Hi guys!

I found an almost completed, fluffy House/Cuddy/Rachel one shot on my Computer and I couldn't help myself but to finish and to upload it.

Thanks a lot to Jane (LEfan77) for beta reading!

Happy Birthday

„Mooommy! Look what uncle Wilson got me!" Rachel beamed up at her mom and held out a huge stuffed koala towards Cuddy to show it to her. "He is so cute! I name him Patrick like the starfish on Sponge Bob!"

"He really is cute, baby." Cuddy smiled at her daughter. "Did you thank Wilson for your present?"

Rachel nodded enthusiastically. "Uhu… I gave him a big hug."

"Great." Cuddy said while opening up the oven to put in a baking tin full of potato slices.

"When do I get House's present?" The little girl wanted to know.

"As soon as House comes over."

"But when will he come?"

"He'll be here soon, sweetheart." Cuddy assured and hoped that she was right. House actually had promised to be here by 2 pm. Now it was already a few minutes after 3 o'clock and there was still no sign of him.

She hoped he had a really good excuse for being late otherwise she will kick his ass.

3: 25 pm

"Uncle Wilson?" Rachel pulled at his trousers.

"What's up, honey?"

"You know where House is? He promised he will come to my party."

"I'm sorry sweetie, I don't know where he is…" He really would like to tell her that House would come if he had promised her to but he couldn't. He didn't want Rachel to build up false hopes.

Rachel sighed and climbed up on the couch where Wilson was sitting. "It's boring when House is not here."

"You have your cousins and lots of friends around… " Wilson pointed at the bunch of kids that were currently wrestling in the hallway. "… isn't it fun to play with them?"

She nodded. "But it's funnier with House… He always makes funny faces."

A sad smile formed on Wilson's face. The little girl adored House so much and what was he doing? He was about to screw it all up! He sighed. Sometimes he asks himself how a person that is as intelligent as House can be that stupid.

"How about you go and play and I will call House and ask him what takes him so long… Is that a deal?"

"Yeah!" Rachel said happily, jumped off from the couch and joined the other kids in the hallway.

3:29 pm

"I knew he wouldn't come." Arlene took a sip of her third glass of wine. She was leaning against the kitchen counter watching her daughter prepare dinner.

"Mom, please… I don't need your schadenfreude right now."

"It's not schadenfreude… All I wanted to say is that I always knew that he is no guy you can count on."

"Stop it, mom… I don't want to fight with you."

"I'm not fighting… Just stating facts."

"I don't care what you call what you are doing, just stop it! It's Rachel's birthday party!" Cuddy opened up the cupboard and removed 11 plates out of it.

"I also just could have stayed at home like your boyfriend did… It sure would have prevented arguments."

Cuddy turned around to face her mother. "Did you ever consider that House may not have shown up because he doesn't want to get insulted by you?"

"Sure that's the reason… because he is such a sensitive person."

"He is much more sensitive than you think… And compared to you he at least tried to make a good impression on you."

Before Arlene could talk back to her daughter Cuddy was already out of the kitchen, starting to set up the table.

3: 43 pm

"Kids, food is ready!" Cuddy shouted into the hallway.

Only a few seconds later a crowd of hungry little kiddos were running into the dinning room.

"Is House here already?" Rachel asked her mother.

"No, honey, not yet." Cuddy smiled apologetically at her.

Rachel's face immediately changed to a sad expression. "Uncle Wilson wanted to call him to ask him why he's not here yet."

"I have, Rachel… but he doesn't pick up." Wilson dropped down on of the chairs at the dinning table.

"But I want him here!" Rachel's voice grew louder.

Cuddy bent down to her little girl. "I know, Rach… I want him to be here as well."

"He promised! And promises have to be keeped!"

"That's right, sweetie… But maybe House had a really good reason for not showing up." She didn't want to defend him but in this case by defending him she actually defended Rachel as well. She couldn't tell Rachel that House probably bailed on the party because he had no desire to deal with a hoard of kids.

