From here on out I've had to do some research on being pregnant, and with a little advice from Teddi-Thanks!
CHAPTER TWENTY
"I was finally able to get her in the car, and she cried for another half hour before she fell asleep for the rest of the drive."
House and Cameron were sitting on the couch in House's apartment – well, House was but Cameron was sitting on the ottoman, rubbing his thigh until the muscles relaxed, what was left of them – and telling her about the rest of the drive home.
House had 'trained' Cameron how to massage his thigh, and on special occasions she would give him a full-body massage, but not now because she couldn't straddle him the most comfortable way with her belly as big as it was.
"I think she needs to sleep for two days; it'll really help her."
House looked at her curiously. "Why do you say that?"
She stopped massaging his thigh and looked at him. "That's what I did after my husband died."
"Ah." He laid his head on the back cushion and closed his eyes. "Man, I don't think I've ever been this tired before. Debra said she felt bad for not helping, but I knew she wasn't in any type of shape to drive."
Cameron started to massage his leg again but really wanted to talk about his dad and what happened between them, but she knew that was a sore issue and didn't want to press him. "Oh, hey, I had a little trouble the other day," she said, her voice soft so as not to alarm him but it didn't work.
"What – What happened?" His eyes flew open and he picked his head up off the cushion. "Are you ok? Is the baby ok?"
She smiled. "Yes, yes. It's just…there was a little blood…" She stopped working on his leg again, stood up and sat next to him on the couch.
"Cameron, tell me!"
"Dr. Crooks said it was normal. The baby just dropped, you remember in class – the lightening. It's just sooner than we expected."
"Does that mean you'll go into premature labor?"
"No, no. I asked that, too. He said it was normal for first-time mothers."
"I thought you were a doctor?" she teased, leaning into him and pushing him with her shoulder.
"I am. I just never had the necessity to know about the problems with pregnancy." House relaxed a bit and leaned back into the cushion. "This is all so…weird."
Cameron frowned and smacked his stomach. He yelped, bent his body up and rubbed it. "Weird? Thanks, Greg!"
"No, I didn't mean it that way…"
"What way? How did you mean it? I'm having your child – what's so weird about that?"
"Honey, look, I'm tired and I just need sleep…"
"Oh, darlin'," she said, the nickname came out with a stinger attached to it, as she sat up and stared him down. "You don't know what tired is until you've gained 30 pounds, your face bloats the size of the Good Year Blimp, your legs and feet swell so much they hurt, you can't stand the thought of food because you know you'll get heartburn, you can't sleep on your stomach and you constantly wake yourself up in the middle of the night because…"
"Allison?" She shot daggers at him for interrupting her. "I love you," he said sweetly, a warm smile on his face – not that he didn't mean it; he just hoped it would calm her down so she'd stop attacking him.
"Oh, BITE ME!" she yelled, awkwardly standing up and huffed to the bedroom, but she didn't close the door.
Oh, crap, Wilson warned me about this. Our first fight and it's because her hormones are sky high. Hormones, gotta love 'em.
House put his hands on his knees to stand up and go talk to her, but in mid-rise he was struck with a pillow bouncing off of his face and a blanket thrown next to him.
"Tell me how weird it is sleeping on the couch!" she screamed, turned on her heels and stomped back to their bedroom, slamming the door, immediately followed by a 'click' of the lock on the door.
"Oh, great."
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Wilson tilted his head up and back to get a glimpse of Debra, who was holding him in the tightest bear hug she'd ever given him. "Deb…you asleep yet?"
"Yeah."
He chuckled under his breath and turned his body to face her, and as a result her head found its way onto his chest, her arm sprawled across his waist with her hand up just under his arm and she threw her leg over his.
"You okay, babe?" he asked, brushing the hair out of her face lovingly.
"Yeah." She buried her head deeper and held onto him tighter.
"Oh, hey…what's wrong?" She frowned; her eyes still closed and asked what he was talking about. "You're just holding me so tight – that's all. I'm not going anywhere."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
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House was sleeping peacefully on the couch, the same night Cameron kicked him out of the bedroom – okay, she didn't kick him out, but she wouldn't let him sleep in the same bed as her. She'd woken up in the middle of the night and had to use the bathroom. She felt so awful for the way she treated him she went to get him to come back to bed with her.
She slowly walked up to the couch and smiled; she hoped their baby was just a gorgeous as he was, minus the beard if it was a girl. She took a few more steps, trying to be careful not to stub her toe on the corner legs, but unfortunately failed.
DEEP THUD…CRACK
"OW, damnit…chhhhh" she cursed, fell on the couch and grabbed her big toe, with difficulty, of course.
"Huh…Angelina…is that you?" House sat up and looked at Cameron. "Oh, it's you," he said meanly, but playfully.
