(no subject)
Author: athousandsmiles
Title: The Chamber 1/1
Summary: A different take on a scene from Fetal Position.
Ship: House/Cameron
Challenge #/Title: Challenge #7, A different perspective
Episode Title and Scene: Fetal Position, scene in hyperbaric chamber.
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Spoilers for Fetal Position, obviously.
A/N: Written for the seventh challenge at candycanedreams, which was to take your least favorite scene and rewrite it. This wasn't my least favorite, but this is what I came up with.
She is pissed. At Cuddy, at House, at Chase, but mostly at herself. She hasn't decided whether she deserves this or not, but she needs someone besides herself to bear the brunt of her anger so she storms through the halls looking for House, finding him, inexplicably, in the hyperbaric chamber. Although House being House, she shouldn't be surprised. She snatches the phone receiver off its hook, waving it at him through the window to indicate she wants to talk.
"There's only room for one," he says into the mouthpiece. "I could scooch over." The tone of his voice and the look on his face deflates her anger like a balloon. Before she can think about it, she is crawling in beside him and telling him to scooch.
Now she is lying beside him, their bodies touching from shoulder to foot, her right leg fused to his left. The curve of the chamber wall makes it impossible to put any distance between them and forces her to turn on her side so that she is facing him, close enough to kiss. She suddenly has no idea where to start.
"This is cozy," he quips. "Even better than a supply closet."
That's all she needs to hear to renew her frustration. "You told Cuddy," she accuses, but her voice lacks venom as it echoes off the walls of the chamber. "Why?"
"I was hoping she'd fire one of you," he responds, shifting slightly.
"She did." It's all she can say because now she feels like crying. There is no indecision anymore--she knows it's all her fault. One colossal mistake followed by another and now she's paying the price for her stupidity.
He actually seems shocked and turns his head to look at her, lifting his hand to run it across his brow, his knuckles brushing against her hair. She's not sure what to make of his expression. She's never been good at reading him even when she had fooled herself into thinking she could.
She can't take the silence anymore, nor the intensity of his eyes studying her so closely. She wonders if it was such a good idea to have this conversation in the claustrophobic confines of the chamber, where escape is not easy. "I left a letter of recommendation on your desk. Will you sign it for me? Please?"
He ignores her questions and asks one of his own. "Why did you do it?"
She can't even pretend she doesn't know what he's talking about. Sex with Chase in the janitor's closet was not something people expected from her, ethical, responsible, moral Cameron. "Because I like sex...and I was tired of being alone." Her voice is low and sounds almost sensual, even to her own ears "Chase was convenient and the last person I was likely to get attached to."
He grunts at this, but his curiosity has not been sated yet. "Yeah, but you did it at work. Were you trying to get caught? Trying to hurt me?"
"No," she answers, honestly. "You can't hurt someone who's indifferent." It cuts her to finally acknowledge that and to realize that it was at the heart of her foolishness. She had wanted someone to notice her again because House had begun to make her feel invisible.
"I'm not indifferent," he confesses, his voice low and gruff, his hand grazing hers. It breaks her, and she has to choke back a sob at the raw emotion in his voice.
"I'm sorry," she gasps, blinking back the tears that are threatening to spill over her cheekbones. She can't help but think that this is their end, even if they've never had a beginning.
He turns on his side and wraps an arm around her, pulling her against his chest and stroking her hair as she buries her face in his shirt and cries. "Me too," he murmurs. "Me too."
They stay like this for a while, wrapped up in each other in comfortable silence. The chamber has become their own private little world and she is loathe to move or break the spell.
Finally he speaks again, his breath stirring strands of her hair. "You're not fired, Cameron. I'll talk to Cuddy."
She shakes her head in protest, looking up into his eyes. "Don't," she says. "I...She's already lost all respect for me. It won't help. Maybe it's for the best that I go."
"Best for whom?" he counters, his voice raised in frustration, and it's clear that he doesn't think it would benefit anyone if she was gone.
"I just...how am I supposed to go back to working with Chase again now...and you... The whole hospital knows what I've done. You said it yourself, I'm...My reputation is shot. I'm the hospital whore."
"You're not a whore," he responds. "And you're not the first to have sex on hospital premises. Won't be the last. Hell, if Cuddy fired every employee engaging in sex acts at work, there'd be no one left. Including herself."
Cameron's eyes widen at that bit of information. She doesn't want to know how he knows that.
"This is as much my fault as it is yours," he continues. "Just...don't leave."
She nods against his chest and revels in the feel of his heart beating beneath her ear, wondering if this will be the one and only time she will have this experience. A sleepy contentment washes over her and she finds her eyes drifting shut. "I still like sex," she murmurs, a sly little grin on her face.
