Chapter: 9. Phones and Fiends

"Hello." He muttered softly, he welcomed the distraction the call created, but that didn't mean he had to be enthusiastic about it, after all it was probably just a phone solicitor trying to interrogate him about his insurance or the state of his carpets.

"Greg? Can we talk?"

"Are you asking if we're capable of speech or are you asking for permission? Because those would probably be two different answers." Before the caller responded, House heard a short fed up sigh.

"I know you're stubborn and I understand that, but please, can we just talk?" House sighed this time; he glanced over at Cameron to see her watching him tentatively.

"Fine."

"Alright, tomorrow morning could you meet me in your office…I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Ok."

He hung up the receiver and rubbed his eyes and temples, which were suddenly felt tired. He had a hunch that what she wanted to talk about was one of the very last things he wanted to talk about.

"Who called?" Cameron said; she had a concerned expression.

"Oh, that? That was just…Wilson." He said lying to his pregnant fiancée.

Damn it! Why must these people call her? She swore this time she would snatch up that stupid phone and throw it with all her might, taking much pride and joy in seeing all the little phone bits scatter to her floor. Still, she'd also enjoy taking comfort in her pillows and mass amount of quilts. She despised being cold. She cringed and inwardly rolled her eyes reaching over for the cordless phone, which seemed to continue finding its way over to her bedside table.

"If you don't simply apologize and hang up I promise you I will find you and beat you with a ladle."

"Ladle? What? I just called to see how you were doing, since you left the hospital." Chase seemed to have been a bit startled by Angela's idle ladle threat.

"And since when do you doctors give house calls?" Her voice was very clear and comprehensible considering her face was buried in a soft, thin pillow.

"Well…I don't normally…I guess I just wanted to know how you were doing. You could say I was a concerned friend."

"Right…as long as you insist that we're friends…I suppose I'm doing ok." She sounded more bitter and annoyed than she really was.

"That doesn't sound too convincing."

"That seems to be the popular opinion." Chase never asked for her to elaborate, but he did assume it had something to do with House.

"Alright, well I thought I'd just ask. Goodbye Angela."

"Yeah, buh-bye Dr. Chase." She clicked off the phone.

Angie silently cursed the inventor of the telephone; the dipstick that decided it would be cool to get rid of the cord and especially the jerk that had placed the phone inches from her sleeping head. The horrid thing rang again. She answered the ringing to in return receive a perky lady yelling in her ear.

"Hmm…" Was all that Angie allowed herself to dignify the call with.

"Hey! Angie want to go shopping with me today?" Cameron exclaimed excitedly; Angie could just picture the woman's huge smile.

"Not particularly, no…when do you want to go?"

"I'm going to the clinic now to finish some paperwork, could you just meet me in the lobby in about an hour?" Cameron was glad she had someone to come with her, Diane had to work and her parents were still in New York. She knew it was still a bit early, but she really wanted to look at things for the wedding.

"Sure thing, deary." Angela said, the girls exchanged pleasantries and goodbyes, and then hung up. Angela managed, with much will power, to tear herself from her bed and to get dressed. She wore a black sweater and faded jeans; she brought a purse and tucked her mp3 player inside. Angela started the not too far walk to the hospital.

Dr. Gregory House was seated at his desk, feet planted flat on the ground and head in his hands. Typically he'd play gameboy, watch TV, listen to music, or at the very least play with a tennis ball, but he had a lot on his mind at the moment. And then she came, Stacey walked into his office with an anxious look. She sat down and got straight to the point of their little meeting.

"I heard that you and Cameron were engaged."

"Yes, we're engaged. Is that it? Is that what you wanted to talk about?" He was almost annoyed with her; she was clearly upset when he nosed into her relationship, now she conveniently set up a meeting to discuss his engagement.

"Well, sort of…I wanted to tell you that this doesn't change how I feel about you."

"What? You're married, I'm engaged and you're sitting her telling me you still have feelings for me?"

"Yes, I'm happily married and your happy with Cameron, but I thought you deserved to know how I felt and you know how I feel about you."

"And you know how I feel about you." He hoped to god at least she did because he wasn't so sure himself right now.

"So…what does this mean?" For the first time in that conversation, Stacey hesitated.

Allison Cameron approached Angela after making sure every last bit of paperwork was good and done. Angie was sitting in the clinic waiting room apparently trying to see how many pencils she could stuff up her nostril, all of which she pulled out upon seeing Cameron.

"So where's the first stop in our super-fun-shopping-spree-tastic day?"

"Super-fun-shopping-spree-tastic day?" She said questioning Angie's invented words with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, beats the heck out of 'Saturday'… 'Saturday', what a boring name for a day. I like mine much better!" Angie grabbed her purse and got to her feet.

"Yes it's very…creative. I think we'll go to the dress shops first, than the florists." Cameron nodded to Angie and both girls walked towards Cameron's car.

A/N: Yaa! That was weird, ok keep in mind this was written at 2am and my mind is in some other realm at those late hours. Please review! Luv, Lola