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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"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?"

"You don't know half of it," House replied, murmuring sleepily.

He groaned in protest when he realised Cuddy was trying to take a seat beside him on the couch. He didn't want to move. In fact, had he not been disturbed, he probably would stay here for the rest of the night. He shifted a little bit to accommodate for Cuddy, keeping his eyes closed and his arms crossed over his chest even as she kissed his temple and ran her fingers through his hair.

"I told you before, I have needs," he mumbled. At Cuddy's mention of food, he managed to open one eye. "Like food," he agreed. And come to think of it, he was hungry. Soon, he'd be starving if he didn't get something to eat.

But that was soon. Right now he was sleepy and unwilling to compromise how comfortable he was. With a grunt, he shifted on the couch again, uncrossing his arms so he would wedge his elbow underneath him and turn onto his side. With Cuddy taking up his space, it was a tight squeeze to turn over, but finally he was on his side. Once he was, he threw his arm over Cuddy's lap, his face buried into the side of her hip.

"Take it you had fun," he said, his voice a little muffled. "Your bags of goodies you just paraded in with scream that bizarre female medical phenomenon known as 'retail therapy'." He turned his head so his cheek was squashed against her hip, and he peered up at her, a perfect view of her breasts from this angle. "The only goody bags I'm interested in, though, are the ones hidden under your shirt."

"Just doing my part to support the global economy," Cuddy said lightly. Despite the way it looked, she hadn't bought all that much and little of it was for her. She'd indulged in a few 'haute couture' purchases in Paris, but today's purchases had been mostly trinkets, gifts for her nieces and nephew as well as something for her mom. She'd also picked up a beautiful handknit baby blanket. Maybe she shouldn't have--she was still just in her first trimester after all and there was always the risk of miscarriage. She couldn't think that way, though, and besides she simply couldn't resist buying it. It was the first thing baby related item she'd bought and it gave her an unexpected rush of happiness.

She let out a soft snort of disbelief when he looked up at her chest. "Looks to me like you can barely work up a decent leer," she teased. "Your 'interest' can't be all that strong." She draped her arm over him, rubbing her hand lightly against his back. She was feeling a bit lazy herself now that she'd had her outing. She wasn't in any great hurry to do anything much. Well, except eat.

"We're doing room service, aren't we?" she asked. She got to her feet and dug through a pile of hotel information on a side table until she found the room service menu. She shuffled through her purchases then until she found a small bag. She returned to her seat on the couch and pulled a rich chocolate truffle from the bag.

"You've got to try one of these," she said, holding the chocolate in front of his mouth. "They're sinfully good."

"You mean being a willing victim of it," House replied to Cuddy's remark about supporting the global economy. He peered up at her, still bleary. Though when she made a comment about his 'interest', he frowned in mock protest. "You still owe me a lapdance, remember? That'd be a good incentive to invest interest into." He rolled his eyes before Cuddy could correct him. "Okay, massage. But the lapdance would be an added bonus."

He yawned as Cuddy got up from the couch to head to her shopping bags. "Room service, yeah," he agreed around the tail end of his yawn. He rubbed his eyes and scrubbed his face with his hands, still trying to wake up. Then he propped his head onto his hand and watched Cuddy digging around in her bags and returning to him with a small bag in her hand.

"Damn, and I was hoping you were going to show me something racy that you'd bought," he said as she produced the chocolate truffle. He gave her a brief smile, then opened his mouth obediently when she said to try it. He had a sweet tooth, after all. No way was he going to turn chocolate down.

"Mmm." He chewed and swallowed, his eyebrows raised with how impressed he was by the taste of the chocolate. "Okay, maybe you're kind of forgiven for the lack of racy lingerie you could have had in that bag. That's damn good chocolate."

Reaching his arm up, he slid it around Cuddy's shoulders and pulled her down towards him, craning his neck up so he could press a somewhat sloppy kiss to the side of her neck. He was glad she was back. Though it had only been a couple of hours and he hadn't done much during that time, the break had been a good one and just the kind of small break he needed for now.

