Wilson had mixed feelings when his mother announced that she and her husband were returning home at the end of the week rather than staying for another week. On the one hand, Wilson was relieved. As much as he loved his parents, because they were mostly here to help with the baby, they were always around. Wilson had barely had any time alone all week, and that wasn't something he was used to. On the other hand, he would miss both their company and their help with his son. His mother had simply lavished attention on the baby, and it was nearly always her that fed him or changed his diaper during the day.

However, the main reason Wilson knew his happy feelings about his parents leaving outweighed his sad ones was because House had stopped spending the night, and Wilson was sure it was because there was nowhere else for him to stay except in Wilson's bed. The first night, Wilson knew House had gotten very little sleep—if he'd gotten any. And the second night...well...if Wilson had been in House's position, he'd probably be embarrassed enough about accidentally cuddling his best friend in his sleep that he'd want to bolt. The only thing was that Wilson didn't know (if the unintended spooning was the cause) if House was embarrassed about it because it was something he secretly wanted...or because it was something he definitely did not want.

Cuddling Wilson in his sleep did not mean that House had feelings for him—Wilson knew that. Lots of people moved in their sleep. It might have been his body seeking out warmth and latching onto the only thing there was. His half-conscious mind might have thought Wilson was Cuddy, and gone over to him for that reason. It hadn't been that long since their breakup and House was probably still used to another warm body in his bed.

Wilson was pretty sure the cuddling incident was the reason why House had stopped sleeping over. He still came over for dinner after work and didn't leave until late, and the two days that week that he'd had off of work, he'd spent the whole afternoon at Wilson's.

The last afternoon before their departure, Mrs. Wilson was in Wil's room to say goodbye to him while Mr. Wilson loaded their suitcases in a taxi.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay another week, Mom?" Wilson asked her as she held the baby close and kissed his forehead. It was pure politeness. Wilson missed House staying over and hoped desperately that he would resume doing so the moment they were gone again. He wanted this to happen as soon as possible.

"No, honey, that's all right," she said kindly, smiling at Wilson as she gently placed Wil back in his crib. "I need to show off the pictures to all my friends back in Delray Beach, and I can't very well do that from here, can I?"

Wilson smiled. "I suppose not. But it's been great having you here, Mom. You've been such a great help with Wil, I don't know what I'm going to do without you."

Wilson's mother laughed and gave Wilson a giant hug. "Oh, honey, you'll do just fine. Besides, you have Gregory to help you."

"I guess I do," Wilson agreed, smiling slightly. "But he's not here all the time."

"Oh, James," Mrs. Wilson said, shaking her head and almost sounding scolding this time. "Do you really think I'm that naïve?"

"What?" Wilson said, looking at her with confusion on his face.

"Sweetie," she said calmly, putting her hands on Wilson's shoulders. "I was up a few nights ago. I was on my way to the kitchen for a drink of water and I saw Gregory getting up to go feed William. He saw me and knew I saw him, and after that I know he's been leaving before you go to bed instead of staying. I think it's because I saw him and you didn't want me to know you were together–"

"–Whoa, Mom," Wilson interrupted. "We're not together. He just didn't have anywhere else to sleep," he said quickly.

"Honey, it's okay," Mrs. Wilson said. "Your father doesn't know, I figured you could tell him when you were ready. But that's one of the reasons why I've decided to stay just a week—it's not fair for Gregory to stay away on my account."

Wilson's mind was racing. He wondered if that was the real reason House had left—because he knew Wilson's mother knew about his staying over and was drawing the wrong conclusion from it. "Mom, I'm telling the truth," he said finally. "House has been staying over since Wil came home with me, but until you came over, he's been sleeping on the couch, not with me. Nothing...nothing has other happened between us."

Mrs. Wilson studied her son for a moment. She looked confused. "Honey, I...well, I'm sorry for presuming, I suppose, but...well...since you told me he broke up with Lisa and since he's been staying over, I thought you'd finally gotten together."

"No," Wilson muttered with embarrassment, not liking the sound of her 'finally.' "It's nothing like that, Mom."

