DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything related to Fox or the TV show House. I'm only borrowing some characters. The characters belong to David Shore and company.
A/N:
You guys still there?
ANOTHER SHOT AT HAPPINESS CHAPTER 49: NO HOUSE, JUST HOUSE
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"I bought us a house," he told her unexpectedly as he stopped kissing her and looked her in the eyes.
"What?" Cuddy asked him in a soft voice, astonished.
Cuddy was taken aback by House's sudden announcement. She just stared at him like he did something insanely impossible.
"What?" House chuckled when Cuddy just kept staring at him.
"You bought a house?" she almost whispered.
House pursed his lips and smiled innocently as he looked at her. Cuddy immediately understood what that facial reaction meant.
"You're an ass! Why did you just tell me that?" Cuddy smacked him in the arm and glared at him. Another thing she loved to hate and hated to love about him was his ever-annoying and ever-amusing way of dealing with her. He just had to test everything first before he did them.
"Well, I wouldn't want to buy one and have you screaming at me now, would we?" House smirked at her. He lay back on the bed facing the ceiling but he pulled Cuddy to his chest where she laid her head. She placed her hand on top of his heart and just waited for him to continue.
"I wanted to ask you two first if you wanted to buy one and then I'll let you pick," House told her while caressing her shoulder.
"Then why didn't you just ask, then? Why the sudden announcement that you did buy one but you didn't?" Cuddy asked him, tracing circles in his chest.
"Where's the fun in that?" House replied with a smirk. Cuddy swore she could see the smirk on his face when he answered.
"Right…" Cuddy just answered with a yawn.
"Let's just talk about it tomorrow. Goodnight Lisa," House told her in a low voice as he kissed the crown of her head.
"Night Greg," Cuddy said as she snuggled even closer to him.
The next evening…
"Mia, sweetheart, it's dinnertime," Cuddy told Mia as she leaned on the doorframe. She watched as their little angel put back her toys and books in their proper places before looking back at Cuddy with a very pretty smile.
"That's very good baby," Cuddy said as she carried Mia towards their dining table where House was already seated.
"Guess what Mia did, daddy," Cuddy said with a proud smile.
"She snuck a pint of ice cream from the fridge?" House asked playfully.
Mia giggled at him, "No daddy, you did that!" she said with a laugh. House's eyes widened. He was so busted.
Cuddy's jaw was set as she looked at House, "Projecting, sweetheart?" she asked him, drawing the last word subtly mocking.
"Oh wait, it's coming back to me now! Yeah," House smiled playfully," I did get a pint before dinner." He improvised—but Cuddy didn't buy it. She just gave her fiancé a glare.
"Seeee? Tol' ya not me," Mia said with a teasing smile to her mother who smiled shyly back at her daughter. Mia then looked at House with a wider smile, "I put back toys and books where I got 'em!" Mia told her father in a slightly squealing tone.
"Really?" House teased Mia who nodded enthusiastically in return. "Wow! That's our princess!" House said, and then gave Mia a high five.
They ate dinner and then after that they retired to the living room to watch a DVD of Finding Nemo. House was bored to death but he couldn't complain since his daughter wanted to watch it. If it were Cuddy though, he would have had it changed to something entirely different. Needless to point out, Mia has him wrapped around her little finger.
"What do you think? Should we buy one? Or you want to stay here?" House whispered to Cuddy who had her head leaning on his shoulder.
"I don't know. Do you?" she looked up at him.
"Whatcha talkin'n bout?" Mia turned to them.
Cuddy looked at House, asking for permission to inform their daughter at that moment, House nodded in return. He thought that it'd be better to ask her now than later.
"Honey, what do you think of a new house?" Cuddy asked Mia, unsure of exactly how to ask a three year old girl if she wanted to move.
"New house?" Mia asked.
"Yes, princess, do you want us to go to a different one?" Cuddy asked Mia again.
"We go to new house?" Mia asked again, her bottom lip jutting out now.
Cuddy and House had the feeling Mia was against the moving plan.
"Yes, sweetie, we won't stay here anymore if we go to a new house," Cuddy explained.
Mia looked down, "I don' wanna go to new house. I wan' stay here," she said sadly, her lips in a very adorable pout.
"Okay," House said as he kissed the crown of Mia's head.
"Really?" Mia looked up at him with those ocean eyes that mirrored his.
