This post contains spoilers from Netflix's Pulse episode 2 from this point forward.
Hurricane Abby continues to intensify as two paramedics, Nia and her partner, take the last call of the night. Pulse episode 2 opens with them stumbling upon a woman asking for their help. A tree fell on her house with her children still inside. They rush to her aid in spite of the great dangers.
Danny and Xander begin working together again, and it's inevitably awkward. But she wasn't going to make a fuss with Dr. Cruz and risk patients' lives during a hurricane to make her shift more comfortable. She's finding it difficult for others to respect her authority and decision making. They're still looking to Xander for his approval.
The hospital staff gossips about Danny and Xander, and they come to an agreement that Xander isn't a "perv" and Danny isn't a "liar," as they say. Pulse also mentions the elephant in the room and makes its first Grey's Anatomy reference, effectively taking the stance that it's more realistic than the ABC hit. Before checking in with Cruz, Danny leaves a message for her father, who Harper hasn't been able to speak with during the storm.
Cruz checks in with Danny about the status of the hospital, and Danny's surprised that Xander has his own private check-in with Cruz when hers ends. The victims from the collapsed house arrive at the hospital, and one of the three in critical condition is Nia. While helping one of the children, Danny begrudgingly accepts Xander's advice, which turns out to be useful. Yeah, this is going to be a long shift for Danny.
Danny delivers a baby in the bathroom
A flashback to one year prior finds Danny joining her coworkers at a bar, where she and Xander get a moment to talk privately. She pokes him about his parents being donors for the hospital, but he admits he forged his own path separate from his parents. They have a memorable moment that rom-coms are made of, and the memory sends Danny to a bathroom on a different floor for alone time. There's a woman in a stall who asks Danny to leave
Another flashback finds Xander making good on his deal to give Danny a solid trauma case. They ride a helicopter to help a woman on the beach who was cut up by a boat's propeller that drove over her in the water. Danny's confident performing the life-saving procedure but still accepts Xander's assistance. They're a good team. After saving the woman, Xander asks Danny out to dinner. She doesn't accept, and it's awkward. When they return to the hospital, Xander kicks her out of the room.
After Danny breaks the glass doors of the gift shop, where the staff will be sleeping, the power at the hospital shuts off. Danny realizes that Cruz briefed Xander on what to do in this event, and she allows him to address the team about their need for fuel for their generators. They're staying open in spite of the setbacks from the dangerous storm. Danny confronts Cruz about not trusting her with the chief job, and Cruz matter of factly says that she doesn't trust Danny.
She looks for some alone time again, but she runs into Xander in the stairwell. He's upset that his chances at becoming an attending have been impacted and threatens to start defending himself and "tell them all the details." Danny returns to the same bathroom from earlier and discovers the woman who asked her to leave is still in there because she's going into labor in her stall. The woman kicks Danny out, but she doesn't take no for an answer. She's saving their lives.
Danny successfully delivers the baby, and Elijah brings her new scrubs. It's the sign of friendship she needed from him in a tough moment. He hugs her while she cries. When he shows her Camila setting up the gift shop for the staff, he apologizes for not having her back with Cruz and tells her he believes her. She doesn't want him to be hated by association since she thinks everyone will take Xander's side. According to Xander, Elijah's in love with Danny.
What else happened in Pulse episode 2
Sophie helps Cole work on Nia's perforated bowel injury, and even though she has something sticking out of her abdomen, she calls Cole out for how he treats Sophie. Cass (Jessica Rothe), a nurse, also calls Cole out for flirting with Nia. Cole gets Soriano's consent to begin Nia's surgery, which he allows Sophie to help with. The surgery goes south, forcing Sophie to get Soriano. It's not as bad as Cole thought, and he gets compliments from Soriano. Later that night, Cole and Cass sleep together in a hospital room.
Cruz wants to ween Vero off of her ventilator, but Soriano tries to talk her through her pain. She's struggling because there's a lot she didn't know about her daughter, like the fact she was on that bus and that she has a secret tattoo on her ankle. Cruz doesn't stand down with Soriano about weening Vero off the ventilator, but he still doesn't let her do it. As the power goes out, Cruz takes matters into her own hands and makes the call.
In the final flashback of episode 2, Danny's special place for alone time is revealed to be the gift shop. Xander finds her there, and he's somewhat surprised to discover she's mad at him. She believes he rescinded her right to work on that patient because she turned down his date invite. He says he didn't. Danny fears he could retaliate against her, and Xander worries that she's using him. He essentially admits his feelings for her but then tells her she shouldn't be in the gift shop while on shift.