cuddys_house | Afternoon, October 19

Afternoon, October 19

The next couple of days of their vacation went much smoother than their first morning in Paris had. They had arguments here and there, but petty ones rather than nasty, hurtful ones. Their few day stop in Paris was half for sightseeing, half to recover from the long flight and jetlag. The night before they were due to check out of the hotel, however, they lapsed into another argument about where the next destination was going to be, because Cuddy wanted to know and House wasn't telling her. Mainly because he hadn't sorted out the next destination yet. After dinner, he got out his pocket-sized map of Europe, spread it out on the table and did the same thing he did with the hotel guide when he and Cuddy had tried to decide where to go: he closed his eyes, held his finger over the map and stabbed it down onto a random spot.

"We're going to Italy tomorrow," he announced when he opened his eyes to look down at where his finger had landed. "Venice." He pursed his lips as he realised something. "That'll be interesting, seeing no cars are allowed in Venice." Interesting, or more likely problematic, given his leg and the fact that he'd have to walk everywhere, unless they travelled by the waterways.

Then he realised that was going to be a ten hour car trip, minimum, which House was not going to do. He was pretty sure spending ten hours trapped in a car with Cuddy would only end in one of them losing their heads. Probably him. Cuddy was both fierce and pregnant, and he doubted he'd survive ten hours in a car with Cuddy on that count alone. "I'm not driving ten hours," he added after a moment of thought, and he pointed at the country next to France, which was Switzerland. "We'll go to Geneva for a couple of days. Then Venice. And then maybe Florence."

He almost let slip about Florence being the place Wilson's "girlfriend", Grace decided to go after she was 'cured'. But then he remembered Cuddy didn't know that. At least, he never told her that, so if she did know about Grace she didn't hear it from him. For once. Big a mouth as House had, that was one of the things he kept mum about because he didn't actually want Wilson to lose his job. He ended the night by watching some TV with Cuddy, then retired to bed earlier than normal for him because they had to be out of the hotel before 10. By the time morning came, House had to be almost physically dragged out of bed to get his ass moving, which made him grouchy and uncooperative all morning.

At last, after breakfast, they were checked out and the rental car was packed up with their luggage. The Parisan traffic was something to be reckoned with, and House was even grumpier by the time he was finally on an open road out of Paris proper. The trip to Geneva was four hours approximately. They stopped off a couple of times along the way for a bathroom break and once for lunch, then continued straight through over the Swiss border. Three hours into the trip, House was stiff and his leg was aching a little and he felt generally moody and irritable. So much for adventurous spirit. Of course, he still had to find them a hotel to stay in, too, because he hadn't made a booking anywhere. And there was still an hour left of the roadtrip.

"My leg hurts," he said irritably, switching the windscreen wipers on as it started to lightly rain.

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On the trip from Paris to Geneva, Cuddy found herself drifting off. She didn't fall asleep exactly. She simply got lulled into a sort of daze as they drove southward through France. Although she was excited about seeing Venice, she was relieved House had decided to go to Geneva first. She wasn't a fan of long car trips, never had been. She could remember her dad packing up the whole family for a big vacation every few years. She always enjoyed the destinations but she never learned to enjoy the long hours cramped up in a car.

Of course now she knew what House's plan was...which was that he didn't have one. Apparently this was a 'make it up as you go' trip which flew right in the face of her need to know and plan and control. She was trying not to get all uptight and pissy about it. Truth was, she could handle the spontaneity except for not knowing where they'd stay at night. She wasn't big on roughing it; she wanted know she'd have a soft bed and indoor plumbing. He knew that, though, so she decided to keep her mouth shut unless or until he screwed up.

"Hmmm...?" They were heading into the more mountainous regions and she'd been enjoying the scenery despite the overcast sky. She pulled her eyes from view and shifted in her seat to look at House. He'd been grumpy all morning, which was another reason she'd been keeping silent. Their arguments had settled into more normal kind of fights since that first morning. She could handle those but even minor arguments could get unpleasant when you were stuck in a car hour after hour.

"Do you want me to drive the rest of the way?" she asked, glancing down at his leg. Traveling was hard on his leg. She'd noticed him rubbing at his thigh periodically. He hadn't mentioned it about so she figured it wasn't too bad and she hadn't bothered him about it. Still, all the walking had probably done a number on the remnants of his thigh muscles.

