Chapter One

The wailing of the ambulance increased behind her as she walked up the sidewalk towards Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, the vehicle pulling into the driveway for emergencies only. The clicking of her black high heels against the concrete echoed the sound of her heart beating in her chest, her pulse accelerating as she got closer to the building. Ever since she was a child, she dreamed of being a doctor and working in a hospital, but so far, she had no luck at any of the offices or hospitals she had worked at. It wasn't that they didn't accept her, but they underplayed her intelligence. When she heard about the reputation of this hospital, including the doctors, she finally felt relief, and was overjoyed when they accepted to have her work at the hospital. Approaching the door, she exhaled; the feeling like most of the oxygen in her body was being released, but quickly remembering that could never happen. Her forehead crinkled as she walked through the sliding automatic doors, thinking how she wasn't even on the job yet and she was saying medical facts to herself. Without missing a beat, her features smoothed out, revealing her smooth and beautiful porcelain skin in its entirety. As she walked up to the front desk, she smiled at the woman typing at the computer, waiting to be tended to.

"Hello, how are you today? Can I help you with something?" The woman asked, looking her over from behind the counter with a faint smile. She seemed to be that receptionist that knew everything, and if you didn't watch out, could get under your skin. She ignored that thought as she addressed the receptionist with a smile.

"Hi, I'm fine, and my name is Ramona Sterling. I was wondering if you could help me find this doctor." Ramona put the black folder with her credentials on the counter, opening it to the page with the doctor's name. The paper went into detail about his medical achievements and how Ramona would be in good hands under his leadership. The receptionist nodded and gave her verbal directions on how to get to his office, hand gestures and all, the sound of her voice indicating she wanted to get this over with and continue her work.

"Well, thank you for your help. I'll just get going now," Ramona said, grabbing her folder and turning on her heel, repeating the directions in her head. Ramona was halfway down the hallway when a call after her made her stop and turn around. The receptionist was sitting with a smile, waving her hand to get Ramona's attention.

"You'll have a fun time finding ," the receptionist began, giving Ramona a sly smile, "just thought I should let you know." Ramona stared at the woman for a moment, a confused look on her face, but not wanting to ask. She turned back towards the hallway, walking at a steady pace not knowing what to think of what the woman had told her. He's a doctor, so why wouldn't he be in his office? Or why would he be hard to find? Ramona shook her head and made a left, passing patient rooms, looking in on the sick. She had always felt bad for people who came to the hospital, always having to wait on everything. Ramona hated to wait, and it showed through her aggressive stances in diagnosing people. At the end of the hallway she made a right, seeing a bunch of offices of important, higher ranking doctors. Ramona carefully looked at the names on the doors, keeping an eye out for the intended door. After passing about five similar offices, she stumbled across a wooden door that read "Dr. Gregory House, M.D."

Taking a breath, she paused, taking everything in before knocking on the door, only to find it was unlocked. When she opened the door, she found an empty but neat office. Ramona couldn't believe that the office was empty, and more importantly, the receptionist was right. Not knowing what to do with herself, or how long Dr. House would take, she walked over to a couch near the window and sat on it. She couldn't help but look around the office to see if she could guess anything about her new teacher. From the looks of it, he was very particular, wanting his office his way. He might possibly be a control freak, which wouldn't be shocking for a doctor. From the looks of it, Ramona was also trying to think of what this man would look like. Would he be a young obsessive compulsive doctor or would he be some really old man that is far past his prime? Ramona decided to wait and see, just in case her assumptions were wrong, it wouldn't be the first time. She leaned her head back on the couch, trying to relax. Her leg was bouncing lightly out of nerves, and she tried to calm it, but to no avail. She decided to just let it go, and instead stare at the ceiling.

Ramona had completely zoned out when the sound of a door handle snapped her out of her daze. Looking at the door, a tall man with a cane stood, staring at her. Ramona stood up and looked at the man further. He wore a black button up shirt with black pants and a dress jacket. His features were defined, his blue-gray eyes being the most stunning feature. He looked somewhat confused as to what she was doing in his office, but he shook it off, walking past her to his desk. Ramona turned and looked at him, walking to the front of his desk as he put down his backpack and took off his jacket.

"Dr. House?" Ramona asked in a soft voice, not knowing what to really say considering he was being so quiet. He briefly glimpsed at her, moving around papers on his desk, and putting his cane to the side, sitting down in his black swivel chair. He put his feet up on his desk, crossing them, and folding his hands on his chest.

"That'd be me," he replied, staring at Ramona with a look she couldn't describe.

"Hello, my name is Ramona Sterling. I'm going to be the new doctor on your team." Ramona placed the folder with her credentials on his desk, looking to Dr. House. He looked down at the folder and then back to Ramona.

"Do you think that matters?" He asked, looking at her with those piercing eyes.

"Excuse me?" Ramona asked, not understanding why it wouldn't be important.

"Do you honestly think your credentials are important? Do you think they will have any meaning to me?"

"Well they have to mean something; otherwise I wouldn't have brought them." Ramona was stunned at his approach to this whole situation. Here he has a new talent, and he's acting like he's never seen it before.

"Well they don't, Miss. Sterling, or at least not to me. I'll judge you based on what you do, not on what others said you did. All of that doesn't matter now." He leaned back in his seat, his head titled, looking to Ramona. He seemed so sure of himself, and she had no idea what to say.

"So you're not going to read them at all?" She asked, sounding a little impatient. House stared at her and leaned forward, grabbing his cane and standing up. He grabbed the folder she had placed on his desk and walked over to her side, facing the door.

"I don't like new people, they irritate me. And to answer your question, I'll put a use to your credentials. They will be perfect for warming my house." And with that, House left his office, shutting the door behind him, leaving Ramona by herself, watching the door with an offended expression.