A/N: Well, it's been great writing for all of you! Thanks to everybody who read and reviewed, you guys are awesome! You gave me the motivation to finish this story! I hope you enjoy the conclusion. Thanks again for reading. I'll see you all in my other stories!

Disclaimer: I don't own House, M.D. or any of its characters and am making no money whatsoever.

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"Are you certain you want to do this again?" House questioned Cuddy as they once again stood outside of Mike's room.

Cuddy smiled up at House forlornly. "I have to." she stated shortly with no further explanation. The look of fortitude and conviction in Cuddy's steel blue eyes was enough for House to not question her any further.

He loved that about her—her determination and strength. Of course he would never admit this aloud to her.

He wasn't entirely sure he could ever manage to work up the nerve to confront his own father if Cuddy's situation were imposed upon him.

House spared a quick glance down the seemingly empty hallway. Once satisfied he advanced a step closer to Cuddy. Smiling, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer to his own body, not just wanting to be closer to her, but feeling that in some way she needed it as well. The thought that Cuddy needed him made House light up inside as if someone lit a match within him.

Cuddy was thankful for the warmth and comfort House's body granted her and she drew herself even closer to him, resting her head on his chest and just taking in his comforting presence.

House simply held her there, letting her use him, happy to actually be there for her when she needed him.

After a short moment Cuddy lifted her head and met House's bright blue eyes with her own. House couldn't help but smile affectionately down at the beautiful woman in his arms. Cuddy shook her head in silent laughter.

"What?" inquired House, confused at the sudden altercation in mood her laughter had induced.

"This is just…" Cuddy searched for a watered down word to explain this new affectionate side of House without breaking the moment. "different, that's all." she decided upon. House tilted his head in conjunction with raising one eyebrow. "But in a good way." she added. "I like it." she concluded with a bright smile in his direction.

"Well don't get used to it." House joked, "I'm still not going to do my clinic hours." he said in a playful tone. Cuddy smiled brightly at House, still safely encompassed in his arms when he leaned down and planted a tender kiss upon her lips. They lingered there a while before pulling away and Cuddy stepped back and out of House's arms reluctantly.

"You'll be waiting for me?" she asked hopefully as she took a step closer to Mike's room, consequently putting more superfluous space between herself and House.

"Always." replied House as he watched Cuddy turn and disappear into the room.

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House continued to stare at the door leading to the room containing Cuddy and her father and sighed. A sudden noise resembling a familiar pair of footsteps directed his attention behind him and he sighed again, heavier and more exaggeratedly than before. He came face to face with a smiling Wilson. The smugness of Wilson's smile made House want to throw up all over Wilson's overly pretentious tie.

"What are you so happy about?" asked House in an irritated tone, "You finally get that nurse you were eyeing up to see past your three failed marriages and sleep with you?"

Wilson's smile didn't falter, only increasing the allegorical bile deep within House's throat. "Aren't you going to thank me?" inquired Wilson knowingly, the smile never leaving his face.

"For leaving me with Mike's workup? Sure, you really missed out. I can't even begin to describe the fun I had bonding with a dying member of Cuddy's gene pool." House answered sarcastically.

Wilson rolled his eyes good naturedly. He wasn't going anywhere until he received his thank you. "Don't pretend like I don't know." started Wilson, still smiling, "I saw you and Cuddy just then." House's expression dropped. "So here's the deal." House raised his eyebrow. "I'm going to congratulate you on finally admitting your feelings to the woman you love, and you're going to thank me for kicking your ungrateful ass in the right direction."

House crossed his arms in defiance. Wilson continued, "And if you don't," House waited for the threat. "I have pictures of you being nice." House's arms dropped the same time as Wilson's smile rose even more. Wilson laughed, "But seriously House, congratulations." he patted his friend on the shoulder. "I'm happy for you. Neither of you deserved to be alone."

House appeared hesitant at first, but eventually nodded as a small smirk lifted his lips against his will. An almost inaudible "thank you" resonated from House's lips and Wilson's face might as well have fallen off because of the enormity of his smile. Without another word Wilson turned and left his friend, returning to his office to continue what appeared to be a very good day for him.

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Cuddy shut the door closed behind her noiselessly and went to occupy the same seat she had been sitting in only a short thirty minutes ago.

By Cuddy's recollection, Mike was still positioned in the same manner on the hospital bed as he was thirty minutes ago, only this time looking not only like hell, but like hell had rejected him because they didn't want to look at him any longer.

He appeared to be sleeping.

Not in a peaceful slumber reflecting that of an innocent baby, or even the recuperative sleep of a worked to death doctor such as herself would partake in after a stressful day, but one filled with a certain pained, yet peaceful restlessness that she couldn't quite recognize or understand.

She immediately rejected the idea of coming back at a later or more appropriate time, wanting to get this over with once and for all. She began to speak to him anyway, hoping her words might somehow immerse themselves into his subconscious. She took a nervous breath and let it out all unintentionally in time with the steady beat being conducted by the machines set up all around her father. She started speaking the first thing that came to her mind.

