Title: Making His Own Life
Part: 9
Author: Mlizhobie
Fandom: House, M.D.
Pairing: Wilson/OFC(Lorelai) & House/?
Disclaimer: Don't own House or any of the other characters except for MY original characters.
AN: This is a sequel to the story 'It's My Life'. Be an awesome person, read and review. A very special thanks to my Beta reader, she helps me thru my dreaded bouts of writer's block.
AN2: Lore's reaction to Greg's statement.
Lore sat there wide eyed and speechless for a few seconds and then without warning she stood and left the room. Greg didn't know if he should follow her or not, but as soon as the door closed Immy woke up and started to cry, so Greg stayed to comfort his daughter. At first Immy didn't want Greg and asked, "Where Momma?" Greg sighed sadly and said, "Momma went for a walk, I think she's kind of mad at Daddy right now." Immy did finally go to Greg, but said, "Bad Daddy, no make Momma mad." Greg half grinned at being scolded by the sick 2 year old and said, "I'm sorry baby. Want me to apologize to Momma and I'll talk to her about what made her mad." Immy nodded against his shoulder and before long she was again sound asleep.
Lorelai had gone to the elevators and soon found herself standing in front of the door to James's office. She fumbled through her keys and found the spare that James had given her for emergencies. Unlocking the door quickly, Lore slipped inside the office and relocked it behind herself. Not wanting to draw attention that someone was there, she left the light off and sat alone in the darkness. As she sat there blankly staring at the floor she thought, 'How could he do this? Andy is the one person I can't stand and of course Greg would have to fall head of heals for her! This is so typical of House; I just want to backhand him.'
The longer and longer she sat there thinking, the angrier she became. That was until she got up and started pacing around the room and spotted something on James's desk. It was what looked like an invitation from one of James's friends at the hospital, but it was addressed to Dr. & Mrs. Wilson. This simple title stopped Lorelai in her tracks – 'Dr. & Mrs.' That's all Greg wanted – a wife. Sighing loudly Lore sat in James's chair and stared at the envelope, the contents didn't matter at all at the moment – all she could think about was how alone Greg was.
She still wasn't happy that Greg had chosen her annoying new boss to fall for, but her anger started to dissipate and within a few minutes was gone completely. Unsure about what she should do Lore sat in her husband's dark office for awhile longer before deciding to head back down to Immy's room. As Lorelai exited James's office, one of the nurses spotted her and at first must not have recognized her. The nurse quickly approached her and said, "Excuse me, but what are you doing in Dr. Wilson's office and just how did you get in there?" Lore spun around and saw who the nurse was and said, "Deb, it's just me, Lorelai. I was downstairs with Imogen & Greg and needed a break, so I came up here. I'm sorry I didn't tell anyone I was here." Deb's attitude shifted and she said, "Oh Lorelai, I'm sorry I didn't recognize you. So Imogen was admitted then? She looked awful when James had her up here earlier." Lore smiled sadly and said, "Yeah she did look pretty bad, so Dr. Patterson admitted her and Greg is hounding him to make sure he does he job."
Deb laughed and said, "Oh I bet House is all over Patterson. He will hound anyone to do their job for any patient, but when its one of your kids – wow, watch out. House will go into overdrive." Again Lore smiled and agreed with the nurse. She then explained that she should really get back down to Immy's room and excused herself, thanking Deb for her concern as she left. Lore then headed back to the elevator and went back to the 2nd floor.
When Lorelai reentered her sick daughter's room she saw Greg stroking Immy's hair lightly. She smiled slightly and cleared her throat to gain Greg's attention. Greg looked up and was surprised that Lore was back so quickly – normally when she was upset it was awhile before he expects to see her again. He sat up fully and quietly said, "Hey." Lorelai sat back down in a chair on the opposite side of Immy's bed and said, "Hi…" It was almost a full minute before either tried to speak again, but then they both started. Greg gave in and said, "Oh, sorry, you go first."
