(no subject)
TITLE: Eradication 13
AUTHOR: dragynflies
PAIRING: Cameron/House, Cameron/OC
RATING: PG-13
SUMMARY: You are surprised how easy it is to fall into a routine with Cameron, that the two of you are able to care for Nathan and Blythe with such compatibility.
DISCLAIMER: Not mine. Don’t sue.
A/N: As per usual, Kellyannie wins at everything that is good. Thanks for the beta, princess.
You wake up before everyone else does, the pain in your thigh a better alarm clock than anything you’ve discovered yet. Cameron hasn’t moved from your arms, only moved closer, and you try to fight the pain in your leg so you don’t have to move away from her.
Finally, you give in and roll away from her, taking a single Vicodin. The medicine kicks in, and you carefully get out of bed. You are surprised to find the baby still asleep - hadn’t Cameron told you he wasn’t sleeping well? - but you leave him snuggled in his playpen and go to check on Blythe.
“Wake up, honey,” you whisper, “Come make waffles with me,” and your little girl perks up almost immediately and gives you a wide smile.
“Mornin’ Daddy!” she chirps and hops out of bed. Sometimes, you miss being four. She picks out her outfit, and you help her in the bathroom, carefully brushing her hair so you don’t pull it, especially at the horrible bump she’s got. You move the hair to the side and look at the wound. It’s not bad, just a bruised lump, but it makes your stomach roll when you think about how she got it. You push those thoughts to the back of your head; you’ll be no good to Cameron or to your children if all you can think about is revenge.
You leave Blythe’s hair hanging down in curls because you still haven’t mastered those butterfly clips that she loves, and you don’t like her looking like you did her hair with an egg beater.
You’re finishing up a nice stack of waffles and frying bacon when Cameron pads sleepily into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes. Her eyes soften when she sees you and Blythe making a mess of your kitchen and she comes over to kiss her daughter on the forehead.
“Nathan’s still asleep,” she tells you, her eyes surprised, “He never sleeps this long. He always wakes up at night and cries.”
You shrug, and you want to say well, now he knows he’s not living with an asshole but instead you say, “I fed him when Blythe and I came home last night, so maybe that’s why.”
She nods and you can tell she doesn’t think that’s why, but now is not the time to discuss, “Sit, eat. Blythe and I cooked,” and you give Blythe a plate to bring to her mother.
“I have to be at work in an hour. Do you want to stay here with Nathan and Blythe or should I take Blythe to daycare?”
Cameron accepts the plate from Blythe and pulls the little girl into her lap, “I want her here,” she says, taking a bite and handing her daughter a fork, “I’ll stay here with them. I don’t think Robert has your address.”
You’re glad to hear that, and it makes you feel like they’re a little safer.
Nathan wakes up halfway through breakfast, and you let Cameron finish eating while you change his diaper and put on clean clothes. You head into the living room, swapping Nathan for some coffee, and then you shower quickly. You’re not anxious to get to work, but the sooner you get in and get everything finished, the sooner you can be home with them.
“I’ll bring dinner tonight,” you offer, “and when the kids are asleep, we can talk?”
She nods, looking up from feeding Nathan, “Alright. I’ll see you tonight.”
You hate leaving your children today, you want to stay home and do everything you can to keep them safe. You’re halfway to work when you realize you’ve already started thinking about Nathan like he’s yours.
The day drags, and you find yourself checking the clock obsessively. Finally, at five, you leave the building at the closest thing you’ve got to a run. You pick up a pizza and head home, surprised at the nervous anticipation in your stomach.
Blythe is sitting next to Nathan, explaining the pictures in her book to him while Cameron watches them, a smile on her face. It’s obvious that Blythe loves her baby brother and he’s entirely enthralled by her voice. You like the way your heart tightens at the sight of them, and you think that this is something you could get used to.
“Dinner’s on,” you finally speak up, and Cameron and Blythe join you at the table. Blythe explains to Nathan the perils of eating pizza at 2 and a half months, then digs into her own slice, grinning broadly.
After dinner, you curl up with the three of them and watch a movie, and then Cameron feeds Nathan and tucks him in while you help Blythe brush her teeth and read her a story. You are surprised how easy it is to fall into a routine with Cameron, that the two of you are able to care for Nathan and Blythe with such compatibility.
