"Thought you said you could take care of her," Vin commented, coming to stand beside Josiah outside of the treatment bay, and endeavoring to find some means of ensuring the remark was not taken as a sincere critique of the man's actions, thus far, "Buck an' I leave, and everythin' goes to shit."

"Seems it would've gone that way anyway, brother."

"What's that mean?"

"Means I don't think your presence would've done anything to make things any different," Josiah clarified, turning from his careful observation of the treatment bay his would-be charge had been taken to, and doing what he could to tamp down the frustration he felt that there had been virtually no sign that anyone tending to her would leave to give him an update any time soon in favor of looking to Vin, instead, "They're still working on JD."

"Shit."

"Yeah. It's not lookin' good."

"She - did she see-"

"Walked right in on it. Tore her apart, and now, here we are."

"She gonna be okay?" Vin asked, following Josiah's gaze as it returned to the curtain blocking Emma from view, and then glancing a few feet away, where Ezra sat in a chair, a long-forgotten styrofoam cup of coffee held between both hands, "Is he gonna be okay?"

"Not sure any one of us can answer that at this point. All we can do is-"

"Wait."

"And pray," Josiah finished, straightening a bit as soon as he noted the first signs of movement from behind the curtain, his attention zeroing in on the man that moved that thin barrier aside, while instinct prompted him to move forward almost without fully being aware he had done so, "How is she, Doc?"

"I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to discuss-"

"Ain't askin' for the nitty gritty. Just wanna know if she's gonna be okay."

Holding out a hand in hopes of stalling Vin's apparent frustration, Josiah offered the man standing before them what he hoped would be a convincing attempt at a smile, his understanding of the metaphorical rock and hard place that the doctor faced at odds with his own need to do whatever he could to help the young woman in question in the first place. He had never been very good at turning a blind eye to people in need, whether they were fully willing to accept his assistance or not.

He was even worse at the task when the person in question was family.

"Neither of us is expectin' you to go into detail, friend. We just need to know how she's doin'."

"She's fine. Other than being exhausted, which I'm sure you already knew," The doctor replied, glancing between the two men, the concern they both felt for Emma apparent in every last detail of their expressions, "We ran some blood work just to be safe, but she should be on her feet in a few minutes."

"Don't really think she should be workin'."

"Believe me, I agree. But she's far from being willing to listen to anything I have to say on the matter."

"Maybe we oughtta try," Vin suggested, looking to Josiah, and feeling the smallest hints of relief that the older man seemed to be thinking the exact same thing, if the way in which he had already started to move past the doctor, only pausing long enough to clap the man on the shoulder by way of thanks were any indication. For a moment, Vin realized, it almost seemed as though the doctor wanted to stop them. To encourage letting the apparently reluctant patient rest a while longer in solitude. But just as he had been prepared to offer any number of protests, he found the effort rendered futile as the man simply stayed behind while he and Josiah headed toward the treatment bay, his own steps slowing for just long enough that he could address the man first-hand.

"Hey Doc-"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

The man only offered a single nod in acknowledgement, but Vin was willing to let that slide as he turned to follow behind Josiah, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he watched the man slowly pull back the curtain, his entire demeanor having already shifted into the familiar, relaxed persona he adopted when approaching someone who had just suffered an unbearable trauma…

If any one of them could reach Emma - could help her through this, no matter what the outcome - Josiah would likely be the one best suited for the cause.

Buck Wilmington sat beside the hospital bed with the steady beep of the monitor drilling itself into his head, knowing, on some level, that even if he never heard the sound again, he would remember it to his dying day. It wasn't that he doubted his decision to remain here, despite knowing what had happened with JD since he and Vin left the night before. Not really. But as Buck continued to linger in silence, with nothing to distract him from the dark turn in his own thoughts, he would have been a liar to pretend that he did not wish he could be doing something more.

If Buck hated anything this world, it was the idea of being helpless. Of knowing people around him were suffering, and there wasn't a damned thing he could do to stop it.

Stifling a groan of frustration, Buck ran both hands across his face, the heels of his hands pressing against his eyelids as he hunched over in the chair beside the bed, the bones in his spine popping in protest along the way. He had never been very good at waiting, certainly not as a young boy, and definitely not as a man who really ought to have known better. And as he emitted yet another sigh, straightening until he could lean back against the chair he occupied while allowing his attention to stray to Chris, instead, Buck caught himself shaking his head, resignation apparent in his tone as he spoke aloud to a man he was all but certain would not hear a word he had to say.

