HI EVERYONE!!

HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.

THANKS FOR READING AND REVIEWING!! I RESPONDED TO ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS INDIVIDUALLY!! :D

PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-)


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CHAPTER 26: Please read and comment.

A little while later, Cuddy and House were waiting in an exam room in the OB/ Gyn wing when Dr. Steven Sobol, a man of medium height and build in his early sixties with silvery grey hair, entered the room with Cuddy's patient file in his hand and a smile on his face.

"Well, Lisa, you're not pregnant," Sobol announced cheerily.

House and Cuddy exchanged extremely confused glances before Cuddy looked back at her doctor.

"Are you sure?" Cuddy asked with a grimace.

"Urine test came back negative," Sobol answered.

"Do a blood test," House told him.

"I did," Sobol answered without missing a beat.

He then took the printout of the results of Cuddy's CBC out of her file and handed it to Cuddy.

As House examined the test results over her shoulder, which indicated a negative hCG level, Cuddy was still stunned.

"But… my BP was 90/ 50," Cuddy reminded him, shaking her head slightly.

"It's a little low," Sobol admitted with a small shrug.

"And so is your red blood cell count," House added, still looking at the test results.

"Yep," Sobol said in agreement.

Cuddy blinked her eyes twice.

"…I'm… ANEMIC?" Cuddy exclaimed in disbelief.

"Very. Which is why I'm putting you on a daily regimen of iron supplements and recommending that you add more iron to your diet," Sobol said.

Sobol then opened up a cabinet door, took out a free sample box of Ferro- Sequels and handed it to her.

"You're otherwise healthy, and I assume that your menstrual flow isn't excessive," Sobol said as he returned to her chart to make a notation.

"Her menstrual flow is NON- EXISTENT. She's ten days late this month," House told him.

Sobol looked up from her chart and turned his attention to Cuddy.

"Is there a reason to think you might be pregnant?" Sobol asked with an arched eyebrow.

Cuddy looked back at House somewhat shyly, her facing expression questioning. House nodded in reply with a tiny, closed- lipped smile.

"We've… been trying…" Cuddy said, trailing off.

Sobol nodded in understanding. "Do you have any other symptoms? Breast tenderness, nausea?" he asked her.

"No," Cuddy replied.

"Well, you've been off the pill for only a few months. Your periods could still be irregular from that," Sobol suggested.

"Or it could be the fact that I'm forty and that my hormones are changing for good," Cuddy said, in a somewhat defeatist tone.

"That's… also a possibility," Sobol admitted.

"Then I want a fertility test," Cuddy stated.

Sobol tried to keep his amused smirk at bay. For thirty- five years, he had always been a conservative, relaxed practitioner and was used to women rushing ahead with fertility treatments when they failed to become pregnant after only a few months.

"Why don't we wait another month before we do any testing," Sobol offered. "Then, if you miss another period—"

"Steve, if I'm running out of time to become pregnant, I'd like to know sooner than later," Cuddy interrupted firmly.

Sobol looked back and forth between House and Cuddy, considering her statement in his mind. Noting that House was standing right by her side and was miraculously keeping his usual snarkiness to himself, he smiled softly and nodded.

"Then I'll schedule you for a fertility test," Sobol told her.

Cuddy nodded in reply, but didn't smile back.

"Hey, look at it this way. You guys get to keep trying," Sobol joked.

"Well, DUH," House said in a deadpanned voice.


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A little while later, House and Cuddy had returned to the party and were sitting at the bar. House had ordered a plate of sesame beef hors douvres speared with toothpicks for Cuddy to eat with soy sauce and a glass of orange juice.

"You know, these and the orange juice really don't mix," Cuddy said as House popped one of the hors douvres in his mouth.

"Eat another one," he told her. "You only had two."

"Greg, I'm fine," Cuddy said in annoyance.

"You're anemic," House stated.

"Which isn't serious," Cuddy reminded him.

"You fainted. Or did you forget that part?" House asked her.

Cuddy shrugged, rolled her eyes and ate another morsel. She then washed it down with a swig of orange juice, wincing at the taste.

"And when I finally DO knock you up, the anemia is going to get worse, so until then, you're taking the iron and your ban on red meat ends today," House told her.

"I have been tired lately, but I thought it was because I've been working late almost every night these past few weeks to plan this fundraiser," Cuddy told him.

"Guess you were wrong," House said, taking another piece of beef for himself.

As Cuddy watched House eat, she felt a wave of melancholy overtake her.

"I'm sorry I'm not pregnant," Cuddy said all of a sudden.

House turned his head towards her, genuinely surprised at her statement.

"It's not your fault," House said, as if stating the obvious.

"What if it is?" Cuddy asked him, the sadness in her eyes.

House gazed at her contemplatively, knowing that the longer he took to respond, the worse it would be.

"Could be mine. I've never gotten anybody pregnant," House said off- handedly with a shrug.

