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Swimming Lessons
by nem
He was in the shallow end of the pool with House. He was in about three and a half feet of water, which, while it made his movements slow and unsteady, was smooth and cool against his skin. Everyone else lay on chairs around the periphery, sunbathing, not paying a lot of attention to the goings-on in the water. Stacy dried herself with an oversized towel as she stalked away. House was slowly moving toward deeper water, backing away from him. At first, he thought his friend was just leaving, tired of him. But he thought he saw something in House's eyes asking him to follow. He had no idea what would happen if he did, and he was scared. Was House taunting him there, only to push him under, laughing, after a too-brief taste of wonderful weightlessness? Probably. But what if he was serious, what if House really needed him, wanted him there? As he inched forward and the clear water pulled at him, he thought that he liked this feeling, that he could just sink into it and let it take him over. He stopped when the water was just covering his shoulders. He was on the verge of unfamiliar territory, about to lose his footing. House, taller than him, stood a few feet away, his head angled up so he could keep his toes on the ground and still be able to breathe. There was still the question in his eyes-Are you coming? They both tip-toed farther until they had no choice but to start treading water. He sighed, relieved. House was smiling, coming toward him, and while he knew there was the possibility of the greatest happiness he'd known, of everything falling into place, he couldn't help wondering if he was about to drown.
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Legal Disclaimer: The authors published here make no claims on the ownership of Dr. Gregory House and the other fictional residents of Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital. Like the television show House (and quite possibly Dr. Wilson's pocket protector), they are the property of NBC/Universal, David Shore and undoubtedly other individuals of whom I am only peripherally aware. The fan fiction authors published here receive no monetary benefit from their work and intend no copyright infringement nor slight to the actual owners. We love the characters and we love the show, otherwise we wouldn't be here.
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