Lore took a breath before starting again and then said, "Ok here it is, I'm not happy that you like Andy, but I will do my best to get over my feelings if you want to go out with her. I want to see you happy Greg." Greg sat back in his chair and watched Lorelai for a bit, just trying to read her and see what her reasoning was. When Greg didn't see any hint of anger or teasing he said, "If you're sure Lore…" Lorelai nodded and attempted to smile, but Greg saw through the attempt and said, "I know its asking a lot, but thanks." Lore did smile this time and said, "Now how are we going to win her over for you?" Greg only laughed and shook his head.
Over at the house James was wandering up and down the hall trying to get Isaac to sleep. The boy was unusually fussy and missed his parents and sister. James had given him a warm bath, read him 5 stories and even told the boy he could stay in his father's room, but Isaac still didn't want to go to bed. Isaac did finally stop crying when James starting pacing the halls of the house. As James passed the doorway into the living room he heard Jay call, "Dad! Nina won't sit up and take her treatment. She said she isn't gonna let me do it, it has to be you!"
James entered the room and sat on the arm of the couch before saying, "Nina Katelynn, sit up here and do your treatment. I can't do it tonight, so Jay will and you are going to behave. Do you understand me young lady?" Nina had stopped her fighting and stared up at her father, trying to work up some tears. When Nina didn't answer James again said, "Nina, I'm not going to tell you again. Your crying isn't going to work, so either sit up or I'll give you a spanking." This time Nina instantly sat up and grabbed her breathing mask from Jay's hand and shoved it against her mouth. James rolled his eyes at his daughter's pouting and slowly stood. He again started pacing, trying to get the tired toddler to sleep.
20 minutes later Nina's treatment was over and she was already half asleep, but Isaac was still wide awake. James knew that Jay wouldn't be able to carry his sister up to her room, so he sat Isaac down on the couch next to Jay and said, "Here monkey, sit with Jay for a bit while Uncle Jimmy takes Nina upstairs." Isaac nodded and crawled onto Jay's lap while watching James pick up Nina and walk out of the room. Jay pulled his little brother against his chest and forced Isaac to lay his head on his shoulder. When Isaac was settled he said, "I know you miss Momma. I do too, but we need to get some sleep and we can go see her and Immy in the morning."
Jay felt Isaac take a deep breath and then say, "Daddy too?" Jay smiled, nodded and said, "Yep, we'll go see him too. Do you want to stay in his room tonight?" Isaac thought for a few seconds and then said, "Jay stay too!" Jay sighed and finally said, "Alright Isaac, we'll both stay in Uncle Greg's, sorry Daddy's room." Jay knew that Isaac didn't understand the thing about having the same mother and different fathers, so he always tried to use the right name when speaking to Isaac or Immy. Jay tried to figure how he would get Isaac to lay down while he went upstairs to change out of his clothes.
After 5 minutes of trying to come up with a way to accomplish his task Jay said, "Isaac, come on buddy, I need to go get changed for bed and then we will come back down here. Will that work for you?" Isaac yawned widely and nodded, so Jay stood the boy on the floor and they both headed upstairs.
As Jay & Isaac got to the top of the stairs James was closing Nina's door and coming out into the hallway. He went over to the boys and picked up Isaac as Jay said, "I talked him into going to sleep, but we are going to sleep in Uncle Greg's room. Is that okay Dad?" James nodded tiredly and said, "Sure Jay, that's fine. I'll take him back down and get things picked up in there. Just come down when you're ready." Jay nodded quickly and went to his room. James headed back down the stairs carrying the sleepy toddler.
