02x05 - Daddy's Boy

[bunniefuu]

[Outside fancy restaurant. Dad (Ken) and son (Carnell) exit]


Ken: [laughs] I ought to have this framed, my last bill from Princeton.


Carnell: And I thought we were celebrating the fact that I actually graduated.


Ken: I always knew you'd be able to graduate, what I didn’t know was whether I would be able to pay for it. Your mom, uh, she’d be so proud of you.


Carnell: You always say that.


Ken: I’m so proud of you. Always was.


Carnell: Come on dad you gonna cry.


Ken: [laughs] You wanna be embarrassed?


[Son shakes his head in mock denial]


Ken: You got it.


[Gives his son a big hug]


Ken: Look, uh, don’t party too hard tonight, your grandmother wants a picture of you getting that sheepskin, and it’d be nice if you didn’t look completely hung-over.


Carnell: Ooh, no, don’t worry, I’ve had enough alcohol in the past week to last me another four years.


Ken: Good. I think.


[Carnell laughs]


[Cut to a party, where Carnell is downing a ton of beers. Loud music is playing in the background. A huge party is going one, and everyone is chugging the booze.]


Kid: 12.55!


Carnell: [cheers and stands up, slapping hands with the people around him] You are the man! [bear hugs a friend, Taddy]


Taddy: Tell me something I don’t know.


[Carnell is then shocked, and backs away from his friend]


Carnell: Ow! Ow, OW! Hey that’s not funny man.


Taddy: What?


Carnell: Yeah right, you shocked me.


Taddy: With what? I got nothing.


[Carnell is shocked again, and this time there is no one around that could have caused it. The people around him start backing away, and looking on in horror. ]


Kid 2: Yo dude, check it out.


Carnell: All right whoever’s doing that better cut it out!


[He is shocked again, and this time we get a CGI of the shocks traveling down his spine.]


Carnell: What the hell's going on?


Girl: Maybe there’s a short somewhere, the floor’s covered with beer.


Kid: No the outlets are [unintelligible], plus he’s got rubber-soled shoes on.


[Carnell is shocked again. This time it knocks him to the floor.]


Kid: Somebody call 911!


[Carnell is writhing on the floor, being shocked over and over.]



[Opens with a hospital room where Wilson is checking out Carnell. Ken is standing off to the side. Carnell is still being shocked repeatedly]


[Cut to Wilson writing on the whiteboard in the conference room in that unintelligible doctor's scrawl while the ducklings try to make out what he's writing]


Wilson: Patient experiences shock-like sensations, as well as headaches, nausea, and drowsiness.


Chase: Shocks?


Wilson: Excruciatingly painful shocks. ER docs referred him to a neurologist, who referred him to five other doctors in the last seven days.


Cameron: Shocks could be L'Hermitte's Sign, early symptom of MS.


Wilson: No, MRI showed no white matter lesions, and the shocks aren’t accompanied by neck flexing.


[House strides in, wearing a leather jacket, jeans, and a red t-shirt]


House: Good morning!


Foreman: It’s almost noon.


House: Really? That must be why I’m so hungry. Who’s up for lunch?


Cameron: What’s with the jacket?


House: [poses] It keeps me warm, and cool. How does it know?


Wilson: We're discussing your new patient.


House: Must be a boring discussion, considering that I haven’t accepted a new patient.


Wilson: You accepted him the moment I loaned you five grand.


House: Ohh, wait, wait, when I said I’d do anything for the money, obviously I didn’t mean it.


Wilson: You’re gonna like this. Kid’s getting shocked every few minutes.


Cameron: Why would you need five thousand dollars?


Chase: Bad night at poker, or great night with a hooker?


House: Thank you for saving me the trouble of deflecting that personal question with a joke. [Chase smiles, and House turns to Wilson] College student? Nitrous oxide is fun at parties. Cause the shocks, and drinking 'til you puke every night can cause everything else. Give him some B12.


Wilson: Been there done that, also ruled out cancer, MS, pyridoxine toxicity, and all the popular neuropathies.


House: [sighs] Cervical spondylosis?


Wilson: Doesn’t explain the low white count.


House: He’s black, I’m assuming he’s not just really dirty, but is of African descent. Which means he’d have a lower white count.


Wilson: Not this low.


House: He’s a wrestler, probably uses diuretics to cut weight, can also cause low white count.


Wilson: Not this low.


House: [Mockingly] Not this low. Tieshets(??).


Wilson: No skin lesions.


House: Cervical herpes osteomyelitis?


Wilson: No external outbreak.


House: Something’s missing. Find out what it is. [Tosses the chart on the table in front of the ducklings.]


Foreman: Uh, I don’t even know what that means.


House: Well figure it out, find it out, and then find me, I’ll be at lunch.


[House walks out the door]


[Cut to the son’s hospital room. Cameron is there with Ken]


Ken: No ideas?


Cameron: Lots of ideas, too many ideas, that’s why so many tests. Have you used any recreational dr*gs?


[Carnell looks up at Ken]


Ken: What? I’m gonna get mad at you for getting stoned? Not today. Not here.


Carnell: Um, well at Christmas, one of the guys had some Ecstasy. It was...[Gets shocked and screams] Son of a bitch.


[Cut to lab, Foreman and Chase are there]


Foreman: ANA is negative for lupus, again.


Chase: House wants more information, not the same information done over again.


