Title: The Touch - Chapter Four - The Touch
Author: Linda/Brynna/Brynnamorgan
Rating: M for Graphic Language
Categories: Romance/Supernatural/AU
Characters: H/OC
Spoilers: None

Summary: "Children don't have preconceived notions of what is possible and what isn't. Remember, they believe in Santa Claus, the tooth fairy and the Easter Bunny. They have faith."

Lyrics Credit:

"Let Me Touch You For Awhile" as sung by Alison Krauss and Union Station, 2001

"I don't hardly know you
But I'd be willing to show you
I know a way to make you smile
Let me touch you for awhile."
Chapter Four - The Touch

Sabrina rarely went into autopilot when performing, and this time was no different. She took in every detail, the smile on the boy's face, the gratitude of his parents. Then there were those from the hospital - her friends Wilson and Cuddy, the young female doctor watching her with such ferocity that she wondered where the source of the emotion came from, a couple of other young doctors that she recognized from the group who had been with House when she collided with him, and then finally the man himself. Those blue eyes penetrated hers for a long moment, causing gooseflesh to rise on her arms. Damn, the man was gorgeous, she thought, her breath catching when he grinned at her.

Then a tall, attractive brunette came up behind him, leaned over to whisper at him, got an annoyed look in return then was promptly ignored as he returned to gazing at Sabrina. The woman frowned then looked directly at her, a puzzled expression on her face. Interesting. Competition. Betrayal. Wonderful, Sabrina thought. Don't let her presence overshadow the performance.

And what was up with Del? Out of the corner of her eye she noticed him watching the female doctor with a peculiar expression she'd not quite seen on him before. Well, the young lady was lovely, she admitted. Maybe he needed to get laid. Quickly she smothered a smirk and continued.

The set would be a shortened version of their usual, which gave her freedom to take her fiddle to the boy's chair and be more personal; she didn't have to worry about memorizing anything new. Robby's smile was infectious; she returned it as she swayed across the floor and back, singing of love lost and found, promises forgotten and redeemed.

With the music came the energy as always. Sabrina let it flow through her and continued to smile, not knowing that Greg was leaning forward, stunned and entranced.

My God, what's she doing? he wondered, unable to take his eyes off of her. She… she crackled with whatever it was, he decided, not seeing her fellow band members shooting her wary looks, nor noticing Wilson stirring uneasily next to him. He sensed Stacy still standing behind him and felt her annoyance. Tough shit. He had something much nicer to focus his attention on.

One thing he'd picked up on was the utter lack of press or publicity. Great. Now he really owed her an apology, he thought ruefully. Saying he was sorry wasn't exactly in his nature but he'd do his best. Maybe she'd like to go out for coffee after the concert. The thought made him brighten up inside. From coffee he could progress to lunch, then dinner and a night out. Yup. Start with coffee. Preferably today.

All too soon Cameron signaled that the boy was tiring and things gradually came to an end. One last time Sabrina descended the small stage and bent over Robby, her eyes shining with tears as she gently hugged him. "May God go with you," she whispered, knowing that the energy she'd created would not work. It had no place to go, she thought, fighting sobs as she tried to let it flow into him. Nothing. With a shaky smile she let Del lead her away, feeling the tide overtake her in waves as he helped her out into the hallway.

"Oh God, please help me," she gasped out. "No… no place…"

"Sabrina, easy," Del muttered. "Anybody have a place she can lie down?"

"Lying down… won't work… need to…" Frantically she eyed the corridor. No patients on this floor. Nobody to help, nobody to…

A familiar rock wall stopped her and she reeled as Greg grasped her shoulder with his free hand. "Somebody, get her down to ER, stat," he growled out. "Can't you see she's…"

ER? she thought hysterically. Well, that would be one way to solve her problem. Just walk down the waiting room and start touching people. Then again… Abruptly she brought her hand down on his right thigh, curled her other arm around his neck and let her head rest on his chest.

"Does this mean you like me?" he started to tease. Suddenly his eyes shut as tendrils of sweet energy slid into him like feathering crackles of electricity. His arms wound around her, molding her to him, his head resting against hers as they drew breath in unison.

Slow. Easy. Together. He felt the warmth of her being, her soul as she beckoned to him. It was like tiny, warm fingers caressing his heart and he shuddered, pressing his lips to her temple, then her cheek, not hearing the surprised sounds of those that surrounded them as he finally lowered his head to hers. All he knew was that she was music and she was light, warmth and love. Her open mouth received his and they both swayed, unmindful of the cane that hit the floor with a thud. More, he thought hungrily, feeling her amusement and joy as she lifted him up higher than he'd ever been in his life. May God go with you…

Finally, it started to ebb and the world came back to shouts and movement.

