A/N – you may not believe this – but once upon a time this was a Wilson / Cuddy piece – with House playing a bit part. I know, the best-laid plans and all that. I should have known better. However, to salve my guilt – Dr Wilson will be getting the last word.
Thank you for all the lovely feedback – it's greatly appreciated. I hope you forgive me for not writing all the scenes. I've come to ambiguity late in life, but now I'm rather fond of it.
It takes an ending…
WilsonHe is full of benevolent feelings – extending towards most of humanity and his ex-wives. But then, the scotch is very good and he is smoking a cigar. The latter is risky behaviour for an oncologist - but something he allows himself to indulge in on the anniversary of his birth. He looks around him, still surprised by the feeling of, contentment that suffuses him. Three months ago Julie left him and for the first time in a long time he believes he is as in control of his personal life as he is of his professional life.
Although it is an informal party the bar is packed with people from the hospital – which could be evidence of his popularity, or it could just be that his birthday coincides with the end of a long week and a lot of people were feeling the need for a drink. Either way he is not complaining.
Beside him House flicks his gaze towards the entrance for the fifth time in the last twenty minutes; the only outward sign that he is waiting for someone. Without this fractional evidence of impatience his demeanour would be exactly the same as ever, petulant, obstinate and downright arrogant. His contributions to the discussion have been negligible – which has at least prevented him from offending anyone – but then the night is still young.
Some facts, however, are inescapable and the truth is in recent months things have changed. 'That night' as he has taken to referring to it – if only in his mind, House did overcome his obstinacy enough to leave the bar to go after Cuddy and neither of them returned. The next day he was taciturn and evasive – hardly unusual behaviour and not suggestive of anything in particular – but he was also still wearing the previous days clothes. Under normal circumstances Wilson probably wouldn't have thought twice about that either – but the circumstances were hardly normal.
Wilson isn't brave enough to attempt to define what it is that House and Cuddy have established. He is only periodically brave enough to enquire whether they are involved at all and he has learnt to be extremely careful about using words such as 'dating', 'relationship' and 'girlfriend' – which doesn't mean he is averse to using them to irritate his friend, from time to time.
If Cuddy has extra leverage to get House to do his clinic hours there is no sign of her using it. On this subject, as well as on many others, they have both been silent. She makes sure he delivers his hours; he looks for ways out of his obligations - using excuses and whatever other ways he can find to irritate her. She tries to keep him out of trouble, only periodically succeeding – and makes sure she has a back up plan for when the worst happens. If they have been seen quietly slipping out of the building together at the end of the day then that is their business.
The hospital has no idea what to make of this alleged change in their– there have been rumours, counter-rumours, gossip, and innuendo. The prevailing mood among observers is bemused curiously. No one seems to believe that it won't turn out to be a joke, a mistake or a disaster waiting to happen. He is fairly sure that it isn't any of these – but beyond that he isn't prepared to hazard a guess.
The reason for House's unusual preoccupation with the entrance to the bar is that the woman is question is running late. As a Board member Wilson knows what is detaining Cuddy and he suspects that House knows too. Dismissing a member of staff for a disciplinary matter is a far from pleasant experience – because it is being handled by Cuddy the case is watertight and the severance package will be generous – but no one is expecting the member of staff concerned to leave without a fight. He is very glad this isn't a part of his job.
He hopes Cuddy is going to be OK – putting the case together has involved a lot of additional work – for a woman who is already extremely busy. Added to that he has absolutely no idea how House will behave if he is required to offer intelligent support and sympathy. Ordinarily he wouldn't be optimistic – but he has stopped trying to anticipate what House will do most of the time – and when it comes to House and Cuddy he has learnt to expect the unexpected.
That the relationship seems to work for House is little short of miraculous – but the evidence, although slight, does point to a degree of – he hesitates to use the word 'happiness' and settles for something less cheerful, like neutrality. His work rate is up, marginally, he is taking slightly fewer vicodin and drinking less. He is still a miserable, difficult, hostile misanthrope and if someone annoys him all bets are off – but he seems – rested, in a way he hasn't for a long time. Even if Cuddy has just added to the list of things House would miss if he were to lose them - then what she has given him is immensely important.
When she finally slips into the bar his distraction technique has been only partially successful. Drawing House into a conversation with Foreman seems a tactic that is likely to end badly – probably for Foreman. He is fairly sure that House knows what he is doing – there have been a couple of looks – complicit, amused and he is just waiting for the sardonic remark. He is grateful that Cuddy's arrival seems likely to cause distraction on a number of levels.
He watches House look at her, his gaze is assessing as he concentrates on her in a way he seldom does and then he looks away. Wilson would like to speculate about what it is he sees that the rest of them don't, House looks beyond the surface of things at the best of times and intimacy can only add to that.
What is clear is that Cuddy has bought the tension of the day with her. The set of her shoulders, the way she holds herself as though she is waiting for the next blow to fall, tell him that the meeting went about as well as expected. He catches her eye and asks the question with a raised eyebrow. Her response is a shrug that seems to confirm his suspicions – this is not the time or the place to ask her about the damage control strategy she has undoubtedly already put into effect. This would be a very good time for House to well, not be House.
