The next morning Street has off and decides to let himself into Chris's apartment. He knows Hazel will start her evaluations that day and he can't help but want to be there and see first-hand.
When he finds the living room empty except for a workout mat on the floor he is confused.
"Chris, you have to rest. You did good," Hazel's voice drifts out of the bedroom and Street checks his watch. Barely 10 am. How can Chris already need rest. He also notes that the alarm isn't even blaring.
"I'll be right outside, okay? Just call out if you need something," again Hazel's voice only reaches his ears, but Chris has to say something too because she replies. "We will talk about next steps when you've rested. I promise,"
Hazel clicks the door shut and looks up at him. She freezes in place.
"How long have you been here?" she quirks an eyebrow at him and her voice trembles.
"A few minutes," Street replies holding up the keys Chris had given him. He hadn't really used them when Hazel first moved in, but if she was surprised, she didn't show that.
"How is she doing?" he nods his head toward Chris's room. "Really!" he feels the need to add, because Hazel freezes up for a second and Street can see the way her eyes shift around the room, not really settling on him.
"I don't know yet. We barely started. Yesterday took a lot out of her," Hazel carefully starts. "I know this is not the answer you were hoping for, but I want to finish my assessment first."
"So, it's worse than before you left," Street concludes and can feel the anger rising in his chest.
"I can't be sure yet, but maybe yes," Hazel worries out loud not realizing what that would do to Street in that moment. She just wanted to be honest.
"What does that mean for her SWAT assessment?" he grits out, this time the anger is obvious.
"Jim, I can't… it's too early to tell. It might be a few months before Chris can attempt that." She tries to reason with him.
"You did this!" his voice is rising. "She had come so far, and you left. And now she might not…"
"Jim, no. Stop. Even two weeks ago that would've been my answer," Hazel tries to stay calm and keep her voice low, but he just continues on in his anger. "Right," he scoffs. "You were selfish and ran away, and Chris suffers the consequences…"
Suddenly they both hear a weak voice from the door. "Would you please be quiet?" Chris croaks.
Hazel looks down at her feet before crouching down and gathering up the workout gear. "I'll just pack up and leave…" she motions for the door.
Street crosses his arms across his chest. His lips pressed together firmly. "That might be better," he manages to get out.
"No," Chris's voice freezes Hazel in her motion to her room and Street furrows his brow. "Leave that where it is." She continues and fixes her therapist with her eyes before turning to Street.
"Please, just leave if you can't stay calm," she can see him still seething and a shooting pain settles in her heart seeing his hurt plain on his face, but in Chris's mind this is the best solution. She absolutely can't risk Hazel running again.
Chris takes a few steps toward Street and tries to interlace their fingers. She gently pries on his fist until he loosens it.
"This is important to me. I will be back to full strength. But I need her to get there," she whispers while leaning against him. This short walk took a lot more out of her than she realized.
Street cradles her face with his free hand and their eyes lock. "Promise?" he whispers before lowering his lips onto hers to kiss her long and slow. His lips draw up into a smile when he hears her soft sigh.
"I'll be back this afternoon to check in," he tells both women while setting Chris down onto her feet, before leaving.
After the door has shut Chris manages to roll her eyes, but Hazel can see the telltale signs of exhaustion still clear on her face. "Come on, let's get you back to bed," she places one of Chris's arms around her neck to gently guide her back. "No, the sofa will do. I wanna talk about the next steps," Chris replies as firm as she can.
"You're still tired. We should take a break and maybe do the rest tomorrow." The therapist tries to reason, but Chris can be stubborn.
"No, okay yes, I am tired, but we need a game plan for what's next. Because I can't take you constantly offering to leave whenever there is a tiny conflict." Chris looks pointedly at Hazel who blushes a bit embarrassed. "You do realize he has a right to be angry with me though, right?"
"No, he has not. It's my decision and I still trust you. He has no say in how this goes!" Chris cuts in and disagrees.
"Okay, if you say so," Hazel states and gets up. Chris's questioning look gets "I'll grab us both a water and then we can see about that conversation you want to have,".
When Hazel returns to the sofa Chris looks expectantly at her. She claps her hands lightly and asks "So, what are our options?"
"I'll be honest, your heart and lungs worry me. Your reaction to that little morning session was too extreme. And I'd prefer getting you into the hospital for some scans and detailed tests before I make any decisions," Hazel places her bottle down looking apologetic.
"Could this be still withdrawal? A delayed reaction? It never was this bad after the VX…" Chris muses and Hazel's head whips around in confusion. "VX? When? Recent?" she stammers out in shock.
"No, a few years ago by now. And I bounced back from that quickly. Don't worry, the doctors know," Chris tries to stop the runaway train in her friend's head. "So could it be delayed reaction to withdrawal?"
"No, I don't think so. More like your body fighting being overworked," Hazel sounds sad, and Chris reaches over. "It's not your fault. You did what you thought was best for you, and us."
After that the two spend the afternoon planning the next few weeks and Chris nods her head in understanding when it becomes clear she won't make it back onto SWAT as quickly as everyone had hoped.
Even without the scans Hazel estimated at least two to three months of at home therapy before she was ready for outpatient treatment and maybe some light jogging. And that was just the best-case scenario.