CHAPTER TWELVE
New Year's came and went peacefully, and life at PPTH was back to normal. Well, normal for PPTH, if you can call it that. House was still adjusting to fatherhood, but overall was doing a fairly good job, until the middle of January. Melissa headed off to work after she'd fed C.T., leaving House to get her clothes together to take to Sarah's. It was Melissa's little test to see how well he'd do, which he failed miserably.
When he dressed her, he didn't even bother matching up the colors of the pants to match the shirt; he pretty much dressed her like he dressed himself. When he finished dressing her he saw, for the first time, that although her eyes were his color, she definitely had her mother's mouth. She'd been gurgling and cooing all morning and he didn't have any problem getting her into the safety seat in the back of the '65 Corvette House didn't have the nerve to get rid of.
He knocked on Sarah's door and immediately entered, as had been the custom the past two weeks. Wilson walked toward the door from the kitchen with Charlie running behind him in his one piece socked pj's.
"Uncle Gweg! Aunt C.T.!" He yelled as he stood at House's feet and the baby started kicking her feet to get down and play with him. House grinned knowing Charlie hadn't gotten the concept down that C.T. wasn't really his aunt.
"Got some bad news, Ace!" Wilson said as he grabbed his coat and put it on. "Sarah's got the flu and I have a board meeting in an hour. But, you have to babysit today." He said as he started to walk out the door.
"Hold on there, Bud! I believe you are sadly mistaken."
"I'm afraid not. Cuddy already approved your time off, but I have to take three of your clinic hours, which as you know, I don't mind." He kept walking toward his car as House and Charlie stood at the door. "Bye, Charlie! Be good for Uncle Greg." As Wilson pulled out of the driveway and waved, House slowly closed the door still holding C.T.
"It'ill be fun, Uncle Greg! I got lots-a toys to pway wif!" Charlie said as they walked into the living room. There was a playpen for C.T. and he placed her in it then headed for the phone. He dialed Cuddy's number very quickly and very agitated.
"Cuddy?" He asked as she answered the phone with a grin on her face because Wilson had called from his cell phone as soon as he turned the corner so she knew it would be him. "Can you send Melissa over?"
"I most certainly will not. She has three papers to type and I have a board meeting in an hour. You'll just have to make due there. Hey, sorry, I've got to go." She said then immediately hung up.
He stared at the phone then placed it back in the cradle and looked at Charlie, who'd been staring at him during the phone conversation. House would just have to make due, whether he wanted to or not.
---Over in Cuddy's office...
"Lisa! I can't believe you didn't tell him her Mom was coming over to watch the kids." Melissa said then laughed.
"I know. Paybacks are great, aren't they?" She said wickedly.
---An hour later, House stormed into the lobby of the clinic and headed straight for Cuddy's office, where she, Melissa and Wilson were at her desk going over some papers.
"Hi, honey! How did the babysittin' go?" Melissa asked with a big, fake smile on.
He glared at Cuddy and had trouble finding the right words to tear into her, so he just glared at Wilson.
"You three think you are so funny, don't you?" He said seriously. "I'll have you know I did an incred-ulous job watching those children! Charlie only needed three stitches and C.T. should be okay by tonight." He said then he stormed out.
The three stared at him as he turned the corner, but they saw the smile on his face and he winked at Melissa before he disappeared completely. He went to the elevator to get up to his office and there was a petite red-headed woman that was standing in the corner holding a medical file. She started sneezing...four, five, six times.
House winced and looked at her as she wiped her nose with the back of her hand. When she looked at her hand she cursed, for there was a large amount of blood coming out of her nose. House just looked at the blinking number to see what floor they were on before he groaned, stepped toward her and told her to lean her head back as she pinched her nose.
As the door opened he called for a nurse as he walked out, leaving her in the elevator alone. She took a few steps out and passed out at House's heels. Two nurses and Chase ran toward the elevator to help her.
"What did you do, House? Smack her because she wanted a different floor?" Chase said as he tilted her head back and the nurses attended to her, as House continued to the conference room.
