Disclaimers: Nope, don't own them. Kevin's all mine.
The door to the hotel room flew open and banged against the wall. House stood in the doorway, blue eyes blazing with anger and hurt.
"You son of a bitch."
Wilson looked up from the book he was reading, baffled by his friend's entrance. He hadn't seen him all day, and their paths somehow hadn't crossed at the conference. "Sorry?"
House stepped across the threshold, slamming the door behind him. "You heard me." He flopped himself into a chair, not bothering to take off his coat. "Guess who I ran into today? I'll give you three shots at it."
Wilson arched an eyebrow, waiting for House to continue his tirade. "I'm going to guess…"
"Cameron. That's right. Good guess, Jimmy." House scrubbed his hand over his face before continuing. "Oh, and you know the funny part? You'll love this." He took a deep breath before continuing. "Turns out she's not alone."
Wilson sighed, dropping his shoulders. Sure, he and Cuddy both knew there was a vague chance of a run-in with Cameron when they made arrangements for this conference, but neither one of them thought anything of it. They certainly hadn't foreseen anything like this.
"House, what the hell did you expect? Did you really think she'd still be a solo act, pining away for Chase or…"
"Of course I didn't!" House exploded. "It was just…awkward. That's all. I'm sure he's one hell of a guy. He'd have to be to put up with her." Right. You didn't get your hopes up or anything, did you? God, what an idiot.
A idea struck Wilson. "You know, there's a blues club down the street from the hotel. Why don't we go check it out? Might…distract you for a while."
House shrugged, still brooding. "Sure, might as well. Drinks are probably cheaper, too. I know how you like to watch your money."
Wilson rolled his eyes, nodding in agreement. "Nice of you to be so concerned about my bottom line."
The two men walked into the nightclub and settled in at the bar, ordering up a beer for Wilson and a bourbon for House. The band started warming up and the lights started going down when something caught House's eye.
He nudged Wilson in the ribs. "Look over there. I'm pretty sure that's him."
Wilson glanced up, but didn't bother to look where House was pointing. "I am not here to indulge your obsessions tonight. I'm here to have a couple of beers, listen to some music, and unwind from my day. I suggest you do the same."
House huffed in annoyance, but turned around to continue nursing his bourbon. Suddenly a voice carried over from across the room.
"Doctor House! Hey, man, over here!" House turned around to see a young redheaded man waving his hand wildly in his and Wilson's direction. Kevin. Great, this is just great. I'm sure he's got Miss Thing with him too…Oh yes, there she is. Gorgeous as ever. Shit. I need another drink.
"Who's that?" Wilson squinted across the room. "Hey, is that Cameron? Who's the guy with her?" House fixed him with a harsh glare. "Ooh…okay…"
"Way to put it together, Columbo." House rolled his eyes skyward and slapped the bar. "Barkeep! Set me up." The bartender presented House with another bourbon, which he proceeded to drain in one shot. "Let's grace the happy couple with our presence, shall we?"
"We shall not. All you want to do is harass them. Leave them alone."
"You saw him waving at me like a goddamn idiot! Obviously he was inviting me...us over. Let's not be rude, Jimmy." House hopped off the barstool, landing mostly on his left leg while grabbing his cane.
Wilson groaned internally. There was no way this was going to end well. No way at all. The least he could do was make some vague attempt at damage control. Maybe he could at least keep House from getting kicked out of the club.
Cameron walked out of the bathroom and toward her table. She froze slightly when she saw who was seated there. Kevin, of course, but also someone who vaguely looked like Wilson and…House?! Her stomach flipped a little when she saw House sitting there. Oh, my God. What the hell is he doing here? If he so much as says one word…
"Allie!" Kevin called out cheerfully to her. "Look who I managed to drag over!" House fixed her with a steady, unreadable gaze, and Wilson looked vaguely uncomfortable, but waved anyway.
Cameron plastered a smile on her face and reached over to give Wilson a little hug around his shoulders. "Wilson! House told me you were here, but I didn't expect to see you!" She tentatively touched House on the shoulder. "Good to see you again, House. Kind of funny to see you twice in one day. Small world, isn't it?"
"Very small world, Cameron." House covered Cameron's hand with his own. His touch sent an unexpected shiver through her.
They settled in to listen to the band, Wilson making small talk with Kevin and Cameron, House being unusually distant. He watched Cameron across the table, observing how she interacted with Kevin. Something about it seemed…off, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Kevin put his arm around Cameron, pulling her close, clearly affectionate. She seemed…distant, even as she kept up a veneer of friendliness as she chatted with Wilson.
Cameron kept sneaking occasional glances at House throughout the band's set. He leaned back in his seat, continuing to put away the bourbon, observing the conversation at the table, but not participating. House would tap his long fingers along with the music, but otherwise seemed far away.
Finally the set ended and the lights came up. Kevin excused himself to visit the restroom, and Wilson went back to the bar for another beer, leaving Cameron and House alone at the table. The silence stretched between them, impossibly awkward. At last, House broke the silence.
"It's funny." He started, fingers trailing the edge of his glass. "Kevin doesn't seem like your kind of guy."
Oh, here we go…Cameron sighed to herself and took a sip of her wine. "What makes you say that, House?"
House shrugged. "Dunno. You used to prefer a good challenge. Kevin doesn't seem…challenging. At all."
Cameron frowned in annoyance. "It's been three years since I left, House. People change."
House shook his head. "Not like that. Not the very core of their being."
"He's a nice guy."
"He's boring. " House leaned across the table until he was nearly nose-to-nose with Cameron. "You hate boring."
"Maybe I'm ready for a little boring." Cameron shot back. "Maybe, just maybe, excitement and drama are overrated. Did you ever consider that?!"
He studied her, those startling blue eyes roving over her face, as if searching for clues, anything that would tell him he was right. Finally he leaned in as close as he could without touching her, whispering in her ear.
"I did. Then I totally dismissed it. Wouldn't you like to know why?" Cameron nodded, too stunned to say anything. "Kevin's a placeholder, which tells me…" House's lips were nearly touching her ear. "…you still don't know what you're looking for. Or you know, but you're too goddamn scared to go after it. Either way…"
"What's going on, here?" Kevin's voice made Cameron jump and pull away from House. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
"Whoa, whoa, man. We were just catching up, right, Cameron?" House leaned back in his chair, raising his hands in mock defense. "Nobody's hitting on your girl. Matter of fact, Jimmy and I were just leaving, weren't we?"
By now Wilson had returned, with a full beer in his hand. He gave House a resigned look, but nodded anyway. "Right…early morning and all that." House heaved himself from his seat and grabbed his coat and his cane. "Nice seeing you again, Cameron. Stay in touch…if you can. Kevin." House extended his hand to Kevin, but he didn't take it, regarding House suspiciously.
After the two men left, Cameron excused herself from the table. She stared in the bathroom mirror, trying to get her emotions under control. Damn you, House. Their closeness stirred up all kinds of emotions that she thought she had long since packed away. For three years, she thought she was safe. He had never tried to contact her in all that time, so she had assumed that she would never see him again. That was when she had started dating Kevin.
Kevin. Kevin's a placeholder. She hated to think that there was any truth to that statement. He wasn't exciting, and there wasn't much drama in their relationship. It was calm and quiet, light years away from her tumultuous relationship with Chase and her contentious working relationship with House. It wasn't boring.
…You don't know what you want…or you're too goddamn scared to go after it. Damn you, House. I have what I want. Just accept it.
Cameron didn't know why she was having such a hard time convincing herself. No idea at all.
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