Changes aren´t allways bad - HUDDY fanfic
Title: Changes aren´t allways bad
Author: bm27
Rating: PG-13 maybe R in later chapters
Spoilers: Season 3
Summary: Cuddy is pregnant House cares HUDDY
Disclaimer: I don’t own these characters everything belongs to FOX
Notes: This is the sequel to Fashion Victim! Its not necessary to read Fashion Victim but i think it would help to understand some of the characters actions! Thanks to my Wondertwin Scuddyrific for betaing my stories!
Set 2 month after Fashion victim.
Cuddy was still frightened it was the end of the 1st trimester everything was fine so far but you never know. She had to throw up a lot, her breasts had already grown 1 size and she had to run to the toilet every 20 minutes but that’s what most women experience in the first few month of pregnancy.
Today she had an appointment with her doctor, this will be the first time she can really recognise something on the ultrasound. There will be little hands, little feet, and a tiny head. She still feared something could be wrong and that is what made her heart race and her fingers trembling. It was a torture to wait in the waiting room with all the other potential moms. A little baby squealed and Cuddy looked up in the direction. In a few months, this could be her. She will be a mom and she will be a damn good one. That’s something she promised herself. To put her baby first no matter what happened in the hospital. Looking at her watch, she was waiting only 10 minutes but it seemed like eternity.
She chose a doctor not far away from the hospital, there weren’t many people who knew she was pregnant. Her parents, Wilson, Brenda and of course House. She knew the little box was from House that was for sure but he didn’t ask about the baby after that day. He made his usual snarky remarks, telling her that her ass grows as fast as a weed and mentioned that if she wouldn’t buy other clothes soon her fun bags would be squished to death. Wilson on the other hand was great. He gave her all the encouragement she needed. He even took her to a play. In the beginning she was worried he would have feelings for her, but it turned out he just wanted to be friends.
“Dr. Cuddy?” a young woman asked when she approached Cuddy. She noted and stood. “Would you follow me please? Dr. Williams is ready to see you now!”
She entered the exam room and greeted Dr. Williams. “How are you? You still have problems with the morning sickness?” he asked her holding out his hand.
Shaking his hand she sat down across from him, “It’s getting better. I still feel tired all the time though. Which is normal I know” she smiled.
“If you don’t have questions I would suggest we move on to the exam. I’m sure you want to see the little one.” He smiled back at her knowing about her fears.
Cuddy lay down and moved her blouse high enough that Dr. Williams could do the ultrasound. Despite the fact she knew the gel was cold she winced at the first contact.
Expectantly she looked at the monitor and there it was. Her baby. It was moving around and she could swear it waved at her. With tears in her eyes she starred happily at the monitor.
“Looks like your little one is very agile. Development is coming along perfectly with the progress of the pregnancy. Congratulations everything looks good, Dr. Cuddy” he removed the gel softly from her belly and handed her another tissue to clean the rest off herself. When she was sitting he handed her a print of the ultrasound which she took eagerly. The first picture of her baby, she had to grin when she looked down and recognised the familiar gesture of the baby. It looked like its arms were crossed and there was almost a hint of a scowl on his way too tiny face to express something like a scowl.
This was one of the best days in her life. The first 3 unstable month were over and she could start to enjoy being pregnant. Soon she would have to tell the board and arrange everything for her absence after the baby was born. Thousands of thoughts crossed her mind while she drove back to her big baby the PPTH.
She entered the lobby and an all too familiar voice yelled, “Where have you been? I needed a consult!”
When she was close enough to him she answered, “House there are at least 50 other doctors you can ask for a consult. You don’t need me.”
“But they’re ugly!” he whined when he suddenly noticed the huge smile on her face.
Nothing could ruin that day not even House she thought. She kept walking ignoring Houses last comment.
She entered her office and removed her jacket when she turned around House stood in the entry.
“Why are you smiling?” he had an idea what was going on but still needed one or two other hints to solve the puzzle.
“Cause it’s a wonderful day” she said dreamy.
“Ok let me put the pieces together. You have been away for 2 hours, you have been nervous the whole day and now you are back and you are smiling.” He pretended to think for a few seconds, “Where is the picture?”
“What picture?” she couldn’t keep the smile that started to form when she thought about her baby.
“Oh come on. You know what I’m talking about” he didn’t even want to see the picture he was just curious if he was right.
“I give up. You are right, there is a picture. You really want to see it?”
“No” he turned around and exited her office. There was a picture which means everything was ok with the baby and Cuddy looks happy too. His work was done.
Chapter 2
She was in her 4th month when she decided to inform the board about her condition. Her belly was growing fast, faster than she thought it would. Soon it would be visibly to everyone anyway. She was surprised House hadn’t said anything, as far as she knew there weren’t any rumours about her being pregnant. Soon there will be another rumour about the father of her child. She already knew who will be number one on that list.
The board meeting went well. Everyone congratulated her and wished her the best. Nobody had the guts to ask about the father though, which she was glad about. It would have been embarrassing to tell the board. Some secrets should stay secret.
The next morning Cuddy got to work a bit later than usual. Her morning sickness was back with full force and she didn’t feel that well either. When she entered the hospital she could see the knowing looks in the faces of her staff. Some whispered to each other others just stared and one yelled.
“I’m hurt! You are pregnant and you didn’t tell me. I could be the father after all!” House made sure everyone could hear him. Better start the rumour now he loved to mess with peoples minds.
She sent daggers his way. If looks could kill, he would have died a painful death right then. Fortunately, for him they can’t so he just smiled broadly at her. So much for rumours about the father she thought.
Entering her office she found a huge pile of presents and cards. Most of them are from the board members some of her staff and one had no note on it. When she opened it, she had a faint idea whose present she just opened. She looked at the black coffee cup which said in huge bold letters MILF. Shaking her head she put it back in the box and stored it in a drawer at her desk. There was no way she would use this cup at work or home or anywhere.
Two weeks later ….