"You'll like it better with a real man," he promises, and then he is tilting her chin up with his fingers and kissing her with a skill that erases all memories of Chase. The kiss grows in intensity and his hands are beginning to roam. She realizes she's practically on top of him and he feels better than she ever imagined. But they can't do this here, because it's exactly what got her in trouble in the first place.
"House, we have to stop," she breathes against his neck. "This is why I just got fired."
"If you're already fired, then there's no point in stopping," he rationalizes, and his hands are roaming over her body, one caressing her ass and the other sliding up under her shirt.
She moans, but pulls back, adamant. "You could get fired too."
He rolls his eyes at her and says, "Yeah, like Cuddy's ever gonna fire me."
She can hardly think because his hands are on her bare skin and she is tingling everywhere, but she knows that if she does this now, it will just be more ammunition against her. "House...I just..."
"Cameron, I'll still respect you in the morning. Now SHUT UP!"
And then there is a sudden knocking on the side of the chamber and they look up to find Chase peering in at them with an angry expression on his face.
House groans in frustration, picks up the phone and quips, "You rang?"
"In case you forgot, we have a patient with failing kidneys," he snaps, his voice filled with bitterness.
"Right. Be right there." He waves Chase away with a "Now shoo," and then turns his attention back to Cameron. "Go home. I'll straighten things out with Cuddy," he tells her.
As she slides out of the chamber, she wonders if that's it. Will they never continue what they just started? Will they never even discuss it?
"Better yet, go to my place," he says, sliding out behind her and pulling her to stand between his knees. "You know where the key is. You own anything leather?"
"I'll see what I can find," she grins, and saunters out with her hips swaying.
Her step falters and her grin fades when she finds Chase on the other side of the door. While she's happy to have finally gotten House's attention, she never meant to hurt Chase. She realizes just what a mess she's made of the whole situation.
The only thing she gets out is, "Chase, I'm sorry," before he scowls at her and walks away.
"He'll get over it," House says from close behind her and she turns and wraps her arms around him, taking comfort from his presence. He returns the embrace briefly, kisses her once again and then sends her on her way with the promise that he'll call her later.
She leaves, the emotional upheaval of the day making her feel exhausted. She can't help but wonder if things will ever feel normal at work again, but right now she doesn't care. She's got House and that's all that really matters now.
And it all started in the chamber.
Title: The Chamber 1/1
Summary: A different take on a scene from Fetal Position.
Ship: House/Cameron
Challenge #/Title: Challenge #7, A different perspective
Episode Title and Scene: Fetal Position, scene in hyperbaric chamber.
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Spoilers for Fetal Position, obviously.
A/N: Written for the seventh challenge at candycanedreams, which was to take your least favorite scene and rewrite it. This wasn't my least favorite, but this is what I came up with.
She is pissed. At Cuddy, at House, at Chase, but mostly at herself. She hasn't decided whether she deserves this or not, but she needs someone besides herself to bear the brunt of her anger so she storms through the halls looking for House, finding him, inexplicably, in the hyperbaric chamber. Although House being House, she shouldn't be surprised. She snatches the phone receiver off its hook, waving it at him through the window to indicate she wants to talk.
"There's only room for one," he says into the mouthpiece. "I could scooch over." The tone of his voice and the look on his face deflates her anger like a balloon. Before she can think about it, she is crawling in beside him and telling him to scooch.
Now she is lying beside him, their bodies touching from shoulder to foot, her right leg fused to his left. The curve of the chamber wall makes it impossible to put any distance between them and forces her to turn on her side so that she is facing him, close enough to kiss. She suddenly has no idea where to start.
"This is cozy," he quips. "Even better than a supply closet."
That's all she needs to hear to renew her frustration. "You told Cuddy," she accuses, but her voice lacks venom as it echoes off the walls of the chamber. "Why?"
"I was hoping she'd fire one of you," he responds, shifting slightly.
"She did." It's all she can say because now she feels like crying. There is no indecision anymore--she knows it's all her fault. One colossal mistake followed by another and now she's paying the price for her stupidity.
He actually seems shocked and turns his head to look at her, lifting his hand to run it across his brow, his knuckles brushing against her hair. She's not sure what to make of his expression. She's never been good at reading him even when she had fooled herself into thinking she could.
She can't take the silence anymore, nor the intensity of his eyes studying her so closely. She wonders if it was such a good idea to have this conversation in the claustrophobic confines of the chamber, where escape is not easy. "I left a letter of recommendation on your desk. Will you sign it for me? Please?"
He ignores her questions and asks one of his own. "Why did you do it?"