Foreman: [mocks] Find what’s missing. For all we know the kid is dying, and he’s giving us riddles?


Cameron: Did a more detailed history, went back three generations.


Foreman: And?


Cameron: His mom d*ed in a car accident, his mom’s mom had arthritis, and his mom’s mom’s dad served in an all black t*nk battalion in Gapettion.


Foreman: Fascinating. If it’s not a tumor it has to be MS.


Chase: Wilson already ruled out [interrupted]


Foreman: MRI can’t rule out MS 100% of the time.


Cameron: MS doesn’t explain the low white count.


Foreman: Alcoholism does. On admission his BAC was 2.0, liver enzymes off the chart.


Cameron: It was graduation weekend. He barely drank in the weeks before that and he didn’t drink at all during his wrestling season.


Foreman: IF you believe him.


Cameron: I did a tox screen!


Chase: It doesn’t matter if she believes him or not. It’s already in the chart. We’re supposed to find out what’s missing.


[Cut to the parking lot, where a sports bike is parked. It’s scraped up on the one side. Pan around and House and Wilson are revealed to be standing near it, looking at the bike.]


Wilson: Well this, this is perfect.


House: Invite me to diner Thursday night. [Wilson looks blankly at him] Come on we haven’t had a nice meal together since, oh…


Wilson: Yesterday when I loaned you five thousand dollars to buy a new car.
[Points at the bike]


House: [tosses his cane up in the air and catches it near the top, then hands it over to Wilson] My treat. [House limps over to the bike]


Wilson: Two-wheeled vehicles that travel 150 miles an hour don’t really go well with crippled, irresponsible, drug addicts.


House: Actually two-wheeled vehicles that go 180 miles an hour do not go well with healthy responsible architects who don’t know how to separate breaking and turning. [While he is saying this, House is lifting his right leg over the bike, and settling down onto the seat.] Good news is, it brings the price right down.


Wilson: You’re taking it back.


House:[Mock whining] Moooom! How about we talk about this over dinner.


Wilson: Forget dinner, you’re gonna k*ll yourself!


Chase: Nice bike!


[See the ducklings walking over]


House: Thank you. See that’s how you do it, compliments, dinner.


Cameron: What do you do with your cane?


House: If he buys me dinner, he’ll find out. [House takes his cane back from Wilson and twirls it, then clicks it into place on the side of the bike. A special holder is there for that purpose.] Evil Kineval had the same setup.


Cameron: And he broke every bone in his body.


Foreman: We went though all the imaging studies, and re-did blood cultures.


[House turns on the bike, and gently revs the engine]


House: I don’t want hand-me-downs. I want brand new stuff.


Foreman: Well there’s nothing [House revs the engine louder] There’s nothing…[House revs the engine again.]


House: Sorry I didn’t catch that last part!


[Chase is laughing]


Foreman: There’s nothing [Engine revs again, Foreman gives up and stops speaking and House stops revving the engine. Everyone including Wilson starts to smile, Foreman tries again] There's nothing else we can do.


House: You checked the police report?


Foreman: On what?


House: On his mom's car accident.


Cameron: It was 15 years ago, the kid wasn't even in the car


House: She veered off a straight dry road in broad daylight. That doesn't seem odd to you?


Foreman: She probably got distracted changing radio stations or something.


House: That's what the police thought. Of course, they didn't know that she has a family member who is frequently incapacitated by shock-like sensations


Cameron: Genetic component seems unlikely


House: It's interesting. Type 2 neurofibromatosis could cause the shocks.


Foreman: You knew this was missing?


House: [shrugs] I knew something was missing. Maybe this, maybe something else. Get a DNA analysis of the long arm of chromosome 22


[Ducklings nod and walk back to the hospital. House revs up the engine of the bike and then turns it off, turning to Wilson]


House: You'd rather have dinner with your wife?


Wilson: Yes, I would. If she were speaking to me.


House: [smiles] Unlike her, I could make it worth your while [leers]


Wilson: Fine.


House: Should I drive?


Wilson: Uhh...no. And I'm not letting you in my car until I see your wallet


(Cut to Foreman and Cameron in Carnell's room)


Foreman: NF2. It's an inherited disease [he sticks a long cotton bud to swab the inside of Carnell's cheek] Could cause abnormal growths in the cranial nerves. It would explain the shocks and other symptoms


Cameron: DNA analysis will show whether your son has the specific chromosome mutation which causes the disease


Ken: But if it's inherited, that means someone else in our family would have it


Foreman: We think your wife may have had it


Ken: No, she never had any sort of health problems


Cameron: No odd-looking freckles? Nodules in the iris?


Ken: Nothing. I mean, why would you think she was sick?


Cameron: We think it may have been what caused her car accident


Carnell: Wait, wait... what do you mean? My mom's car was hit by a drunk driver.


Foreman: That's not what the police report indicated


[Ken looking very guilty]


Carnell: Well, then you must have gotten the wrong report


Ken: No. They didn't. [sighs] When you started driving, I umm...


Carnell: Wha... you lied about how mom d*ed?


Ken: I figured if her death could somehow mean something to you--


Carnell: How's lying about it mean something?! How could you use her like that, dad? Her death?


Ken: I was just trying to protect you.


Carnell: What else isn't true? She wasn't a teacher? You just wanted me to read?


Foreman: What's that smell?


Cameron: [sniffs] I don't smell...


