Disclaimer: I do not own House.

Chapter 17.

"What kind of complication?" Wilson was first to speak. Foreman looked between the four of them, Wilson stood slightly apart from the other three. Johnny had Cameron's hand in his and House stood behind her leaning fiercely on his cane. Looking once more at the floor Foreman began to speak.

"During the procedure, Lilley went into shock and started to seize, and she has lost a lot of blood as during the attack some of the implements tore into her."

"Is she going to be ok?" Johnny voiced the question and his heart sank as Foreman gently shook his head.

"We can't be sure. She was given a blood transfusion and has now suffered an anaphylactic reaction. The host blood cells are rejecting the donor cells and the body is suffering a severe allergic reaction. I don't have to explain to you how serious this can be if we can't get the body to accept some donor blood." He brought his eyes up and met Cameron's both sets of eyes were full of tears. "I'm sorry." Was all he could whisper.

A short ragged breath was drawn in through her lips and she turned on her heel ready to run. Instead she turned and came face to face with a broad chest and as a pair of strong arms wrapped around her she sank into his embrace and let the tears engulf her body.

Wilson turned to Foreman and nodded his head and silently left the group alone to grieve for a child they had not yet lost. Johnny turned to leave but before he did he turned and looked at Foreman.

"Chris…?" Foreman nodded a small smile on his lips and Johnny tried to smile back but simply let a tear slip from his eye as he walked away. Foreman looked on at the couple in front of him, a sight he never expected to see, House's eyes filled with pain and tears. Bowing his head Foreman turned and opened the door re entering the surgery room.

House stood leaning firmly on his cane as one arm held Cameron up, her legs kept buckling from underneath her and it was taking a lot of energy for him to keep her up. Slowly he moved them back over to the chairs and he sat down pulling her down onto his good leg and letting her weep into his chest. They had been preparing themselves for months now, expecting the death of their child, but now in a sick twist of fate the cards had changed. It was no longer Chris who they were losing it was Lilley.

His beautiful daughter, his mind was racing, she had called him Dad before. He was her Dad. It wasn't fair; life was cruel. She was only a child, a little girl, his little girl. He was the old bitter bastard who had hated his life for so long now, if anyone was to be suddenly took from the world it should be him not her.He felt his heart breaking and suddenly he found it difficult to breathe, burying his head into Cameron's hair he took deep breaths forcing the giant ball of pain to disappear.

His mind flashed with memories from over the past few months. Searching for her in the park. The bike ride. Finding her pulling pranks on Cuddy. Helping her pull pranks on Cuddy. Listening to the Queen album together in his office. Waking up to find she had drawn all over his face. Drawing back on her face. Racing her and Chris in wheelchairs. Saying Goodbye to her.

He closed his eyes forcing the memories away he didn't want to, couldn't, handle them. Not now. Not any time soon. Suddenly the song over the pa changed and he found the memories once more flooding into his head. This song. This song held so much. So many memories over the years with so many people, but none as special as this one.

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They had taken Chris out of hospital for the weekend; it wasn't all that long ago, around the time they thought he was getting better. They had spent the day walking around New Jersey shopping, House had bought Lilley a new violin and Chris a brand new guitar. Chris was still too weak to walk for long periods of time and therefore they had borrowed a wheelchair from the hospital. It had been a long day and as they were walking through the park back to their hotel the heavens opened and the rain came down and soaked them all. Cameron laughed as did Lilley and began dancing. Chris pushed himself slowly from the wheelchair and he too began to dance while House watched bewildered. She turned to look at him and cried out.

"Come on Greg, have you never danced in the rain?"

"No and I don't plan to."

Cameron laughed and picked Chris up swinging him around as Lilley hopped from one foot to the other. It was only when Chris began to sneeze that Cameron insisted they had had enough. All four were soaked to the bone their clothes dripping, rain cascading down House's cane. House shook his head at Cameron.

"Let's go to my house, I need to get some clean clothes and my house is closer anyway." Cameron nodded and pushed Chris in the direction of House's house. Once there she turned to House and said.

"I'm going to get them in the shower to warm them up, is it ok if they borrow some of your clothes?" He nodded.