"Yup," House said with a smile. Mia then looked at Cuddy, waiting if her answer would be the same. Cuddy smiled and nodded.
"Now go help find Nemo," House said with a smirk. Mia smiled at him then went back to watching.
"Well, that's no to your house idea, House," Cuddy said with a chuckle.
"What are you laughing at?" House asked her.
Cuddy waved her hand in the air, "Nothing. I just couldn't get over the House buying a house thing. It's too cute," she said with another giggle.
"Haha," House replied dryly. Cuddy kissed him in the cheek in apology.
They all watched Finding Nemo until Mia started dozing off.
House and Cuddy's home, January 20, 6 pm
"Mia?" Cuddy called out from outside Mia's room. Upon hearing no reply, she entered Mia's room and she found her daughter sleeping with a few picture books opened on top of the thick kiddy floral-designed comforter wrapping her up like a cocoon. Smiley greeted her with his ever-plastered smile but didn't bark at all. Cuddy thought maybe he sensed that Mia was sleeping. Cuddy picked him up and patted him gently on the head, "Good boy."
"Mia…" Cuddy called her daughter again as she sat beside Mia on the very comfortable pink-framed bed. Mia didn't even stir. Cuddy put Smiley down on the bed hoping he'll help, "Help me out here, boy," she said. Smiley stuck his tongue out and whimpered a bit loudly but not loud enough that it was irritating. Cuddy smiled. The puppy had talent.
"Sweetie, it's time for dinner," Cuddy said as she gently shook Mia. Her daughter might have felt really tired from playing at the daycare in the hospital earlier that day.
Mia shook her head, "No hungry mommy," she replied softly, keeping her eyes closed as she buried herself deeper into her mountains of pillows and the comforter.
Cuddy rubbed her daughter's back through the comforter, "Are you okay, sweetie? Does it hurt anywhere?" she asked Mia softly.
"Izz cold mommy," Mia said in a hoarse tone.
Cuddy frowned. She gently felt Mia's forehead and found that she was burning up a bit.
"Oh baby, you're running a fever," Cuddy told Mia as she wrapped the comforter more snugly to Mia.
"Greg!" Cuddy called. House showed up at the doorframe of Mia's room a few seconds later.
"What's wrong?" he asked with his brows furrowed, "Isn't she hungry?"
"She's running a fever," Cuddy informed him. "Can you please get me a piece of cloth and a basin with warm water?" She stood up for a while and retrieved the phone from the living room and went back beside Mia, rubbing her back soothingly. She called Jane Stewart, the head of the daycare center at the hospital and asked if someone got sick earlier that day.
House nodded quickly and got the things Cuddy asked him to get. He also got Mia a glass of water.
"Have you checked her temperature?" House asked as he stood near Cuddy. He handed her the basin and cloth which she put on the bedside table.
Cuddy nodded, stood up and then faced House, "102.2. I called the Stewart and asked if any kid got sick in the daycare today. He said one had to go to the clinic because of high fever. They had the parents pick up the kid."
House sighed, "Well, we just have to get her fever down and she'll be locking those baby blues with mine so she could get a huge chocolate bar in no time."
Cuddy shot him a glare, "You're spoiling her too much." She said.
"Says the mother who took her daughter shopping almost twice a week. She already is a fashion diva and she's not even in grade school," House smirked.
Cuddy jut her chin out defiantly, "Better now than later. Either way, I don't actually buy her those shiny things that look like foil. And at least I don't make her look like a hooker unlike other moms out there," she muttered.
House laughed and wrapped his arms in her midsection, "I was just messing with you. She won't get that spoiled, you know. For some reason I don't understand, Mia knows when she's had enough. I only give her a maximum of two bars and she's cool with it."
Cuddy sighed. House let go of her when she tapped her fingers in his arms, gesturing for him to release her for a while.
She sat down beside Mia and patted her gently in the arm, "Honey, you need to eat something," she whispered.
Mia shook her head, "No," she replied hoarsely again. Cuddy looked at House, her eyes pleading a little for him to help her.
House sat beside Cuddy, "Mia, you need to eat a little so you can eat ice cream and chocolates again." He told Mia softly.
"Really?" Mia asked, still not facing them.
"Of course!" House said cheerfully.
"How bout some soup?" Cuddy asked Mia. They saw her nodding so Cuddy kissed the crown of her head and then left House with Mia for a while to prepare some soup for their daughter because the dinner she prepared earlier didn't include some soup.
A/N:
