Doug paid a tip for a beer to the waitress before he rose up from the bar. He knew Mark was still at the Blackjack table and it was getting late. They had to get to their hotel across the street and get checked in. He walked over to Mark at the table, where his friend took another gulp of his beer and looked at his deal again. "Alright, one more time," Mark said to the dealer.

"Another card, Sir?" the dealer asked.

"No, I stand."

The dealer flipped over his cards in front of Mark. "20."

Mark looked at his own cards. "What? I don't believe this!" he exclaimed, looking at his cards of 18.

"Come on, Mark. It's late. We gotta go," Doug said, slapping a hand on Mark's shoulder.

"No, no, just one more. I need to gain back," Mark said to Doug.

"Another hand, Sir?" the dealer asked.

Doug told the dealer, "no" while Mark looked up at the dealer and said, "yes."

"Come on, Mark, we need to get checked in and we have our first meeting in the morning. It's past 11:30," Doug told him.

Mark looked at Doug. "Doug, I'm getting better. This is 18. An hour ago, I was at 14."

"That's the thing, Mark. You've been at this table for hours. Let other people take your seat and let's get you sober. You'll have a hell of a hangover tomorrow morning if we don't get going."

Mark sighed as Doug gently took Mark's arm and gently dragged him off the seat. "I'm out," Mark slurred to the dealer.

"Yeah, he knows. Come on."

Doug and Mark squeezed through the crowd with Doug repeatedly looking behind him as Mark stumbled his feet around the casino. They made it to the exit of the casino and went into the hotel lobby as Doug pushed open the door. As he looked both ways before crossing the street, Doug walked with Mark with a hand on his back as he noticed that Mark had a nauseous look on his face. "You're going to have a hangover in the morning. I'll get up in the morning and see if they have an aspirin in the gift shop."

They reached their hotel at the MGM Grand Hotel as Doug spotted one of the bellboys. "Hey, I gave a tip to you to have our luggage taken inside."

The bellboy nodded. "It's been taken care of, Sir," he said with a smile. He pushed open the door to let Doug and Mark inside then went towards their luggage and a cart.

Doug thanked him then they approached the front desk. While Doug stepped up to the hotel receptionist to check in, Mark stood behind him and looked around the huge lobby. He couldn't believe no matter what time it was at night, there were still huge crowds of people busying the lobby, walking around and going in and out of shops and elevators. His eyes wandered around then stopped when he saw the same familiar face he saw at the airport. A woman that looked like Susan Lewis! He stared right at her as the woman smiled at a man, who was stepping off an elevator. The woman grabbed the same rolling luggage he saw her with at the airport as she dragged the luggage into the elevator with her. She nodded at the man getting off the elevator then heard another voice. "Susan!" the male voice shouted. Mark's heart jumped as his eyes quickly followed the voice. The man who shouted at her ran towards her. It was indeed Susan Lewis! Mark couldn't believe it. But it wasn't that hard to believe because they were all at the same hotel where the conference was to take place. The man who was shouting at Susan finally made it into the elevator with her. Susan gave him a quick smile then pushed a button as the doors closed.

Mark blinked in disappointment. Susan was gone… again. He hated it every time he thought about Susan disappearing because the last time he saw her leave, she got onto a train to Phoenix, Arizona. He was crushed that day and he felt that his world fell apart. He actually thought Susan might reconsider her decision to leave when he caught up with her on that day and told her how he felt. But no. It turned out she didn't feel the exact same way or she wouldn't have left. He didn't understand it. She loved him, too. If that was true, then why did she leave anyway? Mark didn't know what to think, standing in that hotel and had no idea what he would do or say if he saw Susan again the next day.

"Mark?" Doug said. If only Mark had another chance with Susan. "Mark!" Doug said louder.

Mark snapped out of it and looked at Doug.

"You coming? We're checked in," Doug said. Mark nodded slightly and started walking with Doug. They headed towards the elevators. Mark had hoped that Susan would still be on the elevator when they got there but knew that she was already riding her way up. He wouldn't be able to catch up with her unless she was on the same floor as his and Doug's. Doug pressed the elevator button as they stepped in. Both Doug and Mark walked into the elevator with a few people getting on as well. Mark stood against the wall, taking a quick look around the people on the elevator with him and Doug then looked down in front of him. Mark struggled with the fact that he was still feeling heart-broken about Susan leaving and now she was back in his life…. Sort of. What was he to do?

