Sounds Like Fun
Here's some more chapters:
“Good morning, Susan,” Cameron greeted the nurse as she entered the oncology ward. The woman smiled as she pulled a file from the stack and sat down to read what she already knew by heart. She did this everyday, if only just to make her realize what she was doing. Once she had finished, she placed the file back where she found it, smiled at the nurse once more, and walked off towards the rooms that held the patients. The very young patients.
Michael Walters was an eight year old boy living with leukemia. When he had first come into the clinic with his parents four months ago, Cameron had been the attending doctor. She wasn’t even an oncologist and she could tell that the parents had brought him in too late. There was nothing they could do.
The parents did not fully understand what was happening to their son’s body, and the look of hope in their eyes made it impossible for Cameron to break the news to them. So she had called in Dr. Wilson to break the bad news. After all, he was as used to it as a doctor could get. The look of disappointment in his eyes when she explained the situation had only added to her crying later that night. So now, to deal with the unnecessary guilt she felt, Cameron came and visited Michael at least once a day. Hours were spent in his brightly decorated hospital room playing games and reading stories. None of her colleagues knew where she went during those hours, and Cameron would prefer to keep it that way. No sense in letting House have another reason to say that she was weak, that she needed someone to fix. If she could fix Michael, though, she would. Dr. Cameron was so caught up in her thoughts that she ran into Wilson as he exited a patient’s room.
“Whoa there,” he said as he reached out to catch her. “What’s the hurry? Michael will still be there in five minutes.” She looked at him, surprised that he knew where she was going, and embarrassed that he might have told House. Noticing her gaze, Wilson felt he should explain himself. “You should know, Cameron, that I know everything that goes on in my department.” He smiled.
“Oh.” She looked down at her feet and quickly thought of an excuse to continue on - and fast. “Well, I better get going. I promised Michael I would play him a game of checkers. Wouldn’t want to keep him waiting.” She sidestepped the doctor and moved on further down the hall.
“Wait!” he called after her. Turning around, she said nothing, but stood with her hand on her hip to let him know to make it fast. “I was going to do his checkup later today, but I think he might be more comfortable if you’re there while I do it. Do you mind?” He smiled and Cameron had to admit that it was a great way to persuade someone. Returning the smile, she nodded and waited for him to catch up before she continued on down to Michael’s room.
“Well. Everything looks ok.” Wilson pulled his stethoscope out of his ears and draped it around his neck as he talked to Michael’s parents. “Nothing has changed since his last checkup.”
“Is that good or bad?” Mr. Walters asked as he stood up.
“We can’t know for sure at the moment. I’ll get this blood test to the lab and then we’ll know more.” He shook the father’s hand and walked with Cameron out of the room. As they were walking, he chanced a glance over at his companion and noticed that she was smiling. “What?” he questioned with amusement.
“I’m impressed. Being around House all the time it’s easy for you to forget what a real bedside manner is like.”
“Well we can’t all aspire to be like House. Besides, you were great in there too.” Cameron shot him a look that said she thoroughly disagreed with him. Wilson continued, “Today was the first time that Michael smiled while I did his checkup. I’m blaming that on you.”
“I doubt that was it. Today was probably the first day that you didn’t have any bad news for him. It’s a nice feeling.” When she noticed that they had passed the elevators, Cameron stopped and asked, “Where are we going?”
Wilson, who had gone further on when she stopped and had headed back to her, replied, “I’m taking you to the Oncology lounge for some coffee.” She seemed surprised and suspicious all at once. The look on her face flustered him so that he was finding it hard to tell her his reasoning. “It’s just . . . well, what I meant is . . .” He trailed off once he realized that she kept moving towards the lounge. “Wait! Where are you going?” he yelled as he jogged up to catch up to her.
“Well, seeing as how I am in desperate need of some coffee, and how the crap in the cafeteria that they have the nerve to call caffeine costs three fifty a cup, and how the overgrown boys I work with have probably finished the coffee on our entire floor, I am going to the Oncology lounge. Just like you suggested.” When she finished, Wilson seemed pleased with himself and pulled out his key to unlock the door. Which he found unlocked.
“That’s odd,” he murmured and pushed the door open and peeked in. To his surprise he found House stretching across the black leather couch, eating a piece of pizza, and staring at the TV. Wilson walked further into the room (followed by Cameron) and asked, “What are you doing here, House?”
House didn’t even look away from the screen as he replied, “Watching TV during my lunch break. And I could ask you the same thing.” He had yet to notice Cameron standing behind the couch. “You gave me a key, remember? And this TiVo? Finer than Cameron’s ass.”
Wilson watched Cameron as she grew red in embarrassment. Giving her an apologetic smile, she returned it with one of her own and quietly slipped out the open door. “Did anyone ever tell you that you’re sexist?”