When he found her, her head lay on the desk in an awkward position. She was sound asleep and didn’t stir. It was late and he saw her light on in her office. He just solved a case and was ready to go home. He hadn’t slept much in the last 3 days and he was sure she hadn’t either. They had argued a lot too. Moving around the desk he shook her slightly but she didn’t wake up. He tried it again with more force, which had the desired effect. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around, she was clearly confused about her whereabouts. When she saw House so close she jerked up.
“Wow Cuddy, calm down. It’s me!” he smirked. She looked so sweet with her hair messed up and the traces of sleep still in her eyes.
“What. Why. … How late is it?” she asked confused.
“Past midnight, you need a ride home?”
“On your bike? I don’t think so” she shook her head.
“The bike is at the garage. I took my car”
She still wasn’t sure why he was offering her a ride home but she was too tired to drive and it was either sleeping in her office or take the offer and sleep at home. Her own bed sounded much more appealing than her office couch.
“Let me get my stuff and we can go” he moved out of the way to let her collect her belongings. When she moved past him his hand touched her belly for a moment. He could feel the light bump that had grown over the last 4 month on her abdomen. She felt his touch immediately. His hand was warm through the thin fabric of her shirt and somehow it felt right. He was the first person other than her or her doctor who touched her belly. Not aware of her next movements she took his hand and put it on her belly. He didn’t resist or pull away it even seemed like he enjoyed the moment. After a minute he pulled away and smiled at her. They didn’t talk about it. They didn’t need to.
He took her home that night and made sure she entered the house before he drove away. At home he sat in front of the TV watching baseball while his mind was occupied with other things. He watched his hand trying to remember the feeling when he touched her. He couldn’t feel any movement it was too early for that but still it had been an incredible feeling.
Chapter 3
Cuddy was walking down the halls of PPTH her hand supporting her 5 month along belly instinctually. Something she did more and more often now, most of the time it was subconsciously. House on the other hand used every chance he got touching her belly. It was still strange for her to see him with his guard down. He was still a misanthropic jerk, but when they were alone in her office or in an exam room he changed for a few moments. He would gently put his hand on her growing abdomen without a comment and after a few moments he would retreat the hand and become his usual self again. It was nice for a change to see that House still had something human about him.
Cuddy was on her way to the clinic because House had paged her for a consult earlier. Long ago she gave up on telling him to stop calling her for his sheer entertainment. Opening the door to exam room 2 she looked around, no patient, only House with his PSP in the corner of the room.
He looked up from his game and greeted her, “Finally. You know if I really needed your consult the patient could be dead by now!”
“I was in an important meeting with the psychology department.” she said ignoring him since he never really needed a consult.
“Talking about me?” he asked with a smirk.
“Not everything is about you, and stop using their lounge to watch your soaps!” She added as an afterthought.
“But they have this huge plasma screen TV!” it couldn’t harm to whine a bit, he thought.
“You are disturbing the patients. Find another place to …” She stopped herself, this pregnancy was making her soft! She quickly covered her slip by changing the subject.
“Since there is no patient, what do you want?”
“Oh contraire, mon amie! There is a patient! … Right there!” he pointed at her.
“Me? I’m not sick” she shook her head at his insanity.
“No, but you are pregnant and I happen to be a doctor, and I want examine you!” he stated.
“Why?” she was feeling good and her next appointment with Dr. Williams was scheduled for the next day anyway.
“Cause I want to know if the devils offspring is male or female” there was a bet going and a bit of cheating would not harm he thought.
“Sweet House, but the answer is NO!” she started to turn.
“You don’t want to know?” he asked and she stopped at the door.
“No. I don’t. It doesn’t matter if it’s a boy or a girl as along as their healthy I don’t care”
“You sure?” he wrinkled his eyebrow doubtfully at her.
“I am!” and she left. It didn’t matter though he was already thinking about ways to persuade her of the opposite.
When she left the room she was thinking about what House had said. Did she not want to know what the baby was, really? She wasn’t sure anymore. Maybe she would ask Dr. Williams tomorrow. Suddenly she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen and she cried out in pain.
House heard her cry out and was by her side in an instant. She sat down on the floor holding her belly protectively tears streaming down her face. He yelled at the nurses to get a gurney. Cuddy lye down on the gurney looking at House, a fear in her eyes so strong, it hurt him too. They took her to the OB/GYN ward, House limped as fast as he could to keep up with them.
When she was wheeled into the exam room House stopped not sure if she would want him with her. Her eyes locked with his till the door closed. It was too late to enter now. He was such a stupid moron he wanted to be with her, holding her hand telling her everything will be fine but he was to big of a coward to follow. Dr. Gregory House who doesn’t even know how to spell rules or manners was too spineless to follow the woman he…. He stopped himself dead in his tracks. What was he thinking? Cuddy was the devil, as he had pointed out so charmingly to Wilson more than once before, but maybe, and this was a big maybe, the troops that guarded the big wall between love and hate took a pause and it was his chance to do something! Find out what she thinks, tell her what you think, but then he shook his head at the moronic thought. She hates him, and she told him to get over her and stop dreaming about her. Ha! If he was able to control his dreams he would be dreaming about Carmen Electra! At some point he had started pacing once again and was abruptly stopped by Dr. Louis, one of the best OB/GYN’s in PPTH.
“Dr. House, Dr. Cuddy asked for you.” House didn’t even think, he just went to her. Better to check for himself he thought as he pushed the other doctor out of his way to get to her room.
She lay in a bed her belly still exposed and all he could do was stare at her.
“House stop starring at me, your freaking me out!” her voice was still tear filled, but stronger, less desperate and tad bit snarky.
He closed his mouth and looked at her questioningly “Everything ok?”
“I had some light spotting and I’ve been put on bed rest for at least two weeks, but ‘he’ is fine” she smiled as she said the last part.
“He?” he said, trying not to show how relieved it made him feel to hear that everything was ok.
“I thought you’d want to see for yourself?” she pointed to the ultrasound device beside her bed.
He moved over and put the sensor over her belly. She didn’t watch the monitor like he did she was watching him instead. She tried to find out what was going on behind that brick wall he had built up over the years.
He checked for everything he could think of, and everything looked fine to him. Mesmerized by the vivid movement of the baby he didn’t recognise Cuddy’s piercing glance.
