Author Note: Ok. Here is the date. I hope it flows good and everyone likes it. Please review. Thanksto everyone who replied. Lots of love and kisses. Enjoy 12/15/05 - just made some quick corrections.
Disclaimer: House and Fox are not mine.
Chapter 12: House and Cameron take 2, or was it 3?
"Are you sure that you want to do this? You remember the last time that you went down this path?" Foreman asked, looking at the E.K.G. readings of their newest patient.
"Not really." Cameron said, pacing in the small room. "You can't be sure of anything when that man is involved." She huffed, sitting in the chair next to him.
"You have a point there." Foreman said, "What are you going to do with Hannah?"
"Oh, believe me. She let it into me good this morning when I even mentioned anything relating to a sitter." Cameron shuttered as she remembered the argument she got in this morning.
"Wow, already arguing. Seems almost normal." Foreman said. Thinking for a minute. "If you need me to come over, I can."
"No, it's alright. I think she might run away if you showed up at all." Cameron sighed, massaging her temples. "And what's worse is that House is avoiding me like the plague. So, I don't know what to wear tonight. I'm tempted to just open the door wearing pajamas."
Foreman chuckled and looked over at her, putting his hand on her back. After a moment, he looked up and saw the familiar form of their boss coming to the room. "It looks like you might get to ask him for yourself." He said, as he pulled away from her.
"Foreman, go run pointless test on our patient." House said, effectively getting him out of the room. He just rolled his eyes and took the file from him.
"House, this patient just has a cold." Foreman said
"Well duh, but it could be meningitis. You could be saving a life here!" House said, rolling his eyes.
At that, Foreman huffed and left the room. That left House and Cameron alone in the tech room, while the patient was getting wheeled out of the room.
"Blue." House said, not looking at her. "Wear something blue, and not too fancy. Short would be nice too, but that's not a requirement."
"Blue? I thought you would want me to wear something that matches your car." Cameron smirked at him. She was fixing to make another comment but stopped when she looked in his eyes. He was staring at her, seemingly picking her apart. All sarcasm was gone for once for him. "A-All right." She stuttered, as she turned away from him and began to pick up her paperwork.
Cameron could feel his eyes bore into her back as she gathered her file together. Before he limped toward the door, he came over to the table and peered over her shoulder. She could feel him breathing slightly on her neck, and was very aware of how close his body.
The sharp intake of breath the she took made House smile. 'Still got it.' He thought, as he turned towards the door and left.
Cameron stood there for a few minutes as she tried to calm her heart down. Then, like the dawning of the day she came to a conclusion. He was toying with her again. She turned with a scowl and began to go after him but stopped before her hand touched the door.
A slow grin came to her face as she thought of a plan. Revenge would be much more fun than a confrontation at work. "Time to change the clothing for tonight."
Cameron smirked and walked to the lab, plans forming in her head.
Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd
"Why don't you just wear the black skirt with the rose camisole and shawl? Isn't that what you had picked out earlier?" Hannah said to Allison while she sat on her bed. It was then that Hannah realized that she seemed to spend a lot of time on her mother's bed.
"Ah, but that was before. This is now." Allison called from the closet. "I know that I have that blue skirt somewhere."
A few minutes later, Hannah sighed and rolled on the bed a few times. 'Bored!' she thought to herself. "Do you need any help?" Hannah asked, standing up and peering into the closet.
"I doubt that you could find it, I don't even know if I can wear it anymore." Allison said, as she sat in the middle of the floor and looked through the piles of clothes.
Hannah just watched her for a few minutes. When she was just about to turn to go leave, something caught her eye. In the corner of the closet, there was a blue skirt. Smirking, she took the hanger and pulled the skirt out. "Are you looking for this?" she asked her mother, as she held the hanger just above her head.
"Good eyes kiddo!" Allison said, "Now, let's see if it fits."
With that, she slipped out of her shorts and took the skirt of the hanger. With no help at all, the skirt slipped passed her hips and thighs. It rested just below her waist perfectly. Standing back and looking in the mirror, Allison smirked. The skirt was fitting in the hips but flared out of the bottom. The length of the skirt came to about mid-thigh. The color was a mix of gray and blue, similar to the color of her eyes.
