They sat next to each other, each in their separate armchairs in front of the fireplace, and surveyed the photos looking back at them. This was just a small selection on show, with many more hidden away in their room, but then again, these were the key moments in their life together – the rest could be filled in with memories and stories.
The first showed Nick's birth, a tired looking Cameron in the background, with a proud House holding his son in the foreground. Neither of them could really remember who had taken the photograph, but whether it was one of their parents, or a nurse, it did not matter. The photo was perfect, with all three of them looking beyond happy. Although a few minutes after the flash had gone off, Nick enlightened them to just how spectacular his lungs were, and just how loud he could scream.
They had put off getting married until Nick was three, old enough to be a part of the wedding, but young enough to still be well behaved and cute. Or at least that was how House saw it when they were planning… In reality he was far too clever ahead of his years to count as 'well-trained', instead he seemed hell-bent on creating mischief and charming each and every guest there. There had been no rush on having the wedding because they both knew they were together until the end – what was a bit of paper going to prove? The next couple of photos showed the two of them at the altar, just after their first kiss, and just before House stole a sneaky second one, much to the amusement of the congregation and the guy presiding over it. In the edges of the frame you could also see Wilson (undoubtedly best man, although House had made him sweat it for a few months, playing along with Taub) and Thirteen (surprising maid of honour, most people thought, although she and Cameron had gotten rather close over the pregnancy and wedding planning – which only increased House's lust-fuelled fantasies). Cuddy had played a part in the wedding too, mostly loking after all the sproglets, Rachel and Nick included.
The remainder of the photos were of their children together. After Nick, there had been Edward Jonathan (Ted), and Amelia Beth (Millie). They, in turn had gone on to have their own children, giving House and Cameron nine grandchildren, with two more on the way. Career-wise, Nick was now running the diagnostics department in PPTH as well as being a large helping hand in starting one up across the state. Millie had gone into Nephrology, with Immunology as a secondary focus; as for Ted, well, he seemed to be the odd child out, because he had gone into business management with art. However he was so successful that Cuddy's replacement was considering him as her own replacement, despite the lack of hospital experience.
The grandchildren were coming along very well too, several of them were ahead of their years and had already skipped some grades, and they were an exceptionally diverse bunch. Two or three wanted to go into medicine, and there was a sportsman in there, as well as musician and designer. Of course, all of that could change in the next few years, but for now, that's how it stood. Katie, the eldest of them was already starting her university course for medicine, with the intention of finishing her training at PPTH. Slowly, the House-Cameron clan were taking over PPTH, and with any luck they would soon have majority control.
With that thought, House let out a chuckle, absent mindedly stroking the back of Cameron's hand too.
'What's so funny Greg?'
'Oh Allykat, if only Cuddy were alive today, to see her precious PPTH being handed over to our kids, on a silver platter. I'm sure that she's turning in her grave somewhere…'
'True… But still, without her, it wouldn't be what it is today.'
'Exactly. And without us, there would be a severe lack of talent in the world.'
Together House and Cameron had achieved the near-impossible. They had overcome obstacles, found love, and were still together, old and grey, in their own home, surrounded by a loving family.
So, hopefully that wasn't too shocking as an ending. I had originally planned to have a couple more chapters, detailing the wedding/birth of Nick a lot more, but hey ho. That's life, right?
For those of you who've been here since the start, I have fully re-ordered the chapters, so it is all chronological :)
Hopefully some of you readers will review, help me improve, or just drop a comment, saying if you liked or disliked it.
Thanks for readingsticking with me :)
Woody2792x