"Thanks." Her hand rested on his before she left to force her children into the shower. Ten minutes later House sat on his couch in fresh clothes with four steaming hot mugs of cocoa in front of him and he couldn't help but smirk as Lilley and Chris entered the room each wearing one of his jumpers and a pair of his sweat pants, the ties pulled the tightest they would go. Running over she bounded onto the couch next to him.

"Cool cocoa which one is mine?" He pointed at one.

"That one, and this one is yours Chris, where's your mum?" Chris pointed to the bathroom.

"She's getting a shower." House nodded and as Chris sat on the couch he stood up and made his way over to the piano. Both children watched him before Chris said in awe. "You play piano?"

"No, I just have one because it's pretty." Lilley snorted and Chris rolled his eyes and House shook his head, he was so much like Cameron. He gently rested his hand on the keys and began to softly play a melody. Lilley shot up, her eyes gleaming.

"Oh my god! Nightswimming!" House stopped playing and looked at her.

"You like REM?" Chris nodded.

"She loves REM. We both do, Uncle Johnny took us to see them last year."

Lilley had jumped off the couch and was now rummaging through the bags they had acquired that day. Standing up triumphantly she pulled her new violin out and freed it from its packaging. Resting it on her lap with the help of House and the piano she tuned it. Once tuned, she ran to House's side and stood carefully and began to play Nightswimming. Amazed House couldn't take his eyes off her for several moments, when she caught him staring she stopped and smiled.

"If you play the piano part I can play the violin part and Chris, Chris come here, you can sing it!"

Chris stood up gingerly and she ran over to him and helped him make his way over to the piano, where he sat next to House on the piano stool. She played the intro part and House joined in at the right moment, Chris had no trouble singing and House was shocked at how soulful and husky his voice already was. It wasn't exactly mature or R.E.M but it was amazingly good for an eight year old. House wondered as he played the piece if either of them understood the song and the meaning of the lyrics, he hoped they didn't. As they played and sang in harmony House was moved, it was a long time since he had had someone to share his life with and now he had two children who he could watch grow. Or he hoped he could watch grow.

Looking up he was shocked to see Cameron leaning on the door frame her hair combed but dripping wet, wearing his pants and a giant jumper, her fingers were in her mouth a small smile on her lips but tears flowing down her cheeks. He didn't need to ask why she was crying, he already knew. This moment was perfect, just how a family should be and it could be torn away from them at any given moment. Looking her in the eyes he gave her a small smile before bowing his head and letting his pain slip through his fingers.

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That night they had all slept at his, Lilley and Chris in his bed and he and Cameron had stayed up into the early hours as she talked, voicing all her concerns searching for reassurance that he had given so freely. They had fallen asleep, her in his arms humming that song. And now that song was here haunting him on such a grim day. He would give anything to go back to that day, to go back to that moment. She had surprised him so much. He had never been prouder of them both, so talented and so young, that's what he couldn't forget. They were so young, so young, and too young to be going through this. He hadn't noticed that Cameron's tears had stopped, but she lifted her head and said weakly.

"This song." He nodded.

"I know." She looked at him, straight in the eyes boring into him, seeing into his soul. She nodded too and then leant back on his chest and as he wrapped his arm around her protectively she began to sing along quietly.

"Nightswimming, remembering that night
September's coming soon
I'm pining for the moon
And what if there were two
Side by side in orbit
Around the fairest sun?
That bright, tight forever drum
Could not describe nightswimming."

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The song had long finished, and now a deadly silence filled the hallways, the moon had set and the door to the surgery room opened and Foreman stepped out and could not help but smile at what he saw. House was sat in one of the armchairs with Cameron on his lap her head on his chest his arm around her and both were asleep, peacefully unaware of what was happening around them. Foreman walked up to them and reached out to wake them but quickly retracted his hand. 'Leave them till morning' he thought. What he had to say could wait.

I AM SO SORRY.

Its taken me like a month or something to update. I know Im awful.

So sorry. But theres all this UNI crap going on at college.

Anyway hope you like this chapter.

Please review, even if its only to let me know that your still reading it.

Love to you all.

xxx