Neither Rog, Foreman nor Cameron looked up as House walked into his office, took off his coat, picked up his coffee mug and walked into the conference room to the coffee machine. He just got done and was turning around when Chase walked in with a folder in his hand, the same folder the redhead was carrying that was in the elevator with House.
"You should feel great knowing you didn't kill Michala Stevenson." Chase said sarcastically as he threw the folder on the table.
"What's that?" Rog asked as he picked it up, opened it and started to read.
"It's Ms. Stevenson's medical folder. I think you guys might find it interesting." He said as he sat down smugly.
House's eyebrows rose up and he said sarcastically, "And why would anyone find a bloody nose interesting?"
"Hmmm. Sixteen year-old female with recurring, acute epistaxis; facial injury in September during soccer match; no nasal polyps; no broke bones; no cancer or tumor in nasal cavities…" Rog was reading as House interrupted him.
"Looks like it's a case for the ENT doc, not us." House said impatiently.
"Right, so I guess she passed out from your dashing good looks, Dr. House?" Cuddy said as she walked through the door. Foreman snickered and Chase couldn't help but laugh; Cameron shot Cuddy a nasty look but she didn't notice because she was confronting House.
"I'm afraid you have to treat Michala, House. I know it's a little out of your field of expertise, but I think you can handle the challenge." Cuddy said sarcastically as she pulled out a chair and sat down.
House looked at her very amused, handed Rog the marker and sat down next to Chase with his arms crossed over his chest and feet propped up on the chair beside him. Rog started writing the symptoms he'd read out loud a few moments ago.
"Uh, write down septal perforation." House muttered under his breath; Rog looked at him confused.
"Also write down cocaine." House said as everyone else now looked at him confused.
"Are you insinuating Michala is doing cocaine which resulted in the septal perforation?" Foreman asked.
"No, doc, I'm insinuating Michala is a man parading around as a woman just so she can have sex with you." He said snottily then said in a southern accent, "Here's your sign!" Cameron and Chase snickered quietly as Rog started writing down the diagnoses under "Cause."
"Get a complete blood test and test for cocaine. When they come back positive, send her to rehab." House said as he stood up and walked toward his office. The team walked out into the hallway to get blood from Michala.
"House, she tested negative for cocaine in Sept." Cuddy said as she followed him in and stood at his desk as he sat down.
"Doesn't mean she's not doing it now, does it?" He asked as he picked up his GameBoy to kill the Purple Onion monsters and Yellow Squash balls with Oil and Vinegar acid he'd almost beaten the other day.
"House, can you pay attention for once in your life?" She snapped as she grabbed the game and threw it on the couch. House glared at her, angrily, although he really wasn't.
"Oh, I paid attention the last time you and I hit the shower to…"
"HOUSE!" Cuddy screamed. "She's the daughter of the Treasury of this hospital, Timothy Stevenson."
"Then why all the cryptic coding, Cuddy? That's all you had to say."
"So, you'll take the case?" Cuddy asked hopefully.
"No. It didn't work. I still don't want it." House told her.
Cuddy narrowed her eyes as she contemplated what her next approach would be. "Okay, fine. You don't have to take the case. But I hope you know this means you now have five extra clinic hours." She snapped as she headed for the door.
"Wait! You can't just bribe me like that! That's employee abuse!" House protested.
She stopped on her heel and turned around. "And why not? You do it to your team all the time. Why can't I?"
"Because you're not their boss."
"Okay, let me think a minute. I'm your boss, you're their boss, so I am their boss, but I'm more important than you are because you are under me." She retorted.
House looked at her like she just spoke Greek, which he hated, therefore failed in college. Cuddy seemed to read his mind.
"Just do it. No clinic hours." She said as she walked out the door and it closed behind her.
He smirked triumphantly to himself, which didn't mean he'd not thought about 'the redheads' condition. He'd simply wait for the blood work to come back positive for cocaine.
