The Night Shift Episode 2.08 Best Laid Plans

As the shift starts, Gwen confides in Jordan that she and Kenny slept together, but she's worried he'll think of it as a one-time thing. Just then, the two best friends turn around to see Krista has been standing behind them. She heard everything.

But there's no time for jealousy - a building collapsed downtown and there are mass casualties. Gwen, TC and Drew head to the site to set up triage, but when they get there they notice a mystery medic has already gotten injured, and one patient tells them he was treated by a Guardian Angel. TC spots a guy wrapping a patient's wrist across the debris and introduces himself. The guy's name is Bennett, and he's a former Army medic who's down on his luck. He's clearly skilled and qualified, so TC asks him to stick around and help them out. Bennett is happy to help and gets started on the walking wounded. But a few hours later, TC, Gwen and Drew are wrapping up with the last few patients when they realize Bennett is missing. Just then, there's a huge explosion from inside the building - could he be inside? The doctors race in and find Bennett buried under a pile of rubble. They go to pull him out and see his arm has been completely severed from his body!

Drew and TC rush Bennett back to the hospital and get him into surgery to reattach his arm. During the procedure, TC opens up to Drew about how he ended up enlisting in the Army. When they were younger, he and Thad stole a car to go joyriding, but when they got busted and hauled into the station, they looked up at the TV to see the second plane crash into the World Trade Center. It was a true come-to-Jesus moment, and the brothers convinced the judge that if she let them off, they'd enlist immediately. Bennett's surgery goes smoothly, and miraculously, he'll regain full use of his arm. When he wakes up, Drew and TC give him even better news: they called up the VA and enlisted him in a new program that gets Army medics jobs in VA emergency centers. Bennett is shocked and grateful - he, too, has a Guardian Angel.

Meanwhile, it's Paul's first day on surgical rotation, and his famous neurosurgeon father, Julian Cummings, has showed up to the ER unannounced. While Paul heads into surgery with Scott, his dad volunteers to help out with the flood of casualties. But when Paul comes back to get the next patient for Scott, Julian tells him there's a different patient who is more critical and should be up next. Scott comes by to see what the hold-up is, and Julian tells him he picked the wrong guy for surgery. He then pushes his way into Scott's OR, where he argues with Scott over the type of blade to use in the surgery. After incessantly getting on Scott's case for doing things the wrong way, Scott finally kicks him out of his OR. He can't believe Paul's been putting up with this man his whole life.

Down in the ER, Jordan has a large middle-aged man named Christian Boone who was found passed out on the sidewalk and is having trouble breathing. When he hears about the explosion he starts freaking out - he owns a diner in that neighborhood and his goddaughter lives there. Suddenly he spots a patient across the room - it's Alex, his goddaughter! When Alex comes to, she asks how the building blew up. Krista says it was a gas-line leak, and Alex starts freaking out. She was working late at Boone's diner, located on the ground level of the building that exploded, and couldn't remember if she turned the pilot lights off. So she went back to the diner in the middle of the night to check, but just as she went inside, it blew up. Suddenly Alex can't speak - she's having a stroke! As Jordan races her off to surgery, Boone starts hyperventilating and crashes. His heart is failing!

Krista and Jordan do an echocardiogram on Boone and learn he'll need a heart transplant. Meanwhile, Alex's MRIs are back, and Jordan realizes she has a carotid dissection that's sending blood clots to her brain. She talks to Scott about it and they realize the only thing they can do for Alex at this point is to retrieve the clots in her brain with a catheter, which means they'll need a neurosurgeon... Paul's dad! Scott goes to grovel, and while Julian has some harsh words for him, Scott manages to convince him to do the surgery - as long as Paul assists him.

During the procedure, Julian lays into his son for not following in his footsteps and avoiding his calls. He continues to pressure him to accept a surgical residency at Johns Hopkins and join the family business, but Paul is resistant. Just then Scott walks up and decides it's time to have a talk with Paul. He tells him that he's one of the best residents he's ever seen, so he gets why his dad is pushing him. But he needs to follow his heart. So what's in Paul's heart?

Meanwhile, Jordan gives Boone an update on his heart, but he refuses any medical advice. He wants to die. Jordan doesn't understand - where is this coming from? Then Boone drops a bomb: he caused the building explosion. He was going bankrupt so he intentionally started the fire in his diner to collect insurance. He thought it was contained, but now he's caused the deaths of so many people, possibly including his goddaughter. He can't live with that. Jordan breaks the news to Alex, who can't believe her beloved godfather could do such a thing.

At the end of the night, Paul finally gets up the nerve to confront his father. He tells him that he's right - surgery is in his blood. But he's not going to Johns Hopkins. He wants to do it on his own terms, and he wants to do pediatric surgery. Here at San Antonio Memorial. Scott created a pediatric surgical fellowship specifically for him. Finally Paul's dad sees his son is capable of making his own decisions, and he has to let him live.

As everyone is heading out, Kenny asks Gwen out to breakfast again. She tells him he doesn't have to just because they slept together, but he reassures her that he really wants to go on another date with her... actually dates, plural.