Disclaimer: All rights belong to Fox and David Shore. I make no money from this
Author's Note: This takes place this December (2008), but I'm basically ignoring season five so this fic can remain pretty general and completely spoiler free. Written for ss_huddy over at livejournal.
Cuddy shoved her finger into the button for the elevator. She let out a puff of air, blowing away a stray section of hair from in front of her right eye. She folded her arms across her chest as she waited, quite impatiently, for the elevator.
"Fancy seeing you here."
Sending a glance to her side, Cuddy watched House sidle up next to her. It was slightly suspicious that he was still here and even more suspicious that he was on the ground floor.
"Yeah," Cuddy agreed sarcastically.
"Well, that tone's not in the holiday spirit, now is it?" House asked her, raising his eyebrows.
"What are you still doing here?" she snapped at him, giving him another quick glance.
"Shouldn't you know?" he replied.
Cuddy turned then, facing him. "Your patient's worse? I thought his treatment was working."
"So did I." House leaned just a touch closer to her. "What are you doing here?"
With one eyebrow slightly raised, Cuddy leaned back, still utterly suspicious and increasingly becoming annoyed.
"Christmas isn't a Jewish holiday."
House cocked his head to the side. "Since when?"
The elevator doors slid open and Cuddy quickly stepped inside. House followed her in and Cuddy tried to hold back an eye roll at his continued presence, but failed. She pressed the button for the third floor.
"Well?" House prompted further. Cuddy merely raised her eyebrows at him in return. He let out a sigh before continuing. "Aren't you the Dean so you don't have to work on holidays, even the ones you don't celebrate? I know you were off on Columbus Day."
She sent a glare in his direction. "I chose to be here, House."
He leaned against the wall of the elevator. "Why?"
"Why?" Cuddy repeated. "Because I don't always have to explain myself to you. That's why."
"That doesn't make any sense."
The elevator stopped and Cuddy stepped forward, impatiently waiting for the doors to open. Once they did, she took another step forward, but House grabbed her arm and pulled her back. She turned and glared, but he pointed toward the bottom of the elevator with his cane.
Cuddy followed his indication and let out an annoyed sigh at the sight of the foot gap between the elevator and the floor.
"Damn it," she cursed, but kept her voice low. "I called in a work order last week and they said they fixed this."
"Guess they lied," House said.
He shoved past Cuddy and stepped off the elevator quite awkwardly as he tried to mind his right thigh. Once he was on two feet, he extended a hand to Cuddy. She looked from his hand to his face and raised her eyebrows.
"Offering a hand to help a lady?" she asked. "A Christmas miracle, Scrooge?"
"I wouldn't necessarily call you a lady," House replied.
Cuddy took his hand anyway and used it to keep her balance as she stepped down to the floor.
"And imagine, if I didn't offer my help, I probably would have been at an angle to see up that skirt of yours."
She yanked her hand from his and glared at him before turning and heading towards her destination. House smirked and followed her down the empty hallway.
"Cuddy."
Letting out a sigh, she stopped and faced him. He caught up to her, placed his free hand on her shoulder, and pushed her back against the wall. Her eyebrows drew together, a frown crossing over her lips, lost for words since she wasn't exactly sure as to what he was doing.
House leaned down towards her and pressed his lips against hers. Cuddy's hands went to his chest and she pushed him away. Quickly, she glanced around, making sure no one saw them, before focusing back on him.
"What the hell are you doing?" she demanded to know.
"Happy Hanukkah, Cuddy," House told her simply and headed back toward the elevator.
Cuddy angrily stared after him, her face flushed, but she couldn't yet find the words to yell at him. Her eyes remained on him until he boarded the elevator, but he didn't once look back at her.
She stood outside the door to his office, observing him. He was at his desk as he slid a notebook into his backpack. He glanced up and saw her there. He gave her a nod, indicating she could enter. Hesitating for only a moment, Cuddy pushed the door open and stepped inside.
"You kissed me," she said.
House shrugged. "Happy Hanukkah."
"That's not even funny," Cuddy told him as she crossed the room. "It was completely inappropriate."
