rp for l_cuddy_md

[rubicks_complex]

House waited until he was out of sight from the bar to stop and brace his hand against the wall. The way he’d landed on the floor when Dean tripped him up jarred his leg; it was throbbing sharply. The bruise on his chin where Dean had uppercut him was throbbing, too

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[l_cuddy_md]

Cuddy had decided to start a chart on anyone she came in contact with at the hotel, at least people with whom she had contact on a professional basis. She thought it might be wise to have a record of the injuries and illnesses the guests suffered. She wasn't sure to whom it might matter, but it was something to do that seemed relatively useful

[rubicks_complex]

House just glared at Cuddy for a moment without response. Part of him wanted to slap himself for getting as jealous about this as he was, because he not only didn't have confirmation from Cuddy herself that she did sleep with that Dean guy, but also because he'd allowed himself to get too attached to her

[l_cuddy_md]

She started to ask who this friend was, because she couldn't imagine anyone she'd actually become friends with getting into a fist fight with House. Then again, Wilson had gotten into a fight with House which she would never have believed if she hadn't seen the evidence herself, so anything was possible

[rubicks_complex]

House was silent again as he studied her face, watching closely for her reaction. She looked taken off guard, and the fact that she confirmed that she definitely knew Dean made House bristle. The look on her face was what made him bristle more, though, especially when she then asked if he'd insulted Dean's mother.

"So what if I did?" he replied, his tone now starting to sound nasty. "Who cares about his dead mother? I don't."

He was about to add to that, then remembered he was standing in the hallway. He didn't want to have any kind of confrontation where others could hear, especially not when Cuddy could slam the door on his face, so House pushed past her and moved to the centre of the room. He turned to face her.

"Don't play dumb with me," he said warningly. "This has nothing to do with whether I insulted his poor, dead mommy or not, and you know it." He paused, then added accusingly, "Don't you?"

Well, that was the reason Dean tripped him, so yes - on Dean's part it had everything to do with House insulting his mother. House

[l_cuddy_md]

"Well, I imagine he cares about his dead mother," she said as House pushed past her. She was still holding the door open and she gave a rather longing glance at the hallway. Escape seemed like a really good idea right now, but that would look like she was trying to hide something. She was, but she didn't want to look like she was.

She pushed the door closed and turned to face House, her body rigid with tension as she tried to keep her expression blank. It wasn't all that hard to do, because when House fired off his accusation she went numb.

She should've seen this coming. She should've known House would find out and she should've prepared herself. Then she wouldn't be standing here, blindsided by the accusation and mentally scrambling for the best way to respond. Except she was pretty sure there was no best way to respond.

"Yes, I did." She wasn't sure telling the truth was was the right thing to do, but she was certain lying would be the wrong choice. "What of it?"

[rubicks_complex]

He was stupid to be holding onto a very weak glimmer of hope that Cuddy would deny sleeping with Dean. But even if she had denied, he wouldn't have believed her, anyway.

Hearing her confirm that, yes, she'd slept with Dean, House felt his insides go cold. The way she'd remarked what of it stung. What of it? What of it? House had to look away from her, hardly able to contain his anger, and jealousy and... hurt. Not to mention a sudden feeling of inferiority. Minus the arrogant prick part, Dean was everything House wasn't: young, good-looking, not crippled.

He swallowed to try and alleviate the tightness in his throat, and when he turned his eyes back to Cuddy, his gaze was cold. "Nothing," he replied. "Obviously nothing to you. But definitely enough that you'd go back to him for seconds."

Even if he wanted to hold back saying anything hurtful and outlandish to her, he wasn't able to. "I'd love to know who else you've been whoring yourself out to."

[l_cuddy_md]

House's expression was so icy she was tempted to check her extremities for frostbite. She heated up fast, though, when he accused her of being a whore.

"Don't...don't even go there," she warned, taking a few halting steps closer to him. Her whole body was shaking and she clenched her hands into fists to hide the trembling. Part of it was anger, certainly. At Dean, who'd be smart to keep himself and his big mouth out of her sight for the foreseeable future. But at House, too, for accusing her of something like that.

"You bastard," she said, getting even angrier at the way her voice shook. "We weren't together when I slept with Dean. And that was your choice, House, not mine. Hell, you were barely speaking to me. You'd show up for your pill, grunt something at me, and disappear for another twelve hours. Was I supposed to sequester myself in my room, pining away over you?"

