House closed the door to Wilson's office and leaned against it. "Ali's pregnant." he said quietly.
Wilson cocked his head, "Okay...first of all; Who is Ali, and how does it concern you?" House shot him a look. "Oh...so it's yours?"
House nodded, "Yeah."
"I'm still at loss as of who Ali is."
"Aliena Granger."
"Your stalker." Wilson sat down the he stood back up as what House had said caught up with his brain, "Your stalker!" he screeched. House winched. "She's underage!"
"She actually nineteen - twenty soon." House said lightly.
Wilson laughed darkly, "Oh, yeah! You're in deep shit buddy." he agreed. "So what are you gonna do? Is she gonna keep it?"
House nodded, "She's gonna keep them."
"Them?"
"Twins...."
"Twins." Wilson repeated. "What. Didn't you use a condom? Birth-control? I know you use a patch!"
"She was taking Paganol..."
"And you wear the patch...how is it possible that she ended up pregnant - with twins - and why didn't you use a condom? You always use a condom." Wilson despaired, "Even when you're too drunk to walk you remember condoms!"
"Patch is only 90%..." House sighed.
"And as you knew that very well - and how could you be certain she actually took her birth control pills?" Wilson nearly yelled in frustration.
"Because she took it at breakfast every Sunday morning god-dammit!" House swore. He couldn't explain the feeling crawling in his stomach. It made him fidgety and restless.
Wilson gaped, "You had breakfast with her? Several times?"
House sat down in the couch and rubbed his face. "Yeah. More than several times."
"She spent the night?" Wilson was getting more and more frustrated and delved deeper and deeper into the depths of his disbelief.
"Several times." House confirmed.
"And you had sex?"
"Once." House said "Once before we knew..."
Wilson raised his brows, "Once. Just once? Are you sure it's yours? She could have slept with someone else before - or after -"
House shook his head, "It was her first time." he said, "and she stayed with me after - her parents were out of town." House didn't dare look up at his best friend just yet.
Wilson sat down on his desk in shock, "So you've had an - how do you know it was her first time?"
House looked at him like he had lost his mind, "Uh, there is this little thing called virgin hymns. Heard about it?"
"Wait, you can actually tell when -?" Wilson asked, very skeptical of the entire scenario.
"The blood kind of gives it away Wilson," he said, annoyance creeping into his voice.
"Okay, so let me get this straight, you had an underage girl -"
"She's nineteen or fucks sake!" House growled, "I deserve some credit for keeping under wraps for two years!"
Wilson looked at him with big puppy eyes, "Normally, I'd say something along the lines of 'what's wrong with you?', but knowing she nearly raped your bike, stalked you, rubbed up against you like a bitch in heat and gave you a calendar with her eighteenth birthday marked on it, I'd rather say, um.... 'what's wrong with you?!'" he yelled.
House snapped, "Don't call her that - and do you fucking think I need you to tell me what's wrong with me?" he snarled, "I know that I'm quite literally robbing the cradle!"
"Well if you know -" Wilson's voice dripped of sarcasm. House groaned and flung himself down on his couch, heedless of his leg. Wilson frowned, "Didn't that hurt?" he asked curiously, cocking his head cutely.
House lifted his arm from his face and glanced at Wilson, "uh?"
Wilson arched a brow, "Your leg. Y'know, the one you can hardly move without causing mind-numbing pain."
House frowned, "Uh? Oh...never mind that, I -"
Wilson looked at him suspiciously, "Your leg doesn't hurt?"
"Can we focus on the actual problem?" House asked.
"How many Vicodin have you taken today?"
"Leave it alone!"
Wilson gasped, "Oh my god! You care about her!"
House made a face and glared at him, "You deducted that out of my refusal to talk about my leg?"
"Because you never avoid talking about your leg - or your pills!" Wilson nearly shouted, "She is important to you!" House groaned and slid down from the couch in a fluid motion, sitting on the floor with one leg folded underneath him, his elbow resting on his knee, his hand supporting his head. Wilson stared at him, "Your leg isn't hurting!"
House looked up at him in defeat, "She...she sleeps wrapped around my side..."
Wilson shook his head, "You let her cuddle - how many pills have you taken today - after lunch?" House sighed and refused to look at Wilson, and mumbled something. "What was that? I couldn't hear you" Wilson said and stepped closer.