Cuddy never...rarely let herself have sweets and when it came to her diet she had a fair amount of self-discipline. But a customer had walked out the door of the sweet shop just as she passed by and the smell had been irresistable. She'd spent so much time the last few weeks being nauseated by food that when something smelled good she wanted to take advantage of it. Besides, she was on vacation and a little chocolate wasn't going to hurt. Of course, those were just excuses to rationalize the fact that she'd just really wanted that chocolate.

"I already have sexy lingerie. I just haven't had much opportunity to wear it," she said after he kissed her neck. She was only slightly exaggerating. When they were in the mood they barely waited to get to the bedroom to get naked and putting on some sexy number seemed a wasted effort. When they weren't in the mood...well, it seemed like even more of a wasted effort. She could make the effort more often, though. She knew he'd enjoy it.

There was a faint smear of chocolate on the corner of his mouth so she leaned down to lick it away. Then she kissed him thoroughly, just to make sure she'd gotten all the chocolate off his lips. As she straightened up again, she looked down on him with a fond smile. His eyes were still a bit droopy and his hair was sticking up in every direction, and he actually looked content.

There were many different sides to House, and the sleepy, snuggly one was one of her favorites. Maybe she should let him take a nap every day. What surprised her was that so far on the trip she hadn't seen any evidence of his nightmares. She didn't know if that was because they had eased up on their own or if he was taking the medicine she'd prescribed for him but either way, she was grateful they hadn't had to deal with that.

"Tell you what--if you still want a massage, I'll give you one while wearing a sexy nightie." She held up the room service menu and waved it at him. "But not until after supper."

About to reply that Cuddy should make the opportunity to wear it, he was silenced instead by Cuddy licking the corner of his mouth, followed by the kiss full on his mouth. He closed his eyes until she pulled back, and he raised his brows at her while she smiled down at him.

"Well, now I have to question the nature of the massage, when sexy lingerie becomes part of the equation," he said. Though he wasn't really in the mood for anything more than being lazy, he still moued when Cuddy insisted they eat first.

"Alright," he agreed, as food sounded like a good plan. He pushed himself up to a sitting position. He took the service menu from Cuddy and quickly perused it. "Something with steak in it," he decided after a moment, handing the menu back to her. He got up from the couch, adding, "Meanwhile, I'm going to pay a visit to the little men's room."

Taking up his cane, he limped to the bathroom and used the toilet, washed his hands, and by the time he came back out Cuddy had placed an order for their food. He slumped on the couch beside her and slung an arm around her to tug Cuddy in a snuggle. "So. Get anything for me?"

"I'm guessing massage with sexy lingerie is the kind you like best. Unless it's you wearing the sexy lingerie in which case it would be a little weird," Cuddy said with a grin. She knew House wasn't as sex obsessed as he pretended. For all his talk about porn and hookers and lingerie, he really was looking for more in a relationship. In fact, she'd be willing to bet he wanted intimacy as much as he wanted sex, maybe even more. Sometimes the intimacy came from sex but sometimes it came from moments like these when they could just relax and kiss and be playful with each other.

She studied the menu while House took care of his business. For herself, she decided on a grilled chicken sandwich. She was feeling pretty good but she'd learned not to over-tax her stomach. She carried the menu over to the phone and dialed the extension for room service. She gave her order, then ordered House a steak sandwich served on a thick crusty roll and added a side order of thick cut fries. No pickle of course. She'd just resumed her seat on the couch when House returned and joined her.

"I got you a chocolate--what more do you expect?" she said, pretending to be shocked that he'd want more. She kicked her shoes off and tucked her feet under her as she snuggled into his side. She couldn't be quite sure whether he was joking or not. He could be such a kid sometimes-- he liked attention and presents.

"So, no, I didn't get anything for you," she admitted. "Not unless you want one of the toys or books I bought for my neices and nephew. Actually, that would probably be just about perfect for you." She smiled at him, then craned her neck for a kiss before settling her head against his shoulder. "Don't feel bad; I didn't buy anything for myself either."

"A chocolate," House echoed emphatically. "A chocolate. Not chocolates. A chocolate." He snorted, pretending to sound disgusted. "I am so worth more than a chocolate. Like a lapdance. Or a present bigger than a chocolate."

