Non canon 3x20

Vera talks to Shaun about the importance of moving on, Lea overhears everything and it makes her realize she was wrong to reject Shaun.

"I understand, I still want Lea to be my girlfriend"

"But she doesn't feel the same way?"

"I have autism"

"Oh, Shaun, that shouldn't matter, its not a reason for someone to refuse to be with someone."

"I wished that were true"

"What do you mean?"

"Everyone, I have ever cared about or should have cared about me, didn't because of my ASD. It's hard to live with hope when no one wants you around."

"I'm sure that's not true, there is someone out there, waiting to meet you, who you are meant to love and who will love you in return, flaws and all."

"My coworker told me, that you should be with the person who makes you more. Only Lea has ever made me more, but I don't make her more, or she would want to be my girlfriend."

"If we make it out of here, let's promise each other that we will move on. You can find someone better than Lea."

"No, I don't want to move on"

"But she doesn't feel..."

"I don't want to move on because I want to move away. I don't feel like I belong here anymore, without her in my life, I feel empty. When I loved here to start my residency, I lived alone, I had no friends, and I had no interest in love, its only brought me pain. I don't know how else to deal with the heartache, other than to go back to how my life was before"

"Where would you go?"

"I'm not sure, I can't go back to Wyoming because it reminds me of my brother who died but now it also reminds me of Lea. But I can't stay here because everywhere reminds me of Lea. Even if I were to stay and never see her again, it would still hurt because of all the memories, so if I go somewhere, where there are no memories, maybe I could move on enough that I'd be ok to live without love again. So, I will probably go to where ever I can transfer my residency too, so that I can at least continue to be a doctor."

"Why did you want to become a doctor?

"To save people, so they could grow up, have their own families, and love that family. I want to make sure that they get to do what my brother could not. He died because he loved me. Sometimes I think that maybe everyone would have been better off it had been me who died instead of him. Our parents wanted him, they didn't want me. No one wants me"

"Shaun, I'm sure that's not true, I'm sure there are people who love having you as a friend. Earlier you talked about your coworker. She wouldn't give you advice if she didn't care about you and then earlier your boss told you to keep the line open so she could hear you, boss or not, she wouldn't have said that if she didn't care about you. We just met, but in the time we've been trapped in here, do you want to know what I've learned about you?'

"Hmm"

"You do care about others more than you realize and anyone who knows you and doesn't see what an amazing man you are, is an idiot. Is Lea the first? Have you ever had a girlfriend before?"

"Yes, but she broke up with because she could see that I loved Lea more than I loved her, I tried to deny it but she helped me see the truth. She told me how much it hurt her to break up with me but she wanted me to be happy."

"How was your relationship before she broke up with you?"

"It was hard for me because I felt like I had to impress her. She was my first, and she got upset with me because I didn't give her what I called a 'parade'. So I asked my female coworkers for advice, and they told me to take the focus I have as a surgeon and apply it to my girlfriend. So I did and then she was happy but then she wanted to have sex all the time, but I still had issues with her constantly touching me, but I still tried because I wanted her to be happy and love me, but in the end it wasn't enough."

"Shaun, right there is what I'm talking about. You care so deeply for those you care about. You show it in your own way. If we were all the same, life would get so boring. People who don't care about others feelings wouldn't try to make it better and they definitely wouldn't ask for advice. You said you struggled with her touching you, what makes you think it would be any different with Lea?"

"Lea is the only person that I have ever known, who could physically touch me and I wouldn't pull away. When she would hug me, I felt complete, comfort, and total peace. She's the only person who has ever been able to calm me down in the middle of a meltdown and that I was able to find comfort in their arms. Even my brother Steve, couldn't touch me. No one has ever been able too, except for her." Shawn sighs.

At that moment another aftershock hit and broke the pipe near them and now water was rushing in.

"Shaun, are you ok down there?" Lim asked

"I am ok, except for the water. Please hurry!"

Lea who had been listening the entire time, looked up with tears streaming down her face at the desperation and terror in his voice. Lea went to a firefighter who had given her the walkie to let him know, they needed to rescue Shaun and his patient before they drowned. He told her they were doing the best they could but the building was too unstable now to send anyone in. That she needed to convince Dr. Murphy to save himself.

Lea took a deep breath, "Shaun? It's Lea"

"Lea why are you still here if you've been rescued? You should be at the hospital"

"I stayed to help"

"I don't need you, I need a rescue worker"

"Shaun, they are doing the best they can but you need to get out of there, its not safe"

"Vera can't leave"

Vera spoke up, "Shaun, you need to leave"

"If I leave, you die"

If you stay, we both die. You can't cut through the rebar in time."

"I can't cut through the rebar" he paused "But I can, cut through your leg"

Lea looked at the walkie in shock.

Shaun explained what he was going to do with a history story. "Do you consent to the procedure?"

"No. I have one condition, you have to promise me that if I don't make it, that you'll move on from Lea. You deserve to find love. You need too. You're down here risking your life for me right? Well this is me, risking my life for you. Promise me you'll move on Shaun, promise."

"I promise"

Lea felt her heart shatter, she had been so wrong about Shaun.

"Ok, let's do this"

"Lea are you still there?"

Lea gulped, "Yes"

"I need you to count the seconds from 1 to 180, I want to know how close to three minutes I am."

"How will that help you?"

"I don't think it will, but it might distract you from the screaming"

Lea's mouth dropped open in shock. Then the screaming started, so Lea started counting. She was trying not to cry through the counting because she could hear how much Shaun was struggling in the water. Once she got to 180, she told Shaun that was three minutes. Then all noise stopped and Lea felt her heart stop. She started crying out Shaun's name but no answer came. The past few weeks flashed through Lea's mind. The hurtful things they had said to each other. The look of heartache on Shaun's face the last time she saw him. She regretted everything. She did love Shaun, she was just afraid that they wouldn't be good for each other, due to her own fears about how she knew she was and his autism, now none of that mattered, she was now afraid that she had lost her chance to let them be together. Everything she had heard him and Vera tell each other, it had made it clear to her that she had been completely wrong about the man she had been in love with for a long time. Lea's thoughts were broken by a rescue worker telling her it was time to. There was nothing left to do. But she couldn't move, then she heard "we got someone" without a second though she ran back into the building. She reached the hallway to see them pulling Vera out and she could see the woman was alive but where was Shaun? Then once Vera was out of the way, she Shaun looking up and she felt like she could breathe again.

Lea followed everyone outside, as Shaun helped load Vera into the ambulance. Once she was loaded, Shaun looked around and saw Lea standing there. Lea saw him look at her and she rushed him and pressed her lips to his. He told her that he didn't know what that was, and she told him it was a I'm such a stupid idiot for not seeing it, but I love you with my whole heart kiss and here's another. She kissed him again, and then looked at him with hope in her eyes. He looked at her and mentioned his promised to Vera but she didn't die so he didn't have to keep it. She smiled and told him that he made her more. Then he pulled her into a kiss and into his arms and that's how they stayed for who knows how long.