"At least pull over and stop so you can stretch your legs." She twisted in her seat and reached blindly for her bag, tucked down behind her seat. "I'm sure I've got some aspirin or maybe ibuprofen here somewhere. That might help." With her hand rummaging through her bag, she glanced forward again when she realized he wasn't slowing down. "Come on, just pull over for a few minutes."

House dropped a hand from the steering wheel to his leg and gave it a quick, massaging rub while he sighed. It was bothering him more and more that his leg was hurting more frequently. Not just because the discomfort was a distracting reminder of how his leg used to be before the ketamine, but also because he really didn't like the ominous feeling he got with the fact that his leg hurt. Whenever he got gut feelings about something, his gut feeling usually was right, and this wasn't something he wanted his gut feeling to be correct on - that the pain was coming back.

"No," he muttered in reply to Cuddy's question. He didn't want to stop driving now. They were just over an hour away. He glanced at her briefly as she reached over into the backseat for something, then returned to looking at the road, throwing a quick look at the scenic view.

He rubbed his leg one final time, then settled his hand back on the steering wheel. He ignored what Cuddy said about stopping to stretch his legs. He just wanted to get there, damn it. Not get out in the rain and waste time. And though he'd drawn attention to the fact that his leg hurt, he didn't want Cuddy drawing attention to that fact.

"Just give a couple of whatever you've got, I'll be fine," he said dismissively. Then when she insisted he pulled over, he snapped back, "I don't want to pull over. I just want to get there."

Cuddy's lips thinned into a line when he snapped at her. She understood that his leg hurt and that made him more irritable than usual but he didn't need to take it out on her. Snapping at her wasn't going to help his leg.

Still, she kept her mouth closed as she continued to grab blindly in her bag. Her fingers finally closed on a small toiletry bag where she kept a few basic supplies. She pulled it out and turned back to sit forward in her seat. She pulled out a sample packet of Motrin and tore it open. Being a doctor came in handy at times, like the fact that she almost always had samples of all kinds of medicines. She tore it open and shook two tablets into her palm.

"It would only take a couple of minutes to switch," she said, holding her hand out so he could take the pills. Driving meant he couldn't rest his right leg--he needed it to work the pedals. It simply made sense to let her drive the rest of the way. Maybe it wouldn't make his leg feel better but it certainly wouldn't make it worse.

She glanced back out through the rain-splattered windshield. She'd let her mind wander for most of the trip and hadn't been paying attention to sign posts or distances. She knew they'd crossed into Switzerland which meant they couldn't have too awful far to go...she hoped.

"How much further is it?"

House glanced at Cuddy, a little impatient for the pain relief she'd promised, then held his hand out the moment she sat back in her seat. He glanced a couple more times at her, watching her open the package.

He just motioned impatiently for the pills when she said about switching. He didn't want to have Cuddy thinking his leg pain was that bad. It wasn't bad as much as it was distracting. Not exactly painful, but a constant dull ache.

Keeping his eyes on the road, he threw the pills back quickly and dry swallowed them - or tried to, but didn't realise how dry his mouth was from thirst. He manged to get them down but it was an uncomfortable struggle, leaving a bitter taste at the back of his throat. "Got water?" he asked just before Cuddy asked how much further.

He shrugged. "An hour. Maybe a bit less. Maybe a bit more." He rolled his neck from side to side a couple of times and felt it pop, sighed, and drummed his fingers on the steering wheel.

Screw this, he suddenly decided. Cuddy could drive the rest of the way, or at least until they were just about to hit the city. Hitting the indicator, he slowed the car down and pulled over into the shoulder lane and, without a word, stopped the car and climbed out. It wasn't raining heavily, just drizzling. He limped a couple of steps, one hand braced on the car while he clutched his thigh with his other leg, frowning. Hopefully the pills would start working soon and he would no longer have to worry about it. Every other time he'd taken an anti inflammatory it always worked.

He stopped at the back of the car and eased himself against it, taking his weight off his leg for a moment. Maybe a few moments, at least until the ache was stretched out a bit.

