Chapter 49

Cameron walked down the hall and saw Cuddy approaching her.

"So?" she asked.

"For now, he said yes. We have to have faith" Cameron tried to smile.

"It'll work. It must work. What did you prescribe to him?".

"A maximum of ten pills at day. The standard dose".

"Don't you think that it's a little too much?" Cuddy said unsure.

"I'm keeping a margin of ten pills, but he doesn't know it" Cameron reassured her.

"Ok, I think that it's everything ok. Don't talk to Wilson, he can't keep his mouth shut" she rolled her eyes.

"Wilson, really? Is he a gossip boy?" Cameron chuckled.

Cuddy smiled and they took the elevator.

"You don't have to go down the lab for now, why are you going downstairs? Please, don't tell me that House's sent you in place of him?".

"No, no. I think that he'll send Foreman or Chase".

"However, you've taken away the Vicodin from House without the help of the Police, I owe you my own life!" Cuddy smirked.

"I agree" Cameron nodded amused.


The three ducklings found House in the cafeteria, eating chips and cheese.

"Come on Cameron, do it for our friendship, tell us the solution" Chase begged her.

"No way, If you find the solution, he will find out another absurd method to decide whom to send to the clinic. And I don't want to do it today" Cameron explained.

House saw them and hit Foreman in the forehead with a chip. The neurologist snorted annoyed.

"Yessss. 100 points for the black one in the forehead; 150 points for the Red Cross Nurse while she fixes her hair; 300 points for the jumping kangaroo...Jump Chase!".

"I'm not your slave!".

"No, I've Foreman yet. But you're my peluche. And when I was young, I dissected my peluches..." House winked.

"I had no doubts" Cameron snickered.

The team sat at the table. House looked at Chase and Foreman, waiting for the answer. They snorted annoyed.

"Ah, what a pity. I hoped for a solution. However, I've thought of another method. Have you ever seen 'The Bone Collector'?".

"Oh God..." Cameron muttered.

"What?" Chase asked, confused.

"Ruben, without pickles".

"The solution is your favorite sandwich?" Foreman tried to understand.

"No, I want a Ruben without pickles" House threw his money on the table. Chase and Foreman stood up and Cameron looked annoyed. "What? They volunteered" he told her.

"Sorry, you have nothing to do? There are no cases, so do your clinic hours without putting them against each other".

"But it's more fun in this way. And then, it's the withdrawal symptoms".

"It can't be the withdrawal symptoms, it's been only 3 hours since I gave you the Vicodin. I hope that you've not finished it yet!" she glared at him.

He smirked and she looked at him open-mouthed.

"Hey, a little bit of trust here, please. I still have a bit of willpower when I want".

She smiled and he offered her his chips.

"How can you eat this thing?".

"I'm trying to adapt to the government standards. America is full of obese people. I can't disappoint the President".

Foreman and Chase returned with his sandwich, which House took triumphantly. Then he looked at them badly.

"What?" Foreman asked.

"It's hot! It's disgusting! You're not even able to choose a sandwich" he left the sandwich on the table, moving it in front of Cameron.

"Get this thing out of my way" Cameron said, disgusted.

"Chase, it's been 4 years since you work for me and you still haven't understood how to do the lap dog! Vogler did it in less time! I want it cool!".

"What I'd have to do? Run around the hospital with the sandwich in hand to make it cool?" Chase joked.

"Perfect!" he slipped the sandwich toward Chase, who moved it away.

"No way!".

House slipped again the sandwich toward Chase "I can't run. Don't be numb!".

Chase was going to rejected the sandwich again when Cameron took it and threw it in the trash. House looked at her shocked.

"Hey!".

"You're two kids".

"What fault had the sandwich?".

"Problem fixed".

"But why did you throw it away? 5 more minutes and I'd enjoy the blonde kangaroo running around!" House pouted.

"Keep dreaming, House" Chase shook his head.

"Yesterday night you were not-" House stopped abruptly and Foreman and Cameron laughed.

"Come on! You have nothing to do, no cases, go to the clinic!" Chase whined.

"Naaaaaa. Why? I'd have to stand up, go to the clinic, listen to the whines of the patients, retchings, colds. Instead, I can avoid everything here!".

"He's right, you have no reason to do it".

"Yes I have!".

"No!" his team said.

House stared at Cameron "Hey, I can even reconsider your name in the list of the pretenders for the clinic!" he glared at her.

"I won't do it" Foreman said.

"Me neither" Chase replied.

"Unless you have other works or the solution of the riddle...".

"You're a bunch of kids!" Cameron said annoyed. She stood up and went away. House stared at her and then turned serious.

"At 16, I bought my first car. My father gave me just 500$...along with festival bribes. A Mustang of '77" House said.

"I've had to wait until my 19 to buy a car" Foreman remembered.

"Oh shut up! You surely stole one!".

Foreman shook his head, hating him in silence.

"When I was 16, my father gave me a Jaguar" Chase cut in.

The diagnostician and the neurologist glared at him.

"Chase, clinic now" House ordered.

"What?".

"Now!".

"It's my fault If I'm rich?".

"No, your fault is that you've told me that your father gave you a Jaguar when you were 16! Clinic, now!".

Chase went away annoyed. Foreman smirked amused. House took his drink and stood up.

"Take that smile off from your face. I've clinic tomorrow too" House grinned.

"No way!".

"You still haven't the answer!" House went away and Foreman glared at him.

TBC...