But, for now, he was hungry so he pulled out his 'packed lunch' Melissa made for him that morning. He put the separate containers and Ziploc bags on his desk as he grinned to himself as it occurred to him how much he felt like he was in high school and getting his lunch out in the cafeteria. In the bottom of the bag was a folded piece of paper. He frowned, worried at first as to what it could be, then unfolded the pages and started to read.
The note was written on seashore stationary in Melissa's neat cursive writing. It read:
"Story of $20.00 - A well-known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20.00 bill. In the room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $20 bill?" Hands started going up.
He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this." He proceeded to crumple up the $20 dollar bill.
He then asked, "Who still wants it?" Still the hands were up in the air.
Well, he replied, "What if I do this?" And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe.
He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. "Now, who still wants it?" Still the hands went into the air.
"My friends, we have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20.
Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make
and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value.
Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to those who DO LOVE you. The worth of our lives comes not in what we do or who we know, but by WHO WE ARE and WHOSE WE ARE."
You are special- Don't EVER forget it." :o)
House smiled at her note and was deeply touched by her words. He knew he'd made the right choice to do what he did: ask her to marry him, but most importantly, to love her.
He put the note in his pocket and felt the bottle at his fingertips. He frowned then pulled it out, looking at it. It was his Vicodin, with five pills in it. He noticed there was paper in the bottle…'not another note.' He thought to himself. But since the first note was so nice, he figured this note wouldn't be so bad. He pulled it out and read it.
"I have been instructed to slip this into your pocket by Dr. Lisa Cuddy. There are five pills here, which is your two day supply of pain killers. You will be supplied the same every other day. LOVE, Mel."
House wasn't sure how to take the note, but he threw the note away and popped two in his mouth, followed by a sip of water. He made his sandwich then took a bite. Just as he was about to swallow Dr. Cameron walked in.
"She tested negative for cocaine, and every other type of barbiturate. After they gauzed her nostril the bleeding stopped." She told him defiantly.
"Okay, then discharge her." He told her.
"What am I supposed to tell Dr. Cuddy?"
"Hmmph, I'll say it again. Discharge her."
"But we've got to find what's causing her bleeding, Dr. House."
"Discharge her." He repeated. She gave him an 'unbelievable' expression then walked out.
---Later that afternoon Melissa, Chase and Cameron were out at Maestro's Ristorante.
"Was Dr. Cuddy pissed House discharged Michala?" Chase asked as he bit into his garlic bread.
"You're brushing your teeth before I kiss you, Robert." Cameron told him with a grin. "Yeah, she was. But she had a board meeting shortly thereafter and said she'd take care of him tomorrow."
"Oh, great. That means Greg'll be in a foul mood tonight." Melissa sighed as she pushed back her plate with very little food eaten.
Cameron took notice of that fact and asked, "Missy, have you been feeling okay lately? I've noticed you haven't been eating much the past few days."
Melissa looked at Chase then back to Cameron. Cameron took the hint and kicked him under the table.
"Ow! What the hell was that for?" He softly yelled.
"You've got asparagus in your teeth I think you need to get it taken care of in the bathroom." Cameron said.
"But I haven't eaten asparagus. I hate asp…"
"Robert, go to the bathroom, okay?" Cameron told him impatiently. At first Chase didn't realized what Cameron was telling her
but then it dawned on him that the two needed some 'girl time.'
"Sure, I'm sorry." He said as he wiped his mouth, stood up and walked away, with no protest from Melissa.
"Allie, you didn't have to do that."
"Yes, I did. I've noticed you've lost weight since the holidays and you look a little pale."
"I haven't lost all that much weight. It's just C.T. and running after her and playing with her, on top of the normal stress from the holidays."
"No, it's not. Even Dr. Cuddy commented to me ab…" Cameron started to say.
"Oh, so she asked you to spy on me?"
"It's not like that. She's concerned about you."
Melissa sighed. "Allie, I'm sorry. I've just been a little depressed, I guess."
"Are you still taking the Lithium?" Cameron asked.
