Alright, this fic has one of my favourite storylines. It starts off in the last scene of the episode Kids, where Cameron agrees to come back to work. It's actually the whole scene re-written. Nobody agreed to date anybody. This is another one that I'm not sure where it's headed yet, but I'm working on it.

Disclaimer: House is not mine, but a certain other character who for the time being will remain nameless, is.

Reviews welcome!

Gregory House made his way down the hall to apartment F. He was scared. He'd never been this nervous in his life. But I have to do this, I have to get her back, he thought to himself. With as much courage as he could muster, picked up his cane and knocked on the door. While waiting for her to answer it, his thoughts drifted to all the possible outcomes of the conversation he was about to have. What if she says no again? What if I inadvertently end up being a jerk? These questions just made him knock faster and more persistently, as he grew more anxious.

Finally, the door opened. But it wasn't Cameron standing behind it. Or was it? There was a girl standing there, with long dark brown hair, just like Cameron's, and copies of her green eyes that made him melt every time he saw them. But there was one problem. One reason it couldn't be Cameron. This person was 4'9". Unless Cameron's shrunk in the past 48 hours, I don't think this is her, House thought.

"Hi, can I help you?" the girl asked politely. Whoa, that's just like Cameron too

"uh, yes, I think," House started to say. He was still a little dumbfounded by the child he'd found standing on Allison Cameron's doorstep. "I'm looking for Dr. Allison Cameron."

"House?" he looked up to see Cameron coming to stand behind the girl, in a bathrobe, her hair dripping with water.

"See, if you wore something like that to work, we probably wouldn't be in this situation," House told her, in typical House form.

Cameron rolled her eyes. "What do you want?"

"I came to get you to come back to work," he told her.

"We already had this discussion, it's not gonna happen," Cameron said, making to close the door, but House reached up with his hand and stopped it.

"Well, I decided I didn't like your answer."

"Well, tough, you don't get to decide what I do with my life anymore."

"Cameron, please," she could see in his eyes he was begging. This was a switch. House never begged, or at least, he never let her or the others see it. He was too proud for that. Maybe this meant he really did want her back.

Cameron shifted her weight and considered him for a moment. She was about to respond when the shrill ringing of the phone interrupted her thoughts. She turned to look in the direction of the sound, then back at House apologetically, and said, "Sorry, but I have to get that."

"No, no, go ahead," he said, and watched her disappear into the apartment. He was still starring in the direction she had gone when he heard something.

"Excuse me, mister, but who are you?" it was the little girl again.

House looked down at Cameron's look-alike and let out a small smile. She was really cute. "I'm Dr. Gregory House, I work with your…"

"My mom."

Your what? Since when did Cameron have a daughter? House would know if Cameron had a child. He would have heard about her. He always pictured Cameron to be the type that was always gushing about their children to everyone they met.

"You looked shocked," the girl commented.

"uh, well, actually, I am. I wasn't aware Cameron had any children."

The girl smiled up at him. Oh my God, they had identical smiles. This was getting too scary. Then the girl's smile turned into a frown as though she were pondering something.

"Wait, aren't you the guy that my mom quit working for?"

"Yes, but I'm trying to rectify that situation right now."

"She doesn't want to come back to work for you," the girl said. A little forward for one of Cameron's offspring, House thought. Maybe that's the one thing she got from her father.

At that exact moment, Cameron came back into the room. "Sorry about that," she said.

"Oh, that's okay, I was just getting to know your daughter here," House said, his tone indicating that he had just discovered something that he wasn't supposed to know about.

Cameron looked down at her daughter, and then back at House. He could tell that she wasn't happy with this latest development.

"Honey, why don't you go get ready for bed, it's getting late. I'll be in to tuck you in in a minute," Cameron said to her. The girl nodded, and turned to House. "It was nice meeting you Dr. House."

House smiled. "It was nice meeting you too…"

"Hayley," she supplied.

"Hayley," he repeated the name.

Once she was out of earshot, House began his ridicule of Cameron. "So, when were you planning on telling me you have a daughter?"

"When it was any of your business. Which it never was," she shot back.

"You don't think that your boss had the right to know you had a child to support?"

"Would you have raised my salary if you did know?"

That got him silent. Cameron stood up a little straighter. "Besides, your not my boss anymore, so why are we even discussing this?"

