Author: jlneveloff
Title: Whatever It Takes
Chapter: Prologue & Chapter 1/?
Rating: PG-13 - although may increase later on
Pairings: House/Cameron… with a possibility of Wilson/Cuddy later on J
Spoilers: Starting from ‘Sports Medicine’ and going from there…
Summary: “Do you like monster trucks?” That was how it all started. A ’what if’ story that looks into how things might have been if there was a relationship between House and Cameron during the course of the show. More detailed summary inside
Disclaimer: Um…nope…don’t own. If I did, would I be writing fan fiction? Nope…I’d be on set fixing whatever the writers screwed up J David Shore and company own…
I hope I can pull this off… It’s been forever since I’ve written anything but research papers and this is my first multi-chapter House fanfic. And not just any research papers, art history papers, which are an entirely different animal than others. Anyhoo, here we go...
Prologue & Chapter One
DETAILED SUMMARY: Hm…well this idea came to me and wouldn’t leave me alone. I couldn’t help wondering how things in the show would have gone if House and Cameron got together early in it’s run. So basically, I’m taking the canon of the show and screwing it up J Some events from the show will be changed to fit and the time line will be screwed up, particularly in the ‘season two arc.’ While I’m following canon to a point, I’m not so much focusing on what happened in the episodes to where I’m just repeating the episodes with a little shippy twist, but rather focusing on the scenes that aren’t in the show, more like off screen moments. I don’t plan on writing the differentials and all that medical stuff (got the show for that). I just want to focus on a relationship between House and Cameron that’s as real as I can make it. They’ll experience difficulties and all the ups and downs of a relationship as it fits in with what was written in the show….
Also, my House might seem a little different from other fanfic writers… I have this feeling that House is a closet romantic and that once you succeed in bringing down his walls he’s can be open (at least when the mood suits him ;))…and I don’t think he would have a problem with the “L” word J I’m just basing this off what we know about him and Stacy (I could be wrong, but it‘s my story and I‘m not ;))… he didn’t seem to have a problem telling her loved her in 3 Stories….that and the corsage he gave Cameron just screamed “Romantic!” to me J Also this story starts before the whole Stacy thing…and the Ketamine thing…
Whatever It Takes
I'll do whatever it takes
To turn this around
I know what's at stake
I know that I've let you down
And if you give me a chance
Believe that I can change
I'll keep us together
Whatever it takes
“Whatever It Takes” Lifehouse
Prologue
“Do you like monster trucks?”
That was how it all started.
A simple question followed by an awkward impromptu invitation. An invitation that never would have happened had his best friend not turn it down. If his friend did not have an oncology lecture to give, which really was just a cover for having dinner with his ex-girlfriend, he never would have asked her. Never would have thought about it.
But the turn of events had led Gregory House to stand there trying to draw up the courage to ask Allison Cameron to go with him. He was out of practice when it came to that sort of thing. Blame it on his sparkling personality.
She remembers her shock at the question, or rather the statement. He never actually asked to her go with him. Instead, she asked him if he was asking her to go with him. He had somehow turned the conversation around to where it seemed as though she was asking him to go with her.
House had quickly answered in the affirmative that, yes, he was asking her to go with him. Was it a date? Yes, a date, but without the date part, whatever that was supposed to mean.
All the while Cameron had stood there, mouth gaping open, in shock. She wasn’t quite sure what to do or what to say. He had taken that as a rejection, and left the room. She eventually found her voice and followed him, a burning question on her mind.
“What do I wear?”
It was, dare she think it, fun. Who would have thought that her curmudgeonly boss was capable of having and being fun. They had actually enjoyed each other’s company. She saw him laugh and joke around without the need to be insulting.
That was how it started.
After that night, House and Cameron began to see each other after work. Just to hang out, enjoying the company, two or three times a week. They had both been alone for far too long. They would either meet at one of their apartments and watch old movies and order take out or they would go out someplace. It didn’t really matter what they did, as long as it was together.
Cameron found herself falling in love with him.
She tried to stop herself from feeling these emotions, but she was like a moth to a flame. It might not be a good thing, but the pull was far to great to ignore. She was allowed to see sides of him that never surfaced at work. And she loved it. She loved him. She tried her best to hide her feelings, and she succeeded, at least to her knowledge. It was possible that once or twice something leaked through but House never said anything about it. She knew he cared about her, but she wasn’t going to pressure him into doing anything he wasn’t comfortable with.
House never gave her the impression that he saw her more than a friend. Cameron knew from her conversations with Wilson that House never opened up to people, especially women who could break his heart. She knew of the past heartache he had experienced and although she did not know all the details, she knew it had impacted him enormously. House wasn’t someone who loved easily.
So, imagine her surprise when he made the first move.
Chapter One
Allison Cameron woke with a jerk.
She had been deep in a peaceful slumber when the bed shifted and heavy weight landed on her side. She opened her eyes to the darkness and allowed them a few seconds to adjust. She glanced around the dark room and was surprised by the unfamiliar yet distinctively familiar surroundings. This was definitely not her bedroom. She let her gaze wander and found the source of her disturbance. A hand had made its way to her waist and now held her tightly.
The hand belonged to Dr. Gregory House, her boss.
She continued to look around the room, letting her mind become more clear as memories from the night before came to her. Last night was Wednesday and she had found herself at House’s apartment. It was fast becoming a place she spent a lot of time at. Although this was the first time overnight.
Ever since the monster truck rally, the two of them would either hang out at her place or his at least once a week, sometimes more. They had quickly fallen into a routine and she was surprised that it had actually continued for this long. She thought he would have grown tired of her by now and go back to either just hanging out with Wilson or his scotch and vicodin.
Not that she was complaining.
With her feelings for him growing everyday, she would take what she could get. If only she could figure out how exactly he felt. But she had made the decision not to push anything just in case it was one sided. Unrequited love was never fun. Better to keep quiet. Although, recently, she began to get the feeling that perhaps there was more than one side.
And if last night was any indication, there definitely was.
Cameron turned around to face House, who was still deep asleep. She took a deep breath and let her mind wander back to last night, trying to remember the details that led her to her current position.
She had stopped by his place as per the usual, his favorite scotch in hand. Earlier in the day, House had agreed, vehemently protesting all the while, to present a speech about Eastbrook Pharmaceutical’s new ACE inhibitor to try and keep his team intact. If he failed to do so, power-hungry Vogler would pull the plug on the entire department. Cameron had stopped over to see if she could provide some help, or at the very least, make sure he actually wrote the damn thing.
House had complained about the entire situation, using some rather colorful words to describe the tyrant. During his tirade, Cameron teased him about actually caring about them and not wanting to lose his team.
After that, it was almost a blur. She wasn’t quite sure how a seemingly innocent conversation turned into a heavy make-out session on his couch, which inevitably led to the bedroom.
But, she did know that he started it.
********
“Are you seriously going to give that speech?” Cameron asked as she pulled a wine glass down from the kitchen shelf, followed by a scotch glass and filled it with their respective drinks.
“For the last time, yes.” Cameron heard House respond to her question as she made her way back into the living area. House was lounging on the sofa, pen and paper in his hands and medical literature about the new ACE inhibitor spread out on the coffee table. She handed him the scotch glass, which he took with a nod of thanks.
She took a seat next to him and reached for the booklet about the new drug. She thumbed through it while House continued to struggle with his speech. “You know, Vogler tried to proposition me the other day,” Cameron said.
House stopped writing and turned to her. “Really?” A dark look had passed over his face that she wasn’t sure how to interpret. “Want me to shove my cane up his ass? Make him think twice about propositioning you again?”
“That’s okay,” she replied casually, continuing to thumb through the booklet. “He’d just charge you with assault. Then there’d be the whole jail thing. Just too messy,” she finished, flashing him a smile.
“Damn, spoil my fun,” House deadpanned.
“No, he just wanted info on you. Guess he wanted to know if you were really going to go through this speech. He looked really upset when I told him you were.” She tossed the booklet down and faced him, “You are going to give the speech right?”
House sighed. “No, I’m just reading this ‘cause it’s oh, so exciting.” Cameron wasn’t amused. “Yes,” he replied seriously. “Are you going to ask again?” He tried to suppress the exasperation in his voice, but failed.
“Okay, sorry.”
“I’m just doing this so I can get him get off my back,” House said, as though he had to justify his reasons.