10 minutes later Jay entered Greg's room and found his father laying Isaac down on the bed. James looked up and whispered, "He's almost out, go out in the hall for a bit, I want to talk to you." Jay nodded and went back out into the hallway to wait for his father. When James came back to the hall he leaned against the wall and said, "Thank you for all your help tonight Jay. I couldn't have done this without you." Jay blushed and smiled before saying, "It's nothing Dad. I know things are crazy with Immy being sick, so what's helping out a bit?" James grinned and ruffled his son's hair before saying, "When did you grow up so much? It seems just like last week you were begging for a sibling and here you are pitching in and helping get these kids to bed. Hey do you want to skip out of school tomorrow and come to the hospital to see Immy?"
Jay was surprised that he was being offered the chance to skip school, but said, "Whatever you think Dad, but I won't be able to stay with Immy all day. Where would I go for most of the day, I'm too old to go to the daycare." James thought for a bit and then said, "I'm sure we can find you something to do. Hey if you get really bored you could hang out with the ducklings like you did when you were little." Jay nodded and said, "Yeah that's cool. Hey tell me something, why do you guys call them the ducklings?" Again James thought for a few seconds and then said, "You know what, I'm not really sure why we started calling them that. I really don't even remember when we started it. It was probably a joke or something way back before you were born and it just stuck."
When Jay yawned widely James then said, "Ok you need to get some sleep if you're going with me to the hospital tomorrow. Good night buddy and thanks again." Jay nodded and said, "Sure Dad." James then pulled his son into a hug and kissed the top of his head before gently pushing the boy towards the door into House's bedroom. He stood there and watched Jay go into the bedroom and shut the door before James pushed up off the wall and went up to his own bedroom.
As turned off all the lights around the house and made sure all the doors were locked James thought about all the things that had happened so far that week. He remembered the conversation he had had with Greg about Lorelai's new boss and quickly grew uneasy about the situation. James knew that Lore wouldn't like the fact that Greg now had a thing for Andy, but he was also unaware that Lore & Greg had already talked through the situation at the hospital. James looked around the foyer once more and called, "Atticus, come on let's head upstairs boy." The dog came running from the living room and stopped at James's feet looking up at the man. James grinned and petted the dog's head before heading upstairs to bed.
Greg had told Lorelai that he would go up to his office and sleep so she could have some time alone with Immy. Lore started to refuse, but then saw the determined look in Greg's eye and finally said, "Ok, but keep your phone on so I can call if anything changes." Greg half smiled and nodded before saying, "Alright and try to get some sleep Lore." Lorelai nodded and watched Greg leave their daughter's room. Once he was gone Lore went over and turned the lights off. Glancing back over at Immy's bed, she watched her daughter peacefully sleeping. Dr. Patterson had given her some medicine that was meant to bring down her fever, but it had also put the 2 year old to sleep. Lore yawned widely as she went back over to the chair she had been sitting in; when she was again seated she looked at her watch and saw that it was barely 10 o'clock. She couldn't help but yawn a second time and decided that she would go ahead and try to sleep.
About 4 hours later at 2 AM Lorelai was awakened by the sound of Immy's screaming cry. Lore sat up quickly and looked around the room trying to familiarize herself to her surroundings. When she realized what the sound was she spun around and looked back to Immy. Imogen was now attempting to sit up and reach for Lorelai. Before Lore could hug her daughter to try and calm her, Immy started to cough violently. Lore looked for something to give Immy to drink, but all her coughing caused her to throw up. When Lorelai snapped back to reality and pressed the button to get a nurse's attention. She then started gently rubbing Immy's back to calm the frantic child.
When the nurse came in she quickly jumped to action to clear away the soiled bedding and check Immy's stats. While the nurse checked Immy over Lorelai stood back from the bed and called Greg's cell phone. Greg was fitfully sleeping in the chair up in his office, but jumped when he heard his cell phone. Flipping it open he heard Lorelai say, "Get down here, she's coughing and throwing up and just get down here."
Greg was on his feet and headed for the door before he even took a breath. His little girl was getting worse and he needed to find out what was causing the illness. Thankfully the elevator opened as Greg approached and he was alone on the ride down to the 2nd floor. When the doors opened Greg was surprised to find the nurses all rushing around and running for his daughter's room. This made the diagnostician pick up his pace and push through the small group of nurses in the hallway.
