Dancing's For the Perfect, a house, m.d. fanfic

Title: Dancing's For the Perfect
Author: Jazz
Summary: The hospital's throwing a dinner party and Wilson persuades House to go. Ties, dancing, and broken shoe heels are only a few things that are sure to happen.
Disclaimer: I don't own House but a girl can dream, can't she? And I also don't own the Beach Boys or their song 'Wouldn't it be Nice'...
A/N: This was written for a House/Cameron ficathon over at LiveJournal and all the basic stuff was requested. I came up with the plot and the setting but the requester just gave me stuff to make her story what she wanted. I hope you enjoy!

It had all been Cameron's fault.

House had not planned on attending the hospital's annual charity dinner, the one that everyone paid two hundred dollars just to go to. Then they had to sit through two hours of boring speeches and not-so-appetizing food. He had never been to one and wasn't planning on changing his routine no matter how hard anyone tried to persuade him otherwise.

"But why won't you go to it? It's not like you have anything better to do," Wilson said, mostly muttering the last part to himself.

They were sitting in House's office, Wilson in the chair near the door and House was in his swivel playing one of his many games on his Gameboy.

House glanced up from his game to shoot Wilson one of those 'You-have-got-to-be-kidding-me' looks. Obviously, Wilson was going to need just more then a look and sat in his chair, arms crossed, not saying a word. House paused his game and muttered something under his breath that Wilson couldn't quite catch. He knew it was something along the lines of him being a 'idiot' or something other of that nature.

"One, the food sucks. Two, I'm not about to pay two hundred bucks for said food," House said, holding up his fingers for each reason he came to think of, "And three, I'd much rather stay home then sit with a bunch of mindless idiots who couldn't give a damn about the hospital and are only there so that if anyone else sees them, it looks like they're 'caring' citizens of the society." Finished, he went back to his Gameboy and soon the room was filled with little 'bloops' and 'bleeps'.

Wilson sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I swear House, you make up excuses for everything..."

"Name one time," he replied, not looking up this time.

"The Christmas party, New Year's at Cuddy's, the Easter pinic on the hospitals lawn, that going away party for Steve in the Children's Ward, that time wh-"

"Alright, I think I get the point," House repiled, slamming his Gameboy down, causing the familiar 'Game Over' tune to play. "The truth of the matter is, I'm not going and you can't make me."

"You sound like a five year old," Wilson muttered.

House stuck his tongue out.

"I take that back. A five year old can never match up to your stubborn attitude." Wilson got up from his chair, waiting for House to say something. Nothing came though. House just turned around in his chair and faced the window.

"Fine," Wilson said, finally getting frustrated. He made his way to the office door and just as he was about to exit, an idea struck him. "I guess I'll just have to keep Cameron company, seeing as you're too good for anything like a measly little dinner."

House didn't say anything but Wilson knew that he had heard his statement. He could tell by the way the back of House's head dropped slightly, as if he was taking it into consideration. Wilson just grinned and walked out into the hallway. Sure, it was somewhat of a bribe to get House to attend but it wasn't like he was paying him to go.

He wasn't mischievous enough for that.

"I need one ticket to the hospital's charity dinner."

Cuddy was busy trying to sort some papers, but immediately looked up when two hundred dollar bills were slammed down in front of her. Her gaze was greeted by that of House, who really looked like he was about to just run out of there at the next availible moment she threw at him. She leaned back in her chair, crossed her arms and threw a curious look at him.

"Since when do you go to charity dinners?" she asked. She wasn't letting him off that easily.

House gave a look of mock hurt. "I'm shocked Cuddy. Here I am trying to do my part to help the good of this hospital and all the idiots in it and here you are, questioning my actions," he replied, and put his free hand over his chest for a dramatic effect.

"Can it House. We both know that you don't give a damn about anyone in this hospital. Why are you really going?" she asked. He sighed and glanced around for a moment, as if unsure of what to say.

He then looked at her. "Just give me the ticket before I change my mind," he replied flatly. She cocked an eyebrow but she wouldn't question his any further. It was already surprising enough that he was going to this thing and she was sure that she would find out the reason of his actions eventually. She would just ask Wilson.

She handed him a ticket and directions on how to get to the hall where the dinner would be at. He snatched them from her and turned to walk out. As he opened the doors, he glanced down at the invitation.

"Dancing and ties? It sounds more like a 'Make Greggory House Suffer Dinner'..." he muttered and hobbled out. Cuddy smiled to herself and returned to shuffling her papers around. This was going to be interesting.

House stood outside the entrance to the hall. He could hear people inside and the faint sound of music could be heard through the large doors. He just stood off to the side a bit, trying to figure out if he was going to go in or not. He had been standing there for what seemed like forever but in reality, had only been fifteen minutes. Every so often people would come by, dressed up in suits and fancy party dresses, and then they would enter the hall, letting the music escape. They were playing some old stuff. None of that rap crap that House hated. How could that even be called music? You couldn't understand what they were saying anyways.

