Disclaimer: Not mine, sadly…
A little bit of Valentine's day fluff.
Enjoy!
It was unexpected seeing her there- at the coffee joint that made the best Ruben's he'd ever tasted. On a Saturday evening. Alone.
He debated whether or not to just leave without saying hi, but he'd already ordered a sandwich to 'eat-in' and it was damn cold outside.
"You're sitting in my seat."
Allison Cameron looked up, startled at the sound of her boss' voice.
And there he was, as large as life, frowning at her as though he expected her to apologise, get up, wrap herself up in her hat, coat and scarf and leave him to it.
She shrugged. "It's Saturday, House. Which means that I get to sit and drink tea anywhere I damn well please."
He looked faintly amused. "Well, don't let me disturb you. I was just going to sit with one of my friends anyway."
She didn't even turn her head to look for someone who could be described as a friend. "I thought he was away in Boston," she remarked. There was a beat before she added: "You can sit here, though." The young doctor gestured to the empty chair beside her.
"Well, ordinarily I would, but I'd hate to interrupt you and," he glanced at the cover of a closed book on the table, "F. Scott Fitzgerald."
Her answer was a smile. "That's ok, I've been neglecting him for the last hour or so."
He still didn't move.
As he hesitated, the guy who had taken his order appeared with his sandwich and coffee. Seeing House talking to his youngest duckling, he assumed that they were together, deposited the plate and mug on the table, and headed back to the counter.
"Well, that settles it- I guess you're sitting here."
He shrugged and lowered himself into the chair. It wasn't as if he was staying long. He just wanted to get a bite to eat on his way home from work.
"So," he took a bite of his sandwich and paused for a moment to chew, "who were you neglecting Gatsby for?" He gestured towards the book.
"People watching." Came her succinct reply.
He just looked at her.
"Seriously," She looked over at a table in the corner, beckoned her boss closer and lowered her voice: "See that woman over there? She's waiting for her boyfriend. She's nervous because it's their first Valentine's day together. She thinks that he's stood her up, that's why she keeps checking her watch, but in fact she's fifteen minutes early. Her boyfriend's actually out in his car trying to write the card that he bought on his lunch break last week."
Her boss looked at her in surprise: "You know all that?"
She smiled. "No. But I like to think I do."
He just looked at her and said nothing.
She gave him a depreciating smile. "You probably think I'm crazy."
He didn't speak, but took another bite of his Ruben instead.
She laughed at his response. "Fine. What do you see then?"
He swallowed and looked over at the woman sitting at the corner table, nervously stirring her coffee.
"She's a spy," he said, after a pause, "she's passing information to a terrorist cell that are kidnapping brilliant doctors."
Cameron rolled her eyes: "And why are they kidnapping brilliant doctors?"
"Facial reconstruction." he said simply.
Cameron couldn't help it, she laughed out loud. "That's ridiculous! You've been watching too much 24."
"You can never watch too much 24," he replied in a shocked tone, "Besides, you only think it's ridiculous because you want her to be in love with some handsome boy- instead of plotting my abduction."
"Well, this has all been very interesting, but I'm afraid that I have to run." She picked up her scarf and began to put it on.
House was surprised to feel something akin to dismay. "You can't leave now. Don't you want to find out which one of us was right?"
Checking her watch, she replied: "Sure, I've got a few minutes."
A companionable silence settled as they waited.
Five minutes passed, and the woman got progressively more fidgety.
Cameron checked her watch again. "I've really got to go, House."
"Big date?" he said it without expression but something in his eyes made her look at him sharply: it was almost as if he didn't want her to have a date.
"Actually, no," she watched his reaction closely, "but I do have somewhere to be."
He nodded, but said nothing. There was a beat, then a through struck her.
"They're showing old movies down at the movie theatre for Valentine's Day," she explained, "Would you like to come?"
"What's showing?"
"Casablanca."
"You know, I always liked Humphrey Bogart," he went on casually, "I think I might join you."
She hid her elation and simply nodded.
They put on their coats and wrapped up, preparing to brave the elements.
When the reached the door of the café, a flustered man entered. He was carrying a huge bouquet of red roses. He made his way hurriedly to the corner table, and presented it to the woman that Cameron and House had been watching earlier. She beamed as she leaned over to kiss him tenderly.
Outside in the cold air, Cameron laughed up at her boss.
"I won! I told you she was waiting for her boyfriend." She smiled triumphantly.
"You haven't proved anything. The flowers are probably just a cover anyway." he retorted, unabashed.
She laughed again, and raised a hand to smack him on the arm. But he caught her gloved hand in his and all of a sudden the atmosphere changed. He stared down at her smiling face, framed by a silly woolly hat, with an arrested expression.
House surprised them both by leaning into her and brushing his lips gently against hers. She barely had time to respond, before he pulled back and looked down at her shocked face mischievously.
"You know, you really do look ridiculous in that hat."
She recovered herself. "Shut up."
Cameron grabbed his hand and tugged it. "C'mon House, we're going to be late."
And Dr. Greggory House didn't seem to mind his youngest duckling dragging him down a frozen street on Valentine's day, to see a movie that he hadn't really enjoyed the first timed he'd watched it.
Instead of protesting, he followed meekly and made a mental note to haunt that café every Saturday evening from now on.
AN: I guess it was a bit fluffy, and maybe a little OOC, but please let me know what you thought!