Cuddy reached down between her feet and grabbed the water bottle she'd been sipping at since they left Paris. She unscrewed the cap and handed it to House. She took the bottle back when he'd washed down the pills and took a sip herself.

She turned her head back toward the side window again, watching the raindrops streak along the glass. At least it was a good day to travel. Well, it was a good day in the sense that at least they weren't having to give up any sightseeing because of the rain. If it was going to be wet and cool, might as well spend it in the car. Or better, when they got to Geneva they could simply settle into a hotel room and give his leg a rest.

She looked back at him, frowning, when the car began to slow. She waited for him to explain but he simply pulled onto the shoulder and stopped. She watched him get out and walk to the back of the car...and then stop. She quickly unfastened her seatbelt and opened her door.

The rain wasn't heavy but the moisture dampened her hair, making stray tendrils cling to her face. She pushed the hair away from her eyes as she hurried to the back of the car. From the way he was standing she could tell he was favoring his leg. She stopped about a foot in front of him and reached out to give his shoulder a light rub.

"I'd offer to massage it but it's a bit wet to be down on my knees," she said, trying to keep her tone light and a bit teasing. "Not to mention some of the other drivers might get the wrong idea."

She pulled her hand back and crossed her arms over her chest, hunching into her light jacket to keep out the damp. She should've thought to steal a towel from the hotel so they'd have something to dry themselves. House was getting pretty damp himself. His hair was flattened to his head and she watched as a stray drop trickled down his forehead and dripped off the end of his nose.

"When you're ready, I'll drive. That means you're in charge of reading the map."

House hoped Cuddy would just switch places and wait for him in the driver seat, but no. She had to come around to him. He rolled his eyes as though it was no big deal and to silently tell her to stop making a fuss as she rubbed his shoulder. Once the pills kicked in, he would be fine. And if not... well, he'd worry about that if the time came. He was just banking on the pills working because if this ache in his leg persisted or got any worse, he had no idea what he was going to do.

Despite himself, he let out a faint snort at what Cuddy said, even managing a slight smile because of the mental image that was put in his mind. Cuddy down on her knees in front of him, her head bobbing up down while she massaged his leg, people passing by looking on in horror or disbelief...

But then he sobered and looked down and away. He wiped away the rain drops rolling down his forehead with the back of his hand, then suddenly reached out for Cuddy's hand. He took it in his and ran his thumb across her knuckles once, chancing a quick look at her. He supposed he was trying to awkwardly assure her that he kind of sort of appreciated her concern, sort of.

He released her hand and dropped his arm back to his side with a sigh. "Fun," he replied dryly.

He pushed away from the car to start around to the passenger side. He opened the door and eased himself in, sighing in relief as he stretched his leg out. He thumped his head on the headrest once he closed the door and wiped the raindrops from his face.

He dragged the map onto his lap and studied it while Cuddy got in and buckled up. "Your transport navigator is up and running," he said, turning the page to look at the continuation of the map. He glanced up and pointed forward and said in his best Kirk impression, "Engage."

He returned his attention to the map. "So, how you liking your trip so far?" he asked casually once Cuddy had then back on the road, just to make conversation. And because he did want to know whether Cuddy was enjoying herself or not. He couldn't help feeling insecure at times that maybe she wasn't, especially after that awful fight they'd had on their first day in Paris.

Cuddy relaxed when House smiled a little. It wasn't much but it was definitely better than being snapped at again, or worse. She could never quite guess which way his moods would go. Sometimes he could teased out of a bad mood but sometimes any attempt by her to do anything only resulted in him getting moodier. It always made her a little apprehensive to try talking to him at all when he got grumpy. It was only her own need to try and make things better that kept her trying.

She watched to make sure he was actually ready to get back in the car before making her way to the driver's side. She spent a couple of minutes adjusting the seat. He had it pushed back to accommodate his long legs and she could barely reach the pedals. Once she had everything adjusted for her comfort, she eased the car back onto the highway.

She gave a little snort at his Kirk impression. "If we're going to Star Trek this, forget navigational systems. Just have Scotty beam us up right now." She didn't really mind driving, especially now that they only had a relatively short distance left to go. But she hadn't been kidding about the map. She had no idea how to get to Geneva. It was a popular destination so she assumed there'd be road signs pointing the way, but just in case--she wanted House to keep an eye on the map as well.

