Chapter 2

"Half of the doctors who specialize in Oncology turn into burnt out cases but you, you eat neediness"

"You had an affair with another woman? I thought you loved me. How could you do this to me, James?"

"As long as your trying to be good, you can do whatever you want"

"Faith is important to me, James. I'm happier when I believe in something bigger than I am"

"I waited hours for you to get home last night! Were you out with another woman again?"

"Son, your mother has been up all night crying her eyes out. I don't think she'll ever accept the fact that your brother has left for good"

"James I don't want you inviting Greg House to dinner again, you know I can't stand that man! You spend all of your time cleaning up his messes and you're never at home anymore. I wish you spent half as much time with me as you do with him!"

"Does it occur to you, that if you need that kind of friend, you may have made some deeper errors?"

Wilson's eyes snapped open. The tumult of voices that had been beating relentlessly against his mind mercifully ceased: his ex-wives' angry accusations, the melancholy sighs of his father, Grace's gentle murmuring words, and of course House's harsh and acerbic tones. He lay still for a few minutes, listening to the ringing echoes of the now quiet voices, his mind still befuddled by the strange and vivid dreams that he had awoken from. Finally, still feeling dazed and lethargic, Wilson decided to get up. It was then that he realized something was wrong. He couldn't get up, in fact he didn't seem able to move at all. When he had first awoken he assumed that he was in his bed at the hotel, but now as his eyes traveled about the room he realized that he was somewhere else. Somewhere strange, and yet not strange…in fact, it was very familiar. Those white, impersonal walls, the small TV hooked up on the wall, that annoying repetitive beeping sound…

He was in the hospital, he realized with a start. He wasn't just at the hospital, he was a patient in the hospital. He was lying in a hospital bed attached to an IV and so full of drugs that he could barely move. His mind was cloudy and it was difficult for him to think clearly, but he was able to determine that at least he wasn't in ICU. He tried to remember what had happened before he found himself in this room, but his thoughts were too dazed and foggy. The only thing he remembered was that he had been having some seriously weird dreams before he woke up. There had been a bright flash, a high shrieking sound, a light brightening up House's astonished face, and then…

"So you're up then?"

From the Australian accent Wilson's muddled mind deduced that Chase had entered the room, but his vision had grown bleary and he had trouble making out the features of the figure bending over his bed. Wilson tried to reply but found that he was unable to speak.

"What in the hell did they get up to?" That was Foreman's voice.

"I don't know, but they're both in a bad state." Chase sighed. "House collapsing in his office, and then Wilson wondering the halls acting confused and disoriented, babbling nonsense and chucking snow globes at Cameron. No wonder Cuddy had them both admitted as fast as possible."

"I don't get it, I thought maybe they had taken something, but according to their blood work that's not been the case…"

"Well yeah, I think House's problem is just that his leg is acting up. As for Wilson…you've looked at his medical files and blood work. What do you think about him being on anti-depressants?" Chase's voice sounded strangely triumphant.

"I think the anti-depressants have absolutely nothing to do with his problem now." Foreman said firmly.

"Oh, really? I think they prove that Wilson is going through a lot of emotional problems. It's obvious that Wilson's current condition is psychological. He's completely went off the deep end. And since that's the case it looks like you owe me, oh, about three hundred dollars, wasn't it?"

"Absolutely not." Foreman said coolly. "We don't know if Wilson's problem is caused by psychological factors or not. There could be any number of other factors involved."

"You're just trying to get out of the bet! I-"

"This is disgusting!" a feminine voice piped up. "Both of them are sick, and you're haggling over your sleazy bet!"

"Oh come on, Cameron. House is going to be okay." Chase said, exasperated. "I can't imagine anything getting the best of him."

"The devil looks after his own." Foreman muttered darkly.

"Anyway,," Chase continued, "I think the whole fact that Wilson is on anti-depressants should count for something in the bet." Foreman snorted and Cameron made a sound of disparagement.

"Cameron." Wilson's vision had cleared a bit, and he now found that he could speak. His voice sounded low and weak, and very strange to his ears. "Cameron", he tried again, a bit louder this time. He had to get them to stop speaking about the anti-depressants and his mental state. Many people thought that Wilson was a touchy feely, sensitive guy and he was, but only when it came to helping other people with their problems. When it came to his own problems he was reserved and private and he certainly had never wanted anyone at work to know about the anti-depressants. Friendly, responsible, well-adjusted Dr. Wilson wasn't the type of guy to be on anti-depressants. And he certainly wasn't the type of guy to have a mental breakdown. He felt sick listening to them talk about him as though he were crazy. What in the hell had happened that they would think he had cracked up? What had he done?

