I woke up this morning. I was going to wait until our appointment on Monday, I just didn't want to risk it in case..." He trailed off, shaking his head.
"In case, what?"
"In case I have another clot and you wouldn't be able to wake me up tomorrow morning. I don't want to do that to you and Rebecca. Never again." Looking her in the eyes, she saw how serious he was and how much it hurt him to even think about.
"Again? Where was I when this happened before?" Lindsay asked, confused as to what he meant.
"You know what I mean." He sulked like a kid, folding his arms over his chest and looking away.
"I'm happy that you are being careful, I am, but you should have told me what was going on." Squeezing his knee, he looked at her again.
"You're right. I'm sorry." He said, holding her hair protectively in his.
"Danny, Lindsay, good to see you both." Dr. Reese said entering the office and sitting down across from them holding a large envelope.
"Nice to see you too." Lindsay said sweetly with a smile.
"So Danny, how are you feeling?" She asked, looking him in the eye.
"I... well that's why I am here. I've had a strange feeling all morning and I didn't want to take any chances so I spoke with Dr. Vang and he set me up with a CT scan. I've had some weakness on the right side, dizziness; all of the symptoms, so I-" He rambled, before Dr. Reese interrupted.
"Hold on a second!" Dr. Reese said putting up her hands to stop him.
"What?" He asked, looking confused.
"That much I know, I spoke with Dr. Vang and he said he set you up with a CT scan. He said you're worried about another aneurysm?" She asked, pulling the x-ray out of the envelope. Standing up she walked to the light board behind her desk.
"Yeah, I just thought that..." He said looking at his chest. Fear crept up his spine that his suspicions were real.
"You were right to come in. Looks like the formation of an aneurysm." She said pointing to the X-ray.
"Wait, what does that mean?" Lindsay said standing up, shock hitting her.
"It means Danny has a good intuition. Let's get you set up with some blood thinners, and we'll do an angiogram. Looks like we'll have to do an embolisation and get rid of the aneurysm before it ruptures." Dr. Reese said walking around the front of the desk. Danny sat staring straight ahead, unable to move from fear. Taking notice, Dr. Reese stopped and sat on the desk in front of him. "It's going to be alright. You came in time. It's a known complication we the surgery, it could have happened today or two years from now, but we caught it. Most people wouldn't have given it second thought until it's too late."
"So, what are the options here?" Danny asked, finding his voice.
"Our best shot right now is an embolisation. We'll introduce a catheter into your upper thigh and feed it through your system, the solution we'll give you should paralyze the cells, stopping them from spreading. Then we will go in and take what's left of the clot out. You'll under anesthetic during this time. It's a two part procedure, we'll start the first part after your first series of exams." She explained in her soft voice, Danny trusted her.
"And if it doesn't work?" His voice stuck on the last word.
"It will." Lindsay said taking his hand in hers, feeling that he was shaking.
"There are some risks, but nothing we haven't dealt with before. We caught this early, the chances are nearly diminished."
"I thought this was done. I thought I was past it." He shook his head in disbelief.
"Danny-" Lindsay attempted, but Dr. Reese put up her hand to stop her.
"I know this is hard, but I will get you through it, just like last time. I promise." Danny looked up at her and looked into her eyes. He could see that she too, was scared, even if she wouldn't admit it.
"OK. What's next?" He asked confidently.
"First things first, let's get you started on the Heparin and then we'll get you in for an angiogram." She explained standing up. "You ready?" She asked as Danny and Lindsay stood up with her.
"As I'll ever be." He answered glumly. As they walked out of the room.
An hour later, Danny was sitting in a hospital gown waiting for Dr. Reese to come back; the ward was surprisingly quiet. Being in post-op felt strange, looking around at the other sick patients he had a feeling in his gut that he wasn't supposed to be there. Lindsay sat next to him quietly flipping through a magazine, but Danny knew she wasn't even seeing the pages, she was lost in thought.
"You remember that time we worked the double homicide cases in midtown? We had been on for forty two hours straight, when we finally got home we both fell asleep on the couch in a mess because we didn't have any energy to make it to bed." He asked out of nowhere.
"Yeah, the mother and daughter. What about it?" She asked with a confused look on her face.
"That morning when I woke up, I knew." He folded his hands behind his neck and leaned back against the bed.
"Knew what?" She asked, standing up and sitting on the edge of his hospital bed.
"That I was in love with you." He smiled.
"Danny..." Lindsay said looking down at her lap.
"I want to spent the rest of my life with you, Lindsay. I love you, I love our daughter, I love this life. I know I asked before, but will you?" He didn't finish the question, she knew what he was saying.
"Are you asking me because you think you are going to die? Or because you mean it?" She looked hurt, pained, and he finally knew why.
"Both." He smiled, shifting closer to her.
"You aren't going to die." She picked up his hand.
"I don't know about that, I've never been partial to immortality." He smiled, kissing her forehead. "If there is one thing this experience has taught me, is that we might not always have tomorrow, and you're right, I may not die today but one day. When that day comes I want to make sure that I made the right choices, and that I chose the right girl." Looking up Danny saw that Lindsay was crying.
"Then yes. I will marry you." She smiled weakly, pulling his chin to hers in a soft kiss.
"We should do it before the surgery." Danny said smiling.
"Get married? In the hospital? Without our daughter? Or friends?" Lindsay shook her head.
"OK, OK... point taken."
"I don't want a big wedding, I just want our family there." She pressed her forehead to his, finding it hard not to smile.
"I don't care who is there, other then Becca, as long as I get you." He kissed her again.
"You'll always have me." Lindsay put her hand on his cheek, kissing him again.
The moment was short lived as the sounds of heals clicking came from the door of the room. Looking up Danny saw Don standing in the doorway with a strange look on his face.