"Why did he not call?"

"Maybe he forgot to charge his phone." Cuddy knew it was a very lame excuse but she had no clue what else she could have said. The last thing she wanted was to hurt her little girl and this uncreative lie was the only thing that came to her mind in that moment.

Rachel was on the verge of tears. "But I do want him here!"

"I know, baby" Cuddy's hand went to Rachel's cheek and stroked it softly. "But there is nothing we can do right now to get him here."

"Maybe he's in your hospital? Can we call there?"

"He doesn't have to be in the hospital today… It's his free day."

"Then why he is not here?" A tear was rolling down Rachel's chubby cheek.

"Oh… baby, don't cry." Her mom's hand softly wiped away the tear. "I don't know why he is not here… but if you want to we can drive over to his place later on and ask him."

Rachel nodded, her facial expression was still sad.

"Then let's eat now, ok? Your friends are already hungry and I'm sure you must be kinda starving as well."

She nodded again, her eyes telling Cuddy how disappointed she was that House wasn't here. She loved him… He was her best friend and the closest person she had to a father. He was important to her. It was important for her that he would be here, on her party. It was important to her to show her friends her cool play buddy… And now he just didn't show up… even though he had promised that he would.

Cuddy would like to slap her boyfriend across his face. When he hurt her it was already bad enough but when he hurt her little baby girl then she certainly would kick his ass. By now he actually should know that it was a really bad idea to mess with mama bear because mama bear was ready to cut off his balls!

4:50pm

"What's wrong with Rachel? She seems to be sad… She doesn't even want to play hide and seek with the other kids." Julia was helping her sister to clean the table.

"She is disappointed because House didn't show up."

"She's sad because of him not being here? Shouldn't she be thankful for that?"

"I've already told you several times that House and Rachel are pretty close. He is good with her and Rachel adores him…" Cuddy was annoyed. Her sister didn't even know House properly. She has no right to judge him.

"He can't be that good with her when he hurts her by not showing up to her birthday party."

Cuddy sighed. Why does her mother as well as her sister always have to interfere in her private life? They both surly had enough problems of their own they could deal with. "Julia, please… I've had enough of mom's stupid comments, I don't want yours as well."

"I just don't get why you put up with him…"

"You don't have to understand it…"

"You are both better off without him."

Cuddy put the plates in the sink angrily. "But we don't want to be without him!"

5: 37 pm

Cuddy closed the front door after saying goodbye to Wilson – who was the last one to leave – before she headed to her little girl who was sitting on the couch with a very sad expression on her precious little face.

"Rachel, honey… Don't be so sad. Didn't you have a great time with your friends?"

Rachel nodded. "But I want House here."

"Come here, sweetheart." Cuddy sat down next to her on the couch and pulled her daughter on her lap.

Rachel put her head on mommy's chest.

"I'm sure House has a very good reason for not coming." Cuddy really hoped he had, otherwise he better look for a very good place to hide, if he wasn't already doing exactly that.

"Can we go to him now? I wanna ask him why he don't was here at my party."

Cuddy's fingers were gently caressing Rachel's back. "We can do that." She whispered even though she wasn't so sure anymore if it really was that good of an idea.

6:12 pm

Cuddy pressed the bell button once again after he had obviously ignored the loud sound of the bell the first time. Rachel was standing next to her holding her hand tightly and looking at the door waiting for House to open it up.

It took one more minute until they finally heard the key turning in the lock.

Cuddy had already prepared herself to give him an angry, disappointed look but as soon as she saw him she knocked her plan on the head.

He looked awful.

His eyes were red, he was pale and he heavily leaned on the handle of the door.

"Hi…" even his voice was weak. He was obviously in a lot of pain.

"House…" She said worriedly, made one step towards him and looked down to his right thigh which he was rubbing with his left hand. "… How bad?" She asked.

