CHAPTER NINE
Later that afternoon House went to check on Cameron before he went home for the night, and was relieved when he found Chase wasn't there. Foreman stood at the window looking out. House stopped at the door for a brief moment before walking to Cameron's bed. He found it hard to look at her, only asking Foreman her condition.
He turned to look at House and was a little shocked at how bad he looked. The stubble on his face was thicker than he'd ever seen it, and his eyes appeared as if he hadn't slept in three days, since the day she slipped into the coma.
"She's stable and breathing on her own, which is a good sign. She's responding to pain stimulation and her stats are normal. House, when was the last time you slept?"
"Uh, since the dinosaurs ruled the earth. Go home," he replied.
Foreman couldn't help but grin at his comment, knowing House would be fine due to his ability to carry on with his snarkiness. Foreman approached him and put his hand on his shoulder; he could feel him pull away but didn't remove his hand.
"House, she'll be fine. There have been other patients in worse shape than she is and they pulled through. Have faith."
House looked at Foreman skeptically. "George Michael has Faith, hell, Faith Hill has faith, but I'll never have faith." Foreman shook his head and left House alone with her.
His thoughts raced as he pulled down the guard rail of the bed and sat down on the mattress at her hips. He remembered the surprise in himself at his body shaking the closer she got to him, her body pressing against his, the softness of her hands as they caressed his chin and cheeks, her hot breath on his lips right before her moist lips brushed against his.
He fought her, at first, but something came over him. Something he hadn't expected – he liked it. Cameron was the first woman he'd ever kissed since Stacy – hell, it was better than kissing Stacy. It was passionate, but not meaningless; it was sexy, yet not slutty; it was … comforting.
But there was something he couldn't put his finger on, something that bothered him.
His thoughts went back to the time he was shot and the hallucination he'd had with Cameron on the gurney in the operating room showing 'Giant Tongue Man' the computerized surgical machine. He seductively traced the knife apparatus to the top button of her blouse and popped it off …
… and it suddenly came to him: he did care for her. But he felt he wasn't good enough for her. He couldn't bring himself to sleeping with her when he knew it would mean more to her than it would to him. And he'd only hurt her. She didn't deserve that. Not Cameron …
House heard his name and at first thought he was imagining it but soon realized it was Chase's voice. He'd been standing behind him for several minutes.
"Are you okay? You kinda zoned out," Chase asked as he walked around to the other side of the bed. He checked her vitals and only when he was satisfied did he relax and sit in the chair beside the bed.
"Yeah," he answered, shifting his body on the mattress before he stood and turned to walk out.
Don't go …
House shook his head, as if that would keep his memories at bay and he would no longer hear her pleading voice in his head.
… Come baaaack …
Unexpectedly, at hearing her voice for the second time, he knew it wasn't a memory or a hallucination or that he'd finally lost his mind.
It was Cameron's voice.