"That's awesome, PJ," Teddy said excitedly as she gave me a hug. "Well, I have to go write a letter to Ivy. She's going to go crazy over the new baby," Teddy tinued, still very excited, as she headed to her room.
"What?" I asked, bewildered.
"Oh, you don't know?" Bob asked, "Teddy has been writiers to her friend Ivy in Colorado" he expined retively simply.
"No, not that, about Doctor House," I quickly said.
"Yes, I was also surprised when he offered it. Isn't it incredible?" Mom said with a big smile. "he said it would be something like a residency for you before your actual studies. He even said he would lend you all the medical books you want for free," Mom tinued, very excited. "I couldn't believe it, but he assured me that he had already talked to the hospital director, and she doesn't have any issues as long as you stay with House," Mom happily cluded.
pletely surprised by the news, I didn't know what to say, so I remained silent.
Notig my silend probably worried about my ck of response, Mom asked, "What's the matter, PJ? I thought you'd be excited."
"No, I am excited," I lied, "it's just that I thought you didn't like Doctor House. It surprises me a bit that you wao study with him," I lied again after thinking for a moment. The truth was that I was scared. A few words with the man, and I was at risk of revealing my secret.
"Oh, PJ," Mom said as she came closer to give me a hug, interrupting my train of thought. "Don't worry about that. Yes, Doctor House is bitter and egotric," she criticized the doctor's name. "But that doesn't take away from the fact that he's a great doctor," she tinued more calmly, giving me a strong hug. "He has a great reputation in the medical world. This might even help you get a spot at a good uy," she finished, stepping back from the hug aly stroking my arm with a reassuring smile.
"I don't like Doctor House either," Bob suddenly said, furrowing his brow. "I mean, with everything your mom has told us, how could I possibly like him?" he asked, jokingly. "But if he's giving you this opportunity, I say you should take it. Learhing he has to teach you, use all the resources he has to offer, and learn how to be a great doctor despite dealing with not such a great man, i say, do it if you really want to be a doctor," Bob said seriously, still with his hand on my shoulder.
"You know what, why don't we go to the hospital now? You talk to Doctor House, and if you don't like his proposal, we won't mention it again," Mom suggested with a supportive smile, encio go.
After thinking for a moment, I nodded. I had to see what House's true iions were.
"Alright, that solves it. While you two go do that, I'll start preparing dinner," Bob said cheerfully as he bid farewell to his wife with a kiss and a pyful tap on my shoulder. "Doctor Dun sounds good," he added lightly as he headed to the kit.
"Well, there's er time than the present, right?" Mom said with a smile as she grabbed her bag a happily.
Leaving the house, we got into Mom's car and headed to the hospital.
Throughout the drive, Mom chatted happily with me about things reted to her pregnancy. I couldn't really pay attention because my curiosity about House's iions wouldn't let me think about anything else.
The journey, with my mind preoccupied, was retively short. Before I k, we were at the hospital.
Entering the hospital, Mom approached the nurses behind the reception desk. "Oh, Amy, what a surprise! I thought your shift ended half an ho," said an older nurse.
"Hi, Florence. I'm just here t my son with House, remember?" Mom proudly expined, pulling me forward. "This is PJ, my eldest son," she tinued even more proudly. "o meet you," I greeted the nurses. "Oh, yes, the boy who caught House's attention," Florence said. "I'm sorry, kid," she tinued with sympathy in her voice, pg a hand on my shoulder.
Chug nervously at the st part, Mom asked, "Do you know where House is? PJ wants to talk to him about his offer."
"Yes, he should be ipatient ic," Florence replied with annoyance. "He's been holed up in the office all day and hasn't seen anyone. If you want to talk to him, I suggest you go quickly because he's about to leave," she finished, gng at a rge clock above the reception desk.
"Okay, PJ, I have some things to discuss with my friends here. You go on your own, and when you're done, e back. It's down that hallway to the end, you'll find another desk there, that's the outpatient ic," she said, pointing down one of the corridors and then turning to chat with the other nurses. "Oh, and remember, there's no pressure. If you don't want to do it, your dad and I will uand," she added, suddenly remembering and ing back to talk to me.
"Yeah, I'll be right back, Mom," I responded as calmly as I could. "It was o meet you, Nurse Florence," I bid farewell.
On my way to the ierves grew with each step. The fear of House disc my secret made me hesitate with every step I took. Just a few meters from the ic, I saw him. He was standing with his bae, leaning against the desk Mom had described, talking to an irritated doctor in a b coat.
"You ehat. I brought a reasonable case to your attention, and you shoved it in my face just to humiliate me," the angry doctor said.
"You're an only child, aren't you?" House petuntly asked in response.
"Why would you say that?" the perplexed doctor asked in respoo the strange answer.
"Everything is about you. This may seem incredibly troversial—" House was saying sarcastically until the doctor noticed my presence behind him, distrag House from his pune and making him turn.
"Oh, Wonder Boy," he said with a smug smile. "No, that niame isn't for you, I'll e up with another one," he said, losing the smile and grimag. "What brings you here? I told your mother I'd call you when there's an iing case to discuss." He finished, intrigued. "I thought there was one, but no," he said, fog on the doctor beside him. "Quick question, what could cause night terrors in a teenager ye?" he quickly interrupted the doctor, who seemed to want to say something.
