Drew was right about the lasagna; Colleen said it was an old recipe from Nick's mother, and House thought it was delicious. After the enjoyable dinner, more conversation, and some video game action with both kids, House left by around nine and drove to a nearby Hampton Inn for some much-needed private time. It had been an emotional day, which had gone better than he could've expected but had still been draining, and he needed to stretch out, take his pills, and just be alone with his thoughts.

His phone rang around ten thirty, and he glanced at the screen before answering. He didn't really feel like talking, but it was Wilson, who was no doubt chomping at the bit to hear about how things had gone.

"Hey, Wilson. What's up?"

"That's my question. Nothing happening here is remotely as interesting as what today must've been like for you. Spill."

"It went pretty well."

"What are they like?"

"They're like a twenty-first century version of a Norman Rockwell painting, Wilson."

"How so?"

"Oh, I don't know. I'm exaggerating, I guess. Maybe they were on their best behavior for me, the same way I was for them. But I liked them all, despite the overt sweetness."

"Were all of them there the whole day?"

"No. Nick and the kids didn't come home until around 5:30, so I spent the whole afternoon with just Andy and Colleen."

"How did that go?"

"I told them, Wilson."

"What do you mean? How much did you tell them?"

"I wasn't planning to, really. But they asked about my leg, so I wound up telling them about Stacy, and then that led to a question about other girlfriends, so I told them about Cuddy. And, well, you know what that led to."

"You mean you told them about the car and the house and jail?"

"The PG-rated condensed version, but yes."

"God. How did they take it?"

"Amazingly well. Of course, they were both shocked and upset at first, Andy more so than Colleen, but they seemed to accept it eventually and then we moved on to other topics. I did leave out some of the most damning details, though."

"Such as?"

"I didn't tell them about the three months on the lam before I finally came back and turned myself in. And I didn't tell them about the self-surgery or what really led to it."

"Baby steps, House. I'm surprised you told them as much as you did, frankly."

"I didn't tell them about Dominika either."

"What's to tell? It isn't a real marriage, and it's not like you'll ever have to introduce them to her."

"He was a lawyer, Wilson. I'm sure he knows exactly what statutes we've broken by attempting to defraud the government."

"Well, who knows what'll happen? Maybe she'll change her mind about wanting to stay in the country and you can divorce her before you even get to her green card hearing. Did you leave out anything else?"

"We didn't get into what happened when I was in jail. I mean, they don't know I was about to get out early and blew it by breaking the rules to save a fellow inmate."

"You should've told them about that. It's not damning; it's heroic."

"I wasn't sure they'd have that opinion."

"Did you tell them that Foreman later got you out on parole to save my lung transplant patient?"

"No."

"That would've been another point in your favor."

"I revealed enough for one afternoon. I think they kind of needed time to digest everything I dumped on them."

"How did it go after the rest of the family came home?"

"Okay. The kids are into video games, so we bonded over that, and I played the piano for them a little."

"Do any of them play?"

"Carly's taking lessons. She's twelve, and only started a short while ago, but she's not bad. She was shy about playing after my concert, but she did finally play one piece after dinner, and then showed off with some scales."

"What's Colleen like?"

"She's great. She's devoted to her family but still her own person. And she's a fabulous cook. I haven't had a meal like that in a long time."

"Are you going over there again tomorrow?"

"Yeah, they said to come for brunch. I think I'll probably leave by early afternoon, though. Don't wanna wear out my welcome."

"Has Andy made a decision about letting your mom contact him?"

"No, he didn't mention it, and I wasn't gonna bring it up. But I think he may be thawing on that subject."

"Why do you think that?"

"Just a look in his eyes after I played the piano and told them how she taught me as a kid."

"You didn't tell them about your dad, did you?"

"No. I couldn't."

"Do you think you ever will?"

"What's the point, Wilson? It would only make Andy feel even worse about missing out on my childhood, and it certainly won't make him more inclined to forgive my mother."

"I guess, but maybe they'd be more inclined to forgive you."

"I think they have the capacity to do that without knowing. And that's bull, anyway. Nothing that happened in the distant past is an excuse for all the trouble I've gotten myself into."

"I'm not saying it is. I just think it might help them understand you a little better."

"Drop it, Wilson. It's not happening."

"Okay. Has your mom called to see how things went today?"

"No, not yet. I'm sure she will though. She's probably waiting until the weekend's over with and I'm back home."

"Call me from the road. Maybe we can have dinner tomorrow night if you're back by then."

"Sure. 'Night, Wilson."

"Goodnight."