Set after Informed Consent. No spoilers that I'm aware of. I don't own these characters.
Why… Just Another Letter in the Alphabet
Chapter 1: What Happens in the Chapel…
He's proud of me…? I killed a man and he's proud of me? Why? The feel of his thumb tracing light circles on her shoulder, the way he was gripping her. It would have been just as hard on him… "Leave it to the atheist to try to find penance in a hospital chapel." He said dryly, giving her shoulder a squeeze.
"Yeah well there's a first time for everything…" She muttered, unable to keep the sadness out of her voice.
This woman, the picture of righteousness and morality, killed a man this morning. Why? "Why'd you do it?" He asked softly, nudging her to move over. She obliged.
"I… I took an oath. To help people. Normally that means curing them… But, death was his cure… And I'm supposed to do what's in the patient's best interest." She replied quietly.
"You were morally against 24 hours ago." He reminded her. His tone wasn't accusing nor harsh. It was quiet, understated, very un-House-like.
"I still am. But he was miserable House. He was suffering, he was in pain… I wouldn't wish that on anyone…" She told him, her own voice full of pain and misery.
"Now you're miserable." It wasn't a question. It was a statement. A true one.
"I'll be fine." She replied. And it was true. In time, she would get over the fact that she'd killed a man.
"At least you're honest. And you will be fine, with time. But right now, Allison, you aren't fine." He said, his voice a tad bit stronger this time.
She nodded, her hands in her lap. She didn't really have a response for that, mostly because he was right.
"I know it doesn't seem like it now, but you'll be a better doctor for it. And a stronger person. It was what was best for him. And sometimes, what's best isn't always what's right." He finished. Until this point, they'd merely been sitting next to each other, a small but respectful distance between their bodies. Now, he rested his hand on her leg briefly.
House didn't reach out much. Cameron knew that. And she knew her boss well enough to know that what happened in the chapel stayed in the chapel. Once she set foot back in the conference room, she'd be just another duckling, another person to take shots at. But that didn't matter. Right here, right now, she was Allison Cameron, he was Greg House. They were two people who were sharing a pew, having a serious conversation and sharing a moment.
"Would you have done it?" She asked, bringing her wide blue eyes up to his.
He didn't hesitate. "Yes." He replied, his hands balanced on top of his cane now.
She nodded, turning to face the front of the chapel.
I can't sit here anymore… She's killing me with the silence and the pain… It feels too real…
"OK then. Take a few minutes to collect yourself and if you need to go home, you can. Otherwise, I'll see you upstairs." He said, breaking her trance. He stood, preparing to leave the pew but was stopped by a hand on his wrist.
"Thank you." She whispered. He said nothing, just nodded. With that, he strode out of the chapel, leaving her to her silence.
He was bombarded by questions about Dr. Powell the second he hit the glass doors.
"Foreman. I wasn't here. I know nothing about it. How many times do you need to here it before it sinks in?" He snapped.
The young doctor was used to his boss's angry comments, so he just rolled his eyes and crossed his arms in front of me.
"The nurse clearly indicated he was fine at 2 am this morning. At 2:30 he was dead and you know nothing about it?" The young neurologist demanded.
House cocked an eyebrow at him. "I'm a healer, not a murderer." He snarked sarcastically.
Just then, Cameron pushed through the double doors.
Good girl Cameron. You're one step closer to getting past the emotional baggage. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't happy she was there.
"Well someone injected him with morphine… And you did it once already, why not do it again?" Chase asked, nodding his greeting to Cameron.
House sighed. They weren't going to let it go… I can't believe I'm about to do this… "Maybe I did. Maybe I didn't. It's irrelevant now. He's in his 'happy place' remember? Where he wants to be. Death was his cure…. It was what was in his best interest." House said at last, his eyes briefly flicking to meet Cameron's. He'd used her words, used her explanation, in effect, he'd used his voice to give her reason.
Those are my… Oh God, he's going to take the heat for this!!? I can't let him do this! Cameron opened her mouth to speak, but a brief shake of the head from House stopped her.
"You did do it." Foreman accused, sitting up straight in his chair.
"You don't know that for sure. It could have been anyone, hell it could've been you! But that's beside the point. What matters is that the patient got what he wanted. No one's getting blamed now lets move on." He snarked, turning his back and stalking to his office.
"Can you believe him? Killed a patient… Way to follow the oath." Foreman breathed as he turned to face his colleagues.
Cameron said nothing, just watched the mystery that was her boss as he sat down at his computer, put his feet up, flicked his iPod on and closed his eyes.
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