A/N: I know, this chapter is incredibly long. I don't want you to get too excited :) they won't all be like this from now on. There was just no good place to stop this one.

Chapter 17

Jasper and Foreman approached Brenna's room where she and her parents were anxiously awaiting her test results. Jasper entered first, followed by Foreman who stood behind her and to the left. It was a pattern they'd fallen into when speaking to patients. Jasper usually dealt with children and anxious parents, with Foreman to back her up. The patients seemed comforted by her words and reassured by Foreman's quiet presence. In the reverse, Foreman normally spoke to adult male patients while Jasper smiled at them reassuringly. Sexist, maybe, but effective. Jasper quickly realized that her expertise in her field was no match for the idea that a 'woman doctor' wasn't as good. She didn't like it, but she was a realist and if it made the patient feel better to hear their results from a man, then a man would do it.

"Mr. and Mrs. Webber, Brenna, I'm afraid we don't have any answers for you yet. We'd like to have Brenna stay overnight for further observation. There are a few more tests we'd like to run in the morning," Jasper told them.

"More tests?" Brenna asked timidly. "Does that mean more needles?"

"No," Jasper smiled at her. "We just want to take some pictures."

"I have lots of pictures of me at home. You can have them," Brenna offered.

"Well, the pictures we need are special. They're pictures of your insides," Jasper explained, not entirely sure how specific to get with an 11-year old.

"You mean like an x-ray?" Brenna asked.

"Sort of like that," Jasper smiled at her. "Except instead of taking pictures of your bones, we're going to take pictures of your spleen."

"My spleen? What's that?" Brenna asked.

"It's an organ that's in your belly. It helps to make the special blood cells that fight infections. So we'd like to take some pictures of it to make sure it's working as hard as it can. If it's not, that might help us figure out why you keep getting sick," Jasper said. Brenna seemed satisfied with that answer.

"Can my mom stay here with me?" the girl asked, timidly again. She didn't want to seem babyish, she was eleven after all, but spending the night in the hospital on her own was a little scary. Mrs. Webber looked at Jasper and Foreman expectantly. She didn't want to leave her daughter.

"I'm sorry, hospital policy is to allow overnight visitors only for critical cases," Foreman said.

"I don't want to stay here by myself," Brenna said, her voice near tears.

"I'll see what I can do," Jasper assured Mr. and Mrs. Webber and gave Foreman an angry look.

Cuddy sighed as she sank into the sofa in the living room, letting the soft clink of Wilson's dish washing soothe her aching head. A normal day would never see Cuddy at home at six o'clock, but her days were no longer normal. She sighed again, unable to shed the low-grade guilt and anxiety she felt for leaving the hospital early. The only reason it was a low-grade guilt was her conscious effort to choose what was best for her baby; her actual baby, not the hospital, which had for so long been thought of and referred to as her baby.

Perhaps a few more months working with Allison would be enough to dispel the last of her guilt. Allison was an excellent doctor, and Cuddy was glad she'd accepted the offer of Associate Dean. Beyond her medical skills, she was a naturally organized and methodical person. A trait which had no doubt annoyed House on numerous occasions, but which made her perfectly suited for administrative work. Her propensity for trying to please people made her a hard worker and her youth gave her an energy that currently Cuddy envied. She knew it was the pregnancy that was taking its toll on her normal exuberance for life, but today she felt every day of her forty-something years.

Wilson entered the living room from the kitchen and sat beside Cuddy. He motioned with his hands and she lifted her tired feet, now freed from their leather prisons, to his lap. Wilson massaged her aching arches slowly, watching the last of the tension ease from her body as she leaned further and further into the cushions until she was lying down completely. He continued massaging until she'd fallen into a light sleep.

Wilson worried about her. Well, maybe worried about her was an understatement. It was really more like an intense obsession. He kept it carefully in check, something he'd mastered about three years into his friendship with House. If Wilson did have a blind spot for flaws within himself and destructive patterns of his own life it was more than outshined by his recognition of those things in the people he loved. Some would argue that too great an awareness of another's flaws was a bad thing, but Wilson would disagree. How else could you really love someone if you didn't see them for who they really were faults and all?