He cuddled Cuddy close to him as she settled against him, despite all his complaining. He didn't actually care whether Cuddy got him anything or not - of course, had she gotten him something more, especially if it was something he considered fun, he wouldn't have complained. But still. As she said about the toys she bought being the perfect present for him, he was in mid-kiss to her temple. He pulled back to give her a deadpan look. She merely countered with a smile and a kiss.

"You're the one that should be feeling bad. You only got me a chocolate," he whined. Though, when she mentioned that she didn't buy herself anything, House threw a glance towards the shopping bags on the floor. He couldn't see what was in any of the bags, and he had no doubt that she bought for her nephews and nieces. He had doubts she didn't buy for herself, though.

He turned back to her. "Don't lie," he replied. "You had an opportunity to go shopping by yourself, in a foreign city, and you didn't buy anything for yourself? That's like a fat person who can never resist food going to a bakery and claiming they didn't buy a box of doughnuts and eat them on the way home."

"Worth more than a chocolate? I don't know--that was a pretty awesome chocolate," Cuddy teased. Of course he was worth more than a chocolate. She knew that and so did he. It was kind of fun, though, to listen to him whine about it. His whining could be entertaining when she knew he didn't really mean it.

She would've bought something for him if she'd seen anything that she thought he'd like. She loved buying things for people. Admittedly, she loved buying things for herself, too, but she really did enjoy surprising the people she cared about with the right gift. That was the catch, though. She didn't like buying generic gifts. She always wanted to buy the right gift, the one that was specifically suited to that person's personality or interests. And she could foresee that being a bit tricky with House. He wasn't like anyone she'd ever known and buying the right gift to suit his unique personality could prove to be a challenge. She was a shopping/gift buying pro, though; she was sure she'd be up to the challenge.

"I do have some self-control, you know," she retorted. She gave him a little pinch on the belly for comparing her to a compulsive eater. "I also have a few more foreign cities to visit and I don't want to use up all my shopping mojo now."

She smoothed her hand over the place she'd pinched and relaxed against him once more. "What's the one thing you dream of having?," she asked, curious. House had never seemed driven by money or possessions but there were things, like his motorcycle, which he clearly enjoyed possessing.

"I'm not talking about intangibles. I mean things, like your dream car or maybe a classic guitar. Is there one thing you've dreamed about owning?"

"Ouch," House complained, flinching when Cuddy pinched him. It didn't hurt, but it was worth the complaint, regardless. Then, in response to her claiming she had self control, House retorted, "Not when it comes to inflicting grievous bodily harm, you don't."

As she relaxed against him, he added, "You're supposed to kiss that better." Her question, however, diverted his attention and at first he wasn't sure what she meant. What he dreamed of having? Honestly, he didn't know. He dreamt up a lot of wild things he could have if he really wanted them - and there'd been times he really had wanted some of the things he dreamed about. Like someone to cuddle with at night, or someone to wake up to in the mornings. He had that now, though, with Cuddy. And, yeah, he was glad about that.

But then Cuddy clarified what she meant: things he dreamed about having that were material things. An item instantly popped into his mind, something he'd dreamed about having for a long, long time.

"An original '58 Gibson," he replied without hesitation. "Flying V. Only one of the coolest guitars in the world. Which I'd sell my left kidney for at around $120,000 minimum for one of those babies. Only 97 Gibson Flying Vs were made during production in 1958 and '59, which makes them extremely vintage and extremely rare. Virtually priceless, at least to someone like me who thinks of them as pretty much the Holy Grail of guitars."

He let out a wistful, almost dreamlike sigh at the very thought of owning something so precious. "Maybe one of these days... If not a Flying V, then maybe a mahogany '67 Flying V. About a tenth of the price of an original '58. Still just as beautiful and timeless."

Cuddy lifted her chin so she could see House's facial expression as he talked about his dream guitar. She smiled at the longing and the reverence in his voice. She knew nothing about guitars other than having learned to strum a few basic chords on an old six-string acoustic, but she had no doubt what he said was true. His knowledge of and passion for music were undeniable.

