It was like any other day in Diagnostics.
House was at the helm, wielding his cane and marker pen demanding symptoms and suggestions from his ducklings for their latest uniquely sickly patient. Symptoms would be thrown his way but like a sharp shooting marksman, he would quickly shoot them down and request the next.
It had to be something obvious, something so obvious they were skirting around it not quite connecting the dots. But before Cameron could even reach for her pen, House's cell phone rang out.
He frowned deeply at the caller ID but answered regardless with his usual gruff growl of "House." The team watched transfixed as his frown lessened to something they could only liken to maybe shock or fear, not something any of them were familiar with seeing in their erstwhile leader.
Cameron focused intently on her boss, trying to read his eyes for a hint of what was being told to him. Maybe his mom or dad had been taken ill, more than likely his mother given that he wasn't so close to his father.
That presumption was further confirmed for her when House rang off with a nod of "I'll be there." He dipped into his office and grabbed his cane and rucksack, without so much as a backwards glance at the team he was gone into the elevator, out of sight.
Chase was the first to break the confused silence, "erm, okay. So is that him done for the day?"
"Apparently so. Look, let's run broad-spectrum blood tests and hope something gives us a clue to what's plaguing this guy," Cameron suggested, all the while concentrating on the task at hand and not the niggling worry that was beginning to take hold for House.
.o0O0o.
He felt physically sick. The words haunting him repeating over and over on the tape player in his mind as he planted his foot to the floor, gunning the past it's best engine in his Dodge not caring if he got a ticket. He was acting on instinct, fuelled by fear and adrenaline, every minute counted.
Hours had passed and yet the sterile cloying scent of disinfectant hung heavily in the air, a stark reminder of where he was sitting and waiting for what felt like days for an update.
His mind was so one-track that even his Vicodin had quite literally taken a backseat, left behind in the poorly parked Dodge. His own pain barely even registering, he couldn't bring himself to think about that, not until he knew it was the only pain he would have to deal with.
Nurses and doctors walked past with not so much as a passing glance, but then a doctor appeared, her eyes fixed on him with a tone cold and stoic, he knew what was coming.
"Mr House, I'm so sorry…"
.o0O0o.
The small lone figure lying in the bed beneath swathes of white blankets made for a heart-wrenching sight. House staggered towards the bed, his knees numb with shock as he dropped into the chair next to the bed and gently covered the pale, bruised hand atop the covers, careful not to jostle or apply pressure to the cannula that was there.
He had never felt so powerless. He was a doctor, a diagnostician. He fixed things, he made people better but this was beyond his control. He felt like he was treading water in the deep ocean, alone without a life raft and completely out of his depth.
The stress-induced exhaustion finally took its toll, creeping upon him with the poise and delicacy of a ballet dancer with the brute force of a boxer. His bloodshot eyes fluttered closed and with the lullaby heart monitor humming in the background, he succumbed to sleep.
.o0O0o.
The peace and serenity of the early morning were shattered by the shrill ringing of a phone. Cameron growled into her pillow, burrowing deeper into the covers in a feeble attempt to mute the spoilsport that had effectively poured a bucket of cold water over her subconscious' offerings.
It didn't matter how hard she tried or how deep she buried herself into the plush covers and pillows, the phone continued to ring.
"Ugh!" She growled, grabbing the phone and without looking at the ID she answered, "what?"
"Cameron?"
Her eyes flew open hearing House's gruff tone instantly knowing it was serious, "House, are you okay?" She looked at the alarm clock that resided on her bedside cabinet, "Jesus, House it's 4 am, what's wrong?"
She heard him sigh heavily down the phone, "I don't… I just need… fuck… I need your help."
"Okay, is it about the case?"
"No, no. Look, can you meet me at my apartment in an hour?"
"Erm, sure. Yeah, okay. Do you need me to-"
"I'll explain everything when you get there, please just… don't ask me now."
Before she could reply, the line was cut leaving Cameron in a state of confusion. What the hell had House got himself into?
