Title:
A Complex Puzzle (1/1)
Prompt: #010 Think
Rating: PG
Spoilers:
S1- Clueless.
Summary: They say first impressions never last. His
always did. H/C
Note: Some quotes are taken from episodes. It is likely you will know what they are from ;D
'Roll
it back again to the beginning.'
-Wheatus. I'd never write a
song about you.
Gregory House hated interviewing.
It was just another pointless activity which contributed to his increasingly aggravated mood. That and Cuddy hounding on him about hiring someone else. Either way, all of it lead to this exact moment where he sat in his office chair, Wilson talking with the doctor seated on the opposite side of House.
House hated people more than he hated interviewing.
This particular candidate was wearing a horrible shade of green. She must of been around 30, attempting to look older than she was. House rolled his eyes as Wilson looked at him questionally, obviously telling him mentally what a good contribution to his department this woman would make.
He had already made up his mind upon seeing her walk through the door.
No way.
House unwillingly shook the womans hand silently as Wilson walked her to the door, routinely saying 'You'll hear from us.' House smirked. This woman would certainly not be hearing from them.
'What is your problem?' Wilson asked, glaring at him.
'I know what I want, and that woman is certainly not what I want,' House stated simply, picking up another file on top of the pile.
Wilson shook his head and walked to the door, calling in the next applicant. House felt exausted just thinking about the number of ways he could convince Wilson that these people were not right for his department.
'Dr. House, this is Dr. Allison Cameron,' Wilson spoke calmly, knocking House out of his thoughts as he looked up.
He froze. This one was different.
Allison reached out a hand and House took it, shaking as he stared at her. She sat down opposite him and bit her lip, waiting for one of them to talk.
Wilson stared at him, sighing when House didn't say a word. He began talking to Dr. Cameron about her qualifications, where she went to med school ... pointless chatter that House didn't care about.
House cared about the person. And from first glance this person intrigued him. Allison Cameron had a certain vulnerability about her. The way she sat, the way she spoke; he noticed that she was exceptionally eloquant in these circumstances. There was no doubt that the woman was extremely beautiful. She looked around her late 20's, yet seemed to know more than her age permitted her.
Yet, House looked deeper into her face and saw something else. Loss. Fear. And something that he couldn't quite work out. It made him want to work it out.
'So, Dr. Cameron,' House began, opening up her file and interrupting Wilson and Cameron's conversation. 'It says here you grew up in Atlanta. Why so far away?'
House looked up at her and saw that she looked taken-aback. 'I - Change of scenery, I suppose,' She said, looking at House.
'Hm. Family still live there?' House pryed further.
'Yes.' Cameron replied simply, and House noticed that she was fiddling with her bag in front of her.
House nodded. 'See them much? It must be hard living so far away from your family.'
'I don't think this is relevent,' Wilson spoke up, eying House with a warning.
'I see them enough. It's only a couple of hours away by plane,' Cameron said, still staring at House.
House smirked. This was turning out to be interesting. She was becoming a puzzle. And he wanted to figure her out.
'You're hired,' House said, putting down Cameron's file and looking up at Wilson, who was looking dumbfounded.
Cameron's mouth opened and closed. 'I - Thank you,' She said, looking quite perplexed.
House nodded as she stood up and shook both House and Wilson's hand. 'Uh - We'll call you to set everything up,' Wilson said, leading Cameron out the door.
She nodded, looking back at House and staring at him, before disappearing through the door. Wilson turned around and eyed House, walking slowly towards him and pointing a finger in his direction.
'What was that?' Wilson asked, looking bemused.
'I hired someone. You should be happy. We all know Cuddy will be jumping off the roof,' House replied.
'Yes, but you have been turning down people all week, no matter how good their qualifications are. But her -' Wilson looked at the door before looking back at House, 'What's so different about her?'
House smirked. 'You'll see.'
Allison Cameron had been working with House for exactly 2 weeks. And she finally realised why everyone gave her sympathy glances everytime she walked into the office.
He was arrogant, and abrasive and exceptionally rude to people in general. The other doctor in their department, Robert Chase, warned her of this on her first day. And a warning it was, as a mere 2 minutes later House came barging into the office demanding coffee and looking at her questionally.
'You'd better be good at it,' He had said, before walking into his office.
It was then that Allison Cameron realised that working with Dr. House would be a task in itself.
Gorgeous women do not go to medical school. Unless they're as damaged as they are beautiful.
'Did you lose someone? Did you lose a baby?'
She froze, her facial features stiff as she turned around to face him. She knew what he was trying to do. He was a arrogant son-of-a-bitch who only wanted to figure out people and why the where the way they were. It worked on patients. It wouldn't work on her.
'You can be a real bastard,' Cameron replied, her voice shaky as she turned around and walked out of the office and out of sight.
She wasn't going to let him win.
You can't be that good a person and well adjusted.
'My husband w –' Cameron looked at Cindy behind her before looking back at Wilson, 'I met him just after he was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. If I hadn't married him, he was alone. When a good person dies, there should be an impact on the world.Somebody should notice. Somebody should be upset.'
Wilson stared at her before Cameron turned around and walked into the hospital room.
'I'm damaged.'
2 years. It had been 2 years since Cameron had begun working with House.
And she still drove him crazy.
Slowly he had begun to work out the complex puzzle that was Allison Cameron. And then slowly she would change and the puzzle would be a completely different one.
She was entirely unpredictable and he hated it.
He had assumed that she would be one of those cut and dry cases. In someways, she was predictable. Her idealism and perfect view of the world would lead her to be. Yet then she would do something so unlike her, that it would shake him.
He didn't know what to think anymore.
Now was such a time.
'Ignorance is Bliss,' She said softly.
House stared at her and she stared at him. Their gazes didn't waver and there was a startling spark that flew between them. She smiled softly, turning around and beginning to walk out of his office.
'Cameron,'
She turned around slowly and saw House still staring at her. 'Yeah.'
'I'll get you eventually,' He said, his head cocked to stare at her at the door.
A small smile appeared on her mouth. 'We'll see,' She replied, before turning around and walking out of the office.
House smirked. They would.
+