“Looks like everything is perfect.” he said and she smiled at him. It really seemed like he cared about her, or at least the baby.
“I’m not to sure about the “he” part though,” he grinned, “could be a girl too. It’s to hard to tell at this angle and with all this movement.”
“It’s a he! I’m his mother, I know!” she said, knowing deep down she was sure it was a boy.
“And I’m a doctor and I tell you it could be a girl too!” he pouted.
Suddenly it made sense to her, “You want it to be a girl!” she grinned.
He studied her but didn’t answer, suddenly he turned and left her alone in the room. It wasn’t true he didn’t want it to be a girl, did he?
Chapter 4
It was Cuddy’s 1st day of prescribed bed rest and she already hated every minute of it. She was only allowed to get up to eat or to use the bathroom and a nurse checked on her once a day. She was strictly forbidden to work, even paperwork wasn’t allowed.
It was 1pm and she was already incredibly bored, she even thought about calling House a few times to start an argument just to forget the boredom for a few minutes. Although she had started to dial his number several times, she never had the guts to actually talk to him. All the more surprised she was when the phone rang and the display said House. For a moment she pondered about not taking the call, who knows what he wants, but she decided to risk it and pushed the little green button on her cell phone.
“Cuddy!” she said sitting up in bed to get comfortable.
“Cuddy, how is the evil witch and her even eviler offspring?” he tried to hide his concern with a bit to much sarcasm.
“I was already starting to miss your charm House!” this was exactly what she needed.
“Are you flirting with me? Cause I don’t want Satan to get jealous!” He loved there banter there weren’t many who made a good sparring partner. Cuddy was definitely on top of his list.
“What do you want? I’m supposed to sleep right now!” she lied just to see if he caught her.
“First you are at bed rest and you are not supposed to sleep all day” he inhaled “and secondly where is your spare key?”
“Why do you want to know were my spare key is?” she had a faint idea why, but despite it she asked anyway not sure if she preferred to be right or wrong.
“I need you to sign off on some files and the key isn’t where it’s supposed to be and I am tired of looking for it!” She was right, she thought, then she heard a loud noise followed by House cursing.
“I own you a new flower pot” he told her while brushing aside the broken fragments of her formally bright yellow flower pot.
“Did you just break something?” she asked.
“If I say yes are you going to tell me where your spare key is?” he was sure she wouldn’t refuse now that she was worried he would play havoc with her flowers till he found the key.
With a frown she pondered her options. If she doesn’t tell him he will keep looking as long as he finds the key, regardless of her flowers, but when she tells him he will come in and frustrate her even more.
“It’s in the ceramic frog!” She told him defeated. “And you will buy me a new … whatever you just broke!”
“A yellow flower pot!” he told her, putting his cell back in his pocket when he opened the front door. He headed straight for her bedroom discarded his jacket on the way flinging it over the couch.
The door to her bedroom was open and he moved in like he owned the place and sat on the edge of the bed. It was obvious that she was bored and he had every intention to change that.
“Hey!” he said softly once he made himself comfortable.
“Everything ok in the hospital?”
“I didn’t burn it down … yet!” he smiled at her.
“Yet?” she was worried despite the fact she knew he was joking.
“I brought you something.” He put a suspiciously heavy bag on the bed right beside her.
Carefully she opened it and when she saw what was in there a huge smile lit her face up.
“You brought me paperwork?”
“I told you I need you to sign some papers!” he smirked at her. “So how is my girl today?” Her eyes went wide at his choice of address for her.
Grinning he pointed at her belly already moving a hand towards it.
Her cheeks got a nice shade of pink and she moved the blanket out of the way. Gently he put his hand on her belly. The touch made her shiver and she hoped he hadn’t noticed it. He was too occupied with her belly and the sudden pressure he felt. “She’s kicking me!” he pouted looking at her interrogative waiting for an answer to his unspoken question.
“It started last week I wasn’t sure if you would feel it too.” She put her hand next to his on her belly. With their hands slightly touching time seemed to stand still. Neither knew for how long they sat like that but it didn’t matter. At some point the moment was gone and House pulled his hand back and stood.
“Are you leaving?” she sounded disappointed.
“I’m scheduled for clinic duty in an hour!” at that she laughed out loud.
“You are kidding right?” She always thought he would find himself a nice place to hide and watch his soaps as soon as she left the hospital for a second.
“Yes” he answered truthfully and turned quickly to hide his expression, which would easily give him away. The truth was he would love to stay with her but again he was too unsure to open up just yet. He needed more time to get used to figuring out what all this means. He had always cared for her but the feeling had grown in the last weeks. There was something that had changed, was it the baby? Maybe.
She got worried when he didn’t move for at least 5 minutes she had to do something and the words that came out of her mouth surprised her.
“Please stay!”
He still didn’t move, not sure he had heard her she tried again.
“House please stay.” This time he turned, his expression was different. She looked into his eyes and saw something she hadn’t seen there before. He looked like he was ‘caring’. As if he was remembering there was someone else his expression changed back to his usual.
“Why?” was all he managed to say.
“You really need a reason to skip clinic duty?” she asked sure about his answer.
“Nope” he grinned at her and sat back down. “Want to watch some TV? General Hospital is on!”
She was glad that he stayed and didn’t care about what they did somehow it was just important that he was there by her side. So she switched on the TV and handed him the remote.
“Slide over” he ordered cheerfully, motioning for her to slide over so he had more space.
He lay on the bed next to her with 2 pillows behind his back and switched channels to find General Hospital. “I didn’t think it would be so easy to get into your bed!” and was awarded with an elbow to his ribs.
“Shut up House!” she didn’t need to say more.
10 minutes of General Hospital and Cuddy was fast asleep. He watched her and didn’t move when she put an arm around his stomach in her sleep.
It was dark outside when she awoke with her arm around House and her head resting in the crook of his neck. Carefully she moved away and propped her head on her arm and studied him. His usual expression faded with the help of sleep the lines on his forehead seemed less his whole expression looked softer. He murmured something she couldn’t quiet make out, but sounded a lot like Lisa. He had never called her Lisa they never call each other by there first names its always House and Cuddy, never Greg and Lisa. He stirred and slowly opened his eyes looking directly into hers. Blue met blue and a smile crossed his lips.
