House reached the hospital after about double the time he would usually need to get there, because snow didn't just make the kids go crazy, but also traffic. So his mood hadn't exactly gotten any better, when he finally came limping into the lobby of Princeton Plainsboro hospital. His leg was still hurting, the Vicodin had at least finally helped some, but it apparently would be one of those days, where not even the Codeine was able to take away most of the pain. As if that wasn't enough, the ever annoying spirit of Christmas, that lingered all over Jersey these days, even continued stalking him here. The lobby was nicely decorated, as if the sick people coming here would really care about it, along with the Christmas songs which were silently playing in the background, would cheer anybody up. It definitely didn't work on House, who merely scoffed to himself, as he went on, heading for the elevator, where he heard the cheering of children for the second time today, as he waited for the doors to open.
Turning his head, he found a Santa standing over at the waiting area, where the biggest Christmas tree was placed, giving out little gifts to a bunch of sick little children. Apparently Cuddy also had hired herself one of these, well, somehow they had to pay for their booze and drugs, hadn't they? Dressing up for bold little kids that would soon go toes up was probably better than begging in front of Walmart hoping for moms feeling the need to show their spoiled little brats charity by tossing a coin for a beggar.
It was just when House was musing, that all of the sudden the Santa lifted his head and turned to look from the kids straight at him! House lifted both his brows in surprise, when he saw a glare behind the beard and hat. Could it be the same guy? No, that was just ridiculous.
The elevator's doors opened and House stepped inside, still feeling the glare on him. Nah, it probably was just one of the colleagues, who had felt the need to play Santa, after all, whom he had annoyed more than once already. Which was pretty much everyone in this hospital.
Taking that silly thought as a result of his tiredness and the pain he was in, House continued on to his office, once the elevator had reached its destination. He already was looking forward to a nice nap in his chair, when to his great dismay, he found Cuddy standing in his office. She was leaning against his desk, arms crossed, brows raised, a woman ready to stand her ground, unlike House today, who very much wanted to stop standing all together.
"What?" he groaned, not caring to hide the annoyance in his tone.
"Clinic duty." Cuddy replied quite as simple and also making no secret about the order in her tone.
"My leg hurts." House continued their no-more-than-necessary conversation.
"It always hurts, that's no reason." Cuddy cocked a brow, unimpressed.
"It hurts more than usual. I need to sit down." House returned flatly.
"Then sit down in a consulting room. You are also a whole lot more behind your clinic duty and holidays are approaching, people want to have days off, you have many days to work, now go down and work." Cuddy stayed cold as iron.
House paused, glaring at her in his most evil, unforgiving way, the way that told she would pay for this eventually, would she really make him do this.
Cuddy just glared back, taking his unspoken threat with eyes that told him this time she would fight.
He huffed and without any further word turned around again and limped off once more, assuming she would probably keep standing in his office for another ten minutes, just to make sure he wouldn't return. Well, he had not lied about the pain and since he did not want to stand another ten minutes and wait, he as well could go down to the clinic and have his revenge later.
"Woah, hey, where are you going with that face on? Should I better hide the virgins?" Wilson's voice made him snap out of his gruff musings.
His friend was just exiting his office, wearing a red tie with a Christmas tree on it.
"Are you serious?" House just said, knowing Wilson knew what he meant.
"What? Can I not appreciate Christmas, because I'm a Jew?" Wilson returned.
"Well, it's kinda ironic to celebrate his birth, when you guys killed the guy a couple years later." House stopped.
"You're being cynical . . ." Wilson shook his head lightly.
"You're being hypocritical." House answered, followed by furrowing his brows, "Why are you locking your office?" he asked, while waiting for Wilson, who first looked for for the right key and then turned it around twice.
"Because somebody repeatedly has gotten into my office, while I wasn't there and either stolen my food or pulled a prank on me." Wilson looked over his shoulder, this actually made a tiny little smile shortly appear on House's lips.
With a nod of his head, Wilson then turned to the elevator, House at his side.
"Let me guess, Cuddy slapped clinic duty on you?" Wilson assumed.
"Yep. She knows she's gonna pay for it." House shook his head.
"Oh, come on, can't you show least a tiny bit of Christmas Spirit? She really needs everybody she can get down there, people want to take their holidays and the same time more people than usual come to the clinic during the holidays and you, my friend, care as little about Christmas as you always tell me I actually should. It doesn't matter, if you're down there or not." Wilson stated.
House rolled his eyes,
"First, you really shouldn't care less about Christmas and second, yes, I don't give a shit about Christmas, but that makes me want to go down there even less, I mean, have you already been there? It's like Christmas purgatory and hypocrisy heaven the same time!" House mocked.
"Okay, I maybe do not celebrate Christmas per se, but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate people actually taking the time to care for each other and show affection? Even if it's just once a year?" Wilson didn't quite give up, House just gave a bitter laugh.
"Oh, stop it, Wilson! They pretend to care for a couple weeks once a year and afterwards they give less than shit about all those poor, poor sick people and little cripples and whatever! It's nothing, but some hypocritically humbug and I definitely don't need anything off it."
"You're such a pessimist." Wilson shook his head.
"I'm a realist." House shortly lifted both his brows cockily.
"You're just being grouchy and letting your frustration out on everyone else. If you keep going like this, you'll end up visited by three ghosts one night." Wilson returned, folding his arms.
"Ohhhh, now stop it, Marley! If I see a funny doorknob, I will know, who put it there." House gave back, clearly getting Wilson's reference on Dickens' A Christmas Carol and returning it with one of his own.
Just that moment the elevator door opened, House turned to step inside, when suddenly, among the people inside, he stood. Santa! House hardly could see anything of the face, which was mostly hidden by the fake beard, eyebrows and hat, but he saw the glare Santa shot him. Directed straight at him.
He took a swaying step backwards, which made Wilson immediately lift his arms out of reflex, House just keeping to stare, while the door closed again.
"You okay?" Wilson asked, returning House to reality.
He turned to look at Wilson, saw his arms and gave an ungrateful huff,
"What's that supposed to be? You wanna hug me, so my heart grows three numbers? I'm really sorry, but I'm perfectly fine with my size, if you get what I mean?" he mocked with a wink,
"And I gladly leave aaall the Christmas hypocrisy to experts such as you." House added, pushing pass Wilson, when the second elevator's doors opened. From inside he shot Wilson a quick glance, seeing him roll his eyes some, then the doors closed.