At Last

By Ellie J.

Disclaimer: I do not own House M.D. or any of its characters. I make no money off of this. It's purely to appease the Damn Plot Bunnies!!!!

A/N: K&K … uh … yeah. No I haven't gotten the new chapter started yet. Stupid frakkin' plot bunny!!! He wouldn't let me alone until this was out of my system. Hopefully I can move on now.

House walked into his apartment and threw his keys on a side table. He couldn't get Bonnie's words out of his head.

"He said we could just go out as friends. Go see plays, go to a museum."

Friends going out. That's what Cuddy had said that she and Wilson were. Friends. House walked to his kitchen and opened up the refrigerator, hoping to find something to distract him from the merry-go-round of lunacy going on in his head.

"It was very endearing. He just wanted to be a friend. So I jumped him."

He slammed the door shut. The very thought of Cuddy and Wilson … House closed his eyes and took deep breaths as he struggled for control. This was insane: both the idea that Cuddy and Wilson could ever be together and his reaction to the idea of it happening. Cuddy was nowhere needy enough for Wilson. He liked women that he could rescue in some way. Of course, he mused, Cuddy has been more … vulnerable than normal over the past few months. Wilson would pounce on that vulnerability and try and make it better. But Cuddy liked the fight. She would be bored with someone who did everything the way she wanted and offered her no kind of challenge. House was sure of that. On the other hand, came that annoying little voice again, she had been very tense lately. She could want something a little bit easier in her private life to help take the edge off of work.

House made his way to his couch, sat down and started flipping the remote, looking for anything to watch, but his mind kept on flashing to the image of Wilson and Cuddy together – kissing and caressing. He threw the remote down and ran his hand through his hair. Why did he even care? Even if they did start something, it wouldn't last. Wilson may seem like the perfect man, but deep down he was afraid to completely commit to a woman. He could be the knight in shining armor who rescued the damsel in distress, but he couldn't be the guy who dealt with the everyday stuff: PMS, in-laws, fighting about the toilet seat position. A relationship with Cuddy would crash and burn just like every other relationship he'd ever had.

That didn't make House feel better. He didn't want Wilson anywhere near Cuddy. He hated these feelings, but he didn't know how to stop them. It made no sense. He'd worked with Cuddy for years, and although he'd always felt … an affection for her, it had only been in the past few years that she had slowly infiltrated his mind like this. His eyes automatically followed her whenever they were in the same room. He found himself 'accidentally' bumping into her all over the hospital. Hell, he routinely paid the janitor for the trash out of her office. Cuddy could have him arrested for stalking with no difficulty.

House looked at the clock on the VCR. Cuddy and Wilson would be finishing up their date soon. He glanced out his window and looked at the bike parked there just waiting to go. It was a bad idea, and he knew it. He didn't want to go, but the need to see how the date ended gnawed at him until he found himself grabbing his helmet and heading out the front door.

House sped along the streets to Cuddy's house, not letting himself think about what he was doing. He parked across the street and hid himself and his bike behind some bushes as he waited for the pair to arrive.

They couldn't be that much longer. The thought that they were having so much fun that they'd lost track of the time ate away at his composure until he felt like he was crawling out of his skin. Finally, Wilson's car pulled up to her driveway. He watched Cuddy get out of the car laughing as Wilson started to get out and walk her to the door. She leaned into the car, shaking her head as she said something. House could see Wilson closing his door as Cuddy closed the passenger side. House breathed a sigh of relief. Wilson wasn't going to the door for a little goodnight nookie. His mental celebration was cut short, though, as Wilson put the car in reverse and pulled out of Cuddy's driveway, not waiting to make sure she made it inside safely. House frowned. He would have expected Wilson to have more sense than that.

Cuddy didn't seem to notice this breach as she smiled and waved to him as he left. She slowly walked to her door, shaking her head, obviously amused about something. House moved from his position a bit so that he could get a better view of her and make sure that she made it into the house all right. She turned around as if sensing his presence. He moved to get back into his hiding space, but twisted his leg the wrong way. Pain overcame him as he lost his balance and found himself sprawled on the driveway looking up at the cloudy evening sky.

"I don't believe this," he heard her say. He lifted his head to see her marching across the street, her heels clicking on the asphalt. "I would put out a restraining order on you, but that would only get you out of Clinic Duty!"

He groaned and gently laid his head back down on the ground. His back and leg were killing him. She kneeled down next to him on the driveway and gave him a quick once over.

"Did you hit your head?" she asked.

"No," he whispered.

"Where does it hurt?"

"Back and leg."

She sighed and he opened his eyes to look up at her. He could see the irritation and worry fighting with each other on her face.

"Do you think you can make it inside?" she asked quietly.

"If you help," he answered.

She nodded her head and firmly, but carefully, helped get him to his feet. He groaned as pain flared up his leg and back and he leaned heavily on her.

"House?"

"Let's just do this," he said in a deep voice. They slowly made their way across the street and up to her front door where she fiddled with her keys while he stood there impatiently, the pain getting worse with every second. Finally, the door opened and they staggered inside as she guided him to her couch. She moved some pillows for support and then helped him lean back and then put some more pillows under his legs. She went to her kitchen and returned with two icepacks – one for his leg, and one for his back – before going outside. House looked at her curiously when she returned.

"I had to move your bike from my neighbor's lawn to my driveway," she told him as she pulled up a chair next to the couch.

