An: Sorry this took so long, I got distracted by Robert Carlyle and Once Upon A Time. Mm...Mr. Gold.
Cuddy picked up the phone, "Hello?"
"Hi Lisa."
"Hey Mom. What's going on?" She closed her book and sat on her desk, she really did love it.
"Nothing, just called to see how you are."
"I'm good. School's been keeping me busy."
"Too busy for a boy?"
Cuddy sighed, "You should have called yesterday Mom."
"Was he cute?"
"Yeah, he was cute."
"What's wrong with him?"
"Nothing's wrong with him, it just didn't work out." There was no way in hell that she was going to tell her mom why they broke up. "We'd only been together like two weeks at most."
"You can't even remember?"
"Mom, it was a rough estimate."
"If you didn't like him, why did you go out with him?"
"I didn't say I didn't like him, it just didn't work."
"You say that an awful lot."
Cuddy rolled her eyes. "Mom, I'm 18, I don't need to find a husband right now. If you had decided to marry your boyfriend when you were 18, you wouldn't have married Dad," she pointed out. "And then you would have a different child to harass about marriage," she almost said.
"I'm not saying you need to get married right now." She paused, and her daughter knew what was coming next. "But I want you to find someone you could get married to."
"But you want me to find someone I could get married to," Lisa said with her mother tiredly. "Mom, can I call you tomorrow?"
"Homework?"
"Yeah."
"It's going to take you to tomorrow to finish your homework?"
"Not exactly. I'm going out with a friend. And before you say anything, it's Halloween, I'm supposed to go out with friends."
"Is your costume slutty?" Her mom asked disapprovingly.
Cuddy sighed. "I don't know."
"What do you mean?"
"My friend is bringing me one. I hadn't planned on dressing up, but she told me I had to. So she's bringing something."
"Is she pre-med too?"
"No. She doesn't go to school anymore, she's 23."
"How'd you meet her?"
"Her significant other is friends with one of my friends." Someone knocked on the door. "Mom, I gotta go, it's probably her...Love you too. Bye." She hung up the phone and went to answer the door. "Finally, someone that's not House."
Julie's eyebrows drew together, "What?"
Cuddy shook her head, "Nothing. Did you bring it?"
Julie held up a paper bag, "I told you I got you." Cuddy smiled and stepped aside. She came in and sat on her bed. "Yours is on top," she told Cuddy. "So, are we getting ready here, Fi's? Or, and I have a crazy idea, we could go to my house." Lisa laughed, Julie was almost never at her own place, not that Cuddy was either, except for when she slept, not that she always slept here. No, she was mostly here for homework.
"We can stay here if you want." Julie nodded and laid back, careful not to hit her head on the wall. "Um," Lisa said when she looked in the bag, "I'm gonna look like a whore." Julie lifted her head, "A big one."
"You don't do that on Halloween?"
"Not this bad," she shook her head.
"Do you want the other one?"
She looked at it. "No," was her immediate answer, "this one will work." Julie laughed.
"If it helps, I know how to make that look less slutty. And it will at least cover your stomach and ass...Ya know, if you don't bend over."
"I thought they never hosted?" Cuddy asked as they walked into House's apartment a few hours later.
"They don't normally," Julie shook her head. "They're too lazy to go and get booze, and they don't like cleaning up in the morning, but Carly and Breena wanted to throw a party, but their dorm is litte, and they promised to clean up in the morning. And everyone except us brought liquor. Speaking of which, I'm late to attend to my bartending duties. What would you like to start out with?"
Lisa shrugged, "Surprise me." She gave a thumbs up and walked towards the kitchen. Cuddy shook her head, Julie was in booty-as-hell-shorts, a little shirt tied right below her boobs, red and white striped knee highs, and a pirate hat with a little skull and cross bones to round it all off. She really was not afraid to go all out. Cuddy followed her into the kitchen, where the older girl was already making drinks and talking to people.
"Can we have costume parties more often?" Robby asked Greg, his head tilted to the side, watching Julie pour drinks, and all of the other scandally clad girls around her.
"Do you want to clean up in the morning?" Robby took a drink, and thought.
"I might be able to make that compromise," he finally said.
Greg shook his head and moved toward the island when all of the girls dispersed. "I love the outfit," he told the bartender, leaning over the counter.
"It's not going to happen House," was all she said, not even bothering to look up.