Wilson's mother sighed. "James, are you really sure you don't feel that way? I know it's something new to you, but you're always so happy when you're with him and I think you'll find that you could be happy if you were with him in a–"

"–Mom," Wilson interrupted again, looking at her this time. "I...I don't know how you know about it, since I've never said a word to you, but I've recently admitted to myself that I do feel that way. I...I can't believe I'm telling you this, but...since you seem to already know...nothing has happened, though," he said. "We're still just friends, that's all we've ever been."

"Well, James, I'm relieved to hear you've admitted it to yourself, but don't you think things might be more likely to progress if you told him how you felt?" she asked, smiling at him.

"Mom, I don't know if he feels the same way," Wilson said, rubbing the back of his neck and looking at the floor. He couldn't believe he was having this conversation—let alone with his mother. He'd never breathed a word of his feelings for House to anyone before, and here his mother had known all along. He felt cheated, like a big secret had been kept from him and he'd been making a fool of himself by being the only one not knowing.

"Don't be ridiculous, James, Gregory's been in love with you for years."

"W-What?" Wilson said, stammering and taking a step back. "You can't...you don't know that," he said.

Mrs. Wilson rolled her eyes. "All right, perhaps I've never heard him specifically say it aloud, but I noticed a long time ago how he looked at you. It was the same way he used to look at that young woman he was seeing back when you married Bonnie. I saw the two of them dancing at your wedding and I couldn't help noticing, thinking that they were so much more in love than you and Bonnie were. I could tell just by the way he looked at her, and the way he held her when they danced. He looks at you just the same, James," she said, looking her son in the eye. "Maybe not to your face, maybe he doesn't let you notice...but he loves you. I get more and more certain of it every time I see you together."

"Are you coming, dear?" Wilson's father interrupted from the doorway, making Wilson jump. He hadn't heard him approaching.

Mrs. Wilson smiled. "Yes, honey, let's go." She bent down over Wil's crib to give him one last kiss, and then she hugged her son and kissed him on the cheek. "Remember what I said," she said softly, not loud enough for her husband to hear. "All I want is for you to be happy, James."

She pulled back just as her husband was also kissing their grandson goodbye. The two male Wilsons hugged, and the younger saw his parents to the doorway. Mr. Wilson refused his son's offer to pay for the cab fare, and then they were gone. And suddenly, Wilson was alone again. The house was quiet—or at least, it would be until Wil needed something, and Wilson did not have to entertain anyone. He could be alone with his thoughts and, especially after that last conversation with his mother, he had plenty to think about.

—

After Wilson's parents were gone, it felt almost like they'd never been there. House went directly back into his old routine of staying over nights—still on the couch—helping Wilson out with Wil more often than Wilson ever would have guessed before, and returning to his apartment in the morning to shower and change before going to work. On days when he didn't have work, he often stayed over at the condo as though he lived there, and Wilson was careful not to say or do anything to make House think he didn't want him there—because he did. The only complaint he had about the situation was that House had returned to sleeping in the living room. After the two nights they'd spent in bed together (particularly the second one), it felt like a step backward.

However, even after what his mother had told him, Wilson did not want to push him. He sort of knew what she was talking about—there had been definite times over the course of their friendship when House had given him looks or made comments that made him wonder...but he could just be misconstruing them. The fact that his mother had noticed the same things on the few occasions she'd been around was a bit of a boost to his confidence—but she was his mother and she might be almost as biased as Wilson himself was.

So instead of taking her advice and telling him straight out, Wilson cautiously proceeded with his...flirting. He found excuses to casually touch his best friend, often using Wil as a catalyst, more and more frequently and in more and more obvious ways.

House never reacted to the touches, at least not in any way Wilson could see. The fact that they weren't rebuffed was encouraging, especially at first, but House never made any moves of his own, never gave any indication that he was interested in Wilson touching him. He ignored it completely, and after awhile, Wilson began to wonder if that was House's version of rejection. He didn't expect House to talk about it, but some sort of acknowledgement would have been nice—it would have at least let Wilson know what to expect. Now, as it was, Wilson thought he might have to actually kiss House to get either a positive or negative reaction, but he wasn't ready to take it that far. If House had ever touched him back or given him some sort of sign that he was interested in this new aspect of their relationship, then he might be more willing. However, if House really only was ignoring him because he was afraid that openly rejecting Wilson would ruin their friendship, then a kiss certainly would.