amber_v: How daaaaaaaaare you (suspicious)
amber_v ([personal profile] amber_v) wrote in [community profile] alwaysright2009-10-13 10:00 pm

October 30, 2007 - Midmorning (Amber)

Just another day at work, Amber reminded herself. Just another day.

She strode through the entrance hallway, her clacking heels contrasting satisfyingly against the soft morning noises. She stepped all the harder, to be louder than the coughs, casual chats, and wheelchair squeaks. But as much as she tried, Amber couldn't keep Eric's last sentence from echoing in her mind: I do want this.

What a joke. He wanted whatever false image he'd carefully built of her, of a woman that wasn't a bitch through and through. She'd show him. She'd prove beyond the shadow of a doubt who she was and what she stood for. Then if he decided to repeat stupid phrases, I like what I've gotten into, he'd be saying them fully informed. He'd know what he was talking about. She’d be able to believe him.

And this had nothing to do with making him hate her. Nothing.

To top it off, her stomach was killing her and she hadn't gotten her coffee.

She was late as it was. House wouldn't be there, he never was, but the others could and would report her tardiness. She'd do them the same favor. So this was one strike against her-- unless House decided to interpret it as proof she had the balls to work for him, whatever. Amber preferred not to push her luck, which meant not stopping by the cafeteria. There were other ways of getting what she needed, though.

Tons of interns hung around the classroom area, scuttling around like bugs just waiting for god to finally get around to crushing them out of their miserable existences. Amber scanned the lot streaming along: a little miss perfect who'd probably suffer a nervous breakdown before the end of the week, a butt-ugly boy who looked like he'd been shoved into med school by his overbearing parents, instantly forgettable members of both sexes, and... Amber grinned. Perfect.

The red-head had been eyeing her since the day she'd gotten here, from behind his clipboard. He'd have never deigned approach her, and with good reason; she'd have torn him apart. But today was his lucky day. She let her grin mold itself into an alluring smile as she approached him, laughing at how his incredulity grew in direct proportion to their proximity. "Hey there."

For a moment he seemed to forget the appropriate response. "Um, uh, hi. Hi!"

He was almost cute, in that excruciatingly awkward way. At any rate, she didn't need to butter him up much. She sighed. "I don't know about you, but my day's been awful so far."

His eyes widened. Probably didn't know if he should talk about himself, or if he was just meant to sympathize. He tried both. "Me too, I've got all these--"

Amber could care less, and she had no time for whatever it was he had. She touched his shoulder; his jaw dropped. "But I think you could help me out."

"I-- me?"

"If I could just get a coffee, or a bagel..."

He stared at her hand on his shoulder, and then her face. Amber knew he saw all kinds of promises there; she'd practiced a damn good sincere expression. "I-- I could pick up--"

Amber beamed, though not just for the reasons he might've thought. "Could you? That'd save my day, I swear." Before he could reconsider, she pointed to the doorway she was about to go through. "Bring it to me there, okay?" The kid nodded and skedaddled, trying to hold on to his papers as he ran off. She hoped House would be there to see him make the delivery; it'd probably impress him.

Considerably cheered by the prospect of breakfast and the fun of screwing around with someone, Amber opened the theater doors. She was just getting started.
eric_foreman: Eric Foreman from House - eyebrow raised (eyebrow)

[personal profile] eric_foreman 2009-10-18 04:05 pm (UTC)(link)
Foreman stepped slowly past the rows of lockers, until he found Amber at the back, staring into her open locker for a moment before she closed it and turned to him. She seemed composed, and Foreman wondered what couldn't wait until after work for her to say. For the last few months, I need to talk to you had never spelled good news, and with a sudden premonition, Foreman's stomach sank. Something had happened. Something had changed. Or else Amber had thought through everything he'd said in the car and decided she wasn't going to put up with him. He'd lost his chance because he was so fucking proud of his ethics, only to realize he didn't obey them himself. She was going to dump him: that had to be it.

So Amber's declaration caught him completely by surprise. He struggled not to show it, but he had no idea why she'd pulled him aside to tell him this. Or why she'd done it. For that matter, thinking back, Foreman realized that Thirteen and Amber had been sitting together in the lecture theatre as if they regularly had friendly conversations. Considering how Amber had talked about Thirteen last night, Foreman could only imagine that this--all of this--was part of Amber's plan to undermine Thirteen with House. And that didn't make sense either. Foreman had already told Amber, and thought she understood, that their relationship was more likely to be a black mark for her in House's eyes: why would she spread it around? Giving aid and comfort to the enemy was hardly her style.

"Why?" he asked, only realizing once he'd asked the question that it wasn't the consequences of Thirteen knowing that interested him--nothing stayed secret from House long, and besides, Chase already knew. They could probably expect the news to be published in the noon edition of the hospital's gossip newsletter. Instead, he was actually interested in what Amber meant to do next. What her scheme was. He'd always loved the animation in her eyes when she talked about getting her way; she took such pleasure in it that he couldn't help loving it vicariously.

