09. mockery
Interpolated
Wilson made his way to Cuddy's office. Things had taken a bad turn, and he knew that he had to do something before they became even worse.
"Cuddy, we need to talk." He walked toward her as she stared out of her office window.
"About House? About how he lost all of his fellows in the span of three days?" Cuddy asked without turning to face Wilson. He could hear a hint of resignation in her voice.
"So you heard…" He mumbled.
She sighed. "Of course I heard."
Wilson looked at her in disbelief. That was it? She wasn't going to do anything about this? This didn't seem like Cuddy at all. The Cuddy he knew fights to the bitter end.
"We need to do something about this, Cuddy. He's out of control." Wilson said in exasperation.
"What can I do? They're his staff. I can force him to hire new employees, but I can't force him to re-hire the ones he fired. Maybe this is for the best…"
"So you're just going to give up? You're going to give up on Foreman, Chase and Cameron? They're good doctors, they should be here, in this hospital. Doesn't that matter to you anymore?" He fumed. He had hoped she would be able to help. She was his only hope.
Cuddy finally turned to face him. "I tried, Wilson. I offered Foreman an amazing job opportunity that no one would ever refuse, but he did! They don't want to work here. And House doesn't want them here. That's not my business, it's theirs. Maybe the three of them will be better off working somewhere else. They've learned all they need to."
Wilson's eyes narrowed as he moved closer to Cuddy. "You are not allowed to make this alright. You can't just say the word and pretend it never happened. Nothing about this is right! House is just too stubborn and proud to tell them he wants them back."
"Then maybe he needs to start suffering for his mistakes. We can't keep covering for him, Wilson."
He shook his head. This was insane.
"You're right, Cuddy, you can't keep covering my ass."
Wilson turned around to find House entering the room. Great, just what they needed.
"Do you two have weekly meetings where you sit around and scheme about how to make my life miserable?" House mocked.
"House, this is serious." Wilson explained. "You have no one left working for you. You can't solve your cases on your own. And I know how hard it is for you to find anyone you are actually willing to tolerate."
House ignored Wilson and turned to Cuddy. "Do you want to know why I did this? Do you want to know why I pushed them all away?"
Cuddy said nothing, but nodded slightly.
"Wilson here told me that maybe I'm afraid of change. He told me that I was stuck in a rut. And he was right. So I decided it was time for a change."
"You cannot blame this on me, House!"
"I'm not blaming you, Wilson. You were right. This was what I needed to do."
Wilson gaped at him in shock. It was strange enough to hear House tell anyone that they were right, but his voice had also held such sincerity.
"You needed a change?" Cuddy asked quietly, and Wilson remembered that she was still standing there, pensive.
"Cuddy, you can't go behind my back and try to make things right. You can't keep doing that. For once, you need to trust my judgment." House explained softly.
Wilson felt himself caught in the middle. He studied his two friends for a moment, examining them as they held each other's gazes. There was something hidden, something that he was unsure had been there before. Or maybe it had always been there, he had just never seen it so clearly.
He couldn't help but feel out of place, as if he were watching a private conversation…
"You need to trust me."
Wilson shifted uncomfortably as there was a long pause, but neither noticed.
"Fine." Cuddy conceded, and Wilson was left wondering what exactly she had accepted.
"But you better make this work, House." She added. He could hear the authoritative edge return to her voice.
"Will do, boss." House nodded to Wilson, expecting him to follow close behind, and left.
Wilson waited a moment before turning back to Cuddy. He had too many questions to ask, and he was certain he wouldn't get anything from House.
But she had already turned away. Back to the visions outside of her window…
I'm happy you guys are enjoying these so much. I'm leaving for India next week, and I will be gone for a month, so there will be a little bit of a break for a while. Don't worry, though, once I get back, I'm sure my muse will be brimming with ideas :)
