If I can't have you

Chapter 22

Nico couldn't feel anything. He just didn't care about anything. He wouldn't even be eating if it wasn't for Levi giving Nico his water-filled eyes that Levi knew that he couldn't say no to every time he refused to eat. He had been responsible for his brothers death he just knew it. The police investigation and all his friends said otherwise but what did they know? Levi had broken the news to him about Min-Jun's death soon after he woke up and he had curled up into a ball and refused to talk or look anybody in the eye. He'd stayed like this for several hours and would likely have stayed that way for longer if Levi hadn't grabbed his hand and looked at him in a way that made him feel that he was not only the most important man in the world to Levi but the only one that he could ever imagine loving. And in that moment, he felt his heart breaking at the knowledge of what he would be forced to put Levi through as a result of what happened.

What they didn't realise was that he was responsible and no one could change his mind about that. The police were almost certain that the man that had shot at them through the hospital window was someone that had been hired by Min-jee. They couldn't be certain, however, as when the gunman had been apprehended on the rooftop of the warehouse that overlooked Nico's room, he did admit to being hired by Min-jee but there was no paper trail linking her to him. They were trying all avenues to try and find a way of establishing the trail but it had so far proved to be unsuccessful. The police had quizzed him on any possible motive Min-jee could have for carrying out the attack on her brothers but he has just curled up further into w ball and muttered over and over again about a ball. Levi thought that Nico's parents were being oddly strange about the whole thing ; they were often heard muttering in corners and when they were questioned by the police, they danced around their daughter. It was clear that something was going on and the Kims knew about it.

#####

Link was in the middle of what was perhaps the most important surgery in his life but he was distracted. The only thing he should be thinking of was Crystal, the small girl who lay open on his table but he was finding that Nico and Levi kept creeping into his thoughts. His fellow had not been the same since his brothers death just over a week ago. Link had seen the heartbreak in Nico's eyes when he had been told and known that he had wished that it had been him instead of his brother. On the brief occasions that he had met Min-Jun he had gotten the sense that he and Nico had always been close. He'd found himself wishing that he could take Nico's place and take his pain away. That kid had already suffered enough in his book.

He was drawn out of his daydream by a nurse calling his name. He slammed back to reality to find there to be various machines starting to scream and nurses started to yell out the readings. His gloves becomes even more covered in blood and his training began to kick in. He began to rap out instructions to the nurses in an attempt to try and save this girls life. Crystal was a girl that had needed to live. This was a patient that had really impacted in that Crystal reminded him so much of Amelia. They were both spunky, confident and full of life. The girls even laughed in a similar way. But what hurt the most was that Crystal was only nine years old. Just at the beginning of life and he had to help her.

The blood was seemingly never ending. This was a simple joint reconstruction, Link knew she shouldn't be bleeding so much but something was making her do so. In the middle of all the madness of trying to clear a path to the source of the bleeding, there was a buzz from overhead and Link looked up to see Taryn Helm standing in the gallery. Her voice echoed out over the panicked theatre "Dr Lincoln, Dr Shepherd requests your presence as soon as your done in here."

####

Amelia Shepard was the most nervous that she had ever been in her life. She was pacing in the on call room, wringing her hands. How on Earth was she supposed to tell him? They were too early in the relationship weren't they? The door slammed open and Link strode into the room still in theatre scrubs. Clearly he had come straight from the theatre and it had not gone to plan according to the amount of blood that was visible on those scrubs. She started to internally panic. She couldn't drop this bombshell on him if he'd just lost a patient. Amelia blanched even further when she remembered the name on the board: Crystal Luzon. She definitely could not tell him now. Deaths of children always hit Link harder than any of her other colleagues because of his cancer as a kid. She couldn't do it now.

She heard her name be called faintly and realised that Link was talking, fast and with his hands moving anxiously through the air as he talked. She mentally breathed a sign of relief. This was the Link she was used to. One that was calm and collected and the complete opposite of Amelia herself. She let herself tune in to what Link was saying letting a smile come across her face as she did so. "The blood just came out of nowhere. She just started bleeding out on me and I just panicked. I mean it was a simple joint reconstruction. I swear there isn't supposed to be that much blood. And it was in the middle of that that Helm turned up so I'm sorry that I left you waiting for so long."

Amelia grabbed his hand at this point and gave it a tight squeeze. "Link, it's okay. As long as Crystal is okay, it doesn't matter how long it took you to show up."

Link chuckled in response, "She pulled through. A stupid intern nicked one of her arteries but I fixed it and gave the intern a good yelling afterwards. Anyway, what did you want to talk to me about?"

Amelia let out a big sigh and decided to just let it out. "Link I'm pregnant." She watched as the blood drain from Link's face and his hands come up to drag through his hair. His breathing started to pick up and she watched as Link went into the early stages of a full blown panic attack.

Hi guys. Sorry I've been gone for so long. I had a lot of things happen in my personal life but I'm back now. Hope you guys enjoy the new chapter