Victory dance
A.N. For such a grumpy guy, House dances at least twice in the series. Both times with Cuddy. This time you can blame Cameron, not me. Also, turns out I can't delete reviews. So my little spiel pointing you towards the fanfiction app will have to remain in place. Awkward.
Finally (and I'm mentioning this not just because House is an army brat), today is the anniversary of the end of World War One. Happy Armistice/Remembrance/Veterans Day!
The three fellows were eating lunch together the next day. Generally each did their own thing, but every now and then they found time to meet up in the cafeteria to trade war stories or complain about their boss. As Cameron had confided in Cuddy a while back, working for House was rarely dull, and the shared experience would always give the trio something to talk about.
The funny thing was that the rest of the hospital knew it as well. More than once Cameron had been approached in the lunch queue by a hopeful male doctor, his opening gambit often mentioning how terrible it must be to work under the grumpy diagnostician. The tactic was doomed to failure. Even before they became an item, she had never found him truly irksome: quirky, yes; irritating, definitely. But terrible? Not a chance. As for Chase and Foreman, she knew that both had used their 'in' with House to pick up women. The latter, of course, was still going out with Katie, a drug rep initially sent to House, and who was the subject of their conversation. "She's still angling for more of a commitment from me is the thing", he said.
Chase slurped his Sprite. "Not keen?".
"I've given it some thought and decided that I don't love her. But I am still absolutely fine with the casual arrangement we have currently". Foreman was chewing through his baked potato with cheese.
"Of course you are", snorted the Australian. "Sex with no strings attached".
"Well, I made it clear at the start that we weren't exclusive. I don't think it's unreasonable to want to stick to that. What do you think, Cameron?".
"It's not unreasonable, no", she replied, replacing her ham and tomato sandwich and taking a sip of water. "But maybe her feelings have grown stronger over time and the situation has changed…", as she spoke these words her mind flitted inevitably back to House and the emergence of their own relationship, "…such that she's no longer satisfied with what you're willing to offer".
"If that's the case then it's a problem".
"What's wrong with her, anyway?", asked Chase. "She seemed fine to me: attractive, warm…".
"She's boring, to be honest. We don't really talk about much outside of the bedroom, and when we do talk, it's dull". At this, Cameron and Chase exchanged looks. Foreman saw: "what?".
"Err, she sounds perfect for you, man. I'm your pal, and you're not the liveliest companion I've ever had. No offence".
"Huh? Are you being serious?". Foreman seemed genuinely surprised.
"I think what Chase's trying to say is that you're obviously incredibly driven and career-focused and, y'know, sometimes it impacts your, er, conversation", interjected Cameron.
Foreman put down his coffee. "What the…? Are you calling me boring?".
"No. Just that you're an acquired taste. But Chase and I like the way you taste", said the woman, immediately regretting the phrasing.
Chase made a face. "Ehh, I don't wanna speak for you, Cameron, but I'm not tasting Foreman whether he's boring or not".
"No, but-, you know what I meant, Robert".
"Oh, we're back to the first name game, Chase", began Foreman, before winking at Cameron across the table.
Last time she had used this tactic both her colleagues had immediately poked fun. It looked like today would be no different.
"Well, I can't say I haven't thought about you tasting me, Allison. But I just don't think we'd work. I think I'd rather stay friends. Is that OK, Allison?".
Chase chuckled, piling on himself. "Are you going to finish off those crisps, Allison? This soup isn't very filling and I need to get Eric's taste out of my mouth".
"You two are the worst", she complained, but not without an amused head shake. In truth, she much preferred it when they treated her as one of the guys, like now, rather than the indirect manner of Chase's flirtation and Foreman's 'older brother' vibe. Office dynamics were always interesting and the fact that Diagnostics was overwhelmingly masculine meant that she frequently found herself navigating a course between the men who occupied three quarters of her professional time. And now that the relationship with House was in full swing, the task didn't get any easier. Even with everything out in the open, the two of them had an unspoken rule not to get too crazy while within departmental bounds. Nevertheless, Cameron was still holding out hope that House would indulge the fantasy she had confessed to him a while ago regarding rough sex in the office.