"Good," she said, giving him a quick glance to see if he meant something more by the question. She gave a little shrug as she turned her gaze back on the road. "I mean the jetlag was kind of a bitch that first day, but since then it's been good."

Of course it hadn't been just the jetlag. That fight had sucked hugely as well but she was trying to forget that. It had been nasty and she didn't want it overshadowing the rest of their trip. Although, as it seemed to happen with them, out of that horrible fight they had, she thought, taken another small step forward in understanding where they were going with this relationship. She just wished they could take those small steps without the fights.

"Paris wasn't what I'd imagined," she continued. "Not that it was worse, just different. What I liked most was just wandering around and finding places not in the guide books. Like that Japanese restaurant." She pretended to give him a look of rebuke. "You know, the one where they don't have forks."

House kept his attention trained on the map while Cuddy talked, though he was listening. Of course, her saying 'good' could mean anything. She could just as easily be saying she was enjoying the trip simply out of politeness. But, he reminded himself, she'd threatened to leave on that first day and if she wasn't have a good time over here, who's to say she wouldn't up and leave in that circumstance, too? He gave himself a mental shake. He didn't want to think about that.

He looked across at Cuddy when she brought up the Japanese restaurant, and smirked slightly. "Yeah, what an inconvenience that was," he agreed, mock scandalised. "Surprised you didn't put in a complaint to the management."

Giving another glance down at the map, he then dismissed it for now and let his head rest back on the headrest as he closed his eyes. His leg still ached, though he was pretty sure the pills Cuddy had given him were just starting to take mild effect.

"That massage you offered to give me on your knees," he said after a small lull of silence. "Hope the offer still stands. Or, at least, I'll be the one standing unless you're intending to add a lapdance to the mix." He glanced over to Cuddy with a leer.

But then he sobered again and resuming resting his head on the headrest with his eyes closed. "It's been hurting a lot more lately," he admitted. "My leg. Kinda wonder if..." No, he didn't want to finish that sentence, about wondering whether the ketamine was still working for him or not.

"I never said anything about a lapdance," Cuddy said, smiling to herself. One thing that hadn't changed between them was House always trying to inject sex into the conversation. Of course, she'd left herself open this time by making the 'on her knees' comment so she couldn't complain. She didn't atually want to complain--the sexual banter was comfortable for her. The only time it annoyed her was when he got carried away at work. "But sure, as soon as we get someplace more private, I'll be happy to give you a massage. Hell, I might even be persuaded to throw in a few 'extras'."

Her head jerked around to look at him when he began to speculate about his leg. No. No, she simply refused to consider that anymore. It was too late. If the ketamine was going to fail it would've done so weeks ago. She believed his leg hurt, she just didn't believe it was that kind of pain. This was normal, over-worked muscle kind of pain like everyone else had.

"You've been putting more strain on your leg lately," she pointed out. "Just in the last few days we've done an awful lot of walking. Actually, it might be a good idea to put you on a scheduled anti-inflammatory for a few days, just to knock back any muscle strain that's going on."

She glanced at him again, hopeful. She wanted him to agree with her. She wanted him to believe it was normal, over-worked muscle pain just like everyone had. She wanted him to believe it wasn't that pain, because that pain coming back was something she couldn't bring herself to contemplate.

House was silent for a few moments. He really wanted to believe Cuddy was right, that it was just muscle strain. She did make a point that he agreed with - he'd put a lot of strain on leg in the last few days. Still... he knew a lot about pain and what pain felt like, and maybe he was just jumping to conclusions because he always expected the worst, but this felt more than just muscle strain.

"What would you know about leg pain?" he replied, his tone sarcastic. "You're just a doctor."

He sighed as he turned his head and looked out the passenger side window, at the scenery passing by. Maybe Cuddy was right, though. Maybe just a scheduled few days on anti inflammatories would make a big difference. He really did hope, after all, that it was just as Cuddy said - muscle strain. He'd only just gotten some sort of quality of life back, in the physical sense. He didn't want to lose that again.

