After missing the last episode of Chicago Med, Maggie returned in an episode that puts Maggie and the nurses at the heart of episode 19’s key storyline, “The Stories We Tell Ourselves.”
As the episode opens, Maggie arrives at Med but not for a shift. It seems Maggie is preparing for the union negotiations between the nurses and the hospital, as the nurses’ contract is ending at midnight and a strike is imminent if a deal cannot be reached. Things start to turn icy with the nurses preparing to walk when Goodwin proposes looking at the new proposal as a new starting place and extending negotiations for a week. She makes it clear she’s invested in making sure they reach a deal that shows the value they see in the nurses.
The nurses walk away from the table, noting that they’ll take some time to consider the extension. As they gather to review their options, it seems many aren’t a fan of an extension, which is when Maggie quickly interjects to point out that the last thing they want to do is go on strike and that they should consider the extension, noting that Goodwin is a former RN who has their back. Maggie’s plea works as the union agrees to an extension for talks.
While Maggie placed her faith in Goodwin as a longtime friend, it seems she was blinded by her friendship. As the episode closes, an email comes through which indicates the nurses were played and that by extending the negotiations, they ended up giving the hospital the opportunity to secure housing for the scabs they’ve hired to replace the nurses if a strike happens
Maggie lays into Goodwin about how hiring the scabs shows the hospital isn’t acting with the nurses’ best interests in mind or in good faith. Goodwin tries to point out that the hospital is just being smart and that she shouldn’t take this personally, but Maggie makes it clear that things are already personal as she storms off.
Frost finally confronts his past with Ainsley
At the top of the episode, we see a restless Frost awaken in the middle of the night and pull out a photo of himself and Ainsley from when he was younger. He’s clearly struggling with the situation and ends up showing up late to work after sleeping through his alarm when he finally managed to crash.
After arriving at Med, Frost is put on the case of a young boy who has come through the ED with some stomach pains. When he goes to see the boy, the boy hands him an envelope his mom left for him to give to his doctor. Inside this envelope is a note from the mom in which she relinquishes her parental rights and asks the hospital to find a home for the boy. Security footage later confirms that the mom had left the hospital and Charles reveals the boy’s mother has a history of drug use. With his only known family member being his grandmother who has just been put in an assisted living facility, they have to call DCF to assist in finding the boy a home to live in.
When Charles and Frost tell the boy about the family DCF has found to place him with, the boy tells them a story about how his mom is a superhero and she always comes back to get him when she’s done with her missions. Frost plays into the story at first and Charles eventually pulls him aside to point out the harm of buying into a story as it won’t allow the boy to face the reality of the situation. Frost gets emotional and excuses himself, which is when Charles realizes something is clearly going on with him.
Charles catches up with Frost and asks him about what happened back there, which is when Frost opens up about how Ainsley’s recent return has thrown him off. Frost mentions that they used to be really close and how a TV set wasn’t always a normal environment to grow up. When Charles says Ainsley was almost like a mother figure on and off screen, Frost confesses that he’s been making up a story about what Ainsley was to him, when the reality is that in the end it turned into something he wasn’t ready for. Charles commends him on the bravery it takes to confront stories of our past to see them for what they really are which resonates with Frost.
The episode ends with Frost going to see Ainsley for taking advantage of him when he was just a child, and the impact it has had on his life. It was a major first step for Frost to confront the demons of his past, but we wonder how the storyline will continue to unfold now that Frost has finally confronted Ainsley.
Hannah considers becoming her sister’s surrogate
After losing her baby, Lizzie is exploring surrogacy, but she’s quickly realizing it’s both expensive and something she doesn’t like the idea of, especially since she can’t imagine trusting a stranger with her final embryo.. Hannah suggests that perhaps she take some time to think things through, as it’s only been a month since she lost the baby she was carrying, but Lizzie doesn’t want to waste any time.
Following the conversation, Archer catches Hannah in an empty ED room drawing some blood. At first, she tries to say she was just running some tests saying she wasn’t feeling well before confessing the truth to Archer: she’s drawing blood to perform some blood work to see if she could be a surrogate for her sister. The idea doesn’t go over well with Archer, who offers some friendly advice for Hannah not to rush into something this big.
As the episode ends, Hannah officially offers to be her sister's surrogate, suggesting she's serious about the offer.
Goodwin and Dennis hit an unexpected rough patch
Early in the episode, as Goodwin is getting ready to head out for the day, she’s surprised to be greeted by a young woman who shows up at Dennis’ home. The woman is his daughter, Alex, whom Goodwin is excited to finally meet. However, her excitement is short-lived when she realizes that Dennis never told Alex about their relationship.
Later that day at the hospital, Goodwin finally gets the chance to confront Dennis for not telling his daughter about their relationship, and he says he never found the right time to tell her. They decide to grab lunch together, but when Dennis can’t make it, Goodwin and Alex get a chance to know each other better. During lunch, Goodwin opens up about her past and tries to assure Alex that she and her father are taking things day by day.
Goodwin has good intentions in the conversation, but it seems to make Alex wonder if the relationship is as serious as Dennis sees it. When he asks Goodwin about the conversation, she assures him that she wouldn’t have moved in if she didn’t see a future with him, and he expresses his excitement about the future they’re building together.