Chapter two

Side Effects

First there was only silence. A peaceful nothingless and no feelings.Then there came the pain. She couldn't say, from where it came, but it was like a rush over her senses. A low moan escaped her throat and with that, all the sounds around her darted into presence. There was a hiss which seemed to come from the condenser, a sizzling noise that usually comes along with fire. And her own breath. Fast and afflicted of pain. She managed to open her eyes but they were greeted by darkness. All lights in the car were off and only the dim light of the streets came through the swatted metal.

After what it seemed like minutes Cameron shoot a glance to her right arm, that were hurting the most. A choked cry left her mouth at the sight of the weird angle where it protruded. She shortly wondered, why this wasn't hurting more, but fainted over the thought of it.

HHHHHHH

About the same time, House was about to throw a patient out of the hospital. He was almost furious about this guy. And this time he even had a good reason for it.

House had payed the patient a visit after he'd sent Cameron home.

"Why are you wasting my precious time?" he'd asked him.

"Who are you?" the patient seemed a bit shocked since it's the middle of the night.

"I'm Dr. House, your attending doctor and I'm going to send you home now." he'd just answered, took the patients file and signed the discharge papers.

"Hey! I'm sick!" the guy called out and was apparently not amused.

"You're just a moron!" House stated, "As I said, you're wasting my time... I could have had wild sex with a hooker by now, but I have to be here instead, because of YOU. So, drag your hypochondriac ass out of here."

House had left the patients room without looking at that guy twice and was now in Wilson's office to borrow the sofa for the night. He was tired and people who only think they're ill, made him even sleepier! Now he was lying on Wilson's sofa and fell asleep quite fast.

HHHHHH

The Emergency Room at Princton-Plainsboro was always busy. This night was no different and therefore no one was actually getting in a flap. The older emergency doctor who came with the newest car crash victim reported to the ward physician and had his paramedic bring in the young woman they've rescued out of her car.

"Oh dear..." a nurse cried out in shock as she recognized the womans face. "That's Dr. Cameron!"

The nurse watched Camerons face closely and smiled as she opened her eyes slowly.

"Dr. Cameron..." the nurse placed a hand on Cam's shoulder who winced at this kind gesture. She tried to speak, wanted to know how badly she's hurt but her throat felt scratchy and dry. Soon she realized that she was intubated. She felt the most pain in her body came from her arm, that was covered by several sheets. And by realizing how much pain she really felt, her vision got blurry again and slowly she blacked out again.

"Hurry! We need to bring her to the ICU! Now!" Words she could still hear while fainting, but they seemed far away and not even real anymore. "Resuscitation!"

HHHHHH

"House, wake up" a voice dragged him out of his sleep and he felt a hand on his arm. Grudgingly he opened one eye to see Wilson standing over him making a worried face.

"What? Did I pee on your sofa?" House asked huffy and peeked down. Of course this question was just rhetorical and he lifted himself into a sitting position. He must have been asleep for several hours, since it was already bright outside and Wilson did not look like he just got out of bed.

"You better go down to the ICU." The brown-eyed man said quietly and took a step back to avoid a uncomfortable contact with House's cane, which the older man had just picked up from the floor.

"Why? I hadn't even had a coffee yet." House muttered and searched for Vicodin in his pockets.

"It's Cameron." Wilson said and watched his friend closely.

"New case? Or does she just need daddy's help?" He couldn't find his pills and while he fumbled for them in each pocket he had on him, Wilson cleared his throat. "No, she's the patient."

The search instantly stopped and House's blue eyes pierced into Wilson's brown eyes.

"What happened?" he wanted to know but before Wilson even could open his mouth, Cuddy's voice cut him off.

"House! Where the hell have you been? I was searching for you around the whole building."

"Apparently not around the whole building, otherwise you'd found me here." House shortly said whilst pointing to the sofa, but then again stared at Wilson, still awaiting his answer.

"She got into a car accident last night and..."

"Why did no one tell me?!" House almost yelled at both of them now and Cuddy sighed soundlessly.

"No one knew that you were still here." Wilson tried to calm down his friend but House was already on his way to the ICU.

HHHHHH

"Am I going to die?" she asked cautiously. A tall man stood before her and shruged his shoulder. "I'm not the one to know."

"What happened?" was her next question, but the tall man only smiled at her and tilted his head a bit.

She looked around herself and couldn't make out anything familiar, only bright, blurry colors. Something blue in the distance, cold but calming.

"Where am I?" She was curious, everything seemed odd.

"Don't you know it?" Suddenly her surroundings changed and the tall man just looked at her.

"I still don't know where I am." Allison became edgy after she had another look around.

"Do you know where you been?" the man asked now and eyed her intense.

"No."

"There's the reason why you don't know where you're now." he clarified. But Allison couldn't understand any words he was saying. She looked down at herself and blinked as her arm was now bloody and apparently broken several times.

"That hurts..." she whispered and looked up at the man again. "Who are you?"

"I'm going to help you."

HHHHHH

Foreman and Chase almost rushed into the ICU. They found out where their collegue was, right after they entered the hospital.

"What happened?" Chase and Foreman asked almost simultaniously

Cuddy couldn't tell who asked, but well... that didn't matter at all. She was standing at one corner, her forehead wrinkled sorrowful as the men approached her. Simultaneously they looked at the direction Cuddy was looking in and saw House standing at Camerons bed, reading her file. They couldn't see his face but they were sure, he didn't look good at all.

"She got into a car crash." Cuddy told quietly. "Broke her legs, pelvis and her right arm. The arm's really bad. Fractured in several places and a clean break as well. She got cuts on her face and her abdomen got crushed. We think she got a whiplash too. They put her into a drug induced coma."

"Oh boy..." Foreman whispered, Chase just wiped his hands over his face trying to hide his emotions.

"Do you know something about Cameron taking drugs? The tox screen came back positive, she must have taken very strong painkillers."

Both men looked at each other and then back to Cuddy who still hadn't taken her eyes of Cameron and House.

"She took an aspirin or something like that yesterday. She complained about headaches." Chase informed Cuddy and that was the point on which the Dean now looked to the men. Her eyes were full of concern and compassion for the young female doctor. She wished, she could do something. Like always when someone she called almost a friend needed help. But there was nothing she could do right now. Neither Foreman and Chase could and so she just sighed and walked away.

Robert Chase was the first who took a deep breath and opened the glass door to Cameron's room and entered. He always felt more than sympathy for his female collegue and seeing her lying in a hospital bed made him to have a lump in his throat. She was lying there sp peacefully, only the brushes in her face and the monotonous beep of the medical equipment indicated that she's badly injured. House, who's still standing at her bedside looked at the younger man who entered the room, placed the file then back to from where he got it and turned around to leave.

"She needs rest, so don't upset her in any way." the Diagnostican murmured basely. Chase wanted to snort at him, but as he turned House was already gone and only Foreman was standing in the door frame.