Happy Sunday! Another chapter for you, let me know what you think :) and thanks once again for everyone that has taken the time to leave a comment, very encouraging!

Oh and I went back over the other chapters last week and tweaked the typos and certain things I thought needed tweaking, sorry about that...No matter how much you check something for errors they still seem to crop up! Also sorry about the poorly translated French in some areas of my last chapter, apparently my translator tab doesn't work as well as I thought, I will fix those mistakes too.

Disclaimer: I reference the book Jane Eyre...I did not write it, Charlotte Bronte did.

Enjoy!

Rachel was wrapped in Cuddy's arms as she handed over the keys to House to unlock the front door. He had been right before when he noticed Cuddy's fever, she felt weak and she didn't know how much longer she could stay on her feet.

House could sense Cuddy's weakened state and helped guide her to place Rachel gently on the couch. He saw her falter to stand back upright and quickly wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, "I've got you."

Cuddy felt her head spin wildly as she felt his arms encircle her body as the queasiness began to hit her full force, "House..." It was all she could squeeze out, she knew she was going to lose her stomach at any moment.

"I know. Let me get you to the bathroom before you pull a Rachel on me." He spoke quietly into her ear, "Try to walk, lean on me. I don't think I can carry you that far."

She obliged him the best she could as they made their way to the bathroom. As soon as they reached the doorway Cuddy broke free of House's arms and hurried to the toilet as she began to be violently sick. She could feel House pull her hair back as her stomach purged itself uncontrollably. After about five minutes she started to feel better, taking some calming breaths she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and attempted to stand so she could brush her teeth.

House felt horrible watching her be that sick. Selfishly it flashed through his mind that this was not the weekend he had planned, but he knew whatever else got in their way all that mattered was that he was surrounded by her now. It was, an amazing dream come true. He let her hair fall back down her back and grabbed onto both of her hands to help her stand up. "Well...at least you made it to the toilet." He quipped, receiving a lovely Cuddy scolding look that he had missed provoking very much during their time apart.

Brushing her teeth, and trying not to be sick all over again from the smell of the toothpaste, she dried her face and turned around to face her 'nurse.' "Bet you're rethinking your trip out to France right about now."

"Never." He smiled, "That was hot."

Cuddy swatted him with the towel in her hands, "Thank you...smart-ass." Just those simple movements made her think she might have prematurely brushed her teeth.

House saw her look and grabbed her hand, guiding her to the bedroom. "You need to lie down. I assume this is your room."

"Yes." She managed to speak. Cuddy reveled in the touch of his hand wrapped around hers, trying to focus on that and not her revolting stomach. House opened her door and it was then that she remembered she had nothing on her bed but a bare mattress.

"Love the bed, very modern."

"Crap my bedding and Rachel's are still in the washing machine."

"Do you have any other blankets?"

"Just two in the hall closet."

House let go of her hand and went to grab a few bare pillows from the chair in the corner of the room, limping carefully back to her to her side. He had dropped his cane when he saved Cuddy from falling in the family room, "Here, lie down anyway, and I will get you one of the clean blankets."

"I need to be close to Rachel, she's still out on the couch."

"I will go check on her, but hopefully she will sleep through the rest of the night. Her antibiotics went straight into her bloodstream, plus the pain medication from her procedure will knock her out...but yours are going to take more time to work, and I think you might have thrown them back up anyway." He helped her lay her head back onto the pillows while he was talking, his hands lingering on her a moment longer than necessary before he left to check on the 'Mini Cuddy.'

House went down the hall using the wall for support, and found his cane lying on the floor next to Rachel's snoring body. He covered her up with one of the blankets he had snatched from the closet and tucked the unicorn he bought her under her arm so she wouldn't wake up in a panic. He felt her head and knew that her fever was already heading back to normal, and he breathed a sigh of relief knowing she was going to be weak for the next couple days, but everything would eventually be okay.

Out of the corner of his eye House spotted the washing machine that was holding the bedding hostage, making his way over to it so he could dry the abundance of soggy blankets. Then he went to the refrigerator and pilfered its contents, smiling as he noticed that Cuddy still had nothing good in the form of junk food. He was famished from not eating all day, so he devoured a healthy veggie sandwich and poured a couple glasses of water for himself and Cuddy, bringing the antibiotics and his duffel bag with him as he went back to check on the sickly love of his life.

