Chapter 1.

The next sunny day in Princeton was coming to an end. Even though it was just getting dark, in most of the houses the lights were already on. From one of the apartments, one could hear the sound of a guitar. Dr. Gregory House was relaxing after solving his last case. He was playing one of his favourite songs when a mosquito sat at one of his hands.

House froze on the spot. This little son of a bitch kept him awake at nights and made his best friend believe he was going crazy. One swift move and it would all be over!

He raised his other hand, and then saw the bloody sticking plaster which covered the bite. The man took a closer look at his outstretched hands. Never before had he noticed how old he become. He'd been lonely for longer than he could remember. Even though he kept telling himself otherwise. And now, this thing with Cuddy came up. House didn't mean to kiss her. Things just got out of hand. For some mysterious reason, he couldn't stop thinking about it. Maybe there was some truth to Wilson's twisted logic? Maybe there indeed was no bite, and he changed one obsession for another?

House moved his hand closer to his lips and blew off the mosquito. What had he been waiting for for all these years? Not too long ago, he heavily critiqued a patient who locked himself up within his own four walls, pretending to be happy, while he himself was no better. It's time for some changes. He'd go to Cuddy, knock on her door, and ask her out. You only lived once, right?

At once, he jumped to his feet, put down the guitar. The man grabbed the jacket with one hand, the keys with the other, and stormed out of the apartment, not even bothered to turn off the lights.

A few moments later, he was outside Cuddy's house, his motorcycle parked at the wayside. At a quick pace, House limped to the front door. He looked through one of the windows. She was there. Sitting, drinking tea. Without a worry in the world.

Then, he panicked. What was he going to tell her, anyway? That he wanted to date her? She'd laugh in his face. And if it didn't work with her, it wouldn't work with anyone. If he never tried, then at least he was left with some hope. Another time, another day, he might try again. Without forcing himself.

He made two steps backwards, turned around, and moved ahead.

"House!" he heard from behind his back. "Is that you?"

House looked behind, surprised. There was Cuddy, standing on the threshold.

"Yeah," he answered after a moment. "How did you know it was me?"

"I saw you by the door. Why are you here?" she asked.

"Well…" he said, trying to buy some time to come up with an excuse. To no avail. "The patient figured out that our hospital can be quite useful, as it managed to save his stupid ass, so he's not suing us anymore. I thought you should know."

"Right…" replied Cuddy, taken aback. "And this couldn't wait until tomorrow because…?"

"Sure it could. But, as I was on my way, I figured it wouldn't hurt to let you know."

"House," she interrupted. "You live in the opposite direction."

"Who says I was heading home?" the man retorted. "I'm going to Wilson's. He was supposed to call for hookers for the night. He's always dreamed of a square."

"That's strange, because he called me just a moment ago. He said he had two tickets for The Dark Knight and asked whether I'm free for the evening. He didn't say a word about his prior appointments."

House's jaw dropped a little. How could he have been so careless? Wilson was trying to drag him along to watch this movie for weeks! He made a total fool out of himself.

"Get in, I'll make you a drink," stated Cuddy without a warning, pulling the dumbfounded doctor in by the sleeve. "I still think we should talk. What happened with your cane?"

"Here, take this." Cuddy placed two cups of hot coffee in front of House.

"Thanks."

"How's your hand?" she asked with care, sitting next to him on the couch.

"Better," he replied, glancing at his palm.

For some time, they were both quietly avoiding each other's gaze. Cuddy broke the silence.

"So, back to the subject," she started cautiously. "Tell me what actually happened the other night."

House looked at the woman, taken aback by the directness of her question. For the second time today, she tried to make him speak. The problem was, he had no intention to give her the answer. He dropped his gaze.

"Nothing," he said. "I came to gloat."

"Oh no!" protested Cuddy. "These are my words. You're taking the easy way."

"Why does it bother you so much?" inquired House, turning to face his boss. He looked deeply into her bright, grey eyes. Cuddy lost her confidence but decided not to let go.

"Because you are my employee. And I don't know what to think about this whole situation."

"Just drop it," he said, trying to sound indifferent. "I'm not into office affairs."

"You're an ass." She smiled, taking a sip of her drink. "Admitting that you did something nice for once won't ruin your reputation. You've worked for it too hard."

House said nothing. He drank his coffee in one gulp, as if it was a strong booze. He stood up.

"I've got to go," he informed her.

Cuddy, utterly confused with her guest's behaviour, didn't even try to stop him.

"Okay," she stated in a sad voice and walked him to the exit.

"Goodnight," he said on his way out.

"House."

He came to a halt. Cuddy was having a deja vu of the previous evening. House showed up at her place out of nowhere, he kept her company for a few minutes, and ran away the moment the atmosphere was getting intimate. This time, however, she wouldn't let him leave without a word. She came closer to place a light kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you," she whispered softly.

Her reaction shocked House. This wasn't what he had expected. When he came back to his senses, the woman was closing the door in front of him. In the last second, he stopped it with his hand. Cuddy looked up, unsure what to think. The sentence he uttered had barely got out of his mouth.

"It wasn't just a kiss."