Doggone it! House still belongs to David Shore, but Greg belongs to me!
It's been way to long since I posted, but to be truthful, I got stuck. I'm near the end of this story and I want all of the reveals to be just right. I think you'll like this chapter's reveal. I had a lot of fun writing it!
I've also been writing and editing a book that I would like to get published in the next year or so. There is more to publishing a book that I ever imagined!
Like Father, Like Son Chapter 32
Greg was silent as he rode with House on their way into work. House could see from the expressions flitting across his son's face that he was running through the possible scenarios that could occur with the team once he admitted who he was. At one point House felt Greg watching him and knew he was reliving the dream of the night before and wondering if things could actually go that badly.
"You know Greg; things are rarely as extreme as you dream they will be. The team could be mad that you didn't tell them who you were, but I think it's highly unlikely. I've been playing games with their heads for quite some time and they just keep coming back. If they are up to my games, they won't be fazed by yours. They've probably wondered if I've manufactured Eddie just to make them look bad – and you have! House grinned with pride at Greg as he pulled into his parking space at the hospital. "You could always just wait for them to figure it out! We could take bets on who figures it out first and how long it will take them!" House had that look in his eye and Greg decided to consider the idea since he couldn't think of a good way to break the news, yet.
As always, House was the first one out of the car and Greg scrambled to catch up. How did he do that? Greg grinned to himself. So far the morning was going so much better than his dream had! He decided that it was safe to relax, took a deep cleansing breath, gathered his belongings, then caught up to his dad – who was clearly quickening his pace in a challenge for Greg to keep up.
House stopped at the door of the hospital and said for everyone in earshot to hear, "It's impolite to keep a cripple waiting, what took you so long?"
Greg responded in true House form, "That would be old and crippled if you're referring to yourself, Dr House! Let me carry your bag for you!" Greg snagged House's backpack, nearly knocking him over, but making it to the elevator first so he could push the button. "I wouldn't want you to overtax yourself…Sir!" As they entered the elevator and turned around they discovered that they'd drawn quite a crowd and Cuddy stood in the midst of them enjoying the show.
On the way to House's office and the team, Greg grew pensive again. It was easier to decide to relax than it was to actually relax. Every step brought that concept more clearly into view. When they entered the conference room, as Greg tossed the backpack into House's office, House grabbed the wheeled metal exam room stool for Greg to sit on. He'd noticed his son thought better if he didn't have to sit still and since there was nothing left to be gleaned from the charts, there was no need for Greg to sit at the table. Earlier, House had noticed Greg's preference for the stool when he was given the choice.
As they all turned to the whiteboard, the group fell silent. Each person was reviewing the progress they'd made the day before. It looked more like a bowl of spaghetti than a list of symptoms and constructive ideas, so before they could get it all read, House erased the board in order to start over and try to make sense of the case. As the team went through the list of symptoms and tried to determine which were initial symptoms and which were brought on by the side effects of the treatment, Greg was in a world of his own. Even though, no one yet knew who he was, the angry faces of the team in his dream kept coming to mind. He might have been in the room physically, but as evidenced by the distracted back and forth spinning on the seat of his stool; Greg was far, far away.
An unexpected gasp filled the room as Greg swiveled his seat toward the door just as Blythe House entered unannounced.
"My God, Gregory, why haven't you ever told me?"
"I just recently found out myself, Mom. I found him on my doorstep a few weeks ago."
"That must have been some basket! He's a teenager!"
The team looked back and forth between House, his mother, and Greg.
Chase slapped the table, grinned and said "Of course! They really do look alike!" Understanding and wonderment flooded the faces of Taub, Thirteen and Foreman as they made the connection, too.
House looked to Greg, then to his mom. "Let's go to my office and talk. Greg can stay here and spend some quality time with the team."
"His name is Greg?" Blythe put one hand to her mouth and her other hand on Greg's cheek and said, "It's been a very long time since I've seen this face, but I would recognize it anywhere." Tears filled her eyes; she blinked them back as she touched his curls. "I've always wanted to be a grandma, but had given up on that dream. Please, tell me you aren't too old to call me Grandma and let me spoil you."