He crept in quietly when he noticed she had her eyes closed, and carefully placed the water and medicine on the nightstand, fetching the other blanket and draping it over her body as she slept. Impulsively he wanted to lie next to her, but he knew better than to assume that she would want that from him yet, 'or ever,' House mutely reminded himself. So he turned away begrudgingly and sat down in the recliner chair that was facing her bed from the other side of the room, reaching for the book he saw next to him on her dresser.

It was Jane Eyre, one of her favorite books. She had mentioned it once to him when he was trying to push her to read one of his favorites, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. He remembered she made a face at him and said that the only way she would read his recommendation is if he read hers, Jane Eyre. He returned her look and gruffly said he would think about it...but she left him a month later, never allowing them the chance to fulfill each others wishes.

The memory provoked House's heart to ache beyond his control. Just recalling the break-up in his mind was almost impossible to bear. He could still feel her hand on his face right before she turned away from him. House looked to her then, peacefully sleeping only a few feet away, and he pushed the pain aside…he was with her now.

The book was already open to a page towards the middle; the cover was extremely worn, like it had been with her for many years. He reached into his duffel bag by his feet; carefully unzipping it so as not to disturb her sleep and retrieved his glasses so he could read, maybe have a chance to fulfill that misbegotten promise to her.

'…Mr. Rochester, as he sat in his damask-covered chair, looked different to what I had seen him look before; not quite so stern-much less gloomy. There was a smile on his lips, and his eyes sparkled, whether with wine or not, I am not sure; but I think it very probable. He was, in short, in his after-dinner mood; more expanded and genial, and more self indulgent than the frigid and ridged temper of the morning; still he looked precisely grim, cushioning his massive head against the swelling of his chair, and receiving the light of the fire on his granite-hewn features, and in his great, dark eyes; for he had great, dark eyes, and very fine eyes, too- not without a certain change in their depths sometimes, which, if it was not softness, reminded you, at least, of that feeling…'

House continued reading for a few more pages, but he concluded right away that he likely reminded Cuddy of 'Mr. Rochester.' The character was clearly erratic, cleverly arrogant, and full of a darkened spirit, seeming to possess a lot of the characteristics he knew Cuddy associated with himself. 'Maybe this was her way of missing me…' He wondered inwardly. Although, House didn't think being compared to this man was a good thing. He knew he definitely had to finish it eventually to see if Jane and Mr. Rochester ended up together…or was this desolate soul doomed to live his life alone forever.

House closed the book and placed it on his lap, taking off his glasses, laying his head back against the chair and closing his eyes. Ever since his brain tumor he had a hard time reading for very long without his sight going fuzzy. The initial brain scan after he opted for the less invasive route of having it removed through a laser (instead of an idiot with a scalpel) had shown positive signs that his tumor had reduced to almost nothing. The radiation therapy for the pre-cancer cells however left him feeling muddled, but he was slowly making his way back to decent health. House had taken new images of his brain the day he left for France, per Wilson's insistence, but he hadn't waited around for the results, nor told Wilson he was leaving. He couldn't shake the feeling that he didn't want to know the results yet, his obsessively cynical mind always programmed to focus on the worst case scenario. The tumor was like a dark cloud that loomed over his mind at all times…and he despised the defeated feeling it stirred within his damaged spirit.

"House?" Cuddy shifted in bed, trying not to move too much, slowly realizing how horrible she felt as she looked around the darkening room for him, secretly hoping he had stayed with her. She spotted him sitting in the recliner chair, his head leaning back and his eyes closed, peacefully sleeping just a few feet away from her, obviously not hearing her when she called out his name. Then she noticed the book in his lap, her book, and she smiled when she remembered that she had once tried to convince him to read it, clearly he had tried to acquiesce to her request.

She noticed the medicine and water on the nightstand, something House must have put there before he fell asleep, and she quickly swallowed the dosage before she gave herself time to think it through, not wanting to wait a second longer before she could no longer keep them down. Cuddy knew that her symptoms were going to sit with her even longer if she didn't start getting the flow of the antibiotics coursing through her immediately. Fixing her pillows so she could lay back down and still see him, she pulled the covers closer around her body and fought off the chills that the fever was forcing upon her. Cuddy stayed that way for awhile, watching his chest rise and fall with each quiet breath he took, trying to think of all the things she had left to say and sorting through how she felt about him being near her once more.