"Hell, Chris, I know ya ain't one for long conversations, but I'd kill for just a small grunt from you right about now-"

"If he wasn't sedated, you'd probably be getting more than just grunts right about now," An unexpected voice began, startling Buck and effectively diverting his attention as he turned to watch the doctor he recognized from a shared meal with Emma and JD what felt like ages ago, now, step into the room, his eyes reading the monitors beside the bed for only a moment before he turned to the only other conscious man in the room once again, "I imagine he won't be too comfortable, least until those wounds start healing up a bit more."

"Nathan, right?"

"That's me," Nathan confirmed, aware of how Buck seemed to straighten instinctively as soon as he had approached, and holding out a hand to waylay the question he highly suspected was coming, not that the gesture did any good as it appeared as though it had not even registered at all.

"JD?"

"Still kicking. Managed to bring him back, despite him trying to leave on us a few times. Now we just-"

"Watch and wait."

"Reckon so."

"Damn," Buck cursed, hardly pleased at the prospect of what would likely be at least another day or so of succumbing to the helpless feeling that plagued him at nearly every turn, though he knew even that had to be better than the alternative, had JD actually not been revived, "Sorry, Doc, I just - ain't good at this kind of stuff. Never have been."

"I don't think I've met anyone that is," Nathan assured, hating that he had no words - no encouragement to provide to any one of the people who were so clearly invested in the lives of the two men under his care. He had been under no illusions when he started down this particular career path that he could save everyone. That he, and the families of the patients he served would always be parting on good terms. But something about the way this entire situation had rallied practical strangers together, standing vigil for not only JD and Chris, but Emma as well, had Nathan hoping with all he had that just this once, things would turn out in their favor.

He really didn't know what the hell he was supposed to do if they did not.

"Your friend here seems pretty strong," He encouraged, hoping the words would sound convincing, though he was not entirely certain the effort was a success, given how drained he was after what had just transpired with JD, "I'm thinking if everything keeps on as it has, he should be awake in a day, two at the most."

"That's - that's good," Buck managed, dragging a hand through his hair, and knowing that he had to accept that as a win, whether or not he knew they would all likely face a crippling loss where their other fallen teammate was concerned, "Emma's gonna need a - shit."

"What?"

"Emma. Someone needs to - with everythin' happenin' with JD, someone should-"

"She isn't alone, Buck. Not in the slightest," Nathan interjected, almost immediately realizing the depth of the other man's distress, caught between the obvious beginnings of affection afforded to the sister of his injured friend, and the desire to remain beside Chris at the exact same time, "Saw your man Ezra with her while Rain and I were working on JD. And that big fellow - can't remember his name, I'm sorry."

"Josiah," Buck supplied, surprised at the small smile that tugged at his lips, and hurrying to explain it as soon as he caught wind of Nathan's understandably skeptical glance, "Don't worry about gettin' all our names straight on the first go, Doc. We're a hell of a bunch to get used to in the best of times, and these ain't the best of times."

"Way I see it, you're a pretty good bunch for a person to know."

"Well thanks. S'pose that's good to hear, when we're makin' a point of monopolizing your lives like this."

"All a part of the job," Nathan shrugged, hoping the remark would ease his companion's obvious concerns, even though it did nothing to assuage his own. He left unsaid the fact that if JD should start going downhill again, it was highly unlikely that they would be able to bring him back, even in spite of the efforts he knew everyone involved would make to defy that fate. But somehow, even with that careful omission, Nathan knew with just one look at Buck's expression that what he had skimmed over had not been missed at all.

"Chris is gonna want to know 'bout the kid when he wakes up."

"I know."

"Guess it makes me a fool if I'm hopin' that news is gonna be the good kind."

"No. No it doesn't. What that makes you is the sort of man that cares about your friend, and doesn't want to see him hurting any worse than he already is," Nathan surmised, once again forced to hope his words would have the desired impact, though he was still plagued with doubts as to how successful the venture might be on the whole, "We're gonna do everything we can to make sure everyone comes out of this, alright? I need you to believe that."

"Ain't believin' it that's the problem, Doc," Buck confessed, allowing another sigh to break free, and risking a glance at Nathan before turning his attention back to Chris once again, "You let me know if ya need anythin' for JD. Emma, too. I ain't plannin' on leavin' this place again til we know where things stand, one way or another."

Whether Nathan had his doubts as to the wisdom of such a claim, he knew that he would have been a fool to try and dissuade Buck from following through, no matter what the cost might be to the man's own well-being in the process.

Hell of a bunch to get to know, indeed.

