Wilson lay across two chairs, his head cocked at an awkward angle, his legs hanging off the far end. He couldn't possibly be comfortable, and yet Cuddy hesitated a moment before disturbing him. She touched his arm and he jumped awake, the sudden jerk of his body separating the chairs and he fell. He surged up to his feet, rubbing first his jaw then his hip where he'd hit the floor, his eye darting to scan the display of House's monitors.

Cuddy touched his arm again. "Sorry," she murmured. "He's fi- the same. He has a slight temp, nothing to be concerned about."

Wilson didn't object to her hand on his arm, but reached forward to touch his fingers to House's cheek. "What time is it?"

"7:15. I have to go pick up the girls. I want you to come with me. Come to dinner with me and the girls like we planned."

Quarter after seven. House had made it through the first twelve hours. Wilson looked over his shoulder at her, his hand moving up to stroke his fingers through House's hair. "I can't leave him."

"You need to eat, James."

Wilson straightened and shook his head. "I can't leave him, Lisa." His eyes shifted to House, back to Cuddy. "I can't."

"He's unconscious."

"He knows I'm here. He'd know if I wasn't here. I can't."

Cuddy raised her palm to his cheek, much like he'd touched House a moment ago. His eyes closed and he nuzzled his face against her palm. "He needs you to be strong, James, and you can't keep your strength if you don't eat. The girls are expecting you."

He drew his head away from her hand and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "They're expecting him too."

Cuddy nodded, her gaze drifting to the floor. "I know. I have to tell them. I want you to be there."

Wilson's face contorted in agony, wrought with emotion he couldn't process. He stepped back, almost falling into the chair behind him. His posture slumped, head down and elbows braced on his knees. "No. No," he moaned. Resistance, not refusal. "No. I can't. No."

Cuddy put a hand to his shoulder, and after a moment, he looked up at her. "I can't leave him, Lisa. I can't."

"It's dinner, James. We'll be five minutes away. You know they'll page us if anything changes."

"No." Wilson shook his head. "I'm not-"

Cuddy stiffened her back for effect, she wasn't tall enough to make herself seem more authoritative, but she knew how to work what she had, and she was above all else, his friend. "You're being stubborn, and while it's admirable, it's also incredibly stupid. House isn't going to wake up tonight. He won't wake up tomorrow. Not even the day after. But he's stable. He's holding his own right now, and when he does wake up he's going to need you to be strong and ready to help hold him up. You need to sleep, you need to eat, because once he wakes up he's going to need you by his side, and we both know he's going to try his damnedest to push you away. You've got to be prepared for that, and I'll be damned if I'll let you sit here and let you destroy yourself before he has a chance to get to you."

Wilson didn't answer for a long, tense moment. He moved to stand beside the bed, and held House's hand in his. He held House's fingers against his cheek, turned his head to kiss House's knuckles. He leaned over to whisper in House's ear, speaking too low for Cuddy to hear. Standing up again, he carefully pulled the watch off his arm and clasped it around House's wrist. Holding House's hand in his again, he leaned over the bed and softly kissed the corner of House's mouth.

Finally turning to look at Cuddy, Wilson nodded. "Dinner," was all he said because his voice broke and he couldn't say any more.

Cuddy reached for his hand. "Thank you."

Cuddy called one of her friends to pick the girls up at day care and drop them off at the restaurant. She and Wilson had a table near the door, so she could see Gloria pull up. She went out to meet them at the door, leaving Wilson to sit at the table. He fidgeted with his silverware, sipped absently at his coke.

"DJ!" the girls yelled in unison, and raced toward him. He turned in his seat to catch them both in a hug, one under each arm. "Where's Uncle Greg, DJ?" four and a half year old Alexa asked, and Wilson pulled back to look at both girls. Only a little more than a year younger, Adira was nearly as tall as her sister. Alexa seemed to be taking after her mother, while Adira apparently took after her father.

His eyes flickered over their heads at Cuddy, she shook her head, but he knew she hadn't told them anything. He blinked and took a deep breath, let it out slowly. "Uncle Greg," he started slowly, a hand on each of the girl's shoulders. His eyes closed and he dropped his head.

Cuddy stood close enough to lay her hands on the other shoulders. "Alexa, Adira, I have to tell you something very important. I need you to listen carefully, okay?"

"Okay, mama," the girls answered.

"Uncle Greg had an accident today, and he's going to be okay." Cuddy looked to Wilson, but Wilson's head was still bent. "But DJ is really sad, because Uncle Greg is hurt really bad and he's in the hospital right now."

Adira crawled up on Wilson's knee and slid her arms around his neck. He lifted his head up and she kissed his cheek. "I don't want you be sad, DJ," she declared, and patted his cheek. "Mama said Uncle Greg going to be okay."

Wilson opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it. He simply nodded and hugged both girls to him. Alexa stood leaning back against Wilson's leg. Her hands found his bare wrist, her fingers caressing the spot where his watch should be. He smiled down at her. "I left it with Uncle Greg," he managed to say, and settled back in his seat. Tears glistened in his eyes, but didn't fall. If he had to be strong for House, he had to be twice as strong for his daughters.

"Why?" Adira asked, her tiny hand resting against his neck.

Wilson glanced up at Cuddy, then back to Adira. "So he could count the seconds," Wilson paused and breathed in deep through his nose, "until I get back to the hospital to be with him."

"Oh," Adira said and nuzzled against his neck. "Is him sad you're not there?"

"I think he is," Wilson forced a smile.

"But we're glad you're here," Alexa offered, and Adira agreed with a nod.

Wilson glanced at Cuddy. He couldn't take much more of their innocence. Cuddy patted the seat next to Wilson. "Girls, you need to decide what you want to eat."

Alexa reluctantly moved away from Wilson and climbed onto her seat. Adira circled her arms around Wilson's neck and clasped her hands together, refusing to move of Wilson's lap. He looked at Cuddy, to assure her it was fine, because if Adira climbed down from his lap, he'd have to excuse himself to the bathroom, and would probably walk right out the front door and walk to the hospital.

As it was, he didn't eat much of his burger, and Adira ate his fries instead of her own dinner. The kids got a free scoop of ice cream with a sugar cone turned upside down and candies added to make the dish look like a clown face. Adira awkwardly scooped out a spoonful of ice cream and offered it to Wilson. "Mama says should only get desert if you eat your dinner, but sometimes it's okay when your sad if you break the rules."

"Your mama's a smart lady." Wilson accepted the spoon, even though he didn't want it.

Adira took a bite too, then pushed the dish toward Wilson. "You take the rest to Uncle Greg and hims feel better too."

The tears he'd been struggling to keep back finally pushed past his resistance. He closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing. Cuddy lifted Adira off his lap, and it took all his strength to keep from breaking down completely. He inhaled deeply and deliberately, sniffling to try to get his emotions back inside. He had to keep it together in front of the girls, just like he would have to keep it together in front of House.

Cuddy laid enough money on the table to cover the bill and the tip. "Come on," she urged softly.

"Mama, can we see Uncle Greg at the hospital?" Alexa asked. The girls didn't go to the hospital often, but when they did they made the rounds from Cuddy's office on the ground floor to Diagnostics and Oncology on the fourth floor, visiting.

"No, baby. Not yet," Cuddy answered as she reached for Wilson's hand. Alexa held her other hand, and Adira went around to hold Wilson's free hand.