"House …" she began, "I don't even know where to start."

"I was in the neighborhood, and I thought I'd stop by and see how your date with Wilson went."

"It wasn't a date," she told him. "This has got to stop. You were hiding in my neighbor's yard. What if someone had seen you and called the police?" she asked, her voice getting louder. "We just finally get them off of your back. Are you trying to go to jail?"

"Eh," he began. "A Peeping Tom charge, nothing too bad."

"Nothing too …" she stopped and ran her fingers through her hair as she growled in frustration. "House, what do you want from me? Really?"

"I wanted you to go with me to a play."

"No you didn't.'

"Yeah, that's why I asked you," he snarked.

"You only asked because Wilson took me to a play. You only want to be with me when you think I'm with someone else. You love being the alpha male who beats out all of the competition."

House's eyes flashed with anger. "Yeah, I really love this," he said sarcastically. "I love fantasizing about beating the shit out of my best friend because he's taking you out to plays and museums. I love calling his ex-wife -- someone I had absolutely no desire to spend time with when she was married to Wilson -- and asking her show me a condo I don't want just so that I can get insight into his dating strategy. I love riding my motorcycle here in the middle of the night because I can't stand the idea of you inviting Wilson inside after your little date."

"House –," she began.

"I know. It wasn't a date," he said bitterly. "Well why won't you go out on a non-date with me?" Cuddy looked away and refused to answer. "Come on, Cuddy," he goaded. "I'm just as entertaining as Wilson, and you've known me longer. Why don't I rate for some after hours time?"

"You know why," she whispered angrily.

He smiled arrogantly. "Yeah, I do. I'm just trying to get you to admit it. A non-date with me wouldn't be a non-date."

"I'm going to call a cab to take you home. You can pick up your bike tomorrow," she said as she began to stand up. House quickly grabbed her wrist before she could go. She tried to jerk her hand away, but he wouldn't let go – despite the pain.

"Damn it, Cuddy!" he winced and she stopped fighting at the pain in his voice.

"Let me go, House," she told him. He -- of course -- ignored her as he pressed on. "I don't understand you, Cuddy. You've been looking for a relationship for the past few years – going on countless blind dates with internet losers, and when someone that you … someone that you already have a connection with asks you out, you say no."

She finally met his gaze, her eyes blazing. "Excuse me if I don't want to go out with a psychopath who only asks me out as part of a giant pissing contest with the world!"

"Cuddy--."

"No, House, you are like a spoiled eight year old who wants what he can't have. I …" she stopped, wanting to choose her words very carefully. "I don't want to start something with you that's doomed to fail because you'll get bored in a month and decide that you want a new toy to play with."

He watched her eyes fill with frustration and fear as he finally let go of her hand. He took a deep breath to try and slow down his racing heart. A part of him was screaming that this was too hard and he should just make a joke and let it go, but he couldn't. He couldn't go on like this.

House looked down and started to play with his pants leg. "I … I've known you for almost twenty years now, Cuddy, and I've … I've never found you boring," he said with difficulty. She was silent next to him, and he couldn't bring himself to look up and meet her gaze. "I … don't think of you as a toy," he said in a deep, quiet voice. "You're one of the few people in my life who've stood by me through everything. And if you think I don't notice you when you're not dating someone else, it's only because … I'm … afraid … of driving you away, and I don't want that to happen. But when I see you with someone else – I just can't stop myself from … interfering."

"Interfering?" she asked. House was relieved to hear a hint of amusement in her voice and he finally gathered the courage to raise his head. She was looking at him with a mixture of exasperation and affection. "House, you can't have it both ways. I … I need more --."

"I like you," he interrupted her. "A lot." Her eyes widened in surprise. "I … want to take you out to a nice place for dinner," he continued. "I want you to wear a dress that shows a hell of a lot more cleavage than the one you're currently wearing does. I want to spend the evening arguing --"

"Arguing?"

"As foreplay," he explained with an intense stare before continuing. "I want to spend the first part of the evening arguing with you and making you smile, and finally, I want to take you home and spend the rest of the evening playing hide the sausage."

She giggled – that deep giggle that always went straight through him – and she watched him for a moment before leaning down to gently kiss him. He smiled at the relief that shot through him as he ran his hand through the soft curls of her hair. He tried to lean forward to get a better angle, but pain lanced through his back and he stiffened up in agony.

"Damn. Fucking. Hell," he growled.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"No!" he yelled as he tried to find a position on the couch that didn't cause his back to spasm. "This is fucking unbelievable! You finally give into my irresistible charms, and I can't do anything because I fell and hurt my back!"

Cuddy looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "I finally gave in?" she asked disbelievingly. You're the one who finally admitted that he liked me."

"Details. The point is that you're probably going to get cold feet between now and when I'm fully functioning again."

"I have no intention of getting cold feet," she told him.

"You better not," he warned. "I plan to pick up where we left off as soon as humanly possible."

"Hey, you promised me a nice dinner with lots of arguing and laughing. I intend to hold you to that."

"And the game of 'Hide the Sausage'?

She smiled knowingly. "That depends on how good you are during the date."

He snorted. "Whatever. Eastern Lube guy only took you out for coffee and you were ready to bump furries with him all night long."

"Are you annoying me on purpose?"

He smiled. "Foreplay, Cuddy. Foreplay."

The End

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