Occam's Razor - House M.D.

Part 36- The Middle

It had been about a week and half since Madelyn had seen the man she loved hold a baby. The image of him was forever engraved in her mind: the way his big hands supported the tiny human, and how his blue eyes sparkled when he figured out how to save its life. 

In the several months that Madelyn had known House, she'd never thought he'd be good with children. In fact, she couldn't picture him as a father, but now she had to. In the last week, Madelyn kept up a regular exercise routine as she liked how it both served as a distraction and a stress-reliever. On the unhealthier side, she started drinking four or five cups of coffee a day which was true for her time spent at work and at home. She defended her choice by saying it kept her alert for her job, but her colleagues thought it was suspicious, particularly Foreman. 

This morning, Madelyn had finally given into Foreman's suspicion; they had scheduled a sonogram for her during the time where House had his semi-annual meeting with his parole officer. Foreman was the only one that knew anything about her situation, and Madelyn wanted to keep it that way. 

"Okay, I'm here." Madelyn announced herself to Foreman who was sterilizing the equipment in the clinic examination room. 

"And you brought another Venti coffee I see." Foreman critiqued, wiping down the transducer. 

Madelyn rolled her eyes a little, playfully, and responded, "We don't even know if I'm pregnant. Plus, I always drink coffee, that's not changing." She was trying hard to keep her spirits up, and refrain from ruminating over something that might not be true. 

"Well, consider limiting your intake regardless of whether you're pregnant or not." Foreman chuckled. 

Madelyn reluctantly climbed on top of the examination chair and tilted it back. She felt her hands wobble, and her skin turn to ice. Foreman noticed how nervous she looked, 

"I know it's scary. But not knowing is worse." Foreman tried to assuage her nerves. 

Madelyn nodded a little, wholeheartedly wanting to believe his words. She took a few deep breaths. 

"You're sure you want me to do this?" Foreman asked. 

"Yeah..." she exhaled.  

"Okay, lay all the way back and lift your shirt for me." Foreman told her with a smile. He turned the monitor on before applying the gel to her bare stomach. 

"Shit!" Madelyn exclaimed, "I didn't expect it to be that cold."

"Sorry." Foreman laughed. Madelyn reached for her friend's hand, to which he held it comfortingly. 

"Okay, just give me a moment." Foreman mumbled under his breath, his eyes scanning the screen patiently analyzing the picture of her uterus. 

"Anything?" Madelyn whispered with hesitance in her voice. She saw Foreman turn to look at her; she was facing away from the monitor. 

"Do you wanna see for yourself?" Foreman suggested. 

Madelyn let out a deep breath and turned her eyes in the direction of the monitor. Foreman saw the shock spark in her eyes, and her face turn white. 

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Madelyn objected, her tone high-pitched and distressed. 

"Now you know, though." Foreman assured. 

"Well I wish I didn't. How the hell?" Madelyn thought out loud. She stared at the pixelated, grainy screen, but could make out the tiny little bubble where the embryo was forming. "I'm on birth control, and House wore protection every time."

"Every time?" Foreman repeated for confirmation. 

"Yes, every... fuck." 

"Every fuck?" Foreman joked. Madelyn took a tissue that he handed over to her, and wiped the gel off her stomach. 

"Well, almost..." 

"There you go." Foreman concluded. 

"Look we got pretty...distracted during the conference. That's what lead to the argument and I guess after we fought, I completely forgot about the fact we'd been intimate at all. I was too focused on the fact that he was missing the importance of intimacy." 

"I'm sorry, Madelyn." Foreman sighed, rubbing her back. Suddenly, Madelyn jolted up and ran out of the exam room and into the main clinic area. She was little, but she was speedy when she wanted to be. Foreman ran after her:

"Madelyn, stop!" He called to her. 

"I just need to get back to work." she decided, her entire body shaking from being worked up. 

"Just take a few minutes and let yourself calm down."

"I am calm." she told Foreman. Strangely enough, Madelyn did sound calm, but her body language said otherwise. 

"Okay. But you know what comes next?" Foreman questioned. Madelyn stood before him, nodding her head. 

"Yes, I need to weigh my options now." 

"Like? You mean getting an abortion?" 

"Maybe. I don't-I don't know, that's why I need to think it over." she stuttered. 

"Sure, but first you need to tell House."

Upon hearing Foreman's suggestion, Madelyn nearly cackled. She laughed so hard, she actually needed a second to catch her breath before saying: 

"House would be livid! The only thing worse than telling House that I'm having his baby, is if he had another infarct on his good leg. Not to mention, if there's any hope for our relationship, a baby is definitely not it." 

"You don't know that." Foreman protested. And while Madelyn knew he was trying to be fair and indifferent, it's not what she wanted to hear. "I know you don't want to hear that, I get it. But don't waste time that you don't have. You're young and you have so much riding on being successful in your career right now. You would be unwise to make this decision alone. House has your best interest, whether you're his girlfriend or not, and whether you two decide to have this baby or not. Give him the benefit of the doubt here." 

Foreman was right, and Madelyn couldn't ignore that.

"Thank you. For always giving it to me straight." Madelyn expressed truthfully, "I appreciate your support, and your confidentiality. I hope you're right... if I do decide to tell House." 

As Madelyn attempted to make her way back to the chemical lab, she ran into Cuddy who apparently brought her daughter to work.

"Hi, Dr. Gilmore." Cuddy warmly greeted her, "Sorry, I'm running behind to a meeting." 

"No worries, is this Rachel?" Madelyn smiled down at the little girl who was about five now. 

"Yes, this is her! Rachel, can you say hi to Dr. Gilmore?" Cuddy asked her daughter. 

"Hi..." the little girl cooed. 

"Do you need someone to watch her while you're in the meeting?" 

"Oh, really? You wouldn't mind?" Cuddy asked, surprised. 

Madelyn assured Cuddy she would love to, and took Rachel's hands in her own. 

"You wanna help me look at some pictures on the computer?" Madelyn asked Rachel who excitedly nodded back. 

Cuddy grinned from ear to ear as she watched her daughter walk away, but knew she was in the best hands. 

"So," Cuddy said to to Foreman, "I'm getting the sense that something's off. Is Dr. Gilmore doing okay?"

Foreman was wondering the same thing, "She will be. As soon as she's honest with herself about some things."