The car ride over to House's apartment was fraught with nerves, at every stoplight and sign Cameron would subconsciously find herself drumming at the steering wheel, worrying herself sick over what lay ahead.
There had been many occasions in the two years she had been working for House where she had seen him not quite himself; whether that was him trying and failing to manage a particularly bad bout of pain or struggling with a case.
But this was something else, something unknown and when it came to House, the unknown was quite a scary notion.
When she pulled up outside of House's apartment, a cursory glance around showed no lights on inside and no sign of his Dodge but his Fireblade was parked in its usual spot by the entrance.
She began drumming again on the steering wheel, granted she was a little early but these were strange circumstances.
Just as she was about to give up and put the car in drive, House's blue Dodge trundled down the road and parked up in the disabled bay with a little more care and consideration for the white lines than usual.
"House, what's all this about?" Cameron asked as she climbed out of her own sedan, only to be met by the face of a man with the weight of the world mounted on his shoulders.
"I'll explain in a minute. Here," he tossed his keys which Cameron promptly caught, "get yourself inside and get the coffee on, I don't know about you but I'm in need of a boost."
"Okay…" she replied with some hesitation but didn't question him further, not wanting to start an argument for fear of sending him into a spiral.
She took the keys and headed inside. As soon as she stepped foot into his apartment, her stomach did a small somersault. This was House's domain, his kingdom yet there was something strangely homely and inviting about the inherently masculine space, perhaps it was the scent of him that lingered in the air and furnishings.
She wandered through to the kitchen and quickly located the coffee pot and set it to brew, setting out a couple of mugs in preparation. From the doorway, she could hear House grunting awkwardly and began making her way back through the apartment to offer him assistance.
"Sorry, sorry. Shh… it's okay, shh…" he whispered just as Cameron reached the front door.
"House, are you… oh my god!" She gasped in total shock and awe at the sight standing before her.
"Can you pick your jaw up so I can come in?"
Still completely aghast, Cameron dumbly stood aside letting House pass by her and sat down on the couch with his delicate cargo in his arms.
"Wh-wha, who…?" She babbled, trying to find words and come to terms with what she was seeing.
"This is Isabella, my daughter."
House smiled down with blue eyes full of fatherly pride at the young girl nestled safely in his arms while Cameron just stood in the doorway completely agog.
A daughter? House had a kid?!
She felt like she was in some sort of alternative universe, a Truman Show-like reality, any moment she would wake up with some sort of a hangover.
"A daughter… you have a daughter? How can you have a daughter?"
House chuckled at Cameron's flummoxed ramblings, "oh come on Cameron, that's day one stuff in medical school, you don't need me to explain that."
He could see Cameron was confused and knew he needed to explain everything, it was the early hours of the morning and he had just sprung the fact he's got a kid on her without any rhyme or reason. Carefully he stood up and laid little Isabella on the couch, tucking the pillows around her in case she rolled over. He hovered at her side for a moment while she settled down and gently kissed her forehead before standing up and nodding towards Cameron, signalling for her to follow him.
He initially toyed with the idea of leading Cameron through to his bedroom so they could talk, but the thought of leaving Isabella alone and out of sight worried him. He saw where Cameron had set out the mugs and coffee just a few minutes earlier but couldn't bring himself to pour a drink. Leaning back against the worktop, House rubbed his hands over his face, massaging at his temple trying to ease a fraction of his stress. Even with his eyes closed, he knew Cameron was watching him, patiently waiting for him to make sense of things for her.
"D'you need a Vicodin, House?"
His eyes remained closed, "better not, it's not going to help anything." He sighed deeply and met Cameron's soft green eyes, full of empathy and warmth, "suppose I should explain some things. She wasn't planned, a Bob Ross 'happy accident' at a medical conference six years ago. Nine months later, I'm a daddy and my life's changed forever."
"She's a very beautiful happy accident."
