Chapter 11

Chase looked from House to Cuddy waiting, not so patiently, for the answer to the question he had been asking repeatedly since lunch yesterday. "Well?" he asked when neither seemed to have answers forthcoming.

"Before we start you need to agree not to interrupt us until we're done and you need to keep an open mind" Cuddy said.

Chase looked at her skeptically but agreed since he was more interested in the answers to his question than the reasons behind the current request. At first the story they were telling held little interest for him, what did it matter that House and Cuddy had a one-night stand in college? It didn't really start to make sense until Cuddy started in on the adoption service who had found a stay at home mother and a doctor who had adopted that baby boy, then it made sense. "You think that I'm the baby?" he exclaimed.

"No" House answered, "We know you're our baby"

Chase looked at him "And how exactly do you know that?" he questioned.

"We ran a paternity and a maternity test" Cuddy answered.

"How did you get my DNA" Chase questioned.

"Your coffee mug" House said simply.

"Is this a joke?" Chase asked.

"No" Cuddy and House said together.

Chase sat back in the chair thinking over what he had just been told. This seemed crazy, incredible, psychotic, and … false. Yeah that was his first impression that this was all just some sick joke that House had concocted but if that were the case then Cuddy wouldn't have gone a long with it. It wasn't Cuddy's thing to help House in his more basic pranks so there was no chance of this being a prank if Cuddy was agreeing and they had provided him with the tests that they had done and they checked out. It was all there in front of him, the truth of what he had been told. It made some sense, he had always known that he was adopted, that was an easy fact to learn he looked nothing like his parents. It also explained why he felt slightly less defensive around Cuddy and House; it must have been his natural instincts kicking in and trying to tell him something. It also explained why House and Cuddy suddenly felt like they had a say in what he did now, well that was something he was going to put an end to and fast.

Chase looked up at Cuddy and House "This is why you've been acting strange?" he asked.

"Yes" Cuddy answered.

"OK" Chase said. He pushed his chair back and stood up heading towards the spare room.

"Where are you going?" Cuddy asked him standing up as well.

"To change" Chase said simply.

House studied him, there was something that Chase was leaving out of that answer he just knew it. "Then what?" he asked.

Chase stopped, he should have known that House would tell that he wasn't saying everything "to pack" he answered and then resumed his walk to the room.

House stood up and he and Cuddy walked into the spare room without knocking. Chase jumped when they entered, he had just taken off his shirt when they barged in. "What the hell!" he exclaimed.

"Language" Cuddy said automatically. She walked over to Chase and looked him in the eye "You're not going anywhere" she said.

"I'm leaving" Chase stated.

"No you're staying here as you have already been informed" House said still standing in the doorway. When he saw that Chase had turned back to the closet to continue gathering his things he walked over to stop him.

"I'm not staying here any longer" Chase said taking a shirt off of a hanger.

"You are still being punished" House said as he took the shirt from Chase and hung it back up.

"You aren't punishing me because I came in early or snuck out you're punishing me because you've just learned that you're my parents" Chase said trying to get to the closet.

"No we really are punishing you for disobeying us" Cuddy said as she came over and took hold of Chase's arms, he was trying to get House out of the way so that he could pack.

Chase jerked his arms away not wanting to be touched but Cuddy just grabbed his hands and held them instead. Chase tried to pull away but had no success as Cuddy led him over to the bed and made him sit down. Chase looked up at her "Why do you care that I came in early?" he asked.

"Because you're my son" Cuddy answered as she reached her hand up to push some loose strands of Chase's hair behind his ear. She didn't though; she stopped when Chase flinched away, her hand hung there in the air uncertain.

"Sorry" Chase said when he saw the hurt look on Cuddy's face.

"You have nothing to be sorry for" House said as he sat down on the bed on the other side of Chase.

"I upset her" Chase said looking over at House.

"No" Cuddy said lightly grabbing Chase's chin and turning him to face her "You have done nothing to upset me. It was a reaction that you learned when you were young and I am so sorry that you had to learn that"

Chase looked at her confused "What do you have to be sorry for?" he asked. "You haven't done anything to me"

"I gave you up and put you with them" Cuddy said.

Chase shook his head "You aren't the kind of person who would ever willingly send someone, especially a child, to someplace that would hurt them" he said confidently "Nothing that happened to me was your fault."

Cuddy had tears running down her face as she took in Chase's words, it was comforting to hear that he didn't blame her. "I never wanted that kind of a life for you" she said.

Chase studied her for a few minutes. He believed her but he still needed to see the truth in her before he accepted "I know" he said quietly.

Cuddy pulled Chase into a hug before he was able to pull away. Chase fought the hold for a few moments but soon enough he stopped and just let her hug him. This was the first time that he'd ever been hugged, aside from when he had that breakdown the day before, and he wasn't quite sure what to do. He looked nervously over at House and semi-shrugged his hands hoping that he'd get the hint and help him out.