Right as she was about to close her eyes she saw his head move just slightly, the book falling off his lap as he opened his eyes to look into hers.

House could feel her watching him, pulling him slowly back to consciousness. Opening his eyes in the dusky room, he saw that his instincts were correct. Cuddy was lying on her side with her hands tucked under her cheek; her soft alluring eyes still seemed to sparkle even through her sickness as she gazed upon him. "Hey." He said quietly in the darkness.

"Hey." Cuddy spoke with a raspy voice.

"How are you feeling?"

"Shaky…but I will be okay, I just took some more medicine, and I've managed to keep it down so far."

House nodded, "Finger's crossed."

"Yeah." She said with a half-smile, "How's Rachel?"

"She's fine, was snoring like a drunken sailor about an hour ago. I put a blanket over her on the couch."

"You are a good nurse. " Cuddy felt a chill run down her back, causing her whole body to shudder from her heavy fever.

"Does that mean I get bedroom privileges then?"

"Well, you're already in my bedroom…so I guess the answer is yes." Cuddy retorted. Then she felt another wave of chills hit her and she closed her eyes against the aching sensation.

"How about my first privilege is that I crawl into bed with you and keep you warm, no groping I swear…unless specifically reques-"

"Okay." Cuddy stated simply, innocently interrupting.

House raised his eyebrow to her as if to question what he had just heard, then wiped it away from his face, taking off his shoes as he made his way to the other side of the bed. He got in, lifting up the covers quickly, trying not to let any heat out as he settled by her side. Her back was too him, and his mind screamed at him to mold himself to her like he used too, tuck his arm under her neck, rest his other arm across her body just the way she loved, but he stopped himself…he had no idea what to do next.

Cuddy sensed his hesitation; she could feel the heat from his body as he was just barely touching her with his own. She hesitated too, not having thought through her acceptance of his invitation to keep her warm, but she felt so sick, and she needed him…that was all that mattered. She reached back with her hand, gently placing it upon his stomach with her palmed turned up, inviting him to take her hand with his own. It was only a moment before she felt him move and the warmth of his hand was placed into hers. Cuddy closed her fingers around his and brought his hand back with her, forcing House to follow her lead and shift his body, sculpting his chest and legs against her back, as she lifted her neck just slightly for him to slip his arm under the crook of it. Then she brought his other hand still wrapped in hers and placed them both against her chest, just under her chin…it was an amazing feeling, an immediate drug to take her discomfort away.

Both of them smiled, not knowing they were mirroring each other, as they closed their eyes…falling asleep wrapped completely in each other's arms, linked together so perfectly, like they had never been apart.

House slowly opened his eyes in the pure darkness of the bedroom, still wrapped securely around Cuddy's small frame. Both their bodies were damp pressed so incredibly close together under the blanket, 'her fever broke,' he discovered as he pressed his hand that was still resting against her chest closer to her bare skin. House couldn't help himself and softly pressed a kiss to the back of her neck, taking in the smell of her skin and the way her hair felt brushing against his cheek. Cuddy hummed in response, but she only shifted a bit in her sleep without fully waking.

"Mommy? " …It was then that he realized why he was awake in the middle of the night; he must have unknowingly heard Rachel's voice coming from the living room. House slowly moved his arm from underneath her neck, causing her to roll over so that her face was just inches from his, making it nearly impossible for House to move out of bed towards Rachel's pleading. He took one last look at her incredible face as he extricated himself the rest of the way from her body, he got out of bed and picked up his cane from the floor, careful not wake her as he made his way down the pitch black hallway.

When he got out to the family room Rachel was sitting up on the couch, remote control poised in her hand as she stopped on a French version of the all-night cartoon network. She heard footsteps and turned to look who they belonged too. "House!" She said loudly through the quiet, beaming up at him.

House smirked and put his finger to his lips, gesturing for her to talk softly. "You're Mom's sleeping, and trust me you don't want to wake her yet or she might throw up on you." He whispered, sitting down by her side and pulled the covers over his body sharing them with Rachel, while checking her forehead to see if her fever was still with her. "What are you watching?"