Left alone with Emma while Josiah attempted to assuage her restlessness by going to check on JD himself, Vin caught himself wondering if he might not be better suited to simply go along with her stubborn insistence to let her get up on her own two feet. She was certainly not showing any signs of being willing to back down, even with his own penchant for keeping a wary hand on her shoulder when she made even the smallest hints of attempting to get up on her own. And as much as he had liked to believe he was not the sort to be afraid of a woman, Vin found himself tempted to reconsider such a claim when faced with the narrowed eyes and pursed lips he encountered when he moved to gently press Emma back onto the bed for what felt like the hundredth time in a mere half an hour.

"You do realize the only way you're going to keep me from trying to get past you is to sedate me, right?"

"Ain't got a means of doin' that, even if I wanted to," Vin remarked, aware of the skeptically raised brow Emma was favoring him with, now, and returning the look with one he hoped would show her that he had no intentions of backing down, only to find his expression turning to favor surprise as soon as he heard her ensuing retort.

"Don't kid yourself. You probably want to."

"Didn't say that."

"You didn't really have to," Emma sighed, shifting on the bed until her legs were crossed beneath her, for the moment at least, resigned to the fact that she would not win herself any favors with her would-be guard by pushing her luck, "I'm fine."

"Right. They told me you passed out, but I'm sure that's just dandy."

"It's not - that's not-"

"Not what?"

"It was a fluke."

"A fluke," Vin repeated, unable to completely stop the scoff that broke free, though he was pleased to see that Emma did not seem to take offense at the open disbelief in the slightest, "Thought you were s'posed to be a doctor."

"I am a doctor."

"Reckon that means you should know better than to shrug this off, then."

"Who said I was shrugging anything off?" Emma questioned, not entirely sure of why she was so hell-bent on persisting as she was, when a small part of her knew it would hardly succeed in distracting her from the news Josiah had gone after - news she wasn't entirely sure she was ready to hear, "I think I'd know if something more serious was going on."

"I ain't so sure you're right on that."

"Oh? Would you care to elaborate on that?"

"Think you already know what I'd say anyway. Probably find a way of sayin' it better, too."

"Not as good as Ezra, though."

"No. I don't think anybody could manage to talk like him, an' I'd be scared as hell if I found anyone that ever did," Vin agreed, startled by the laugh that escaped before he could stop it, and equally surprised when the sound provoked a subtle grin to form on Emma's lips as well, "That's a compliment, by the way."

"I figured as much. Even if I'm not too sure I deserve it."

"Why the hell wouldn't you be?"

"All of this that's going on and you really have to ask?" Emma asked, taking note of the apparent confusion in Vin's expression, and dropping her eyes to her hands for a moment as she realized she had started to pick at a loose thread in the blanket beneath her without ever being fully aware of it at all, "JD told me about this job. How excited he was, and I just - I shut him down. And then there's Chris-"

"What about Chris? Way I understand it, you saved his life."

"No. No, I didn't. Not - not at first."

"Not sure I follow."

"I'm not sure I want you to."

"Think ya could try and explain anyway?" Vin pressed, risking a step closer to where Emma sat, and giving in to at least some of the relief he felt as she made no immediate attempt to pull away. She had taken to avoiding his gaze entirely, her teeth chewing at her lower lip while her fingers picked at the blanket she sat upon as though her life depended on it. It was painfully clear that she was troubled by something. But try though he might, Vin could not make heads or tails of exactly what that something might be…

Whatever it was, though, given what little he knew of her so far, he highly suspected that most of her apparent guilt was thoroughly self-imposed.

There was just no way she could be responsible for whatever it was that caused the haunted look in her eyes as she looked up at him once again, and swallowed stiffly before summoning the wherewithal to speak.

"You'll hate me."

"Why don't you let me decide on that? I get the feelin' I'm gonna end up provin' you wrong."

Sensing she was not about to dissuade the man from his apparent belief, Emma forced herself to manage a faint nod, steeling herself for what she was about to disclose, and praying with everything she had that she would not, somehow, end up proven wrong. Something in Vin's demeanor seemed to suggest that he was not exactly the type to dole out judgment, even when that judgment may be deserved. And while Emma was not entirely sure she was worthy of such consideration, in light of everything that had happened, she was surprisingly determined to latch onto the opportunity if there was even the slightest chance that someone would be around to pick up the pieces if she fell apart at the seams.

"Josiah said you already - that Rain already told your group about Paul," Emma began, trying in vain to hide the wince that passed across her features at the mention of the name, her fingers tightening around the fabric of the blanket before she forced herself to go on, "That Chris was there for - for that, too?"

"She did."