"That bad that I almost wasn't able to make my way from the couch to this fucking front door."

Rachel was looking at him with big, worried eyes. "You have an auwie, Howse?"

He nodded and shifted his gaze to the little Cuddy. "Yeah… my leg is hurting."

"Is that why you not came to my party?"

He nodded again. "I didn't want to ruin your party with the presence of an invalid."

"What's an invalid?" Rachel wanted to know.

"An old, sick person." House said.

"You not old! Granma is old…"

This brought a tiny smile to House's face. "True. And she is sick as well… at least in her head."

Rachel giggled for a moment and then asked: "Can we come in so we can make better your auwie?"

Without saying a word House made one step – which definitely had hurt his leg a lot – aside to make room for his girls to enter.

6:15 pm

House actually wanted to sit down on the couch but Cuddy practically forced him to go to his room to lay down in bed which was much more comfortable and better for him in his current state.

"Why the hell didn't you call me, House?" Cuddy sat down on bed next to him.

"There was no reason to."

"You are in pain and I wanna be with you when you are in pain… This is what a relationship is about. To be here for each other. To take care of each other."

"You know that I suck at these relationship things…"

"You are just afraid to open up to me."

He let out an annoyed sigh, his right hand was still rubbing his thigh. "Can we please stop that conversation before my head starts hurting as well?"

Cuddy looked at him skeptically but backed down. "You just get off the hook because you are in pain."

"Cripple bonus rocks."

She got up from bed again. "I'll get you a heating pat… and I'll send in Rachel so she can make sure you stay in bed."

"Really? You are making a three year old my babysitter?"

"She is four, House."

"Well… then she sure is qualified for that job."

Cuddy just rolled her eyes and left the room.

6:27 pm

"Mommy said you hurt your leg a very long time ago… Why does it still hurt, Howse? When I have an ouwie it gets better real soon." Rachel was sitting next to House on his bed looking at him questioningly.

"People don't always get better when they hurt themselves."

"Why not?"

"Because life is unfair."

"Why?"

"I don't know."

"Who knows?"

He sighed. He actually had the urge to tell her to shut up. But this wouldn't be fair. She has done nothing wrong. She couldn't know that her constant questions annoyed him at the moment which didn't exactly help to ease his pain.

"No one." He said while rubbing his thigh "Some things are just like they are… There is no explanation for them."

Rachel lied down. She put her head on House's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" House wanted to know.

"That your leg hurts."

"It's not your fault." He was a little overwhelmed with the fact how sensitive Rachel was and how much she seemed to care about him.

When House looked down at her a few moments later she was asleep. Her party had obviously worn her out.

He smiled slightly before he closed his eyes as well and tried to blank out the pain.

When he woke up Rachel was gone and so was his pain… Well, the pain was not completely gone but it wasn't as bad anymore as just a few hours ago.

He could hear voices from the living room and gathered that Cuddy and Rachel were still here.

He sat up, removed the heating pad – which Cuddy obviously had put on his thigh earlier – and got up to go and join the two Cuddy ladies.

"What are you still doing up?" He asked in a playful indignant voice as he entered his living room. "Aren't monkeys supposed to be in bed at this time?"

Rachel giggled. "I'm not a monkey, stupid."

"You sure about that? You kinda look like one." He dropped down on the couch next to mother and daughter.

"I not! I'm cute!" Rachel returned loudly which made Cuddy laugh.

"If you insist on the "cute" part then I'm just going to call you a "cute monkey" from now on."

"You are stupid…" Rachel said with a smile on her lips, crawled into his lap and put her arms around him. "But I like you anyway."

House shortly and tentatively patted her back before he mouthed a "Stop grinning!" to Cuddy.

Rachel fastened her hold on him and sighed contently.

"Happy Birthday, monkey." House whispered unusually soft.

And in this moment Cuddy fell in love with him even more.

- end -

Fluffy. Isn't it? xD

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