House looked at Chase and could see the boy was confused. Who was confused by a hug? Everyone knew how to hug didn't they? But as House watched Chase he could see that the boy had no idea what to do "Have you ever been hugged before?" he asked.

Cuddy pulled back and looked at Chase a bit stunned. "Sure I have" Chase said not wanting to make Cuddy feel bad.

House looked at him "Other than yesterday?" he asked to clarify.

Chase looked down. House always knew when he was lying and Chase hated that about him, guess it had something to do with the parent thing he mused. He didn't want to answer the question and in truth his silence and body language answered it anyway. This time both House and Cuddy wrapped their arms around him and he was taken by surprise, he had just been hugged by one person for the first time and now he had two people hugging him and he still didn't know what to do with his hands.

Eventually House and Cuddy pulled back, Chase could see that Cuddy had been crying and that House was rather upset. He hadn't meant to upset them, which had never been his goal he just didn't know what to do. "I'm sorry," he said.

House was trying really hard not to stand up right there and hunt down Rowan Hawkren and beat the man senseless for all that he had done to Chase. "You've done nothing!" Hose stated firmly, "You have nothing to apologize for" he laid his hand on Chase's back as much for comfort for the boy as for House's own comfort in knowing that his son was right next to him and in one piece. They could work on the emotional trauma together, the three of them, but right now House just wanted the physical assurance that Chase was really sitting right next to him.

Cuddy and House could both see that Chase was still exhausted despite having slept for a good eighteen hours the night before. "Why don't you lay down for a bit" Cuddy suggested.

Chase's head shot up immediately, the last thing he wanted to do was sleep, he knew that he was still tired he hadn't slept well since the day his father appeared and that was over a week ago. He also knew that last night, while yes he had slept, he had clearly had more than a few nightmares since he was still feeling tired. What was odd was that he hadn't woken up during the nightmares since he usually did. "I'm fine," he said standing up. Coffee, he needed coffee. It was funny the only time he ever drank caffeine was when he needed to stay awake in order to avoid nightmares caused by his father. He never drank coffee otherwise, sure he made it every morning but he never drank it unless he needed to. He'd never been allowed caffeine as a child either and now it paid off for it did the job when he needed it too.

Chase walked into the kitchen and headed directly for the coffee machine but was stopped by House who grabbed his arm. "No" he said.

"What?" Chase asked turning to look at House.

"No coffee" House said further.

"Why not?' Chase asked growing irritated.

"Because it will keep you up when you need sleep" Cuddy explained joining the conversation.

"I don't need sleep" Chase said firmly, "I'm not tired"

House snorted at that when he saw Chase fighting a yawn. "No coffee" he stated again.

"Fine" Chase huffed. He jerked his arm out of House's grasp and headed for the fridge looking for a soda that would offer him the caffeine that he wasn't allowed to have in the coffee. When he found a Dr. Pepper he grabbed and stood up but it was taken out of his hand before he even had the chance to open it.

"No caffeine" Cuddy said as she put the soda back into the fridge.

"I need something," Chase stated growing agitated.

"You need sleep," House said.

"No" Chase said firmly.

"Why not" Cuddy asked softly trying to get Chase to talk to her.

"I don't want to" Chase said.

"Because you don't want the nightmares to come" House guessed.

Chase looked down and away and didn't answer. It was amazing how he said more without speaking then he ever did when he talked.

House sighed and wrapped his arm around Chase's shoulders as he led the boy back to the spare room. "Let's just try shall we. Cuddy and I did a good job helping last night let's see how we do now" he said stopping in front of the bed.

Chase looked at him in surprise, he had wondered why he hadn't woken up the night before and apparently he had his answer but it was strange since he'd never allowed someone to come near him in his sleep before. One thing he'd learned at an early age was that it was best to sleep lightly and never become too comfortable. "I don't think that…" he stared.

"Shh," Cuddy soothed as she gently pushed Chase down onto the bed and swung his legs over. "Just lie down and try"

"I'm not tired" Chase said again as he tried to sit up. Unfortunately he was tired and he didn't have much energy to fight off House and Cuddy as they tucked him in. Normally he didn't fall asleep with two strange people so close by but his stomach was contentedly full for the first time in over a week, the bed was warm and Cuddy and House's presence seemed to be more relaxing than disconcerting. He guessed that was because they were his actual parents but he doubted it, no way could they put him at ease simply by being related could they?

"Rest now," House said as he finished pulling the comforter up to Chase's chin and patting it down.

Cuddy ran her hands through his hair and started to hum a soft lullaby. Chase was unfamiliar with the song but the tune was nice and the slow rhythmic motion was soothing and soon he found himself falling asleep despite his best intentions to stay awake.