[rubicks_complex]

"Did it ever occur to you that I didn't want you to sleep with anyone else?" he fired back at her, without thinking.

He faltered at his admission before sharply facing away from Cuddy and pacing across to the window to stall for time while he tried to gather his thoughts. She was right: they hadn't been together at that point, when she'd slept with Dean. But that didn't matter, as far as House was concerned. He hated the very thought of Cuddy being with anyone else but him, so much that it made him feel sick with jealousy. Why would she sleep with someone else if she claimed she wanted him so much?

He reeled around at that thought, to face her again. "So, what, you tell him you want to be with him, too?" he said viciously. "You went back to him for seconds, just like you did with me. Did you assure him that it wasn't a relationship, and then changed your mind? Just like you did with me?"

[l_cuddy_md]

"Then you should've said something instead of telling me I was nothing more than convenient sex," she shot back

[rubicks_complex]

Because that was what he wanted to hear? Well... House had to admit to himself that was true. Sort of. More accurately, he'd been scared that Cuddy wanted more from him, even more scared by the fact that he wanted more from Cuddy. He gave her a briefly troubled look before resuming his hard glare when he remembered what Dean had said to him in the bar

[l_cuddy_md]

Cuddy's lips moved soundlessly as House mocked her with Dean's words. Obviously he hadn't just told House about them, he'd exaggerated it. He'd used it to attack House. She was going to kill him

[rubicks_complex]

House stared at her. He tried to follow her logic, but the churning jealousy in him was distorting anything he heard. So... by sleeping with Dean she was trying to prove to herself that she didn't need House? Maybe that was supposed to put him at ease somehow, that Cuddy had been trying not to get herself too attached... or something. But right now, it did nothing but spike House's insecurity further.

"I don't want you just for sex!" he exploded. He then snapped his mouth shut. He quickly turned away, fretfully rubbing his forehead, hating the way that the things he was admitting without thinking were showing just how insecure he was about losing Cuddy. And how much Cuddy actually meant to him.

He spun back around to face her. "So, if sex is all anyone wants you for, you're just going to make yourself easy. Real nice, Cuddy."

[l_cuddy_md]

"Well, being easy might be the only way I don't have to go to bed alone every damn night." She was trying to make a joke of it, but the raw sound of her voice made it a poor attempt. And really, it was close enough to the truth to be not all that funny

[rubicks_complex]

House didn't find Cuddy's attempted joke funny at all. In any other situation, he probably would've ridiculed her for his own amusement, but this wasn't all amusing. It was personal. When Cuddy then touched him, he jerked away from her. He didn't want to be touched, not when he was feeling as angry as he was right now. Angry and jealous. And upset. And angry at himself for feeling upset.

He scowled darkly at Cuddy when she apologised. "Important, right," he replied snidely. "It's so important, that you have to shack up with other guys just to feel needed and wanted."

He pulled his face into a leer. "'God, you have no idea what you do to me'," he said, mocking her words from the last time they had sex. "What would that be? Making you feel needed and wanted by sleeping with you, like that arrogant Winchester jerk or any other guy's dick you might've had the pleasure of riding?"

He nodded at her sharply. "Yeah. You screwed this up. Spectacularly."

[l_cuddy_md]

Cuddy cringed and wrapped her arms around her again when House pulled away from her. She understood why he wouldn't want her to touch him, but it still hurt

[rubicks_complex]

Cuddy starting to cry was... House had never seen her cry in front of him before. He knew she wasn't the type of woman to lose herself to her emotions easily - at least, not in front of people. Behind closed doors, maybe. So, seeing her cry now was unsettling. Unsettling because he wasn't used to seeing Cuddy become this unglued over something, because he didn't know how to handle Cuddy being this upset, and because he didn't know what to make of her being this upset over him. Hell, he was certain he'd probably caused her cry from the things he'd said to her in the past; she definitely wouldn't be the first person. But he never in a millions years thought Cuddy would ever cry because of himHe refused to let himself be affected any further by it, though. And that was harder than House would've liked it to be, and he could only blame that on the fact that he was stupid enough to let himself get too attached to Cuddy, too emotionally entangled. Oh, for Christ's sake. He refused to listen to anything Cuddy was saying, partly because he