House slung his backpack strap over his shoulder and feigned a confused expression in Cuddy's direction.
"How?"
"First off, I'm your boss," Cuddy heatedly pointed out to him. "Second, we're at work. Third... it was inappropriate!"
House limped his way around his desk. "You haven't said you didn't like it."
"I didn't like it," she immediately retorted.
He stopped in front of her, locking eyes with her. "Too bad I can see you're lying."
"I'm not." She refused to back down.
"You know," he began, "Hanukkah has eight days of gift giving."
Cuddy frowned at him. "Hanukkah started on Sunday."
"Guess I better catch up."
House kissed her then, one planted on each cheek before a lingering one landed on her mouth. She didn't push him away until his lips were pressed firmly against hers.
"House!" Cuddy backed away from him.
"Now, we're about even," House told her. "But, I still owe you four."
He walked past her and left his office, leaving her feeling angry once more and a bit dazed. She stalked out of his office and stood in the empty hallway, watching his backside.
"You can't just play these games, House," Cuddy called out to him.
House turned to her as the elevator doors slid open.
"What games, Cuddy?" he asked. "It's my holiday gift to you."
He stepped into the elevator and the doors slid closed. Cuddy folded her arms over her chest with a huff.
Cuddy stepped out into the cold morning, scarf around her neck and gloves on her hands. Her breath condensed around her as she pulled the door closed behind her. A figure stepped out from beside her door. She let out a cry and stepped away, only to see that it was House.
His hand went to the side of her face as he kissed her, using her shocked expression as invitation for his tongue to slip into her mouth on this one. She pulled back instantly and shoved him hard in the chest.
"Damn it, House!" She glared heavily at him. "This is sexual harassment!"
"Is it?" House played dumb.
"Yes!" Cuddy gave him another shove to the chest.
He smirked at her fury and continued to play dumb. "You don't seem harassed to me."
"Stop." Cuddy locked eyes with him, her tone hardened. "Now. It isn't funny or clever or something I want to play along in."
"Yeah," House agreed as he stepped off her porch. "You're right."
He headed for his motorcycle as Cuddy shot daggers in his direction. She took a step back and leaned against her closed front door. It was unfair of House to ambush her like this and even though he just agreed to stop, she had a deep seeded feeling that this wasn't yet the end.
Cuddy hurried to the elevator and slid in before the doors closed. She pressed the button for the fifth floor and realized House was among the eight people accompanying her. Doing her best to ignore his presence at the back of the elevator, Cuddy kept her focus forward.
The elevator stopped at the second floor and four people got off. House took a step closer to Cuddy. She noticed him out of the corner of her eye, but didn't acknowledge him. The elevator glided up to the third floor where three more people got off, leaving Cuddy alone with House. It was then that she realized she should have just taken the stairs.
House stepped up alongside of her, staring at the doors as the elevator headed toward the fourth floor.
"Don't even think about it," she warned, her eyes still forward.
"Think about what, Cuddy?" he replied innocently.
"You know what," she snapped.
"Cuddy."
"What?"
"You could at least look at me when engaging in conversation."
Cuddy glared at him. House leaned into her and his lips covered hers. She pushed him back and gave a stinging slap to his right cheek. House's hand immediately went to the red burn.
"Jesus, Cuddy."
The elevator stopped and the doors slid open. Cuddy took a step back.
"Your floor."
House lowered his hand and limped from the elevator. He turned back to look at her as a smirk crossed over his face. Cuddy immediately had suspicions on what was running through that thick skull of his, but the elevator doors slid closed and removed him from her view.
As the elevator headed to the fifth floor, Cuddy placed her fingertips at her lips, wondering if House's cheek was experiencing the same sort of tingling feeling.
Cuddy stepped into the Clinic as she made her way toward her office. It was close to the end of the day and she had managed to avoid House since the elevator incident. But, just as she was coming to her office, House intercepted her, blocking her path. She narrowed her eyes at him, not wanting to play his games anymore.
"Out of my way, House."
"I have a question about a Clinic patient," he told her.
Cuddy narrowed her eyes at him. "We both know you aren't seeing Clinic patients."
