When House parked in front of his place he was somehow able to wake Allison into a semi-conscious state. She wasn't exactly lucid but she was awake enough to stand, kind of. House had to wrap his arm around her waist again so he could steer her without both of them falling over. When they reached his door he thanked whoever was up there that his condo was on the bottom floor and that they didn't have to deal with the stairs.
He somehow managed to get her inside and when she completely passed out on him they both tumbled onto the couch. After extricating his tangled limbs from hers he limped to his room, grabbed a pillow and a blanket, and tucked her in where she lay.
After taking her shoes and making sure she wasn't going to roll off the couch, he made his way to his own room. He fell gracelessly in his bed, swallowed a Vicoden, and promptly started snoring.
HOUSE MD HOUSE MD HOUSE MDAllison stood in the hallway of the hospital staring House down. "Do you…like me?"
House seemed to look for a way out. His eyes darted around, looking at everything but Allison and finally came to land on the floor under his feet.
She took a tentative step forward. "Please, I have to know."
He took a deep breath and mumbled something down at his feet.
She took another step. "What?"
House's blue eyes raised to look into hers as his hand came up to gently caress her cheek. "Yes. Far more than I should."
It wasn't exactly a declaration of love, but it was the best Allison knew she was going to get. A thrill ran through her as he started to lean close; his eyes half-closed…
And a scraping of wood on wood from nearby broke up her dream. Allison groaned and flipped the covers off her head. "Maslow! If you're in my drawers again, I will punt you out the door."
"Who the hell is Maslow? And what's he doing in your drawers."
Allison's eyes quickly opened to the dim morning light and she blinked, trying to clear her fuzzy vision. She knew that voice and it brought back a flood of broken memories from the previous night. She gently picked her head up and found House closing a drawer in the kitchen, a coffee filter in his hand.
"Good morning. I see you're less drunk but still delusional. Who's Maslow?"
She went to sit up all the way and clapped a clammy hand to her mouth as the nausea suddenly rose in her throat.
House saw her turn green and pointed his cane to the hall. "First door on the left."
Allison stumbled out the door. As soon as she found the toilet she started praying to the porcelain god. He rummaged around another drawer for a second and found a rubber band. Snapping it against his wrist a few times, he shook his head and hobbled into the bathroom. A rubber band to the wrist was supposed to curb bad habits; didn't seem to help his.
Allison's head was hanging over the bowl and her arms draped limply on the seat. While she was enjoying her brief respite from the nausea House gathered her mess of hair in the band. She turned to look at him as he sat heavily on the tub edge.
"Why are you being so nice?"
"Because I haven't had my morning cup of coffee yet." He replied with overdone sarcasm. "Give it some time and I'll be the asshole you know and love."
She smiled halfheartedly before puking in the bowl again. A knock on his front door stopped him from antagonizing her any further.
Opening the door he found Angel. She held up the packages filling her gloved hands.
"I brought coffee and donuts."
"Weren't you mad at me just yesterday?"
Muscling her way past him she deposited breakfast on the coffee table. "I'm a woman. I'm allowed to change my mind."
She noticed the cage on the table and the rat spinning contentedly in its wheel. "When'd you get a pet?"
"When I helped a friend with an infestation problem."
Her eyes were drawn to the rumpled blanket and pillow on the couch. Before she could say anything, a noise from the bathroom caught her attention and she headed down the hall to peer at the poor woman slumped over the toilet.
"Boy, when I told you to get a diversion, you didn't waste any time."
Allison lifted her head to sum up the other woman; Angel did the same. Blue eyes met brown and each raised an eyebrow in question. House limped up behind Angel and made introductions.
"Ange, meet Dr. Allison Cameron. Cameron, meet Angel LaBelle, my niece."
"I don't see the resemblance."
Angel scrubbed at her face, mussed up her hair, and took on a sour expression. "Bite me."
"Ah, there it is." The color suddenly left Allison's face and she leaned back over the toilet. House cringed but Angel merely sighed and stripped off her gloves to feel the other woman's forehead.
"Well, she's not sick. She's not pregnant is she?" She gave her uncle a questioning look.
"Hung over."
"Oh. When she's done, clean her up and meet me in the kitchen. My hang over cure'll get her sober enough to work."
Ten minutes later House and Allison sat at his small kitchen table. In front of House, Angel sat two chocolate donuts and coffee. Allison started to look sick at the thought of consuming that much sugar.
"There's no way you're eating that. My hang over cure is what you're getting."
Allison looked slightly sicker. Needless to say, she was surprised when Angel slapped two Ibuprofen tabs in her palm and set a tall glass of water and a toasted cheese sandwich in front of her.
Angel bit into her jelly donut and explained. "The Ibuprofen's for the headache, the water's for the dehydration, and the cheese sandwich is comfort food and a little carb and protein kick to get you going."
Allison smiled appreciatively and swallowed the Ibuprofen.
"So, you're Dr. Cameron."
Allison nodded as she nibbled the sandwich.
"Well, I have to tell you, I admire your stubbornness. Anyone who can stick it out even after all the crap my uncle's pulled deserves some major brownie points."
"You know." Allison said between sips of water. "You're not what I expected House's family to be like."
"Let me guess, you expected me to be a bitch."
Allison blushed. "Yeah, kinda."
"Don't worry, I can be. Uncle Greg's the black sheep of the family, though. He has issues." The last part was said in a stage whisper.
Allison snorted and then clapped a hand to her forehead. "Oh, crap! Can one of you run me by my apartment? I have to check on my cat before I go to work."
"The elusive Maslow who likes to get in your drawers?" House asked with a smirk.
Angel took a studious bite of her donut. "I'm not even gonna ask."