"Shhht up…ow…" She rocked back and forth, as if that would take the pain away, her eyes became misty with tears she was trying to hold back.
"Let me see, let me see," House asked, reaching out for her to hand him her foot, but she didn't. "Oh, come on! I heard you coming in – you flushed the toilet, remember?" He scooted closer to be next to her to get a better look at her toe.
"No, you can't see it – it's your…ow!...fault," she said, very seriously. "I think…it's bro…ken."
"Allison Cameron! Stop your bitching and give me your freakin' foot!" he fussed at her, reached out his hand and waited for it to magically appear in it.
Cameron's head kicked back and shook, like someone slapped her across the face. Tears started to really weld up in her eyes then and the fullness of her bottom lip started to shake, doing her best to hold back her first major pregnancy-I-want-it-out-of-me-now! cry.
"Oh, Allison…" House said affectionately, his voice three octaves softer. "…I'm sorry. Don't cry," he whispered, putting his arm around her and waited to see if she'd accept it by leaning into him.
"I'm NOT gonna cry!" she wailed, then all hell broke loose and she broke down, crying into her hands.
Regardless whether Cameron wanted House's arm around her, he kept it there anyway, holding onto her. He laughed, but it wasn't a facetious laugh; he thought it was just so darn cute.
"Stawwwp…laughing…add…me," she cried, wiping the tears from her face but continued to look down at her feet, which were now planted firmly on the area rug under the couch.
"I'm not laughing."
"Yes…you are!"
He tried his best to stifle his giggling fit, but he couldn't control it for long. "No, Cameron, I swear I'm not…laughing." And of course he burst out giggling – what did you expect?
"This…sucks! I can't remember anything for shyte; I dropped two bags of groceries that I refused to have Wilson help me with; I'm nauseous 36-hours a day and now I broke my toe."
House started to rock her back and forth, his right hand slid down to her waist from her back, his left hand held her left knee, and he held onto her tighter. The silk maternity nightgown he'd bought her brushed softly against his hand as he rubbed her side; his forehead was against her ear and he whispered softly it, although she couldn't understand what he was saying.
"Should I call a doctor?" House asked, very clearly and very playfully.
At that, Cameron laughed. She wiped the tears from her eyes and sat back against the cushion, an expression of shame and guilt on her face. "Greg, I…I'm sorry…"
"Don't, you don't have to apologize. Wilson warned me…"
House instantly regretted saying those three words; he waited for two over-sized pregnant fists aim at his face and pummel him, but that didn't happen. Instead, she smiled, and laughed, and cry-hiccupped and grabbed his hand.
"I didn't think the hormone thing would be this bad."
"Hey, look on the bright side – you only have seven-and-a-half weeks to go!"
"Oh, great. That makes me feel sooo much better!"
They laughed for a few minutes as Cameron let House hold her, and when she grew drowsy she told him she was ready to go back to bed. She stood up, tested her toe, determined she could walk on it and that it wasn't broken, and headed for the bedroom. She assumed he was right behind her; he wasn't. She turned back around sharply and asked why he wasn't coming with her.
"I'm afraid you'll throw something at me again," House said, a grin on his face.
She walked back to him, held out her hands, which he accepted, and she helped him stand.
"No, I think I'll save another throw for a time when you do something wrong, which will eventually happen."
Without waiting for House to kiss her, she pulled him toward the bedroom door, a wicked grin growing wider and wider on her lips.
"Oh, yes! I know what that grin means!"
"No, it doesn't mean I'm going to give you any. It means I have indigestion." They just reached the arch of the doorway and she continued to pull him in, toward the bed.
"That only works for babies, not pregnant women."
"Oh, darn. I thought that would work. Oh, well. Guess you'll just have to make love to me, then."
Just as she said that, House whirled her around and gently set her on the bed, their legs in a scissor position and he lay next to her and she got comfortable on her back.
"Allison, you know I don't make love…I have sex…"
She shut him up by placing a hard, passionate, tongue-searching, lip-smacking kiss on him, hungrily pressing her body against his.
House broke their kiss and was barely able to say, "I...make love."
And they did. That night, after two days apart and the raging hormones of a pregnant woman, Dr. Gregory House made hot, explosive, affectionate, lust-filled love to Dr. Allison Cameron.
And they fell asleep in each other's arms, content with the world. As always, for Cameron; and for the time being for House.
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Wilson felt like the worst weasel in the world after promising Debra he'd never leave her. Why did he make such a promise he wasn't sure if he could keep? His thoughts raced back to earlier that morning…
"No, no. It can't be…I'll run 'em again."
An hour later…
"No! Damnit!"
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A/N: Just when you thought all was well in Princeton-ville, you discover it's not!
Duh-dum-dum-duh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