"Give it a shot, I guess," he finally agreed, though a little reluctantly because, well, what if it didn't work? He supposed he'd face that when he came to it. If he came to it.

"Yeah, silly me--thinking I might know something about the human body just because I'm a doctor," Cuddy said in an equally dry tone. Sure, he'd known a kind of pain she hadn't but she didn't know anyone who hadn't experienced some kind of pain before. She'd certainly experienced muscle pain before, and since that's what House must be feeling, she did know what she was talking about.

"Try it for a couple of days. You'll probably feel like a new man by then," she said optimistically. She didn't actually think he'd be a new man--she wouldn't know what to do with him if he was--but a little pain relief should make him a little less grumpy. They'd have to be careful, though, not to get too ambitious with the walking for the rest of the trip.

She peered throught the windshield at a passing road sign, blurred by the continuing drizzle of rain. "Are we supposed to turn onto that highway?" She hadn't figured out if there was a system to the highways here. Back home, at least she knew an even-numbered interstate highway meant she was traveling east-west, an odd number meant north-south. At the moment, though, she had no idea which direction she was driving.

She glanced over at House, but he'd set the map aside earlier. "Hey," she said, patting him on the thigh. "Come on, Mr. Navigator, check the map. These countries are all so tiny if I miss the turn, we'll end up in Germany before you know it."

New man, House thought dryly. Yeah, right. He shook his head at Cuddy's optimistic tone, rolling his eyes slightly because what the hell would she know about the kind of pain he'd endured?

"And supposing I don't," he retorted, looking across at her sharply. "You still going to not believe me when I say I'm in pain?"

As much as he hoped Cuddy was right, that this was just muscle strain, he still felt somewhat like Cuddy didn't believe him, or take him seriously. Supposing this did turn out to be the neuropathic pain returning - was she going to take him seriously then? Hell, there'd been times before all the ketamine treatment, where he'd been in genuine pain and Cuddy hadn't even taken him seriously then, either.

Her question about the turn off distracted him from his increasingly bitter thoughts. He tried to catch a glimpse of the sign she was peering at but missed it. He turned down to the map and pulled it up onto is lap, quickly flipping through the pages to find the spot he'd been at earlier. He eventually looked back up.

"Take the next exit, then turn left. Don't turn right, or you'll end up taking us to Italy." He settled back against his seat again. "That's for another day."

He closed his eyes, not needing to navigate again for at least another ten minutes. He decided to take a cat nap until then. He rubbed his thigh idly all the while, though maybe the anti inflammatory Cuddy had given him really was working because it didn't seem to throbbing anywhere near as much.

At last , he opened one eye just in time to see a sign indicating the exit they needed to take. "I Spy with my little eye, something beginning with 'E'," he said as they approached the exit. "You going to be alright driving through the city?"

"I believe you're in pain," Cuddy said calmly. She did. She could tell his leg was bothering him. What she didn't believe was that it was the old pain coming back. And as long as it wasn't the old pain, it wouldn't be the overwhelming misery that had controlled his life for so long. It would be too unfair to have gone through everything he had with the shooting and have to deal with that again.

She gave a nod when he gave her the directions, watching the road intently. She hadn't been kidding--there were countries in Europe so small you'd miss them if you blinked. She didn't want to end up running into a border crossing because she'd missed a sign.

"I'm good," she assured him. If she could navigate New York City, she could surely handle Geneva. She didn't like driving in big cities with all the traffic and the narrow streets but she could do it. She guided the car to the exit and onto the road that would take them into Geneva...which shouldn't be too much further.

She glanced over at House. He was sort of slumped into the passenger seat, as comfortable as he could probably get in the small car. "Do you have a destination in mind once we get into the city? Or are we going to pick a hotel at random?"

A sarcastic remark about women and driving was on the tip of his tongue, but he chose to bite it back. He didn't want to get into an argument with Cuddy over something stupid like that. Irritable as he was, he wasn't in the mood to land himself into an argument right now. He just wanted to get to Geneva, find a hotel, relax, maybe go sightseeing later if he could be bothered.

It was as though Cuddy read his mind, with the question she asked next. He shifted about in the seat, trying to get a bit more comfortable. "Find a hotel," he said, crossing his arms over his chest. "One that comes with a spa bath." And, just to annoy Cuddy, he added, "And comes with an in-house porn channel.

