Thank you very much for your great reviews, guys!

I am finally done with chapter 8 but I am not quite satisfied with it. Have re-written it a few times but somehow the outcome was never that great.

So i have just choosen the best version and here it is.

I hope it is okay. Tell me what you think.

And to thanks Jane for correcting! :)

8. Chapter

He found her sitting on the doorstep in front of the house. Her BlackBerry was in her hand but she didn't pay attention to it. She just stared at the ostentatious flowers in Blythe's garden.

"Do you wanna go to a bar and get drunk?"

"I thought we already scratched out "getting drunk" form your to-do list?" Cuddy looked up and motioned him to sit down next to her.

"Then I just have written it on the list again." He said and lowered himself next to her.

A short period of silence followed.

…

"I know that you don't want to talk about this right now… but if you ever feel like talking I want you to know that I am ready to listen." Cuddy's voice was gentle and caring.

House acknowledged her offer with a short nod of his head. He appreciated it. He really did. But he probably won't be ready to talk anytime soon.

"So, you wanna do something?" Cuddy asked in order to change the topic.

"I guess sex is out of the question?"

"You guessed right."

"Then lets go and get something proper to eat."

"Okay."

They both knew that Blythe would cook for them. But right now House didn't want to deal with her. He just wanted to forget this whole shit for a while. So they decided to go to a restaurant for dinner.

They had found a restaurant that was just 5 minutes away from Blythe's house.

It was a nice, cozy place that had a small but exquisite menu assortment.

"They don't have steak." House stated while reading through the menu.

"But they do have cutlet as well as Viennese schnitzel."

"They don't even have pizza."

"It is not an Italian place, House."

"Then why do they have lasagna?"

"Ask the owner."

"His management must be lousy. I am sure that this restaurant will have gone under before Christmas."

"And you can tell that because of the menu variety?"

"And because the waitresses are ugly."

Cuddy rolled her eyes at his statement and said: "Typical men!"

"Being unfriendly AND ugly are not favorable features for being successful in the hospitality industry." House's voice was loud enough for the waitress – who was just on her way to came over to their table again – to hear.

That comment made her even more pissed but she was acting like she hadn't heard it. She just but the drinks down on the table left again without saying a word.

"That wasn't very friendly of you either." Cuddy criticized.

"I am not a waiter, I don't have to be friendly."

"You are a doctor… Doctors usually are friendly."

"Doctors shouldn't spend time on being friendly, they should concentrate on preventing their patients to cross the Styx." He took a sip of his beer. "Guess why most of Wilson's patients are almost all gone to the Tatarus."

(A/N: If you don't know what the Styx and/or the Tatarus is look it up here: Styx= http:/en(dot)wikipedia(dot)org/wiki/Styx ;;; Tatarus= http:/en(dot)wikipedia(dot)org/wiki/Tartarus )

"I am pretty sure that neither your nor anyone else's rudeness would cure the 70% of Wilson's patients that are terminally ill."

Of course House was well aware of that. Wilson was a very good doctor but more than half of his patients were incurably sick. So that example does not really prove House's point.

"We haven't tried yet. Have we?"

Cuddy started smiling. He seemed so comfortable with her. He enjoyed their bickering, their banter, their playful arguments. He seemed to be able to let go when he was with her.

And she liked that. She liked that she was one of the very few people House trusted.

Back at Blythe's place, House immediately went to his old room. He didn't bother to say hello to his mum. He didn't want to see her.

However Cuddy decided to tell Blythe that they were back. She knocked on the door to the living room and opened it up.

Blythe smiled when she took sight of Cuddy.

"Hello."

"Hello, Lisa."

"I just wanted you to know that we are back."

Blythe nodded. "I actually wanted to cook dinner for you."

"I know… but House just needed a bit time away. You know how much he hates this emotional 'crap'." Cuddy said and smiled.

Blythe returned Cuddy's smile. Of course she knew that he hated to deal with his feelings. "Yeah… He hates that… I just wish I could explain everything to him but he won't let me."

"He needs time. He has to deal with the situation on his own… Then he probably will be ready to listen to you."

"I hope so."

Cuddy smiled sympathetically. "I'll go to him now."

"Okay."

Cuddy wanted to leave them room when Blythe prevented her from doing so by calling her name.

She turned around and faced Blythe again. "Yeah?"

"Are you and Greg… Are you two in a relationship?"

She shouldn't have been surprised about this question. It really looked like House and she were kind of together. She came with him to the funeral, they spend lots of time together, they are sleeping in the same room… She could understand why Blythe asked this question.

"We are good friends."

It was totally obvious that Blythe had hoped that they were more than friends. But anyway she said: "I am glad that he has you."

Cuddy smiled again, said "good night" and left the room.

As soon as she was in the hallway she let out a sigh. She knew that the next days wouldn't be easy. House wanted answers. He wanted to solve the puzzle even though if it will cause him emotional pain. And she was going to help him through that. She has no intentions of leaving his side.

House was sitting on his old bed with the remote in his hand switching through various TV channels when Cuddy entered the room.

"Your mum asked me if we are together."

House looked up from the TV. "What did you tell her?"

"The truth."

"That we are friends who sleep together when we are horny?"

"Yeah and I even told her which positions we do it in." Cuddy sat down next to him and gave him a light slap on his arm. "I just told her we are good friends, you idiot!"

"That is not the truth."

"Of course it is! We are friends."

"Friends who sleep together."

"We don't have sex anymore, House."

"Really? Was it just in my imagination that we were doing each other like rabbits a few days ago?"

"It shouldn't have happened."

"But it did."

"I know… but now is not the right time to talk about this. You have other problems to deal with." Her hand touched his arm in a gentle way. "I'll change to my pj's now. Let's talk when we are back in Princeton."

She got up from bed again and left for the bathroom.

TBC...