The aftermath of a save in a bar is different from a save in the OR. In the OR, there is the hum of monitors and the professional scurry of nurses. At Joe's, there was only the smell of spilled whiskey, the sticky copper tang of blood on the floorboards, and the oppressive silence of a dozen patrons staring at Christopher as if he'd just performed dark magic.
Christopher stood by the pool table, a blood-stained bar towel clutched in his hand. He looked at Jack. The lawyer hadn't moved. He was still standing by the booth, his charcoal suit jacket ruined by a spray of arterial spray from when the pressure had released.
"You're a surgeon," Jack repeated. It wasn't a question this time. It was a closing argument. "The 'consultant' bit. The 'high-stakes' office. That was all... what? A roleplay?"
"It wasn't a roleplay, Jack," Christopher said, his voice regaining its sharp, defensive edge. He hated being caught. He hated the feeling of the mask slipping. "I'm twenty-one. If I tell people I'm a triple-board-certified surgeon before I've had my first drink, they usually spend the rest of the night asking me to look at their moles or wondering if I'm a 'Doogie Howser' reboot. I wanted one night where I wasn't a freak of nature."
Jack stepped forward, his eyes scanning Christopher with a new, clinical intensity. "You just stabbed a man in the chest with a steak knife and a drinking straw. You didn't even blink. That's not just 'being a doctor,' Christopher. That's being something else entirely."
"It's being efficient," Christopher snapped, his sarcasm returning like a shield. "Would you have preferred I let him die over the appetizers so we could maintain the 'consultant' ruse? I'm sure the legal liability would have been a fascinating conversation for you."
Jack let out a short, dry laugh, shaking his head. "Always with the bite. Even when you're covered in blood." He looked down at his ruined sleeve. "I've spent my life around high-performers, Christopher. Judges, CEOs, politicians. But I've never seen anyone flip a switch like that. You went from a cynical kid at a bar to a god in ten seconds flat."
Christopher felt the weight of his secret pressing against his ribs. He wanted to tell Jack that he'd seen this happen a hundred times in a show that didn't exist here. He wanted to tell him that he knew exactly how to save that man because he'd memorized the anatomy of every "Grey's" disaster before he'd ever touched a real human heart.
Instead, he just looked at his hands. They were still shaking—not from the surgery, but from the adrenaline of the reveal.
"I have to go back," Christopher said quietly. "The hospital... they'll need a full report. And Meredith Grey has a big mouth. By tomorrow morning, the Chief will have a transcript of this entire evening."
"Right," Jack said, his expression unreadable. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card—thick, cream-colored cardstock with Brady, Vance, & Associates embossed in gold. He slid it onto the bar. "Since you ruined my suit, you owe me a dinner where nobody gets stabbed. And this time, use your real title when you make the reservation."
Christopher picked up the card, his fingers brushing the gold lettering. "You aren't running for the hills?"
"I'm a lawyer, Christopher," Jack said, a slow, dangerous smirk appearing on his face. "I like complicated cases. And you? You're the most complicated thing I've seen in years."
Christopher watched him walk out of the bar, his stride confident despite the bloodstains. He felt a strange, terrifying flutter in his chest—a cardiac event he couldn't diagnose.
He turned back to the bar, where Joe was already mopping up the mess.
"Hey, Doc," Joe said, not looking up. "Next time, use the back room for the surgery. It's easier to clean."
Christopher didn't answer. He walked out into the cool Seattle night, his mind already racing ahead. He knew what was coming next at the hospital. He knew the fallout. He knew the gossip.
But for the first time, he didn't know what was going to happen with Jack Brady. And that, more than anything, was the most exhilarating part of his new life.