People You Can't Get Rid Of
By MadBangel
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters from House.
Author's Note:Extremely medically questionable, given that I know nothing about medicine except for TV, movies and my imagination. If that pisses you off, stay far away from this story.
1
House lounged at the bar, holding his glass of scotch. He was bored. He shouldn't have bothered coming alone after Wilson had bailed on him. He could get drunk at home cheaper.
Some movement on the other side of the bar lazily attracted his attention. He shifted to see what was going on. He couldn't see past the big guys blocking his view, but they seemed to be surrounding something, and from the hysterical shouts it appeared to be female.
He felt a mild tug of concern, but nixed it quickly. There wasn't much he could do about it with his bum leg. He stared at his scotch and tried to ignore the indecision swirling in his gut.
"Somebody help us, please!" cried a female voice.
House allowed himself a peek, and saw a girl wearing a black dress, tears streaming down her face, running up to the other patrons, trying to get their attention. Feelings of disgust churned in his chest as he watched them all take a studious interest in their beers.
Suddenly he caught a glimpse of her friend, a girl in a grey top. She was screaming and sobbing, pulling away as hard as she could from a guy holding her arm. He wouldn't let go.
"Help her, please! Anybody!" screamed Black Dress.
The patrons continued to act like nothing was happening.
House drained the rest of his glass and slammed it down on the table. He fumbled for his cane, and slowly got to his feet. He knew he was going to regret this.
He caught Black Dress's eye.
"I can't promise anything," he told her, holding up the cane. "But hell, it's been a while since I had the crap kicked out of me. Why not?"
"Thank you," she choked, running back to Grey Top.
House limped after her, feeling his guts shrink into tiny knots.
"Let her go," he said to the thug holding her, trying to sound as threatening as possible.
The guy's attention turned to him.
Oh shit, House thought.
The guy looked him over, and smirked at the sight of the cane.
"I'm gonna give you one chance to stay out of something that's none of your business, Limpy," he said, still holding Grey Top's wrist.
House swallowed.
"This is gonna hurt like hell, but…I'll have to decline your kind offer. Now let her go." He walked straight up to the guy.
The punch took him by surprise even though he had fully anticipated it. He reeled, but just managed to stay on his feet. The next blow sent him to the floor.
Ah, fuck, he thought, as pain shot through his body.
He was dimly aware of the fact that the guy and all his mates were kicking and punching him, and he curled up instinctively. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Black Dress shepherding Grey Top away.
The sound of police sirens finally broke up the Circle of Pain, and the pummelling stopped. House just lay there, feeling like he was dying. He shifted just enough to reach his Vicodin, and dry-swallowed three. He waited til they kicked in before he tried moving again.
He crawled over the retrieve his cane. When he reached it, his eyes travelled slowly up a pair of legs to see the bartender standing over him.
"Get the hell out and don't come back. You're banned for life," he snarled.
He stood there, unmoving, arms crossed, as House forced himself to his feet and dragged himself outside to the parking lot. He focused on putting one foot in front of the other and willing his vision to clear.
He felt nauseous, but desperately tried to avoid throwing up and losing the Vicodin.
He had made it halfway to the Corvette when he noticed a slight movement behind one of the cars. His heart thumped as he thought that they could be waiting out here to have another go.
"Hey! Hey, please, over here, please!"
Black Dress. Again.
Despite himself, he responded to the hysterical note in her voice, and inched closer.
Black Dress was leaning over Grey Top, who was lying unresponsive between two cars.
House moved as quickly as he could.
"She won't wake up! I've tried and tried but she won't wake up," sobbed Black Dress.
House knelt beside her, feeling like his knees would crack. He felt for her pulse, then checked her forehead.
"She's going into shock. She needs to be taken to hospital immediately." He told Black Dress, pulling out his cellphone.
He made the call, identifying himself, and extracting a promise of being there in 10 minutes.
"So you're a doctor?" Black Dress asked.
"Yeah," he said.
He shrugged off his sports coat and draped it over Grey Top.
When the ambulance arrived, he was going to leave, but Black Dress insisted he go with them. The paramedics took one look at his own injuries and agreed.
He was stuck.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
House stood outside the ER, feeling like he was going to pass out. Grey Top, otherwise known as Crystal Miller, was stable, and being looked after by Black Dress, whom he'd learned was called Bethany.
He pushed the door open, feeling as if there was something else to this case, but he was too out of it to figure it out.
"Hey," he announced his presence. Two pairs of eyes on him.
"I'm just here to do a vitals check."
"When can I get out of here?" Crystal asked, looking unhappy with being there. Bethany clasped her hand.
"Well, you're stable, vitals are good, you probably just need some sleep and something to eat." He told her.
"But then again, there's the fact that you collapsed and went into shock without suffering any actual physical trauma. And I get the feeling that there's something else going on, so do you want to tell me, or do I have to guess?"
Bethany and Crystal looked at each other, and Crystal started crying.
Bethany turned to House.
"Cryssie was raped two years ago. She got freaked out tonight, you know? But…she never went to a doctor when it happened, or anytime since. She's had pain, weird bleeding and infections and stuff. I've tried to get her to get checked out but she won't."
House studied the crying girl.
"Crystal," he started.