Cameron nodded, not buying his explanation. “Okay, right. So it isn’t because you’ve gotten attached to us?”
“Hell…no,” he replied, as though the mere thought of any type of attachment was offensive. He returned his eyes to his paper and missed Cameron’s knowing smile.
“Yes, you have,” she teased him, a brilliant smile on her face. “Dr. Gregory House, misanthropic extraordinaire, has gotten attached to his team. Will wonders ever cease?”
Try as he might, House couldn’t stop the grin from forming on his face. The Cameron away from work was a completely different person from the professional doctor he had known her previously. She had a wit that could match his and she was fun to be around. He wouldn’t admit to anyone, much less himself, but he looked forward to spending time with her, even if it was just to watch television. She was right in the fact that he had gotten attached to his team, but more accurately, she was the one he was attached to.
He pulled himself back to reality to hear her next words. “I gotta go tell the guys the news,” she said, still teasing him as she stood up.
“Oh, no, you don’t,” House said, grabbing her wrist and pulling her back down to the couch. She landed with a thud right next to him. He didn’t give himself enough time to think over his next actions as he quickly pulled her close and placed his lips over hers.
He pulled away before she could respond and looked in her eyes, shock in his eyes as though he didn‘t believe what he just did. She looked at him, eyes wide trying to comprehend his actions. They continued to stare at each other before House leaned in again, kissing her softly.
This time, Cameron responded with fervor. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. Not one to be outdone, House pulled her onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her waist, holding her close. She straddled her legs around his hips, minding his leg. The kiss became much more passionate than either anticipated. The sexual tension that had filled the room anytime they were together was finally being relieved.
House pulled away from her lips and began to trail kisses down Cameron’s neck. He was rewarded with a moan when he hit a particularly erogenous area just underneath her ear. He moved his hands underneath her shirt, running his hands over her back.. He vaguely felt Cameron move her hands to the buttons on his shirt and slowly unbutton them. He pulled back slightly and whispered in her ear. “We probably shouldn’t be doing this.”
“You started it,” Cameron reminded him, running her hands through his hair. She pulled his face back to hers and resumed kissing him.
“Yeah, but I’m your boss,” House responded between kisses. “I’m twice your age…”
“No, you’re not,” she retorted. “I don’t care that you’re my boss or how old you are. Besides, you’re younger than my brother,” she said, offhandedly, before bringing her lips back to his, attempting to lure him back to her.
House pulled away slightly. “You have a brother?”
Cameron sighed and leaned back, becoming more and more frustrated with him. It seemed that nothing could keep his natural curiosity at bay, even if sex was on the line. Although she was beginning to get the feeling that it was more his nervousness keeping him from continuing than anything else. “I haven’t seen him in fifteen years. Now is really not the time to talk about it right now. Later.”
She leaned in to kiss him again, but was again interrupted by him opening his mouth to ask another question. Sensing his intentions, she placed her finger to his lips to keep him quiet. “If you don’t shut up and finish what you started, I’m going to kill you,” she threatened.
“No, you won’t. You’re too -” House was interrupted by Cameron kissing him. She had finally had enough of his talk and figured the best way to shut him up was to take matters into her own hands. It worked. He was still for a second before participating with equal enthusiasm.
“House, bedroom, now.”
********
Cameron sighed as she settled deeper in House’s arms, taking in his warmth. She wasn’t sure where their relationship was going. She knew that he could be flighty at times and regarding his initial reluctance to continue down the road they were going, she wasn’t sure how he would act when he woke up. It didn’t matter that it all started because of him. It didn’t matter that he had shown her a gentle side that she never thought could exist underneath the gruff exterior. But perhaps the fact that he had would be enough for him to shun her.
She felt herself grow more and more nervous at the thought of how he would react. She hated that her insecurities were getting the better of her. Worse case scenario would be that House kicked her out and pretend that the last couple of months didn’t happen. But she didn’t think she could deal with that. Her feelings for him had definitely passed the point of no return.
Her anxiety finally overwhelmed her, and she carefully extracted herself from his arms, trying not to disturb him. She searched the room for her clothes and silently redressed as quickly as she could. She let her gaze linger on him for a moment before silently slipping through the door.
...continue to Chapter Two...