"Mom, you're sooo demanding!" Blythe saw the twinkle in House's eyes and knew that her chances of getting to know Greg well were very good."
"Do you have any more children hidden away? With all that tomcatting around you probably have an entire litter!"
"This is not the result of tomcatting, I'll have you know. This child is the result of a one-night stand filled with love and ….hot sex!"
"Gregory, not in front of the child," Blythe was enjoying the back and forth of the conversation, but began to think it was going too far.
House recognized the look and took it one step farther. "Child? Child! Why I was that age when I lost my vir…
"Gregory, go to your office, now!" Blythe was turning crimson and had no interest in hearing this information in mixed company.
"M-o-o-o-m!" House singsonged, as Blythe ushered him into his office. He rolled his eyes to Greg and then the team as he closed the door that would provide no real privacy.
Greg moved to the conference table where the others were sitting, looked at the team sheepishly, then said in a half questioning tone, "Surprise!?"
Taub studied Greg for a long time before saying thoughtfully, "You aren't an angry or rebellious teen. You're a pretty good kid! House could have done a lot worse!"
"Now that's a glowing opinion if I ever heard one," responded Thirteen as she shook her head at Taub in mock disgust. "Don't listen to him Greg; you are beyond a doubt the best thing that has ever happened to House. He likes you already and I've never seen him happier."
"No one's ever seen him really happy," added Forman. "It's kinda refreshing!"
"Maybe some of it will rub off on you, Foreman," Taub quipped, doing his best Foreman imitation….with a blank look on his face.
Greg looked mystified, but Chase and Thirteen smirked at each other.
"You know, Greg, I kept thinking that I knew you, but I figured you just looked a bit like that kid doctor on that TV show." Chase couldn't quite let go that he had seen something familiar about Greg, but then he remembered something that no one else had considered yet. "What do you suppose Cuddy is going to say about the whole thing….or Wilson?" The look on Chase's face indicated that this was something with which he might be able to have some fun!
"Sorry, Chase, Wilson was the first to find out and then Cuddy. I'm engaged to Rachel as far as she's concerned, so I'm practically a member of the family." Greg smiled as he remembered the evening they did their best to unwind Lisa.
"Tell all. I'm not going to beat around the bush. How did you find House?" Thirteen was suddenly all business; she wasn't going to play games.
Greg took a deep breath, and then told his story. He wondered how much of it was actually his to tell, but like Thirteen, he just wanted to get it over with. He talked about when Renee and House met, being homeschooled, and raised by his grandparents once his mom died after Hurricane Katrina. If he got bogged down in a memory, one of the team, usually Thirteen would ask a question to get the story moving again. She was afraid that any minute House would walk through the door and their time for getting the facts would be in the past. House and his mother returned to the conference room just as the story and the questions had run their course.
"Your grandma would like to spend the day with you, Greg." House was trying to convey a message with his eyes, but Greg didn't know him well enough yet to understand what his dad was asking. "Do you think these idiots can get this case solved without you or do you need to stay?" It occurred to Greg that House was really trying to give him a choice without hurting his mother's feelings.
Greg appeared to look the team over carefully as he shook his head. "What did you ever do without me, Dad?" Internally, he was thinking about his new grandmother and how much it made him miss the grandparents he'd grown up with. "Everyone needs the chance to spread their wings, Dad, and I think it's time for the team to give it a go without me."
"You're sure?" replied House. If there hadn't been a case that urgently needed attention, House would have left for the day rather than subject Greg to his mother with no means of escape, but House did need to stay, and so Greg was on his own.
"I'll return Greg in one piece, Son! You don't need to worry. We'll take our time to get to know each other, we'll gossip about you and James, and eat some lunch. How dangerous could that possibly be?"
Without waiting for a response, Blythe took Greg by the arm and ushered him out. House didn't feel a bit good about this. It wasn't a concern that he expected, though. Those two had mischief in their eyes and he wasn't sure at all if they could be trusted together.