"Glad to see you awake." House said as he closed the door to Jenny's room. The young girl was as pale as ever but conscious nevertheless. "You're little sickness is annoying."

"Well someone has to keep you employed." Jenny retorted quietly.

House nodded awkwardly as he limped over to her bed and stared down at the girl, "Why aren't you eating?"

"I thought maybe I'd try to not eat for a while." Jenny said, "As an experiment, you know, to see what happens."

"Well the results are coming in," he said slowly, "You're underweight and dropping, would you like to know how painful it is to die from malnutrition?"

"You think this is my choice?" Jenny asked softly, "Like I just woke up and decided not to eat? I have no appetite, every time I do try to eat something it ends out outside of me."

"Still dizzy?" House asked.

"Yes." Jenny said bitterly, suddenly quite put off by House's cruel tactics.

"Listen," House sat down on a chair across from Jenny and stared at the young girl, who refused to meet his gaze. "I can't help you, none of us can help you unless you begin to tell us what's going on."

"You don't want to get involved in this..." Jenny muttered, "Just, stay out of it, okay?"

"Do you want to die? Is that it?" House demanded, "What, you think you're ready for death? Have you accepted it as unavoidable fate for you? It comes to us all but dammit, you have sometime left so why the hell are you putting yourself in such a position!"

"It's not a choice," Jenny whispered, "You think I want to stay here, or even at that house? Why do you think I was running away? I was doing it so people like you wouldn't have to get involved . . . "

"People like me? Me being a doctor? Is that it? Do you not trust doctors?"

"Just . . . keep out of it! It doesn't concern you."

"Fine." House stood up, unwilling to accept defeat at the moment but certainly willing to find a better way to go about convincing the young patient. "But you know, we could find a way to protect you, people could be hired. It's your choice, your death, no skin off my back if your body shows up in the morgue."

"Doctor House." He turned around as the voice of Jenny, suddenly much stronger than he ever remembered, filled the room. "By the time your words turn into actions, it would be too late anyway. So what's the point in trying?"

"Maybe a little bit of faith."

"I don't know what faith is any more."

"Then," House said quietly, "You're obviously much different from I thought."

He didn't turn around as he left the room, but if he had, House would have seen Jenny turn on her side and curl up, tears streaming once more down her face.

xXx

"Now I remember why I love not knowing patients," House hobbled into the conference room and fell into a chair, "I don't give a crap about them or their personal lives and I can do my job without hassle."

"So, no good news from Jenny then?" Chase asked.

"She's a stubborn teenage girl who thinks she's invincible." House muttered, exaggerating the young girls' personality to sooth his own aching soul and ego. "From now on, I stay in my office, I'm going to remained penned up so I don't have to associate with patients.. Ever again."

"What about clinic duty?"

"I'll buy a stunt double, someone who can handle all the stupid, self-centred, patients with small things stuck up random orifices and the screaming children."

"Was it really that painful?" Cameron asked from her laptop.

"Cuddy is right, don't get involved any further, let's treat this kid and get her out of the hospital before she causes any more problems."

Chase and Cameron exchanged glances but said nothing as House stormed off into his adjoining office. He sat behind his desk for a moment before holding his head in his hands, a migraine was fast upon him, at least that was the excuse he would use if someone asked. Truthfully, he almost felt guilty for having to yell at such a weak child, still, he did not regret his choice of words.

xXx

"You'd think he'd show just a little compassion for someone in her condition," Cameron murmured as she, Chase and Foreman walked down the hallway.

"He's House, he doesn't do compassion." Foreman pointed out, "Makes you wonder why he's always riding us for getting emotionally involved with a patient."

"It compromises our ability to look at the disease." Chase replied, "But really, hands up whoever doesn't feel the smallest amount of pity for the kid."

"I don't see how we can just go about our jobs while ignoring all the facts!" Cameron said.

"We're doctors, we have to practice objective thinking," Foreman replied, "Without it she-..."

His thought was cut off by the sound of by a beeper, he reached into his white lab coat and pulled it out, as he did, Cameron's went off, followed by Chase's. They traded worried looks, knowing who the patient was that they had to respond to, they raced down the hall toward Jenny's room.

The nurse stood by Jenny's bed, in complete silence, she was frozen to the spot and unable to act. Jenny was curled up, her arms protectively over her abdomen, small suppressed groans escaped her lips as beads of sweat fell down her face, her hair was damp. Cameron instinctively went to put her hand on the young girl, she quickly pulled away as she touched the burning skin.

"We need ice in here, she's burning up!"

"Jenny, where does it hurt?"

"My... my stomach." Was all the youth could manage, she cried out in pain as a second bolt of ache ripped through her body and to her back.

"We need ice in here right now!"

"What the hell is going on?"

"Increased her morphine drip, it'll be all right Jenny . . . just stay with us, okay? Stay with us Jenny..."

"Her BP is falling! 82 over 56!"

"Jenny . . . Jenny!"

House had limped over toward Jenny's room when his beeper had gone off, when he arrived he found a familiar sight. Cameron, Foreman and Chase, all struggling with one aspect of whatever was killing this young girl, desperately trying to save her. It was a sight that no longer made House's stomach turn, but for some reason, as he saw them desperately search for life, House gave up a silent prayer to whoever was listening to spare Jenny . . . Just a bit longer.

xXx

"She's unconscious," Chase said as he walked into House's office, followed by Foreman, "Cameron is with her now. I think it's time to consider that there may be something else wrong with her."

"Apart from the fact she's crazy?" House asked as he flipped through an Archie comic, "You know, I don't see why Archie and the gang never graduate, how many times can they fail grade twelve?"

"The Itraconazole has helped some of the Aspergillosis symptoms," Foreman said, "But it hasn't helped her fever, her BP is holding steady at 84 over 53."

"And why can't he just choose between Betty and Veronica? He's playing them like a card game."

"Are..are you listening to any of this?" Chase demanded, "This kid is going to die, she has a fever of 100.4 and it's slowly rising, and we don't know what's going on."

"The kid's made a choice," House said from behind his comic book, "Who am I to get in the way of it?"

"What's wrong with you?" Foreman demanded, "The kid has a few problems, she's lost sight of her faith so you decide you're just going to give up on her? You want her to apologize for being human just like you? Tough, she's unconscious."

House sighed and put down his magazine, "I have this theory, a patient wants to give up then let them, it'll save time and valuable medication and space in the hospital."

"So you're just going to lt her give up on herself?" Chase asked, "Just like that?"

"Nope," House said as he picked up his cane and stood up, "I'm going to fix her and then I'm going to fix her family life."

Foreman and Chase looked at each other and then back to House.

"You're... what?"

"I'm a regular Doctor Phil." House said with a shrug, "Besides, I never listen to what patients want anyway. It's all about me."