Mark was in deep thoughts, while getting off the elevator on the 8th floor with Doug, until he looked up at the sound of loud music blasting. "Oh, damn, we're not going to get any sleep!" Doug groaned. "Alright…" he sighed, looking at their hotel keycards. Mark's head was starting to spin as the heavy metal music rang in his ears. "832. Well, that's down that way." Mark paid no attention to the room numbers in the hall and followed Doug as they turned left out of the elevator. When Mark and Doug arrived to their room door, Mark was relieved that he stopped hearing the music. He looked down the hallway, hoping he'd find Susan. The hallway all the way to the elevator was empty except for a young man carrying an ice bucket as he entered his hotel room. He turned his attention to Doug as he opened the door and realized that he was going to share the same room with him. "Same room, different beds?" Mark asked.

Doug pushed the door wider as they entered. "Of course. Cheaper to have the same room but a room was reserved with two king-sized beds."

"Who made the reservations?"

"That would be Weaver."

Doug flicked on the room lights and dropped a few bags on the floor. They walked into a living room with a couch, love seat, TV, refridgerator and a mini-bar. They walked into the bedroom next. There were two king-sized beds, a little table, another TV on a counter with dressers and a big window with open curtains. One could see the whole view of the Las Vegas strip. "Ask and ye shall receive!" Doug exclaimed. "Indeed, there are two king-sized beds!" He threw himself onto a bed, laying on his back. "I got this one!"

"Why do you get to choose?" Mark asked.

Doug rolled his eyes. "Fine. You want this one?"

Mark shook his head. "Oh, I don't care. I can take the other one." He glanced over at the window and saw the city lights. He walked over to the window to find the entire Las Vegas strip in view.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Doug asked, sitting up on the bed.

"Yeah." Although it wasn't like Mark cared. He'd seen Vegas before quite a few times while living in California as a kid.

"Hey, what time is it in Chicago?"

Mark looked at his watch. "It's a two hours difference. Almost 10:00 there."

"Oh, great timing! I better call her before she gets ready for bed."

Mark turned his head to Doug with a smirk. "You gotta get ready for bed, too."

Doug picked up the hotel phone, placing it on his ear and looking at Mark. "So do you. Perhaps you should get a shower. Might help you feel better."

Mark nodded. "Yeah, maybe," he sighed. "I'm gonna get some ice first. You need anything?"

"No, thanks."

Mark grabbed an ice bucket. Perfect excuse to leave the hotel room, go down the hall and hopefully, he just might be able to run into Susan if they were staying on the same floor. "Hey…" Doug said, getting his attention. Mark glanced at him. Doug tossed him his hotel keycard. "Don't forget that."

"Thanks," Mark nodded, stuffing the keycard in his pocket. He left the room and immediately spotted a couple of hotel security guards far down the hallway, talking to a couple of young guys, apparently party animals who were partying late at night loudly and waking up half of the 8th floor. He walked down the hall, minding his own business till he turned to the ice vending machine just before the elevators. Placing the bucket on the machine and waiting for ice to pour in, Mark stuffed his hands in his pockets with a deep breath. A few voices were heard then he quickly looked out into the hallway. He was hopeful one of the voices was Susan's… but it wasn't. He didn't see anyone. Just voices and laughter then he saw the security guards leave the door they were at. Mark minded his business again and went back to the bucket. He took the bucket and headed back to his room he was sharing with Doug.

When Mark entered their hotel room, Doug sounded like he was finishing up the conversation with Carol. "Yeah…" Doug chuckled on the phone. "Alright… alright, I'll talk to you later. I love you, too. Good night, Carol." He hung up the phone and looked at Mark. "Got the ice?"

"Yeah. They got the music to stop down there."

"Good, now we can get some real sleep tonight."

"How is Carol?" Mark asked, placing the ice bucket on the counter near the TV.