"You're just a frustrated rocker, aren't you?" Although she had a hard time picturing him as some hardcore guitar god, it sort of made sense at the same time. A career in rock and roll would've been a perfect match for his rebellious nature. He had the personality and the talent for a career in music but she was glad he'd stuck to medicine if only because she would never have met him otherwise. Or maybe she would have...and it was interesting to ponder where that difference would've led them but she really preferred to stay in this reality. Things got complicated enough without considering all the alternatives.

"Of course, we both know you'd only be in it for the groupies," she added dryly.

She let out a faint groan when she heard a knock on the door. She was plenty comfortable at the moment, but she was also still hungry so she forced herself up off the couch. She let the hotel employee in with their dinner, then closed and locked the door behind him.

"You didn't specify how you wanted your steak," she said, handing House the plate with his steak sandwich. She grabbed her own plate and sat cross-legged on the couch. She figured there was no need to make even a pretense at formalities. They might as well get comfortable and watch tv while they ate. Of course, the programs weren't in English which made it a little trickier to follow along.

"More like cool and legendary," House argued, even though of course he knew he was neither a cool nor legendary rocker because he wasn't a rocker, period.

Didn't mean he hadn't dreamed about it, though. There'd been plenty of times, even now, where he liked to fantasise about being up on centre stage, jamming on his Gibson '58 to a crowd full of people who adore him. If he'd ever had a career in music, he liked to fancy himself as a kind of Clapton guitar god. Of course, he didn't have a career in music, and he wasn't any kind of Clapton guitar god. But he still liked to pretend now and again.

"Well, of course," he replied to Cuddy added comment about groupies. "Having women swoon over you, having any woman you want, being adored and idolised by 20 year olds while you're flaking away into your 60s - of course I'd be in it for the groupies."

Again, he was only just taunting Cuddy... though, being a guy, he had to admit there was appeal in what he was saying. All guys liked to fancy themselves desirable, especially once they hit an age where it's harder to pick up women. But House had his woman now, and Cuddy was the only woman he wanted. So, really, that cancelled out wanting groupies.

"Cooked generally works," he replied when Cuddy returned to their seat with their meals. He took the plate and set it on his lap, and picked up the top slice of bread to investigate exactly what was on this sandwich. Satisfied there was nothing on it he didn't like, he gathered the sandwich up together in his hands and leaned over his plate to take a big bite. For the next few minutes, House was too busy eating to talk - the smell of food and the first bite of his meal made him realise he was pretty damn hungry. But at last he slowed down enough to set his sandwich down and start on the chips.

"So, what's the one thing you've always wanted, then?" he asked. "Again, not the intangible stuff. Like..." He had to stop for a minute. What the hell did women generally pine for when it came to materialistic things? He didn't have a clue. Boys like their toys, but women liked their... well, dream weddings, he guessed sourly. "You know," he prompted. "Stuff. Dream... whatever it is you women all covet."

Cuddy tsked as House extolled the virtues of groupies. The corners of her mouth were faintly upturned in a smile, though, because she could tell what he dreamed about was playing music, not playing with groupies. Hell, if he actually wanted to play games with young girls...well, House had his admirers. He might not attract the number of groupies Mick Jagger did but there'd been more than one young woman who'd fallen for House's own legend. Cuddy was slightly embarassed to admit she hadn't been entirely immune to it herself.

She joined House in silence as she worked steadily through her sandwich. There was nothing fancy about the food--it was plain but good and that was really all she needed to assuage her hunger. She paused, chewing thoughtfully when House asked what she coveted.

"I don't know," she said honestly. As a kid, especially as a teenager, she been like most kids. There'd been thing she wanted so bad she thought she'd die if she didn't get them. As she'd grown up a little, the things she'd wanted most had been less material. Career, family: she wanted things that couldn't be bought or owned.

"Obviously there are things I want, thus my skill at power shopping, but there isn't one thing I dream about." The trendiest shoes, expensive jewelry, a sporty little convertible Mercedes...she'd love to have those things but not with the intensity with which House dreamed of that guitar. The only thing she'd desired that intensely in recent memory was a baby, and while it was tangible, it wasn't a 'thing' so it didn't count.

"I don't know about all women, but the things I covet can't be bought." She gave a little shrug and picked up her sandwich again. "A fact which leads to a fair amount of frustration."

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject