You are mine, and I am yours (Gregory House)

Chapter 27

2007
House went straight to his apartment and got undressed. He pulled on running shorts and an old navy blue t-shirt. Then he went out to the living room, unplugged the phone, grabbed a bottle of Maker's Mark off his desk and sat down on the couch. He picked up the remote, turned the television on and opened the bottle of scotch. A glass sat on the coffee table. He leaned forward and poured about five fingers worth of the amber liquid into it. Lifting the glass, he drained it. He grimaced as the alcohol burned its way down his throat. Then he sighed as the fire dulled to a soothing warmth. He leaned back, put his feet up on the coffee table and focused on the television. He spent the rest of the day drinking, watching television and ordering take out. By midnight, he was snoring as the television droned loudly.

XxXxXxXx

He jerked awake when someone touched his shoulder. He turned his head, rubbed his eyes and looked at Cameron. She sat beside him on the couch. "You aren't answering your phone," she said with concern. Reaching out, she smoothed back his hair. "What's going on?"

"I was right and Reilly nearly lost her job proving it." He shook his head. "It's what she's always done." Cameron sighed.

"I know," she told him. "I found her and we talked. She hates seeing you conform. She said you never conformed and that's what she admires most about you. You're rude and abrasive but you do what you do because it's the right thing to do. You save more patients by doing those risky, insane things. Something in Reilly snapped when you were shot. I got her to agree to see a psychiatrist. Between her divorce and nearly losing you, she's been pushed over the edge."

House looked at her then looked away. "She was always the strong one. The one who took care of me; watched out for me; protected me. When she came back after Smug cheated on her and they got divorced, I wasn't there for her. I've always expected her to be strong. I've been so wrapped up in my own misery and then finally being pain free that I didn't hold up my part in things. I'm an ass."

"Yeah, you are," she agreed.

He looked at her in disbelief. "You're not supposed to agree with me," he complained.

She smiled. "Hard to disagree with the truth."

"Why are you here?" he asked in mock annoyance.

"We have a patient, Kyle Wasniak. He's been having seizures all day and now his liver is failing. He's an alcoholic but it isn't the alcohol that's causing it to fail. We don't know what's wrong with him. Amber did a search for any relatives and his father, Gabe, is at the hospital already. He's in a persistent vegetative state."

House pushed himself up from the couch and went into his bedroom. Cameron followed him and leaned against the door frame. He stripped off his shorts and t-shirt. Grabbing a t-shirt, blazer and jeans, he dressed quickly.
"Grab me a pair of socks," he told Cameron.
She went to the dresser, opened a drawer and pulled out a pair of soft, gray socks. She handed them to him and he sat on the bed to pull them on. She grabbed a pair of his Nike Shox and handed those to him. Once he was dressed, he pushed her toward the door.
"Let's go," he told her.

XxXxXxXx

When they arrived at the Diagnostics office, everyone, including Wilson was sitting around the table. Symptoms were written on the whiteboard and everyone except Wilson was reading patient files. Reilly sat at the opposite end of the table from Wilson.

House looked at Volakis. "Tell me about Vegetative State Guy."

She told him everything she knew. When she finished he nodded. "Get an EEG," he told Kutner.

Kutner stood and then looked at House in confusion. "Where is he?"

"I'll take you," Volakis told him.