Foreman: [pulls down Carnell's blankets, he's literally pooped himself] We're going to need a nurse


Carnell: What the hell?


Cameron: It's ok, we'll take care of it


Ken: You didn't feel anything?


Carnell: No.


Foreman: [takes out his pen and pushes the point against Carnell's big toe] You feel that?


Carnell: Yeah


Cameron: But you didn't feel any of this?


Carnell: No.


(Cut to the conference room)


Foreman: Sphincter paralysis plus shocks equals Miller Fisher syndrome


Chase: Not if you had the stool sample which was negative for botulinism ((this is what the House website says Chase says, and I can't make out what Chase actually says in the ep))


House: He lied to his son about how his mom d*ed? [takes a vicodin]


Cameron: He was just protecting him


House: Manipulating him.


Cameron: It's what parents do.


House: They lie to us because they love us. Who's getting teary?


Foreman: Mom's death is irrelevant. DNA revealed no NF2 markers or any other inherited disease. Apparently, she really did fall asleep at the wheel.


House: SO, what exactly are we talking about here? A little peeker, or did the prairie dog actually come out to play?


Cameron: Excuse me?


House: Are we talking expl*sive?


Cameron: The haemacel was negative for blood, and I wouldn't say he actually exploded. More like... gushed?


[the phone starts ringing, House walks over to pick it up]


House: Good, now we're getting somewhere [checks the caller ID]


Foreman: Yeah? Where?


House: I have no idea [picks up the phone] Hello?


Foreman: Of course! The riddles.


House: Hi mom! Look, err, I have a business dinner on thursday night, I can't get out of it. I know, I really I wanted to see you too. Uhh, actually, can I call you back? I'm in a meeting right now. Okay, thanks. [The ducklings look confused and startled, House puts down the phone]


Cameron: Who was that?


House: Angelina Jolie. I call her mom. Who thinks that's sexy? [turns back to the whiteboard] So, expl*sive or gushing...


Cameron: She never calls you, is everything okay?


House: Great, yeah. My dad's taking her to Europe, they got a nine-hour layover in Newark on thursday. If it's gastrointestinal...


Cameron: You lied to avoid seeing your own mom.


House: Are you kidding? I can't lie to my mom. [Cameron's look clearly says that's obviously bullshit] Seriously, I can't! Wilson's invited me to dinner. It'd be rude to stand up a guy who just loaned me 5 grand. [Cameron looks shocked]


Foreman: Transverse myelitis. Could cause numbness, a**l sphincter dysfunction, and the shocks.


House: Thank you for taking no interest in my mother. But that begs the question, what caused the tranverse myelitis?


Foreman: Well, we've ruled out cancer and MS, leaves infection


Cameron: If there's infection there'd be a fever


Chase: And his blood and CSF cultures are all negative


Foreman: Maybe the infection's gone but the memory remains


House: Molecular mimicry. Nice. Okay, get an immunoglobulin level and an electrophoresis


[Ducklings walk out]


House: [talking to the symptoms on the whiteboard] You're good my friend, I'm sure we'll meet again.


(Cut to the Ducklings walking down the hallway)


Cameron: You really think that was his mom on the phone?


Chase: Probably. Don't know why he'd lie about that.


Foreman: Who cares?


Cameron: You're not the least bit curious what his parents are like?


Foreman: I'm sure his mom's a piece of work! Only a mother could do that much damage.


Chase: My bet's he was born the way he is. Probably tormented his parents, not the other way around


Foreman: Yeah he was either a fast runner or one hell of a fighter. [to Cameron, who's walking to another door away from where the Ducklings were probably supposed to go to do the tests] Where are you going?


Cameron: You guys can handle the tests, right?


(Cut to Cameron talking to Wilson in his office)


Cameron: Is there something important that you and House need to discuss over dinner?


Wilson: Other than the sky-rocketing interest rates on personal loans? You know this is the fourth time I've loaned him money? Not lunch money. Money money.


Cameron: House's parents... they have a layover in Newark thursday evening.


Wilson: [throws his pen on to the table and sighs] I'm cancelling dinner


Cameron: No. Thought maybe you could just invite a few more people.


(Cut to Chase performing a lumbar puncture on Carnell)


Foreman: An infectious agent's molecular structure can resemble the spinal cord's. When the immune system att*cks the infection, it ends up attacking the spinal cords as well.


Ken: So he has an infection?


Carnell: Just said I don't


Foreman: If the infection is gone, it goes right on attacking because the spinal cord is still there


Ken: Is there a treatment?


Chase: Depends on what the original infection was. [To Carnell] All right, you're done. You need to lay flat after a lumbar puncture for about an hour.


Carnell: I feel like I'm going to throw up. Hey dad, can you uhh, can you get me a coke please?


Ken: Yeah, that usually helps


[Carnell's rolling his eyes]


Chase: You're done


[Carnell rolls over back on to his back]


Foreman: If you're nauseous [he brings a small metal bowl to put under Carnell's mouth]


Carnell: [waves it away] No, I'm not nauseous, I just wanted him out of here


Chase: He's your dad, he's going to be around


Carnell: Yeah, I know. It's not that it's...


(Cut to House facepalmming while sitting at the table in the conference room with Chase and Foreman)


House: Are these people completely incapable of telling the truth to each other?


Chase: He went to Jamaica with his friends.


House: [sighs] No wonder he lied. Children aren't supposed to have good times.


Foreman: One of his friends flew them down. Carnell's dad has this thing about him accepting stuff from rich friends. Wants him to remember who he is, where he came from.


[Cameron suddenly walks in]


House: Where have you been?


Cameron: Making dinner plans. What's up?


House: The boys have uncovered the shocking fact that the patient has a crappy relationship with his dad.


Cameron: They seem to actually care


House: Well I don't. There's only one reason any kid with a plane flies to Jamaica.


Foreman: It wasn't for marijuana. He doesn't do anything but drink


House: He say that to you or his paps?


Cameron: Tox screen was negative for THC


House: [thoughtful] Spring break was over a month ago, even pot would have washed out by now


Foreman: Even if he'd smoked, no way marijuana causes tranverse myelitis


House: True. But the stuff they put on it does.


Chase: Pesticides.


Foreman: Why would he come clean about the trip but lie about smoking pot?


Chase: Well you wouldn't necessarily have to smoke to get pesticide poisoning. He could have eaten fruit that had been sprayed or been exposed to his skin on a hike.


House: Or he could have smoked it. A lot of it. And then lied about it because that's what this family does. Start him on IV of pralidoxime. 2 grams per litre and then 1 gram every eight hours until you see some improvement.


Foreman: You have no evidence to support a poisoning diagnosis.


House: Which is why it's gonna be so cool when I turn out to be right.


[Ducklings start to walk out]


House: Cameron, who were you making dinner plans with?


Cameron: [looking very innocent] No one. [House doesn't look convinced]


(Cut to House walking up to Wilson's car in the outdoors car park at night)


House: You bastard! [Wilson turns around and sees House] You invited my parents to dinner.


Wilson: Geez Cameron's got a big mouth!


House: Hah! Not as big as yours!


Wilson: Hey! You used me to avoid seeing your parents.


House: Well what do you care?


Wilson: I don't, I just thought it might be interesting to find out why.


House: You could have just asked.


Wilson: You would have lied!


House: And you would have believed me! Which would have kept us both happy. [Wilson looks utterly confused] You want your money back? Is this what this is about?


Wilson: No! [pause] Wait, what... have you got the money?


[House rests his cane against the car and digs in his pockets for something]


Wilson: If you have the money then why did you need the loan?


House: I didn't. [takes out his chequebook and starts writing a cheque] Just wanted to see if you could give it to me. I've been borrowing increasing amounts ever since you lent me 40 dollars a year ago. A little experiment to see where you draw the line.


Wilson: [dumbfounded] You're [splutters] you're trying to... objectively measure how much I value our friendship?!


House: Hey, it's 5 grand. You've got nothing to be ashamed of. [tears the cheque out of his chequebook] So what do you say? One little phone call and one big cheque?


Wilson: [takes the cheque and puts it in his wallet] Fine. Thanks. Now, be a grown-up and either tell mommy and daddy you don't want to see them, or I'm picking you up at 7 for dinner [gets into his car]


House: [shocked] What do you mean? You just said that--


Wilson: I lied. I've been lying to you in increasing amounts ever since I told you you looked good unshaved, a year ago. It's a little experiment, you know, see where you draw the line [closes the car door and starts his car up]


(Cut to hospital next morning)


Cuddy: How's the patient?


Foreman: Haven't been in yet today.


Cuddy: As long as he hasn't gotten any worse. We're treating him for pesticide poisoning without any proof it was pesticides. I'm going to have hell of a time explaining that to our lawyer.


Foreman: I told House not to--


[They walk into Carnell's room. He's sitting up guzzling his breakfast]


Cuddy: Wow!


Foreman: [aside to Cuddy] Lawyer's not going to believe this.


Ken: [laughing] He's got his appetite back! Whatever you did is working.


(House walking down the corridor with Cuddy)


House: He's healthy, so all is forgiven. Now I'm feeling nauseous.


Cuddy: [looking at Carnell's files] He is not healthy. Nausea and diarrhoea were not his only symptoms!


House: The shocks have also decreased


Cuddy: But not disappeared.


House: And he's out of the diaper, which is good news for everyone.


Cuddy: What about his low white count?


House: The little buggers need time to grow. Don't worry, our wrestling Rastafarian will be back on his feet and sneaking around behind pap's back again in no time. [the phone in his office starts ringing, House picks it up] Yeah. [pause] Check it again. I'll be right there. [puts down the phone]


Cuddy: What happened?


House: Apparently I can save money by switching to another long-distance carrier.


Cuddy: Oh I was right, wasn't I?


House: Oh yeah, it's always about you isn't it?


(Cut to House walking into Carnell's room)


Cameron: He has the chills and his temperature's spiking. It's nearly 106


[Carnell is shaking and sweating all over. House walks over to check Carnell's pupils and pulse]


Ken: What's that mean? I mean... what's happening?


House: You want the truth? Or you want me to make something up to protect you? We think a drunk driver broke into his room.


Ken: [angry] What's happening to my son!


House: The truth is... I have no idea.


(Cut to House writing FEVER on the whiteboard and underlining it)


House: There's the fever that Cameron was looking for


Cameron: We knew if it was myelitis there had to be an "itis". This must be the infection that set it off.


House: Yeah, except in this universe, effect follows cause. I've complained about it, but--


Cameron: Maybe the tests were wrong


House: No, the tests were right. Yesterday he had no fever, no infection.


Chase: So he just happened to catch a bug while he was here? That's all this is?


House: Yeah. Because his white blood cell count was down he was vulnerable, because it's really down it might k*ll him. That's ALL this is. Is he still pooping his pants?


Chase: He just started again.


House: Again?


Chase: It stopped when he was getting better.


House: He was feeling better, he was never getting better.


Foreman: So, all we have to answer is what causes a 22-year-old kid to become immuno-compromised with GI involvement AND shocks.


Chase: And to stop and start for no apparent reason.


Cameron: And we need to find an answer before this infection kills him.


House: That would be the ideal. You [points to Chase] intravenous broad spectrum antibiotics. You [points to Foreman] get a cervical thoracic and lumbar T2-weighted fast spin echo MRIs, and you [points to Cameron] track down all those Richie Riches who went to Jamaica. See if any of them have got the shocks, the trots or the hots. Hots is the... fever


[All the Ducklings leave on their various errands]


(Cut to the Ducklings exiting the elevator together)


Cameron: You guys gonna join us for dinner thursday?


Chase: Umm... gotta do my laundry.


Cameron: You're not curious?


Chase: I'm curious about crocs but I don't stick my head in their mouths


Foreman: I'm out too. What? House is a freak! There's no virus that causes that, no DNA mutation. You're going to have one dinner with two people, sixty minutes. Most of it spent chewing and talking about the weather. Unless they say something like "do you prefer the chardonnay or the merlot? And oh, we kept Greg locked in the closet for 17 years" [Cameron laughs, Chase smiles], you're not going to learn anything.


Cameron: Okay.


(Cut to Carnell's room)


Cameron: We'd like to talk to some of your friends, see if they have any similar symptoms


Ken: The doctors in the ER already asked me that.


Cameron: We understand, but they didn't have all the information that we have now.


Ken: What kind of information?


Cameron: Would you mind if I spoke with Carnell alone for a minute?


Ken: Is this bad news?


Cameron: No. It's just confidential.


Ken: Why is something suddenly confidential? I mean, if you know something about my son, I need to know what's going on.


Cameron: I'm sorry, I have to insist.


Ken: I'm his father. And if I'm going to take care of him, I need to know the truth.


Carnell: Dad... she wants to know who I went to Jamaica with.


Ken: You've never been to Jamaica!


Carnell: Taddy's dad flew a bunch of us down over Spring break.


Ken: You told me you had two papers to write over the break.


Carnell: 'Cause I didn't want to come home and work my ass off. I wanted an actual break. Don't wanna break for once. I shouldn't have lied to you.


Ken: No, what you should have done is come home instead of partying with your
rich friends.


Cameron: I'm sorry, we need those names.


(Cut to Cuddy entering her office, House follows her in)


Cuddy: What do you want?


House: To apologise. [Cuddy smiles, not trusting House one bit] I realise that
my attention to the clinic has been somewhat lax of late and I want to make amends. How about tomorrow night, I take the night shift?


Cuddy: The clinic's closed at night


House: Yeah but I'm sure there's plenty of things to be done, there's charts to be reviewed, supplies inventoried--


Cuddy: Dinners avoided?


House: You're going too?


Cuddy: I love their cod salad.


House: Gimme a reason to get out of this, and I'll tell you who started the rumour about you being a transsexual.


Cuddy: There is no such rumour.


House: There will be, unless you get me out of this dinner.


Cuddy: No one's making you do this, House, just do what everybody else does, lie to them.


House: You lie to your mother?


Cuddy: Only since I was twelve!


House: My mom's a human polygraph. My dad's taking her to Vegas, not the Louvre.


Cuddy: Trust me, your mom would much rather think you have a business meeting than you hate her.


House: I don't hate her. I hate him.


(Cut to Cameron talking to Taddy in an office at night)


Taddy: We all had headaches, nausea, vomiting. You know, we figured it was connected to the massive amounts of drinking. What, you think what happened to Carnell had something to do with the trip?


Cameron: Don't know, you haven't had any unexplained pain or strange feelings since you got back?


Taddy: Nope, except for a little Leslie's foot I'm fine.


Cameron: Can I see it?


Taddy: See what?


Cameron: Your feet. There's a common parasite in Jamaica that can resemble foot fungus.


Taddy: [uncomfortable] It's not really my feet. You know, I figured fungus is fungus. It's my groin.


Cameron: I'm going to need to take a look at that.


Taddy: Now?


Cameron: Unless you want to come down to the hospital with me.


Taddy: No, no, I can't. I mean, I just started two days ago, we're right in the middle of a big mer--


Cameron: Then drop your pants.


[Taddy slowly gets up and drops his pants, Cameron bends down with her latex gloves on and takes a look. Suddenly, an older guy opens the door]


Older guy: Riley I need the-- What the hell's going on here?


Taddy: She's a doctor!


Cameron: I'm a doctor, he has a rash and a friend of his is--


Older guy: Right, well, as soon as she's done treating your rash, I need the numbers on deport technology.


Taddy: Yes sir.


Older guy: And err... doctor why don't you leave a card on your way out?


[Cameron gapes in shock and sighs]


(Cut to the hospital, next morning)


Cameron: Except for one guy with a rash, no one else on the trip has any health issues.


Wilson: What kind of rash?


Cameron: I don't know. I took some scrapings, it doesn't appear to be ringworm.


House: What did it look like? Aside from not ringworm.


Cameron: Basically like diaper rash. He's been working around the clock, said he hasn't changed his clothes in three days.


Chase: Kaposi's sarcoma could look like diaper rash.


Wilson: Any discolouration around the edges?


House: Get him in here, we all wanna take a look.


Foreman: Even if it is Kaposi's it's not related. Our patient doesn't have any skin symptoms and we've already ruled out cancer.


House: What are the odds of two friends who've just returned from a trip outside the country coming down with unexplained, but unrelated illnesses? Get him in here.


Cameron: He won't come. Just started a new job after graduation, they're working on some big merger.


House: Tell him his friend's life hangs in the balance.

Cameron: That's what I told him the first time. Still wound up driving into Manhattan.


House: Tell him his life hangs in the balance. Tell him the rash is flesh-eating and the next course in the menu is his frank and beans.


(Cut to Cameron talking to Cuddy in the hallway)


Cameron: Where's Stacy?


Cuddy: Err... speaking at a Conference in Baltimore, why what do you need?


Cameron: Can I ask an opinion on a patient? House wants me to lie to the kid to get him in here.


Cuddy: Well then you'll be the one getting the (supina?)


Cameron: Well we do need to diagnosis his friend.


Cuddy: Take the test to the kid.


Cameron: There is no test, House just wants to look at it.


Cuddy: Then take House to "it".


Cameron: Yeah, like that's going to happen.


Cuddy: Tell House his parents called. Said they were coming in early. He'll go anywhere just to avoid them [walks into her office]


Cameron: So it's ok to lie to House but not to a patient.


Cuddy: [smug] Yep!


[Cameron's beeper starts beeping]


(Cut to Carnell screaming in pain)


Foreman: What's wrong?


Ken: His stomach's getting a lot worse


Chase: It's rigid! [CGI of Carnell's intestines] He's bleeding into his abdomen.


Cameron: [rushing in] What's going on?


Foreman: We need a surgeon and an OR, stat!


Cameron: On it! [picks up the phone by the bedside]


Ken: Try to hang in there, Carnell


(Cut to the OR, House and Ducklings looking on from the observation deck)


Chase: The infection caused a perforation in his sigmoid colon. It's repairable.


Foreman: But it means the antibiotics aren't working.


House: Double the dose. And add tygacil to the list.


Foreman: Soon as he's out of surgery.


House: Where's Richie Rich?


Cameron: He said he can't leave work.


House: Yeah, you told me that 2 hours ago.


Cameron: I'm not going to lie.


House: Why, 'cause it's wrong? Or because you're a coward?


Cameron: Hmm, tough choice.


House: You've been wasting 2 hours of the kid's time. Is that deeply and unforgivably morally wrong? No. Because it's not a waste of his time. Unless we're wrong, unless his condition has got nothing to do with his friend's. You're just afraid of being wrong.


Cameron: Your parents called. [House looks a little stunned] They had to catch an earli--


Cuddy: [suddenly walks in] You don't have to lie to him, kid's on his way here.


Cameron: He got off work?


Cuddy: Yeah, by vomiting blood. Ambulance is 10 minutes out.


(Camera zooms downs the hallway to Cameron standing arms crossed and House pulling on a pair of latex gloves)


[Paramedics wheel Taddy in on a gurney]


House: You Taddy?


Taddy: What?


[Cameron pauses the paramedics]


House: Love the name. If I ever have a dog... take off his pants.


Taddy: [to Cameron] Hey.


House: Don't talk to her, listen to me


Paramedic: He's vomited in excess of 3 units of blood, he needs to be admitted before--


House: You wanted to be a doctor, maybe you should have buckled down a little more in high school [takes a pair of scissors and starts cutting up Taddy's pants]


Paramedic: Bite me.


Taddy: What are you doing?


House: Exactly how close were you and Carnell?


Taddy: Not so close.


House: Spend a lot of time together in Jamaica? Share a room?


Taddy: Wait, you don't think... look, we're not gay.


House: Not saying you're gay, I'm saying you had sex. [tears the pants open and starts inspecting the rash near Taddy's groin. Fortunately, Taddy's still got his briefs on]


Taddy: Look we're not gay, we hardly even hung out.


House: Right, so you just flew him down to Jamaica because he won a contest.


Taddy: No he's in my frat, all right? Between school and wrestling, and going home every break to work in his father's junkyard, Carnell didn't have any time to hang out with anybody.


House: It's not fungus.


Cameron: I already told you that.


House: There's no pustules, it's not Staph... [suddenly looks up at Taddy] His dad's what?


Taddy: His dad owns a scrap metal salvage yard. Carnell worked there during breaks.


[House suddenly abandons the scissors and quickly walks away]


(Cut to House sweeping the curtains aside with his cane in the recovery room. Carnell is still unconscious, Ken is stroking his son's head]


House: You lied.


Ken: What are you talking about?


House: Oh, yeah, problems with this family, probably need more specifics. You told us you owned a construction company, not a salvage yard.


Ken: I know the way things work, the better my job, the better my son gets
treated.


House: Right. That's why I'm mad. 'Cause we wasted all that filet mignon on you. Did your kid find anything unusual the last time he worked for you?


Ken: No.


House: Braided wire, metal weights, lead canister, maybe just a lid. Probably used it as a door stop or paperweight.


Ken: Why would he wanna-- [stops mid sentence, long pause]


House: Okay, here it comes


Ken: I gave him an early graduation gift, old plumb I found. Looks like a fishing weight. Put it on a keychain so he'd always remember where he came from.


House: So he can lie about it later. Where's the keychain?


Ken: I don't know. He never used it, just kept it as a good luck charm.


House: Kept it where?


Ken: I don't know! Why? Why does it matter?


[House walks out, the Ducklings are standing together waiting for House]


House: Where are the kid's clothes?


Cameron: In the bureau back in his regular room?


House: [gestures at Chase and Foreman] You two get it to radiology.


Foreman: His clothes?


House: The bureau. Don't open it. [they rush off, he turns to Cameron] You come with me.


(Cut to the Radiology room, Cameron's observing from behind the mirror in another room a House walks in alone with a small box. Foreman and Chase carry the bureau in and set it on the floor)


House: Set it down there. Now get out of here, this thing is radioactive. [he takes an instrument to measure radioactivity out of the small box and turns it on. Chase runs out]


Foreman: The chances of radiation causing CNS symptoms?


[The instrument makes a noise immediately after it's turned on. House exchanges a look with Foreman. House opens up the first drawer, the noise from the instrument becomes even louder]


Foreman: Woah.


[House takes out a bag with a keychain attached to one of the zips, the instrument indicates that the metal weight attached to the key chain is of radioactive material]


House: Call the boys in the lead pajamas. [Foreman runs out]


(Cut to the Conference room)


Foreman: The measurements weren't high enough to cause Central Nervous System damage.


Chase: It might not have caused nerve damage, but it definitely destroyed his immune system.


House: And caused tumours.


Cameron: We don't know that. None of the MRIs showed anything.


House: Do a PET scan. Check his cervical spine. It's not going to be good news.


(Cut to hospital at night)


Foreman: Mr Hall... it's not good news.


[Carnell is unconscious and using a gas mask to breathe, Foreman is talking to Ken]


Foreman: The piece of metal that you gave Carnell was from an industrial device used to test wells. People aren't supposed to just dump radioactive material...


Ken: But they do. [sighs] So what now? I mean, what do you do?


Foreman: Anyone who's had contact with the source will have to immediately get treatment for radiation sickness. Taddy carried it on his lap on the flight--


Ken: So there is a treatment?


Foreman: Transfusions. And then we try to get the fluids and electrolytes balanced. Carnell... he's had much more exposure. The equivalent of about 70,000 chest X-rays. His ability to create white blood cells has been completely destroyed.


Ken: That's why he... he... can't fight off this infection?


Foreman: He's going to need a bone marrow transplant. And we did a... we did another PET scan. There's a cavernous angioma within his spinal cord, it's a tumour. That's what’s been causing the shocks and CNS symptoms.


Ken: [looks like he's about on the edge of breaking down but only just managing to keep himself together] He has a tumour inside of his spinal cord?


Foreman: Yeah. The cord is... is made of strands put together. Sort of like a kite string. The surgeon should be able to pull the strands apart and excise the tumour, but surgery on someone who is as hemopoetically compromised as your son is... it's extremely risky.


Ken: [with tears in his eyes, his voice raw from keeping the tears back] And uh... if you don't do this surgery... I mean...


Foreman: The tumour could cause his breathing to stop. Possibly his heart as well. There's no way you could have known. [Foreman watches Ken trying to deal with his emotions while Cameron and Chase start moving Carnell's bed to take him to another room] You're going to have to come with us, you need to start treatment yourself.


Ken: No, no no no, I can start my treatment later...


Foreman: But he can't. He needs to be in a sterile isolation room to prevent further infections.


(Cut to House in his office looking at Carnell's chart)


[The office door opens and House's parents walk in, House looks surprised]


House: Mom.


Mom: We're early.


House: [gets up and hugs her] It's great to see you.


Mom: [teases him] Oh Greg, don't lie.


[House looks up at his father with an uncomfortable look on his face]


Mom: We came at a bad time, didn't we?


House: Actually, yeah. I uh... I have to take a rain check.


Dad: Aww, plans have been made. Wilson made 'em.


House: I asked him to cancel. I'm dealing with kind of a complicated case right now, so...


Dad: Well, we'll just come back when things aren't so out of control.


House: My team is busy.


Mom: You don't want to see us?


House: Mom, don't make me feel guilty.


Mom: No no, of course not! Sorry.


House: I've got a patient who's probably going to die of radiation poisoning.


Dad: So that means you can't eat? Come on, let's grab a bite in the cafeteria.


Mom: I'll buy you a ruben.


House: Well I guess I've got time for a sandwich.


Mom: [smiles] Good!


[Cameron walks in]


House: Yeah?


Cameron: I just wanted to let you know that Carnell's prepped for surgery.


House: Thank you.


[She walks in and introduces herself to House's parents and shakes their hands]


Cameron: Hi, I'm Allison Cameron. I work with your son.


Dad: Greg's told us all about you.


Cameron: Really?


[House and Dad share a look]


Dad: New, huh?


House: Nope. Just gullible.


Dad: I'm sorry, I was just making fun of my son, not of you.


Mom: We're just about to go get something to eat, would you care to join us?


[Cameron checks for House's reaction, he obviously is NOT in favour of the idea]


Cameron: You don't have a lot of time with your son. Maybe another time.
[Cameron leaves]


(Cut to Carnell in surgery)


Surgeon: Do you like the Beatles?


Chase: They're all right.


Surgeon: My 12-year-old just turned me back on to them. McCartney's gotta have more money than God.


[While the whole conversation's going on, the Surgeon is taking out the last of Carnell's tumour]


Surgeon: Think that's all of it. Reverse him. How's he doing?


[Chase runs a pair of scissors down Carnell's foot which moves a little in response]


Chase: Looks pretty good down here.


Surgeon: Do I rock or what?


[As if on cue, alarms start ringing]


Nurse: His pressure's dropping!


Surgeon: Give him another two units.


Nurse: I did already!


Chase: His heart rate's falling, he's haemorrhaging.


(Cut to House and parents eating in the hospital cafeteria)


[Cameron is observing this from the door secretly. Foreman walks up behind her]


Foreman: They're talking about mom's last trip to the dentist. Grown children talking to their parents, nothing gets talked about. Trust me, you're not missing anything.


(Cut closer to the action at the table)


Dad: So, besides work, what you been up to?


House: Not much.


Dad: You always say that. Not much.


[Briefly see Cameron walking away]


House: It's always the answer.


Dad: Any new babes you might want to tell me about?


Mom: Leave him alone, John.


House: Got a new motorcycle. Might have seen it out front, it's orange with a gigantic scrape.


Dad: Is it the one in the handicap parking?


House: Yeah. Looks like crap, but it drives great.


Mom: You'll be careful, right? [House nods]


Dad: Last I checked, you still have two legs.


House: Actually, three [holds up his cane]


Dad: [doesn't look amused] You know what your problem is, Greg?


House: Shifting gears?


Dad: You just don't know how lucky you are.


[Father and son stare at each other]


Dad: Where's the head?


[House points to the back]


House: [turns to his mother] Well, good thing we got that cleared up


Mom: Oh he was just trying to help.


House: I don't need help.


Mom: I know. You're absolutely perfect just the way you are.


[House and Mom share a smile]


(Cut to Ken sitting in an armchair, probably undergoing treatment himself)


[Wilson walks in with a cup of coffee for Ken]


Ken: Thank you. So how much longer do you think he'll be in surgery?


Wilson: It's hard to say.


Ken: Hmm [nods, then starts to laugh]. You know he just started school when Anne d*ed? I was a mess. Still adjusting to being a parent, much less a single parent. You know I used to put cold pancakes in his lunchbox [chuckles]. I mean, that was the only thing that I could make that he would eat.


Wilson: You did ok, he's a good kid.


[Chase walks in wearing scrubs]


Ken: Hey. So... how is he?


Chase: Well, the surgeon has removed the tumour without damaging the spinal cord, but the infection has caused another intestinal perforation. We stopped the bleeding, but his white count keeps falling.


Ken: Okay.. um... so what now? Another drug? Antibiotics? What? [he looks
towards Wilson who doesn't answer, then looks back at Chase]


Chase: I'm sorry. The reality is, no matter what we give him, it's unlikely he's going to be able to fight off the infections.


[The realisation suddenly hits Ken. He looks at Wilson who looks down at the floor, Ken is speechless and he nods slowly as tears spring to his eyes]


Ken: Okay, okay.


(Cut to House playing on his game boy)


[Cameron walks in]


Cameron: The father and the friend are responding well to treatment. Things aren't looking so good for Carnell.


House: [sprawled out on an arm chair and one leg on a foot rest] Thank you. For not eating. [He gives her a look that looks thankful but also uncomfortable with the situation]


Cameron: It was none of my business.


House: [nods] They seem perfectly pleasant don't they? They are. He was a marine pilot. She was a housewife. Married 47 years. They had one child. Mom was just like everyone else, nice enough, great sense of humour, hates confrontation. My dad's just like you. Not the caring 'til your eyes pop out part, just the insane moral compass that won't let you lie to anybody about anything. It's a great quality for boy scouts and police witnesses. Crappy quality for a dad.


(Cut to Ken sitting down next to Carnell who's just woken up)


Ken: Hey, how're you doing?


Carnell: I'm hanging in there.


Ken: [sighs] I'm sorry I lied to you about mom.


Carnell: I'm sorry I lied to you too.


Ken: There was nothing good that came out of her dying.


Carnell: I'm not mad. I know why you did it, it worked. I never drink and drive.


[Ken pats his son awkwardly on the shoulder]


Carnell: I'm scared, dad.


Ken: Come on, there's nothing to be scared of. You're going to be just fine.


Carnell: Don't play me. I wanna know the truth.


Ken: I'm telling you the truth. You're going to be fine. I swear.


Carnell: I love you, dad.


Ken: I love you too.


[House's reflection can be seen on the glass as Ken kisses his son's hand. He's watching father and son then walks away]


(Cut to Wilson and Cameron walking in the car park at night)


Cameron: Why does he hate seeing his parents? So his dad tells the truth, he can't handle that?


Wilson: He hates being a disappointment.


Cameron: He's a doctor, world famous! How disappointed can they be?


Wilson: You know what I figure is worse than watching your son become crippled? Watching him be miserable.


(House with his leather jacket and helmet turning on his motorcycle in the same car park Wilson and Cameron were walking in. He revs up the bike, put on his gloves and flips the plastic cover of his helmet down before riding off. The camera pans in on the Handicap Parking Only sign where House's motorcycle was parked)