Chapter 1
House returned to his apartment well after dark, barely making it home before the snow started falling again. The forecast had reported a storm coming in, predicted to hit during the night, making the morning commute regrettable. So far, the storm was on time. Snow made House's life harder. Walking was even more difficult and the cold just tortured him and made him more sore than usual. The walk from the car to the door was more than enough for him in this frigid weather.
He gladly unlocked the door and stepped inside, but wasn't greeted with the usually noticeable blast of heat. Removing his jacket, hat, scarf, and gloves at the door he disappeared into the bedroom. He returned wearing a half zip pullover. The apartment was cooler than usual and he was now armed with another warm layer and ready to tackle the problem. Checking the thermostat it was discovered that it was set just as he usually leaves it, at 75 degrees but it wouldn't click on. After placing a call to the building's super he made a fire in the fireplace and went on with his usual evening rituals.
After stoking the fire so it would burn through the night, he took a long hot shower before retiring to his bed. He added several blankets just in case the fire went out, or the storm brought much lower temperatures than expected. After setting the alarm for 7:30 so that he could get a head start incase the roads were bad, and taking some Vicodin he was ready for some much needed sleep.