She can't even pretend she doesn't know what he's talking about. Sex with Chase in the janitor's closet was not something people expected from her, ethical, responsible, moral Cameron. "Because I like sex...and I was tired of being alone." Her voice is low and sounds almost sensual, even to her own ears "Chase was convenient and the last person I was likely to get attached to."
He grunts at this, but his curiosity has not been sated yet. "Yeah, but you did it at work. Were you trying to get caught? Trying to hurt me?"
"No," she answers, honestly. "You can't hurt someone who's indifferent." It cuts her to finally acknowledge that and to realize that it was at the heart of her foolishness. She had wanted someone to notice her again because House had begun to make her feel invisible.
"I'm not indifferent," he confesses, his voice low and gruff, his hand grazing hers. It breaks her, and she has to choke back a sob at the raw emotion in his voice.
"I'm sorry," she gasps, blinking back the tears that are threatening to spill over her cheekbones. She can't help but think that this is their end, even if they've never had a beginning.
He turns on his side and wraps an arm around her, pulling her against his chest and stroking her hair as she buries her face in his shirt and cries. "Me too," he murmurs. "Me too."
They stay like this for a while, wrapped up in each other in comfortable silence. The chamber has become their own private little world and she is loathe to move or break the spell.
Finally he speaks again, his breath stirring strands of her hair. "You're not fired, Cameron. I'll talk to Cuddy."
She shakes her head in protest, looking up into his eyes. "Don't," she says. "I...She's already lost all respect for me. It won't help. Maybe it's for the best that I go."
"Best for whom?" he counters, his voice raised in frustration, and it's clear that he doesn't think it would benefit anyone if she was gone.
"I just...how am I supposed to go back to working with Chase again now...and you... The whole hospital knows what I've done. You said it yourself, I'm...My reputation is shot. I'm the hospital whore."
"You're not a whore," he responds. "And you're not the first to have sex on hospital premises. Won't be the last. Hell, if Cuddy fired every employee engaging in sex acts at work, there'd be no one left. Including herself."
Cameron's eyes widen at that bit of information. She doesn't want to know how he knows that.
"This is as much my fault as it is yours," he continues. "Just...don't leave."
She nods against his chest and revels in the feel of his heart beating beneath her ear, wondering if this will be the one and only time she will have this experience. A sleepy contentment washes over her and she finds her eyes drifting shut. "I still like sex," she murmurs, a sly little grin on her face.
"You'll like it better with a real man," he promises, and then he is tilting her chin up with his fingers and kissing her with a skill that erases all memories of Chase. The kiss grows in intensity and his hands are beginning to roam. She realizes she's practically on top of him and he feels better than she ever imagined. But they can't do this here, because it's exactly what got her in trouble in the first place.
"House, we have to stop," she breathes against his neck. "This is why I just got fired."
"If you're already fired, then there's no point in stopping," he rationalizes, and his hands are roaming over her body, one caressing her ass and the other sliding up under her shirt.
She moans, but pulls back, adamant. "You could get fired too."
He rolls his eyes at her and says, "Yeah, like Cuddy's ever gonna fire me."
She can hardly think because his hands are on her bare skin and she is tingling everywhere, but she knows that if she does this now, it will just be more ammunition against her. "House...I just..."
"Cameron, I'll still respect you in the morning. Now SHUT UP!"
And then there is a sudden knocking on the side of the chamber and they look up to find Chase peering in at them with an angry expression on his face.
House groans in frustration, picks up the phone and quips, "You rang?"
"In case you forgot, we have a patient with failing kidneys," he snaps, his voice filled with bitterness.
"Right. Be right there." He waves Chase away with a "Now shoo," and then turns his attention back to Cameron. "Go home. I'll straighten things out with Cuddy," he tells her.
As she slides out of the chamber, she wonders if that's it. Will they never continue what they just started? Will they never even discuss it?
"Better yet, go to my place," he says, sliding out behind her and pulling her to stand between his knees. "You know where the key is. You own anything leather?"
"I'll see what I can find," she grins, and saunters out with her hips swaying.
Her step falters and her grin fades when she finds Chase on the other side of the door. While she's happy to have finally gotten House's attention, she never meant to hurt Chase. She realizes just what a mess she's made of the whole situation.
The only thing she gets out is, "Chase, I'm sorry," before he scowls at her and walks away.
"He'll get over it," House says from close behind her and she turns and wraps her arms around him, taking comfort from his presence. He returns the embrace briefly, kisses her once again and then sends her on her way with the promise that he'll call her later.
She leaves, the emotional upheaval of the day making her feel exhausted. She can't help but wonder if things will ever feel normal at work again, but right now she doesn't care. She's got House and that's all that really matters now.
And it all started in the chamber.