HI EVERYONE!

WELL, I MISCOUNTED. THERE IS ONLY ONE MORE CHAPTER LEFT AFTER THIS ONE.

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HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.

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CHAPTER 53: Please read and comment.

A short time later, Sophie was still sitting on the couch with House in the lobby of the Georges V hotel when Chase came out of the ballroom to find her.

When he saw her sitting with House, he felt a surge of anxiety.

Somehow, House and Sophie had managed to grow close in a short period of time. He couldn't deny that they complemented each other. And he was impressed that Sophie could actually deal with him.

But after she had stormed out of the ballroom moments ago, it unsettled him that they were sitting together.

Chase approached the couch in the lobby cautiously, dreading the conversation that would ensue.

House looked up to see Chase tentatively approaching them. He then looked back at Sophie, who visibly stiffened at his presence.

"Guess I'll go see if Lisa ate everything in sight," House said as he pushed himself off the couch and quickly excused himself from the situation.

Chase watched House leave and then slowly sat down on the couch next to her.

"Good to see he's finally calling her by her first name," Chase joked awkwardly.

She let out a small laugh as her eyes drifted away from him, a tense silence developing between them.

"… I'm glad you don't call me 'Chase,'" Chase said finally.

"Why's that?" Sophie asked quietly, still not meeting his eyes.

Chase shrugged. "Because everybody calls me 'Chase'… but you're the only one who calls me 'Robbie…'" he replied.

"… And I love that," he added sincerely.

Inside, Sophie had to admit that Chase's words made her feel good.

But she knew that it weren't enough to make her forget what had just transpired between them in the ballroom.

"Why did you walk her down the aisle?" she asked barely above a whisper, her gaze on the floor.

"… She asked me to," he replied almost meekly.

Sophie nodded, still refusing to look at him.

"Did you ever think about how I'd feel about that?" she asked him.

He didn't answer her, a wave of remorse rising in him.

Because the truth was, when Cameron had asked him to give her away, he hadn't given any thought to what Sophie's reaction might be.

All he could think about at that moment was Cameron.

And when Cameron had told him while they were dancing that he needed to get over her, it broke his heart.

And he absolutely hated himself for it.

He glanced at Sophie, her forlorn expression causing an even deeper ache inside him.

"I'm sorry," was all he could say.

Sophie finally looked at him.

"Are you also sorry about pining over her while she was dancing with her new husband?" she asked.

"… she asked me to give her away… because she says that I need to get over her," he said softly, barely recognizing his own voice.

She pressed her lips together and nodded, an empty, hollow feeling rising inside her.

"… Is she right?" she asked, hardly able to get the words out, but already knowing the answer.

He was almost too ashamed to answer her.

But he knew that he had no choice but to tell her the truth.

"… yes," he whispered.

Sophie remained as collected as she possibly could, biting the inside of her cheek in order to keep her composure. The tears that had collected earlier in her eyes while she was talking to House began to make their appearance again.

But she was too stubborn to let them flow.

"Baby, I love you so much—" Chase began in a pleading voice.

"House told me I have to make a choice," she interrupted him bluntly.

As soon as Chase heard her say 'House,' he froze, his earlier fears being realized right in front of him.

"What did he say?" he asked her, not really wanting to know the answer.

Sophie took a breath through her nose and sat up a bit straighter.

"He said that I can either stay with you and accept your feelings for Cameron as part of who you are…"

"…Or I end it now."

At this, a wave of panic swept through Chase's entire being. His stomach felt like it was in a vise.

Her voice was hard and unemotional, almost unrecognizable.

"And he's right, because I don't know how much more I can take," she added, her tone wavering just a bit.

"I lied to you," she continued.

"I told you I was ok… but I'm not," she admitted shakily.

Cautiously, Chase took his hand in hers, caressing her skin as gently as he could.

"Sweetie, this was a very difficult weekend for you, and I knew it was going to be. I should have never accepted her wedding invitation—"

"Deciding not to come to the wedding wouldn't change your feelings about her," she said.

He continued to hold her hand, just noticing at that moment that she wouldn't curl her fingers around his.

But her deep brown eyes bore into him.

"Do you think I should just accept the fact that the man I love with all my heart doesn't love me with all of his?" she asked him slowly.

Her words were as penetrating as her gaze.

Because Chase knew all too well what she was feeling.

At that moment, he remembered all the times that Cameron had assured him that she was completely over House.