"Don't be so quick to judge, Cuddy," House warned with a pointed finger. "I'm embracing the holiday spirit and providing healthcare to all."
"You're scaring me."
Cuddy attempted to pass him, but House stepped into her way for the second time. He held up a sprig of green leaves above Cuddy's head. She glanced up at the plant before her eyes locked, horrified, on House.
"Don't you dare—"
House continued to hold the mistletoe up as he planted his lips to Cuddy's. He pulled back just before she could push him away. He instantly knew she was pissed by the flush in her cheeks and the look in her eye.
"My office. Now."
He smirked and obliged. Cuddy followed after him, trying to ignore the stares of nurses who wondered if she was about to fire Dr. House.
She slammed her office door closed as House turned and faced her.
Cuddy frowned. She wanted to smack the smug expression off his face, but using physical violence hadn't worked last time. She decided to try a new tactic.
"I know what you're doing," Cuddy said and planted her hands on her hips. "I know what this is."
"Do you?" House raised an eyebrow, wanting to know what she had come up with.
"You're playing by your own rules to get what you want," she replied, stepping toward him.
"Isn't that what I always do?" he asked in return.
"But, I know what you want." She stopped, keeping her distance, not wanting to be kissed again.
House leaned against the edge of her desk, sizing her up. "And what's that?"
"Me."
He pressed his lips together and rubbed at his eyes, trying not to laugh. When he lowered his hands and opened his eyes, Cuddy was still waiting for a verbal reaction. He cleared his throat.
"You think highly of yourself, Dr. Cuddy."
"You kissed me in front of all those people because you think this is fun," Cuddy went on. "You try to play it off as your wonderful capability of making me crazy. But, really, you wish you could do that without reprimand. You wish we were together."
He held back an eye roll. "If we were together, I'd kill myself."
Cuddy instantly frowned. "House—"
"I see this last kiss really got to you," he cut her off as he stood from her desk. "That's fine. Game over."
Cuddy raised her eyebrows. "It was this easy to get you to stop? Talk about what you really want?"
"I don't want anything with you," House replied. "Never have, never will."
"Never have?" Cuddy repeated. "Really? I remember a time when we—"
"Were young and stupid," he finished for her. "And you were horny all the time."
"Oh, no." Cuddy shook her head. "That wasn't all about me. But, this, right now, is all about you."
"You said it yourself," he told her as he stepped closer to her. "It was about me making you crazy. I obviously succeeded. Now, we're done."
House passed her and left her office. She let out a frustrated sigh in response to his departure.
Although she never wanted to admit it, Gregory House could make her crazy. He played kissing games like an eight-year-old boy wanting to chase off girls he liked by giving them cooties. Yet, he would deny it come hell or high water of any such feelings ever existing ever. Period.
Lightly massaging her temples to stave away the headache known as Gregory House, Cuddy headed toward her desk to finish up any remaining work before heading home.
He knocked again at her door. She opened it and peered out at him.
"What do you want?" she asked tiredly.
"Let me in?" he asked.
She didn't say no, but she also didn't allow him room to enter. House shifted on her doorstep, realizing Cuddy was waiting for him to go on.
"I still owe you a kiss," he said.
Cuddy sighed. "I thought you said you were done with this game."
"Doesn't feel right letting that last one get away," he told her. This time, serious. This time, no games.
She paused for a moment, thinking it over and House thought she was about to let him in. However, he was surprised when the door opened a touch more and she lifted herself onto her toes. Cuddy slid her hand to the back of his neck and kissed him softly on the lips.
After a brief moment, she lowered herself back down and locked her eyes with his.
"Merry Christmas, House."
House was still surprised as hell that she had turned this around on him, but he gained his senses back quickly.
"You missed Christmas," he said. "Christmas was yesterday. You've got about another three hundred and sixty four days 'til next Christmas. That's going to be a lot of kissing."
"Goodnight, House."
Cuddy stepped inside, holding back the small smile wanting to spread across her lips. The holiday wreath banged slightly against the wood of the door as it shut House out of her home.
House smirked, pausing a moment, his eyes on the wreath, and then stepped off the porch. He headed to his bike, flurries whipping by and his breath condensing around him