Obsessed with learning the identity of the man he killed, Kovac misses his shift and ignores messages from the worried Abby. With Greene leaving in a helicopter to rescue a heart patient and Weaver off from work, Romano puts Benton in charge of the very hectic emergency room for the first time as part of Benton's new per diem job. In a remote part of Indiana, Greene retrieves the patient, Tom Coggins (JOHN PYPER-FERGUSON), and takes off to return to the hospital. But the helicopter develops mechanical difficulties and lands roughly in a junkyard, injuring the pilot. Because Tom's fiancie, Janet Sanderling (VIVIAN WU), is waiting at County General, Greene orders the local paramedics to bring Tom there. He stabilizes Tom and, unsure if a heart donation will arrive in time to keep him alive much longer, allows him to marry Janet in a hastily arranged bedside ceremony. While Carter treats a teenager, Trent Larson (BLAKE HERON), for a routine hand cut, Trent's grandmother confidentially warns Carter to be careful--Trent is HIV positive. The family never told Trent that his mother died from AIDS shortly after giving birth to him and that the "vitamins" he takes are to control the disease. Carter defies the elderly woman and tells Trent the truth. When Trent's girlfriend is diagnosed as HIV positive as well, she berates Trent, prompting him to flee the hospital. Later, Carter is distraught to see Trent die after being hit by a car. Weaver arrives to bring the overloaded emergency room under control and tries to console Carter. Meanwhile, upset that he could not manage his assigned task, Benton seeks sympathy from Carla, who scolds him for not being emotionally available to her. And while comforting preoccupied Kovac, Abby makes love with him.