Thanks for the reviews so far! I got lucky and three of my lectures were cancelled today, so I seized the opportunity to write more! I won't usually update this quickly, but this is really just an extension of the prologue. Don't worry, I'll develop more soon! But you simply must review. You must. Must.
A/N: I'll be doing the then... of a different character every chapter. Except House, obviously, because that would make for rather uninteresting reading.And I'm also hoping to reintroduce a character with every instalment.
Pillow Tales – Ch1: The ICU Attending
Now…"Six months?" House repeated disbelievingly. Chase nodded, sighing resignedly and avoiding House's eyes.
"You were stable for six months. No change. Cuddy had you transferred to the ICU, so you could have a good private room." House looked away from Chase's aquamarine eyes, and stared pensively at the ceiling.
Chase rubbed at the back of his neck. "Look, I have to finish rounds. I'll check on you in a bit." He gave House a gentle clap on the arm before standing up and heading out the door.
Chase walked briskly down the corridor towards the nurses' station. He pulled out his pager and keyed 'House awake' onto the small screen, sending the page to Wilson. He looked up at the nurse behind the counter, and tried to engage her eyes. "Could you notify Dr. Foreman and Dr. Allison Cameron that Dr. House is awake, please?" he asked her politely.
"Sure," she answered and Chase turned and strolled aimlessly down the hallway. So House was awake. Wilson would tell Cuddy. Someone should tell Dr. Foley.
Chase arrived at the elevators, and found his attention captured by an 'Information Point' sign on the wall. Diagnostics, level three. Chase sighed and turned around, making his way back through the ICU.
Then…
Chase was the last to arrive in the conference room. Traffic had been obstructed on his normal work-route by an overturned articulated truck; an entire portion of the road had been cut-off by smashed glass from the cargo of beer-bottles it was carrying. He avoided eye contact as he strode nonchalantly into the room, hanging up his coat and dropping his bag without drawing attention to himself.
When Chase finally turned to face his colleagues, he discovered their attention was elsewhere anyway. Cameron's eyes were red-rimmed and wide in shock, staring at the wall opposite her, and Foreman was dejectedly throwing the soft ball into the air and catching it on its return. Chase surveyed the two for a minute, looking between them.
"What's happened?" he asked them, his brow furrowed. Foreman did nothing to acknowledge his presence, but continued to brood darkly whilst tossing the ball. Cameron also made no immediate move, but gave a slight sniff before meeting his eye.
"House crashed his bike. He's at Princeton General," she told him, her eyes shining with tears. The room returned to the heavy, miserable silence after she spoke. After a pause, Chase swallowed hard and moved closer towards where she sat at the table.
"How is he?" he blurted out. Cameron, unable to speak another word, turned away from him and let out a long, frustrated sigh. Foreman caught the ball on its descent, and then looked over to Chase.
"We don't know. They won't tell us anything."
Chase pulled out a chair and sank down into it, gazing numbly at his own reflection in the glass tabletop. Cameron began to weep miserably beside him, but he was too shocked to do anything other than ignore the heavy sobbing and try to understand what the hell was going on.
Now…
Chase was at the nurses' station when Dr. Foley arrived on the ICU floor. A nurse named Ruth accompanied him; she worked with Chase on this floor, and he'd noted how she seemed isolated from the other nurses. She was selfish and appraising, and it was apparent to Chase that once she'd heard mention of House's resurgence, she'd made her way downstairs to Foley's office to become the official messenger.
Foley's eyes immediately located Chase and he crossed the hallway purposefully, neglecting to acknowledge any nurses who addressed his arrival. Chase wearily greeted him.
"Dr. Foley."
Foley nodded cordially. He was in his early forties, tall and stocky, with a receding brown hairline and large, beady eyes. His white coat was thrown over a smart brown shirt and tie and beige suit pants.
"Rob," he responded absently. The two began walking together down the hallway, in the direction of House's hospital room. "I heard Dr. House is awake?" he questioned. Chase nodded.
"He woke up an hour ago. Seems perfectly healthy, no obvious trauma," he confirmed. Foley nodded briskly and looked away. They reached House's room, and the two stood outside the door, gazing inside through the window. Chase stuffed his hands in his pockets and watched as House stared sadly at the TV screen in the corner of the room. General Hospital.
Chase sighed as he studied House's face. The wrinkled brow, the lips contorted in a frown – utter confusion. Soap operas are the fastest moving dramas on air; half the cast had probably been fired and replaced in the six months since House had last seen it. And General Hospital wasn't the only place that had changed drastically in that time.
Making his mind up, Chase turned to Foley, who was also staring intently into the room. "Look, Dr. Foley," he began, and Foley switched his attention to him. "House is going to find it really difficult to adapt. A lot has changed in the past six months – it's not going to be easy for him." Chase paused and tried to choose his words as tactfully as possible. He took a deep breath. "Maybe it would be best if-"
"Chase!"
Chase looked off towards the source of the interruption, and found Wilson tearing down the corridor, his white jacket flapping behind him like a cape. Chase stepped away from the window, and Wilson slowed as he approached.
"I got your page," Wilson began frantically. Chase closed his eyes patiently and nodded in verification. "I let Cuddy know and ran straight up here… how's he doing? Have you told him anything?" Wilson paused to gather his breath and Chase shook his head.
"He's fine. Initial examinations, he looks good. And, no," Chase conceded, "he doesn't know anything yet."
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