"Carol is fine. She's already a bit lonely but she's good." He stood up from the bed, pulling his wallet out of his pocket and walked over to the counter where Mark is. He looked at Mark, who was opening up a mini-bar with a key. "Hey… hey, what are you doing?" he asked.

"What does it look like?" he said, putting some ice in a glass.

"Mark, you're drinking again. On the plane, you had whiskey then beer in the casino." Mark took out a bottle of scotch and started pouring it in his glass of ice. "Now it's scotch. Mark, you're already buzzed."

"It's just a couple of sips. I'll just get a shower and I'll be fine in the morning." Mark started to sip but Doug stopped him.

"Alright, come on, Mark. Stop. Give me the drink," Doug said, taking the glass.

"Doug…."

"Mark, we need to go to bed. Jump in the shower right now and let's get you into bed."

"You wanna shower first before going to bed?"

"No, I'll shower in the morning after I get you that aspirin," Doug told him, walking into the bathroom and dumping the scotch into the sink.

Mark chuckled. "Where would I be without you?"

"You wouldn't," Doug told him, returning in the bedroom and placing the glass by the mini-bar. "Great. We didn't even come here to drink and now we gotta pay for it. The mini-bar isn't free."

"I'll pay for it."

"Damn right you will. Let's get you in that shower," Doug said, gently pushing him into the bathroom. "I'll get your bag."

Mark sighed, pulling his shirt off. "Ah, man. Glad we have separate beds on this trip. After all of that whiskey, I never know what I'll do if I had to share a bed with you."

Doug returned, handing him his bag. "Don't get any ideas. I'm going to bed. Good night!" Doug closed the bathroom door, leaving Mark in the bathroom as he pulled off his tie, sitting on the bed with a weary sigh. He rolled his eyes and laid back on the bed. Next thing he knew, he heard vomiting coming from the bathroom. This was going to be some trip with Mark Greene!

The next morning, the sun rose over the Las Vegas strip at 6:45 in the morning. Doug woke himself up and looked over at the other bed. Mark was still sound asleep without a shirt on. "God, I hope he's not naked!" he thought. To his relief, Mark rolled over, scratching his chest and saw the rim of his boxer shirts. Nope, not naked. Doug looked at the clock and sighed. The gift shop would not be opened this early and they had to be downstairs for their first workshop at 9:00. He got himself out of bed, rubbing his eyes then went looking for one of his bags. Hopefully, he would be able to find some aspirins. Sometimes he had some handy in case he, himself, woke up with a hangover. He remembered when he was dating a lot of women, sometimes three at a time and he'd drink and sleep with them. A woman would leave before he woke up and Carol would find him alone in his apartment. Carol used to keep a copy of his apartment key when they were friends and there for each other. So Carol would come in, find Doug with a few bottles of liquor on his nightstand without a woman by his side then grab an aspirin for him before he woke up and she'd find the aspirins in his duffle bag.

Carefully not making too much noise, Doug moved around things in his black duffle bag. "Nope… not here," he muttered to himself quietly. He looked at another pocket on the side and unzipped. A bottle of aspirin!

Doug heard a groan coming from Mark's bed. Mark shifted around in his bed and looked at Doug. "Doug…" he said.

"Morning. Ready for our first workshop in about 2 hours?"

"Workshop?"

Doug walked over to the counter, grabbing a glass and filling it with water in the bathroom. "We're in Vegas, Mark. Do you remember anything from last night?"

Mark waited a minute before answering until Doug returned to him with a glass of water. He sat up in his bed. "Susan… Susan Lewis," he said, half-slurring his words.

Doug looked at him and chuckled. "What?"

"I saw her last night. At the airport and downstairs going into the elevators."

Doug sighed and sat next to him. "Mark… you had a lot to drink last night. You've been having a rough time. Susan's been gone for about a year. Move on."

"How can I when she's here?"

"Well, it is possible that she's here but… let's not dwell on her leaving. Here…" he said, handing out the glass of water and aspirins.

Mark looked at the aspirins in Doug's hand. "What's this?"

"Ibuprofen. Whiskey and beer are bound to give you a hangover."

"It's a killer!" Mark said, rubbing his forehead with his palm then put on his glasses. He looked back at the aspirins and took them. "Thanks." Doug handed him the glass of water as Mark took the aspirins and drank the water.