The awareness of Cuddy's patterns meant he knew she was really much more tired than she was letting on, even to herself. True, she'd begun coming home at a more reasonable hour, but compensated by eating lunch at her desk while working. She was pushing herself, and too hard. Like many driven people, Cuddy expected much more of herself than others expected of her. She wasn't unlike House in that way. Wilson's main problem now was trying to convince her that slowing down wasn't a sin, and doing what was best for herself and the baby was more important than anything else, even the hospital.

The ring of Cuddy's cell phone interrupted Wilson's thoughts. She stirred on the couch and Wilson pounced, grabbing the phone from the coffee table and rushing back into the kitchen.

"Dr. Wilson," he answered.

"Oh, Dr. Wilson. Uh, I was looking for Dr. Cuddy," said the woman's voice. "This is Dr. Jasper."

"She's … unavailable at the moment," Wilson said, stopping just short of telling Jasper that Cuddy was sleeping. She'd never forgive him. "Can it wait?"

"Well, it's not really an emergency. I just, I needed to get permission to let our patient's parents stay the night with her," Jasper explained.

Wilson sighed. This was, unfortunately, not something he had the authority to decide. Jasper was right, it wasn't an emergency, but it certainly couldn't wait until morning. He debated internally for about thirty seconds before the solution presented itself. Not from his own mind, oddly, but because he imagined House's voice chastising him for being such a coward. House. House with Cameron. Cameron!

"Call Dr. Cameron," Wilson instructed Jasper.

"Dr. Cameron?" Jasper asked.

"She's the Associate Dean. You're not looking for approval for any experimental treatments or procedures. She can handle it. Call her," Wilson said and hung up the phone before Jasper could protest any further.

Jasper hung up the phone and turned to Mr. and Mrs. Webber. The couple looked anxiously back.

"I'm going to have to contact the Associate Dean," she explained. "I don't know her contact information off hand, so if you'll just excuse me for a minute…" Jasper let her voice trail off as she backed out of Brenna's room.

"She's a scared little girl. Why is it so terrible that we'd like to stay with her?" Mrs. Webber demanded of Foreman, who had remained in the room. Foreman looked away uncomfortably; he'd been the one to remind Jasper that hospital policy only allowed visitors after hours for critical patients. As bizarre as this case was, it wasn't critical.

"It's hospital policy, and like it or not, we don't have the authority to override it," Foreman said again, not liking the angry way that Mr. Webber was clenching and unclenching his fists. Professional detachment aside, Foreman had promised himself when he caught himself on the receiving end of a punch from a patient or a family member that he'd become too much like House and should back off. "I'll just go and see if I can't help Dr. Jasper out."

He found Jasper just in the conference room, looking nervous. Price had joined her, which made Foreman nervous. Price, whose hangover had subsided somewhat and who was now merely exhausted, could sense the tension and became nervous as well.

"What's the problem?" Foreman asked.

"I can't reach Dr. Cameron," Jasper said. "I shouldn't have told those parents I could do this for them."

"You're right," Foreman said quickly. Seeing Jasper's annoyance increase, he checked himself again. "But you did, so let's get it done."

"I called her house, she's not there. I tried her cell as well; it just keeps going to voicemail. I left messages at both numbers," Jasper said.

"She's probably at House's," Price said practically. Jasper groaned. She didn't want to go back to the Webber's and tell them she couldn't get a hold of anyone, but calling House at home wasn't tops on her list of fun stuff to do.

Foreman grinned a little. He remembered the first couple of times he'd had to call House during the night. It was a little scary. Hell, House was a little scary. Calling him at home and then telling him it wasn't him you wanted to talk to? Jasper would be on his list in the morning.

