A/N: Thank you for all the wonderful views! I'm pleased with the response I've gotten so far and I hope I can live up to your standards.

There was a long, awkward silence between the two. Neither of them was really sure what to say next. Dexter thought she had planned this whole thing out. Truthfully, she hadn't planned further than the point of telling him who she was. And she didn't even get to do that. He had said it for her. He seemed skeptical, though.

Dexter went back to avoiding eye contact. She focused on the hands in her lap. "You probably don't believe me." And why should he? Dexter presented no proof other than spoken word. She probably sounded crazy to him. If he was really her father, though then shouldn't he have the same gut feeling she had that she was telling the truth?

He didn't want to believe her. But did that mean he didn't? After all, wanting and doing were two different things. House honestly wasn't sure what to think. Well, there was always one sure way to prove if this dark haired girl spoke the truth.

"How afraid of needles are you?"

""'''"""""'''""""'''"""""'"""''''"

That was supposed to be the end of it. He was supposed to send in the blood for a DNA test and wait for the results while the girl, Dexter, went home. That wasn't even close to what happened.

House immediately frowned when he saw her now familiar figuring sitting in his chair in his office. House opened the glass door that hid nothing from the prying eyes of the hallway. Not only was she invading his space, but she was also playing with his Yoyo, as if she had no respect for other people's property. That certainly sounded a lot like him.

Dexter looked up from the Yoyo when House walked in. "Never really been good at these things," she commented, making conversation. This was rather awkward for her, so of course Dexter was doing whatever she could to ease the tension. She set aside the Yoyo. "Did you get the test results?"

"Not yet," House deadpanned. "You're in my chair."

"Indeed I am, Sherlock. Any more brilliant deductions you'd like to make?" Dexter quipped with a faint amused smirk.

House walked further into the room, using the cane he held to shut the door. "And you're not going to move anytime soon." House stopped walking when he was standing directly in front of her. "But as your father, you have to obey me when I say: get out of my chair."

It was as if the command didn't register with her. The only words that clicked in Dexter's mind were the ones preceding the order to get out of the chair. "So the test results did come back, then."

"No."

"But you believe that I'm your daughter."

"No. But you think I'm your dad, so I know you'll listen to me."

He had a good point. "Touché," Dexter said as she stood up from the chair.

She expected House to immediately reclaim it. It surprised her when he didn't. The two of them just stood there, standing and staring.

Dexter hardly believed this. She had been looking for her father for what felt like ages. And he had been here at Princeton-Plainsboro the whole time! She had begged her mother to tell her about her father for forever. The only information she had ever received was that he was a doctor, a really good one. Now, after searching, he was standing right in front of her.

"I'm not lying," Dexter insisted, shattering the silence. "Trust me, I'm not. As soon as I saw you walk through the door, I just knew." He couldn't keep denying this, could he? Dexter was sure that deep down, House had to know she was his kid. "I have your eyes."

She did. As much as House didn't want to believe it, she did have his eyes. While she bore no other physical resemblance, that little similarity was enough to convince her of the relation. But was enough to convince him? It usually took a lot to convince House of anything that wasn't an assumption or idea of his own.

"Shouldn't you be in school?"

"It's Saturday." Dexter was becoming a little more disappointed with each passing moment. This was a big deal for her; she wanted to hug him! Yet he was kind of being an ass in her eyes. The DNA test would prove that she was right and then he would have to believe that he was her father.

House was studying her again. She had a vitamin D deficiency; that was for sure. It looked like she hadn't been outside for months. "Where's this mother you keep bringing up?"

A solemn look came upon Dexter's face. It was so easy to forget what happened when she was out of the house and on her own. But then something would cause her to remember. As soon as he saw the expression, House could easily guess what happened. He had worked at a hospital long enough to recognize the body language of someone who lost a loved one.

"I'm sorry." His voice was quiet, gentle. It was a tone he didn't use very often. Dark hair, his eyes, and maybe if her skin was more olive tone than sickly pale… "Audra." He remembered now. He was surprised it took him this long to recall. Then again, it had been one night seventeen years ago. "Audra Woods."

"My mother."

Right, her mother. But to House, she had just been the woman he met at a bar late one night. He should have figured that a simple, stupid mistake would come back to haunt him. He just never thought it would come back to haunt him in the form of a seventeen year old girl.

The pair was interrupted by someone walking in. To Dexter, she was a stranger. To House, it was only Cameron. But it wasn't only Cameron. It was Cameron holding important papers. "The DNA test you ordered," she said, handing over the results.

When House took the papers, she glanced to Dexter before leaving. Whatever was going on, she would find out eventually. Right now wasn't the best time to ask questions, though.

As soon as Cameron was gone, House looked over the papers. Dexter waited with bated breath. This was her father, she was sure of it. But… what if he wasn't? How embarrassing would that be! Finally, after staring at the results for what felt like a long while, House looked up, meeting Dexter's gaze.

"Positive."