Open Heart One Shots (Choices)

Begin Again

Summary: Cassie needs closure on the events of the poison attack.

The hallowed halls of Boston's Trinity Church were solemn as befitted the occasion. The morning sun shone through the stained glass windows above the sanctuary, casting a kaleidoscope of colors across the wall. Under the soaring ceiling, painted decorations, colorful mosaics and vibrant murals brought home the sacred nature of worship.

The reverend presiding over the Easter Sunday service spoke of redemption, forgiveness and a chance to live a better life. Cassie Valentine bowed her head in prayer, letting the serene words from the sermon wash over her troubled thoughts.

Six months ago, she had been on death's door, waiting for the poison coursing through her body to claim another victim. Cassie hadn't fully realized how precious life was until that moment.

Over time, she had come to accept what she couldn't change and thought she had forgiven herself for her role in the events leading up to that moment. As the choir's voices rose in song, she wondered if the words were divinity's way of telling her it was time to move on.

When she stepped up to the altar to receive Communion, she felt the peace she'd been seeking warm her insides. And yet, a niggling sense of disquiet remained as she buttoned up her red spring coat, the thick material flaring around her knees, and headed home.

There was one more step she needed to take to begin again.

Two days later, Cassie swiped her card and pushed the handle to slide open the doors to the diagnostic team's office. She'd just finished her half-shift in the ICU when she received a page from Ethan.

"Do we have a case?" she asked, sitting in the visitor's chair across from his desk.

He glanced up from the computer screen and removed the reading glasses perched on the bridge of his nose.

"No, but your labs are back," he said, picking up a patient file and flipping it open.

Ethan had been running Cassie's bloodwork every month since the attack. The treatment she and Rafael had received was experimental, and there was no telling how long it would hold or what was the long-term effect.

As he'd done during the poison attack, Ethan took over as her treating physician, monitoring her labs and scans for any signs of change.

"Your white blood cell count and ESR are slightly elevated," he said, handing her a printout of the test results. "But within the accepted range. So it might just be due to the cold you were battling last week."

Cassie scanned the results and noted the pathologist's comments at the bottom of the page. All clear, she sighed in relief.

"There's still residual scarring on your lungs." He glanced at his computer monitor.

Ethan swiveled the screen sideways so she could see the X-ray scan. He pointed to the faint shadowy lines, circling the area with the laser pointer on his pen. "But it's less than it was before, so...."

Cassie hid a smile at his objective tone. Technically, it was frowned upon for physicians to treat their families and loved ones. But no one dared tell Dr. Ramsey whom he could or couldn't take on as a patient. Not that she wanted anyone else in charge of her care.

"...using the inhaler for now, especially if you feel your chest tightening after a run," he continued. "Don't let things exacerbate. You might think you're fine, but your body doesn't."

Cassie listened to Ethan while reading the radiologist's report. She asked him a few questions and felt satisfied with her progress. But something had been bothering her since church on Sunday, and she decided to just ask him.