"Well, what do you think?" She said, as she turned to look at her daughter.
"I think that you better not turn sharp like that, the whole night." Hannah said, looking at her from the bed. "What shirt are you gonna wear?"
"Why don't you pick that out for me?" Allison smiled, sitting on the bed.
Hannah smiled and jumped out of the bed. In a few minutes, she came back with a top that brought back memories. It was a maroon corset top that had sheer sleeves. The sleeve fell off the shoulders and flowed down to her fingertips. The front and back laced up to the neckline. "What about this one?"
"That'll work. Now, let's see how they look together?" she said, as she slipped on the shirt and stepped back to look in the mirror. Allison slowly turned in the mirror and looked back at Hannah
Hannah watched and smiled. "It looks great. You look like some one in a GAP commercial."
Allison just laughed, "Now, is that really a good thing?"
Within a few minutes, Hannah was sitting in the living room waiting for House while her mom was finishing up. As she sat alone, she began to think about the sarcastic man. While, her mom was able to be around him more. The first impression that Hannah had of him was not a very good one.
Maybe it will turn out better this time. If her seemingly perfect mother liked him, then he can't be all that bad.
Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd
(Earlier in the afternoon)
"Now, I seem to remember being in this same spot not long ago." Wilson called out to House, while lying on the couch. At the present time, he was putting on a tie.
"But, I thought you slept there every night?" House called out to Wilson, looking at himself in the mirror. Wilson just smirked at him and smiled. It seemed that his friend was more nervous than he wanted to believe.
"If I were you, I wouldn't wear a tie." Wilson said, "It seems to lower your I.Q when dealing with women."
"It was only once and she told me that she was into that kind of thing, how was I too know that .. " At that House turned and saw that look in Wilson's eyes, "Ah, you were talking about something else. My bad."
Wilson just sighed and closed him eyes. A few minutes later, House came back tie-less. This made Wilson smirk, which made House scowl at him. As Wilson got up to leave, when House stopped him.
"What, no words of wisdom?" House said, looking at Wilson with an eyebrow raised in question.
"Last time I said something, you did the opposite. I think everyone knows at the hospital how that went." Wilson said, getting his coat and putting it on.
"Humor me for once, be that annoying voice in my head." House said as he locked up his house.
Wilson looked up and sighed. "Don't analyze her tonight. Also, remember that you asked her out."
House watched Wilson go to his car, before limping over to his own car. As he got in the car, he realized that Wilson was right. Last time, he analyzed why she wanted him. Now, he couldn't do that. He was the one that approached her. He was the one that blackmailed her. In this dinner, he wasn't out to prove why she wanted to be with him. He was out to prove why he wanted her.
As he drove the short distance to her apartment, he began to think. Little did he know, that this line of thinking would be taking him to a place that he had not been in many years.
Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd
Hannah and Allison were sitting in the living room waiting for House, in their own thoughts. But, they were thinking about the same thing. Allison wondering what House would throw at her. Hannah wondering what it was about this man that her mother liked so much.
"Why do you like him?" Hannah blurted out.
Allison just turned her head and smiled at her daughter. "Everything." Was all she said to her, "I like everything from his eyes to his leg that he hates so much. I guess you wouldn't understand. It's all just a part of him. He has his good points and his bad. There are things that I hate and things that I love about him."
"Do you love him?" Hannah asked, looking at her mom.
"Sometimes." Allison said, looking over at her.
Hannah opened her mouth to ask another question, when there was a tap at the door. Hannah rolled her eyes and looked at her mom. "I wish he would just knock on the door like a normal person."
The tapping came again before Cameron could get to the door. Before she opened it, she just looked at Hannah and smiled. "That's because her isn't a normal person Hannah."
Allison smiled as she opened the door, "Hello House."
"Cameron." Was all he said to her as he leaned back to look at her clothes, this was not what he was expecting. He had expected her to come to the door in any other color than blue. But, here she was in blue.