And how each time he heard it, it had sickened him, because he just didn't believe her.

"I want to get over her," he told her truthfully.

She frowned, almost feeling sorry for him.

"I know you do," she said.

"…But I'm not sure that's enough anymore," she admitted.


The flight from Paris to New Jersey was seven hours long.

And for seven hours, Chase and Sophie had barely spoken to each other.

Chase had tried to initiate conversation, asking her if she wanted to read, listen to music or maybe a pillow or a blanket to be more comfortable.

But she politely said 'no thank you' to everything he offered.

Most of the time, she just looked out the window, watching the sky get darker as they crossed the Atlantic.

Chase caressed her leg a few times, hoping she'd look at him.

But she didn't.

House and Cuddy were sitting in first class with them across the aisle. House had slept for most of the flight, while Cuddy read a romance novel she had purchased in the airport.

Cuddy could tell by Chase and Sophie's body language that something was wrong between them.

Even though there was only an inch of space between their bodies, it was as if they were miles away from each other.

But she knew that it would be wrong for her to intervene. So she kept to her book, avoiding the palpable tension around her.

For seven hours, Chase's mind was flooded with memories of his and Sophie's relationship. How they met in Boston, how they had hit it off right away, how he had felt so connected to each other only after a few days.

How their love had blossomed for each other so quickly.

And how many twists and turns that love had taken.

He wasn't a fool. He knew that there had been plenty of bad times between them. Their fights were bitter. They had even broken up twice.

But through it all, she had never stopped loving him.

But now, as she sat next to him on the plane, silently gazing out the window without looking in his direction, he honestly didn't know if that was true any longer.


Late that night, Chase and Sophie had returned home, exhausted from traveling.

Sophie had brought her own luggage in, refusing to let Chase help her.

Despite the fact that she had said that she didn't want him to put any pressure on his ankle, Chase took it as a bad sign that she wouldn't even let him carry her bag.

"I'm gonna take a shower and go to bed," she said quietly, leaving her suitcase in the hallway as she began to head up the stairs.

"I can run a bath for you," he offered.

She stopped on the stairs and paused before turning around.

Her face was devoid of any emotion.

"That's not necessary," she said politely before continuing up the stairs.


A few moments later, Sophie was standing underneath the spray of the shower, losing herself in the hot water and steam.

She closed her eyes and lolled her head back as the water drenched her neck and breasts, trying desperately to relax.

She felt nothing.

As she contemplated whether or not she should bother to wash her hair or just rinse it, the shower door opened behind her.

Completely startled, she jumped a bit, sharply turning around to see Chase entering the shower.

"What are you doing?" she asked, still shaken.

Without a word, his eyes sadder than she had ever seen them, he placed both hands on her cheeks.

Her lip quivered as he dragged his thumbs gently across her face, wiping away the smeared mascara that had streaked her skin in the water.

Closing the space between them, he brushed his soft, pliant lips against hers. His warm breath enveloped her as he pulled her against his body, deepening their kiss.

She succumbed to his embrace, to his touch, to him.

She wound her arms around his neck and her legs around his back as he picked her up off her feet, their lips never parting as he backed her up against the wall of the shower.

She whimpered desperately into his mouth as he guided his cock into her, the water from the showerhead soaking them.

Their bodies rose and fell with each deliberate, passionate thrust, their shallow breaths echoing against the shower walls.

She could feel herself getting closer and closer to the edge with each movement of Chase's hips, not an inch of space between their bodies.

But just as she reached the precipice, Chase cried out, burying his face in her neck, his muscular frame shuddering as he went over, cumming deep inside her.

He held her tight as they slowly were able to catch their breath, not moving at all.

Their bodies still together, neither of them refusing to let go, it was only then that she allowed the tears that she had been holding back all day to escape.


SATURDAY, JULY 14

ONE WEEK LATER:

It was nine PM, and Cuddy was absolutely beaming as she surveyed the scene around her.

Princeton Lanes Bowling Alley was packed with doctors, nurses, assorted Princeton Plainsboro hospital staff, the hospital's biggest benefactors and their families, all dressed in the bright red and blue bowling shirts that she had ordered for all the invited guests.

The back of each shirt Each proudly displayed the words: "Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital's First Annual Bowl- A- Thon. All Proceeds to Benefit PPTH Pediatrics," in bright yellow embroidered lettering.