Pretending to be lost in thought for a few seconds, House answered, “Nope. Never sexist. Always sexy, though. Now shut up - General Hospital is on.”
“It’s TiVo, remember?”
“Shh!"
It was Friday of the same week when Cameron accompanied Wilson to another one of Michael’s checkups. It saddened her to hear that he wasn’t getting any better, even if it meant he still wasn’t getting any worse either. She could barely keep a smile on her face while talking to Mr. and Mrs. Walters as the oncologist performed his exam.
“Will he be alright?” the mother had asked Cameron hesitantly, and she instantly wondered why this question was posed to her and not Dr. Wilson. As if he could offer any more comfort than she could at this point.
She was reluctant in giving her answer. “He’s alright - for now.” Regretting her choice of words when she saw the looks on the parents’ faces, Cameron went on. “We’re doing all we can at this point. It’s . . . well, it’s borderline right now. He could go either way.” She could feel Wilson’s confusion even with her back to the older doctor.
So maybe it wasn’t exactly the truth. It really could go either way - with the help of a miracle. Leukemia could be a dangerous combination with children if it wasn’t taken care of properly. And she could not bear to let these people know that they hadn’t taken proper care of the problem by not bringing Michael in earlier on. So what if she lied a little? It wasn’t like she had told them that Michael would make a full recovery.
Walking out of the hospital room after saying goodbye to the Walter family, Cameron tried hard not to look at Wilson. He would probably be disappointed in her like he had with the baby case. His question, however, surprised her.
“So, did you ever get that coffee you needed?”
“What?”
“This Wednesday, when we finished with Michael, you said you badly needed a cup of coffee, which I believe was followed by a couple of nasty comments relating to your coworkers.” He glanced at his companion and, seeing as how she smiled at the recollection, he continued. “I believe I also invited you to join me for a cup in the Oncology lounge, and I think you would have if House hadn’t been a complete guy and compared you to a TiVo.”
“I believe it was just my ass he compared it to.”
Wilson grew embarrassed at her comment and said the only thing that he could think of. “So how about it?”
“What?”
“The offer still stands if your need for caffeine hasn’t been fulfilled yet.”
Cameron was surprised to find that when she looked into his eyes, she saw anticipation as well as nervousness. Then - there was that smile again! - she swore then and there that Wilson should never be allowed to become a used car salesman. “Okay,” she replied quietly, and accompanied him down the hall. When they reached the door, he made quite a show of checking the lock, then peeking his head in to check for the bitter diagnostician. Cameron had just punched him lightly on the arm and squeezed past him to get to her promised coffee.
She fixed them both a cup (‘How did she know how I like it?’ Wilson wondered when she handed his cup to him) and took a seat opposite him on the couch. “So,” she began after a few moments of silence and sipping.
“So,” he countered.
The young immunologist seemed hesitant in asking her question, but eventually spit it out quickly. “Was it wrong? What I did back there with his parents?” Wilson sighed, but before he could get his reply in she continued on. “I mean, what happens in four months when . . . when . . . well, what happens when they begin to blame me because I didn’t tell them the truth about their son? What then?”
“Whoa! Slow down there!” Wilson cut off her tirade by leaning forward across the table between them and placing a comforting hand on her arm. “It will be okay. I’m sorry to say that Michael may not have even four months,” (she paled and he spoke faster) “but I am sure that they will not blame you at all. You were there every day for them - all of them. You said yourself that they didn’t bring Michael in sooner because they didn’t trust doctors. I’m sure that’s all changed now, thanks to you.” Cameron shook her head and looked down at her lap, apparently not noticing Wilson’s hand yet. He removed it, and got up from his chair to move to sit next to her on the couch.
“I couldn’t even tell them the diagnosis when they came in,” she whispered, and he had to lean closer to her to hear her clearly. “I was too scared and I had you do it. I don’t think I’m cut out for this job.” She was close to tears at this point, and Wilson had to restrain himself from just hugging her right then and there. “And I saw the look you gave me that day. I can’t stand it.”
Wilson inwardly cursed himself and turned Cameron to face him. To do this, he had to put both his hands on her cheeks and turn her face to his. “You’re a great doctor Cameron. And I’m sorry if I made you feel otherwise. Every doctor has his or her problem areas. I didn’t go into trauma medicine because I didn’t want to be the one to come out in scrubs covered in blood to tell the family that they would never see their loved one again. It’ll be okay, I promise.” At some point, one of his hands had found its way into hers on her lap while the other stayed on her cheek. Neither of them noticed their proximity until a booming voice was heard coming near the lounge.
“Wilson!”
Said doctor lowered his head, sighed, and muttered, “House.”
