Up to Date |Angel|

[Dr. Lisa Cuddy]

"Few more months, and I won't be able to do that anymore," Cuddy started, referring to the short walk from the hospital, as she slid into a booth close to the door. There was a lot she wouldn't be able to do in a few months, but she'd cross those bridges as they came up, confident that House and their friends would be there to keep her sane.

A waitress came up to the table almost immediately, notepad in hand.

"What can I get you ladies today?" she asked, looking between Cuddy and Angel.

Lisa shrugged off her jacket, folding it and laying it across her lap and setting her purse next to her. She glanced at Angel before turning her eyes back to the waitress.

"White hot chocolate for me," she said and watched the waitress write it down.

[Dr Angel Fraser]

"Aw, I think you'll be able to walk that short distance." Angel replied, sliding in on the other side of the table. "Worse comes to worse, we'll steal one of the wheelchairs and wheel you down here." She grinned, removing her jacket. She set it aside next to her and looked up at the waitress who just appeared.

"I'll have what she's having." Angel said, watching the waitress write down her order. When the waitress left, Angel propped her chin up on her hands. "So, where were we?"

[Dr. Lisa Cuddy]

Lisa had to chuckle at the idea of stealing a wheelchair. "I don't think we'll be able to get away with that too often," she laughed. Hopefully, they wouldn't have to go that far, but who knew at this point? "We could always ask Norman to come out here and get it for us," she added, referring to her secretary.

As the waitress walked away, Cuddy feigned thoughtfulness. "I think we were talking about our respective significant others." She smiled, then added: "Unless you'd rather hear about my appointment." Shrugging, she leaned back in the booth. She was fine either way. It was girl talk; whatever they talked about would stay between them, so it didn't really matter either way to her.

[Dr Angel Fraser]

"Oh come on, it would fun. Sign it out saying that we're taking a patient for coffee, it could work." Angel grinned. She cocked her head to the side when Cuddy mentioned her new secretary was a male. "House let you hire a male secretary? Is he cute?" She knew she was with Wilson, but a little eye candy here and there never hurt anyone. She was perfectly content with her oncologist.

"Mm right, significant others." Angel nodded, her memory refreshed. "I still can't believe I lucked out on finding James." She smiled. She felt like she was back in high school, talking about her first boyfriend. Although her actual first boyfriend hadn't been a winner. "I keep asking myself what did I do to deserve him, you know?"

[Dr. Lisa Cuddy]

Cuddy smiled secretively, shifting a curl behind her ear. "House didn't have a choice. He told me to hire someone. I did. Of course, he wasn't thrilled about Norman, but all it means is that I won't have to listen to him make sexual comments about anyone except me." She paused, trying to figure out how best to answer Angel's question. "He's...young. Younger than you. But, as you probably know by now, my definition of 'cute' is different than yours."

Cuddy nodded. "Luck had nothing to do with it, Angel. Me, on the other hand...If Greg hadn't been in just the right place at just the right time back in Michigan, we would never have met. Well, we probably still would have, but you get my point." She chuckled as the waitress returned with their hot chocolates. "I know exactly what you mean." She felt that she was too strict and dictatorial for anyone to have any sort of feelings for her.

[Dr Angel Fraser]

Angel was glad that Cuddy was pleased with her choice of secretary. "Ah, protecting your assets huh?" She teased, knowing that if she had been in the same situation, she would have done the same thing. "Younger than me? I'm not that old." Angel feigned insult. "As for my definition of cute, I'll say this. Wilson is handsome and cute, House is ruggedly handsome. Definitely not cute. Although I'm sure he has his moments."

Cuddy nodded. "Luck had nothing to do with it, Angel. Me, on the other hand...If Greg hadn't been in just the right place at just the right time back in Michigan, we would never have met. Well, we probably still would have, but you get my point." She chuckled as the waitress returned with their hot chocolates. "I know exactly what you mean." She felt that she was too strict and dictatorial for anyone to have any sort of feelings for her.

Angel listened to her friend, curious as to just how Cuddy and House had originally met. She made a mental note to inquire about it at a later time. "No one truly knows what the Goddess has in store for them." She smiled, as the waitress returned. Accepting her mug, she gave the waitress a thank you before turning back to her friend. "Listen to us, we sound like two high school girls gushing about their first boyfriends. Next thing you know we'll be having sleep overs and doing each others hair."

[Dr. Lisa Cuddy]

Shaking her head, Cuddy sighed. "I'm just doing what any mother would do to protect her family." She shrugged. They were a family. Maybe not a legitimate one, but still. "And by younger than you, I mean he's about twenty." She giggled and her smile turned slightly reminiscent at Angel's comment. "Yes. House is ruggedly handsome now, but back in his twenties, he was...he was hot." Cuddy blushed. "Athletic hot," she clarified.