He could leave right now. No one that had come by had actually known House and if he skipped out, he could always tell Wilson he had suddenly come down with something. Wilson wouldn't believe him though. He had paid two hundred dollars, from his own pocket, to attend this thing but right now, House wasn't even sure if he cared about the money anymore. He was just dreading going through those doors and seeing all those happy faces. The thought was enough to make him shudder.

He popped a Vicodin and began walking back towards the parking lot when he saw something coming his direction. Well, it was more like someone.

It was Cameron.

"Shit," he muttered. What was he going to do now? Maybe if he hurried and kept his head low. Of course, that plan was obviously not going to work since he was pretty sure that she would see the cane. Well, he could at least try...

"Dr. House?"

He froze where he was at. So much for avoidance, he thought and turned around. He was now face to face with Cameron know and she was looking at him as if she couldn't believe that he was actually here. He noticed her outfit. How could he not since it was black, strapless, i and /i cut rather short. Just the thing he needed to see right when he was about to make a get away.

"Dr. Cameron," he replied with a nod.

Cameron came closer. "What are you doing here? I thought you didn't do charity dinners."

"You're not the only one," he muttered, remembering what Wilson and Cuddy had said just a few days before. Did everyone think he wasn't going to show up? Did they have a bet that was going on or something? 'House: Charity Dinner or No?'

She glanced down at her feet. She had probably heard him by the way a slight blush was creeping on to her face.

"I'm trying to do my part to help the hospital," he told her, sarcasm lining his every word.

She smiled and looked back at the hall behind her. He knew what was coming next.

"Aren't you going inside?" she asked.

"Actually I was just making my escape when you showed up," he replied. He was surprised that he hadn't come up with some crazy reason why he was going to the parking lot, but instead had actually told the truth.

She laughed. Obviously, she had thought he was playing around. Her laugh though, was actually refreshing and not annoying. It was warm and not squeaky like some of the people he knew around the hospital. He let himself look around and he fixed his cane.

"I guess I'll see you inside then," she said, after her laugher subsided.

He nodded and muttered a small "Sounds great." She smiled and made her way towards the waiting hall. Great, now he had no choice but to go in.

Damn Cameron.

"--and the can said 'Hair-Spray: Guaranteed to bring life to any hair.'"

The table burst into laughs and giggles. People were covering their mouths to hide their loud laughs and someone even snorted. Ted Briedman, a surgeon from the hospital, looked proud that his joke had caused the entire table to laugh. Well, almost the entire table.

House sat in his chair, his arms crossed and his face free of any trace of laughter. Next to him sat Wilson, who was downing his wine, in hopes of getting rid of the hiccups he now had and on his other side sat a nurse who had been working at the hospital for a year and was a 'friend' of Wilson's. Foreman sat next to Wilson, then Ted, Chase, and then Cameron who looked a tad red from laughing too much. House had been glancing at her every so often since she sat across from him, and when Wilson pointed this out, House had simply stated that he was looking at the dance floor.

It had been a boring evening in House's opinion. That Ted guy wouldn't shut up with stories about various surgeries he had performed and stupid jokes that House didn't find funny in the least. He actually thought they were quite stupid. He had no clue why anyone was laughing.

They had already eaten their dinners (House had stuffed most of his in his napkin) and the speeckes had already been taken care of. They were just as un-amusing as House's table and he almost fell asleep through one of them until Wilson had poked him in the side with his fork. All that was left was the dancing portion.

Wilson had taken the nurse, Foreman was with some lady from the second floor, Chase was dancing with some blonde girl House had never seen before, and Cameron was dancing with Ted.

He was watching them the most. It was a slow song that now blared over the loud speakers and the two were moving in time to the music. House couldn't help but feel a bit jealous but he dismissed it for something he ate, even though not one speck of food had touched his lips.

He looked around, thumped his cane on the floor a couple of times, and downed his entire glass of wine. That seemed to be the only good part about this whole dinner. He did anything to distract himself from staring at Cameron, though in that dress, it was kind of hard not too. The song ended and another one started up, this one a bit more up beat. He looked at the dance floor and saw that Ted was now dancing with some girl that he had seen at the receptionist desk a couple of times in the Clinic. But where was Cameron?

He was question was soon answered when he heard someone pull out the chair next to him, the one that had belonged to the nurse. He ignored it, thinking it was just the nurse when she spoke up.

"Don't dance much, do you?"

He turned his head and saw Cameron sitting there looking at him.

"I prefer to do it in the privacy in my own home. I turn on those hip-hop stations and just dance like no tomorrow," he replied. She let out a small laugh.

She glanced out at the dance floor and watched for a moment. "So I'll take that as a no."

He didn't say anything and just stared out at the dance floor too. Everyone looked happy and most of them weren't that bad either. House could never do stuff like that though. He couldn't spin or even move really. With his leg and all, he couldn't really do much more then go back and forth from one foot to the other. It was really more like he was doing some odd figety thing. Not exactly dancing to most people.