"What?" He asked innocently. "All I did was compliment your clothing." She raised an eyebrow at him, then went back to pouring. He arched his neck, trying to see over the bottles.
"What are you doing?" She asked, irritated.
"Trying to see if you're cold," he answered.
She shook her head, "I'm not."
"Ruin my fun."
She smiled, "You've just brightened my day." He narrowed his eyes and made a face at her, which she returned.
He glanced to his side when he saw a girl, then looked back quickly. "Woooow...My day just got better." Cuddy rolled her eyes.
"Stop being a stereotypical male," Julie ordered, little did she know Cuddy liked his attention. She even leaned forward on the edge of the counter, arching her back just a little, and resting the toe of one of her heels on the floor.
"I can't help it," he said helplessly. He noticed her change in position, and leaned to the side. His eyes ran up her legs, to her ass. "You would make me feel better when I was sick." He straightened up. "And you're all in white," he observed. She willed herself not to blush, or look at him. "Whew," he said after taking in her costume again. White from head to toe, literally. Starting at the white pumps, to the white stockings that led up to the short, white skirt, the tight button up shirt that revealed lots of cleavage, and the white nurse's hat. He thought he might have a heart attack. "If you were planning on changing professions, I would totally understand, as long as you continued to wear this outfit." Cuddy rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"Stop harassing teenage girls," Julie told him.
He didn't take his eyes off his ex and answered, "Aye, aye, Captain."
She just rolled her eyes, remembering that that's just who he is, but then she saw Lisa giving him the same look. I must save my freshman buddy. "Lise," she extended a drink, breaking their almost staring contest, "here."
"Oh," she took it, "thanks." Not now Lise, she told herself, taking a drink to cool down, you can't lose it now. She could swear that him looking at her was like him touching her...Except when he touched her she was reminded of how much better it was.
Fiona stood next to Julie and took the drink out of her hand. "Wow," she said loudly, taking in her girlfriend's completely normal wardrobe, "your costume is awesome, where ever did you get it?"
"My closet. I figured I'd leave the slutty outfits and bobbing for apples to you." Julie did an eyebrow shrug.
Suddenly, she jumped. "No!" She scolded. "Not in public."
"We're in my house," Fi excused.
"You can't blame her," House said, "I nearly did it myself."
"Lisa, please deal with him." Julie requested. "You are better at it than I am."
"Yes Lisa," he looked at her, "please deal with me."
She put her elbow on the table, "I'm trying to think of a response that you wouldn't take sexually."
"There's not one that has been invented." He said.
"How is it you turned out so dirty? I've met your mom," she shook her head, "I don't get it."
"Someone had to pick up the slack. She was giving me a bad name."
Cuddy laughed, "Whatever Mama's Boy."
Julie perked up. "What?" Her and Fiona asked at the same time.
"She's lying," House shrugged. "She knows that being a mama's boy would completely ruin my reputation, and also that you hate me. What better way to spread that, and screw with me?" While he said that, Lisa was mouthing, "Biggest. Mama's boy. Ever." He looked at her, "Fine Cheerleader."
"Ew!" Julie exclaimed. "I thought you were better than that." Fi gave her an odd look.
"He plays piano," she said as she pulled a stool towards her.
Greg looked at her, "Bitch. She has a diary."
She rolled her eyes, "Which he frequently used as reading material."
"But that's expected of me," he shook his head. "I win."
She smirked and said, "He took me to his senior prom."
He narrowed his eyes at her, "I got her to smoke weed."
"He bought me jewlery."
"We had sex in a public pool," he fired off.
Her eyes got huge. "What?" She heard Carly say. She looked to her side, Carly and Breena were staring at her. "When was this?"
Cuddy cleared her throat, "Awhile ago."
"When?"
Cuddy looked at her very meaningfully, "Awhile ago."
"How 'awhile ago'? We've been in school not that long."
"It was back when you weren't nosey," House answered.
"I'm not nosey, I'm curious."
"Curious is the more polite form of nosey."
"Then you're nosey," Cuddy said
"Who said I wasn't?"
She rolled her eyes, "Oh right, the diary reading."
"Duh, we just went over this Cuddles. I think you're getting a little senile in your old age."
She scoffed, "Yeah, I'm old. 18 and 80 are really the same thing."