'Foreman, it's going to be a lot better for your career to get the Dean of Medicine a drink than it will be to stand here glaring at me.' Unfortunately the analysis is an accurate one – a conclusion Foreman reaches with a distinct lack of grace. But the barb serves a purpose as almost everyone is distracted by the look on Foreman's face. Almost everyone fails to notice the look House and Cuddy share – a look not even Wilson is prepared to try to interpret. More to the purpose is the touch to the small of her back, gentle and fleeting – conveying intimacy, familiarity and support in a single moment. Maybe House is better at this than expected – or maybe he just knows Cuddy well enough to find a way to give her what she needs without compromising himself in the process. Wilson suspects it is a mystery he will never get to the bottom of.
He hopes she knows what she is doing. He feels a sense of, responsibility for their relationship - as though he had somehow engineered it. In fact all he did was draw attention to something that had been there all along. If he can claim credit for anything at all, it is simply for having very good timing.
But Cuddy isn't going to get an easy ride with House and he has to wonder if she knows what she is getting herself into. After all, no one can plan to find him or herself in a relationship with someone who is so blatantly bad at all types of relationship – and who cares little about what other people think of him. Their relationship, which was combative at the best of times, now has the potential to become combustible. And yet whatever type of balance it is they have found in each other – it is holding.
There is part of him that believes he would have been a better bet for a relationship than House. That for all his divorces he has the willingness to find space in his life for another person – something that he knows his closest friend lacks. But she chose House, which makes the reasoning somewhat irrelevant.
Foreman returns with the drinks and under cover of their distribution Wilson takes the opportunity to ask in a low voice, 'is she all right?'
'She's about to explode. I'm going to get her out of here – I like my ducklings in one piece.' It is an odd statement but when he looks up Cuddy is locked into what bears all the hallmarks of an earnest conversation with Cameron and he decides House might be right.
'We still on for tomorrow?'
'Sure, beer, tv, your place?' Some things don't change and he is grateful for this.
'Have a good evening James – behave yourself, don't go fluttering your eyelashes at any strange women.'
'Seriously?'
'Well, I am reliably informed the last time you were in a bar by yourself you got picked up by a really hot woman – and look how that ended.' His voice is just loud enough to carry and glancing across the group Wilson is forced to conclude that Cuddy heard, but is just pretending that she didn't – which is probably a strategy she uses a lot. House's grin is decidedly mischievous and Wilson holds his breath, wondering what on earth can be coming next.
'Dr Cuddy, all that pent up tension can't be good for you.' As soon as he speaks he has the attention of the group around him, not to mention everyone in the bar who knows who they are. 'So, if you twist my arm I'm prepared to let you take me home and have your wicked way with me.' There is a sharply indrawn breath, which doesn't come from Cuddy. She satisfies herself with simply looking at House, wearing an expression somewhere between amusement and resignation. Her eyes narrow slightly, calculating, leaving Wilson to wonder if there is time to withdraw to watch the fireworks from a safe place – like California.
'Dr House,' her voice is a sultry purr that screams danger, 'I don't think force is going to be an issue.' She steps closer, not touching him, but tilting her head to look him in the eye. She might not be touching, but he is, as they stand toe to toe his hand comes to rest on her hip – whether it is to keep his balance or because he can't resist the temptation it is hard to say. 'In fact,' she continues, 'I'm fairly sure if I promise to…' her voice drops to a low murmur, inaudible to all but one member of her audience, 'you'll race me out of here.' There is little doubt that the missing part of her comment is very private.
House's expression is familiarly mutinous, but the hand on her hip doesn't move as he considers her words with care before responding. 'I don't think you should make promises you have no intention of delivering on.'
'Who says I'm not planning to deliver?' In a fluid movement that leaves spectators blinking she swirls away from him and is on her way out of the bar at a brisk walk – she doesn't look back.
'Damn!' House's voice is filled with reluctant admiration as he watches her departure. Sighing he finishes his drink and looks over at Wilson. 'Don't look so worried James – we'll be fine.'
'But will the rest of us?'
'Not my problem.' He taps his cane on the ground a couple of times, preoccupuied and apparently on the verge ofsaying something more. But then his mood shifts andhe leaves with nothing more that a 'see you tomorrow'.
Through the open door Wilson can see that Cuddy's exit has not taken her far – unsurprisingly she was confident that House wouldn't be far behind her. In the split second before the door closes, Wilson sees her face as she turns towards him. She is smiling – but her expression is shaky from exhaustion and stress. As he reaches her, just before they are obscured from view, House gives every impression of being on the brink of pulling her into an embrace.
In the wake of their departure the bar is silent, shock and amusement play on the faces of his colleagues. Foreman looks horrified and Cameron is smiling softly – which probably means she is as nice as she seems to be.
The only thing to do in a situation like this is to retire to a quiet corner for some scotch and reflection. He raises his glass in a silent toast to House and Cuddy, wishing them well on a journey that seems likely to contain more than its fair share of twists and turns.
He isn't sure how he feels - there is nostalgia in his response to Cuddy; perhaps everyone needs to have 'the one that got away' somewhere in their past. But he is not entirely sure that she really 'got away' – surely it is more that he allowed her to evade him?
In this moment, withscotch for company and the bustle of the bar as cover he allows himself to ponder the question that has been haunting him for weeks, the question he can't or won't attempt to answer - was it really Cuddy that he allowed to get away – or someone else?
The End