Suddenly the music changed.

'Wouldn't it be nice if we were older
Then we wouldn't have to wait so long
And wouldn't it be nice to live together
In the kind of world where we belong...'

Cameron's face suddenly lit up. "I love this song!" she stated and started moving her head in time to the music.

House stared at her for a moment. "The Beach Boys?"

"Yeah, why?" she replied, still moving to the music but now she was tapping her foot too.

He shook his head. "I don't know. I just took you for a classical kind of girl," he replied. She stopped moving and just looked at him for a moment.

"That stuff is okay but the Beach Boys are just the best," she told him. He allowed himself to let out a small chuckle.

'You know the more we talk about it
It only makes it worse to live without it
But lets talk about it
Wouldn't it be nice'

The song ended and he noticed Cameron's look of disappointment. He looked away and tried to think of something to say. He wasn't sure why he said what he did next. He would later blame it on the wine.

"Do you want to take a walk?"

Her gaze snapped to his and she looked as if he just asked her to take off all her clothes.

"I mean, with the bum leg and all. It really starts to act up if I sit for too long," he explained, popping one of his Vicodin, "And since I don't want to be 'un-gentlemanly' and just leave you here, I am inviting you to walk with me."

She was silent for a minute after that and he wasn't sure if it was because she still in shock from her asking her or because she couldn't believe that he was ever 'gentlemanly'.

He got up, using his cane as a propping device, and began to make his way towards the doors.

"You coming?" he called over his shoulder, "Because I don't have all day."

Cameron snapped out of her stupor and quickly got up to join him. It wasn't everyday that Greggory House invited her for a walk. Well, actually, he had never really taken her on a walk. So it was a new experience.

They were now walking through the park across the street. The moon was bright so House had a clear view of everything. The swings, the slide, the sand that he was sure at least a couple kids peed in...really, it was quite a change from the crowded and noisy hall. Out here it was quiet, except for the occasional cricket, and they wasn't anybody around. For some reason, it reminded him of one of those horror movies where the killer would jump out any second and start chasing them with a chainsaw.

"This is nice," Cameron murmured. House simply nodded, glad that one of them had finally said something. They had been walking for the past ten minutes in an awkward silence that made House feel uncomfortable. At least now he could stop trying to find interest in the grass.

"I used to come to the park all the time when I was a kid," she told him.

"But never in a dress like the one you're wearing now," he said before he could stop himself.

Cameron stopped and turned to face him. "Are you flattering me, Dr. House?" she asked.

He was in the corner now. "I'm just saying that women usually come to the park wearing cocktail dresses. Actually, they hardly ever wear dresses. More like overalls really," he replied. She laughed.

"And I doubt that men usually come to the park dressed in suits," she pointed out.

"Good. Then we're even," he said and continued to walk down the path that they were currently walking down. She followed along and looked around the park, the silence now returning.

Neither of them was expecting what was coming next.

Cameron's heel got caught in a rather large crack and she lost her balance. She flailed her arms, grabbing on to House without realizing it and the next thing he knew, he was flat on his back on the grass, Cameron laying right on top of him.

He looked up at her face and suddenly his heart beat quickened and he couldn't breathe. That might have to do partially to the fact that she was know crushing his chest, but House was sure it was something else. He wasn't sure why he did what he did next either. Maybe it was from the rush of a woman laying on top of him or maybe to the fact that he might have drunk on to many glasses of red wine (Wilson had warned him). Whatever the reason was, House even surprised himself.

He kissed her.

She was a bit shocked at first, but she soon kissed him back. Her lips were warm and soft. He hadn't kissed a woman in god knows when and he was sure that he was being a bit clumsy. She didn't seem to mind though and she opened her mouth to grant him futher access. She tasted like wine and he could detect a hint of chicken, but for some reason, it was the best thing he had ever tasted.

They broke apart for air and she looked down at him.

"Well..." she said but her voice trailed off.

"You know, this would be alot more romantic if you weren't currently laying on my leg," he pointed out to her as she looked at him. She let out a gasp and rolled off of him, her cheeks turning a bright shade of pink. He sat up and dusted himself off.

"If this is going to happen at every dinner I go to, I really have to attend them more often," he told her. She laughed and playfully hit his shoulder. He rubbed his arm as if she had actually hit him. She stood up and fixed her dress. House managed to get up himself without her help but couldn't stop himself from groaning a little bit. She looked concerned but House brushed it off and they started their way back to the hall. Cameron was now walking in her stockings on account that she broke her heel during the fall. He had a feeling no one would notice anyways. He didn't mind now that he couldn't dance or have fun like the rest of the idiots in there. He looked down at Cameron.

"I bet you cripples and girls in hot dresses usually don't make out in parks either."

Cameron laughed and he couldn't help but laugh too. He could start liking these dinner parties.