"If it makes you feel any better, you're incredibly hot for an 80-year-old. I don't usually dated women older than my mom," he said in his exaggerated way of his, "but if you wanted to see a movie..." She smiled, and only Fiona noticed Julie's look she gave them.
"Lisa," the oldest young adult said, again drawing her friend's attention away from House's mesmerizing blue eyes. "Can you go find Mr. Mitchel for me? I need to talk to him."
Cuddy nodded and turned toward Carly when she got off the stool. "Need to finalize the plans for his birthday party?" House asked, putting his hand on his cheek.
"What?" Cuddy asked.
"She works at a strip club," House explained.
"Bartending," she qualified. "Part time." She shrugged and joked, "At least I have a show while I work."
"Please tell me more about your job," House requested. She squinted at him.
"Is that where you got this?" Cuddy asked, almost certain, tugging at her top.
Julie looked down and wiped something probably invisible on the island with her thumb, "No..."
Cuddy rolled her eyes, "Should I seek immediate treatment for any STDs?"
"No," Julie looked at her. "No one wears it."
"Why?" She asked suspiciously.
"It just got hung up in the back of the closet and no one ever looks at it. Now hop to, go find Mitch."
"But, I want to hear more embarassing stories about House," Carly said.
"Then go with her." The two girls left and she turned an annoyed glare to House, "Screw." He just smiled and grabbed the bottle of booze in front of her before walking away. "Hey!" She yelled.
"It's mine anyway," he said in response without looking at her.
"I don't think Mitch is here," Breena said after thinking.
"Good, it'll keep her busy longer."
Breena looked at Julie oddly, and grabbed a cup, "Your thought process confuses me."
"Then mingle with lower life forms." The younger girl nodded and walked away. "What?" She asked after a minute of Fiona staring at her.
"What are you doing?"
"I have no idea what you mean," she lied.
"I saw the way you were looking at them, and sending her on a mission to find someone that isn't here, that you have nothing to say to?"
Julie looked at her, "I've seen the notebook." It almost sounded like a threat.
"Nosey," she accused after taking a cup and leaving.
"Curious!" She corrected.
After 5 minutes of unsuccessful Mitch searching, Cuddy told Julie that he must not be here and gave up. She'd spent the next ten minutes getting hit on, before retreating to the bathroom. She closed the door behind her and looked in the mirror. "Are we playing hide and seek?" She heard him asked. To her left, she saw House laying in the bathtub, fully clothed, with no water, drinking from a rather large bottle. "Cause, if so, I think the, 'you have to tag me' rule should be implemented."
"Why are you in the bath?"
"I like to relax after a long day's work," he answered sarcastically. "And since you would probably reject the suggestion to get me with a kiss and a martini, completely naked, at the door, I'm forced to do this."
"It's usually more relaxing if there's water," she suggested, sitting down on the toilet after closing the lid, and ignoring his second sentence.
He looked at her like what she suggested was outragious. "There are people here," he said indignantly. "What if someone, like yourself, walked in here and saw me in that state of undress..." He looked away. "Maybe you're right. Would you like to help me with your suggestion, and I'll tell you my ingenious idea. You can be my first experiment." She chuckled and rolled her eyes. "All you have to do, is go back out, come in, giggle at the sight of my in the tub, immediately start undressing, and join me."
"Oh," her tone was filled with sarcasm, "so that's all."
"See? I knew you could be reasonable."
"You are probably the least reasonable man I know," she shook her head fondly.
"But I'm the most fun," he countered.
Cuddy heard the door open, and a girl she didn't know looked back and forth between them in confusion. Her looked clearly asked, "Why?" "She refuses to bend in half and pretend she's looking at something," House said, like that was a perfectly reasonable explanation for this situation. Her next look said, "OK?" And she closed the door, leaving them alone again.
"Really?" She raised an eyebrow.
He shrugged, "I'd be much happier staring at your barely covered ass than sitting in a tub with a bottle of liquor." He held it up, and shook it, "By the way, want some?"
She took it from him, "How much have you had to drink?"
He put the side of his finger at where the neck met the rest of the bottle, moved it to a little above the label, then moved it down between that spot and the middle of the bottle, then back up to the end of the neck, and down about the distance he measure the second time. "Yay much."
She took a drink. Rum. Spiced rum. "Interesting choice."
He shrugged, "Grabbed whatever looked like it was being put to the most use."
"To be irritating?" She asked knowingly, handing it back.