"None! I said none!" House shouted, "Fucking hell..." he muttered and turned away.
Wilson just stared at him, "You don't feel any pain?" he asked, stunned.
House sighed in annoyance, "Oh trust me, I feel the pain - but after five years of excruciating agony, even while on the pills, I find this at least tolerable."
"So it doesn't hurt?"
"I've still got a migraine in my leg, but it isn't feeling like the muscle is being peeled off in tiny stripes," he said dryly.
"You don't just like her." Wilson exclaimed and stood up, "You like her, like her - you love her!"
House groaned, "I know. Why do think I'm here?"
Wilson halted mid-celebration, "Wait - you know you love her?" he asked, mildly confused. House nodded. "So....now what?" he asked. It had always been his job to tell House that he cared about someone, but now that House already knew, what was his purpose?
"I don't know." House admitted.
Wilson cocked his head, "You never never know." He pondered and tapped his chin "You're scared...of commitment?" he guessed.
"She's living with me. We're having kids. I think I passed commitment issues a long time ago." House muttered.
"How long ago?" he asked curiously.
"Since I stopped being surprised when she showed up..."
"And she lives with you? How did that come about?"
House shook his head and pushed himself back onto the couch, "She talked to her mom when she though that she might be pregnant -"
"She didn't tell you?"
"Found out last week."
"She told you?"
"No - and I'll get to it -"
The door opened and both men turned towards the one who dared interrupt their very important chat. Cameron poked her head in, "Got a case. Urgent."
"It can wait ten minutes," House said and waved her off.
"Patient is bleeding from his eyes, penis - no signs of blood in his urine - no STD's and is not responding to IV-fluids." She summed up.
Wilson sighed, knowing that this was exactly the kind of case that would have House running out of his office, avoiding the rest of their talk.
"It can wait ten minutes!" House snapped.
Both Cameron and Wilson looked at him in wonder. "What? But this case is perfect -"
"I'm not interested! Start the differential on your own, Chase in charge, and you do not go near any patient or family, got it?! Lab work and research only!" He wasn't annoyed at Cameron was much as he was just generally annoyed, unlucky girl.
Cameron got a dejected look on her face and nodded, "Yeah..." She said and left.
Wilson gaped at him, "You turned down that case? And why is Cameron not allowed to -"
"I'll get to it!" House snapped. "I gave Ali a ride home that night she nearly raped my bike. Dropped her off, didn't see her again until she got the meds for the spores. Again, didn't see her for another few months. Met her in the park and we had a coffee and a chat. After that we just..."
"Clicked?"
"Yeah. We clicked." House agreed, "Coffee turned to lunch, lunch turned to dinner, dinner turned to take-out and tv and at some point she started staying over."
"And then next you started finding her stuff around the place." Wilson stated, being very familiar with the phenomenon of women getting what they want.
"Yeah, and I didn't mind. It wasn't much...just some soaps, make-up, pair of sneakers..."
"She invaded your bathroom?!" Wilson asked in disbelief, "Not even I'm allowed to have stuff in your bathroom!"
"It wasn't worth arguing over - and no, she didn't invade my bathroom....she immigrated," he stated.
"Right, she immigrated." Wilson rolled his eyes.
"Gradually she started staying over more. Her parents were fighting like crazy -"
"You fell for that."
"No. I didn't believe her, so I took her back. The second I parked and turned the engine off, I heard yelling and screaming and a vase cashed through the window and out onto the lawn."
Wilson held his breath, "Yeah that's real fighting."
"Yeah I thought so too. I didn't usually bother to ask, 'cause I've met her dad and he's an ass, but she never came two days in a row unless it was in the weekend." He shook his head sadly, "I didn't ask after that either...her Aunt had enough of her parents fighting, so she took Ali and had her live with her up in New York."
"For how long?"
"Bit less than a year."
"So you didn't see her for a year?"
"She dropped by when she was in town, called, texted, e-mailed...I asked what she wanted for her 20th birthday...She said she wanted me to be her first...a combined 18th, 19th, and 20th present."
Wilson gawked, "Really? What did you say?"
"I said she was nuts."
"And?"
"She called me a jerk." House grumbled, "So I prescribed her the new Birth Control, got back on the Patch...of course she wanted her present early." He said with a snort.
"So it was just like that? She called you a jerk and you give in? No passion? No admittance of love -?"