“Morning!” she greeted him, not hiding the fact that she was starring at him while he was asleep.
“Watching something you like?” he sounded sleepy.
“Hmmm … maybe. You hungry?” she asked as her stomach made hungry sounds.
He thought for a moment “I’ll order, you stay in bed!” She opened her mouth to say something but closed it again to remain silent. This completely new ‘House caring thing’ was starting to freaking her out.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone already dialing a number. She was amazed how he knew what she liked. Ordering way more than they could eat he put his phone away and looked back at her. She was still starring with a smile on her lips and a sparkle in her eyes. Those damn hormones she thought. Weak and soft that’s exactly what she felt right now. What a cliché.
House had left her after they finished dinner. Cuddy thanked him for the evening and remembered to tell him that he owned her a flowerpot. Smiling he drove home wondering about life and Cuddy.
Maybe this would be his last chance to get something right in life. To forget about the pain and remember how life was before the infarction. He used to have friends and a girlfriend, he used to be able to enjoy the simple things in life, like having a nice evening with friends, walking in the park with Stacy and playing golf on Sundays.
In one second all of that was destroyed. He was in pain for nearly 4 days before they figured what was wrong with him. He told Stacy what he wanted them to do but she refused to listen to him. When he woke up after surgery, he wished he had died because the pain was too much to bare and he was angry. Slowly he drove her away and every other person who had the courage to visit him. Just when he started to get better Stacy told him she was leaving because he didn’t want her near him, and she couldn’t live with it anymore. She broke his heart then and he wasn’t sure he would ever be able to love again.
In all the chaos, there was one person that stayed and helped him get through the worst time of his life. He yelled at Cuddy telling her to go to hell but she stayed. He was mad at her for ignoring his wishes and letting them do the surgery, but he was glad she stayed and didn’t leave him like Stacy did.
Then there was this one night a year ago when they slept together. It wasn’t like they had planned it, it just happened. They both had drank a lot and somehow they ended up at Cuddy’s place. The next morning she made it clear that it was a mistake and it would never happen again. It was fine for him then, because the wound Stacy ripped open again after showing up at PPTH wasn’t healed yet. He still felt something for her so he was fine with it.
He would tease her by telling the whole hospital that she was lousy in bed, but just because he couldn’t forget about it. Making jokes about her cleavage was just another way for him to remind her of that one night.
It was different now though, something had changed in the picture. It wasn’t enough anymore for him to constantly remind her about their one time together, he wanted to be with her. The first time it came to his attention was when Wilson suddenly decided to date her. Then when Wilson told him he slept with her, he believed him for a second and the pain in his heart was more painful than the pain his leg could cause.
Then one day he asked her to go out to a play with him, but she found an excuse every time he would ask. What hurt him was that she still went with Wilson. Shortly after, they went to Singapore and she started relaxing around him. They enjoyed their usual banter and he enjoyed being close to her.
He arrived home parked his bike and got into the apartment. Sitting in front of his piano he let his fingers fly over the keys not playing anything in particular. He just sat their playing and thinking about Cuddy and her baby. He would have called it a fetus a month ago but now he was calling it a baby. He had already changed he thought and sipped on his beer.
The naps during the day were now preventing her from sleep. Cuddy lay in bed restless wishing she could get up and do something. After an hour of turning and changing positions she gave up. She lay on her back and starred at the ceiling thinking about Greg. Why was he suddenly so interested in her? Why did he care, now?!
After Stacy had left him she tried to be there for him. They had been friends in college and she had a crush on him every since. When he introduced Stacy to her as his new girlfriend her world collapsed. Nevertheless she decided to be his friend and even become friends with Stacy. It was the toughest decision she had ever made in her life when Stacy asked her to do the surgery despite Greg’s objection. She did it and when Stacy left a few weeks later, she was stuck with an angry, devastated and heartbroken House. He hated her even more than Stacy because he had trusted her and she betrayed him. Took away his happiness and left him crippled and alone.
Tears started to fall silently in the cover of the dark night.
At the time she gave up hope that they would become friends again. He yelled at her, called her names she didn’t even want to think about. At some points she would run out of his room to her office where she would just cry. The next day she would be back at his bedside, and he would yell at her again. She wasn’t sure even now if he appreciated her being there for him. They never talked about those times.
Years after the infarction they were nothing more than employer and employee. He was the head of the diagnostic department and she was the dean of medicine. Just when they started to make some progress in becoming friends again, Stacy showed up. Then she had left him again, after her husband had recovered enough, House was broken again and she could tell. He never mentioned it to her but she was sure he still was in love with Stacy.
Shortly after that it happened, one night full of lust and frustration. She was drunk and he was too. They barely made it to the bed and the sex was hard and satisfying. Surprisingly better than she would admit.
She didn’t want to be a substitute for Stacy, so she told him the next morning that what happened the night before would never ever happen again. He nodded and they never talked about it again.
It was then that their banter and fights became something more. He constantly reminded her of that night by commenting on her breasts or her ass. He told the whole hospital that she was lousy in bed. She knew he was mocking her, but she wouldn’t give in. It couldn’t happen again.
Honestly she was glad House had sabotaged all her dates because none of them were what she was looking for. She enjoyed her dates with Wilson but made it clear to him that they would never be more than friends and he accepted it.
When she forced House to attend a conference in Singapore she wasn’t sure it was the right choice. She would be alone with him most of the time, and it had freaked her out. It turned out he would annoy her with no end. First he chose to wear the most ridiculous Hawaiian shirt she had every seen, then he had watched pay per view porn in his hotel room! Even with all that, not everything was bad about the trip. She enjoyed their slow dance even if she was a bit tipsy at that time but she remembered his arms around her keeping her steady and the kiss on his cheek after he brought her back to her room.
A smile formed on her lips.
He new she was pregnant even before she knew! Practically forcing her to do a test she ended up happy he did. His face when he touched her belly for the first time….