When the children are in bed, you meet Cameron at the kitchen table and there is a horrible awkward silence. The ease from tonight is gone and now she just looks uncomfortable and scared. You sit down - your thigh is screaming at you, but you don’t want to think about it - and you point at the chair across from you. She sits and stares at her hands for a solid minute before she speaks.
“So,” she says softly, “I need a lawyer.”
Feet first, jumping into this. She may be a wife, but she is a mother first, and you can see how protective she is, and how distraught she is that she let it stew as long as it did. Long enough for Blythe to be painfully aware of just how much Robert didn’t want her, enough to make her second guess love, and then enough to have her pushed away from her little brother. You’re glad Cameron left when she did.
“Okay,” you tell her, “I don’t work tomorrow. We’ll find you one.”
Cameron nods, dropping her head into her hands, “I almost took her away from you,” she mumbles, looking ashamed, “I thought if Robert was her only father…maybe he would love her more. Maybe if it were just him again, he wouldn’t care that she wasn’t biologically his…but I see her with you, and I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t take you away from her any more than I could take her away from you.”
You stiffen at her admission, and you have to close your eyes for a few moments so you don’t blow up. You can’t fault her reasoning, but it hurts to hear her say it.
“I’m glad you didn’t,” you say, reaching across the table and running your fingers over her arm until she drops her hand to the table. You twine your fingers with hers and meet her eyes, “You will be okay. They will be okay. Tomorrow, we’ll talk to a lawyer, see what the next step is. I’ll go with you.”
“Thank you,” she whispers, “You don’t have to do this.”
You don’t. You don’t have to love her, and you survived three years without Blythe. Nathan’s not even yours, you really don’t have to love him. You just…can’t help it. You can’t remember what you did before you had Blythe back, and you don’t want to.
“I just want to see you smile again,” you mumble, horrible at the sentimental and she glances up and gives you a little smile.
“I think I’m on my way.”
You fall asleep together that night, Cameron in your t-shirt, tucked in your arms. You drop a kiss on her forehead when she is asleep and steel your resolve. You don’t want to push her; you’re not going to push her. Divorcing Robert is going to be hard enough without you on the side whining at her, and you’re not sure you deserve a second chance anyway.
AUTHOR: dragynflies
PAIRING: Cameron/House, Cameron/OC
RATING: PG-13
SUMMARY: You are surprised how easy it is to fall into a routine with Cameron, that the two of you are able to care for Nathan and Blythe with such compatibility.
DISCLAIMER: Not mine. Don’t sue.
A/N: As per usual, Kellyannie wins at everything that is good. Thanks for the beta, princess.
You wake up before everyone else does, the pain in your thigh a better alarm clock than anything you’ve discovered yet. Cameron hasn’t moved from your arms, only moved closer, and you try to fight the pain in your leg so you don’t have to move away from her.
Finally, you give in and roll away from her, taking a single Vicodin. The medicine kicks in, and you carefully get out of bed. You are surprised to find the baby still asleep - hadn’t Cameron told you he wasn’t sleeping well? - but you leave him snuggled in his playpen and go to check on Blythe.
“Wake up, honey,” you whisper, “Come make waffles with me,” and your little girl perks up almost immediately and gives you a wide smile.
“Mornin’ Daddy!” she chirps and hops out of bed. Sometimes, you miss being four. She picks out her outfit, and you help her in the bathroom, carefully brushing her hair so you don’t pull it, especially at the horrible bump she’s got. You move the hair to the side and look at the wound. It’s not bad, just a bruised lump, but it makes your stomach roll when you think about how she got it. You push those thoughts to the back of your head; you’ll be no good to Cameron or to your children if all you can think about is revenge.
You leave Blythe’s hair hanging down in curls because you still haven’t mastered those butterfly clips that she loves, and you don’t like her looking like you did her hair with an egg beater.
You’re finishing up a nice stack of waffles and frying bacon when Cameron pads sleepily into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes. Her eyes soften when she sees you and Blythe making a mess of your kitchen and she comes over to kiss her daughter on the forehead.
“Nathan’s still asleep,” she tells you, her eyes surprised, “He never sleeps this long. He always wakes up at night and cries.”
You shrug, and you want to say well, now he knows he’s not living with an asshole but instead you say, “I fed him when Blythe and I came home last night, so maybe that’s why.”