She looked at him, trying to wipe the tears away.
" I know you probably don't want anyone looking down there, but you do need to get checked out. Leaving it untreated can lead to cervical cancer and a range of other things you really don't want."
"Cancer? Oh my god." She covered her mouth with her hand.
"Please, Crystal. Get the exam," Bethany begged.
"I can get a female colleague of mine to come and assess you," House told her.
Crystal nodded shakily. She stared at the floor, then reluctantly looked back at House.
"O..Okay. I'll do it," she whispered.
Bethany hugged her, and House left the room to page Cameron.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"House?" came Cameron's voice from behind him. He turned, dreading it.
"Oh! Are you okay?" she rushed.
He held up a hand to distance her.
"I'm fine."
"Then what are you doing at the ER at this time of the night?"
House glared at her.
"I didn't page you to play twenty questions, I paged you to help a patient. Can we do that please?"
Cameron was silent, waiting for his directions.
"22 year old female, raped two years ago. Had internal complications but has never had them checked. She needs an internal exam." He handed her the file.
Cameron nodded, her eyes wide with compassion, just as House had expected.
"I'll take you to her now."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Where is Dr House?" Cuddy demanded, cornering Wilson in House's office and fixing him with what House referred to as the 'death ray' stare.
Foreman and Chase watched the showdown.
Wilson looked guilty.
"He's asleep in my office. He got in some sort of fight last night."
"He what?" Cuddy exploded, eyebrows raised into ridges.
"I didn't get the details," Wilson mumbled.
Cuddy closed her eyes and pursed her lips tightly.
"And where is Dr Cameron?"
No one answered, with Foreman and Chase looking at each other, and back at Wilson.
Cuddy exhaled slowly.
"He is going to be working this one off for a long time, Wilson," she emphasised, stalking out to the corridor.
"Excuse me," a female voice interrupted timidly.
Cuddy whirled to find a girl still dressed up from the night before.
"Please don't be mad at Dr House. He was only trying to help us."
"And who are you?" Cuddy asked her politely.
"I'm Bethany, and my friend Crystal is in Ward 18. Dr House was only in the fight because I asked him to help."
She continued.
"Crystal was raped two years ago, and it's been so hard to get her to go out. Last night was like, the third time in two years. And this jerk was hassling her and she got freaked out. He grabbed her arm and he wouldn't let go. I was yelling for help but everyone just ignored me. Well, everyone except Dr House."
She continued.
"He's crippled and yet out of all those able-bodied guys in there he was the only one who would help. He told me he couldn't do much, cause of his leg and all, but it was enough to get them distracted so I could get Cryssie away. And then he helped when she went into shock in the parking lot and I was freaking cause I didn't know what to do."
She took a breath.
"She hasn't seen a doctor since it happened, even though there were complications and stuff. And he actually convinced her to let Dr Cameron examine her. So please, don't be mad at him. He already got beaten to a pulp because of us, I don't want to get him in any more trouble."
Cuddy smiled at her warmly, shocked. She shook her head slowly.
"I'm not mad at him anymore. Thank you, Bethany."
Bethany smiled back.
"It's been so good for Crys. To see that not all guys are jackasses, you know? There are still some good ones out there." She turned and walked away in the direction of Ward 18.
Cuddy and Wilson just stared at each other.
"I'll be damned," said Cuddy incredulously.
"House as a poster boy for one of the 'good ones'," Foreman chipped in, eyebrows raised.
"Well, it's a very good thing he did," Chase pointed out.
Wilson smiled, unable to stop himself from grinning like crazy.
"Don't look so smug," Cuddy fired at him as she left.
Wilson just smiled wider.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Later on, House reclined in his chair with his feet up. The ducklings were quacking over him, and Wilson and Cuddy apparently thought they had to stay too.
Cuddy stood right in front of him, blocking his attempts to ignore her.
"That was a good thing you did, House," she told him, fixing him with her serious expression.
He looked up at her.
"I think I should be nominated for a medal, don't you? Or maybe just let off clinic duty for the rest of my life. Whaddya say?"
She death-glared him.
" Maybe a shrine of some sort, or even a sainthood. Saint Gregory the Fearless."
Foreman screwed up his face and shook his head slowly in disgust.
Chase looked bored.
"They were hot, weren't they? I can see why that girl has trouble."
Cameron turned her face away, and Cuddy narrowed her eyes at him.
"I think we need a new case. Rape victims are boring," he pronounced.
Cuddy straightened and threw a file at him.
" There's a patient down at the clinic with severe haemorrhoids. He's now yours. Get down there."
House wrinkled his nose.
"Aww.. Mom, do I have to?"
Cuddy turned her head as she stalked out.
"Go. Now."
House slunk out of the office, and Wilson came up beside him in the corridor.
House glared at him.
"What, you want me to introduce you to the girls so you can cheat on your wife again?"
Wilson just smirked, which pissed House off.
"Good work, Greg," he said sincerely, staring his best friend down.
House looked straight ahead, concentrating on his steps.
"Don't you have anything better to do than follow me down the halls?" he snapped.
"Nope," the oncologist smiled beatifically.
House couldn't think of a reply, so he just kept walking.
Wondering for the millionth time why Wilson was always the one he couldn't get rid of.
The End.