FIVE

House felt the dampness on his shoulder and it hurt him to know that he did this to her. He tightened his hold on her and he felt her relax into his body, making it impossible for him to know where he ended and she began. She took a deep breath and finally gained control of herself, unsure of why she let herself become so vulnerable in the first place. To her surprise, she felt House's lips press against her hair and she wondered if this was the same abrasive, rude House she argued with every day. Reluctantly, she pulled out of his arms and put some distance between them. She looked up into his blue eyes and challenged him with her stare, waiting for an explanation.

"I thought it would be for the best," he started slowly, unsure of how to say everything he longed to say. "I'm always making you miserable. I've hurt you more times than I can even count. This whole Tritter mess wouldn't have even happened if it weren't for me. You don't deserve this, Cuddy. You've got everything going for you and I didn't want to stand in your way any more, so I applied for a position at Princeton General."

He walked over to the couch when he finished talking, realizing he had been standing on his leg for much too long. Cuddy followed him and let her mind process everything he had told her. She wanted to scream at him, tell him he was completely wrong, tell him he was an idiot, and beg him not to leave Princeton Plainsboro. Not to leave her.

"You are one miserable, wretched idiot, you know that?" She said, hitting him hard on the chest again in frustration.

"Why should I stay?"

"Because you're the best goddamn doctor we have!" she shouted angrily.

"That's all?"

"Yes! I mean, No! No," she said, searching for an answer. "I mean…Everything you just told me. About how you make me miserable and hurt me all the time, that's not true. Sure, you piss me off most of the time and we disagree on practically every little thing we encounter, but I care about you, House! And I'm not just going to let you walk away thinking you deserve less than the rest of us. Because that's not true. You deserve more than most of us! You will do anything to make sure the right thing is done in the end. You put up with chronic pain 24/7 and still manage to save more lives than any of the other doctors in the hospital. You are not quitting, House. I will do anything to stop you."

Cuddy finished shouting at him and took a deep breath. She had no idea why she just told him everything she did; it just all flowed out of her mouth before she could think it through. She glared at him through her icy blue eyes, waiting for him to yell back. Instead, he just stared at her, clearly thinking about everything she had just told him. Slowly, she saw the corner of his lips lift upwards ever so slightly and he smirked at her innocently.

"Anything, huh?" He said, raising his eyebrows at her jokingly. She sighed in relief as the tension in the room was lifted; he was back to his old, sarcastic self.

"You are so immature," she replied, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms over her chest. She stared intently at the blank TV screen in front of her, trying so hard to avoid meeting the eyes that were so focused on her right then.

"So, is the hospital really that awful without me there?"

Cuddy just rolled her eyes and laughed in response. He has no idea, she thought to herself with a smile.