A/N: A brand new story as promised about our fav characters. For my purposes I have put Cameron and Chase in the ER and Amber is alive and on House's team. I do not own House. If I did the episode last week would have ended quite differently. Hope you enjoy.
The emergency room at a hospital places many things into perspective. For a brief moment all feuds are put aside as life hangs into balance. Working in any hospital shows how precious life can be and the ER is a reminder of how things can change in the blink of an eye.
Blink. Life leaves a 22 year old sliced in the neck while you are unable to stop the bleeding.
Blink. A 64 year old grandmother goes into uncontrolled convulsions and pronounced clinically brain dead before her heart stops from a stray bullet.
Blink. An 18 month old nearly blue on arrival when she suddenly stops breathing and can't be revived.
It's enough to make you want to hold your eyes open forever.
I was talking to the parents of a patient we did save from a severe allergic reaction when I felt eyes on me. An impatient tap, tap, tap alerted me to who was there long before I turned and made my way to the man leaning against the door frame. I smiled despite my tiredness. "Do you have an emergency?"
Gregory House rolled his brilliant blue eyes. "I hope not. The response time in the hospital sucks."
Since his volume control usually went from loud to louder depending on the amount of people present and there were plenty of people in the waiting room we were currently in I placed my hand on his arm and steered him away from potential lawsuit material. "What do you want, House?"
"Nothing. Just admiring the artwork," he snarked.
Despite rolling my eyes my smile widened. "You missed the show for the day."
"I was actually referring to your hair. Did you let the nursery color it?"
"I think you're just sad it doesn't look like a prostitute now." I had my normally dark brown hair bleached and put brown and red streaks mixed in it.
"It looked just like someone I paid just last weekend." He snapped his fingers on the hand not controlling the cane. "I knew you were stalking me!"
I opened the break room door and fished in my pocket for change for the coke machine. "Are you going to tell me the real reason you are down here away from you lair stalking me?"
He plopped down in a chair and took the coke I bought him with a curled lip. "You could have opened it."
"You could have bought it," I shot back as I sank into a chair across from him and downed half of my diet coke.
"Well, if you're going to get technical."
I settled for a glare.
House sulked for approximately two seconds before getting to the point. "I came from the bat cave to grace you with my presence because I heard a rumor that you were becoming quite a Housian."
"Housian?" I repeated with a lifted brow.
He grinned. "Their word, not mine. You've been a tyrant." He sniffed and acted like he was wiping his eye. "I'm so proud."
"They may think I'm a tyrant but when you're sitting on your ass twiddling your thumbs while working in the ER and you have patients coming in you deserve to be screamed at."
House's grin grew. "The wombat was one of them."
"Yes, but..." I interrupted myself and gave him a look. "How did you know that?"
"He came crying to Foreman. His impression of you was right on, by the way. You must yell at him a lot."
I rolled my eyes. "So, you came down to gloat."
"Essentially. You've done well. young Padawan."
"Pada-what?" I thought his mouth was going to hit the table and I couldn't hold the straight face. "I'm kidding! Star Wars, I know."
He put his hand to his heart. "Cameron, damnit! I saw my life flash before my eyes."
I snorted. "I know more than you give me credit for, House."
"Like improvising a lunch straw for a trach?"
I felt my face flame as heat rose to it. "You heard about that?"
"I hear all."
"The straw was still in the wrapper," I defended my actions.
His eyebrows went up. "Really? It's a wonder the guy could breath, then."
"Well, I opened it before insertion. I was pointing out that it was sterile."
House shrugged. "Who gives a flying shit if the guy could get much needed air?"
I smiled. "Flying shit? Isn't the PC flung poo?"
"Dr. Allison Cameron made a funny, ladies and gentlemen. Let us rejoice."
"Would it have been funnier to mention flying monkeys?'
"Flying monkeys are always funny." He finished his coke, crushed it, and threw it across the room into the trash can. "Why is it you leave me and suddenly get a sense of humor?"
The door opened but I ignored it. "I didn't leave you, House. Don't be so melodramatic."
He sniffed and I rolled my eyes again. "You never call, you never write."
"Neither do you," I shot back at him.
"I've humbled myself today to beg for your mercy. Put me out of my misery, Cameron. Please come home."
I thought I heard a noise but Renée, an ER nurse, had her back to us getting coffee. I turned my attention back to House. "That's what this is about? You want me to come back?"
He looked at me with his patented 'well, duh' look. "Of course. You make great coffee in the mornings."
There was a definite noise and both House and I looked at the girl. "Renée, can I help you with something? I asked.
She turned red. "Just getting my coffee."
We stared at each other for a quiet moment before House made a rude noise. "Look, nurse, you're not invited in this conversation." Renée didn't respond. "Shoo!" he said, gesturing with his hands.
She finally got the point.
"Are all ER nurses so dumb?" he asked before she was fully out of the door. "No wonder the mortality rate is so freaking high. Now, where were we?"
I smiled at his ability to jump subjects. "I believe you were talking about how much you missed me."
"And I believe I said I missed your coffee. Let's not get too ahead of ourselves, Dr. Cameron."
I rolled my eyes good-naturedly. "The answer is no, House."
He shrugged. "Will you at least come up and fix coffee in the mornings?"
I laughed at his pout. "Fix your own damn coffee." I got up and threw my can away. "Good night, House."
"This ain't over," were his parting words.