"Want to come in and say hello to Hannah? I need to grab my purse from the bedroom." She asked him, opening the door for him to come in.
House slowly nodded and poked his head in the door. Cameron's kid was currently sitting in a chair with her legs over the side of the arm. Her elbows were currently propping up her chin.
"Hello." Hannah said, looking at him.
"Back to ya." House said, sitting on the couch. The two looked at each other before House sighed and looked at her. "I don't do children very well."
"Well, that's reassuring to hear. I was wondering for a moment," Hannah said, responding back to him quickly.
House just stared at her in shock. "Well, I felt you should know before it came out in the newspaper."
"I'm sure I wouldn't miss it in the Entertainment section. They would probably have a comic about it." Hannah said, not backing down from his bantering.
"Good girl. Cameron can keep you." He said, giving her a small nod of approval.
Hannah exhaled loudly and whipped pretend sweat of her brow. "I can go to sleep easy now."
"Well, I had to make sure that you weren't giving her "girly"cuties. The team has an image to maintain." House said.
The two leaned back then and appraised each other silently, both of the watching each other. This girl shocked House, she had spunk. The kind of spunk rarely found in 15 yr old girls.
It was at this point that Cameron came in and looked at the two. "It was getting quiet. I was wondering if one of you had disappeared."
House looked from mother to daughter and sighed. He would have to be careful with these two. They were dangerous when they are put together. "Ready?" House asked Cameron as he got up and limped to the door.
Cameron nodded and followed. "Now, I left Eric's phone number and both of our pager numbers. Call us if you need us. Don't open the door. Don't leave the apartment. If you .." She began to rattle of the list to Hannah.
"I got it. I got it." Hannah said, pushing her out the door while House was pulling on her arm. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. Have fun and all that good stuff."
Allison leaned forward and kissed her forehead before turning to walk passed House. As Hannah closed the door, a cane stopped the door from closing.
"Call if anything happens." Was all he said, with a stern look on his face. All Hannah could do was just nod and close the door.
As House walked to the elevator, thoughts race through his mind. "What on earth was that?" He thought, following Cameron.
"You ok?" Allison asked, as she put her small hand on his forearm.
House looked at the hand and then quickly looked away. "Yep. Let's go eat."
Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd
"So, where are we going?" Allison asked, once they got on the road.
"Dante's" House said, without looking at her.
"I've heard of that restaraunt before. It's in a hotel downtown, I think." She said, looking out the window.
House just nodded in agreement. He didn't want to mention that the hotel had the best pianist in the city that played there every Friday night. The seats that he reserved were close enough to hear the music, while being far enough to hear each other.
As he pulled up to the valet at the Adam's Mark, he looked at her. "You're wearing blue." House said as he walked around to join her by the car. "But, not near short enough." He said, looking behind her.
"Well, I can't wear all my risqué outfits outside. Whatever would I wear around the house?" Allison retorted.
"And so the true Cameron comes out. I knew you were hiding a darker side." House said as he waited by her with his arm tilted to her slightly.
Allison just looked at the arm and back to him. Slowly, she wrapped her arm through his and smiled. As usual, House just shrugged and began walking. But, she could have sworn that she saw a light-ness in his eyes.
Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd
Dinner passed by and it came time for desert. The conversation that went on was kept to a bare minimum, much to Allison's delight. House seemed to be popping pills like they were candy. When the plates were taken and they were given desert menus, she could feel him thumping his cane under the table.
"You know, if you want to talk to me about something, you should just say it." Allison said while looking at the desert menu.
"I want to hear about it."
"It?" Allison asked, with an innocent look on her face. The look on House's face made her stop her next comment. "By it, I take it that you mean Hannah?"
"No, the other child that you have living with you.' House said, glaring at her with those intense eyes.
"There's really not much to say. I was young, too young, and it just happened. I found out I was pregnant, and my father kicked us out. I'm just lucky that my brother took us in. Through him, I graduated high school and college. My plan was too have a life that she could be proud of, but I got side tracked. By the time, I realized that maybe my plan wasn't the best idea. She was already grown." Allison said, stirring the coffee in her cup.