Slowly she drifted off to sleep dreaming about Greg.
TBC
Author: bm27
Rating: PG-13 maybe R in later chapters
Spoilers: Season 3
Summary: Cuddy is pregnant House cares HUDDY
Disclaimer: I don’t own these characters everything belongs to FOX
Notes: This is the sequel to Fashion Victim! Its not necessary to read Fashion Victim but i think it would help to understand some of the characters actions! Thanks to my Wondertwin Scuddyrific for betaing my stories!
Set 2 month after Fashion victim.
Cuddy was still frightened it was the end of the 1st trimester everything was fine so far but you never know. She had to throw up a lot, her breasts had already grown 1 size and she had to run to the toilet every 20 minutes but that’s what most women experience in the first few month of pregnancy.
Today she had an appointment with her doctor, this will be the first time she can really recognise something on the ultrasound. There will be little hands, little feet, and a tiny head. She still feared something could be wrong and that is what made her heart race and her fingers trembling. It was a torture to wait in the waiting room with all the other potential moms. A little baby squealed and Cuddy looked up in the direction. In a few months, this could be her. She will be a mom and she will be a damn good one. That’s something she promised herself. To put her baby first no matter what happened in the hospital. Looking at her watch, she was waiting only 10 minutes but it seemed like eternity.
She chose a doctor not far away from the hospital, there weren’t many people who knew she was pregnant. Her parents, Wilson, Brenda and of course House. She knew the little box was from House that was for sure but he didn’t ask about the baby after that day. He made his usual snarky remarks, telling her that her ass grows as fast as a weed and mentioned that if she wouldn’t buy other clothes soon her fun bags would be squished to death. Wilson on the other hand was great. He gave her all the encouragement she needed. He even took her to a play. In the beginning she was worried he would have feelings for her, but it turned out he just wanted to be friends.
“Dr. Cuddy?” a young woman asked when she approached Cuddy. She noted and stood. “Would you follow me please? Dr. Williams is ready to see you now!”
She entered the exam room and greeted Dr. Williams. “How are you? You still have problems with the morning sickness?” he asked her holding out his hand.
Shaking his hand she sat down across from him, “It’s getting better. I still feel tired all the time though. Which is normal I know” she smiled.
“If you don’t have questions I would suggest we move on to the exam. I’m sure you want to see the little one.” He smiled back at her knowing about her fears.
Cuddy lay down and moved her blouse high enough that Dr. Williams could do the ultrasound. Despite the fact she knew the gel was cold she winced at the first contact.
Expectantly she looked at the monitor and there it was. Her baby. It was moving around and she could swear it waved at her. With tears in her eyes she starred happily at the monitor.
“Looks like your little one is very agile. Development is coming along perfectly with the progress of the pregnancy. Congratulations everything looks good, Dr. Cuddy” he removed the gel softly from her belly and handed her another tissue to clean the rest off herself. When she was sitting he handed her a print of the ultrasound which she took eagerly. The first picture of her baby, she had to grin when she looked down and recognised the familiar gesture of the baby. It looked like its arms were crossed and there was almost a hint of a scowl on his way too tiny face to express something like a scowl.
This was one of the best days in her life. The first 3 unstable month were over and she could start to enjoy being pregnant. Soon she would have to tell the board and arrange everything for her absence after the baby was born. Thousands of thoughts crossed her mind while she drove back to her big baby the PPTH.
She entered the lobby and an all too familiar voice yelled, “Where have you been? I needed a consult!”
When she was close enough to him she answered, “House there are at least 50 other doctors you can ask for a consult. You don’t need me.”
“But they’re ugly!” he whined when he suddenly noticed the huge smile on her face.
Nothing could ruin that day not even House she thought. She kept walking ignoring Houses last comment.
She entered her office and removed her jacket when she turned around House stood in the entry.
“Why are you smiling?” he had an idea what was going on but still needed one or two other hints to solve the puzzle.
“Cause it’s a wonderful day” she said dreamy.
“Ok let me put the pieces together. You have been away for 2 hours, you have been nervous the whole day and now you are back and you are smiling.” He pretended to think for a few seconds, “Where is the picture?”
“What picture?” she couldn’t keep the smile that started to form when she thought about her baby.
“Oh come on. You know what I’m talking about” he didn’t even want to see the picture he was just curious if he was right.
“I give up. You are right, there is a picture. You really want to see it?”
“No” he turned around and exited her office. There was a picture which means everything was ok with the baby and Cuddy looks happy too. His work was done.
Chapter 2
She was in her 4th month when she decided to inform the board about her condition. Her belly was growing fast, faster than she thought it would. Soon it would be visibly to everyone anyway. She was surprised House hadn’t said anything, as far as she knew there weren’t any rumours about her being pregnant. Soon there will be another rumour about the father of her child. She already knew who will be number one on that list.
The board meeting went well. Everyone congratulated her and wished her the best. Nobody had the guts to ask about the father though, which she was glad about. It would have been embarrassing to tell the board. Some secrets should stay secret.
The next morning Cuddy got to work a bit later than usual. Her morning sickness was back with full force and she didn’t feel that well either. When she entered the hospital she could see the knowing looks in the faces of her staff. Some whispered to each other others just stared and one yelled.
“I’m hurt! You are pregnant and you didn’t tell me. I could be the father after all!” House made sure everyone could hear him. Better start the rumour now he loved to mess with peoples minds.
She sent daggers his way. If looks could kill, he would have died a painful death right then. Fortunately, for him they can’t so he just smiled broadly at her. So much for rumours about the father she thought.
Entering her office she found a huge pile of presents and cards. Most of them are from the board members some of her staff and one had no note on it. When she opened it, she had a faint idea whose present she just opened. She looked at the black coffee cup which said in huge bold letters MILF. Shaking her head she put it back in the box and stored it in a drawer at her desk. There was no way she would use this cup at work or home or anywhere.
Two weeks later ….
When he found her, her head lay on the desk in an awkward position. She was sound asleep and didn’t stir. It was late and he saw her light on in her office. He just solved a case and was ready to go home. He hadn’t slept much in the last 3 days and he was sure she hadn’t either. They had argued a lot too. Moving around the desk he shook her slightly but she didn’t wake up. He tried it again with more force, which had the desired effect. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around, she was clearly confused about her whereabouts. When she saw House so close she jerked up.