Foreman shook his head when he realized that only asking that one question might make Amber feel like he was interrogating her for breaking their quasi-promise to be discreet. "It doesn't matter," he said. He wasn't upset. If Amber was telling people, then she wasn't on the verge of making herself a liar by ending their relationship. It was a relief, more than anything else. He exhaled and lifted his shoulders in a half-shrug that seemed to leave his muscles looser. "We knew it wouldn't stay a secret. It was only a matter of when somebody figured it out. I talked to Chase and he just assumed."
eric_foreman: Eric Foreman from House - eyebrow raised (eyebrow)

[personal profile] eric_foreman 2009-10-18 09:53 pm (UTC)(link)
Foreman narrowed his eyes, trying to figure out what Amber's sarcasm meant. It seemed brittle, like she was hiding behind it. He had to admit, he felt a clench of discomfort at the idea of what personal gossip she might have shared around as if it was a bargaining chip. His life wasn't part of a poker hand, to be judged and discarded as part of some 'master plan'. His instinctive reaction certainly wasn't positive. But it still wasn't the deep, twisting aversion that he'd thought he'd have, either. The kind of embarrassment that he felt when Amber waived good manners in public just to get a better seat or a better bottle of wine. Amber obviously knew what she was doing, knew what she was working towards, and she was pleased that she'd succeeded.

It helped, too, that she'd thought he'd be angry. If that was why she'd asked to talk with him, then Foreman could understand a bit better. She'd acted against what they'd agreed on, deliberately; she could have hurt him. But she knew it, too. Her cool silence when he'd approached her could have been the way she'd show herself worried about his reaction. "I'm not," he said quietly, trying to work through what he was feeling. He matched Amber's step, getting closer, still not certain enough--of her or of himself--to reach out and touch her. "But I don't want...how I am with you...to get used against you in the same way." And, to be fully honest: "Or against me. You're playing with them like they don't matter, but--" He hesitated, his heart leaping up to block his throat for what felt like too long. Chase had said he should be direct. God, he couldn't possibly be taking romantic advice from Chase. On the other hand, he was also repeating what he'd said in the car, at least nearly: that he didn't really approve, but that he wouldn't stop her. Not when it didn't involve him. "But I want to matter to you. I don't want to be a game piece."

He sighed, his gaze softening. Amber's voice was almost meek, despite her proud posture. Foreman could see more of her now, including the times when she was trying to hide from him and it wasn't fully working. He had no doubt that there were a million things he was missing about what she'd thought, or attempted, or felt, but it seemed clear to him now that she was uncertain. Just like he'd been, coming in here. "Yeah. We will." She'd gotten nearer to him, and Foreman, at last, couldn't help but take that for an invitation. He closed the space between them, enough to wrap his arms around her waist. Cautious, but comforting, waiting for her signal to go farther and use his strength to pull her into a deeper hug.
eric_foreman: Eric Foreman from House - relaxing (relaxing)

[personal profile] eric_foreman 2009-10-19 01:19 am (UTC)(link)
Foreman tightened his hold on Amber as soon as she spoke. He wanted to transmit reassurance through his body, give her as much as he could. He could feel it mirrored in her when she moved her arms around to his back, hugging him back. Foreman dipped his head, enough to press closer to the scent of Amber's hair and skin, pressing his lips against her shoulder. For the first time since getting to work, he felt the same relaxation that had stolen over him when they'd been in the shower together. It meant something to him that they didn't need to be having sex in order to feel close. These moments, just holding each other, counted for so much more. And even better was everything Amber had reassured him of in turn. He'd come in here half expecting to leave with one more hope broken, and instead, he felt better than he had all day.

He shook his head, not refuting out loud that Amber had been stupid, but hoping she'd feel his disagreement. He squeezed her tighter for a moment when her voice reached his ear. "I don't want to let you go," he said. How could he know what his limit was? Amber might find it, someday. But Foreman might just as easily find hers. All they could do was hope for the best. Foreman wasn't good at that--he wanted to plan, he wanted to work out a course of action and then do the right thing to the best of his ability. Trusting to fate sounded like rank stupidity, but... So far they'd managed to talk through their problems--argue through them. But as long as they came back to this, the moment when they could agree enough to step into each other's arms, it felt like they could solve whatever the hell they'd gotten themselves into. "I trust you," he said. It was more true each time he said it. Foreman closed his eyes for a moment, filling his lungs with a deep breath and then letting it go.

"But I also have to tell you to go to work," he said, pulling back slightly. He wasn't encouraging her to go--not yet. One arm was still hooked around her waist, and with the other, Foreman reached up to cup Amber's cheek, brushing his thumb along her cheekbone, then tucking her hair back. "Before anyone comes looking for us."
eric_foreman: (happy foreman)

[personal profile] eric_foreman 2009-10-19 11:18 am (UTC)(link)
The promise of Amber's intent stare, the slight parting of her lips as she looked at his mouth, combined with the feel of her body tucked in a closely as possible to his, all had Foreman leaning in, instinct responding to guide him into the kiss he expected. He barely heard her question--only enough to think that if she was there, the clinic was far more appealing than it ever had been before--and then, at the last moment, Amber danced backwards, her eyes lighting up with amusement.

Foreman opened his mouth to protest, and snapped it shut again at Amber's taunt. He put on his dignity, straightening his back and admonishing her with a disgruntled look. Then, with a laugh, he gave in. He could take his revenge in a different form. He already liked it a little too much that she'd called him boss, even if she had been teasing. "Yeah, I have paperwork. Consult requests from around the country on their weird cases. Guess I'll just have to suffer my way through." He tilted his head, offering Amber a thoughtful pout. "But have a good time in the clinic. Isn't it flu season?"