Wilson made the decision on how long to wait before allowing Cuddy to go comfort his friend. Though Cuddy knew House for a number of years far greater than himself, she was not exactly in the most capable of states. God forbid he were to become hostile or lash out in order to hide his pain, Wilson did not want his friend to accidently halt Cuddy's progress. House would never forgive himself.
Somewhere near the forty-five minute mark, the Oncologist relieved his boss from the kitchen table. Had he waited another minute she would've gotten up anyways. She had picked at her cuticles until a few bled and bounced her right knee up and down for a good portion of their conversation. To say she was anxious to return to House's side was an understatement. The woman practically went through the roof when he told her to go to him.
Cuddy took one last glance at the boyish smile on Wilson's face before half running to the living room. She was beyond in need of touching him, seeing him, anything. However, her movements came to a complete halt just inches before the doorway. He hadn't overwhelmed her the previous evening. She would now return the favor. Silently, Cuddy entered the room with her eyes on the floor. He would most likely want the extended time to put on his 'mask.' House never wished for someone to witness him vulnerable. When she did look up, she saw that the action had been pointless. He hadn't even acknowledged her entrance.
House had remained in the same position he had hunched himself into since first separating from her. His face was still hidden by his hands and his elbows were putting an uncomfortable amount of pressure onto his knees. He was aware of his boss just feet away from him, but he was not yet ready to face her. Tears were still clouding his eyes and weakness was the last thing he would ever offer her again. The days of her saving him were over.
Not being able to be apart from him for any longer, Cuddy disregarded his silence and continued to approach him. She took quiet, tentative steps. She didn't want to upset him. He meant everything to her. Now, she would tell him just that. She would make him understand just how highly she thought of him. She would convince him of his importance within her life.
When she was just a few inches from his sitting form, she reached out her hands and massaged his scalp. A small smile tugged at her lips when she witnessed his shoulders loosened and jaw unlock. Much like her, all he needed was time to adjust. A noise that sounded like half a grunt and half a whimper escaped him and it sent the smile from her face. Instead, she winced with pain at the sound. As a response, she applied more pressure to his temples and then moved her fingers in a rhythmic motion in an attempt to ease his mind.
Without warning, House's hands shot out to grab hold of her waist. A gasp of surprise left her lips as he pulled her to him and crushed his face into her stomach. He was drowning out the world by surrounding himself with her. Her touch and smell lessened the burning of his eyes and eased the lump in his throat. Everything was alright when with her. He felt her hands slip down the back of his head and begin to knead the muscles at the back of his neck.
Maybe it was alright for her to comfort him. Maybe their protectiveness of each other could be mutual. Just maybe he could continue to accept her loving care if he were to just, finally, return the compassion. He had done it the night before; maybe he could do it for the rest of his life. With the feel of her petite waist in his hands, he couldn't think of ever holding someone else. No more hookers. No more married ex girlfriends. Nothing could ever suffice in comparison to her.
House's hands made the decision for him. They traveled under her shirt to feel her skin and grab a firmer hold of her hips. She didn't react. It was as though they had become one. He squished his face into her abdomen and sighed deeply against her shirt. He couldn't think of a more heavenly place to be, and yet it saddened him. A few years back, he'd expected her of being pregnant. This would prove to be true, but the miscarriage she had was kept a secret from him. Wilson had been the one to tell him. However, during the time in which she was carrying a microscopic bundle of cells, he'd had a fantasy. It was exactly what was taking place currently. He had wished to touch her belly in the way he was now. He didn't understand it, but as the warmth spread from her to him, it did make sense. He had wanted to feel as passionate about something as she did. He wanted to feel. Now, he did.
Eventually, the contact wasn't enough for him and he brought her down to sit beside him. Hands still on her hips, House brought her close in a hug. She smiled against his shoulder as his eyes finally dried. Releasing their hold came soon after, the two became face to face again. His heart skipped a beat the moment he met her sapphire eyes. Their heads were just barely apart. Every single ounce of self restraint he had fought the urge to press his lips to her. The comfort and protection he offered her wasn't enough. He wanted her to feel his affection, to taste it. He wanted her to understand everything he felt for her, without him having to say it. She was what he lived for.