He did his half smile, "Who else would get that right away, without sounding annoyed?"
"Your mother?"
"Don't find her sexually attractive," he shook his head.
"My mother?"
"Married."
"My father?"
"Same as your mom," he rejected.
"But you find him sexually attractive otherwise."
He scoffed, "Duh. If he wasn't married," he shook his head.
"Your dad?" He just stuck out his tongue at her. She laughed, "I threw that one in to see what'd you do."
"Well, one of the flaws of the last two, were they would sound annoyed when they said it."
"That's what dads do," she pointed out.
"Your dad doesn't get annoyed when you say stupid stuff."
She nodded, smiling as she remembered her dad's laugh when she told him ridiculous things, "Yeah, but I don't say stupid stuff all the time. Only sometimes."
"Like, "I turned down Harvard to go to Michigan"?"
She laughed, "He's happy I'm close-ish. I'm scared he's going to make good on his promise to pop by without any kind of warning, probably at the most inconvenient of times." She chuckled and shook her head.
"Right now would probably be inconvenient, and awkward."
She nodded, "Definitely."
"It'll be good to see your old man," he joked.
"Are you going to get out of there?" She asked after she re-realized that he was sitting in a bathtub.
"Are you going to take off your shirt?" Was his reply.
"No."
He looked away from her, at the wall by his feet, "Then no. I have to relax somehow, and you'd probably make it weird if I took a bath."
"Yeah, I'd make it weird. Not you being naked."
"You're almost naked," he pointed out.
"All the parts that count are covered."
She saw the mischevious twinkle in his eye, "Not from where I'm sittin." He glanced down to her lap. She looked down, her knees were towards eachother, barely apart. Cuddy rolled her eyes and made sure her knees touched. "Meanie."
"Pervert."
"I'm a guy," he excused.
"You use that one an awful lot," she commented.
"It's better than a 'Get out of jail free' card," he agreed. "Speaking of which, I really love your outfit."
She rolled her eyes. "Gee, thanks," she said sarcastically.
"I especially love the orign," he smirked.
"I may still go get tested for STDs in the morning," she joked. "What about you? Did you steal those from the hospital?"
"Yes," he nodded.
"You didn't even get the right kind," she said. "Green is surgical. Unless you're planning a career change as well."
"It's perfect, you can assist me, then we can forget about the guy cut open and make out."
"There's nothing more romantic than an OR," she agreed. "Cold and sterile."
"Then we'll have to take preventive measures to make sure Little Greg doesn't get cold," he said. "I never said I wanted to be medical," he said out of nowhere.
"Yeah you did," she leaned forward on her legs a little. "You said medical get puzzles, and surgeons are butchers. "Anyone could be a butcher, you just hack where you're told, but it's the medical that give the instructions. It takes more skill to figure out what's wrong than remove it." So, you're seriously hating on my grandpa."
"He probably deserves it," he dismissed.
"Well, he is partly responsible for my existance," she pointed out.
"Then he definitely deserves it." She laughed.
"You know you love me," she teased. But he didn't say anything, he just smiled and kept looking at her. Her smile got a little smaller, she just looked at him. When he put his hand on the side of the tub, and started pushing himself up, the thought of him kissing her brought her back. She blinked, "Um," he stopped, holding himself above the bottom of the tub, "we should, get back."
He let himself down. "I don't want to go out," he said as she was about to stand. "I just want to stay here. Don't feel like dealing with a lot of people right now. You should stay in here and drink with me. I mean, we got everything a girl comes to a party for." The fingers wrapped around the bottle neck pointed back to himself, "Cute guy," she rolled her eyes, "booze," he held up the bottle, "you can hear the music, and, if you want to dance," he shrugged, "it would be wrong of me to try to stop you."
"What about my friends?"
"Yeah," he shook his head, "I don't want Julie in here."
"She's not my only friend."
"I don't really want Lucy here either."
"She's not my only other friend." She grabbed the bottle from him.
"I'm your friend."
She set the bottle in her lap after taking a drink, "That's pushing it a little, don't you think?"
"We talk, hang out, drink together," he nodded to her taking another swallow, "I don't know what else to label it."
She bit her lip in thought, "Friendly rivals?"
"Friendly enemies," he looked at the wall. "Frenemies?"
She chuckled, "Something like that."
"So how are your folks?"He asked. From the gulp she took, visibly lowering the level of alcohol, "That good?"