A tiny smirk formed on her lips, despite her feelings and her best attempts to hide it.

"I thought working girls were sticklers for condoms," Cuddy said, raising her eyebrow, unable to keep the smirk off her lips.

A small laugh escaped House's throat. "I have been with other women besides hookers," he reminded her.

Cuddy shot him a mock look of disbelief and took another sip of her juice.

"So I guess this means I'm jerking off on Monday morning for diagnostic purposes, " House said, his eyes dancing.

"And I guess that means that I'm updating the selection of porn magazines in the Fertility Clinic," Cuddy replied with a grin.


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At around the same time, Stern and Cameron were sitting at a nearby table, enjoying their own little plate of appetizers, watching groups of people begin to gather around Cuddy to ask her if she was all right after witnessing her faint in front of everyone that evening.

Cameron watched as Cuddy seemed to answer their questions politely as House ignored everyone who approached them.

"Well, Cuddy seems to be the celebrity of the evening," Stern commented dryly.

"I just hope she's ok," Cameron said sincerely, still watching them.

"She's fine," Stern said dismissively.

Cameron spun her head around to face Stern, surprised by his casual attitude towards the situation. When Stern looked up from his food, he noticed her expression and looked at her with slight impatience.

"Oh come on. Don't you think her little fainting spell was a bit dramatic?" Stern asked her.

"Yeah, I think fainting is SURE to win her that best supporting actress award she's been wanting for so long," Cameron replied extremely sarcastically.

"Trust me. She loves the attention," Stern assured her.

Cameron scrunched up her face. "Are we talking about the same Lisa Cuddy?" she asked him in bewilderment.

Stern put his fork down and stared at her pointedly.

"Allison, everyone pretends to be someone they're not depending on the situation they're in at the moment," Stern told her as if she was a naïve child.

As Stern went back to eating, Cameron never took her eyes off him, wondering more than ever if that statement applied to him too.


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Sometime after Cuddy and House returned to the party room, Chase had returned as well.

The two Vicodin he had swallowed a while back had finally kicked in. The pain in his ankle was almost gone and he felt much calmer.

But now that he was able to think clearly, he completely regretted everything he had said to Sophie.

He had been truly surprised at her verbal stabs during their fight. She knew where to hit him where it hurt.

But as he replayed the events in his mind, he couldn't blame her for being angry.

He had accused her of cheating on him without any proof, and he knew deep in his heart that Sophie was completely devoted to him.

But ever since he stormed out of the Clinic and went to House's office to retrieve his secret stash, he had no idea where she was.

And she hadn't come looking for him.

He was sitting at a table by himself in a far corner of the room, nursing a beer when one of the hosts of the evening had announced that Dr. Allison Cameron and Dr. Neil Stern had won the weekend for two at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico in the Silent Auction.

As the room applauded for Cameron and Stern, Chase watched the two of them go to the front of the room, hand in hand to get their prize.

He couldn't help but notice that while Stern was all smiles, Cameron's facial expression was less than cheery.

But before he could put any more thought into Cameron's mood, Wilson suddenly stormed up to him.

"You're an IDIOT," Wilson declared.

"And you've been hanging out with House for way too long," Chase muttered, taking another sip of his beer.

"Do you know why Sophie still plays cards with Joey?" Wilson demanded of him.

Part of Chase wanted to admit that he was wrong, but between his bruised ego and Wilson's annoyingly overbearing approach, he hesitated.

"Yeah, because she's not a spoiled rich brat like me, remember?" Chase mumbled in disgust.

"Because she's afraid that one day, Joey's gonna wind up DEAD," Wilson spat out.

At this, Chase turned his head away from his beer towards Wilson, completely shocked.

Wilson sat down at the table next to him and exhaled, preparing to tell Chase something that he was sure Sophie never revealed to him.

"When Joey decided to drop out of school to become a full time poker player, Sophie knew what kind of a life that was. She decided that she didn't want any part of that, so she ended their relationship," Wilson began.

"...But… she always kept an eye on him because she knew that he took dangerous risks," Wilson continued.

"What kind of risks?" Chase asked, not sure if he wanted to know the answer.

"He's been beaten up at card clubs a few times. Sophie had to break up a few fights..." Wilson admitted, trailing off.

"Has she ever gotten hurt?" Chase asked with increasing concern.

"Not yet," Wilson replied somberly.

"And… you don't say anything to her about her putting herself in a situation like that?" Chase demanded, refusing to believe that Wilson would let this go.

"I keep telling her that one day, he's gonna piss off the wrong person and that she might be in the wrong place at the wrong time with him," Wilson said.

"… but she always reminds me that that's why he needs her," Wilson added.

Chase laughed lightly. "She's just like you," he said.

"Yeah," Wilson agreed, knowing exactly what he meant.

Chase looked back at his half- empty beer, mulling everything over in his mind.

"She screwed up. I'm not denying that. She should have been more up front with you," Wilson stated.