"The show with the robot who's eats people heads off, and-and that green doggy burps all the time. It's so funny."

"Sounds pretty good actually." He leaned his head back and stretched his legs on the coffee table in front of him. "Does your Mom know you sneak out here at night and watch TV? I assume this is not your first time watching this show."

Rachel bit her bottom lip, 'Just like her mother,' he thought as she slowly shook her head, knowing she had been caught.

"Don't tell her okay?" She looked up at him with her big doe eyes, clearly attempting to win him over with sheer cuteness.

House furrowed his brow teasingly than gave her a thumbs up, "I will take your secret with me to the grave my dear." He put his hand over his heart, making another goofy face, causing her to giggle quietly before she turned back to her PG-13 cartoon.

They sat there equally entranced from the late night entertainment, laughing at the Robot as he ate one the heads off of a three headed alien; the alien's neck oozing florescent pink blood as the Robot went after another head, 'Pure comedic genius,' House acknowledged, 'The little runt always did have good taste.' He felt her move beside him as she adjusted her small frame to fit under the crook of his arm, resting her head against his chest.

House looked down at the top of her head before he put his hand on her arm, holding her against him while they watched the cartoon. This kind of gesture was always hard for House in the beginning of his and Cuddy's relationship, he had no clue how to be a father figure, having grown-up with a father as harsh as his, there were never any example shown to him of what this role should look like. But over time House began to be okay with Rachel, he was relaxed and himself, and she had connected with him just the way he was; never needing him to change for her to love him. They developed a friendship and a familiar bond that was much stronger than House had given credence too. It took losing both of them to realize just how much he did want to fill the father role in her life… he had fallen in love with her too.

A bright light kept flickering rhythmically while she slept. She shifted pulling a pillow over her eyes to block out the attack on her drowsy senses, but she could still sense it there. Throwing the pillow off, she noticed she was actually lying in a hospital room, the light breaking her from her slumber was a heart monitor flashing strange numbers across the screen. Cuddy checked her hands and chest and confirmed that she wasn't hooked up to it, confusion clouding her mind as she tried to understand what was going on. She slipped on her high heels she could barely see on the floor and looked around in the darkened room.

Suddenly she heard footsteps growing louder and she stood up as the door opened to reveal a person, but she couldn't make out who it was, only able to see behind the stranger into the clinic at Princeton Plainsboro, she could blurrily see her office door in the distance.

The stranger stepped forward, his face finally catching the light, "Lucas?" Cuddy was flustered, she hadn't seen him in so long, not since she broke his heart and handed him back her briefly worn engagement ring.

"Yeah…hey." He said as he stepped closer to her, meeting her eyes with a strange expression on his face.

"What are you doing here, is everything okay?"

"Why wouldn't it be?"

Cuddy hesitated, at a loss for words, "Well…uh, I haven't seen you for so long, and-"

"But you came back to me last night remember, you wanted to try again." He grabbed her left hand and brought it up to his lips, kissing it gently, "See…you're wearing my ring."

Cuddy's eyes grew big as she saw the diamond catch the small light from the heart machine behind her. She swore she didn't have a ring on her finger just moments before. "Lucas, I don't know what's going on, but-"

"It's okay, I forgive you." He smiled and dropped her hand, reaching up and cradling her face between his palms as he quickly brought his lips to hers before she even knew what hit her.

She tried to break free but her arms wouldn't move. It was as if they were heavily weighted to her sides. Cuddy mustered all the strength she could find and started to unravel herself from his strong hold on her, "Lucas-no." She broke away from the kiss and looked into his face…but he was no longer Lucas, "Michel?" Dr. Barret was looking back at her, his dark eyes staring directly into her soul, hands were on her face just like Lucas moments before.

Her heart was racing, as she squeezed her eyes shut against the chaos whirling around her. Dr. Barret's hands caressed her; she could feel his hot breath against her skin as he slowly began kissing her neck. She opened her mouth in protest, but soon discovered she could no longer speak, her voice not even coming out in a whisper. Tears started to fall down her face, she felt frightened, nothing that was happening made any sense, and she was utterly trapped inside it.