“Wow Cuddy, calm down. It’s me!” he smirked. She looked so sweet with her hair messed up and the traces of sleep still in her eyes.
“What. Why. … How late is it?” she asked confused.
“Past midnight, you need a ride home?”
“On your bike? I don’t think so” she shook her head.
“The bike is at the garage. I took my car”
She still wasn’t sure why he was offering her a ride home but she was too tired to drive and it was either sleeping in her office or take the offer and sleep at home. Her own bed sounded much more appealing than her office couch.
“Let me get my stuff and we can go” he moved out of the way to let her collect her belongings. When she moved past him his hand touched her belly for a moment. He could feel the light bump that had grown over the last 4 month on her abdomen. She felt his touch immediately. His hand was warm through the thin fabric of her shirt and somehow it felt right. He was the first person other than her or her doctor who touched her belly. Not aware of her next movements she took his hand and put it on her belly. He didn’t resist or pull away it even seemed like he enjoyed the moment. After a minute he pulled away and smiled at her. They didn’t talk about it. They didn’t need to.
He took her home that night and made sure she entered the house before he drove away. At home he sat in front of the TV watching baseball while his mind was occupied with other things. He watched his hand trying to remember the feeling when he touched her. He couldn’t feel any movement it was too early for that but still it had been an incredible feeling.
Chapter 3
Cuddy was walking down the halls of PPTH her hand supporting her 5 month along belly instinctually. Something she did more and more often now, most of the time it was subconsciously. House on the other hand used every chance he got touching her belly. It was still strange for her to see him with his guard down. He was still a misanthropic jerk, but when they were alone in her office or in an exam room he changed for a few moments. He would gently put his hand on her growing abdomen without a comment and after a few moments he would retreat the hand and become his usual self again. It was nice for a change to see that House still had something human about him.
Cuddy was on her way to the clinic because House had paged her for a consult earlier. Long ago she gave up on telling him to stop calling her for his sheer entertainment. Opening the door to exam room 2 she looked around, no patient, only House with his PSP in the corner of the room.
He looked up from his game and greeted her, “Finally. You know if I really needed your consult the patient could be dead by now!”
“I was in an important meeting with the psychology department.” she said ignoring him since he never really needed a consult.
“Talking about me?” he asked with a smirk.
“Not everything is about you, and stop using their lounge to watch your soaps!” She added as an afterthought.
“But they have this huge plasma screen TV!” it couldn’t harm to whine a bit, he thought.
“You are disturbing the patients. Find another place to …” She stopped herself, this pregnancy was making her soft! She quickly covered her slip by changing the subject.
“Since there is no patient, what do you want?”
“Oh contraire, mon amie! There is a patient! … Right there!” he pointed at her.
“Me? I’m not sick” she shook her head at his insanity.
“No, but you are pregnant and I happen to be a doctor, and I want examine you!” he stated.
“Why?” she was feeling good and her next appointment with Dr. Williams was scheduled for the next day anyway.
“Cause I want to know if the devils offspring is male or female” there was a bet going and a bit of cheating would not harm he thought.
“Sweet House, but the answer is NO!” she started to turn.
“You don’t want to know?” he asked and she stopped at the door.
“No. I don’t. It doesn’t matter if it’s a boy or a girl as along as their healthy I don’t care”
“You sure?” he wrinkled his eyebrow doubtfully at her.
“I am!” and she left. It didn’t matter though he was already thinking about ways to persuade her of the opposite.
When she left the room she was thinking about what House had said. Did she not want to know what the baby was, really? She wasn’t sure anymore. Maybe she would ask Dr. Williams tomorrow. Suddenly she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen and she cried out in pain.
House heard her cry out and was by her side in an instant. She sat down on the floor holding her belly protectively tears streaming down her face. He yelled at the nurses to get a gurney. Cuddy lye down on the gurney looking at House, a fear in her eyes so strong, it hurt him too. They took her to the OB/GYN ward, House limped as fast as he could to keep up with them.
When she was wheeled into the exam room House stopped not sure if she would want him with her. Her eyes locked with his till the door closed. It was too late to enter now. He was such a stupid moron he wanted to be with her, holding her hand telling her everything will be fine but he was to big of a coward to follow. Dr. Gregory House who doesn’t even know how to spell rules or manners was too spineless to follow the woman he…. He stopped himself dead in his tracks. What was he thinking? Cuddy was the devil, as he had pointed out so charmingly to Wilson more than once before, but maybe, and this was a big maybe, the troops that guarded the big wall between love and hate took a pause and it was his chance to do something! Find out what she thinks, tell her what you think, but then he shook his head at the moronic thought. She hates him, and she told him to get over her and stop dreaming about her. Ha! If he was able to control his dreams he would be dreaming about Carmen Electra! At some point he had started pacing once again and was abruptly stopped by Dr. Louis, one of the best OB/GYN’s in PPTH.
“Dr. House, Dr. Cuddy asked for you.” House didn’t even think, he just went to her. Better to check for himself he thought as he pushed the other doctor out of his way to get to her room.
She lay in a bed her belly still exposed and all he could do was stare at her.
“House stop starring at me, your freaking me out!” her voice was still tear filled, but stronger, less desperate and tad bit snarky.
He closed his mouth and looked at her questioningly “Everything ok?”
“I had some light spotting and I’ve been put on bed rest for at least two weeks, but ‘he’ is fine” she smiled as she said the last part.
“He?” he said, trying not to show how relieved it made him feel to hear that everything was ok.
“I thought you’d want to see for yourself?” she pointed to the ultrasound device beside her bed.
He moved over and put the sensor over her belly. She didn’t watch the monitor like he did she was watching him instead. She tried to find out what was going on behind that brick wall he had built up over the years.
He checked for everything he could think of, and everything looked fine to him. Mesmerized by the vivid movement of the baby he didn’t recognise Cuddy’s piercing glance.