"No, Dr. Starke had me switch to Prozac because it's been tough lately and I've been doing so much better. But I've just been tired and there's no reason why I should be. It's not physical exhausting, more mental, I guess."
"Have you talked to House about how you've been feeling?"
"Heck, no. He's got C.T. to worry about so he don't need me makin' him worry more."
"Melissa, he'd only worry about you if you weren't taking care of yourself and you're not. Please tell me you'll talk to him."
She just stared at the candle in the center of the table and slowly nodded her head, even though she had no intention of talking to House because she still believed he didn't need her to worry over.
Chase tentatively walked toward the table and sat down to finish his entrée but didn't speak a word.
"So, when are you two getting hitched?" Melissa asked as she sipped the cappuccino she'd ordered.
Chase almost choked on the chicken but took a sip of water as he tried to think of a reply, but really he was waiting for Cameron to answer the question. Cameron looked at Chase then to the table but never made eye contact with Melissa.
"Hey, what do you want for dessert?" Cameron asked as she waved for the waiter…..
When Melissa walked into the apartment early that evening, House was holding C.T. in his lap and reading her a story. It was her favorite book, the "Feel It" book that she loved touching the pages that were either sandy or furry or lumpy or whatever. C.T. was eight months old and had been cutting in two teeth at the top of her mouth. She still hadn't said her first word yet, but she sure did a lot of talking. Well, gibberish House called it, but Melissa would play along with her like they were carrying on a conversation until the baby giggled.
"Hey! Mommy's ho…" House said then cut himself off. He was looking at C.T. when he said it, and as he glanced up at Melissa he couldn't read the expression on her face as to whether she caught him saying that. They had previously discussed not calling her Mommy but it just slipped out, but Melissa was okay with it.
"Hi, babe. I left some deli meat in the keeper and there's salad in the fridge." He told her as she took her coat off and hung it on the rack. She only glanced in the room and nodded her head, then walked down the hallway to the bedroom.
"Uh, oh. Missy's in a bad mooood." House said as he lifted her up in the air and shook her a little and hoped her nighttime milk wouldn't end up on his face. He stood up, carried C.T. to her room and laid her in her crib; all of the baby's furniture had been delivered the week before and they had her room set-up with only an hour.
C.T. whined a few minutes but then settled down on the mattress and talked with her purple teddy bear her "Aunt Sarah" bought her. He turned on the musical merry-go-round and quietly closed the door behind him. He walked to the bar, poured a Scotch, downed it quickly and headed to his bedroom.
"Melissa, are you gonna to eat?" He said as he walked through the door but stopped when he saw her lying in bed under the covers with her head facing away from him. He slowly walked to the side of the bed and heard soft cries and sniffles. He sat down on the bed and put his left hand on her right hip as he stared at her.
"Missy, what's wrong, hunny?" He asked sweetly. She paused, trying to force back more tears but it didn't work. Her body trembled as she cried heavily. He giggled a little and pulled her up into his arms.
"It…naw…nny…" She stammered as she broke down again. He pressed her head against his chest and rocked her back and forth, letting her cry and waiting for them to become softer and her tears stop falling.
"Oooh, baby, what is it?" He asked as she tore herself away from him and wiped the tears from her face.
"Nuthin'….mmm just sooo tired." She said but avoided his eyes. "…don't think the pills are working, Greg. I'm exhausted, can't eat, can't sleep at night but then all I want to do is sleep during the day but I can't because there's little Charnie and then making you dinner when you come home an…" She said so quickly all the words meshed together into one word.
"Mistletoe, if it's your medications they can easily be altered. There's no need to get all worked up about it. But we can check your blood work again to see if there's infect…"
"And I don't wanna get sick no more! I'm tired of feeling sick…jus' wanna feel good and take care of you and C.T."
"Why don't you ask for a week off, Missy? I'm sure Lisa will understand. That'll give you time to adjust to this new situation that we're both in."
"Oh, there ya go! Making it seem like you're worse off than I am! Gawd, I HATE that…'poor wittle Gweggie Pooh is a cripple' so everyone needs to revolve their life around YOU!" She screamed as she jumped out of bed and headed to the bathroom. Before she could close the door he grabbed the doorknob, trying to keep it open.