When she finally found the courage to open her eyes she saw another figure standing in the doorway…watching. It was House; she could feel it even though she couldn't see his face. He stood there in the shadows, witnessing another man put his lips to her neck. Then he stepped forward, and she saw his face catch the light…broken, and angry, his eyes seething at the scene before him.

"Lucas…now him?"

She tried to shake her head no, but she was frozen in horror, the only communication she was able to convey was in the form of tears pooling down her face.

House looked down and reached into his pocket, pulling out a small box and fingering it in his hands. He looked up with a look of pure anguish as he opened the box and held it up to her, a small blue stone was displayed in front of her eyes, nestled inside tiny diamonds casting bright sparks on the walls around her.

"I guess I'm too late." He closed the box before glancing down to her left hand, where another ring was stationed on her finger, and then he turned from her and disappeared through the doorway without another look back.

All that remained of him was the sound of his cane striking the hospital floor faintly in the distance…until she could no longer hear it.

Slowly her arms lifted as the sensation of freedom came over her, she pushed free of Dr. Barret's arms and ran after House, quickly emerging from the hospital room into the clinic that was completely empty, candles lined the main desk and the chairs, forming a strange glow around her. She stopped in the center of the room, trying to decide which way House might have gone. Then she heard a voice behind her…

"Lisa?" Dr. Barret emerged again from somewhere in the shadows, his eyes pleading with her to go to him as he reached his arms towards her face once more.

"Lisa?" She whirled around as she heard Lucas call to her from somewhere else in the shadows, but she couldn't see him. All she wanted was to find House, tell him he had made a mistake, she loved him…there was no one else.

Turning back around away from both men calling to her she spotted her office door, as a huge sigh of relief washed over her when she instinctually realized that was where he was. She ran as fast as she could, practically sliding into the door with her body as she grabbed onto the door handle...it was locked. So she began to pull with all her might, but it wouldn't budge. She frantically put her palms and face up against the glass to see if her was really in there. Then, she saw him…

Standing alone in the middle of the room she could see his pained face as he dropped the ring box onto the floor by his feet and reached into his pocket, bringing out a vial of pills…a bottle Cuddy knew all too well. She banged on the door, "House stop…I'm here!"

He looked up but continued his motions, popping the bottle open with his hand and allowing the lid to fall onto the floor settling next to the ring.

"Please! Open the door let me explain." She pleaded once more jiggling the door handle again in panic.

She watched in horror as he dumped pills into his hand and threw them in his mouth, tilting his head back to swallow…

Then she heard giggles, familiar laughter echoing down the vacant clinic behind her as all the lights came on and the candles blew out…

Cuddy put her hands over hear ears against the sounds of laughter…"No!"

She woke abruptly. An eerie sensation engulfed her as she tried to gather her bearings as to where she was… what the hell just happened. She caught her breath and swallowed against the lump in her throat from the horrific nightmare she had just emerged from.

She was in her own bed, that much she could discern, and everything was dark around her. Trying to sit upright was a challenge as she began to feel the pounding in her head, but she slowly managed to fight through it and glanced over to the nightstand to see what time it was. 5:02am flashed back at her, illuminating the bottle of pills sitting beside the clock. Things slowly started to come back to her, as she began to sift through events of the day before, Rachel and she were sick, and House was there. She smiled as she remembered falling asleep wrapped protectively in his arms.

Soft giggles belonging to her daughter started to echo down the hallway, and Cuddy could make out House's voice as well. She got out of bed quietly, noticing that she was still in her jeans and sweater from the day before, and made her way down the dark hallway towards the soft glow of the television in the family room. She reached the end of the hallway and stopped as she saw the two of them huddled on the couch. Her daughter was cuddled up against House, his arm against her side, holding her too him.

"The Robot's gonna kiss that lady with his stinky breath." Cuddy heard her daughter whisper up to House.

"Her breath stinks too, she just ate that monkey's arm." He motioned to the television, as Cuddy turned and noticed for the first time what her daughter was watching. Another filthy cartoon, 'Of course he would let her watch that,' Cuddy rolled her eyes, though she felt like it bothered her less than it had before for some reason. Rachel seemed able to handle it, what possible harm could it actually have on her.

The Robot and lady character Rachel mentioned before started kissing just like she predicted, then she saw her daughter smile up to House, "Are you going to kiss my Mom again?"