She sipped at her chocolate drink as Angel spoke, making a face as she set the cup down. "I didn't have my first boyfriend until college. And I'd much rather never think about him again..." Lisa raised an eyebrow as the implications of the second half of her friend's comment hit her. "We're a bit old for sleepovers and doing each other's hair. And you know what kind of comments Greg would make about that idea."

[Dr Angel Fraser]

"Of course, I wouldn't expect any less of you." Angel smiled. She blew on her hot chocolate as Cuddy told her how old her new secretary was. She nodded politely as she took a sip. Angel almost did a spit take when Cuddy said that House had been athletic. "House? A jock? I can't see it." She choked, putting down her mug. She really couldn't see it and she had a pretty good imagination.

"Ugh, about as good as Jackson I'm guessing." Angel replied quietly. She had had her fair share of bad boyfriends. One of them tried to put her in debt while she was in med school, but fortunately she managed to get rid of him and get everything settled. Last she heard they'd just released him from prison due to fraud. "You're never too old for sleep overs, they're just of a different nature than back in high school." She smirked. "Most prefer to call them Girls nights." She bit back a laugh at Cuddy's comment. "I think we've already shown him what we could do, or at least what most men think women do during a sleep over."

[Dr. Lisa Cuddy]

Nodding confidently, Cuddy was certain she was still blushing. "He played lacrosse. And piano." Sure, the last one wasn't athletic, but it was definitely one of the reasons she'd fallen for him. "I'll have to ask him to play for me again sometime..." she trailed off, sipping at her drink again. "I could sit and listen to him play for hours." She sighed softly, her eyes shining.

"He was worse than Jackson. If you can believe that." She rolled her eyes, frowning slightly. "You ever notice how it's always the exes who were horrible to you that you remember the most? I can't remember a single boyfriend I've had who was absolutely wonderful to me. Except Greg. He's the only good one I ever had." She had to laugh at Angel's remark.

"Girl's night, huh? What about a girl's weekend?" she smirked. She'd really rather not think about what had happened between them, and she was perfectly content hoping that House didn't think about it when he was with her. Because that would just be awkward. "Think we could take that spa weekend now? House wants me to de-stress. It really is sweet how he worries about me and the baby." She raised the hot chocolate to her lips again.

[Dr Angel Fraser]

Angel chuckled, noticing the look on Cuddy's face. Waving a teasing hand infront of Cuddy's face, she laughed. "Earth to Cuddy..." She was happy for her friend, glad that she had found someone to treat her right. "I'd like to hear him play too, I've always liked music. Maybe he could help me, I've written lyrics, just no music."

"That's hard to believe, and yet I'm sure there are those out there." Angel sighed, shaking her head. "Yes, it is true you only seem to remember the bad ones... Although all of mine have been bad it would seem. I think it was the whole attraction to the bad boy thing. One just got re-released from prison on fraud charges, there was Jackson, and of course, I can't forget the drug dealer." She groaned, pointing out her flawed relationships. "James is the first man who has treated me with nothing but respect."

Angel perked up at the mention of the girl's weekend. "I completely forgot about that!" She smiled. Of course at the time things had been put on hold because she and Jackson had been in that car accident. "I'll get on the phone and make reservations again. I'm sure they have a pregnancy pamper package that you'd enjoy." Her smile faltered a bit when she mentioned how House worried about Cuddy and their child. She'd never know that feeling, but she tried to push it aside to be happy for her friend.

[Dr. Lisa Cuddy]

Playfully smacking her friend's hand away, she laughed. "I'll see if he'll allow an audience," she conceded. "As for helping you, you'll have to ask him about that." It wasn't her place to ask House to compose something to go with Angel's lyrics, but she wouldn't protest hearing the finished product.

"Let's just stop talking about crazy ex boyfriends, okay? We've found our perfect men now, and there's no point making ourselves feel bad about our sucky love lives." Cuddy sighed. She just wanted to not think about her life before House. Before House, nothing ever seemed to go right. Hell, if she was going to be honest, in the beginning with House, both times, some things never seemed to go right. But it was perfect now. They were together, for good. They were happy, which was good. And they were having a baby, which was what Cuddy had dreamed of for three years. "You've struck gold with James, and I'm almost positive that Greg and I were always meant to be together. That's all that matters, now."

Cuddy smiled at Angel's enthusiasm. "Perfect de-stresser. I just have to stay away from alcohol and remember everything my OB told me." She was more than certain that the hospital would be in good hands while she was away; that's what Norman was for. She just hoped House wouldn't give the poor administrative assistant too much trouble. She had raised her mug to her lips again when she noticed her friend's smile falter. And she thought she knew why.

