Title: Woodwinds
Author: queenzulu
Pairing: House/Wilson (Wilson/Wendy, House/Foreman)
Rating: NC-17
Length: 39 000 words
Spoilers: Through season three.
Summary: Wilson doesn't end relationships; he launches himself headfirst into something even more disastrous instead.
Excerpt:

"My leg hurt," House says.

Wilson feels like House has shoved him out onto a tightrope, blindfolded. The wind pushes dead leaves along the rain gutters outside. He remembers the last time he asked House for anything--the last time he went to House for comfort. He was drunk, and lonely, after seeing the divorce papers all neatly written out. Wilson kissed House.

House had kissed him back. Wilson never imagined that House might turn him away. He remembers the exact pressure of House's lips, the soft dryness, and then the more desperate need that followed, in a slick twine of tongues. He remembers House's breath in his ear as he pulled away. I'd be flattered if I thought you meant it.

How many times, this summer, has Wilson held back from telling House that he's going to kill himself on his skateboard? To take it easy with the running, just in case? House would have shouted him down if Wilson had breathed a single word of caution while House felt good. Now he thinks one cramp means the pain is coming back, when it's probably nothing more than a little soreness, no more than House deserves for pretending he's still a teenager.

"The surgery worked, House," Wilson says, avoiding what he wants to say. "You're fine."

House nods, as if he hadn't expected anything else from Wilson. He walks out of Wilson's office without a word, closing the door too softly behind him. Wilson sighs and rubs his forehead, looking back at his desk, and the piles of undisturbed work. The ketamine treatment worked. House is fine. He's almost certain of it.

Wilson has to believe that House is happy, after all.

It takes eighteen months. It happens in small steps, but by the time a year and a half has passed, Wilson has shaken the underpinnings of his life, and has to reassess both his friendship with House and his own personal beliefs. House faces the return crippling pain and the dissolution of his relationship with Foreman. Wilson must cope with another failed romance and the realization of some harsh truths. Equal parts human weakness, self-destructive impluses and opportunistic selfishness add up to make a truly volatile situation. All it needs is the right spark...

queenzulu is a consummate storyteller, and quickly snares the reader in a tangle of the characters' good intentions, half-truths and self-deceptions. Complex, nuanced characterization where everyone is ultimately fundamentally flawed and human is a hallmark of her distinctive style. A wealth of perfect details add to the story, from monster trucks and clinic pranks to all the little signs of the end of a relationship. And finally, there is scorching sex, as imperfect as all the players in this tragedy of intention. This story will appeal strongly to anyone who wants a subtly nuanced and true to life story.

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First Artist: yanjara

The first and final scene coming together.



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Second Artist: shutterbug_12

House sabotages Foreman’s laundry with a purpose.



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Third Artist: cryptictac

If Zulu's 'Woodwinds' fic was the actual show, this is how the opening credits would be. Song: 'Teardrop' by Massive Attack.



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