"I got a lovely call from my mother today," she said sarcastically. "I was so sad when pre-party prep drew me away from it."
"Nice," he took the bottle from her. "What did Mommy say? I'm assuming something to do with your uterus," he lifted the drink to his lips.
"Don't want to talk about it," she took it back from him.
He watched her throat as she swallowed. "Johnny back home?" He guessed.
"What part of "I don't want to talk about it" don't you understand?"
"That's a check," he told himself. "What's he like?"
"30, sells drugs out of the back of his van," if he hadn't been listening, he would have taken that as serious from her tone. "We've been dating since I was 16."
"I'm guessing," he said, looking at the ceiling, ignoring her, "tall, strapping young lad," she snorted at his phrasing, "he was good looking," he continued seriously, "smart enough, and nice," he sounded disgusted. "Everything any mama would want for her baby. But boring."
"He wasn't."
"Then why'd you break up with him?"
"Who says I broke up with him?"
"Your mom doesn't call you about someone that broke up with you."
"He still lives at home," she answered. "We hadn't been dating long before I went off to school. Didn't think keeping it going would be so smart. The first day, Lucy told me that waking up butt naked next to a stranger was part of the college experience."
"And why deprive yourself?"
She nodded, "Exactly."
"What's his name?"
She shook her head, "No."
"That's an interesting name."
"No more than 'Roommate'," she shot back.
"Some people really are cruel to their children," he agreed. "My ass is asleep," he said suddenly. She laughed.
Cuddy stood, smoothing out her skirt, and put her free hand put to House, "Come on."
He looked at her hand, then up at her. "This seems like a good time to revisit the bath idea." She laughed again. He smiled and accepted her help up. He held onto her hand as he got out of the tub, but when getting his second foot out, he tripped. He put his free hand on the sink to keep them from falling to the floor, though they did hit the wall. "We keep ending up against a wall," he commented. "I think it's a sign." She put her hand flat on his stomach. He reached to the side and opened the door. Cuddy took a breath, and a drink, and walked out of the small room, House following her.
"Is the bathroom finally open?" A guy asked House.
"Yeah," he nodded, stepping forward so he could get to it. Cuddy leaned against the wall to make more room. "See?" He said after the door closed, still in her personal space. "Walls. They're our thing."
The conversation with her mother ran through her mind. She put her hand on his stomach again, and slid it up to his heart. When he started to step back, she grabbed his shirt, and looked in his eyes, "It didn't mean 'no' last time, it doesn't mean 'no' now." He leaned down a bit, and slid the bottle out of her hand, then onto the ground. She let go of his shirt and pulled his head towards her. As soon as his lips hit hers, he grabbed the back of her thighs and pushed her so far up the wall that he had to arch his neck to keep kissing her. She gasped. Her hands cupped his cheeks and pulled him closer. Greg was fairly certain the guy came out of the bathroom, but he was entirely certain he didn't care, though he did figure it was time to get out of the hall. He let her slide down until her knees were on his hips. He felt himself kick something when turned toward his door, but ignored it and opened his door. He backed up against the door after they were in. Lisa tightened her legs on his hips and started tugging at his shirt, which was made difficult by how tight she was pressed against him. She finally got the shirt over his stomach, and gasped when he grabbed her ass. He turned around so when his knees hit the bed, he didn't fall and crush her. As soon as his hands were free, Greg started unbuttoning her shirt from the bottom up. She tugged at his bottom lip with her teeth when he slid it off her, taking her hands out of his shirt just long enough for him to do that.
"Where's Lisa?" Julie asked Breena. "I haven't seen her in awhile."
"I think I heard that she's in the bathroom."
Julie blinked. "What?" She looked at her.
"I just heard some girl say that there was a girl in a nurse costume, talking to House, that was for some reason sitting in the tub."
"Oh shit," was all she said. She went down the hall and threw open the bathroom door. Empty. She turned and her eyes fell on his bedroom door. "No..." She walked to it and put the side of her head against the door. That breathing could only mean a few things. She highly doubted they were running on a treadmill or lifting weighting. She heard a loud thump. She also doubted they were rearranging furniture. "Shit!" She stomped her foot and it slid. She fell back, but put her hand out before her ass hit the floor. It was wet. She looked at the bottle of houch laying on its side. "What the hell?"
An: I never said when it was going to be M.