“Looks like everything is perfect.” he said and she smiled at him. It really seemed like he cared about her, or at least the baby.
“I’m not to sure about the “he” part though,” he grinned, “could be a girl too. It’s to hard to tell at this angle and with all this movement.”
“It’s a he! I’m his mother, I know!” she said, knowing deep down she was sure it was a boy.
“And I’m a doctor and I tell you it could be a girl too!” he pouted.
Suddenly it made sense to her, “You want it to be a girl!” she grinned.
He studied her but didn’t answer, suddenly he turned and left her alone in the room. It wasn’t true he didn’t want it to be a girl, did he?
Chapter 4
It was Cuddy’s 1st day of prescribed bed rest and she already hated every minute of it. She was only allowed to get up to eat or to use the bathroom and a nurse checked on her once a day. She was strictly forbidden to work, even paperwork wasn’t allowed.
It was 1pm and she was already incredibly bored, she even thought about calling House a few times to start an argument just to forget the boredom for a few minutes. Although she had started to dial his number several times, she never had the guts to actually talk to him. All the more surprised she was when the phone rang and the display said House. For a moment she pondered about not taking the call, who knows what he wants, but she decided to risk it and pushed the little green button on her cell phone.
“Cuddy!” she said sitting up in bed to get comfortable.
“Cuddy, how is the evil witch and her even eviler offspring?” he tried to hide his concern with a bit to much sarcasm.
“I was already starting to miss your charm House!” this was exactly what she needed.
“Are you flirting with me? Cause I don’t want Satan to get jealous!” He loved there banter there weren’t many who made a good sparring partner. Cuddy was definitely on top of his list.
“What do you want? I’m supposed to sleep right now!” she lied just to see if he caught her.
“First you are at bed rest and you are not supposed to sleep all day” he inhaled “and secondly where is your spare key?”
“Why do you want to know were my spare key is?” she had a faint idea why, but despite it she asked anyway not sure if she preferred to be right or wrong.
“I need you to sign off on some files and the key isn’t where it’s supposed to be and I am tired of looking for it!” She was right, she thought, then she heard a loud noise followed by House cursing.
“I own you a new flower pot” he told her while brushing aside the broken fragments of her formally bright yellow flower pot.
“Did you just break something?” she asked.
“If I say yes are you going to tell me where your spare key is?” he was sure she wouldn’t refuse now that she was worried he would play havoc with her flowers till he found the key.
With a frown she pondered her options. If she doesn’t tell him he will keep looking as long as he finds the key, regardless of her flowers, but when she tells him he will come in and frustrate her even more.
“It’s in the ceramic frog!” She told him defeated. “And you will buy me a new … whatever you just broke!”
“A yellow flower pot!” he told her, putting his cell back in his pocket when he opened the front door. He headed straight for her bedroom discarded his jacket on the way flinging it over the couch.
The door to her bedroom was open and he moved in like he owned the place and sat on the edge of the bed. It was obvious that she was bored and he had every intention to change that.
“Hey!” he said softly once he made himself comfortable.
“Everything ok in the hospital?”
“I didn’t burn it down … yet!” he smiled at her.
“Yet?” she was worried despite the fact she knew he was joking.
“I brought you something.” He put a suspiciously heavy bag on the bed right beside her.
Carefully she opened it and when she saw what was in there a huge smile lit her face up.
“You brought me paperwork?”
“I told you I need you to sign some papers!” he smirked at her. “So how is my girl today?” Her eyes went wide at his choice of address for her.
Grinning he pointed at her belly already moving a hand towards it.
Her cheeks got a nice shade of pink and she moved the blanket out of the way. Gently he put his hand on her belly. The touch made her shiver and she hoped he hadn’t noticed it. He was too occupied with her belly and the sudden pressure he felt. “She’s kicking me!” he pouted looking at her interrogative waiting for an answer to his unspoken question.
“It started last week I wasn’t sure if you would feel it too.” She put her hand next to his on her belly. With their hands slightly touching time seemed to stand still. Neither knew for how long they sat like that but it didn’t matter. At some point the moment was gone and House pulled his hand back and stood.
“Are you leaving?” she sounded disappointed.
“I’m scheduled for clinic duty in an hour!” at that she laughed out loud.
“You are kidding right?” She always thought he would find himself a nice place to hide and watch his soaps as soon as she left the hospital for a second.
“Yes” he answered truthfully and turned quickly to hide his expression, which would easily give him away. The truth was he would love to stay with her but again he was too unsure to open up just yet. He needed more time to get used to figuring out what all this means. He had always cared for her but the feeling had grown in the last weeks. There was something that had changed, was it the baby? Maybe.
She got worried when he didn’t move for at least 5 minutes she had to do something and the words that came out of her mouth surprised her.
“Please stay!”
He still didn’t move, not sure he had heard her she tried again.
“House please stay.” This time he turned, his expression was different. She looked into his eyes and saw something she hadn’t seen there before. He looked like he was ‘caring’. As if he was remembering there was someone else his expression changed back to his usual.
“Why?” was all he managed to say.
“You really need a reason to skip clinic duty?” she asked sure about his answer.
“Nope” he grinned at her and sat back down. “Want to watch some TV? General Hospital is on!”
She was glad that he stayed and didn’t care about what they did somehow it was just important that he was there by her side. So she switched on the TV and handed him the remote.
“Slide over” he ordered cheerfully, motioning for her to slide over so he had more space.
He lay on the bed next to her with 2 pillows behind his back and switched channels to find General Hospital. “I didn’t think it would be so easy to get into your bed!” and was awarded with an elbow to his ribs.
“Shut up House!” she didn’t need to say more.
10 minutes of General Hospital and Cuddy was fast asleep. He watched her and didn’t move when she put an arm around his stomach in her sleep.
It was dark outside when she awoke with her arm around House and her head resting in the crook of his neck. Carefully she moved away and propped her head on her arm and studied him. His usual expression faded with the help of sleep the lines on his forehead seemed less his whole expression looked softer. He murmured something she couldn’t quiet make out, but sounded a lot like Lisa. He had never called her Lisa they never call each other by there first names its always House and Cuddy, never Greg and Lisa. He stirred and slowly opened his eyes looking directly into hers. Blue met blue and a smile crossed his lips.