"Hey, are you okay?" Cameron leaned over, peering at him worriedly. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm starting to feel a bit better. Not exactly up to a twenty-mile marathon but maybe I could chance a ten-mile one." Wilson said wryly. Suddenly a thought occurred to him. "You said House was sick too. Where's he at? Is his leg giving him trouble?"

Cameron stared silently down at Wilson while Chase and Foreman exchanged looks. Finally Cameron smiled weakly. "I'm glad you're feeling better." she said in a rather strained voice. "You should try and get some rest now. We'll leave you alone and check up on you later."

"But House…" Wilson said weakly, then found himself starting to slip back into unconsciousness again. He tried to fight it, but finally the darkness took him under.

A nurse was checking Wilson's IV drip when he awoke. She had curly red hair and light blue eyes and he recognized her right away; Jessica Lane, an extremely capable nurse that he had chatted with quite a few times in the past. He had even taken her to lunch a couple of times after the death of her brother in order to cheer her up. He tried to smile up at her but she only gazed down frostily at him. "How are you feeling? Do you need anything?" Jessica asked in a cold voice.

"Er, no. I'm fine." Wilson said, confused. She was usually so cheerful and friendly around him…and a bit of a flirt, to be honest. But now it was as if she had turned into an ice queen.

"That's good. I'm glad you're feeling better." Jessica said, sounding as if she felt the complete opposite.

"Has any of the doctors been in to see me while I was asleep?" Wilson asked.

"Dr. Cameron came in a few times. Why, do you need to see a doctor about something?" Jessica asked in what was a decidedly snappish tone.

"Well, I was hoping to ask them…"

"Because you told me that you're feeling fine and you don't need anything, but now you're saying you want to see a doctor. Why? Do you not trust nurses?"

"No! It's not that. I'm just…" Wilson was too tired to deal with all of this. And it wasn't making it any better that Jessica was staring down at him with a look of pure hatred upon her face.

"I'm sorry I'm just a lowly nurse and therefore not good enough to deal with whatever problem you're having. I'll go get one of the doctors since I'm obviously not capable enough for you."

Wilson stared dumbfounded as she stalked out the door. "God, can you believe that man! He acted as if I wasn't good enough to shine his shoes!" he heard her declare out in the hall to the other nurses, not even bothering to keep her voice down. "How can you stand to be around him? I would be tempted to slip him some arsenic!" one of the other nurses said to the sound of laughter.

Wilson stared up at the ceiling, crestfallen and depressed. He had always been under the impression that he was popular with the nursing staff. Mercifully he could feel himself slip under again and soon he was blissfully unaware of his surroundings.

When Wilson awoke again, it was the to the noise of what sounded like a minor skirmish out in the hallway. "You're supposed to be in bed!" he distinctively heard one of the nurses exclaim. "Dr. Cuddy said you had to rest!" another nurse cried out. "I'm feeling completely fine now and I want to check up on my friend. Get out of my way!" someone else growled out, and then there was the sound of shoving. House. Wilson thought in relief. It was House, and he was up and about and causing trouble. He was okay. Then he heard the voice rise again, and suddenly a cold chill crawled over his spine. Instinctively, deep down in his bones, he knew it was House, and yet the voice really wasn't House's. That voice…there was something about that voice….

And then a figure came barreling into the room. Wilson's vision was still a bit blurred and at first he couldn't make out who it was. The figure stood silently for a few minutes, then began to walk towards the bed. As he grew closer, Wilson could tell that it was a man in his early forties. A dark haired man in his early forties. A dark haired, brown eyed man in his early forties who…

And Wilson suddenly realized that Chase may have been right about that mental break. For standing in front of him was…himself. And then with a gasp all of the memories came flooding back. Memories of what he and House had done, of what had happened to them, of the huge, terrible, surreal mess they were now in. For the first time since waking up in the hospital room he was aware of his body…or, to be precise, the body he was now currently inhabiting. His vision was still a bit blurred, and his senses muddled, but he could now tell that this body, this long, lanky body, felt alien and strange to him, and definitely wasn't his own. He tried to say something, but found that he couldn't speak, he could only stare up in horror at his own face bending down over him.

"Hello, Dr. House." it said, "Looks like we're in a bit of a mess, aren't we?"

Hey, thanks for the reviews so far! In the quotes at the top of the page the first, third, and eighth quote are House's from the show, the 4th quote is based on what Wilson said Grace told him in the House vs. God episode, the seventh quote is based on the episode Histories where we learn about Wilson's missing brother, and the rest of the quotes are just things that I imagine he'd probably heard from his ex-wives. Just wanted to explain that in case somebody hadn't seen all of the episodes.