House had informed Cameron long ago that he had a rule about answering the phone during the OC. Especially now, when he was watching the final episodes of his beloved series, the phone was strictly off limits. Cameron had argued, but he insisted, claiming that her annoying politeness in conversation made it difficult to concentrate.

So, when the phone began ringing during the episode House was playing from his TiVo, House glared at Cameron as if daring her to answer. Since nobody ever called for her at House's anyway, Cameron was happy to indulge this particular insanity.

Leave a message. Or don't. Either way, I'm not calling back, the answering machine played. Cameron rolled her eyes. For someone who didn't want anyone calling him, he sure spent enough time changing that message.

"Dr. House?" said a timid female voice. "This is Dr. Jasper calling. Um, I'm sorry to call you at home …"

Her voice was cut off from the machine as House picked up the cordless phone on the coffee table. From her seat at the desk behind him, where Cameron had been shopping for a new set of sheets and towels for House's place, Cameron could sense his scowl.

"She better be dying," House barked into the phone. There was a short silence. "Unh." House grunted and twisted around on the couch.

"Hey!" he shouted at Cameron. She turned just in time to catch the phone that he had hurled at her. Cameron frowned. Why on earth was Jasper calling her here?

"Cameron," she said into the phone. Cameron listed politely as Jasper explained the situation. Cameron sighed. She had been encouraging Cuddy to take it slower and easier on herself, but she hadn't realized it might mean that she'd be getting calls from the hospital. Not that this was exactly a life threatening decision or anything, but Cameron was still a little unsure of herself when it came to giving orders.

House was watching her now, sensing her unease. He had paused the TiVo once again, and when she met his eyes he made an impatient face. Cameron closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She knew what she would want to hear if she were the one on the other end of the phone, but she also knew the hospital policies were there for a reason. She didn't want to get a reputation for being a soft touch when it came to a favor. What would Cuddy think? What would House think?

"I'm sorry, Dr. Jasper, but the hospital policy is for patients only to have after hours visitors in critical cases. Brenna Webber is far from critical. Assure her parents that the nursing staff will check on her hourly," Cameron said into the phone, never opening her eyes. She didn't want to see House's approval or disapproval. This decision was hers. "Yes, my decision is final. Goodnight Dr. Jasper."

Cameron hung up the phone and chanced to open her eyes. House looked at her for a moment without comment, as if trying to decide what best to say. Cameron began to fidget; he had nothing to say? Impossible.

"So little Cameron finally grew up," House said. He meant it as a compliment. He was sure she would have caved to Jasper and let the parents stay. Probably would have offered to have dinner delivered and bring them a quilt.

Cameron didn't take it quite that way. To her, it sounded like House was mocking her. Probably because he thought she was taking the whole thing too seriously. Or because she'd backed up the hospital policy instead of striking out on her own and giving Jasper permission to break the rules.

"I've been grown for quite some time, thank you. Maybe you just never noticed before," she said frostily. Cameron turned her back to him and resumed her shopping, clicking the mouse perhaps just a little more emphatically than was strictly necessary.

"Well, I know you're all woman," House said, standing from the couch and walking to her, placing his hands on her shoulders. He only wanted to try to comfort her a little.

"Does everything have to be about sex with you?" Cameron exploded. She knew she was overreacting, but this was the first time she'd ever been called on in her capacity as an administrator and it made her nervous. House was being flippant and she was near tears.

"What?" House asked. He didn't understand what she was so upset about, but it was apparent nothing he said was going to make her feel better.

"Nothing," Cameron said. "I need some fresh air. I'm going out."

House stepped back, a little surprised. Then he became a little fearful. That was pretty much what Stacy said the last time they had a fight. Then one day he came home and she wasn't there.

"You coming back?" he asked, trying to sound nonchalant and failing miserably, in his own mind.

Cameron, however, couldn't believe that he could be so indifferent to her feelings. Or maybe she was blowing this way out of proportion. If only he wasn't so hard to talk to.

"Night House," Cameron answered, not trusting herself to say more. She closed the door quietly behind her, leaving House to stare at it and wonder what the hell had just happened.