"Turn left," he reminded her as they approached the end of the exit ramp. "Get something to eat, too. " He looked across at her. "I'm just interested in a relaxing night. But if you want to go out for a bit, go right ahead." He figured maybe having a little time apart every now and again would help keep each other from getting at each other's throats over stupid things.

But just to be an ass, he added, "You won't have to worry about me. I'll have porn to keep me company."

"You don't want much, do you?" Cuddy asked sarcastically. As if she was going to worry about finding a hotel with porn, for heaven's sake. A spa bath sounded good, but porn? It didn't bother her that he liked porn. She didn't understand the attraction, but it didn't bother her. However, that was only when she wasn't around. If he wanted porn when she was available...well, he'd just better not want porn when he had her.

She reached over and slapped his arm he repeated his porn plans. She knew he was just trying to wind her up but it still annoyed her. She wasn't sure, though, whether it was the idea of porn or the knowledge that he was trying to wind her up that was most annoying. Either way, if he wanted to stay in, she'd grab the opportunity to go shopping. It was easier to do that when she was by herself, because he seemed to like shopping as much as she liked porn.

She had to pay closer attention to her driving as they entered the city proper. There was more traffic, more people, and she had no idea where they were going. She drove as slowly as she dared, her eyes going from one side to the other, searching out hotels. Though, as the lake came into view, she was momentarily distracted.

"Look," she said, tugging at his sleeve and then pointing at a tall fountain of water shooting up from the lake. She'd seen pictures of the Jet D'Eau before but she hadn't realized how incredibly tall it was. A moment later she had to jerk her eyes back to the road or risk driving up on the sidewalk.

There were dozens of hotels all over the central part of the city but it was impossible to know what amenities they offered just by driving by. She finally pulled over to the curb near the rail station. She pointed at a hotel, the Hotel Les Arcades, and shrugged. "We have to stop somewhere--might as well be here. If it doesn't have your porn, we can try the next one down the street."

"I have needs," he replied, then flinched away at the slap to his arm. "Unwarranted attack," he complained, though he was suppressing a smirk at the same time. He didn't really care if there was going to be porn in the room, but winding Cuddy up was worth the taunt about wanting it.

He fell silent as they entered the city, occasionally directing Cuddy but letting her drive wherever she decided to drive for the most part, seeing they didn't have a hotel booked to get to. Geneva was a city he'd never been to, so he silently took in the sights, quickly looking the other way when Cuddy tugged on his sleeve. He bowed his head so he could see through her side of the windscreen at the fountain. Even then he couldn't see all of it because of how tall it was. He turned his head to peer out the back to try and get a better look at it as they passed it.

"Gee, that's tall," he said absently. He turned around again, peering through the windows to see what else Geneva had to offer. At last Cuddy pulled up near a hotel. He looked across at her, a slightly incredulous smile on his lips.

"You get insecure about beach bunnies, but not about porn?" he replied. He snorted, then reached for the door handle. "Just in case you change your mind and do decide to get all insecure about me watching porn, here's fine."

Cuddy let out an exasperated sigh as she got out of the car. Of course he had to bring up her reaction to the beach bunnies. She'd prefer he stayed away from both but if he had to get his jollies by staring at naked or semi-naked women, she'd really prefer he stick to the naked women who existed only on a recording and stay far away from the live version.

"At least with porn I don't have to worry about you getting up close and personal with the first set of D-cups that bounce in front of your eyes," she said as she walked around the car to the sidewalk. Yes, she did know he wasn't likely to do more than stare but insecurities weren't rational. She didn't like it because she didn't like it and that really was the whole story.

They entered the hotel and spent a few tense moments trying to communicate with the thickly-accented desk clerk. The hotel was nearly full and for a moment, Cuddy was afraid they were going to have to take a room with twin beds. That wasn't on her agenda by a long stretch. Sex aside, she just liked being able to cuddle up to House, especially when the nights were chilly. Fortunately, once they'd deciphered what the clerk was saying, it turned out there was one room left with a double bed. They grabbed it.