"Get her out of here, dammit."

"Somebody get House…"

He was being lifted by strong arms, placed in… a wheelchair? he wondered with a mental shrug. Slowly sight came back to him, finally returning in full as Chase wheeled him into his office, the others behind him as they assisted him into his easy chair. He felt a tissue on his cheek (I've been crying?) and accepted it numbly.

"Are you okay, House?" Cameron asked. He shot her a hard look as his surroundings finally came into focus and abruptly got to his feet. A little light-headed but okay, he thought grimly, grabbing his cane. "No, wait, you shouldn't…"

"Sure I should. I feel great," he snarled in reply. "Where the hell is she?" At the resulting silence he added, "Now, ducklings, I'll find out either the easy way or the hard way, but I will find out. Where. Is. She?"

"Cuddy's office," Foreman finally said. House nodded abruptly at him and limped his way out, leaving his three ducklings staring after him. Finally Foreman stirred and looked at the other two.

"Now, will somebody please tell me what the hell that was all about?" Eric said to nobody in particular. "She freaks out, they kiss, they both faint. Cuddy and Wilson rush her out of there like everything was normal and…" he paused for a moment while the other two contemplated the situation for a moment. "Oh, no way in hell is that possible," he muttered as they stared at him.

"What?" Chase asked, his brows drawn together thoughtfully.

"Notice anything unusual?" Eric replied. Allison frowned, unable to put her finger on it. "His limp was different," he finally finished.

"He... wasn't in pain, right?" Allison questioned softly as her two colleagues slowly nodded their heads. "Something really strange is going on here. Need a challenge, guys?"


No pain. Of course there wouldn't be. He strode purposefully, still limping but not as cautious as before. Surprised looks came from those that knew him and he ignored them, bee lining for Cuddy's office. With a quick hard movement he pushed his way through the door, not surprised at the crowd around the sofa. Cuddy and Wilson were bending over Sabrina; Stacy was pacing, agitated and muttering about a celebrity collapsing in her hospital and the legal ramifications. The men of the band took one look at him and began closing ranks.

"Out!" Greg ground out. "All of you."

"Buddy, I don't think so," Del replied quietly, coming directly in front of him. Greg merely rolled his eyes at him.

"Oh, can it with the macho bullshit," he retorted. "Out, big guy, or I'll shove this cane up your ass."

"Guys, it's okay." Sabrina's voice sounded weak and he inwardly berated himself. Dammit to bloody fucking hell. "You can leave. Please."

"We'll be right out in the hall." Del shot him one last hard look before leading the others out, leaving the two doctors still bent over her and Stacy still pacing.

"You two, out." When Cuddy began to protest he added, "I'm a goddamned doctor, too, and better than you. Out. And you," he continued to his ex-girlfriend, "can leave. If she wants to sue the hospital..."

"She doesn't," Sabrina said softly. "Please leave." Stacy opened her mouth as if to say something, paused when she caught the look on Greg's face and quietly left the room.

That left the two alone. Greg took a deep breath and took the chair that Cuddy had vacated next to Sabrina, automatically getting out his stethoscope. Had to see for himself she was all right, he thought grimly.

"They've already done all of that," she protested as he proceeded to listen to her heart and lungs, checked her pulse. "Lisa gave me a shot of B vitamins."

"Vitamins? Jesus fucking Christ," he grumbled.

"It's all I need. Rest, fluids, build-up. I swear." She fell silent for a moment, then said, "Greg?"

"Yeah?"

Still silent. He looked up and inwardly winced at the reproach in her eyes. Great. Rejection, here I come.

"What you just did to my friends really wasn't necessary." Sabrina paused, then continued, "I've known almost all of them most of my life and they don't deserve that sort of treatment."

Greg shut his eyes and rubbed his forehead, speechless. How could he answer that one? he wondered, feeling self-loathing settle like a dead weight on his shoulders. Nothing like a lousy first impression to get off to a good start, he thought gloomily. The softness of her hand on his made him look up to see her gazing at him thoughtfully.

"You're not the most socially adept man I've ever met, Greg," she finally said, "and I'm not one of those women who demand 'change' by any means. Just... work on it a bit, okay?"

Reprieve. He let out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding and nodded. "Yeah, uh, I'm sorry."

"Painful, huh?" The faintest quirk of a smile played on her lips.