"No problem. You feeling up for some breakfast?"

"Not really."

"Come on. They're probably serving breakfast down there before the first workshop at 9:00."

"What's the first workshop?"

Doug got up to reach some papers he had laying on the counter by the TV. "Uh…" he said, looking through some papers. "Oh!" he exclaimed, taking out a piece of paper. "Pediatric Surgery."

"Perfect for you," Mark said, taking another sip of water.

"Why? I'm not a surgeon."

"You're a pediatrician. Maybe we'll run into that pediatric surgeon we had last year. What's her name again?"

"Oh, Benton would remember. Didn't Carter used to date her or something?"

"Yeah, something like that."

"So how about breakfast?"

Mark shook his head and put the glass on the nightstand between the two beds. "That's your topic. I'll just skip breakfast and you go on ahead to that pediatric surgery. I'll come down later."

Doug rolled his eyes, putting the papers on the bed. "Oh, come on now, you're not bailing out on me! You're getting paid for this, you know. We both are."

"What, are you going to tell Weaver on me if I don't go?"

Doug shrugged. "Maybe," he said with a smirk.

Mark sighed, bowing his head down. "I don't know," he said, rubbing his forehead with his palm again.

"Come on, you'll feel better after you eat breakfast. You need to eat something."

"If I can keep something down, sure."

"I'm sure you can. Come on…" Doug said, putting a hand on Mark's back.

"Don't you need to get a shower?"

"Yeah, I'm gonna get a shower and get dressed. You get dressed and take some time to pull yourself together."

A pause between the two of them then Mark nodded. Doug got up from Mark's bed then grabbed a set of clothes from one of his bags before he jumped into the shower. Mark took his time to get dressed himself then watched some morning news.

Mark heard the shower water stop running then he turned off the TV. He got up to put on his shoes then his watch. A few more minutes passed and he wondered what was taking Doug so long. He didn't really care then he heard some voices again in the hallway. He opened the door and looked down to see a few people loading the elevator. No sign of Susan. Perhaps he was imagining things under the influence of alcohol. He looked down at his feet and saw the newspapers. Facing up was the "Las Vegas Sun" section. He looked at his watch. It was now 7:15. Plenty of time to read the newspapers and get breakfast. He bent down to get the newspapers and brought it into the room as he closed the door, reading the headlines.

The door clicked then Doug emerged. "Hey… you wanna brush your teeth before we go down? Shave, maybe?"

Mark looked up at Doug. "Uh, yeah. You really think I need a shave?" he asked, rubbing his neck and cheeks.

"No, you look fine. I already brushed my teeth so come on in the bathroom."

Mark slapped the newspapers down on the end of Doug's bed. He went to look for a toothbrush and toothpaste from one of his bags then went into the bathroom. Doug picked up the newspapers from his bed and sat down, reading it.

After Mark brushed his teeth, he closed the door to quickly use the toilet. The door knocked then Doug put down the newspapers on the bed as he got up to answer. Mark could hear the conversation as he flushed the toilet and went to the sink, turning on the water. "Hi, I'm sorry to…" a woman voice sounded through the bathroom door. "Oh, my god, Doug!" the woman said happily.

Doug could be heard greeting the woman and sounded cheerful. "Hey! How are you doing? I don't believe this!"

Mark chuckled, splashing water on his face. "Probably one of his girlfriends before he and Carol started dating again," he thought to himself.

Mark waited a minute then the bathroom door knocked lightly. "Mark? I guess I owe you an apology."

"For what, Doug?" he replied to Doug. Mark grabbed a towel and dried his face.

"Remember when you mentioned a while ago about Susan being here and I didn't quite believe you?"

Mark's heart jumped. He froze, while looking at himself in the mirror but he didn't take notice of what he was staring at. He dropped the towel in the sink, grabbed the doorknob and opened the door. "What?" he said. Doug gave him a little smirk then Mark looked at the woman at their hotel room door, who grinned widely at Mark.

Hi, Mark…" she said. He couldn't believe it as he saw a young familiar woman he saw twice the night before. Susan Lewis was in Las Vegas!