"Angel of Music"

Chapter 1

Carteret General Hospital

Cherry Point, North Carolina

June 11, 1959- May 28, 1960

His birth was not the most memorable one of that year, nor even that month. It was 1959 and the baby boom was in full swing. I do remember it being unusually hot that day in June, though, and I felt bad for the women who were so heavily pregnant in that kind of heat. It wasn't memorable, but it was a close call. He was the second birth of the day for me and he was by far the harder of the two.

He was a breach birth, twisted all the way around with the umbilical cord wrapped tightly around his throat. I was worried for him, but more worried that I was going to lose his mother, too. Her name was Blythe and she was a very kind woman. I The nurses that were assisting tried to hold her hand and prepare her for the worst, but she was having none of it. She just gripped tightly onto the edge of the bed and tried not to scream with the ungodly pain. I worked hard to get the baby out before we lost them both and when he finally came out, he was as blue as the navy uniforms on the base nearby. I unwrapped the cord and cut it, but he didn't move. I tried to suction his lungs out, slapping him on the backside, hoping for some kind of movement, but there was nothing. He was cute for a newborn, small hands and feet, a birthmark already showing bright on his scalp. But he was already gone- there was nothing I could do.

"Dr. Adams? Um, I think you need to come over here…" one of the nurses, Laura, said and I looked over. Blythe was still bleeding heavily and I knew I needed to focus on her now. There was nothing to be done about the baby. I moved over to her to start stitching, but she became hysterical.

"Help him!" she yelled, but I ignored her, trying to focus on the bleeding. "I said help him!"

"I am sorry, Mrs. House. The baby is already g-." The rest of my sentence was drowned out suddenly by a loud, long wail coming from behind me. "Well, I'll be damned…" I muttered as one of the other nurses rushed to help the newborn.

"Dr. Adams?" she questioned as I began to stitch.

"Clean him up and give him to his mother. I will check him out in a minute." I said, glad that the area was finally clotting. The nurse, Rachel, followed my instructions, then handed the screaming baby to his relieved mother.

"Mrs. House, meet your baby boy." I heard Rachel say and I looked up. This was the reason I had gone into this field- the look of a mother the first time she saw her son. Just like her, I wondered what would become of this little being. What would he do with his life? Would he be president, an athlete, doctor, or would he go into the military like his father no doubt was? Who knew what would come of that little boy.

"Would you like me to contact the father?" Laura asked, but Blythe shook her head.

"He is busy at work right now. He…He will find out when he gets home." Blythe answered, confirming my suspicion that he was a military man. She seemed saddened by the fact that he wasn't there, but it was none of my business.

"What's his name, Mrs. House?" I asked as I finished up.

"Gregory. Gregory House."

There were only two obstetricians/pediatricians in Cherry Point at the time, and I was one of them. As a rule, if you delivered it, you took care of it after. So, I saw Blythe and Baby Gregory often after his birth. I was surprised at how healthy he was after such a difficult birth, but he seemed to be just fine. He grew at the correct pace, progressing faster than normal in intelligence, even. He rolled over when he was a week old, and started sitting up on his own at 4 months. I was pretty impressed and could see how proud Blythe was of her son. It was around this time that I met John House, his father.

"Major House, it is good to finally meet you." I said, entering the office. Generally, I liked the service men around us. They typically were nice guys and it was fun to see these normally tough guys get so worried over the smallest things regarding their children. John House, however, was not one of these guys. He looked more like the typical Marine, short hair, stern face- a hardass. "What seems to be the problem with little Greg today?"

"He won't shut up." The man growled at me and I looked away to roll my eyes. Oh yeah, a real sympathetic kinda guy. "Blythe is sick and made me bring him." He said and I nodded. The baby was awfully fussy and I saw him tug on his ear, a classic sign of an ear infection. I looked inside to confirm.

"He has an ear infection." I said and the major looked put out.

"How much is that gonna cost to fix?" he asked gruffly and I looked at him in surprise.

"Nothing. Just give him a few drops in the ear every six hours and he should get better in a few days." I replied, handing him a bottle of medicine.

"Look, all he does is scream- I can't get any sleep. Can't you just keep him here until he stops?" John asked and I frowned. What the hell was wrong with this guy?

"It's not serious enough to warrant a stay here, sir." I said, snapping the salutation out, irritated. This was his son for cryin' out loud! He glared at me and grabbed Greg.

"Fine. I'll let my wife deal with him. Thanks, Doc." He growled and left. All I could do was shake my head. Wow…some people…

The last time I saw Gregory House was a couple of weeks before they moved. I was amazed to hear he was already talking and even walking at only a year old.

"Hello, Greg." I said when I walked in. The little boy looked at me, blinking with his big blue eyes.

"Hello." He said in a small voice, moving closer to his mother.

"Gregory is here for his boosters." Blythe said, holding him close. " Remember what I said, Greg? Boosters are nothing to be afraid of. And I bet Dr. Adams will give you a piece of candy after we are finished." She said and he seemed little comforted by this information. I prepared the shots while she talked to him and just hoped that he would hold still long enough for me to administer them. Blythe distracted him with a small toy while I prepared his arm, the quickly injected the medicine. The boy jumped, but made no sound, which surprised me. Even the toughest of kids usually whimpered.

"That's it, Gregory. You did very well." I said and he gave me a half-smile. I let him pick out a lollipop (red cherry) and waved as the two left. I never saw any of them again, but I always wondered what became of little Gregory House.

A/N: Hey guys! So, what do you think of the beginning? I plan on going through his life up to the first season, first episode of the series. Some chapters will be shorter and some longer. BTW, I have nothing against military guys (I was raised by them!), so don't come after me. It was just part of the story. It wasn't me speaking, but Dr. Adams! Anyway, you know what to do: Read and Review please!