Genre: who knows? I'll go for angst
Pairing: House/Wilson
Rating: PG-13 for language
Spoilers for 7x16
Summary: What happens a few minutes after House jumps from the balcony in the pool.
Author's note: I'd like to say something profound, but decided I'd let my id speak for itself.
Wilson had turned to walk away, listening to the screaming and splashing. He thought he might vomit. Working in a hospital, Wilson had seen the aftermaths of many “jumpers”, and-his brain stopped there.
“WHOA, DUDE, JOIN THE PAR-TAY!” A strong pair of hands whirled him around, and he was staring at a large drunken college student with horse-teeth. “GET YOUR DRINK ON!”
“Get away from me!” Wilson tried to shake him off. The student must have been on the football team. He was that strong. Whooping, the student picked up Wilson, marched purposefully to the pool, and dropped him in.
Wilson hit the water with a splash, his overcoat floating out on either side of him like huge wool flippers. Wilson kicked his feet as the water soaked through his clothes. The water was heated; it felt like being in a huge tub of warm pee. His head was still above water and it was shallow enough to stand. Probably about five feet deep.
“Hey, Wilson!” A jubilant House was dog-paddling toward him. “Glad you joined the party, dude!”
Wilson glared at House, filled with such outrage that he could barely speak. House swam up to Wilson and around his friend, splashing his face as House dog-paddled. How could House not know how to really swim? That made it even stupider, for God’s sake!!
“YOU SHIT-HEAD!” Wilson screamed. “YOU MOTHERFUCKING, STUPID SHIT-HEAD! YOU SHOULD FUCKING BURN IN HELL!”
House’s smile didn’t crack. “Chill, dude! Besides, you're a Jew, you don't believe in--”
“You’re not some idiot eighteen-year-old-“fuck the lecturing, House had gone so too far this time he might as well have been across state lines. Wilson lunged at House, grabbed the top of his head, and pushed it underwater. And held it there. He felt House struggling, grabbing at Wilson’s overcoat, air bubbles coming up in bursts.
No one in the crowd noticed, of course. They were too busy drinking, yelling and generally acting like--well, drunk college students. Wilson let go, and House came up, spluttering, eyes wide.
“Jesus, Wilson, you almost-“
“Drowned you? Drowned you?” Wilson again grabbed House’s head and pushed him underwater. Let House grab his overcoat and tear at his hands, Wilson was too enraged to care. “Motherfucker!” he yelled at the top of House’s skull. “Die, you sick sonovabitch! Go ahead and die!” His voice cracked.
When House came up again, he looked scared. “Are you trying to kill me?”
“Yes!”
House found the bottom of the pool and stood, moving away from his infuriated friend. “Why? It’s party time, Wilson!” He tried a careless smile but failed miserably.
Wilson splashed water on his own face to calm down. His wet coat had slowly drifted down to his sides. “You are such an asshole, House. Did you even know I was down here?”
“I think I saw you when I passed the third floor.”
“That was not okay! Now I’m sorry you didn’t hit the concrete. This isn’t something I can just shrug off, ‘oh, my friend tried to commit suicide but it was just a big dramatic FAKE-OUT!’ No, House, I am stuck with remembering those five seconds over and over. You-you-you-if you don’t understand, you’re not worth killing. Good bye.”
Wilson waded toward the shallow end of the pool, coat and suit coat dragging behind him like a soaked royal robe. House followed. Before Wilson could start up the steps out of the pool, House slid his arms around Wilson’s chest, under Wilson’s arms.
“Little fish, big fish, swimming in the water, come back here, man, gimme my daughter, Little fish, big fish, swimming in the water,” House whispered in Wilson’s ear, “come back here, man, gimme my daughter. Little fish, big fish, swimming in the water, come back here, man, gimme my daughter.”
Wilson slumped back against House and started to cry. They stood there, surrounded by the party House had started.
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