Oz paced the hallway waiting impatiently for news of Toby's condition. It had been over an hour since he'd brought his friend in to the ER. Olivia and several other doctors were running tests trying to figure out what was wrong with Toby.
Oz wasn't paying attention to his surroundings as he turned and almost ran down Sandy. She had exited the room to update him on the progress.
"What happened to him?" he jumped at her. "How is he?"
"Oz," she started, "calm down. We're still not sure. I came out to let you know they're still working on him. Olivia is going to send him upstairs for an MRI. She's thinking it may have to do with something she saw on another MRI she took a while ago."
Peering in the window, he could see several people around Toby's gurney preparing him to be moved. Grabbing his head with his hands, he turned to face Sandy.
"He's not gonna die is he?"
"Come on Oz, don't talk like that." Sandy moved closer to him. She knew they were more than just partners, they were best friends. "We don't even know what really happened. He's stable, just unresponsive. His stats are good. We'll figure it out." She placed her hand on his shoulder gently.
"Yeah, I'm sure he's just exhausted or something simple like that," Oz knew he was lying to himself, but tried to be positive.
"Come on," she grabbed his elbow pulling him away from the doors. "Let's get you some coffee." She led him toward a waiting area. Finding a chair, he sat down with his elbows resting on his knees. Bowing his head in frustration he rubbed his head to try to relieve the building tension inside.
"Here," Sandy handed Oz a cup of coffee she had purchased from a vending machine in the room. Rubbing his back, she did her best not to worry him any more than he already was.
"Thanks," he paused, "this is just not right. He's the hero, not the victim." Taking a drink of the coffee, he tried not to worry about his friend.
After a few minutes, Oz had finished his coffee and sat back, trying to relax.
"Look, Oz," Sandy stood up, "I'm going to stay with him and if anything changes I'll make sure you know right away."
"Thanks," Oz nodded slightly.
By this time Toby had been prepared to be taken upstairs for the MRI. Sandy opened the door of the room to let everyone out. She followed Toby down the corridor.
Walking briskly, Michelle McCluskey passed Toby's gurney followed by Sandy. She and Dev did a double take seeing him. Abruptly she stopped, causing Dev to almost run her over.
"Wha'?" She said confused grabbing Dev's shoulders to stop his momentum. "Was that Toby?"
Oz was already in the corridor watching his friend roll down the hall, not knowing what the outcome would be. Seeing Michelle and Dev, he walked over to them.
"Was that Toby?" Michelle asked him turning back to watch the gurney turn the corner.
"Yeah, it's Toby," he said shaking his head.
"What happened?" she asked as Dev stood by her looking back at the now empty corridor. "Is he ok?"
"He collapsed in the rig. They don't know what happened yet. They're taking him for an MRI. Olivia thinks they might find something there." Oz couldn't believe his friend was this sick. He was used to the sudden migraines with Toby as well as the absent looks he got when Toby was reading someone's thoughts. Those things were nothing compared to dealing with this.