"So when I saw JD - when I saw he was the one bringing him in, I just-"

"You just what?"

"I was awful. Beyond awful. I lashed out, without thinking, and he damn near died because of it."

"C'mon now, ya can't be thinkin' about blamin' yourself for that. Seems like you reacted the way any other sane person would," Vin began, reaching out a hand on instinct to place atop Emma's in hopes that the gesture would stop the endless fiddling with the blanket, and frowning as soon as he realized that this time, she did seem more than a little inclined to pull away, "Sorry. It's just - it don't seem fair that you're puttin' all of this on yourself."

"Would it seem a bit closer to being fair if I added that I think a part of me knew Chris was injured all along, and I still let my own anger get in the way?"

"No."

"I - what?"

"Said no. Reckon ya heard me well enough the first time."

"I did," Emma admitted, her brow furrowed as she tried and failed to rationalize a response she had never once expected, no matter the hopes she had in some shred of forgiveness being given to her at all, "Still doesn't mean it makes sense."

"Doesn't have to. Just the way it is."

"He could have died! Because of my mistake! Exactly how am I the innocent in all of this?"

"Nobody's really innocent in this world, least not with it the way it is right now," Vin mused, relieved that the comment seemed to have garnered Emma's attention, and hoping with all he had that at least some of what he said next would get through to her at all, "But, way I see it, we're all about as likely as anyone else to let our emotions get in the way of things. Happens to us in our line of work, same as yours."

"But-"

"I ain't quite done yet," Vin cut in, tempering the interruption with a faint smile, and once again feeling the slightest hints of relief that Emma had not taken offense, instead choosing to simply emit a small sigh while waiting for him to go on, "You did the best you could. When it counted, you put all that anger you're busy hatin' yourself for to the side, and helped Chris. That's all that matters."

Stunned by the absolute certainty she could feel behind the words, Emma opened her mouth to reiterate exactly how undeserving she was of such a thing, only to find that when she did, no words came out at all. She could feel the burning in her cheeks that came about in response, and almost immediately prepared to duck her head down not long thereafter. But before she could fully commit to the act, she found her attention grabbed by the sudden appearance of JD's partner - Buck, she recalled - at the door, her heart lurching in her chest in fear of still more bad news, until she realized the strange twist at the corners of his mouth were what could only be described as the beginnings of a smile.

"Hate to go interruptin' this little pow-wow, but I figure the two of ya are gonna wanna hear this," He said, glancing first at Vin, and then towards Emma in time to note that she had already started to rise from the bed, heedless of the way her body seemed to sway in response until Vin was at her side with a steady hand close by to keep her upright.

"Chris is awake. An' he's askin' for you."

Whether Emma could fully decide precisely why her presence was a requirement at all, she would have been lying if she were to pretend she was not at least a little bit relieved that at least one of the men this team seemed to care for was improving even a tiny bit, rather than taking a turn for the worse.

"If - if Josiah comes back - with - with news on JD-"

"I'll go let him know where to find ya," Vin offered, almost immediately aware of the relief that came into Emma's expression as soon as she realized he had taken what would have been a hell of a choice between her patient and her brother, and removed it from her shoulders, entirely, "You go with Buck, an' see Chris. Damn fool'll probably get up and start searchin' the hospital for ya himself if you don't."

"Guess I'll just pass that comment along when we see him. That good with you, Vin?" Buck teased, a soft chuckle escaping in response to the half-hearted glare he got in response, before he turned his attention back to Emma, and reached to loop her arm through his before she had a chance to even think about trying to protest.

"Don't even think about tryin' to pull away, little lady. Chris'll have my hide if I get you there in anythin' less than one piece."

"Little lady," Emma repeated, turning to favor Buck with a skeptical glance, and finding herself surprised by the sudden return of a slight smile pulling at her lips, even in spite of the reality of the circumstances they all seemed to share, "Seriously?"

"I work with what I've got," Buck shrugged, pulling Emma just a bit closer to his side, and noting that she seemed a bit more sure-footed with each step as a result, "Vin's right, you know. 'Bout not blamin' yourself for this. An' I think you'll have a hell of a hard time on your hands with the rest of us if you decide to not listen to him after all."

Still not entirely certain she was capable of letting herself off the hook that easily, Emma somehow managed to force herself to manage a singular nod, surprise momentarily overwhelming her at how quickly she had allowed herself to take some small measure of comfort in Buck's steady presence at her side.

Though she hardly felt she deserved it, for the first time in a very long time, she felt like she might just be able to say she was no longer in the position of facing everything on her own…