He barked a laugh and laid his hand across hers. "You don't know the half of it," he replied quietly, enfolding her small hand in his large callused one. "I don't apologize too often. Mark it in your diary." Whipped. Already. It felt... odd, but good.

"Consider it duly noted and recorded." Mischief twinkled in her eyes as she squeezed his hand reassuringly.

He sighed and rose to his feet, noticing the very faint twinge of pain. It was returning. Cautiously he assisted her to a sitting position, then sat down on the sofa and coaxed her back down to rest against his shoulder. "Comfortable?" He felt her nod. "Good. Now you can tell me what the hell is going on."

"Short version or long?"

"Both."

"Hope you have awhile."

"I have an entire lifetime of awhile."

She digested that, wondering at his remark's implication. "Okay." She stretched and turned to snuggle against his long frame. "Better."

"Go."

A chuckle escaped her. "You make it sound so easy." Silence, then, "When I was eleven my younger brother died of leukemia."

"I'm sorry." Dammit, now she had to deal with painful memories.

A nod from her. "There I was, standing while they lowered him into the ground, and all I could do was pray. I asked God if I could help other kids not suffer like he did."

"And it happened."

"Actually, the next day two things happened." Sabrina paused, then said, "I started my period and my baby sister fell off of a swing. I ran to her, put my hand on her cut forehead to stop the bleeding and the cut went away."

He blinked. "Correlation between the hormone change and your ability to heal?"

"Yeah. At first I healed mostly baby animals. Then it was bumps and bruises on the playground. They had to promise not to tell anyone."

"And they didn't."

"You bet. Wasn't always that easy. Sometimes, I did it without them knowing."

"Sometimes? Like an entire hospital pediatric ward is 'sometimes'?"

He felt her shrug. "It was either that or go crazy knowing I could help those kids and not be able to do anything about it. Especially after tours. All pent up. So I volunteered to sing to children at PPTH. Besides, at the worst they'd get to hear some nice music and at the best it would work and they'd be healed. No harm, no foul."

"I wouldn't call what just happened to me 'no harm, no foul,'" he replied dryly. Then again, the sweetness of her lips and body against his…

"Two things."

"Yeah?"

"In the process of wanting to heal that kid I… I went overboard. I've never done that before," she admitted.

"He's terminal."

"Yeah, and I should know better. I can't fix what's missing or broken beyond all repair." My leg, Greg thought as she continued. "But those eyes of his, the grief of his parents." Her voice trailed off for a moment. "You should have heard the butt-chewing I was getting before you forced your way in."

"They beat me to it," he growled in reply. "You do that again and I'll personally turn you over my knee."

"Ooo, kinky. I knew there was a reason why I'm attracted to you."

His breath caught at the admission. "You said two things."

"Yeah. You're an adult. I've never been able to heal adults. Maybe pain relief, but it's so temporary it's not worth it. Maybe a few seconds. Which reminds me."

He sighed and reached into his blazer for the Vicodin. "It's starting to come back."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm used to it." He popped open the bottle, slipped a pill into his mouth, dry-swallowed it and sighed. "So, why not adults?"

"Children don't have preconceived notions of what is possible and what isn't. Remember, they believe in Santa Claus, the tooth fairy and the Easter Bunny. They have faith. At least, that's the best conclusion I could come up with." She tipped her head to gaze up at him curiously. "You don't believe in God, do you?"

"I don't know what to believe in," he admitted, jumping when she laid her hand on his right thigh again.

"Because of this." He felt the softness of her fingertips trace the outline of missing muscle in his thigh. Dammit, if she kept that up he would embarrass both of them. "You have been through so much, Greg," she said quietly. "When we… joined I could feel the beauty of what lay inside of you and it made me want more."

His throat tightened and for once he had no sarcastic comeback. "That's about the nicest damn thing anybody has ever said about me," he said gruffly, reaching to tip her chin up so their eyes could meet. Now he was getting all mushy and emotional. This wouldn't do. Time to lighten things up a bit. Remembering his thoughts during the concert, he took a deep breath and hoped it got it right.

"Okay, the next step is coffee." Oh, that was graceful.

"Huh?"

"You know, standard dating procedure. It's either that or ask you if you want to get naked on my desk. However, standard procedure indicates coffee first."

"Then get naked on your desk?" She was smiling impishly.

He pretended to look shocked. "Why, how dare you? I'll have you know I'm not that easy." That melodic chuckle combined with her hand on his thigh was getting the better of him. The impulse to kiss her overwhelmed him; he gave in and bent his head to hers.