She nods and you can tell she doesn’t think that’s why, but now is not the time to discuss, “Sit, eat. Blythe and I cooked,” and you give Blythe a plate to bring to her mother.
“I have to be at work in an hour. Do you want to stay here with Nathan and Blythe or should I take Blythe to daycare?”
Cameron accepts the plate from Blythe and pulls the little girl into her lap, “I want her here,” she says, taking a bite and handing her daughter a fork, “I’ll stay here with them. I don’t think Robert has your address.”
You’re glad to hear that, and it makes you feel like they’re a little safer.
Nathan wakes up halfway through breakfast, and you let Cameron finish eating while you change his diaper and put on clean clothes. You head into the living room, swapping Nathan for some coffee, and then you shower quickly. You’re not anxious to get to work, but the sooner you get in and get everything finished, the sooner you can be home with them.
“I’ll bring dinner tonight,” you offer, “and when the kids are asleep, we can talk?”
She nods, looking up from feeding Nathan, “Alright. I’ll see you tonight.”
You hate leaving your children today, you want to stay home and do everything you can to keep them safe. You’re halfway to work when you realize you’ve already started thinking about Nathan like he’s yours.
The day drags, and you find yourself checking the clock obsessively. Finally, at five, you leave the building at the closest thing you’ve got to a run. You pick up a pizza and head home, surprised at the nervous anticipation in your stomach.
Blythe is sitting next to Nathan, explaining the pictures in her book to him while Cameron watches them, a smile on her face. It’s obvious that Blythe loves her baby brother and he’s entirely enthralled by her voice. You like the way your heart tightens at the sight of them, and you think that this is something you could get used to.
“Dinner’s on,” you finally speak up, and Cameron and Blythe join you at the table. Blythe explains to Nathan the perils of eating pizza at 2 and a half months, then digs into her own slice, grinning broadly.
After dinner, you curl up with the three of them and watch a movie, and then Cameron feeds Nathan and tucks him in while you help Blythe brush her teeth and read her a story. You are surprised how easy it is to fall into a routine with Cameron, that the two of you are able to care for Nathan and Blythe with such compatibility.
When the children are in bed, you meet Cameron at the kitchen table and there is a horrible awkward silence. The ease from tonight is gone and now she just looks uncomfortable and scared. You sit down - your thigh is screaming at you, but you don’t want to think about it - and you point at the chair across from you. She sits and stares at her hands for a solid minute before she speaks.
“So,” she says softly, “I need a lawyer.”
Feet first, jumping into this. She may be a wife, but she is a mother first, and you can see how protective she is, and how distraught she is that she let it stew as long as it did. Long enough for Blythe to be painfully aware of just how much Robert didn’t want her, enough to make her second guess love, and then enough to have her pushed away from her little brother. You’re glad Cameron left when she did.
“Okay,” you tell her, “I don’t work tomorrow. We’ll find you one.”
Cameron nods, dropping her head into her hands, “I almost took her away from you,” she mumbles, looking ashamed, “I thought if Robert was her only father…maybe he would love her more. Maybe if it were just him again, he wouldn’t care that she wasn’t biologically his…but I see her with you, and I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t take you away from her any more than I could take her away from you.”
You stiffen at her admission, and you have to close your eyes for a few moments so you don’t blow up. You can’t fault her reasoning, but it hurts to hear her say it.
“I’m glad you didn’t,” you say, reaching across the table and running your fingers over her arm until she drops her hand to the table. You twine your fingers with hers and meet her eyes, “You will be okay. They will be okay. Tomorrow, we’ll talk to a lawyer, see what the next step is. I’ll go with you.”
“Thank you,” she whispers, “You don’t have to do this.”
You don’t. You don’t have to love her, and you survived three years without Blythe. Nathan’s not even yours, you really don’t have to love him. You just…can’t help it. You can’t remember what you did before you had Blythe back, and you don’t want to.
“I just want to see you smile again,” you mumble, horrible at the sentimental and she glances up and gives you a little smile.
“I think I’m on my way.”
You fall asleep together that night, Cameron in your t-shirt, tucked in your arms. You drop a kiss on her forehead when she is asleep and steel your resolve. You don’t want to push her; you’re not going to push her. Divorcing Robert is going to be hard enough without you on the side whining at her, and you’re not sure you deserve a second chance anyway.