Disclamier: I do not own House and I do not claim to do so. I do wish I did, but life is unfair.
And thanks a million times to JennifferButterfly who edited this for me, I really appreciate it. You are the best.
"Soo…" House said, dragging the syllable out as he leaned heavily backwards in his chair, hands in lap and gaze fixed somewhere at the completely uninteresting surface of the empty desk.
"So?" questioned the young interviewee in the chair opposite of him.
"So, why are you here?" He lifted his head enough to get a look at the other persons face, seeking the faintest sign of a reaction. All he got was raised eyebrows and a shrug.
"Cause I'm applying for a job and this is where you set the interview?"
Cheeky. Either that or just plain stupid. Interesting.
"You know what? That might actually be trueone point for you. But more specifically, why are you applying for a job?
Eyebrows up again. House got a feeling he would see a lot of that. Face… a mixture of earnest surprise and slight confusion. Eyes… surprised and… amused?
"Well, it is a popular way to earn a living. All other options seem to be more or less illegal, strangely enough."
Definitely amused. Maybe even a little playfulness too.
"Touché. House paused for a moment and placed his elbows on the desk "I think we are onto something here. The big question of life. But to be even more specific, why are you applying for this particular job? Last time I checked, the place you call home was inconveniently located on the other side of the earth. Many long nights of travelling."
"As a matter of fact I'm considering moving here if I get the job. Despite the American junk food."
"Oh, you found us out already."
Undeniably cheeky too. And not only did he answer somewhat properly, he even managed to make a retort. Considering that the whole 'wanting-a-job-and-therefore-be-eager-to-please-thing' should put him at a disadvantage he was doing surprisingly well. His tone maybe not exactly bold, butnot too far from it.
"I sure did. It's a miracle that the average American survives the danger of living here. According to my personal experience, every fifth person should drop dead with acute food poisoning."
House leaned back in his chair again, clearly more attentive than he had been a minute ago."And why only every fifth? It seems a bit unfair to the other four"
"Luckily it seems that only about every fifth is stupid enough to overdose on the junk"
Hold on. He did not just do that. He did not just insult a fifth of the American population, twice, about two minutes into what could very well be the most important job interview in his career. He didn't.
But the slight twitching in the corners of the candidate's mouth, which proved he was hiding a smirk, told that he did. House got a feeling he would see a lot of that one as well.
House almost grinned.
Almost.
At least he was sure of one thing.
He had found his intensivist.