House looked down at her daughter, Cuddy swore she saw a hint of a smile cross his lips, but it was gone so quickly she thought she might have imagined it. "It was definitely on my to-do list." Cuddy blushed at the thought of his lips on hers, kissing House was a feeling that she could never shake out of her system no matter how far she ran. It was a powerful sensation she missed so unbelievably much.

Rachel turned her body around to face him, "Are you's going to stay?"

"I can only stay for another day then I have to leave."

"How come…um, Mommy will let you stay longer. Ask her okay."

She heard House sigh before he spoke, "I want to stay, but there's something I have to do back home, then maybe…" He didn't finish his sentence to her, even if he did, Cuddy didn't hear it. She was too wrapped up in his last statement that, 'he had something to do back home.' Something about the way he said it sounded ominous to her, she couldn't shake the feeling.

"Okay, "she yawned, clearly getting sleepy from the past day's events, "Can I have juice please?"

House crossed his arms, "Aren't you tall enough yet to reach the glasses?"

"No."

Cuddy saw him remove the covers and struggle to get up from the couch, clutching his cane and going to retrieve the juice. He grabbed the grape juice and threw it in a small cup, bringing it back to Rachel, stopping to stand behind her on the couch. "Don't spill or your mom will string me up by my ankles." Rachel giggled, "Not funny, did you forget about the root beer float-couch incident?"

Cuddy saw her daughter put her cup down and arch her eyebrows up at House, tilting her head to the side with an incredulous look, "That was your fault." Cuddy heard Rachel say in a hushed voice.

House smiled down at her, "Your Mother taught you that look. You know, it doesn't work when she gives me it, so it's certainly not going to work for the junior variety."

Cuddy finally extricated herself from her secret spot by the edge of the hallway, "That look works on you sometimes, and the root-beer float incident was your fault." She spoke matching their hushed tones with her own, as she slowly approached the two late night culprits in the family room.

House turned towards the raspy familiar voice he heard from the corner of the room, returning the smile he saw upon her face.

"Hi Mommy," Rachel called from her perch on the couch.

"Hey sweetie, "Cuddy was so relieved she was alright, she went over and sat next to her on the couch, wrapping her up in her arms, carefully kissing her all over her face. "You feeling okay?" She asked when she stopped smothering her daughter.

"Uh-huh, "Rachel said through another yawn.

"Let's get you into your bed before you pass out on the couch again, okay? Come on."

Rachel begrudgingly got off the couch dragging her blanket and unicorn with her, stopping to look at House, "I'll be here when you wake up, don't worry." he spoke down to her; she nodded approval and followed her Mom to her bedroom.

House went over and sat down on the couch once more; turning off the television, causing the room to be instantly enveloped in the quiet of the early morning. Cuddy came out of Rachel's bedroom and shut her door. Taking a moment before making the decision to go sit next to him on the couch, "Hey." She said softly.

"Hey." He repeated, feeling Cuddy sit down close to his side, leaning into him as the exhaustion hit her once more. "You should go back to bed."

"The suns coming up…look." She slightly gestured with her head to the bay window in front of them. Just a splinter of the sun was beginning its rise from behind a hill in the distance.

House reached out and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her near to him and tentitively ran his fingers down her arm. He felt her shift to bring her legs up, settling herself deeper in his embrace, so he grabbed her even tighter against him as the sensation of never wanting to let go of her again washed over him. No words were spoken as they watched the sun light the sky, falling asleep once more…locked together.

'Beep…You have reached someone who does not give a crap—'

Wilson slammed the phone down as he heard House's voicemail sound through the other end of the phone for the tenth time that day.

He had received scans taken of House's tumor, and he immediately began trying to contact him as soon as he deciphered the findings, but he couldn't reach him, even going to his home…but no one was there.

The images showed House's tumor was still there, a piece had remained despite their best efforts, and Wilson knew they needed to open him up, they needed to finally do the procedure House was adamant not to receive. A day had now gone by and he still couldn't reach House, which made him draw the conclusion that his friend really wasn't at home simply playing hooky from work.

Wilson picked the phone back up, reaching into his desk drawer to retrieve his address book. It was becoming perfectly clear where his friend more than likely was. He quickly found the entry and began to dial Cuddy's number…