"I don't feel well ..." Lisa suddenly whispered.
House saw her turn suddenly pale. She was sweaty and her skin was cold. She could hardly keep her eyes open and her breathing was now labored, shallow and fast.
"She's losing too much blood." Addison said "I need four bags of A+ blood! NOW!" She ordered to the nurse that immediately ran out of the room.
House looked at the monitor. Cuddy's blood pressure was falling. She was tachycardic. Her oxygen saturation went down. House felt as if he couldn't move as he saw her on the verge of losing consciousness. He didn't need to ask questions to guess what was going on.
"Come on Lisa ... hold on! ...stay with me!..." Addison said administering her a vial of intravenous dopamine.
"She's going into hypovolemic shock" she said looking at the monitor "WHERE ARE THOSE BLOOD BAGS?!" she shouted across the room by attaching a Ringer Lactate bag on her drip.
She positioned the bed at 45°, in anti-shock position, and put the oxygen mask on Cuddy's nose and mouth.
House felt like being in a parallel dimension and that was a feeling he wasn't used to. He wasn't used to lose his lucidity nor to feel so helpless. Being a doctor was a disadvantage to him in that moment. He knew what was going on, he was perfectly aware of the risks, but he couldn't do anything but keep watching helpless his wife. Seconds seemed like hours... minutes seemed like days ...
The nurse came in with the blood bags awakening him from his trance.
He watched as the blood moved from the bag... along the tube... and into her vein...like in a slow-motion.
He felt completely out of character. He, the cold and sarcastic Head of Diagnostics, was now just a worried and scared husband that kept pleading in his mind as the only important thing was her to be safe.
"Please Lisa...I can't lose you" he thought "I need you. Our kids need you"
He lost at least ten years of life in those ten minute in which she kept lying motionless and unconsciousness on that bed.
He check the monitor again and saw his wife's vital signs slowly stabilize, while Cuddy gradually resumed consciousness. "Thank goodness!" he thought... He didn't believe in God but he can't help but thank Him anyway...
Cuddy slowly tried to open her eyes even if she felt still so tired and weak that she could barely open them and kept them open.
"Welcome back..." Addison said smiling and breathing a sigh of relief.
House took a deep breath and leaned down to kiss her forehead.
He held her hand as she looked at him.
"Don't make me ever more a joke like that..." he whispered stroking her face.
Blythe and Arlene were looking at their grandchildren through the glass while the babies were in their incubators. They both could not hold back tears.
I'm a girl said the pink card attached to the first incubator. Madeline Grace House. 5.0 inches. Born on November 26 at 2:11 p.m.
I am a boy said the blue card attached to the second incubator. William James House. 5.5 inches. Born on November 26 at 2:57 p.m.
It was almost 8 p.m. when House entered Cuddy's hospital room. She was half-sitting on the bed with her back on the pillows. She had slept a few hours and she felt a bit better even if was still very pale and still felt awfully tired.
"Good evening, Sleeping Beauty" he said approaching to kiss her
"How do you feel?"
"A bit better" she smiled.
"Fine ... because I have a surprise for you" he said heading for the door and coming back with two small cribs.
Cuddy watched as without delay he took Madeline in his arms and put his asleep daughter in her arms before doing the same with William.
"It looks like you did this all your life" she said with a smile
"I found out that they don't break" he said smiling at her
He sat on the bed next to her and look at her as she held their children in her arms.
"You scared me to death!" he said serious
"I'm sorry ..." she said biting her lip
"This time I forgive you, but never do it again" he said with a faint smile before kissing her passionately on the lips.
He looked at her and added on her lips "We've done it ... This is the best Thanksgiving of my life."