"Angel, don't get that look. You're the godmother. You have worry-rights too." Lisa set her cup down and reached across the table to lay a comforting hand on Angel's arm, smiling softly.

[Dr Angel Fraser]

"I'll try to remember to bring it up the next time I see him." Angel said, smiling. "Yes, crazy exes out the window. We have our knights in crisp white lab coats. Well, at least mine is." She chuckled, not being able to remember whether she'd ever seen House in a lab coat.

"Pampering is always a good thing." Angel smiled, finishing her hot chocolate. "Don't worry, I'll make sure all your drinks are virgins and I'm sure they'll know what you can and can't do while pregnant at the spa. They are trained professionals." She nodded. She knew most of the staff at the spa, so she was sure they were in good capable hands.

Feeling Cuddy's reassuring hand on her arm, she looked at her friend with serious eyes. "I know I get some worry rights. I'll be fine, honest." She sighed. "I'm sure one day we'll both be mothers, and our children will play together, but right now it's just kind of I don't know how to describe it."

[Dr. Lisa Cuddy]

Lisa chuckled a little at that. "Yes. Although, I think I've actually come to prefer House without his lab coat...he rarely wears it anyway. But when he does, he wears it well..." she trailed off, wondering some things that should never be mentioned in a small coffee shop just down the street from a hospital. Or ever. She had to fight the blush that she had just managed to banish to keep it from returning. The next time she saw House, she'd have to have a conversation with him. She cleared her throat, coughing slightly.

"I'll leave it to you to make the reservations. Again." She laughed lightly, imagining the experience. "It's not gonna cost extra because I'm pregnant, is it?" Cuddy had no idea what made her ask, but she felt like she had to, for some reason. It was one thing for a date to spend a lot of money on her, but quite another for a friend to do the same. She didn't exactly feel real comfortable with her friends breaking their banks for her. It was just part of her personality.

Cuddy blinked. She wasn't sure if Angel would believe it or not, but she knew what the cardiologist felt. "Angel. I know exactly how you feel right now. I..." she stopped, biting her lip. It was only fair, after all, so she went ahead and continued. "I used to think I would never have children. I tried everything. Hormone treatments, IVF, you name it, I tried it. When I was on IVF," she paused to take a deep breath, letting it out in a sigh. "I had three separate implantations...the first two didn't work, and I lost the third. And all hope of ever having a baby of my own." Her other hand disappeared under the table to rest on her still-flat stomach.

"Adoption failed for me, twice, and I didn't think I would ever get to be a mom. I know exactly how you feel, Angel." She drew her hand back, raising her other one back to the table. She wasn't sure how her new best friend would react to her story, but she hoped it wouldn't be too much for her.

[Dr Angel Fraser]

Angel gave a small cough and looked away, a smirk on her face. She had a very good idea what Cuddy was thinking about, but she figured she'd let her friend have her moments of daydreaming before interrupt her. When she heard Cuddy cough she looked back. "Good day dream?" Angel teased.

"As far as I know it shouldn't cost any extra." Angel said, trying to remember the pricing and all. "I'll double check when I make our reservations, and let you know, k?" She said, giving Cuddy a reassuring smile. "Consider this as my gift to you."

Angel listened to the story Cuddy told her, somewhat surprised at the revelations. A sad look crossed her face. "I'm truly sorry to hear that..." She said, giving Cuddy a small smile. "At least I know I'm not the only one out there." She played with her empty mug. "We're kindred spirits aren't we?" She chuckled softly. "Similar experiences with boyfriends, now with the pregnancy stuff... You seem to be getting your happy ending, so there's hope for my happy ending too."

[Dr. Lisa Cuddy]

Blinking and losing the battle with her blush, she turned her eyes away, sure that her cheeks were not the only parts of her face burning red. "Let's just say I'm going to have a talk with House the next time I see him..." She raised her eyes as she emphasized the word, sure that Angel was well aware of what the nature of the conversation would be.

Cuddy nodded at Angel's assurances. She wondered what sorts of things they did for pregnant women, and if it varied depending on how far along they were. She decided not to ask Angel; she figured it was a question better saved for the spa personnel. "Thanks, Angel," she said, smiling.

Cuddy shook her head. "Don't be sorry. It's in the past, and it doesn't matter now anyways because I'm finally pregnant. I'm finally having the baby I've dreamed of having for the past three years. And I'm having my baby with the only man I could ever truly love. I'm happy." She sighed. "Your happy ending is coming, Angel. With James. You'll be happy with him, I know it. And you might be able to convince him to adopt a child if it's important enough to you." Lisa wasn't sure if Angel knew that Wilson had never wanted his own children. If she didn't know, Cuddy wasn't certain if it would be her place to say so.