"Of course she is, she's my kid, she's perfect. Well almost perfect, I wanted to call her Gregorina but her mom said otherwise."
"She sounds like a wise woman."
"She was," he smiled sadly and met Cameron's eyes again, "she's dead Cameron. That's why I've got the kid. They were in a car wreck, side-swiped by a semi. Izzy came out of it with a fractured wrist, some cuts and bruises and if that doesn't suck enough, she ends up motherless."
Cameron's heart broke for both House and his daughter, their lives turned upside down from a momentary lapse in concentration, never to be the same again. Her eyes focused on the little girl lying across the couch, the stark white of her cast just covering her thumb poking out the bottom of her sleeve.
Her hand covered his that lay upon the worktop, much to her relief he didn't pull away, "Oh House, I'm so sorry."
"How am I supposed to take care of her? She's a little girl, I don't know the first thing about taking care of a little girl. I can barely look after myself! She needs a female influence, she needs her mom…"
House looked at his little girl fast asleep on his couch, completely oblivious to the drastic new direction her life had now taken.
"I'm a doctor, a Diagnostician. I fix things, that's my job…" he swiped angrily at the hot tears now streaming down his bearded cheeks, "that's my daughter, my little girl and her mommy is gone and all I want to do is to make things right but I can't! I can't fix things and now she's stuck with me! A useless 48-year-old crippled man-child… she'd be better off without me."
"Don't say that, please, don't say or even think that. Look, life has dealt you both a shitty hand, but that little girl needs her daddy more than ever. She's not expecting you to replace her mom, she just wants her daddy to be there for her. You'll both get through this and I'll help out as much as I can."
She could feel his eyes burning into her soul, wanting to trust and believe her words but holding back from snapping up such a generous offer.
"I've got a nephew of a similar age, my brother's little mini-me and he's a real character," Cameron laced her fingers through House's, gently squeezing in a comforting symbol of solidarity, "we're a team, we'll get through this."
He opened his mouth to speak, but instead of words, he yawned, unable to fight the exhaustion off any longer.
"House, go to bed."
His eyebrows quirked as did his bearded lips, "is that an offer Cameron?"
"Come on House, you're practically dead on your feet. You'd be no use to me in bed in that state."
She saw his lips shape up into a smirk but quickly shut him down before he could argue or screw around with her.
"Ah, Izzy will be fine. I'll stay here and keep an eye on her. Go on, doctor's orders."
"Fine," he mumbled, knowing he was beaten, "but just so you know, you being bossy is one hell of a turn on."
She followed him out of the kitchen and watched him hobble down the corridor to his room where he paused and turned to face her, "wake me up if you or Izzy need me, okay?"
"I will do, now go to sleep."
"Ugh, yes mom."
The door closed and Cameron let out a deep sigh, letting her body sink onto the piano bench. She smiled at the youngster fast asleep on the couch, and the more Cameron looked, the more of House she could see. As little Isabella's mouth twitched, her dimples became pronounced, just like her father's, as was the prominent bow to her upper lip.
Of course, the true test would come once little Isabella was awake, and then Cameron would get a real sense of how much she was likened to her daddy. A slightly terrifying yet intriguing notion.
But first things first, Cameron needed to help House get his house in order.
While the apartment was well suited to House's bachelor lifestyle, it didn't cater well for guests, well not those that wanted to spend the night at least and certainly not for daughter sleepovers.
Being a highly organised, borderline OCD person, Cameron grabbed her notebook from her bag, sitting at House's baby grand piano she set about making a list of things that would be needed to make the place less bachelor pad and more child friendly.
She couldn't do much about the layout of the place, but at the very least they could get a pull-out couch so at least Isabella would be able to have a decent night's sleep until House decided what his future plans were.
After starting the list, Cameron went out to House's Dodge Dynasty to retrieve Isabella's bags and belongings. She smiled as she spotted a pair of Nike sneakers poking out of a rucksack, a child-sized version of the pair her father occasionally wore.