"I remember when I was eight years old." she began to relive the memories of her past that she had deliberately fought against remembering and pushed relentlessly to the deepest depths of the back of her mind ever since her mother had passed away.

"I was having a nightmare and you woke me up from it." Mike still lay motionless in his bed. "You held me in your arms and calmed me down, rocking me back and forth and smoothing my hair down with your hands." Mike's eyelids fluttered softly in his slumber.

"You told me that you would always be there for me; that as long as you lived you would never let anything bad happen to me." Cuddy paused briefly and watched for any changes in her father. It was apparent that he was still sleeping, but she continued regardless, "You promised me that you would protect me from everything and that bad things don't happen to good people. Do you remember that?" Mike didn't move at all.

"But you couldn't back up that last statement when mom died, could you." Cuddy shook her head sadly. "And if you lied about that then who's to say you didn't lie about everything else?" Cuddy stopped for a moment, simply listening to the steady rhythm of Mike's heart monitor.

"I never told you, but in my nightmare I was alone." Cuddy felt as if the words were building up and stopping in her throat, threatening to strangle her and cut off her much needed supply of oxygen. "Everyone was gone. You…mom…and everyone else in the world. I had no one but myself." That dream wasn't a one time occurrence, much to Cuddy's contempt. It often invaded her dreams and took over her nights every once and a while, as if it were mocking her, reminding her that she really was alone, and it was a premonition when she was a child that this is how her life was meant to be.

Alone.

Cuddy suddenly thought of House. And not just because he was standing outside waiting for her, but because she felt she could count on him more than she could ever have counted on her father. And that hopefully he was the cure to her frequent nightmares.

"You might be happy to know that I'm not alone anymore." Cuddy told her father. "You'll also be glad to know that I don't need you anymore." she smiled sadly. "I never did…" she said as if it were an epiphany realized years ago, perhaps even when she was only a mere eight years old. "I'm not searching for your acceptance, I'm not asking you to be proud of me and what I've made of myself." she continued, feeling much better already, "I'm over it. I'm ready to let go now."

Cuddy stopped speaking and sat for one more minute, simply watching her father, seeing the man he'd become and the man he used to be fading away with his illness.

"Goodbye dad." she said softly, as she turned to leave the room. Her hand firmly gripped the handle of the door when she heard a breathtaking gasp from behind her combined with the frantic beeping of a heart monitor.

She didn't turn around.

She heard more additional desperate gasps for air and the shuffling of the sheets on the bed as they fell to the floor and the beeping intensified.

She began to slide the door open slowly.

The commotion behind her ceased abruptly altogether and she left the room accompanied by a long sustained tone… one she remembered from years ago… that was only silenced by the closing of the door behind her.

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House was leaning uncomfortably against the solid wall opposite of Mike's room. All this standing in one place for a prolonged period of time was really getting to him. Well, getting to his leg mostly.

House dug into his jacket pocket and his fingers instinctively found their way around the familiar and comforting shape of a pill bottle. Extracting it from the depths of his pocket, House opened it adroitly and emptied only one pill into his awaiting hand anxiously. He downed the bitter white pill and closed his eyes as he felt it slowly make its trek down his throat and waited for the pain to numb him when the door to Mike's room cracked open slowly. The open door released a familiar sound House knew dreadfully well.

House was surprised when Cuddy shut the door, disregarding the noise as if it were the ringing of a telephone with a telemarketer on the other end. Cuddy ambled over to House slowly and he found himself not knowing the proper thing to do as he watched a barrage of nurses rush into the room behind Cuddy. She stopped in front of him.

She smiled. "Thank you." she said. "For staying."

House ignored the commotion behind them as they walked away down the corridor together. House substituted his 'your welcome' with the motion of putting his arm around her waist as they walked away. She did the same.

He stayed. She was sure she would sleep peacefully tonight.

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The nurses in Mike's room were helpless. By the time they entered the room there was nothing more in their power they could do, even as a doctor making his way down the same hallway entered upon hearing the uproar from the room Mike couldn't be helped. "Time of death," started the doctor, "7:48 pm."

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Flashback:

Mike had finally managed to calm Lisa down and she was now sleeping peacefully, clutching her stuffed spotted dog gently to her small frame. Mike smiled affectionately at his daughter and ran his large hands gently through her soft curly hair simultaneously willing away any more nightmares from his daughter like they were a boy trying to take her out to the movies.

He pulled her snow white themed sheets around her small body and made sure she was comfortable before he left her alone once again.

He couldn't help but wonder what she had dreamt of that had scared her so much. He knew how strong her daughter was and how she was intimidated and frightened by virtually nothing, much like himself. 'A chip off the old block', thought Mike fondly of his pride and joy.

Maybe she would tell him some day.

He kissed Lisa lovingly on the forehead and spoke softly to her. "Goodnight sweetheart, I love you." he brushed her dark, curly hair away from her closed eyes. "I love you so much and I always will. Remember that, okay sweetie?" With one final kiss he rose from Lisa's bedside and left her alone with her dreams…

The End.