Chapter Text
Chase was cowering in the face of a senior doctor berating him in front of—what had to be—half the hospital. He didn’t even know what for. All he knew was the screaming, the loud volume of it, the intensity of anger directed at him.
The tension was palatable in the air, stress hormones and scents running high and yet nobody knew what to do with it. The staff should be used to operating in a sensitive balance between the temperaments of their patients and the territorial and possessive nature of their coworkers.
The rules of conduct were longer than the bible for a reason.
For example, being rude to another coworker was not just a dick move, but could also trigger somebodyelse's protective instincts, reacting to the stress of the other person. A chainreaction of hormones and brainlessness would soon follow. What a mess.
So, Chase didn’t even want to imagine the thoughts of his colleagues in this moment. He wasn’t totally disillusioned with his own standing in the hospital. Being associated with House in any way, certainly didn’t earn him any points. And of course there were the people who didn’t think omegas should be doctors at all—point blank.
Too weak, too emotional, they say. Well, the man screaming his lungs out at him was indeed an alpha who couldn’t control himself, but sure Chase was the weak one.
Although, he couldn't stop his heart from hammering or his hands from shaking—he was scared.
But he refused to back down. During the exchange, Dr Martin had stepped closer and closer to him, invading his personal space. Chase had naturally taken a step back. It was like the wave of hormones and anger where physically pushing him away. Just another step separated him from being backed up completely against the wall behind him.
Chase was still trapped, restricted in his movements. He was afraid to set the other man off further—if that was even possible.
It wasn’t uncommon for med students or interns to get yelled at by older doctors. It was against the rules of course, but that didn’t stop stressed and overworked attendings or residents from yelling at their underlings.
But this was different. It was much too public and severe.
Chase could tell he wasn’t the only one thinking it when he saw nurses and staff look at each other like that—like they knew they should intervene, but didn’t.
At this point he would do anything to stop this humiliation. Oh god, he could feel tears coming. He could not cry. Anything but that. People would lose all their respect for him.
He didn’t even know this guy.
Chase was looking at the floor now, trying to pretend this wasn’t happening, but that just made him madder.
“Look at me!” he shouted.
And suddenly Chase wasn’t looking at the floor anymore, but to the side. A gasp was going through the audience, his face was throbbing.
He hit Chase.
He had trouble catching his breath, his body failing him. This was too much, a line crossed that he hadn’t considered before. He didn’t know how to react, what to do, he was too baffled.
In his shock he actually looked up. The face in front of him had gone red in anger, nostrils flaring, brow scowling. Chase couldn’t believe he made another person this mad. This time the tears made it over the edge, rolling down his smarting cheek in shame.
Martin was rising his hand again, ready to hit him a second time.
Chase screwed his eyes shut, curled into himself. But the pain never came. Confused, he looked up to see Dr Martin’s hand still raised, caught in mid-air. It was a thrilling moment interrupted by relief, because House was standing right in front of him, hand clasping the other’s wrist hard enough to hurt.
Chase couldn't muster up a bit of sympathy for him, he was to distracted. He’d be okay now—House was here.
And he looked mad, unlike anything he had ever seen. A low growl escaped his throat, baring his teeth. He looked ready to rip his jugular vein out of his neck. Chase could have sworn he heard the bones beneath House’s fingers grate.
Martin’s tail was getting bushy too, aggressive pheromones switching their target from Chase to House. Somebody needed to deescalate things and quickly, before a whole fist fight broke out.
Everybody around him was still in a state of shock, frozen in their gasp and surprise.
Chase needed to deescalate this. Of course everybody else was being fucking useless.
Swallowing his pride, he let out a little whine. It was supposed to be small, just enough to catch House’s attention and get him to realize what he was doing. Instead the stress echoed ten times louder than an ambulance siren.
It wasn’t enough to make Martin take his eyes off his assailant, but House snapped all of his attention to Chase without releasing his grip on the other doctor.
All Chase wanted to do was leave in that moment. To escape the humiliation and tension, he tried to convey that to House with everything but words.
Some of his prayers were finally answered when security arrived and dragged Martin off of House who was already moving closer to Chase.
He looked like he wanted to ask if he was alright, like his instincts were screaming at him to touch and hold and protect Chase as much as his brain was telling him to hold onto House and never let go.
But both of them were too aware of the entire hospital surrounding them to be anything but nonchalant, despite the obvious display of fierceness.
Instead, House grabbed Chase’s upper arm and dragged him away from the crowd. That was normal enough behavior for the two of them, so Chase let himself be manhandled by House.
He saw the look of pure determination in House’s gaze and knew he was getting him to a safe place, even though the danger was gone and the whole hospital should be safe again.
Chase couldn’t deny he appreciated it. He didn’t like the open halls, the labyrinth of corridors. Any corner they rounded felt like a gamble. He wanted to be some place to feel safe again too.
His heart rate was still going faster than normal. He was too hot to feel cold like his body didn’t know what to do either. He had never frozen like that before. Usually, he never hesitated to bite back. This job had made him soft, he had become too comfortable with people being on his side.
He could still feel the hand against his face. A smarting sensation overtook it. Instead of dwelling on it, he tried to focus on House who hadn’t released him yet. His hand against his arm was all he needed to stay grounded.
And then it was gone.
He hadn’t noticed them reaching the office. For a moment he just stood, breathing everything in. It smelled completely different from the rest of the hospital. There was nothing artificial here, no biting scent of alcohol or overlapping hormones. It was just House. Simple. Nice.
For his part, he didn’t seem any less calm, now that Chase was in his office. There was still a frantic aura about him as he steered him to sit on the armchair. The scent of aftershave and wood hugged him, he sighed, sinking deeper into the cushions.
Moments later, House came back into his field of vision, holding a blanket and hoodie. He reached out and pulled Chase’s arms through his white coat, discarding the garment somewhere in the room.
He should protest, he was perfectly capable of taking it off himself, but he didn’t. He just gave in. House’s energy transfixed him, rendering him from an independent adult to a submissive doll. At the mercy of House’s will.
It was as scary as it was exiting. But he wasn’t getting burned this time—House was gentle. Chase was treated like he was precious and valuable. It filled him with a rushing warmth. Not hot or cold anymore. Just calm, balanced.
Carefully, House continued to follow his own instincts. He put the faded gray pullover over his button-up, wrapping the blanket around his legs. Soon Chase was completely tugged in. Safe.
The aura of House changed from frantic, on a mission to satisfied, calm. Chase knew that like him House was always in control. But today, it slipped and he didn’t think House had noticed until his subject was content again.
House cupped his face in his hand, it almost covered the whole side. They settled into eye-contact. He didn’t say anything, just slowly rubbed at the cheek. Chase couldn’t feel the pain anymore, all he felt was House.
After a while he drew back and went around to his desk.
The sounds of paperwork slowly lulled him to sleep.