"… I should have been more up front with her, too," Chase admitted softly.

"Then maybe you should give her another chance," Wilson suggested.
-

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A short while later, Chase limped out the front door of the hospital with his cane. The darkness of the night was illuminated with the ambient lighting in front of the hospital entrance.

He smiled in relief when he saw Sophie standing by the curb. She was wearing her long, black, winter coat and her back was facing him, unaware that he was behind her.

"Hey," Chase said softly, trying not to startle her.

Sophie spun around. Chase could see that her cheeks were flushed from the cold and that her eyes were tinged with red, presumably from crying.

"Hi," she replied, just as softly.

"What are you doing out here by yourself?" Chase asked her, as he slowly moved towards her.

"Waiting for a cab," Sophie said with a shrug, turning away from him once more.

Chase nodded. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"I'm gonna stay in a hotel tonight. Debbie's staying with Jimmy and I don't want to intrude. I'll come get my stuff from your place in the morning," Sophie replied, her voice cracking a little as she tried trying to keep her emotions in check.

Chase only paused momentarily before answering.

"No… that's not gonna work," Chase said, shaking his head.

Sophie pursed her lips together in an effort not to cry. She kept her gaze out on the street and nodded.

"…D-do you want me to get my stuff out of your place tonight?" she managed to ask, barely above a whisper.

"No," Chase replied.

He then closed the distance between them. He touched her chin lightly, tilting her face up to meet his gaze and smiled at her tenderly. His heart broke as he saw her lower lip quivering.

"How about this? You come home with me… you stay with me in our bed… you leave your stuff where it is… and you let me apologize to you all night," Chase suggested as he caressed her jawline with his thumb.

Sophie exhaled, her breath quivering as her entire body relaxed. She closed her eyes, allowing a few tears to escape.

"That could work," she said with a tiny laugh, finally opening her eyes.

Chase's smile contorted into an apologetic expression, his own lower lip now trembling, realizing that he had almost lost her because of his stubborness and stupidity.

"I'm so sorry I didn't trust you," Chase said, barely able to get the words out.

"And I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Joey," Sophie said, the tears starting to flow a bit more out of her eyes.

Chase sniffed and wiped away the tears off her cheeks with his thumbs as delicately as he could.

He then bent down and kissed her lovingly, brushing her lips with his over and over.

Sophie moaned lightly into his mouth, thinking that up until that point, she'd never feel his kiss again.

"We lost the Silent Auction," Chase murmured against her lips as her kiss enveloped him.

"… who won?" Sophie breathed, her legs beginning to feel weak underneath her.

"…Cameron did," Chase replied huskily as he wrapped his arms around her as they kissed.

"… that's… nice…" Sophie managed to say as their kiss became more passionate.

Knowing that they wouldn't be able to finish what they were starting in front of the hospital, Chase reluctantly broke off their kiss and flashed her a mischievous smile.

"I didn't realize my little girl was so tough," Chase said.

Sophie grinned, catching her breath. "How's your ankle?" she asked him.

Chase remembered that he had swiped the bottle of Vicodin that Cameron prescribed him from House's lupus textbook hiding place.

And that it was still in his coat pocket.

"It's feeling better," Chase replied.


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By this time, the party was winding down. Cuddy and House were standing by the front entrance wearing their coats. While Cuddy was saying good- night to the guests, House fished through his pockets in a frustrated manner.

"Wait for me here. I left the keys to my bike in my office," House told Cuddy.

Cuddy nodded, as House turned to head towards the elevator. But after a few steps, he turned back to face her.

"You gonna be ok by yourself, or do I get one of my lapdogs to keep an eye on you to make sure you don't keel over?" House asked.

"Just go already," Cuddy told him, waving her hand at him.


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A few minutes later, House had entered his unlocked office. He went over to his desk and found his bike keys in his drawer, exactly where he had left them.

As he headed out the door with his keys, his leather chair and matching ottoman caught his eye.

The ottoman was situated a few inches closer to the chair than it usually was.

He looked down and noticed that the groove that the legs of the ottoman had made over the years in the carpet was visible.

House then realized that someone had been in his office.

'SOMEBODY'S BEEN SITTING IN MY CHAIR,' House thought with interest and slight amusement, as if he was the Papa Bear from the famous children's story.

He sat down in the chair and stretched his legs out onto the ottoman.

His feet were hanging off the far edge of it.

House raised his eyebrows as the mystery unfolded before him.

Whoever had been in his office was shorter than he was.

He then noticed that one of the books on the low shelf on the other end of the office was protruding out of the shelf.

He then pushed himself out of the chair and limped over to the bookshelf.

Knowing without even looking at the title that it was his lupus textbook, he immediately opened it to the middle.

The hiding spot where Chase's secret stash of Vicodin was empty.

He tilted his head slightly, knowing full well that Chase would have figured out where he had stashed his drugs.

"Looks like Goldilocks paid me a visit," House said aloud to his empty office.

TBC…