He closed his eyes to suppress the sinful act and winched with further restraint when he felt her cheek press up against the left side of his face. He was becoming disturbingly dependent on her constantly showing him displays of affection. When he tilted his head downwards to collide their foreheads, he released one of his hands from hers to gently caress the cheek that had just been turned a shade of pink by his scruff. One again, their eyes met; though this time, even closer than before. Blue and grey reunited as their star continued. The words that had been on the tip of his tongue for the last twenty years were finally spoken.
"I love you."
It was then that house witnessed the most beautiful smile he had ever seen in his life. Cuddy's face lit up like a wildfire as her endless orbs dove into the deepest of oceans. Suddenly, they were back in Michigan. She was nineteen and full of life and innocence. Her wounds were healed before his eyes. She was beaming.
Their timing has always been less than perfect. It was yet another unique characteristic to their lifelong saga. From misunderstanding their interaction in college to ignoring the signs of chemistry that had been overloading the hall of Princeton-Plainsboro for the better half of the last decade, they had just barely came in contact with the chance of unity so many times. This circumstance was proof of their relationship. They had been the only ones ignorant to this bond. Everyone within a hundred mile radius of the couple knew they were just that: a couple.
Wilson interrupted them. His face turned a bright red and his words stumbled when he entered the room. The Oncologist hadn't expected the pair to be so close. Yes, he'd seen their public display at the police station, but that was due to Cuddy's panic. Never in a thousand years had he thought of the possibility of House openly expressing his feelings for Cuddy in the privacy of her home. Seeing his two friends Eskimo kissing sent the dreadfully wrong idea into Wilson's brain. This was too soon.
"Oh, sorry! I didn't… I mean… I was just checking to see if - everything was okay."
House and Cuddy turned, wide-eyed at their friend. Smirks made their face onto both of their faces. Seeing Wilson frazzled was always amusing.
"Okay. Well… okay." The wonder boy shook the embarrassment from his face and quickly moved out of the doorway and back to the kitchen. He didn't even know where to begin to analyze the scene he had just witnessed.
Under normal circumstances, Wilson never walked in on his two closest friends. Though he knew first hand of their stubbornness to get together, he'd always hoped they would reach the conclusion that they did, in fact, need each other. He had thought maybe if they were ever alone long enough, they'd either kill one another of start ripping off clothing. Either way, he'd never wanted to be present for the event.
After Cuddy went to comfort the older doctor, he had remained in the kitchen thinking for an unknown amount of time. Matters of how the hospital would react to Cuddy's 'incident' played out in his head. She was the teaching hospital's life source; he hoped the board did the right thing by her. Knowing how ruthless they could be and taking into account the feathers Cuddy ruffled when allowing him to take extended time off and allowing House to do next to nothing during his absence, Wilson hoped they'd show remorse. He knew that these thoughts were possibly the futurist things from his boss' mind right now, but Wilson knew better. The reality of Lisa Cuddy's life would hit her very soon. She would come around to her old self. In the meantime, he would try to make her transition to the real world less stressful.
It was this he was pondering when he realized the odd silence within the home. Worried that something was wrong with one or both or his colleagues, Wilson had gone to the living room to check their status. To say the sight had shocked him was an understatement.
What was House thinking?! There was no way the drug addict would remain beside Cuddy when she was no longer in need of round the clock care. He understood his friend's sudden want to protect Cuddy. He himself was a sucker for damsels in distress. This fairytale was what led to all three of his divorces. But once their boss was physically healed and House with his tarnished armor wasn't needed, the Diagnostician would retreat back to his old ways. He would use and abuse drugs, hookers, and liquor until the ache of his empty life was filled and he would then hit rock bottom. Wilson would be the one to piece together the aftermath of this disaster. However, House would not just destroy himself. Judging by the helpless eyes of his female friend, there wouldn't be much left of Lisa Cuddy to save.
A broken heart would be the death of her.
He had to talk to House. He had to explain to him the responsibility he was taking on by his recent actions. Cuddy was now dependent on him. This fact would stay true for quite awhile and if what he saw in the living room was what he thought it was his boss was unconditionally attached to House. He could see it in her eyes and in the way she latched onto the gruff man. This was bad. House was in no way a figure of solidity. The man could barely take care of himself never mind a recently raped woman. One of Wilson's main reasons for supporting the idea of a House-Cuddy relationship was because the Dean of Medicine could handle his best friend.
Their boss had been putting up with House since before he knew either of them. She had always been the man's one and only rock. She was there for House because no one else would or could. With the exception of himself (although even he had walked away), Cuddy was the only one whom took House's abuse time and time again without complaint. Out of love for her employee, the woman had devoted her life to him. Now, Wilson understood, was when House should return her affection. The problem was that he didn't completely trust House's intentions. The man's track record was not exactly superb.
His mind raced as he left the house through the kitchen's slider door. He needed some air and space to breath and pace.
Still in the living room, the non-couple had not moved from their position on the sofa. Wilson's interruption had been minor and ineffective to both of their moods. House had seen Wilson's shocked and concerned gaze but paid little attention to it. He knew himself. He knew the faults of his character and how unworthy he was to have Cuddy in his arms. But he was not going to change this. He was going to hold onto her for as long as he possibly could. He realized that she would eventually get stronger. Unlike the Oncologist, House was aware of the strength within the small body beside him. One day, she would no longer need him. He hoped she would still have him.
"Are you alright?" The words were purred into the side of his neck. He wouldn't be giving this up easily. It wasn't a sexual need for her closeness. He had just gone so long without human contact that the feel of her lovingly up against him was addictive. He wished for her to remain there forever.
"Yeah, I'm good."
"I don't believe you." Her sentence was delivered in a mocking sing song voice and he couldn't recall a more adorable sound. He smirked.
His hands took hers as he painfully lifted himself from the couch. She followed him immediately.
It had always been the proximity in which they spoke that fueled the rumors of their relationship. Even when they were screaming at each other, they were never more than a foot apart. It was during these times that House had come up with an infinite number of ideas: to reach out and rest a hand on her hip, to tuck the curl that always seemed to get loose behind her ear, to chastely kiss her cheek and whisper that everything would be alright and to trust him. These were ideas that he never tested. He never had the nerve to experiment to see if what he wanted was what she wanted too. He hadn't known that his boss wouldn't have minded. She would have welcomed the interruption to their arguments and appreciated any of his fantasized gestures.
Dreams came true. He reached out for her hands and brought them up to his chest. They both watched their fingers entwine and silently marveled over the sight. His were large and rough while hers were small and soft, yet they looked perfect together. The sight was wonderful. It was everything they'd ever wanted to see.
"I'm gonna have to go to the hospital tomorrow." He looked up as he spoke regretfully. "I need to talk to Foreman about taking over for awhile."
She arched her eyebrow and he smirked.
"It's temporary. Until… you're ready."
Her grip tightened as her eyes became watery. A grin spread across her lips and she nodded. She was grateful.
"I'll come with you." Ignoring his confused look, she continued. "I need to handle some things too, and I'm gonna have to talk to the board eventually so it might as well be tomorrow." He tried to interrupt her but she wouldn't allow it. "It'll be fast. I don't plan on spending the day there. I can't." Her eyes fell to their still joined hands. "I'm not…"
A lump in her throat ended her statement prematurely. She didn't feel the need to finish and he didn't pressure her to. He already knew what she meant. It would take some time before things went back to normal; if they ever did. Either way, he didn't care. He'd help her tomorrow and all the days following.
Her eyes rose to his when he brought her left hand up to his mouth. Pausing for just a moment, he watched for a reaction before closing his eyes and pressing his lips to her skin. Unintentionally, he kissed her ring finger.