“Morning!” she greeted him, not hiding the fact that she was starring at him while he was asleep.
“Watching something you like?” he sounded sleepy.
“Hmmm … maybe. You hungry?” she asked as her stomach made hungry sounds.
He thought for a moment “I’ll order, you stay in bed!” She opened her mouth to say something but closed it again to remain silent. This completely new ‘House caring thing’ was starting to freaking her out.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone already dialing a number. She was amazed how he knew what she liked. Ordering way more than they could eat he put his phone away and looked back at her. She was still starring with a smile on her lips and a sparkle in her eyes. Those damn hormones she thought. Weak and soft that’s exactly what she felt right now. What a cliché.
House had left her after they finished dinner. Cuddy thanked him for the evening and remembered to tell him that he owned her a flowerpot. Smiling he drove home wondering about life and Cuddy.
Maybe this would be his last chance to get something right in life. To forget about the pain and remember how life was before the infarction. He used to have friends and a girlfriend, he used to be able to enjoy the simple things in life, like having a nice evening with friends, walking in the park with Stacy and playing golf on Sundays.
In one second all of that was destroyed. He was in pain for nearly 4 days before they figured what was wrong with him. He told Stacy what he wanted them to do but she refused to listen to him. When he woke up after surgery, he wished he had died because the pain was too much to bare and he was angry. Slowly he drove her away and every other person who had the courage to visit him. Just when he started to get better Stacy told him she was leaving because he didn’t want her near him, and she couldn’t live with it anymore. She broke his heart then and he wasn’t sure he would ever be able to love again.
In all the chaos, there was one person that stayed and helped him get through the worst time of his life. He yelled at Cuddy telling her to go to hell but she stayed. He was mad at her for ignoring his wishes and letting them do the surgery, but he was glad she stayed and didn’t leave him like Stacy did.
Then there was this one night a year ago when they slept together. It wasn’t like they had planned it, it just happened. They both had drank a lot and somehow they ended up at Cuddy’s place. The next morning she made it clear that it was a mistake and it would never happen again. It was fine for him then, because the wound Stacy ripped open again after showing up at PPTH wasn’t healed yet. He still felt something for her so he was fine with it.
He would tease her by telling the whole hospital that she was lousy in bed, but just because he couldn’t forget about it. Making jokes about her cleavage was just another way for him to remind her of that one night.
It was different now though, something had changed in the picture. It wasn’t enough anymore for him to constantly remind her about their one time together, he wanted to be with her. The first time it came to his attention was when Wilson suddenly decided to date her. Then when Wilson told him he slept with her, he believed him for a second and the pain in his heart was more painful than the pain his leg could cause.
Then one day he asked her to go out to a play with him, but she found an excuse every time he would ask. What hurt him was that she still went with Wilson. Shortly after, they went to Singapore and she started relaxing around him. They enjoyed their usual banter and he enjoyed being close to her.
He arrived home parked his bike and got into the apartment. Sitting in front of his piano he let his fingers fly over the keys not playing anything in particular. He just sat their playing and thinking about Cuddy and her baby. He would have called it a fetus a month ago but now he was calling it a baby. He had already changed he thought and sipped on his beer.
The naps during the day were now preventing her from sleep. Cuddy lay in bed restless wishing she could get up and do something. After an hour of turning and changing positions she gave up. She lay on her back and starred at the ceiling thinking about Greg. Why was he suddenly so interested in her? Why did he care, now?!
After Stacy had left him she tried to be there for him. They had been friends in college and she had a crush on him every since. When he introduced Stacy to her as his new girlfriend her world collapsed. Nevertheless she decided to be his friend and even become friends with Stacy. It was the toughest decision she had ever made in her life when Stacy asked her to do the surgery despite Greg’s objection. She did it and when Stacy left a few weeks later, she was stuck with an angry, devastated and heartbroken House. He hated her even more than Stacy because he had trusted her and she betrayed him. Took away his happiness and left him crippled and alone.
Tears started to fall silently in the cover of the dark night.
At the time she gave up hope that they would become friends again. He yelled at her, called her names she didn’t even want to think about. At some points she would run out of his room to her office where she would just cry. The next day she would be back at his bedside, and he would yell at her again. She wasn’t sure even now if he appreciated her being there for him. They never talked about those times.
Years after the infarction they were nothing more than employer and employee. He was the head of the diagnostic department and she was the dean of medicine. Just when they started to make some progress in becoming friends again, Stacy showed up. Then she had left him again, after her husband had recovered enough, House was broken again and she could tell. He never mentioned it to her but she was sure he still was in love with Stacy.
Shortly after that it happened, one night full of lust and frustration. She was drunk and he was too. They barely made it to the bed and the sex was hard and satisfying. Surprisingly better than she would admit.
She didn’t want to be a substitute for Stacy, so she told him the next morning that what happened the night before would never ever happen again. He nodded and they never talked about it again.
It was then that their banter and fights became something more. He constantly reminded her of that night by commenting on her breasts or her ass. He told the whole hospital that she was lousy in bed. She knew he was mocking her, but she wouldn’t give in. It couldn’t happen again.
Honestly she was glad House had sabotaged all her dates because none of them were what she was looking for. She enjoyed her dates with Wilson but made it clear to him that they would never be more than friends and he accepted it.
When she forced House to attend a conference in Singapore she wasn’t sure it was the right choice. She would be alone with him most of the time, and it had freaked her out. It turned out he would annoy her with no end. First he chose to wear the most ridiculous Hawaiian shirt she had every seen, then he had watched pay per view porn in his hotel room! Even with all that, not everything was bad about the trip. She enjoyed their slow dance even if she was a bit tipsy at that time but she remembered his arms around her keeping her steady and the kiss on his cheek after he brought her back to her room.
A smile formed on her lips.
He new she was pregnant even before she knew! Practically forcing her to do a test she ended up happy he did. His face when he touched her belly for the first time….
Slowly she drifted off to sleep dreaming about Greg.
TBC