Her charity event was running incredibly smoothly, as everyone was thoroughly enjoying themselves, bowling to the music being piped in throughout the place, and munching on the appetizers that were being doled out by the bowling alley staff to the participants.

Cuddy couldn't help but laugh out loud as she watched some of the wealthiest contributors to her hospital chow down on the potato skins, quesadillas and cocktail franks that were making the rounds.

"Told ya you made the right choice with the food," House said to her as he took his bowling ball off the automatic return.

Cuddy gave him a thousand watt smile.

"Yes you did," she agreed.

House gave her a sexy smile as he leaned forward and kissed her hard on her lips.

"Now watch this," he told her as he stepped confidently up to the line.

His limp decidedly less pronounced, he walked up the few steps to the edge of the lane and took his shot, which resulted in a 7-10 split.

"Ah crap," he stated.

"TOO MUCH AXIS TILT!" Cuddy called out above the din of the music.

House turned around with a huge smirk.

"You like my axis tilt," he told her.

She nodded eagerly, not caring one bit about the onlookers raising their eyebrows as she strode up to her husband and planted a huge kiss on his mouth.

From his seat behind them, Wilson merely stared at the two of them, taking a swig of his beer, wondering if he liked them better when they were this happy or when they were at each other's throats.


While the rest of the guests were having fun, Chase was sitting at the bar alone, well into his fourth cheap domestic beer of the evening.

He was considerably more than tipsy, his body starting to sway a bit as he tried to focus on the scene around him.

He barely even noticed it when House came up to him and took the empty stool next to his.

"Having fun?" House asked.

Chase slowly turned his head towards House, blinking once.

"Shouldn't you be showing off your mad bowling skills to your new wife?" Chase drawled sarcastically, his accent much more pronounced in his inebriated state, his eyelids heavy and half closed.

"I heard that Sophie left you," House stated.

A curt laugh fell out of Chase's mouth.

"Subtle as ever," Chase replied in disgust.

"Where'd she go?" House asked.

"…She's in Manhattan with her parents," Chase muttered.

House nodded. "Is she coming back?" he asked.

Chase shook his head, the corners of his mouth turning down as he stared absentmindedly at some random space in front of him.

"I'm sorry," House said in a gruff, sincere tone.

At this, Chase turned back to face House again, having a sudden moment of clarity.

"She told me that you said that she had to make a choice whether to accept me for who I am or leave me," Chase stated.

House gazed back at him with a thoughtful, calm expression.

"So in a way, this is YOUR fault," Chase added, the venom increasing in his voice.

"I didn't make you have feelings for Cameron," House said.

"You destroyed my relationship with Allison… and now you did it again with Sophie," he said, laughing in disgust again.

"YOU destroyed your relationship with Cameron. YOU slept with Cuddy at a medical conference, which you never would have done if Cameron had actually LOVED you instead of settling for you because she couldn't have ME," House reminded him, refusing to take the blame for Chase's misfortune.

"You're back to calling her 'Cuddy' now? That didn't last long," Chase snarked.

"And Sophie left you because you're STILL pining over Cameron," House added pointedly.

"She left me because you POISONED her against me," Chase declared menacingly.

With that, Chase placed his beer on the counter and thrust his hand into his jeans pocket, producing a bottle of Vicodin with his name printed on it.

House's eyes widened ever so slightly.

"Who the hell wrote you a script for that?" he asked.

"The internet is an AMAZING invention," Chase drawled as he attempted to open the top of the bottle.

But before he could do so, House grabbed his hand, somehow managing to take the bottle out of his grasp.

"Didn't realize that you were planning on going into respiratory failure tonight," House said, pocketing the Vicodin.

"No worries. We're in a bowling alley full of doctors, remember?" Chase said with a smirk as he leaned back against the bar.

House quickly counted the pills in the bottle, noting that only six pills were missing from the thirty that were prescribed.

"Normally I wouldn't give a crap if you made an ass out of yourself, but considering that my wife will probably withhold sex from me if you do that tonight, I suggest that you go home and sleep it off," House told him in a low tone, only an inch away from his face.

"You don't think I can get more drugs?" Chase challenged him, completely ignoring what House had just told him.

"I think you're watched 'The Big Lebowski' way too many times," House replied.

Chase snorted, turning away from him.

"And If you'd bothered to take your head out of your ass, you would've realized that Sophie was the best thing that ever happened to you and you wouldn't have screwed things up," House added.