"And her father?" House asked, looking down.
"Ah, Daniel Lannister. We grew up together, and it worked up from there. I think what hurts the most is that he was there, when I wasn't." She said, taking a break before starting again. "I haven't seen him for years. She looks more like him every day."
"No she doesn't." he said to her, "She is all you. Her eyes are really the only thing that doesn't favor you." House could tell that she was leaving out some key points, but decided not to call her on it. That would be later.
"Thanks."
Silence came over the table again. The two of them not knowing what or how to say the things that they wanted to say to each other.
"Every time I think I have you figured out, you trip me up." House said out of nowhere.
"Tell me about it." Allison smirked at him, agreeing with his comment.
Dessert was set on the table before House spoke up again. Allison was about to take a bite of her Chocolate cake, when he stopped her.
"Tell me about her."
"You actually want to know about my child?" She questioned, her fork still raised.
"Who knows, I may never ask again? Just humor me." House said, drinking his coffee. He watched as she took a bite of the cake in front of her.
"Well, her birthday is April 16th. Her full name is Hannah Marie Lannister. As far as I know, she still wants to go to Yale to be a Lawyer."
"Not a doctor?" he asked, with a confused look on his face.
"Her? No, she freaks out when she watches ER." Allison said, with a small life. "Wesley is a lawyer. She might have gotten it from him. I just tell her that she's a smart kid, she can do anything that she wants too. When she was young, she wanted to dig up dinosaurs!"
House just watched as she finished her cake and told stories of her child growing up. They were few and far between but she told them all with a smile. But he could see the sadness behind her eyes. 'Lying to herself again.' He thought as he watched her.
"We should do this again." House said, making her stop and look at him with wide eyes. "What? I'm not asking you to marry me! We can even bring Hannah with us. Do a movie or something."
"You mean to tell me that you want to take me and Hannah out together?"
"Well, if you want me to take you both out separately I could. But, what would everyone think? I am already "robbing the cradle" with you?" House said, paying the bill. He looked up with mock pain on his face.
"Ah, so this was a date?" Allison said, with a knowing look on her face.
"And on that note, time to go home." House said, standing up and limping as fast as he could towards the door.
Allison just laughed and jogged up to him. When she caught up to him, she found him taking the lid of his bottle. After taking a couple, they began the trek to the front of the hotel. As they walked to the door, she looped her arm in his one more time.
"Oh! Will you stop smiling? You're giving off laser beams of giddiness! Don't taint my car." House said, scowling all the way to her home.
Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd Hmd
The ride home came too soon for the two. As Allison began to get out of the car, she turned to him. "You don't have to get out. I can make it to the door myself."
House just ignored her, opened the door and got out. He limped over to her side and held his arm out again. After a few minutes, he turned towards her. One look in his eyes made her stop looking at his arm and just take it. The two walked through the doors of her apartment building, and into the elevator. The door seemed to come too soon for the two of them. Allison slowly took her arm back and began to fish for her keys.
House spent the next few minutes twirling his cane and staring at the wall. Allison was currently staring at her feet. When she looked up, she saw him moving away from her and towards the elevator. Feeling courageous, she grabbed his sleeve. In a slow movement, he turned back around to her. She was, again staring at her feet.
House sighed and just waited. He was fixing to say something to her, when she jerked her head up and looked at him. In movements faster then he could even catch, she stood on her toes and kissed his cheek.
Allison looked at him again and quickly darted towards her door. She almost made it.
House took a hold of her purse trap and pulled her towards him. He looked at her with an annoyed look and smirked. "What are we, four?" He said, just before slowly lifting her chin and giving her a soft kiss on her lips. "Now, time to go. None of this too anyone. I have an image to maintain."
"Too late for that." She said as she turned around again to open the door. "Goodnight House."
House stared at the door before turning around and slowly limping to the elevator. Once the doors closed, he leaned his head on the back of the elevator. He closed his eyes and grinned.
'Cool.'