"Get out, Greg! I wanna be alone!" She screamed as she fought him.
"No, no way. I will not leave you alone when you're like this." He declared while struggling more to stand in front of the door.
He was just about to pull the door wider by the door handle when suddenly she let go, which sent the door right into House's face. His head shot back as he grabbed his nose and took a few steps back. She stood there staring at him, thinking he was just faking to get her out of the bathroom until she saw blood pour down his upper lip.
"Oh, Greg! Oh, Gawd! I am sooo…" She started to say as she walked toward him. He pushed her away from him as he walked to a chair, grabbed a towel and placed it to his nose to stop the bleeding. He then sat down while Melissa just stood at the bathroom door staring at him.
"I didn't mean what I said, Greg. Please, please let me help you." She pleaded to him, afraid to walk toward him.
He just stared at her, shocked at her behavior and what she said. But he had to ask himself if he was pissed she was right, or pissed at the fact that he'll have a black and blue eye for a few days. The bleeding finally stopped and he stood up and walked to her. She sat on her knees with her eyes wide in terror, scared, confused, bewildered, overwhelmed.
He knelt in front of her and took hold of both her shoulders as he said, "Melissa, you need to talk to me. You can't keep all your frustrations bottled up. That's why I'm here, babe. Please, talk to me."
Tears were building in her eyes as she managed to say, "…mmm scah-aired…"
"Oh, scared of what?" He asked sympathetically.
She hesitated a brief moment then said, "Of losing you."
He laughed fondly. "You're not gonna lose me, Missy. I'm here. I've always been here. Sweetie, is that all this is?" She sniffled and wiped her nose with her forearm.
"Eeewww, I can't believe you just DID that! Ga-rosss!" He said playfully trying to get her to laugh.
"I'm afraid of leaving you." She finally said with all her strength escaping her.
It suddenly dawned on House what Melissa was referring to. All he could do was hold her tighter, as if it were that easy to reassure her. He slowly stood up and reached for her arm, which she took and he pulled her up. He guided her to the bed and they sat beside one another, with her arms wrapped around herself as if protecting herself from House.
"Melissa, first of all, we are getting some more tests tomorrow and then we're changing your anti-depressant. What do you say we go see Dr. Parker, too?"
"I'm still seeing Dr. Par…" She started to say.
"No, I'm talking about as a couple, you and I. I want to know what's going on with you. I want you to talk to me, baby."
"But Greg, don't you get it? You want me to bare my soul to you when you have your own issues and you don't talk to me ab…wait, okay, that wasn't fair."
He stood up angrily and screamed at her, "WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?"
She finally looked at him and with a tear running out of the corner of her eye she said, "I want you to tell me I don't got
AIDS! I know I'm not her mother but I love her as if I were! I want you to tell me I'm gonna send C.T. off to kindergarten and take pictures at her first dance in middle school and see her walk down the isle and watch your hair grow more grey and…ann…"
House just looked at her, not knowing what to say.
"I don't wanna leave you, Greg. I've been thinking about it the past few weeks and I know I will but I'm not ready. I saw C.T. in your lap and asked myself, 'what am I doing here? He'll be just fine without me.'"
He sat back down beside her and put his right arm around her hips and leaned into her, burying his nose in her neck. She turned her head to face him and put her arm around him as well.
She started to laugh then said, "I'd make a real good mother to C.T., wouldn't I? I'd be having a mental breakdown every two weeks."
"Oh, stop, Mistletoe." House said with a half-smile as he looked into her eyes. "We'll get through this."
House and Melissa went to bed that night in each other's arms, although he didn't fall asleep as quickly as she did, again. As he looked at her face, every line, freckle, he realized exactly what she meant. What she didn't seem to realize was that he didn't want her to leave, either.
Of course he loved Stacy, but the love he had with Melissa was deeper. The rare love they shared came from within, from their souls, the very depth of their being. It had nothing to do with a physical love that seemed to be of the relationship with Stacy.
