Hello! Here is a new drabble for you. It's set in season 7, and if memory serves well House-less and Indy Stark Dean Jr gave me the idea? (It was a long time ago)

Thank you for your support. I hope you'll enjoy it!

69. Have fun.

"Whatcha doin'?" House asked as he walked into Cuddy's office around lunch time. She glanced up from her computer screen.

"Having lunch," she replied, eating a forkful of salad.

He scoffed as he made his way behind her desk. "You know, they call it lunch break for a reason."

"It's not work."

Looking down at her computer, he realised that she was right. Medicine had nothing to do with a YouTube video about…

"Five stylish hairdos for shoulder-length hair: an easy tutorial," he read, then turned to her for an explanation.

Cuddy paused the video. "Rachel's invited to a birthday party in two weeks. As you may have noticed, I'm not good at styling hair, hence why she wears her hair down and so do I."

"I just thought you wanted to give her a 90's vibe."

She rolled her eyes and pressed play again. Much to her surprise, House watched along with her.

"It's not so bad on mute," was his opinion when the blonde twenty-something on the video finished braiding her hair at the base of her skull.

Cuddy ate the last bite of her salad. "Back to work," she said as she placed the plastic container back in her purse. "Shoo! And no requests for dangerous procedures until at least three! I have to catch up on stuff."

"Fine," he mumbled, kissing the salad dressing off her lips before she had time to wipe it off. She gave him a smirk as he walked away.

It was easy to keep his promise, since he was waiting on test results anyway. The patient was stable, and he was bored. Wilson being away for a conference, he had no one he particularly wanted to annoy. Which is how he ended up browsing YouTube for similar videos.

Rationally, he knew how social media were designed to lure you in and keep you logged in for as long as possible. Still, he surprised himself by realising that he enjoyed watching those tutorials. He liked braiding. Braiding was a pattern. It was logical, mathematical, in a way. He could also compare dividing strands of hair neatly and precisely to a tricky surgery. What was not to like about hair tutorials?

Besides, he knew that human beings of all cultures were very attached to their hair and to how they styled it. The variety of cultures among human beings had always fascinated him – travelling around the world as a kid had certainly helped. It made sense that Rachel would want something more elaborate than a ponytail for a festive occasion.

Two hours had passed, and he was still intently watching a tutorial when his team came back in. Chase had to clear his throat to get his attention. Once they'd discussed the test results and he'd sent his team off for more tests, he opened his browser again and watched more videos.

That night, House was sitting with his back propped against the headboard and Cuddy was settled between his legs, her back to his chest. She was reading her novel and he was lost in his thoughts, his hands clasped across her belly. Idly, he started caressing her arm, then her shoulder. Cuddy sighed contentedly and leaned into his touch. He glanced down at her, and felt the irresistible urge to braid her hair.

"Ow," she said softly when he tried parting her hair. "I knew I shouldn't have let you watch this dumb video."

"I want to practice before I can do Rachel's hair for the party."

"House. Rachel has straight hair. Mine is curly. I doubt you'll be able to do anything with it." He managed a braid with three thin strands that somehow weren't caught in the web of her entire hair, but he felt her stiffen when he unravelled his handiwork. "Just leave it alone, House," she sighed.

"How do you let it get so tangled?"

"Because I can't be bothered to untangle it before bed. I just deal with it on the morning."

"Okay." He let go of her hair and resumed caressing her arm while she picked up her novel again. They had reached a state of peace similar to just a couple minutes earlier, but she could tell from his breathing that his mind was still racing.

"I'll straighten my hair this weekend," she offered. "Then you can really have fun. But for the love of God, leave my hair alone until then."

He kissed the crown of her hair in gratitude. "Is that allowed?"

She grinned. "Yes, kissing is allowed."