"You thinking about my taste, Allison?", grinned Foreman. "Your eyes were completely glazed for a moment there".
Cameron cleared her throat, shunting House to the back of her mind. "Nah, just wondering about the Chicago Bears game this weekend. We're up against Green Bay and their defensive line packs some serious heat".
The mouths of both doctors fell open. "Since when do you like American football?", asked Chase incredulously.
"I'm from Chicago. Everyone likes sports there, even if they don't like like sports. I belong to the latter group. Though I really prefer the Eagles. Philadelphia", she added in response to the Australian's confused look.
"I never understood why you Yanks insist on giving nicknames to all your teams", he said.
"Probably to befuddle hapless foreigners like yourself", suggested the neurologist.
"'Befuddle' is a good one", she chuckled. "You don't hear that word much nowadays".
"True. And it's weird, 'cos I'd say that old Robert here is in a perpetual state of befuddlement". As he spoke Foreman nudged and winked at his companion.
"What're you ribbing me for, mate? We were doing it to Allison".
"Yeah, well, when you mentioned Yanks I thought I'd switch sides to my lovely female colleague. Australia sucks, America number one".
Cameron smiled, pleased to have turned the tables. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted Mathilde depositing her tray on the rack while speaking to a colleague. Although the nurse had been decidedly cool the last time they had met, there was nothing wrong with approaching her again. In any case, House had asked Cameron for her help in judging Mathilde's affection for Wilson, and even though she herself considered it a ridiculous reason to poke around another person's personal life, it obviously mattered to House. And that alone was sufficient motivation for a second attempt at conversation. "I'll see you guys back at the office, OK?".
Foreman and Chase had resumed their chat about Katie, and they merely nodded as she left the table and made her way over to the rack.
Mathilde finished her conversation and turned to see Cameron waiting for her. "Before you say anything, is this a professional or a personal approach?", she asked with just a hint of annoyance.
"Honestly, it's a bit of both. Do you mind if I walk with you for a couple of minutes?", asked Cameron, dropping off the tray and falling into step beside the other woman.
The other sighed but nevertheless inclined her head in assent. "Fine, I've got five minutes left on lunch and then I'm due in paediatrics. You can join but you're in for a bit of a hike".
"No worries. Are you enjoying it over there?". This was not just polite conversation. Cameron loved children, and she had completed placements there herself. In fact, if she were not such a freak for immunology, paediatrics would have been her chosen specialism.
Mathilde's air of antagonism softened a little. "Yes, it's my favoured area".
"Mmm, it's pretty great, isn't it?". The two chatted easily for a few minutes, ambling towards their destination.
Finally, the nurse spoke up. "So, shall we get down to business? James has told me to expect this. To be honest, I'm a little offended that House didn't come to see me himself".
"He thought it might be less confronting if I spoke to you woman to woman". A slight elaboration of the truth, but it couldn't be helped. House's plan, which he had outlined during catch in the office, involved actual kidnapping. Cameron had vetoed that one straightaway, and it had taken her a solid fifteen minutes to talk him into affording her a second opportunity to make contact.
"I find that hard to believe. But I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. What would you like to know?".
Later that afternoon Cameron walked into House's office to see him still typing away at the computer. "Sup?", he asked, though not turning away from the screen. "Paper is finished". Instead of replying, she began to sway her hips slowly, gradually picking up speed. After a few moments, she added in arm waves and finger clicks. The sound caught House's attention and he watched in shocked amusement as his normally reserved girlfriend did a little dance around the perimeter of his office for a couple of minutes, an occasional pirouette causing her long brown hair to whip her face.
When she finally finished, breathing a little heavier, he raised an eyebrow. "Did you win the presidential election or something?".
"That was my dance of victory. I saw Mathilde at lunch: mission complete!", she exclaimed triumphantly.