"Yeah, definitely House's kid," she mused.
She kept herself busy for a couple of hours, checking in with the team on their patient to see if any progress had been made, they bounced a few ideas around with Cameron agreeing to check back in to see if that had any effect.
She soon found herself reading from one of the many medical textbooks House kept to hand, completely engrossed in an article about the thyroid which combined with the recent discussions of their current patient made some symptoms make sense. She sent a quick text off to Chase telling him to check the patient's thyroid, it may be a long shot but it was worth checking.
She had barely put her phone down when a whimpering yawn caught her attention. Isabella had seemingly woken up and dislodged the pillows that kept her from rolling off the couch, Cameron was by her side in an instant fearing the youngster could take a tumble and cause herself further injury.
"Woah there, it's okay, you're okay. Do you want to sit up?"
Isabella looked up at Cameron with an all too familiar pair of intense blue eyes shrouded with caution and pain. She nodded her head and held up her good arm for Cameron to aid her upwards until she was comfortably sat up crossed-legged on the couch.
"Where's Daddy?"
"He's having a sleep, can you hear him snoring?" Cameron playfully cupped her ear, earning a small chuckle from the youngster which quickly turned to a grimace, "Is your arm sore?"
"Yeah," Isabella whispered, her blue eyes now wide like a wounded puppy, holding up her right arm for the full effect, "I broked my wrist."
Add that to the list of House-isms she's inherited, Cameron mused as she ferreted around in the cabinets locating some much-needed pain relief.
She found some ibuprofen and poured Isabella a glass of water. Kneeling alongside the couch so she was at eye level with the young girl, she placed a pill into Isabella's palm and held up the glass of water, only to be met with a quizzical and very House-like gaze.
"Are you a doctor?"
"I am indeed, I work with your daddy. Trust me, this will help ease the pain in your arm, I'll also get you a sling to keep it elevated."
Isabella still seemed wary, understandably so and wouldn't take any meds until her queries were satisfied.
"You have to be a special doctor to work with my Daddy, are you a special doctor?"
"I'm an Immunologist, Dr Allison Cameron, but you can call me Allie."
Cameron had to smile at the questioning, the child was turning into House more and more with every word spoken. She rummaged around in her bag and found her staff badge and held it up for Isabella to study.
That earned her a small quirk and nod of the head as she carefully traced the lettering and mumbled immunologist before focusing back on Cameron, "what's an immunologist?"
"It's just a fancy way of saying doctor of the immune system."
Isabella's brow furrowed, "Huh, but why?"
"Why the fancy word or why am I an immunologist?"
"The second one."
"Because my grandfather had a lot of health issues and I became fascinated and wanted to help people like him. What do you want to be when you grow up?"
The youngster's eyes lit up, "I want to be a doctor like my Daddy! He's the best doctor in the world. Do you think he'll let me be on his team?"
"Let you? I'd have to insist, Princess." Rumbled House as he hobbled into the room and perched on the couch next to his little girl who immediately climbed into his arms and clutched him tightly.
Cameron felt tears welling up in her eyes seeing such a wholesome sight. It was clear how much love and affection these two held for each other. House may have doubts about his capabilities as a father but that little girl adored him regardless.
"Come on Izzy Bee, let's take some pills and get rid of those pesky aches and pains."
House took a couple of ibuprofen from Cameron and nodded towards Isabella, following her daddy's lead she popped the pill onto her tongue and washed it down with a glug of water before sticking her tongue out for both House and Cameron to see she had taken her medication. Being childish himself, House did the same thing earning a peel of laughter from his daughter which warmed his heart.
"Daddy my wrist hurts," she held up her cast and with the sweetest voice she asked, "kiss the owie?"
He was powerless to resist his little girl, especially when she used those big baby blues against him. He turned towards Cameron, "don't get any ideas, this is strictly for my princess," before kissing each of Izzy's fingers poking out of her cast, "there, all better."
If only it would be that easy when it came to telling her what happened to her mom.
