Author's Note: Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry, its been forever since I've updated this. In truth, I haven't been all that inspired to write at all, my muse has run off. Thank my two best friends for giving me help starting this, hopefully it doesn't sound too forced. Enjoy~

Disclaimer: Seriously? You really think I own this? Flattery will get you nowhere...

Chapter 3:

He hated using the showers. They were meant to be used by the surgeons who just left the OR. The high water pressure intended to aid the doctors in scrubbing the blood off of their skin. Sure the intensivest had used them before, but that didn't mean he enjoyed their convenience. It didn't matter that they happened to be on the same floor as the diagnostics department. So he wouldn't be late for work if he had to quick wash up.

He still hated the showers.

Maybe it was because they were connected with a locker room; shared by both doctors and nurses alike. One couldn't help but get the feeling as if they were being watched, a psychological invasion of privacy. Strange considering that he frequently changed in semi-public areas all the time. Switching into scrubs before a last minute heart surgery didn't warrant you a private dressing room after all. But the idea that anyone could walk in whilst he was in the vulnerable position of simply showering…Let's just say he had accomplished the art of a fifteen minute shower. He was fairly sure that by shaving his head he could cut off an extra five minutes. But that was a bit rash, if only to avoid the paranoid feeling that was only in his mind…besides, it was just a theory.

Chase wrenched off the faucets, shivering as goose bumps attacked his dripping flesh. The locker/shower room was eerily silent without the constant thrumming of falling water, and he almost didn't hear the distant clack of high heels crossing tile floors over the ringing in his ears. The blonde ignored it to the best of his abilities, pushing the unsettling feeling to the back of his mind as he squeezed some of the excess water from his hair. It was most likely a nurse that was coming in to start their shift early, no big deal.

The last thing he counted on was for the plastic sheeting that shielded his naked body from view, to be yanked aside. Nearly torn from the rings with the force of the action. He didn't have the chance to even attempt to cover himself before a towel was thrust into his hands. Chase caught it clumsily, wasting no time at all in wrapping the terry cloth around his waist. He looked up, expecting to see icy blue eyes. Instead his own startled aquamarine ones met those of narrowed umber.

"Cameron?"

That explained why he was allowed a towel at least…If it was House, the Australian knew that he'd be standing there naked, shameless or not.

Anyone in his or her right mind would probably be pissed if in his situation right now. But all he could muster was a look of complete shock and a voice to match. The brunette didn't respond, only continued to glare at the foreign doctor in a way that chilled his body more than the sudden rush of air ever could. Something was bothering her…that was obvious enough. Did they have a patient? Impossible, they had another couple of hours before they were even expected to show up at work. So why was sh-

"What do you think you're doing?" Her voice was unexpected, and it cut Chase's musings short.

"Excuse me?"

"What do you think you're doing?" She slowed the words down this time, speaking to him as if he were a small child instead of the grown man that she had cornered in the shower. A stupid one at that, if judging by her tone.

"I was taking a showe-"

"I meant with House." She snapped.

"Oh. What do you want to know?" He diverted his gaze, trying to play off his obvious discomfort of the situation as nonchalance.

"Don't play dumb with me…"

"It's obvious, don't you think?" Chase finally stepped out of the shower cubicle, still avoiding her gaze as he walked over to his locker. "He's a pill popping bastard…anything else?"

The brunette was silent for a long time, as the Australian dried and dressed. He thought she had left until he heard the familiar clip of her heels approaching him. The blonde ignored her, reaching for his shirt, just pulling it over his shoulders when her voice sounded just behind him.

"Yes," He jumped, not realizing how close she had gotten until her breath ghosted across the shell of his left ear, her petit hand pulling his shirt back down. "What's this?"

Cameron's fingers pressed down sharply on the bruise that blemished his left shoulder, her voice as harsh as the action itself. Even though the mark was nothing more than a dull pain now and then, the woman's fingers succeeding in making him cringe. As the throbbing increased to the point where it hurt almost as much as when he got it…not that he minded though.

"It's none of your business." Chase yanked his shirt out of her grasp, ignoring her to the best of his abilities.

"Did House give you that?"

Chase was surprised to find his boss sitting behind his desk when he approached the diagnostics office. The man was late to work everyday, it was as predictable as the sexual harassment complaints claimed against him by the new interns during their first week. Even still, it didn't mean that he wasn't pleased to see him. He couldn't help it if his steps quickened, rushing into the glass box, wasting no time in sliding the shades shut behind him.

House looked up from his game boy, going back to the small screen until his brain processed whom it was standing in front of him. He nearly didn't recognize the Australian in his rumpled clothes, hair wet and hanging limply around his face in stands that clung to his high cheek bones, breathless. Not that he minded the image the blonde made, but something was most definitely wrong.

Something was always wrong.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I have a couple ideas for the next one, but I'm leaving for Canada in 10 days and won't be back until the 26th. So don't expect an update until I get back, though I will try to get one out sooner!

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xxx