Good news if you're getting a little bored with the story...things will start to happen in the next couple chapters! I already have 18 and 19 written so they'll be up soon =) In the meantime, if anybody has any guesses regarding House and Wilson's fight...

Remy woke early Saturday morning, surprised, since she'd been so exhausted after her long week. Of course, the day I don't have to be at the hospital. Finding it impossible to get back to sleep, she rolled out of bed around 8:00 and decided to get out of the apartment a while. Ten minutes later she laced up her favorite pair of running shoes and grimaced at the grunginess. I really should retire these.

Her usual route took her through the park across from the hospital, four miles of quiet trail that was hard to find in the city. She'd always liked the outdoors, but wasn't much for running until Med School. The stress wore her thin her first year, and the discovery of the hobby was a lifesaver. Now, after a hard day or week, she would pound out her thoughts through half an hour with her Asics and iPod.

Cutting through the hospital parking lot, she spotted Stephen's car and remembered he was scheduled to work that morning. House's comment from the previous night suddenly popping into her mind, she decided to stop in and catch him before his first emergency call.

"Hey, Stephen," Remy said casually as she entered the ambulance bay where she knew he could be found.

"Hey, what's up?" He wasn't surprised to see her in workout clothes; he knew it of her running addiction and favorite location near the hospital. "How was the first night with your guest?"

She shrugged. "Smooth, I guess. I got home late last night, and he was of course still sleeping when I left this morning."

"He won't be up for a while?"

"Nothing short of Cuddy's cleavage - the old Dean at Princeton-Plainsboro - can drag him out of bed before noon," she laughed. "He did say something last night that made me curious, though," she said carefully.

"What's that?" He didn't seem to have any idea what she was getting at.

"I asked him what he was planning on wearing today, and every other day, since he only had one change of clothes in his bag the night of the accident."

"Oh...yeah." Stephen looked almost guilty. "He thought of that while he was still in the hospital, I guess. I stopped in to visit him during my shift the day it was arranged for him to stay with you, and he asked me where around here was a good place to buy a few essentials, so I offered to take him when he was released. I thought it'd be easier if he didn't have to mess with the bus in his wheelchair, even though he can push himself. I didn't mean to go behind your back, but he asked me not to mention it to you. I have no idea why..."

Remy smiled at the way Stephen looked like a puppy ready to be chastised. "It's okay, I get it. He just wanted to avoid one more way of showing vulnerability. He's too proud to admit he needs help with things. Thanks for helping out, Stephen. He seems to be really comfortable with you."

His face flushed slightly. "I think he likes to harass me about the two of us."

She rolled her eyes. "If that's what entertains him..." It's not the worst thing he could bring up. "If it bugs you, I can say something to him...not like that'll have much effect."

"I can take it," he laughed. "I've been called worse. Besides, maybe if we just ignore it he'll get bored."

"You wouldn't believe that man's perseverance," she commented. "He sexually harassed his boss - Cuddy - the entire time I worked for him, and according to Eric, he'd been at it for years before I got there. Rumor had it they slept together twenty years ago, and he's been passive-agressively after her since then."

He paused. "Who's Eric?" The question was curious but quiet, almost cautious.

She cursed silently - she hadn't meant to say that. What the hell? I don't just let things like that slip. It wasn't that she was trying to keep secrets, but it was easier not to go into some things. Her rare Princeton-Plainsboro-related stories usually featured House being House or Kutner's antics, with Taub making an occasional appearance. Eric was carefully skirted around any time she talked about her previous job. She knew Stephen would pick up on the fact that Eric was the only one from PPTH she'd ever referred to by his first name.

Sighing, Remy said, "Eric was the only member of House's original team that still worked for him when I was hired. Well, in theory he had authority over House for a while, but of course that was a joke." She bit her lip, and decided to go for the straightforward explanation. "And we dated a while."

Remy raised her eyes to Stephen's face and for a split second, found him listening pensively. Then he laughed. "I can imagine House raising hell any time anyone tried to corral him. When we went shopping, there were a few times I feared for the lives of store employees. I think they learned to never, ever pity someone in a wheelchair."

She blinked, surprised that he seemed satisfied with the little information she'd given about Eric. A sudden rush of gratitude hit her. He changed the subject on purpose? "Oh, of course. Everyone at Princeton-Plainsboro learned long ago not to treat him like a cripple."

The lights on Stephen's team's ambulance flashed suddenly. "Stephen! Heart attack, gotta go!" called Marcus from across the bay.

"Sorry, Rem." He was already swinging on his jacket. "I'll catch up with you later?"

"Yeah, sounds good. Be careful."

**********

By the time Remy reached the trail, her music was blasting and thoughts racing. How could I accidently bring up Eric? That's never happened. I don't walk around the hospital blurting out things about my past and personal life. The wall between her mind and mouth was usually bulletproof. Always observing, rarely commenting was her M.O.

The thought occurred to her that if the slip had to happen, Stephen was surely the best one to witness it. She saw the curiosity in his eyes, but he hadn't pestered once he sensed she didn't want to talk about it. Or he read more from my response than what I said. Normally proud of her impassive outward expression, she got the uncanny feeling Stephen could see more than most. Kind of like House that way. She shuddered. Comparing Stephen and House was just wrong.

Although they do seem to get along. Shopping, honestly? It did make sense that House didn't want to ask her about where to get clothes, because she of course would have offered to take him. The resulting outing would be awkward for both of them and only emphasized the fact that he needed help with the most simple everyday tasks.

Thank God for Stephen. Dealing with House on my own would be like single parenting. It'll be nice to have somebody to back me up and tag-team a little. Although I'm still not sure how he got so involved all of a sudden...he just met House a week ago. Pretty sure he doesn't know what an ass he can be yet. He might be getting a taste of it with House constantly harassing him about the two of us...Which brought her to another unsettling question. Why hasn't House broadcasted my Huntingtons to all of Boston? Shattering people's carefully constructed lives is what he lives for. She couldn't even count the number of times she saw him limp triumphantly into a patient's room to announce to the spouse that they'd been lied to or cheated on. There's something weird going on here. He has to want something. Her mind went back to Stephen's comment. "He's working up the courage to tell you something, or waiting for you to drag it out of him." What could be happening that he wants to talk to me about? There has to be a reason. As much as she tried to ignore it, she had to confront the idea niggling at the back of her mind. We do have something in common: dying. But how could that cause the fight between him and Wilson? There has to be something I'm not thinking of.

Realizing her thoughts were going in circles, Remy turned up her music and tuned out everything else. Strengthening her strides, she resolved to put it all out of her mind for a few miles.

Please comment! It keeps me going!