"So what have you two girlies been talking about?"
"Daddy, is Cameron on your team?"
"Yeah, she is," House confirmed, smiling briefly at Cameron before focusing back on his child.
"But she's not as good as you, is she, cos you's the bestest aren't you Daddy?"
"That's right Princess," he tapped his index finger to Izzy's nose just as her little tummy rumbled loudly, "what was that?! Did you just growl at me?!"
"No silly! My tummy's empty!"
Cameron was in total awe of the father/daughter interaction, they shared so many similarities, little quirks and mannerisms. For the first time, she felt like she was seeing the real Greg House, the man behind the fearsome reputation.
"Hey, how about I go out and grab us all some breakfast?"
"Ooh I like pancakes, Daddy can I have pancakes?"
"Pancakes sound yummy," House turned to Cameron, "are you sure you don't mind?"
"Of course not, it'll give you two some space and I need to go back to my apartment and check in on the dog."
"You have a dog?!" Isabella's blue eyes lit up, "oh my gosh, I love dogs! What's his name?!"
"Goose," little Isabella's head tilted in curiosity and confusion, "he waddles and honks like a goose when he's happy."
"Can I see him? Please Daddy, can I go and see Goose?"
Isabella trained her puppy blue eyes on House leaving him completely at her mercy.
"How about this, Cameron goes and gets us some breakfast and she brings Goose over, does that sound like a plan?"
"Oh okay."
Cameron caught Izzy's eyes and smiled softly, "don't worry, I'll be back before you know it."
True to her word Cameron was gone merely half an hour before returning with enough pancakes to sink a battleship and a rather excitable and drooling silver pit bull cross who was very eager for his share.
Goose was still only a pup, a mere ten months old but already he was a tank of a dog and still had some growing to do. Well-muscled with a meatball head and a heart of gold, he was the perfect companion. It had been her father's insistence that she get a dog after a string of armed burglaries in her street, being all the way in Chicago he couldn't protect his little girl but a strong dog could. She had spoken to her neighbour about her father's suggestion but was worried given the nature of her job that the dog would be alone a lot, but fate stepped in as it turned out her neighbour was a vet tech and would be there to look after the dog as and when Cameron needed her.
Not a week later her neighbour called around with a pup in arms, silver furred with the most intense blue puppy eyes she had ever seen, they immediately reminded her of House.
"This is Gus, he's looking for a new home."
Cameron took the pup into her arms, "welcome home Gus."
It wasn't long after she had adopted Gus did he start making the unusual honking sound. At first, Cameron was worried that it was some form of chest infection and her beloved pup was sick. But after a multitude of tests, she was reassured that Gus was merely showing his happiness through honking and the name Goose came into effect.
House opened the door, grinned and quickly offloaded the bag containing their breakfast and Goose tugged slightly at his leash wanting to follow.
"Steady boy, come on. Izzy, this is Goose."
The little girl could nearly contain her excitement, Cameron wasn't sure whether she was going to scream, cry or spontaneously self-combust upon meeting the equally excitable pup for the first time. Immediately she reached out to pet him and Goose sniffed and licked at her hand, welcoming all the attention.
But what was most endearing about their interaction was that Goose seemed to sense or know that little Izzy was injured. He sat at her feet and rested his large meatball head against her leg whilst nuzzling and licking at her fingers within her cast. So gentle and loving, it made Cameron well up.
"Daddy, look! Look, Goose is kissing me! I love him!"
"Don't be saying that to boys you've just met Izzy Bee, that's how you'll get a reputation. C'mon time for pancakes."
House handed Izzy her plate of pancakes and knowing she would be hampered by her arm, he'd cut each one in half and then into strips for easy munching and dipping into maple syrup.
Seeing that both Cameron and her daddy were eating, Izzy suddenly piped up, "Where's Goose's food? Won't he starve?"
"He's got some bacon which he can have soon, you can feed it to him once you've eaten your pancakes."
"Yay!"
