Thanks for all the reviews! I know I've teetered off the jury duty theme, as the title implied, but my thoughts just keep rambling, which isn't a good thing sometimes.

I haven't gotten to the explanations that I'm getting questioned on by some confused readers (lol-can't say as I blame ya) so here's a little more that I promise will be explained. Besides, I like making House vulnerable.

Please, please, continue to ask me questions if I've 'gone off message' and have confused anyone again!!!

Reality: Kathi was indeed stabbed, House indeed has a concussion from the back of his head kissing a metal pipe and they both are indeed in the ICU; House DID roll Tritter's car into the lake the year before

To be explained: (1) Heinz 57 thing that they both shared – but that was during the hallucination in which after that Kathi made the same comment. (2) When they were both attacked by 'the people yet to be named', they did both share an out of body experience where they 'journied together' when they both flat-lined. That also will leave a nice conflict in faith about the after-life.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

……"What? What is it?" Cameron asked alarmed.

"My head does hurt, I'm hallucinating because you all are here and it isn't normal that I'm lying here in this god forsaken bed while my three cottages are staring down at me!" House barked.

"Get over it," Cameron answered. Foreman shot a glance at Chase that he was impressed at her assertiveness, which she had shown quite a bit of lately. "Sorry to disrupt your poker game but Cuddy wants us to get some blood work and then an MRI."

"What if I say no?" House challenged.

"Then I will happily release more morphine into your I.V., wait until you are out, get the blood, MRI and shave every bit of hair off your chest, legs and back," Foreman answered, happy to join the 'Bash Your Boss' game.

"Hey, yeah. Then we'll glue that hair to the top of your balding head!" Chase chimed in.

But the looks from his boss and his two coworkers told him he'd gone one step too far, as usual, and sulked back against the wall out of embarrassment.

"Okay, but tell me how Kathi is," House said.

Cameron set up everything to get House's blood; while she worked to draw his blood she said, "She got out of surgery about half hour ago. From the severe trauma to her spine, two vertebrae at the L-4 were fractured but they were replaced with cadaver bones which released the pressure off her spinal cord. They won't know if there is any paralysis until she wakes up from surgery, and that won't be for a while now. The doctor has her heavily sedated." She threw the vial of blood onto the cart and withdrew another one, filling that one, too, of House's blood.

"She was…stabbed, wasn't she?" House asked nervously. Cameron simply nodded her head. "And?" There were several seconds of silence in the room. "God, just tell me!"

Cameron threw the second vial onto the cart, turned and looked at him, speaking softly. "House, she needs a new liver. It was severed from the stab wound. Cuddy was able to bump her up on the list but there's no guarantee…"

"Give her part of mine."

She couldn't believe she heard that coming from the man. "House, you're suffering from a concussion and I think right now delirium. You can't donate your liver."

"I don't need the whole thing," House stated. "Test my liver function."

Cameron looked at her two coworkers for support, in which she received none. She looked back at House. "That's absolutely ridiculous. No, I won't."

"I may be lying on this bed but I am still your boss. Test me."

Cameron and House locked eyes for what seemed longer than the several seconds it actually took. She turned, noisily picked up another vial and syringe and silently took one last vial of blood. As she left the room pulling the cart she said, "I wonder if I have enough blood to test for stupidity."

Chase and Foreman looked at each other confused, while House just laughed and said jokingly, "She loves me, I know she does."

HOUSE MD HOUSE MD HOUSE MD

Several hours later, House had just woken up after getting the cranial MRI scan from Foreman and Chase. He wanted to harass the pair while it was being done but for some reason he was extremely sleepy and slept through the entire procedure, no doubt to the glee of the two. It was shortly after 8pm and things were quiet in his room and he was getting ansy about Kathi. He wanted to see her, but instructions directly from Cuddy were for him to remain in his room. 'Just like her; like I'd ever leave the room against her wishes.'

And yes, he would have, if it wasn't for the fact that when he tried to sit up in bed and put both of his legs on the floor to stand, he became extremely dizzy. He gripped the side of the mattress with both hands to gain control but he couldn't. He felt his face flush, when in reality it was actually paling, his head throbbed terribly and he lost almost all of his hearing, but only for a brief moment. He knew he was going to pass out if he didn't lie back down on the bed, which he did, slowly and painfully.

HOUSE MD HOUSE MD HOUSE MD

Down in the lab, Chase, Foreman and Cameron were just completing the tests they had been taken on House earlier that day. It took them longer than anticipated because there was a breakout of strep throat in most of the schools in the county which caused an overflow in the lab.

A heavy sigh came from Foreman then he said, "He's not going to hear that he does have slight intracranial bleeding. We'll have to get that controlled before he can go home. I know he's already whining about that. And I sure as hell don't want to babysit him this weekend.

"Oh, hot date with Wendy, again?" Chase asked. Foreman didn't answer but from the stare he gave him Chase knew it was better for him if he shut up. So, he changed the subject rather quickly.

"I wonder why House has taken such an interest in that other patient, Kathi," Chase wondered out loud. He was directing his question at Cameron to see her reaction. She said she was over him, but Chase couldn't be sure of that. That was a year ago and he knew feelings change, just as his had over Cameron. He knew she liked House, that was apparent, but he wasn't willing, or strong enough, to fight House for her.

Cameron remained quiet and at first Chase thought his ponder went unnoticed until Foreman said, "Because she puts up with him."

"Puts up with him?" Cameron asked. "More like is just as stupid as House is…oh, damn." Both Chase and Foreman looked more intensely at Cameron. "There's no cirrhosis of the liver but enyzmes Aspartate Transaminase were detected in his blood and Alanine Transaminase levels are high; red blood cells are normal so it hasn't affected his kidneys…yet. He'll need to be kept on oxygen for at least 24 hours and with the bleeding he'll have to have someone with him at all times. Well, Foreman, looks like Wendy is going to have to be disappointed. We'll have to take turns here in the hospital."

"No way! I am NOT a nurse!" Foreman blurted out.

"Foreman, don't be so ungrateful. The man saved your life, remember?" she snipped snottily without looking at him. "I'll call Cuddy and give her the results. I suggest we all go home, get some comfortable clothes and a good book to read and be back here at 9:00."

"Who's going to tell House?" Chase asked.

"I will." The voice came from the opened lab door and Cuddy was standing there. She was wearing sweats, a sweater, sneakers and holding a small duffle bag.

"How long have you been standing there? What are you doing here? I was going to call you," Cameron said.

"Enough to hear he's finally messed up his liver with overdoing the vicodin. And I wanted to check on House. A phone call would be too impersonal. Besides, I can't harass him over the phone, now can I?" she joked. "You're right, Cameron. I'll get him started on Carsil and Silymarin. You three go home and get something to eat and pack. Chase, be back here at midnight; Foreman, you be here at 4:00am and Cameron, you get 4-8."

As the Housekateers walked out of the lab, Foreman was muttering curse words under his breath, Chase was trying to eavesdrop on Foreman's mumbling to see what he was complaining about and Cameron was bouncing on her toes with glee.