'And which is/was more meaningful?' He asked himself as he brushed the hair away from her face. He leaned his head to hers and kissed her forehead. "You are." He said out loud to her as he closed his eyes and fell into a peaceful, comforting, joyful, loving sleep.
---Over at Wilson's house that same time, he and Sarah were sitting in the living room watching t.v. while she folded clothes.
"Sarah, have you been talking to Mel at all lately, like, the past two weeks?" He asked her during a commercial.
"Of course, why?"
"Have you noticed any change in her since New Year's?"
"She hasn't said anything to me specifically, but she has seemed a little bit down." She told him.
He nodded his head and just as he finished little Charlie shuffled into the living room rubbing his eyes.
"What's the matter, Bud? Have a nightmare?" Wilson asked as he hit couch cushion for Charlie to sit next to him.
"I hadda bad dweam." He whined as Wilson handed him a blanket and he lay down with his stuffed monkey. "Aunt Mewissa weft ann I tol' her stay but she went anyways."
Wilson looked at Sarah because he was at a loss for words and hoped Sarah would be able to find some.
"Honey, Aunt Melissa isn't going anywhere. That's what a nightmare is, just a bad dream." She said reassuringly.
Charlie looked at his mom, stuck his thumb in his mouth and closed his eyes. They continued to watch t.v. a few more minutes until they were sure Charlie was indeed asleep; Sarah grew anxious waiting for him to fall asleep.
As soon as they were sure he was asleep, she picked up the phone and called Melissa. The phone rang four-five-six times with no answer. She was just about to hang up when she heard House say, "What the hell do you want?"
She started laughing. "Hey, grouch! Is Missy still up?" There was silence a moment, then a "hello" from her.
"Hey, Missy. I just wanted to make sure you'd be dropping off C.T. in the morning." Sarah said.
"Girl, you called me out of a dead sleep for that?" Melissa fussed at her.
"Uh, well, yes."
"Sarah, I will see you in the morning." Then she hung up.
"You couldn't think of a better excuse than that?" Wilson asked her as she went to pick up Charlie and put him down in his own bed.
"Well, no." She whispered then carried Charlie up to his own bed. She came back downstairs a moment later and put the clothes basket in the hallway then sat down.
"Uh, hun?"
"Uh, Jimmy?"
"When did you say you started seeing dead people?"
"James, will you stop." She said laughing but then she got serious. "I was his age when they started talking to me."
"Then explain to me his nightmare."
"I can't. All I know, and need to know is Melissa's fine. But I guess I'll have to talk to Charlie about his gift soon."
"Gift? That is just freakin' weird!" He said as he stood up and stretched.
"Well, my aunt had premonitions instead of voices, so maybe he got her gift."
"gooooo tooooo beeeeeeed…" Wilson whispered in her ear like it was a voice from beyond and she couldn't help but laugh.
"I'llll gooooo toooo beeedddd wheennn yooou shuut offff theee liiites." She said as she headed for the stairs.
"You scare me." He teased with a grin as he turned off the two lamps in the room.
"Be scaaaared, be very skawed!" She said as she ran up the stairs, with Wilson in a mad dash after her.
---Early the following morning, Cuddy sat at her kitchen table drinking coffee and eating toast while reading the morning's paper. She frowned at the picture of a 10-year old girl in the obituary section; the little girl was Andie. She felt tears swell in her eyes as the memory of her stay flooded back to her. Andie was the sweetest, bravest kid she'd ever met and was sorry she'd passed, but she knew Andie was no longer in pain and she'd be happier where she was now: in heaven with the other little kids making them smile and laugh and sing along with her.
She left and got to work a little late that morning, after she'd cried a little bit and had to compose herself to be able to work. She said good morning to Melissa as she took the coffee she'd handed her and went to her desk. Melissa noticed she was a little down but decided to let things be.
Cuddy made a quick phone call before she started on anything else that morning. And it was going to be a long day for Dr. Lisa Cuddy.