"Cameron, any update on the patient?"
"Nothing yet," she took a sip of coffee, "I got reading one of your medical books on thyroids and passed the message on to Chase. Might be a stab in the dark but worth checking."
House nodded his head appreciating his junior doctor's intuition, "definitely worth a punt. Good job it wasn't one of my more fruitier choices of literature, I'm not sure our patient has a history of working with Hugh Hefner."
"Hmm probably not," Cameron replied sagely. She took another sip of coffee and then whispered, "House," and nodded towards Izzy softly giggling to herself as Goose licked the pancake crumbs and remnants of maple syrup from her fingers.
House swallowed the lump in his throat, after a traumatic twelve hours it was a relief to see and hear his daughter's sweet giggles of pure joy.
"Seems someone has a new best friend," he turned to Cameron with the most earnest look in his eyes, "thank you."
She returned his gentle smile and nodded in solidarity, "You're welcome, both of you."
But the looming storm clouds on the horizon, the ones that had seemed so far away were suddenly overhead bearing an ungodly deluge which threatened to fall any second when Isabella asked an innocent question.
"Daddy, can we take Goose when we go and visit Mommy?"
It was inevitable she would ask about her mom, she was her primary caregiver after all, and as far as Isabella was concerned her Mommy was merely getting better in the hospital.
House felt his world spin off its axis. He felt sick, a violent mixture of being hungover, vertigo and a drug trip spiralling out of control. Cameron's hand clutching at his was the only thing keeping him tethered to the ground.
He'd dealt with his fair share of delivering bad news to patients, it was part and parcel of the job, and no doctor could escape it. But this wasn't another patient, a nameless face he would forget within a day or so. This was his daughter, his little girl and now he had to tell her she can't visit her mommy in the hospital because she was dead.
Isabella merely smiled up at her father, her paternal eyes wide, full of blue wonderment and love, patiently awaiting his reply blissfully unaware of his inner turmoil.
"Isabella, I…"
House's voice broke and immediately little Isabella shuffled over to him and held onto his fore and middle fingers, "what's wrong Daddy?"
He swallowed thickly, blinking away tears, he couldn't back down now.
"Izzy, we can't go and visit Mommy."
"But why?"
"Because Mommy was very badly hurt in the car accident, she was too poorly and she died. I'm sorry Princess."
Isabella's eyes lost their vibrancy in a heartbeat, processing her father's words. She's a smart child, she's aware of the world and knows that death has a finality to it.
"Died? But… why didn't you save her daddy? You're the bestest doctor, you could've saved her!"
House felt his heart burst apart hearing Izzy's pleas, he would sooner go through another infarction without pain relief than see his daughter suffer.
"I wish I could've saved her sweetheart, I really do."
A pained wail tore from Izzy's lips, the cry one of pure distress. House caught hold of her and cradled her against his chest as she poured her heart out.
"I want my Mommy…"
.o0O0o.
House held his daughter until her tears eased and her body succumbed to sleep. He felt emotionally drained too even though he'd taken a nap earlier on. He stood with Izzy in his arms and with Goose in tow, he carried her to his room and placed her in the centre of his king-size bed.
He dipped into the bathroom to get a damp washcloth and carefully swiped it across Izzy's tear-stained cheeks and then pulled the rumpled bed covers up and around her tiny shoulders. Sensing he was needed, Goose clambered up on the bed and lay alongside Izzy. House stroked the dog's muscular back, as he leaned down to brush a gentle kiss across her brow.
"Love you angel, sorry I can't fix things."
House gently pulled the door to and he made his way back into the lounge with his shoulders stooped and eyes downcast, each step taking a physical toll. He sensed Cameron's presence hovering in the doorway of the kitchen, without a word he wrapped his arms around her, needing the physical comfort she could provide. Cameron didn't let him down, despite their size difference she manages to embrace him fully. And with House's face pressed into the crook of her neck, his tears flowed, staining Cameron's skin and breaking her heart.