TBC
“Good morning, Susan,” Cameron greeted the nurse as she entered the oncology ward. The woman smiled as she pulled a file from the stack and sat down to read what she already knew by heart. She did this everyday, if only just to make her realize what she was doing. Once she had finished, she placed the file back where she found it, smiled at the nurse once more, and walked off towards the rooms that held the patients. The very young patients.
Michael Walters was an eight year old boy living with leukemia. When he had first come into the clinic with his parents four months ago, Cameron had been the attending doctor. She wasn’t even an oncologist and she could tell that the parents had brought him in too late. There was nothing they could do.
The parents did not fully understand what was happening to their son’s body, and the look of hope in their eyes made it impossible for Cameron to break the news to them. So she had called in Dr. Wilson to break the bad news. After all, he was as used to it as a doctor could get. The look of disappointment in his eyes when she explained the situation had only added to her crying later that night. So now, to deal with the unnecessary guilt she felt, Cameron came and visited Michael at least once a day. Hours were spent in his brightly decorated hospital room playing games and reading stories. None of her colleagues knew where she went during those hours, and Cameron would prefer to keep it that way. No sense in letting House have another reason to say that she was weak, that she needed someone to fix. If she could fix Michael, though, she would. Dr. Cameron was so caught up in her thoughts that she ran into Wilson as he exited a patient’s room.
“Whoa there,” he said as he reached out to catch her. “What’s the hurry? Michael will still be there in five minutes.” She looked at him, surprised that he knew where she was going, and embarrassed that he might have told House. Noticing her gaze, Wilson felt he should explain himself. “You should know, Cameron, that I know everything that goes on in my department.” He smiled.
“Oh.” She looked down at her feet and quickly thought of an excuse to continue on - and fast. “Well, I better get going. I promised Michael I would play him a game of checkers. Wouldn’t want to keep him waiting.” She sidestepped the doctor and moved on further down the hall.
“Wait!” he called after her. Turning around, she said nothing, but stood with her hand on her hip to let him know to make it fast. “I was going to do his checkup later today, but I think he might be more comfortable if you’re there while I do it. Do you mind?” He smiled and Cameron had to admit that it was a great way to persuade someone. Returning the smile, she nodded and waited for him to catch up before she continued on down to Michael’s room.
“Well. Everything looks ok.” Wilson pulled his stethoscope out of his ears and draped it around his neck as he talked to Michael’s parents. “Nothing has changed since his last checkup.”
“Is that good or bad?” Mr. Walters asked as he stood up.
“We can’t know for sure at the moment. I’ll get this blood test to the lab and then we’ll know more.” He shook the father’s hand and walked with Cameron out of the room. As they were walking, he chanced a glance over at his companion and noticed that she was smiling. “What?” he questioned with amusement.
“I’m impressed. Being around House all the time it’s easy for you to forget what a real bedside manner is like.”
“Well we can’t all aspire to be like House. Besides, you were great in there too.” Cameron shot him a look that said she thoroughly disagreed with him. Wilson continued, “Today was the first time that Michael smiled while I did his checkup. I’m blaming that on you.”
“I doubt that was it. Today was probably the first day that you didn’t have any bad news for him. It’s a nice feeling.” When she noticed that they had passed the elevators, Cameron stopped and asked, “Where are we going?”
Wilson, who had gone further on when she stopped and had headed back to her, replied, “I’m taking you to the Oncology lounge for some coffee.” She seemed surprised and suspicious all at once. The look on her face flustered him so that he was finding it hard to tell her his reasoning. “It’s just . . . well, what I meant is . . .” He trailed off once he realized that she kept moving towards the lounge. “Wait! Where are you going?” he yelled as he jogged up to catch up to her.
“Well, seeing as how I am in desperate need of some coffee, and how the crap in the cafeteria that they have the nerve to call caffeine costs three fifty a cup, and how the overgrown boys I work with have probably finished the coffee on our entire floor, I am going to the Oncology lounge. Just like you suggested.” When she finished, Wilson seemed pleased with himself and pulled out his key to unlock the door. Which he found unlocked.
“That’s odd,” he murmured and pushed the door open and peeked in. To his surprise he found House stretching across the black leather couch, eating a piece of pizza, and staring at the TV. Wilson walked further into the room (followed by Cameron) and asked, “What are you doing here, House?”
House didn’t even look away from the screen as he replied, “Watching TV during my lunch break. And I could ask you the same thing.” He had yet to notice Cameron standing behind the couch. “You gave me a key, remember? And this TiVo? Finer than Cameron’s ass.”
Wilson watched Cameron as she grew red in embarrassment. Giving her an apologetic smile, she returned it with one of her own and quietly slipped out the open door. “Did anyone ever tell you that you’re sexist?”
