Chapter Text
House stared at the Lestrange brothers through the glass of the conference room window. Vaguely, he registered the sounds of chatter behind him, as well as the still-concerned and probably completely lost stares of his team and Cuddy. Wilson was the only one who had any prior knowledge about any of this, most notably the existence of one Teddy Lupin, otherwise known as House’s son.
After the brothers had revealed that they had found House by torturing the information out of his son, he had had to be restrained. And, despite his bum leg and general lacking physical strength after not being in constant battle for over a decade, it had taken four aurors and, unsurprisingly, Wilson to get him to stop trying to get the whereabouts of Teddy from the Lestrange brothers himself.
The methods he had in mind were most definitely illegal, and the chances of even one of the brothers surviving his wrath were next to nothing, so it was probably a good thing he had been stopped.
Didn’t mean he wasn’t still pissed.
Which brought them here. The brothers had demanded they stay in the hospital, claiming they wouldn’t share anything about Teddy if they were taken away. Captain Syth had been on the phone with dozens of people by now, making arrangements for search parties and extra security for the hospital.
The brothers had been brought to the conference room, usually only full when there was a board meeting going on, and were contained tightly, with four aurors with them at all times. And House wasn’t allowed in there without Captain Syth, though not at all until he could calm his temper.
So, no time soon.
A hand landed softly on his shoulder, rubbing gently for a moment before stilling. Connected to this hand was, of course, Wilson, the only other person who knew him as this identity who knew he had a son before today. Teddy’s ’Uncle Jim, but basically my other dad!’ As he so liked to say.
“We’ll get him back, House, I promise.”
House had no doubt that they would. “I know we will. I know, but” he trails off. He’s terrified. What state will Teddy be in when they find him? What will these people have done to him? Is he permanently damaged, like House? Will he ever smile the same? How much of his son has they taken from him, how much of him will be left wherever they find him, never to return?
”I don’t want to bury my son, and I’m terrified I’ll have to.” He turns his gaze away from the Lestrange brothers, staring at Wilson who looks at him with the same fear he knows is on his own face. “I don’t think I’ll survive that.”
Wilson doesn’t respond.
There’s a delicate brush against the back of his hand, a soft request. House moves his hand just as gently, intertwining their fingers.
There they stand, hands held together, watching as Captain Syth enters the conference room to begin the interrogation.
~~~~~
11 years ago
Harry let himself flop down dramatically onto the couch, groaning loud and drawn out. He kicked his feet up onto the coffee table, and let himself go completely limp. Raising a child, especially one as energetic as Teddy, was one of the most exhausting things he had ever done, and his worn down, tired body was constantly telling him to take it easy.
He never did, and though it was exhausting, it was also the most rewarding thing he had ever done.
There was a nudge against his shoulder, and Harry peeled one eye open to see Wilson holding out a mug, steam coming out the top.
He reached out his hand, took the mug from Wilson’s hand and grunted his thanks, then closed his eyes again. “You are a wonderful man, James Wilson.”
A huffed laugh escapes the other man, and the couch dips as he takes a seat next to Harry.
“Thanks, House.”
The two of them sit in peace for a minute, the soft sounds of the monster truck rally on the TV filling the otherwise silent room.
“House?”
Harry cracks his eye open again, peeking at Wilson and raising an eyebrow. “Hmm?”
Wilson opens his mouth, the start of a question on lips, and stops. He purses his lips, stares at Harry for a moment, and shakes his head.
“Nevermind.”
That was odd. Extremely odd, actually, and curiosity did always get the better of him. He sits up, turns towards Wilson, and stares. Wilson, who has a deer-in-headlights look, stares right back. This continues on for an unknown amount of time, but Harry just stares.
“Can you stop staring at me like-”
“No.”
“Okay.”
Harry keeps staring.
“So, are you going to tell me what you were thinking earlier, or am I going to have to keep staring at you in silence?”
Concerningly, Wilson doesn’t roll his eyes or give one of his famous, long-suffering sighs. Harry was very good at causing those. No, instead, he clams up, shaking his head and mumbling “no, no.” under his breath.
Now, Harry had taken time to craft Dr. Gregory House. He had made decisions on the appearance, behavior, and history of this identity that would keep him and his son hidden for as long as possible. One of these decisions included a persona of being somewhat of an asshole, someone who didn’t make friends well, who was socially dense, rude, and more self-centered. This was for a purpose, of course, mostly to keep most people away.
James Evan Wilson was not in the plan, and Harry did genuinely consider him a friend, sometimes someone he would like to be more than a friend. No, actually, someone he definitely wanted as more than a friend. He was gone for Wilson, and he knew it.
As such, seeing Wilson so worked up about something tugged at his heart, making him want to throw away the persona of Dr. Gregory House and figure out what was wrong, show care and compassion. He shouldn’t, though. Definitely a bad move… dammit.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, voice softer than Wilson has probably ever heard it, other than when aimed at Teddy.
“I love you”
Harry’s breath caught in his throat, his whole body freezing, despite being completely still already. He swears he feels his heart stutter in his chest.
For an eternal moment, it feels like the whole world freezes with him. The sound of monster trucks on the TV doesn’t even register to his ears.
Teddy, sweet, precious, Teddy is asleep in the next room, completely unaware that his ‘uncle Jim’ has just uttered those three words. If he was aware, he would be ecstatic, of course. He had been whining and begging and bugging Harry about the fact that ‘it’s sooo obvious you two are in love, papa’, usually flopping dramatically onto his bed or a couch while saying so.
Teddy was, obviously, correct.
Harry knew he loved Wilson, every moment he spent with the man was an unfair and brutal reminder. Until this moment, however, he had hoped Wilson didn’t return his feelings. He had hoped and wished he didn’t, so when one day Harry had to run away again, he would be safer, not be so affected by Harry’s disappearance.
Hope proved to be, once again, futile.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything.” comes rushing out of the other doctor's lips, who stands and starts gathering his things. “You have Teddy, and you definitely don’t feel the same way, and I don't know why I said that at all, I just…” he trails off, still looking for something.
Harry’s heart clenches in his chest, and he still feels frozen. He sees the flush on Wilson’s cheeks, reaching to the back of his neck. His sweater is the last thing he picks up, heading towards the door right after. Harry can’t let him walk out that door, can’t let him leave. He has to do something, but he’s terrified.
Almost in slow motion, Harry see’s Wilson’s hand wrap around the handle, about to open that door. He doesn’t want him to leave.
“I love you, too.”
