House and the P.L.O.T. Device 27
A/N: This is quite a short update. I'd wait until I have more written, but it's been simply ages since I last posted, and I'm sure there are people who are dying for a fix. I hope to have another update ready for you tomorrow.
By the time Chase knocks on the door to Cameron’s apartment, it’s after ten. He hopes he isn’t keeping her from anything important.
She answers the door holding a string with Benedict’s Nylabone dangling from the end. She’s dressed in workout clothes--yoga pants and a short-sleeved top--but they don’t look like she’s worked out in them. The puppy cavorts at her side, nipping and pawing at his toy. “Hi, Chase,” she sighs. “Did you have a good time?”
“Yeah,” he says with some enthusiasm, stifling a yawn. “Long day. But yeah, it was fun. We should, you know, go. Sometime,” he adds dubiously. There was really only one thing he and Cameron had done together outside of work, and he doesn’t think he wants to start that up again. And he’s nearly sure that was only, or at least mostly, to make House jealous. The last time she’d suggested renewing their arrangement had been before she’d found out that House was with Wilson now.
“Come on in.” She puts the string in his hand and takes a step back, allowing him in to the apartment. It’s the same apartment. There are a couple of new pictures on the wall, and it looks like maybe a different television, but other than that she hasn’t changed much about the place. “I’ll get Benedict’s things.”
Benedict jumps up to sniff his knees, and he bends down to pet the puppy. “Did you have a good time with Cameron? Did you guys play?” he asks the dog, to avoid more awkward conversation with Cameron.
She comes back from the kitchen with his bowl and leash. “I tried to take him for a jog, but he kept attacking my ankles. That was before I came up with the bone on the rope idea.”
“Does it work?”
“Sort of.” Benedict dives for Chase’s ankles, and she adds, “It helps if you jiggle it.”
He jiggles the string, but to no avail. “Thanks. You know, for taking care of him.”
“It’s no problem,” Cameron says, her tone suggesting that it sort of was.
“House is just…in a phase where he thinks girls are icky, I guess.” Chase had been in the same phase not long ago, so he knew what it was like.
Cameron smiles. “You’d better go. I’m sure it’s past Benedict’s bedtime.”
“House got lost,” he blurts out. “He went out the wrong door from the bathroom and thought he was in a parallel universe.” There was one thing other than sex and work that he did with Cameron--talk about House.
“I bet he did.” Her tone is wryly amused. “Goodnight, Benedict! Goodnight, Chase!” she adds in an excited, talking-to-dogs voice. She’d used one a lot like it to talk to him during his P.L.O.T. experience.
“Say goodnight to Cameron,” he tells Benedict. “Maybe she’ll invite you over to play again.”
Cameron says, “Well, maybe!” but her expression says not a chance.
#
House sleeps late the next day, presumably worn out from his adventures. He doesn’t wake up even when Wilson changes the sheets out from under him. Wilson gets back into bed, enjoying the rare opportunity to sleep in instead of chasing House around the apartment.
Of course tomorrow that’ll all be over…well, not over, but changed…actually, not changed all that much.
But he’s been enjoying this. Getting to see House openly happy, instead of hiding behind his cynical detachment. He hopes that some of that might carry over once House is restored to adulthood, but he knows better than to count on it.
His leg will be better. Not good as new, but he’ll be in less pain. That was the point of the whole thing, after all. But looking at him now, open and unguarded in sleep, hugging his lion, Wilson can’t help but hope for farther-reaching changes.
A few hours later, after they’ve gotten up, breakfasted, and read another Paddington story, House declares that they’ll need to invite Chase over.
“We will?”
House nods. “For the pizza and sundaes.”
“We’re having pizza and sundaes?” Wilson tries to keep up.
“Of course we are. It’s a last-night-before-P.L.O.T. reversal tradition.”
Put like that, Wilson has to agree.
When they go to the grocery store for supplies, House picks out all kinds of things that Wilson can’t imagine putting on a sundae or a pizza. Or, frankly, having any use for at all. There are nuggets of a fruit-flavored substance that, when bitten, leak fruit-flavored goop. Wasabi-coated soy nuts. Little packets foil packets containing cheese cut into animal shapes. Six cans of an imported coconut-flavored soda.
“Are you sure we need all this stuff?” Wilson asks more than once. “The store is still going to be here tomorrow if you decide you want it.”
