To Love, Honor and Obey

The wedding itself had gone off without a hitch, so to speak, except that Robert had messed up one of his lines causing House to whisper something in his ear which nearly had him in fits of laughter.

Now was the wedding reception. Now was the alcohol. But where was House?

As Wilson sat drinking his first and yet definitely not his last scotch of the evening, he went over the wedding in his mind. He knew pretty much everything there was to know about weddings, how the hell could he not? But today was the first time he had actually listened to the words that were said by the minister. In a non Jewish wedding anyway. Before the words were just a step to get to the next step, now they meant something. He remembered glancing in his friend's direction during the ceremony and it looked like he too was taking it to heart, which would be a pretty profound omission for a self confessed atheist. Then again he could have just been staring at the 23 year old blonde cousin of the bride who was to her left and thinking, 'why couldn't he dance with her?'

Love, honor and obey, in sickness and in health, for as long as you both shall live.

Love? For as long as he lives? He always had.

Honor? Again it was their in their relationship.

Obey? A bit more than he liked to.

In sickness and in health? He'd been there before and after the leg, before and after the shooting.

If that was marriage, if that's what you had to really feel in order to get to the next step, then why would it be so hard for them to do so? Why did it feel like it would be such a scandal, such a disappointment?

His thoughts were shattered by the clink of a glass on his and a cane threw onto the table for good measure as well.

"Hey"

"Hey"

"So how did it feel to be at a wedding were it was someone else throwing their life down the drain and not you."

House never missed an opportunity to remind Wilson that he apparently sucked at marriage and monogamy. Well there was really no apparent in it. He did. But Wilson didn't like to see it in quite these terms. He believed that he had married the right people and just hadn't found the wrong one yet.

He had long since decided that on this particular aspect of his failed life, he would gladly take as light hearted an attitude to it as his 'supportive' friend did.

"Refreshing."

House smiled and as they often did they shared a moment. Moments were all the history, all the knowledge that they had carefully built up about one another were in place like the building blocks of biology. They had worked hard to learn the science of House and Wilson, much harder than they had worked for their professions, much harder than they had worked for any other relationship. And it was still a mystery, a mystery each day closer to being solved. The biggest puzzle House would ever crack and the biggest thing Wilson would ever be able to cure.

House stared at the people up dancing and noticed one profound thing.

"They're all idiots."

Wilson was staring intently into the dance floor, thinking the polar opposite of course.

"Why exactly."

"They do what society tells them to do. How many of them do you actually think are

happy with their partners?"

"Most of them."

"You're an idiot too, the three marriages proves that. You never took what you wanted, you took what others dangled in front of you and conditioned you to want."

He stared into the floor again

"10 percent, about ten percent and that's a generous push, will be happy with their partners."

"So what are you saying?"

House looked at the man in front of him and a light finally went on in his mind, a light that would never go out.

"We should allow ourselves to be happy Jimmy. Because if we don't we're fucked."

Wilson was about to say something. He was about to ask, 'why didn't you take Cameron,' when Prunella the bride's sister interrupted proceedings to drag House onto the dance floor. His pleas were met with uncontrollable laughing by Wilson. If any one else had interrupted them at that moment for anything less amusing he would have knocked them out, but this was too good.

House was swayed about the floor by the drunken neurotic mess with the married younger Sister for what seemed like an eternity. The woman was trying her utmost to charm this man, but it was a waste of time. His mind was elsewhere.

"So your cousin married my sister that practically makes us cousins."

"Yip."

He was looking in the direction were Wilson was, who was now talking to his mother.

"So I'm gonna cut to the chase because time is short. Would you like to go out some time?"

House looked at the women in front of him and didn't want to hurt her. Maybe it was something to do with his new found feelings or the fact she was bigger than him but…something in her words struck a chord… cut to the CHASE! He would teach that little rich boy from coming from the worst country in the world.

"I'm sorry Prunella, you see that man over there with my mother."

He pointed to the man who smiled back at him

"He's actually my partner."

"Business"

"No pleasure"

She looked disappointed but House couldn't have that could he.

"However I have a friend called Robert who's Australian and he would just love you. He's a doctor as well, here's his number, and don't take no for an answer he's just shy."

Prunella took the number and gladly. Before she left, House thought he better say something just incase what he said (which was after all just a fiction) got out.

"Prunella no one knows about us yet but I just didn't want to make you think I didn't like you. If I was straight you'd be the first I'd call."

"You want me to keep quiet."

"Please"

"Gotcha,"

She winked at him and was gone