[voiceover] Sometimes reality has a way of sneaking up and biting us in the ass. And when the dam bursts, all you can do is swim. The world of pretend is a cage, not a cocoon. We can only lie to ourselves for so long. We are tired, we are scared, denying it doesn't change the truth. Sooner or later we have to put aside our denial and face the world. Head on, guns blazing. De Nile. It's not just a river in Egypt, it's a freakin' ocean. So how do you keep from drowning in it?
[voiceover] Pain comes in all forms. The small twinge, a bit of soreness, the random pain, the normal pains we live with everyday. Then there's the kind of pain you can't ignore. A level of pain so great that it blocks out everything else; makes the rest of the world fade away until all we can think about is how much we hurt. How we manage our pain is up to us. Pain. We anaesthetize, ride it out, embrace it, ignore it... and for some of us, the best way to manage pain is to just push through it.
[to Derek] Okay, here it is. Your choice. It's simple. Her or me. And I'm sure she's really great. But Derek... I love you... in a really, really big pretend to like your taste in music, let you eat the last piece of cheesecake, hold a radio over my head outside your window... unfortunate way that makes me hate you, love you. So pick me. Choose me. Love me. I'll be at Joe's tonight. So if you do decide to sign the papers meet me there.
[voiceover] Pain, you just have to ride it out, hope it goes away on its own, hope the wound that caused it heals. There are no solutions, no easy answers. You just breathe deep and wait for it to subside. Most of the time pain can be managed, but sometimes the pain gets you when you least expect it, hits way below the belt and doesn't let up. Pain, you just have to fight through, because the truth is you can't outrun it, and life always makes more.
[voiceover] In general, people can be categorized in one of two ways those who love surprises and those who don't. I don't. I've never met a surgeon that enjoys a surprise, because as surgeons, we like to be in the know. We have to be in the know, because when we aren't, people die and lawsuits happen. Am I rambling? I think I'm rambling. Okay, so my point, actually, and I do have one, has nothing to do with surprises or death or lawsuits, or even surgeons. My point is this: whoever said "What you don't know can't hurt you", was a complete and total moron. Because for most people I know, not knowing is the worst feeling in the world. [Sees two people with a pole cutting through them.] Okay, fine. Maybe it's the second worst.
If I don't find this leg, the chief is going to cut me from this program, and I cannot go back home, Burke. It is too sunny in Los Angeles. It's sunny every day.
I need you to help me find the leg! I checked the board, you're not in surgery, right? You're my boyfriend! I mean, I know I don't have much experience with this kind of thing but, aren't boyfriends supposed to help in situations like this?
Whether or not you're going to hate me. You're Meredith's friend? I'm the wicked witch who came in and ruined her life and cheated on Doctor... wait, what is it that you guys call him?
[voiceover] As surgeons, there are so many things we have to know. We have to know we have what it takes. We have to know how to take care of our patients and how to take care of each other. Eventually, we even have to figure out how to take care of ourselves. As surgeons we have to be in the know. But as human beings, sometimes it's better to stay in the dark, because in the dark there may be fear, but there's also hope.
[voiceover] Communication. It's the first thing we really learn in life. Funny thing is, once we grow up, learn our words and really start talking the harder it becomes to know what to say. Or how to ask for what we really need.
She's not. She's a human traffic accident, and everybody's slowing down to look at the wreckage. She's doing the best she can with what she has left, and I know you can't see this 'cause you're in it, but YOU CAN'T HELP HER NOW! You'll only make it worse. Walk away. Leave her to mend.
For a kiss to be real, you got to want it to mean something and you want it to be with someone you can't get out of your head. So that when your lips finally touch, you feel it everywhere. A kiss so hot and so deep you never want to come up for air. You can't cheat your first kiss Nicole, trust me, you don't want to. Cause when you find that right person, first kiss, it's everything.
[voiceover] At the end of the day, there are some things you just can't help but talk about. Some things we just don't want to hear, and some things we say because we can't be silent any longer. Some things are more than what you say, they're what you do. Some things you say because there's no other choice. Some things you keep to yourself. And not too often, but every now and then, some things simply speak for themselves.