Once they were finally in their room, Cuddy set her suitcase down with a sigh of relief. She stripped off her jacket as she crossed the room to the window. She pulled open the drapes and checked out the view. "I don't think you're going to find many beach bunnies here--too wet and too cold."

"I can get up close and personal with porn," House countered as Cuddy joined him on the sidewalk. "With myself. And who better to get up close and personal with?"

He gave Cuddy an obnoxious smile as they headed for the hotel. Of course, he was just trying to wind her up again. He could think of someone way better to get up close and personal with than himself, and that was Cuddy.

He followed her into the hotel and just stayed silent while he watched Cuddy conversing with the clerk. He didn't really offer to help, though he did offer the clerk an insincere smile once they got the room they were after. He headed after Cuddy to the elevator and up into their room.

He dumped his own bags down by the bed and shrugged out of his jacket. "Plenty of Swiss bunnies, though," he taunted. "Particularly down by the Red Light District."

He threw his jacket onto the bed and gave Cuddy an innocent look. "Not that I'd know anything about that."

"There's a red light district in Geneva?" Cuddy asked as she turned back from the window. Why was she so surprised? Most big cities probably had a red light district. But more importantly, why was she paying any attention to what he said when she knew he was just trying to get her riled up?

She threw her hands up in defeat. "I don't want to know." She walked back to the bed and flopped down on the mattress. She closed her eyes and simply relaxed for a moment. She'd dressed casually--jeans and a turtleneck-- knowing they'd spend most of the day traveling. She considered changing into something a little nicer and dragging House out to see the city. He'd said he simply wanted to rest, though, and since she wanted his leg pain to go away, resting was probably a good idea.

"Are you really going to just kick back and watch TV?" she asked, opening her eyes to look at him. She wanted to get out, if only to stretch her legs a bit. If he really was going to take it easy for the rest of the day, well, she was dressed presentably enough for shopping.

"Probably," he admitted, meaning he wasn't too sure... but pretty much every city had some kind of red-light district, so yeah, there was most likely one in Geneva, too.

House watched Cuddy throw her hands up and move across to the bed. Whether there was a red-light district or not, he wasn't going to find out because not only would he not do something like that behind Cuddy's back, he was only interested in resting more than anything. His leg pain had mostly subsided by now, but after spending all that time in the car, he wanted nothing more than to soak in a hot bath for a while.

"What, you don't trust me?" he asked, moving across to the bed, too. He sat beside Cuddy and rolled his neck, feeling it click in two places, then turned his head to look down at her. He shrugged. "You want to shop, I hate shopping. Said I was going to hang out and watch TV, didn't I?"

"Didn't say I didn't trust you," Cuddy said casually. "Just wanted to make sure you wouldn't mind if I go out for a bit."

She took a long stretch while she lying down, working out some of the muscles that had tightened up from sitting in the car. She didn't intend to go on a major shopping spree but she knew she'd feel better if she got out and got some fresh air, even if that air was a bit damp. And realistically, it probably wouldn't hurt either of them to get a little private time. She loved him, but sometimes she needed to get away from him. She was fairly certain he felt the same.

She sat up and leaned toward him for a quick kiss. "Do you need me to get anything for you before I head out?"

House gave Cuddy an assessing look while she stretched. Maybe she did trust him. Though, she certainly hadn't seemed to trust him when he'd taunted her about beach bunnies in Ocean City, even when he'd reassured her that he would never do any such thing. Either she was just letting this slide... or she really did trust him.

He rubbed his face as she sat up, then looked at her again just as she leaned in and kissed him. He shook his head. "I've got everything I need. Minus the porn."

As she stood, he reached for her hand and grasped it. He looked up at her, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. As much as he loved Cuddy, he was glad to be getting a little time to himself. He wasn't used to being around her so intensely - even at home, as much time as they spent together, there were other factors that gave them time apart, like work and the fact that they each lived in their own place. Travelling with Cuddy meant being with her pretty much 24 hours a day, which he wasn't used to with anyone, period.

He knew, too, that Cuddy was a competent woman and knew how to look after herself, but they were in an unfamiliar place. It was heading into evening soon, too, and House couldn't help feeling a little concerned about Cuddy's safety. Europe was vastly different to America in a number of ways.

"Be careful," he said casually, though he squeezed her hand at the same time.

