This isn't intended to be a one shot. So let me know what you think.
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"And you finally know that what has happened today
Is going to be a part of you" – Simon Dawes, Execution Song
Today was one of those days. Nothing of any importance was going on, nothing was getting accomplished, and everything was mind numbingly bleak. A 2am leukemia diagnoses last night, or well technically this morning, meant that they no longer had a patient, and Thirteen couldn't keep from tapping her foot under the long glass table. Her mind was drifting back and forth; she contemplated who would probably die first, her or the twelve year old who they had just sent to Wilson's office, and would her left leg get bigger than her right one if she kept tapping it long enough to build up the muscle.
"I'm going to go find a patient," she said standing up needing to clear her head from the nonsense taking over her mind.
"We have a patient," House responded calmly motioning for her to sit back down.
"No, we don't."
"Hannah's still in the hospital." House responded.
"You know her name?" Forman asked sounding somewhere between genuinely surprised and just really bored.
"She's not our patient anymore." Thirteen said not really caring why House bothered learning her name.
"Can Cuddy prove that?" House said shifting his focus from Thirteen to the water bottle sitting in front of her. He lifted his cane to the table and tried to knock it down so it would role towards him.
"I'm going to the ER." Thirteen said standing back up and handing House her drink.
"Why do you suddenly want a new patient? Did Hannah have some sort of effect on you?" House asked raising his voice and putting emphasis on her name.
"You're using her name because you think it hurts me." Thirteen stated as she realized the answer to Taub's question.
"Knowing you're going to die before hitting senior citizen status sucks, but you know it would suck worse dying before hitting puberty." House said.
"It would also suck having epilepsy, genetic mosiacism, and an infarction, but wait. None of these things are my problem." Thirteen bit back.
"She's you just fifteen years younger." House spit back.
"She's a twelve year old foster child with cancer." Thirteen said faking confusion. She knew what they were talking about, but she wasn't going to admit that she saw it too.
"Not only is she your spitting image, which is why I chose the case by the way. I thought she might be some long lost daughter, but she's got a dead parent, a death sentence, and a weird knack for not sharing personal information." House said counting the similarities on his fingers.
"I'm not her missing mom." Thirteen said coming back over to House and taking the water bottle back.
"Now how am I going to run the genetic testing?" House whined.
"I'm going to go get another patient." Thirteen said leaving the room. She couldn't believe that House really thought she had a kid at fifteen. Her life wasn't that messed up.
Walking through the hallway she spotted the familiar dark hair.
"Hannah, what are you ding up here?" Thirteen asked.
"I was bored so I went for a walk." She shrugged.
"Up here?" Thirteen asked.
"They told me to go back to sleep when they caught me walking around the pediatric floor." She answered, "I can't sleep."
"How about you go back down to your room and I'll come in with a board game?" Thirteen asked knowing she could steal House's monopoly set. Granted, he probably stole it from pediatrics, so it would kind of be like she was returning it.
"Okay," Hannah nodded as she headed down towards the elevator. Thirteen headed back to diagnostics. She really didn't see the similarities between this girl and herself.
"Already found a patient?" Forman asked.
"I'm going to go play a game with my alter ego." Thirteen smirked as she grabbed the monopoly set. House gave her a strange look. She could tell he didn't really understand her actions; in fact she didn't really herself. Playing games with the kids was a volunteer's job. But, she was bored and she felt bad for the girl dying with no family.
Maybe she did see a bit of herself in Hannah after all.
Stepping out of the elevator, Thirteen made her way into Hannah's room to see her just getting settled into bed. Thirteen set the monopoly set down on the tray table and began to set up.
"Dr. House doesn't have any new patients?" Hannah asked.
"No, he's pretty particular about is patients." Thirteen responded.
"I guess I should feel lucky." Hannah made a face.
"Wheelbarrow, Horse, Iron, or dog?" Thirteen asked holding out the player pieces that House hadn't managed to lose yet.
"Iron." Hannah said.
"I'll take the horse." Thirteen said putting the pieces down on the board. She held out the dice for Hannah, but she didn't take them. Her eyes were fixed on something else. Turning around, Thirteen saw what she was staring at.
"House, what are you doing here?" Thirteen asked as the doctor made his way in after being spotted.
"Had to see this," House said "didn't really believe you as the playing with kids type."
"Satisfied?" Thirteen asked.
"Prepubescents don't do it for me, I preferred watching you with Spencer." House grinned as he walked out. Thirteen squeezed her eyes shut.
"Sorry," she apologized for House.
"He was my doctor for a week, I've gotten used to it." She said looking amused.
"He'll probably be back too." Thirteen warned, "Eventually he'll steal the monopoly set back."
"He steals from pediatrics." Hannah looked surprised.
"That's not the worst of it." Thirteen smiled.
"I can't believe you like him." Hannah scrunched her nose. Thirteen choked momentarily.
"He's my boss." She assured the girl.
"I can tell you like him." Hannah shook her head. Thirteen could feel her cheeks get hot as she remembered why she didn't usually spend time with kids. They were oddly perceptive.