Pretending to be lost in thought for a few seconds, House answered, “Nope. Never sexist. Always sexy, though. Now shut up - General Hospital is on.”
“It’s TiVo, remember?”
“Shh!"
It was Friday of the same week when Cameron accompanied Wilson to another one of Michael’s checkups. It saddened her to hear that he wasn’t getting any better, even if it meant he still wasn’t getting any worse either. She could barely keep a smile on her face while talking to Mr. and Mrs. Walters as the oncologist performed his exam.
“Will he be alright?” the mother had asked Cameron hesitantly, and she instantly wondered why this question was posed to her and not Dr. Wilson. As if he could offer any more comfort than she could at this point.
She was reluctant in giving her answer. “He’s alright - for now.” Regretting her choice of words when she saw the looks on the parents’ faces, Cameron went on. “We’re doing all we can at this point. It’s . . . well, it’s borderline right now. He could go either way.” She could feel Wilson’s confusion even with her back to the older doctor.
So maybe it wasn’t exactly the truth. It really could go either way - with the help of a miracle. Leukemia could be a dangerous combination with children if it wasn’t taken care of properly. And she could not bear to let these people know that they hadn’t taken proper care of the problem by not bringing Michael in earlier on. So what if she lied a little? It wasn’t like she had told them that Michael would make a full recovery.
Walking out of the hospital room after saying goodbye to the Walter family, Cameron tried hard not to look at Wilson. He would probably be disappointed in her like he had with the baby case. His question, however, surprised her.
“So, did you ever get that coffee you needed?”
“What?”
“This Wednesday, when we finished with Michael, you said you badly needed a cup of coffee, which I believe was followed by a couple of nasty comments relating to your coworkers.” He glanced at his companion and, seeing as how she smiled at the recollection, he continued. “I believe I also invited you to join me for a cup in the Oncology lounge, and I think you would have if House hadn’t been a complete guy and compared you to a TiVo.”
“I believe it was just my ass he compared it to.”
Wilson grew embarrassed at her comment and said the only thing that he could think of. “So how about it?”
“What?”
“The offer still stands if your need for caffeine hasn’t been fulfilled yet.”
Cameron was surprised to find that when she looked into his eyes, she saw anticipation as well as nervousness. Then - there was that smile again! - she swore then and there that Wilson should never be allowed to become a used car salesman. “Okay,” she replied quietly, and accompanied him down the hall. When they reached the door, he made quite a show of checking the lock, then peeking his head in to check for the bitter diagnostician. Cameron had just punched him lightly on the arm and squeezed past him to get to her promised coffee.
She fixed them both a cup (‘How did she know how I like it?’ Wilson wondered when she handed his cup to him) and took a seat opposite him on the couch. “So,” she began after a few moments of silence and sipping.
“So,” he countered.
The young immunologist seemed hesitant in asking her question, but eventually spit it out quickly. “Was it wrong? What I did back there with his parents?” Wilson sighed, but before he could get his reply in she continued on. “I mean, what happens in four months when . . . when . . . well, what happens when they begin to blame me because I didn’t tell them the truth about their son? What then?”
“Whoa! Slow down there!” Wilson cut off her tirade by leaning forward across the table between them and placing a comforting hand on her arm. “It will be okay. I’m sorry to say that Michael may not have even four months,” (she paled and he spoke faster) “but I am sure that they will not blame you at all. You were there every day for them - all of them. You said yourself that they didn’t bring Michael in sooner because they didn’t trust doctors. I’m sure that’s all changed now, thanks to you.” Cameron shook her head and looked down at her lap, apparently not noticing Wilson’s hand yet. He removed it, and got up from his chair to move to sit next to her on the couch.
“I couldn’t even tell them the diagnosis when they came in,” she whispered, and he had to lean closer to her to hear her clearly. “I was too scared and I had you do it. I don’t think I’m cut out for this job.” She was close to tears at this point, and Wilson had to restrain himself from just hugging her right then and there. “And I saw the look you gave me that day. I can’t stand it.”
Wilson inwardly cursed himself and turned Cameron to face him. To do this, he had to put both his hands on her cheeks and turn her face to his. “You’re a great doctor Cameron. And I’m sorry if I made you feel otherwise. Every doctor has his or her problem areas. I didn’t go into trauma medicine because I didn’t want to be the one to come out in scrubs covered in blood to tell the family that they would never see their loved one again. It’ll be okay, I promise.” At some point, one of his hands had found its way into hers on her lap while the other stayed on her cheek. Neither of them noticed their proximity until a booming voice was heard coming near the lounge.
“Wilson!”
Said doctor lowered his head, sighed, and muttered, “House.”
TBC