"I'll be fine," Cuddy said, leaning in for another quick kiss. She really did know how to take care of herself. She'd been single woman for a long time; she had to know how to take care of herself. And she was always extra careful in a strange city. She always stayed in well-lit areas, and places where there were plenty of people around. She enjoyed new experiences, but getting mugged-- or worse-- wasn't an experience she ever wanted to have.

She grabbed her jacket and purse and gave House a little wave as she let herself out of the room. She stopped in the lobby of the hotel to pick up a couple of tourist brochures. Then she headed out to explore.

A couple of hours laters, she was a little poorer, a little wetter, and had a big smile on her face. She'd done more window shopping than actual shopping but she'd found a few stores she couldn't resist. In between the shopping, though, she'd simply enjoyed strolling around. Despite the continued drizzle, she'd enjoyed watching the other people and getting a bit of a feel for the city. Once in a while, there'd be a moment when she wished House was with her so she could share something with him--point out an interesting building or an 'interesting' person--but all in all she kind of enjoyed having some time to herself.

Soon it was beginning to get truly dark, helped by the heavy cloud cover, so she headed back to the hotel. She headed straight up to their room, her purchases swinging from one hand as she used the other to push her damp hair back from her face. She unlocked their room door, trying to be quiet about entering the room in case House was sleeping.

House just offered Cuddy a brief half-smile when she waved at him and slipped out the door, then flopped back onto the bed once he was truly alone. The silence, apart from the muffled sounds of someone in the room next door, was pleasant... and a little lonely. In fact, the silence of the room suddenly made House acutely aware of just how lonely the room was.

He propped himself back up onto his elbows and surveyed the room. He sighed, then after a few moments, pushed himself up to a sitting position and stood from the bed. He switched on the TV first and channel surfed, gave up when he couldn't find anything straight away to watch and headed into the bathroom. Within ten minutes, he had a full, hot bath drawn, stripped his clothes off and awkwardly eased himself into the hot water. After scrubbing himself clean, he rinsed out his face cloth and draped it over his face while he lay back in the bath to soak for a while.

The heat was wonderful, easing all the aches he felt in his back from using his cane and the tension in his thigh from the pain earlier. Within a matter of minutes, he started to feel a little sleepy, so sleepy that he eventually dozed off. He only woke up when he realised the water was starting to cool - he sat forward, released some water from the plug, then refilled with more hot water and resumed soaking.

At last, he started to feel overheated and his hands were pruny. He struggled out of the bath, and it took a fair bit of struggling because there were no handrails for him to hold onto, and dried himself off before he got dressed in warm, comfortable clothes. He helped himself to a miniature whisky from the bar fridge and settled in front of the TV.

He didn't recall falling asleep, but he obviously did because he found himself being roused by the sound of paper and plastic bags rustling. He opened his eyes, sprawled out on the couch, and he peered unfocusedly towards the direction of the door.

He groaned quietly to himself and lifted a hand to rub his face. "Hey," he greeted sleepily, crossing his arms over his chest as he turned his head away, tucking it against his shoulder while he closed his eyes again. He stretched his legs out more comfortably on the couch and crossed his ankles. "Wondered when you were going to be back. I was beginning to think maybe we should've gotten a room with porn, after all."

Cuddy set her bags down just inside the door, looking toward the bed because that's where she expected to find House. A second later she heard a faint groan from in front of the TV and she turned to see a very warm and sleepy looking House stretched out along the length of the couch.

"Yeah, you look like you've been suffering while I was gone," she teased. She slipped off her jacket and walked over to the couch, nudging him over just enough so she could sit on the very edge of the cushion. She leaned over and kissed his temple. "Must've been a terrible trial for you, doing without me or porn for a whole two hours."

As comfortable and relaxed as he looked, she thought it was safe to assume his leg pain had improved. She knew he didn't have high power narcotics anymore and the tiny whiskey bottle she saw wasn't enough to mask significant pain. Although she refused to even think his pain was more than typical muscle strain, it was still a relief to see it had gotten better with nothing more than a little TLC.

She brushed her fingers through his hair. He looked so comfortable, she almost hated to disturb him, but she was getting hungry. "Are you going to be able to wake up enough to eat supper?"

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