"No. God....I knew i liked her, but I didn't - I ever considered she'd -"
"Actually want you?" Wilson asked, "Like that?"
"Yeah."
"But she gave you her virginity! That should have been a clue!"
"I know she trusts me! I know she cares!" House snapped, "I just..."
"You think she wanted you because you were friends, and because you knew what you were doing?"
"Precisely."
"Right." Wilson said, once again surprised by House's humility and utter lack of arrogance.
"After that we continued like normal, except now she actually she slept in my bed." House continued, "Didn't see each other as much though 'cause her parents kept her home. Ali told her mom that she thought she might be pregnant, but wasn't sure, and asked her not to tell her dad. Ali's mom pretty much lives on Gin & Tonic, so of course, she told him. He went ballistic -"
"So he knew that she was -"
"Because of the possibility of that she might be pregnant. He hit her, threw her out in nothing but her nighty, in the rain. I found her on my doorstep, soaking wet, in a nearly see-through satin dress, bare feet, cut knees and half her face purple."
"Half her face?"
"He's a big guy."
"Bigger than you?"
"Shorter, broader, not crippled."
"oh."
"Anyway, I got her in the shower, dressed, cleaned up and fed. She told me her dad kicked her out, but not why. Just that he might have done something stupid, but there was no point in turning feathers into eagles before she had the facts. Enter Cameron. Ali went to the Clinic, 'cause she didn't want me to find out -" House looked away and rubbed her face.
"Don't blame yourself for that. It's female instinct to protect her young - incase her mate is -
"Yeah, I'm a lion; killing my young!" House said, his voice heavily laced with sarcasm.
"I was thinking more in lines of reacting negatively. And you are a force of nature!" Wilson smirked.
"Right, anyway, Ali shows up in the Clinic, no make-up wearing my clothes, cause nighty, scared, tired and a fever, plus the usual pregnancy symptoms - Cameron immediately sees a dumb, hung over cheerleader who got knocked up while drunk, tells her she's got SWS and a parasite that might kill her, and then she leaves without explaining what the hell she meant, not giving her penicillin for the fever, or even a test for the pregnancy."
Wilson made a face, "Damn - she could have killed her!"
"Yeah, then she comes out bragging about her third pregnant teen of the day, I saw the name on the file and I flipped at her."
"In public?"
"Yeah." House groaned, "Cuddy overheard me telling Chase and Foreman why Cameron was stuck with paperwork, and agreed with my decision on keeping her away from patients for a while..."
"Wait, what about Ali? Did you talk to her?"
"Yeah, told her she was pregnant."
"Is this where the crying, comforting, cuddling and confessions of love enters?" Wilson asked jokingly.
House just nodded, "yeah."
Wilson blanked. He'd been joking. He sat down again. "So you're gonna be a dad?" he sighed, an air of finality about the statement.
"Yep."
"And you're happy about that?"
"Still digesting, but mainly, yeah."
"Damn...and you like her - no! you love her."
"Yeah."
"And she loves you?"
"Yeah."
Wilson pondered for a few seconds, "You're afraid of loosing her." he said.
House glared at him, "No shit Sherlock."
"You are in trouble - have you talked to her parents?"
"I tried, they told us to get lost. We were actually just going to get her stuff cause I don't want her living there, but he refused. Said he paid for it, so he was keeping it."
Wilson frowned, "That's kinda harsh. Then what did you do?"
"Shopping."
"You," Wilson shook his head, "went shopping with your girlfriend - whom I still think is obscenely young by the way, but that fact is slightly overshadowed by the overwhelming sense of that a miracle has been performed; you've fallen in love. For real. No obsession or infatuation. Love." Wilson smiled and rubbed his face, "You've come full circle, got the wife and kids, soon you'll be driving a Volvo, have a house and a dog!" House snapped his face up to stare at Wilson. The piercing blue gaze made Wilson slightly uncomfortable, "What did I say?"
House just shook his head, muttering under his breath. He grabbed his cane and hurried out the door, not bothering to actually use it.
"Wait! What did I say?" Wilson called after him.
A/N now i've posted to double chapter to make up for ONE missed post, so I think i've been really good *puppy eyes* and deserve your reviews. I've worked really hard, also, I just epicly failed my Latin test - i don't even need it back to know - so cheer me up!!
Statistics show only 1 in 25 readers review on a good day. BE SPECIAL!!!