House smiled widely. "You managed to talk to her about Wilson?".
"Yep", she replied, sinking into the easy chair and continuing the conversation across the room: "had a brief talk with her in the cafeteria then bought her a coffee on afternoon break. She's actually really nice; apologised for telling me to fuck off and everything. Anyway, she filled me in—why things ended with Chase, what she looks for in a guy, what she sees in Wilson".
"Nice! Guess you were right to talk me out of abduction. Hit me with it".
For the next thirty minutes the pair discussed everything Cameron had learnt, House interrupting occasionally to pursue a point of detail.
"So, she seems genuine?", he asked eventually.
"I think so. I mean, I'm not saying it'll be love, or even that it'll last beyond a month. But I'm sure it's not a rebound".
"Right. Well, that's some great work, Camster. Wilson will screw it up eventually but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it". House span back to his computer terminal, brought up YouTube, and typed in a few words.
Soon, the opening bars of an as yet unidentified piece of music filled the office. "What're you doing, House?". Now it was Cameron's turn to display baffled amusement as she watched him approach with a goofy grin on his face.
"We are going to dance to celebrate your achievement, madame…", House held out his hand, "…I didn't think you'd be able to do it".
Cameron took it, unable to suppress a question born out of naked curiosity. "Since when do you dance?".
He had proved himself to be fit, even graceful, in his movements since the ketamine treatment. But the idea of him dancing was a strange one. Then again, he had always been playful, and something of a renaissance man. She could still remember walking into his office last year to the sight of him juggling his balls and whiteboard marker.
"Are you kidding? I used to kill it on the dance floor before my…", he trailed off, unwilling to put a dampener on things. "Anyway, I'm in a good mood: I've just finished my paper, you've managed to answer my questions regarding Mathilde and Wilson, and we've got bowling to look forward to later".
Cameron allowed him to pull her close, the glimmer of sadness at his pain quickly forgotten as she felt his hand at her waist. "Do you mean, like, club dancing or ballroom dancing?".
"Back in my day, they were the same thing".
The pair began a slow circuit of the room. Foreman and Chase were nowhere to be seen, but the blinds were not closed either, so they would have presented a strange sight to passers-by who bothered to look through the glass. Neither cared.
"When was that again? 1850?", she whispered into his ear.
"A good year. California joins the Union as the…what number state, do you think?".
Cameron laughed. Of course he knew a fact about 1850. "Hmm. Well, it's right on the west coast, so it must be one of the later ones. But how late…?". The music, which was actually Celine Dion, provided a suitably romantic accompaniment to their gentle movements. "I'm gonna guess…the forty-first state of this, the United States of America".
"Close, but no cigar. Thirty-first. At least you got one number right, hey?". House span the other into another pirouette before drawing her in again.
"I wouldn't have pegged you for a Celine Dion fan", she murmured, biting his chin delicately.
"It felt appropriate. Are we on for bowling tonight, then? Wilson and Cuddy will be there. Two against two. Winning team takes all, losers go home in disgrace".
Cameron felt a twinge of nervous excitement. She had met with both Wilson and Cuddy separately, but this would be the first time they would all hang out together. Day by day little milestones could be ticked off. "Fine. Back to yours afterwards? I prefer your place to mine. Plus, I still need to have a poke around and read your article".
"OK, but it'll have to be tomorrow—you'll be doing something else after bowling tonight, and it won't involve reading". House's spare hand slipped down to her butt.
"Uhuh. I better get the good stuff after helping you with Mathilde". Cameron leant right into his body, brushing against him forcefully.
"That can be arranged", House replied, imitating her phrase from yesterday. The pair kissed before resuming their impromptu afternoon dance, oblivious to everything but each other.
I often reread parts of this story to check how the plot and relationships develop, to check internal references, and to iron out as many English and punctuation errors as possible. But things do slip through my net, especially since this little tale is now pretty long. Nothing turns me off more than mistakes in reading material. If you find a mistake I've missed (especially missing words), please do let me know, either in review or PM. Thanks!