"Because I want to be your boss again."

"Well that makes one of us."

Damn, she is on tonight. Gonna have to grovel. "What do you want, better parking space, salary raise, what? I'll do anything, just come back to work."

"Anything?" she asked, intrigued.

"Well, I'm not gonna jump off a bridge."

She laughed. Well, that's good, at least she still thinks I'm funny, he thought. But then her face became serious again. "House, I already accepted a position elsewhere."

Damn it. Too late. No, it can't be, I have to get her to quit this new place. "Have you started there yet?" he asked, hoping she'd answer in the negative.

She got an uneasy look on her face, like she thought he was planning something. "Well, no, not yet."

"Good, then there's still time to back out."

"uh, no, just because you want me to come back to work for you doesn't mean I'm going to drop everything and comply. Like I said, you're not my boss anymore. Now, goodnight," she said, and once again shut the door in his face.

He stood outside for a minute and hung his head. Lucky she was at the end of a hallway, because if anyone had heard his next words they may have thought he was crazy. "Can't get rid of me that easily, I'm gonna get you back, I'm not gonna give up." With that, he turned around and headed home to spend another night alone with just his whiskey and his piano, and berate himself for being such a moron.

After Cameron closed the door, she headed down the hallway to the back of her apartment to fulfill her promise. She knocked on Hayley's door, and heard her call out for her to come in.

She opened the door and smiled at her little girl who was sitting up in bed waiting for her to come and say goodnight. It had been tough, but she thought that the two of them had made it alright for the past eight years. Being a single parent was scary, but, without any other choice, Cameron had stepped up and now she loved her life, and wouldn't give it up for the world.

"Hi," she said, smiling.

"Hi," Hayley responded.

"So, do you want me to read you a story?" Cameron asked.

"um, actually, I wanted to ask you something," Hayley said cautiously.

"Sure, what is it?"

"You know that guy that was here?"

"Dr. House."

"Yeah, him. Why don't you want to go back to work for him?"

Cameron sighed, Hayley had always been a perceptive girl. Just like Cameron in her childhood. Having this alike made Cameron realize that she had to be honest with her daughter. When she was that age, she always hated how adults dismissed what she said and were never straight with her, because they thought she didn't understand.

She went to sit next to her on the bed, and put her arm around her shoulders. "Well, for a lot of reasons," she started.

"Like what?" Hayley asked, looking up at her.

"Dr. House can be…not so nice at times. He doesn't always think about what he says before he says it."

"So he hurts people's feelings?"

"Yeah, unfortunately he does."

"Did he hurt your feelings?"

"Yes."

"But aren't you always telling me not to hold grudges and to forgive people? That's what you said when Lucy stole my Barbie."

Why do things parents say always come back to bite them in the ass? Cameron wondered to herself. "Well, this is a bit different than that."

"How?"

Cameron paused. "Remember how you liked Richie Silverman last year, but he was always hitting you and said he didn't like you?" Hayley nodded. "My relationship with House was kind of like that."

"He threw snowballs at you?"

Cameron laughed. "No, but he did make me feel like he didn't like me. You remember how sad you were when you thought Richie didn't like you, right? Well, I didn't like it either, so I decided to leave."

Hayley considered this for a moment, and then spoke again. "I think he really does like you."

Cameron looked startled. "What makes you say that?"

"When you went to answer the phone, he seemed really nervous, like I always was around Richie. He was really sincere, and I don't think he's gonna take no for an answer. You should go for it Mom."

Hayley's words took Cameron by surprise. She wasn't prepared to hear this. "I think it's time for you to go to sleep," she said, standing up. "You've got school in the morning."

"Okay," Hayley said, and laid down in bed as Cameron pulled up the covers around her.

"Goodnight," she said to her daughter, kissing her on the head.

"Goodnight," Hayley replied. "I love you mommy."

"I love you too sweetheart," Cameron said, smiling.

Hayley closed her eyes and Cameron left the room, softly closing the door behind her. She stood outside and considered her daughter's words. Maybe she's right. Maybe I shouldn't give up on House just yet. Great, now I'm accepting love advice from an 8 year old. Cameron shook her head and headed further down the hall to her own bedroom. She'd think about it, but that was all she was willing to do for now.