When he got to the door and slid it open Greg heard Immy's frantic crying and Lorelai attempting to soothe the young girl. Quickly processing what was going on, Greg was relieved to see that his daughter was no longer throwing up, but she looked dangerously pale as she clung to her mother. Lorelai was holding her as the nurses changed the bedding and doing her best to calm Immy. When Immy looked up and noticed Greg she reached for him and said, "Daddy!" Greg was at Lorelai's side immediately, took his daughter into his arms and said, "Its ok now sweetheart; Daddy's got you."
Greg placed a hand on Immy's back to try and calm her and felt the heat radiating off her small back. Looking up at Lorelai he said, "Her fever is spiking, the meds are not working." Lorelai sighed and looked into Greg's eyes questioningly. He was quiet for a few minutes before going over to the end of Immy's bed and grabbing her chart. As he looked through the information Greg ran theories in his head. He then asked, "Where are her blood tests? I want to see the complete blood work up." The nurse closest to him said, "We haven't done any blood tests on her Dr. House." He sighed loudly, rolled his eyes and ordered, "Well why the hell haven't you done them yet? Damn-it go get your stuff, you're going to do it now!" The nurses all bolted from the room and left the small family alone.
Lorelai looked very worried as she asked, "What do you think is going on? Why is she so sick?" Greg met her eyes and said, "I'm not sure Lore, but as soon as these nurses get their heads out of their asses we might have some tests results that can help us figure it out." One of the nurses returned and asked Greg to lay Immy on the bed. He gently placed her down and said, "The nurse needs to get some blood so we can see what's making our little Monkey so sick." Immy nodded slightly but looked terrified as she locked eyes with her father. She laid stone still as the nurse filled 3 vials of blood and did her best not to cry.
Once the nurse was finished she said, "Ok Immy, I'm all done now. I'll run these down to the lab and tell them to rush them." Greg nodded and said, "Full work up and have them page me when they're done." The nurse nodded and was gone. Greg leaned down and kissed his daughter's head before saying, "You did so good Monkey. Thank you for sitting so still. I'm going to go get you some medicine so you can sleep some more okay?" Immy sniffled and looked up at Greg before saying, "Hurts here now Daddy," and started rubbing her chest. Lorelai met Greg's eyes and saw the worried look now forming; she could also see the plan of action he was laying out. Greg nodded slightly at Lore and said, "After she goes to sleep in a bit I want to talk differentials with you." Immy pulled gently on Greg's hand, so he leaned down again and kissed Immy's head, said, "Daddy's going to make you feel better baby, I promise."
When Greg came back he had a couple of needles with him. Lorelai met his eyes and asked, "What are those?" Greg shrugged lightly and said, "Same kind of thing Patterson gave her, but it's a bit stronger. Hopefully it will knock her fever down and it will help her sleep." Lore nodded and watched as Greg injected the medicine into Immy's IV. It wasn't long until Imogen was again sleeping and her parents were both talking out what they thought was causing her illness. Greg was now pacing the room and thinking out loud as he said, "She has been coughing a lot for the past week, has she said anything about being in pain?"
Lorelai shook her head and said, "No, not to me. Her breathing sounded funny, but I thought it was just her coming down with a cold or something and it was normal with the cough." Greg stopped at the end of the bed and silently watched Immy sleep for a few seconds before a nurse opened the door and said, "Dr. House, we have your daughter's blood test results." Greg spun around quickly and said, "Well give them here." Snatching them from the nurse's hand Greg spun back around and started scanning the levels. He began to quietly mumble as he processed the results and then when he got to a level that was out of wack he said, "That is way too high, so is that. I want to do a chest x-ray and see if its what I think." Lore jumped to her feet and said, "What do you think it is Greg?" Meeting Lorelai's concerned green eyes Greg quietly said, "Pneumonia."
Next chapter: The next morning.