Chase then turned back to him, laughing a third time.

He then stood up and took a wild swing at House, but missed, his body almost spinning around entirely.

House grabbed Chase and pinned his arms down, preventing him from falling over, the two of them stumbling from the force of Chase's body.

"What's going on?" Wilson asked, who was suddenly at the side of both men, having witnessed the entire interaction between them from a few yards back.

"Chase asked me to dance, but he wanted to lead, and I wasn't having any of it," House said as he struggled to hold Chase up.

Wilson immediately assisted House, getting behind Chase and grabbing him under his armpits. But Chase felt like dead weight in their arms, his eyes now fully closed.

Not a moment later, Cuddy briskly approached them.

"Whoops, the fuzz," House said.

"Is he drunk?!" Cuddy demanded under her breath, trying not to call any more attention to them.

"No. He's just sleepy," House stated flatly.

"Get him out of here," Cuddy ordered them in a hushed tone.

"I'll take him home," Wilson offered.


Later that night, House and Cuddy were back home. House was relaxing on his and Cuddy's bed, having changed into a white t- shirt and pin- striped sleep pants, his legs stretched out in front of him and crossed at the ankle.

"How's our pretty boy?" House asked into his cell phone?

"He's fast asleep. I'm gonna stay here and make sure he's ok," Wilson said on the other end.

"Shouldn't the prettier Wilson be doing that?" House quipped.

Wilson sighed in exasperation. "The 'prettier Wilson' doesn't live here anymore, which you already know."

"Call me if something happens," House told him before hanging up.

"Is Chase ok?" Cuddy asked with concern from her position next to him as she rubbed lotion onto her elbows.

"He's getting his beauty sleep," House replied, placing his cell phone on the night- stand.

Cuddy tsked. "I can't believe he got drunk tonight."

House kept silent, deciding not to tell her about the fact that Chase was probably high and drunk from the mixture of Vicodin and beer in his system.

"Great party," he said instead.

"Except for when Chase took a swing at you in a drunken stupor," Cuddy replied.

"Didn't seem to spoil anyone's fun," House said with a shrug.

Cuddy smiled a little, rolling onto her side to face him.

"I'm glad it wasn't you that Wilson had to escort out of there," she said.

House gave her a long, lingering glance down her body, his arousal piqued at how her already swelled and newly pregnant breasts were pouring out from her cotton camisole.

He bent down a little to kiss her, his tongue gently exploring hers. He cupped her breast delicately over her camisole, mindful that they might be tender.

"Wait, wait. I gotta pee," she said against his lips.

House snorted. "Why didn't you go BEFORE I started feeling you up?"

"I didn't have to go then," she replied, grinning as she got out of the bed.

House chuckled, watching her ass in a matching pair of cotton panties as she slipped into the master bathroom and closed door behind her.

He then grabbed the remote and switched to Cinemax On Demand.

"When's the last time we watched porn together?" he called out to her from the bed as he scrolled through the adult choices on the screen.

"Never," she answered flatly from the bathroom.

"There's a first time for everything, you know," he stated.

Cuddy didn't answer.

"I know what you're thinking. But Cinemax is really geared towards women. It's more romance than porn," he said loudly enough for her to ear through the door.

"… with naked hot chicks and some lesbian action," he added under his breath.

Just then, Cuddy came out of the bathroom.

"I'm spotting," she said in a throaty tone.

House turned away from the TV to see Cuddy standing in the middle of the room, her face pale and stricken.

"Do you have any pain?" he asked as calmly as he could.

"No," she said, shaking her head.

"You're only at three weeks. It could be just implantation bleeding," he offered.

"I'm paging Sobol," Cuddy stated firmly, reaching for House's cell phone.


Around ten minutes later, Cuddy hung up the phone with Dr. Sobol, her OB/ Gyn.

House waited nervously for her to start talking as she placed the phone back on the dresser.

"He told me that if it's just spotting that it's probably just implantation bleeding—" she began.

"Like I said," he stated.

She nodded. "But he wants me to come in first thing in the morning to make sure."

House thought this over for a moment.

"Ok," he said simply.

Cuddy exhaled deeply, resting against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her protectively and kissed her forehead.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," he told her before she even said anything.

"Sometimes I really wish you weren't a doctor," she muttered.

"No you don't," he said.

As she snuggled deeper into his chest, he held her tighter, trying not to let his imagination and medical experience let him think the worst.

TBC…