“We need it,” House says firmly. “And some of the chocolate covered potato chips. I can’t reach them.”
On to Chapter 28
By the time Chase knocks on the door to Cameron’s apartment, it’s after ten. He hopes he isn’t keeping her from anything important.
She answers the door holding a string with Benedict’s Nylabone dangling from the end. She’s dressed in workout clothes--yoga pants and a short-sleeved top--but they don’t look like she’s worked out in them. The puppy cavorts at her side, nipping and pawing at his toy. “Hi, Chase,” she sighs. “Did you have a good time?”
“Yeah,” he says with some enthusiasm, stifling a yawn. “Long day. But yeah, it was fun. We should, you know, go. Sometime,” he adds dubiously. There was really only one thing he and Cameron had done together outside of work, and he doesn’t think he wants to start that up again. And he’s nearly sure that was only, or at least mostly, to make House jealous. The last time she’d suggested renewing their arrangement had been before she’d found out that House was with Wilson now.
“Come on in.” She puts the string in his hand and takes a step back, allowing him in to the apartment. It’s the same apartment. There are a couple of new pictures on the wall, and it looks like maybe a different television, but other than that she hasn’t changed much about the place. “I’ll get Benedict’s things.”
Benedict jumps up to sniff his knees, and he bends down to pet the puppy. “Did you have a good time with Cameron? Did you guys play?” he asks the dog, to avoid more awkward conversation with Cameron.
She comes back from the kitchen with his bowl and leash. “I tried to take him for a jog, but he kept attacking my ankles. That was before I came up with the bone on the rope idea.”
“Does it work?”
“Sort of.” Benedict dives for Chase’s ankles, and she adds, “It helps if you jiggle it.”
He jiggles the string, but to no avail. “Thanks. You know, for taking care of him.”
“It’s no problem,” Cameron says, her tone suggesting that it sort of was.
“House is just…in a phase where he thinks girls are icky, I guess.” Chase had been in the same phase not long ago, so he knew what it was like.
Cameron smiles. “You’d better go. I’m sure it’s past Benedict’s bedtime.”
“House got lost,” he blurts out. “He went out the wrong door from the bathroom and thought he was in a parallel universe.” There was one thing other than sex and work that he did with Cameron--talk about House.
“I bet he did.” Her tone is wryly amused. “Goodnight, Benedict! Goodnight, Chase!” she adds in an excited, talking-to-dogs voice. She’d used one a lot like it to talk to him during his P.L.O.T. experience.
“Say goodnight to Cameron,” he tells Benedict. “Maybe she’ll invite you over to play again.”
Cameron says, “Well, maybe!” but her expression says not a chance.
#
House sleeps late the next day, presumably worn out from his adventures. He doesn’t wake up even when Wilson changes the sheets out from under him. Wilson gets back into bed, enjoying the rare opportunity to sleep in instead of chasing House around the apartment.
Of course tomorrow that’ll all be over…well, not over, but changed…actually, not changed all that much.
But he’s been enjoying this. Getting to see House openly happy, instead of hiding behind his cynical detachment. He hopes that some of that might carry over once House is restored to adulthood, but he knows better than to count on it.
His leg will be better. Not good as new, but he’ll be in less pain. That was the point of the whole thing, after all. But looking at him now, open and unguarded in sleep, hugging his lion, Wilson can’t help but hope for farther-reaching changes.
A few hours later, after they’ve gotten up, breakfasted, and read another Paddington story, House declares that they’ll need to invite Chase over.
“We will?”
House nods. “For the pizza and sundaes.”
“We’re having pizza and sundaes?” Wilson tries to keep up.
“Of course we are. It’s a last-night-before-P.L.O.T. reversal tradition.”
Put like that, Wilson has to agree.
When they go to the grocery store for supplies, House picks out all kinds of things that Wilson can’t imagine putting on a sundae or a pizza. Or, frankly, having any use for at all. There are nuggets of a fruit-flavored substance that, when bitten, leak fruit-flavored goop. Wasabi-coated soy nuts. Little packets foil packets containing cheese cut into animal shapes. Six cans of an imported coconut-flavored soda.
“Are you sure we need all this stuff?” Wilson asks more than once. “The store is still going to be here tomorrow if you decide you want it.”
“We need it,” House says firmly. “And some of the chocolate covered potato chips. I can’t reach them.”
On to Chapter 28