"Hi, Doctor House," I said emphatically. "Yes, I know. Mom told me you offered to give me free medical csses. I just wao know the real reason. You don′t seem like a big-hearted type," I tiersely, ign his question, a little tired of his games.
"I'll tell you if you answer," he said petuntly.
"Sorry, who is this House?" the angry doctor asked intrigued by our iion.
"Oh, just a somewhat iing kid. We'll be seeing more of him if he ahe ques—" he was saying, but a loud sound of something hitting wood caught his attention.
Turning toward the sound, I also saw a teenager sitting on another desk. He was talking to two adults beside him, possibly his parents. At one point, his leg, which was hanging off the desk, had a sudden nervous twitch.
"That kid—" I mao say.
"Yes, e with me," House interrupted, striding into the ic.
Without much choice, I followed House.
"What's going on?" the doctor asked behind us, but no one answered.
"Don't move. Did I bore you in there?" House said when he was close enough to the young man.
"What? Ah, no, not, not really," the startled boy respoo the sudden approach of the doctor.
"Are you tired?" House asked presumptuously.
"Sometimes," the teenager responded, not really sure what to say. "He never sleeps! Of course he's tired," the mao the teenager affirmed, somewhat annoyed.
"Right now, at this moment, are you tired?" House tinued, ign the annoyed adult.
"No, no," the teenager responded again, feeling a bit ered by the doctor's questions.
"Good," House said as he nodded slowly. His eyes swept over the three people in front of him and then nded ohis is PJ Dun. I'm sure he'll tell you why I asked all those questions of your son," he said, taking a small step back, symbolically giving me all the attention.
"What? Who is he?" the teenager's father asked, annoyed.
"PJ Dun, didn't I just say that?" House said with feigned intrigue towards the doctor.
I didn't know what to do. Of course, I uood what House was implying. The involuntary movements in the leg were symptoms of myoic jerks, and not being able to sleep or being tired could be symptoms of various neurological disorders.
But I couldn't say anything. That would only increase House's suspis. I repared not to say anything or to lie and say I didn't know, but my eyes met with the face of the teenager sitting on the desk. He looked worried, pletely focused oh fear in his eyes.
"It's clear this kid doesn't know—" the teenager's father was saying.
"Myoic jerk," I interrupted, "what?" the man asked angrily, thinking it was some sort of insult.
"It's a mild, involuntary muscle tra. It often happens as you're falling asleep. The respiration rate falls, and the brain interprets this as the body dying, so it sends a pulse to wake it up," I quickly expio calm the man's annoyance.
"So?" the man asked, a bit less annoyed and clearly more ed, turning his attention to House.
"So, he’s not asleep, he’s awake," House said sarcastically with a smile directed at me. "Admit him," he tinued, now addressing the doctor who was staring at me ily, clearly shocked.
"And you, e with me," House ordered me, heading out of the room.
"House, House! Wait a damn minute!" I said as I tried to catch up with him. For a man with a e, he walked pretty fast. "Answer my question, what's your real iion in me to e?" I nervously asked when I mao stop him.
"Answer my question, and I'll tell you," he said, still smiling and enjoying himself.
"Just answer me. What do you want from me?" I asked again, now even more nervous and annoyed by his attempt to ge the subject.
"He's ye. Three weeks ago, he started having night terrors. What could the reasons be?" he said, losing his smile and asking the question harshly.
Annoyed by his games, I fell silent for a few seds, took a deep breath, and gathered my ce to respond. "Post-traumatic stress, trauma, or sexual abuse. But sidering his involuntary nervous movements, it could be a movement disorder eive brain disease."
House nodded slowly, his smile fading slightly. "Either way, this kid's gonna be pig up his diploma in diapers and a wheelchair," he said with a furrowed brow. "Follow me," he tiurning around and starting to walk quickly again.
"You didn't answer my question," I raised my voice with annoyance, refusing to follow him and standing still.
Stopping, House slowly turo face me again, looking at me for a moment. He pursed his lips, presumably thinking about the answer he would give. "Kid, you're an experiment," he said after a few seds. "You remind me of another young man who had grand aspirations of being a highly respected doctor," he tinued seriously, lost in memories. "So, you're here because you're iing. Even though you're obviously not a genius, you know more about medie than you appear to. I want to see how far you go with pruidance, mine," he said with a smug smile as he turned around. "Now, are you ing or what?" he asked, this time walking more slowly.
---------
Author Thoughts
One more chapter, obviously I'm not a doctor, and as I always say, I'm not Ameri.
Surely it goes against Ameri ws for House to invite a minor like this to learn in the hospital or even to have that minor i with patients or patients' retives. But it's House, and this is just a fanfi. I hope that if it bothers anyone or if it dimiheir i in the novel, I apologize.
I have decided that unless a special case arises, I will upload one chapter per week. Thank you for uanding my decision (although I might possibly ighis self-imposed schedule and upload chapters whenever I finish them, we'll see).
Things I want to crify:1. I will use cases and the way they solve them from the shows I will borrow for the stru of this fic. If ynize any of the cases, it's because obviously they are not my own work. They are the same cases, only with the introdu of my MC.2. Right now there are 29 favorites and 3 ratings, if those numbers improve, I promise to upload 2 chapters per week in August.
I believe that's everything. As always, if you find any errors, please let me know, and I will correct them immediately.
Thank you for reading.
PS: Please leave a review, I would love to know your opinion of the novel so far.