"Danno, what's going on?" He said nervously, walking up next to the bed. Lindsay wiped the tears from her eyes before turning around to face her friend.
"Hey Don." She said clearing her throat.
"You alright, what's going on?" He said looking at the I.V. in Danny's arm. "Not again?" He said sadly.
"It's not a tumor, it's alright. It's just a small routine procedure." Danny said confidently.
"Mac called and said that you were at the hospital, I thought my heart was going to stop." He let out a large breath and put his hand over his heart.
"I'll be alright. Dr. Reese says it's routine, shouldn't have a problem." Danny smiled, trying to encourage his friend who was clearly terrified.
"Where's Becca?" Don asked looking at Lindsay.
"With Danny's Mom, she'll be alright. After the surgery I am going to pick her up and take her home, and then come back tomorrow." Lindsay said, brushing Danny's hair.
"I'm only going to be here for a day or two and then I'll be good to go." He said positively hoping he was right.
"I don't understand. You're finished the treatment. What aren't you telling me?" Don was clearly angry.
"Flack, it's fine." He said shifting in bed. Luckily, he wasn't forced into the complete hospital gown yet and had managed to get some scrub pants from Dr. Reese, being half nude would have made this conversation way too difficult.
"No it's not fine, man. You're having surgery again!" He said, his voice getting louder. Standing up Danny went to his friend.
"I'm on blood thinners, I have a small clot forming but we got to it in time. I didn't want to take any chance so I came and got it checked out before something worse happened. I promise, it's going to be alright." He said putting his hands on his friend's shoulder.
"A blood clot? Oh god, Danny." Don shook his head and looked down at his feet.
"It's not like last time." He pleaded. "Don, look at me?" He asked, seeing Don look up at his best friend. "It's routine, they'll get rid of the aneurysm, and I will be fine." Taking a second to let it sink in, Danny saw the visible change in his friend demeanor.
"OK." He said calmly. Lindsay turned away, hiding the tears that fell from her eyes.
"OK." Danny smiled dropping his hands to his side and moving back to his seated position. The silence in the room was comfortable as the three friends sat with their thoughts. No one said another word until Dr. Reese came into the room in her scrubs, dressed for surgery.
"How are you feeling Danny?" She asked, standing from the end of the bed.
"Just a little nauseous." He said resting his hand across his belly.
"That's normal. I have the results from your angiogram. Looks like a cluster of cells."
"What does that mean? Are you still doing an embolization?" Danny asked, feeling his hands begin to shake.
"Yes, it is the best solution. We'll start the first part of the surgery in a couple hours, when was the last time you ate?" Pulling up a stool she sat down.
"Um... breakfast about eight a.m." He explained.
"Alright, we should be fine to start the surgery by four then. Any other symptoms you may have forgotten to tell me this morning?" Looking up from her chart.
"Like what?"
"Blurred vision? Weakness? Difficulty speaking? Anything like that?" She asked, seeing Lindsay flinch and take his hand.
"Blurred vision, I guess... why?" He asked, sensing something else.
"It looked like it may be bleeding." She said plainly.
"What are you talking about? You said it was a small cluster?" Danny's voice shook.
"It is, but it's already began the rupture. We have to introduce the catheter sooner then we expected." Dr. Reese saw his face fall.
"So the risks just got a little more interesting I see." Don said, from his chair beside the bed.
"Yes, but like I said we cau-"
"Yeah we caught it in time, I got that." Danny said angrily.
"I'm sorry this is so difficult but we'll get through it. I'm going to set up an O.R., I'll have someone come and get you." She stood and left the room.
"Well that's that." Danny said more to himself then anyone else.
"I'm going to call your Mother, fill her in. I'll be back." Lindsay said standing.
"Linds, don't let her come down here unless... you know." He reached out to her arm, stopping her from going.
"I know." She smiled, before leaving the room.
Danny and Don sat quietly with their thoughts for what felt like forever, before Don broke the silence.
"Dr. Reese looks good in those scrubs." He said, not looking at Danny but staring straight ahead. Danny looked at him and laughed.
"Why don't you just ask her out dude?" Danny asked, as Don looked up at him.
"Wouldn't it be weird?"
"Why would it be weird? We named our child after her." He explained.
"I don't know, like best friend's girl-best friend's neurosurgeon kinda thing." He said as Danny let out a loud laugh.
"You're insane you know that right?"
"I'll make you a deal. You come out of this surgery A-OK, I'll ask her out." He smiled.
"Deal." He smiled.
"You alright, Danny?" Don said, standing up and getting closer.
"What?"
"You're face?" Don said, getting closer.
"What about it?" He was confused.
"I'll be right back." Don said rushing from the room.
"Don, what the hell?" He said moving to stand up, catching a glimpse of himself in a window. "Oh god." He said softly, noticing the right side of his face was hanging loosely. The muscles no longer holding tight, no wonder he scared Don, he was having a stroke and didn't even realize it. His hand went numb, shaking it he rested against the side of the bed. From behind him he heard Dr. Reese rush into the room.
"Danny?" She asked. Moving his mouth to speak, he notice his words weren't making sense. The letters jumbled, his vision blurred, his left side completely numb. "I need help in here!" She yelled, putting her hand behind Danny's head and resting him on the bed. Pulling a mask of oxygen she placed it over his mouth, his eyes rolled backwards and his body began jerking. Nurses entered the room behind her as she began giving orders. "He's having a seizure, I need four of Ativan, now!" She yelled instructions as Don and Lindsay came back to the room to see the chaos before them.
"No. No, not again." Lindsay said putting a hand over her mouth in shock.
"We need to move him to surgery." She yelled as the doctors and nurses worked, wheeling Danny out of the room and into the OR.
"He'll be alright, Lindsay." Don said rubbing her shoulders, both unable to move.