50 chapters and almost 10 months writing this, wow.

  I'm sorry I couldn't publish chapters these days. I had very bad lu these two weeks; my ptop died the first day I started writing on it. I don't know what happened, I still have to take it to the tei.

  Also, when I arrived home, the transformer that powers the building where I live had exploded. So everything ihe refrigerator had pletely spoiled, along with what was in the freezer.

  Fortunately, whenever I leave my house, I disect my puter, so nothing bad happeo it. The electricity was fixed until a few days ago, but with all the electricity problem, I had pletely fotten to pay the i, so there was no i when the electricity came back. Only a few days ago was the i reected.

  Well, just a setba life, sometimes it happens, you have to move on. I wrote down some ideas for this chapter by hand, and also took the opportunity tahe internal dar of the world I have pnned.

  (I'm not a stist (yet) who has published anything in any kind of journal, nor have I won a Nobel Prize, so in this chapter, there is a set of nonsense, fasten your seat belts.)

  Enjoy.

  ---

  After assisting in the birth, the Walce family and I stayed ihe tent for several more minutes, waiting for the rain to stop or the storm to calm down enough. During that time, David Walow out of the shock of the inteuation, began to ask question after question, obviously intrigued by my medical knowledge and abilities.

  "Leave PJ alone," weakly tapping her husband, Mrs. Walce ordered him in a whisper as she cradled her exhausted newborn baby.

  "How you not be ied? He's a sixteen-year-old who knows how to assist in a birth," said the surprised man, uionally raising his voice, which immediately woke the baby who began to cry. "Oh, I'm sorry," Mr. Walce whispered apologetically while Mrs. Walce, rog the baby again, mao get him back to sleep.

  "I read a lot of books, my mother is a nurse, and I pn to be a doctor someday. I study a lot," I expined silently, relieving the tension of the situation as I looked out of the tent. It was still raining, but with much less iy.

  "Just books?" still incredulous but keeping his voice low, David Walce asked, "PJ, that was insane, you took trol of the situation like a professional, you were even prepared to perform an emergency cesareaion. How could you know that? Did you learn it from a book too?"

  "There are books, yes, but I've watched dozens of procedures and practiced tless hours," I expined.

  "Aren't you in high school?" surprised, David asked.

  "The hospital have a colle of hundreds of videos of different procedures in the library," I said, recalling all the videos I've seen in this life and my past life.

  "The hospital..." Mr. Walce was asking, but a faint shout from outside the tent stopped him. "PJ!" what I reized as Bob's voice came from the other side of the river.

  "I'll be back," I said to the couple with the newborn baby before stepping out into the now much lighter rain.

  "Dad?" approag the edge of the small isnd in the ter of the river, I shouted.

  "The rangers are on their way, how's everything over there?" wearing a heavy jacket with his pany logo, the man asked.

  "The baby is out and doing fine, Mrs. Walce too," I said in summary, causing Bob to give a thumbs up before running to take cover from the rain in his truck, where Gabe was in the frorying to see out of the windshield.

  Ba the tent, David, carrying his newborn baby with one arm, while with the other he nervously shook his wife, who had suddenly passed out.

  "She'll be okay, she's just very exhausted," moving ihe tent to shield myself from the rain, I checked the pulse of the sleeping woman. "You have to support your baby's head," watg as the mahe baby, I tinued moving his arms to show him how to hold the child.

  As time passed, due to the rain and wind, the temperature of the area began to drop. The most warmly dressed and my top priority was the little baby because being a newborn, he obviously had more risk. He o get to a hospital as soon as possible, just like his mother.

  A few mier, with the rain much more trolled outside the tent in the now dark of night, illuminated only slightly by the moonlight until the emergency lights fully illumihe area, followed a few mier by the characteristid loud sound of a helicopter flying and subsequently nding.

  In a short time, a lot of emergency personnel including rangers and paramedics were preparing to assist us.

  With the help of the rangers, we mao cross the now much calmer river to the other side, where a few steps away, an emergency helicopter arked with paramedics waiting for the newborn mother and her baby.

  "Moderate premature birth due to stress, the baby was suffocated by the umbilical cord but was successfully revived after forty seds of CPR, no visible bleeding, normal signs in both the mother and the baby. I couldn't check the oxygenation, but just to be sure, I reend they do a CT s," walking quickly alongside one of the paramedider the still present rain, I said, visibly surprising the paramedic but at least ensuring he listeo me fully.

  "I won't fet this, PJ, thank you so much. I'll find you at some point," Mr. Walce shouted loudly with a big smile as he got into the helicopter with his wife and newborn baby ed in thermal bs.

  After watg the helicopter take off into the distance, carrying the small family to the hospital, I hurried into Bob's truck, lying down in the back seat and ing myself tightly in my own thermal b, feelially and physically exhausted. "That's why I hate fishing trips," Gabe, pletely dry and not at all exhausted, said amusingly from the passenger seat.

  "For this specifically?" I ironically asked, using part of my st energy to lightly tap the boy's head and turn on the heater ihe car.

  Iive silence, Gabe and I stayed ihe truck, waiting for Bob and the other adults who stayed behind to expin what had happened.

  At some point, which I missed due to being pletely exhausted, Bob returo the trud drove until we arrived at some motel on the side of the road.

  "PJ, we're here," shaking my shoulder eically, Gabe from the front of the true up before quickly getting out of the rain.

  Ihe room that Bob rented for the night, I was able to take a mueeded hot shower before colpsing into bed and sleeping deeply.

  The rain tinued all night until the day. Early in the m, feeling much better rested, we prepared to have breakfast before leaving the motel to head home.

  After having a hearty breakfast, especially myself as I was quite hungry, since I started training with Case just over two weeks ago, my diet had drastically ged. The man seemed determio force me to gai, creating a high-protein, high-calorie diet for me that had mao add a few pounds to my weight. Fortunately, in addition to the diet, my physical activity had increased as well, ensuring that those pounds weren't all fat.

  Despite the rain still falling, the journey bae passed without any problems. Listening to musid stories from Bob about his fishing trips with his father, time flew by quickly, and before we k, we were ba front of the house, unloading all the equipment we had mao recover from the forest i.

  "You're back early. Did the storm drive you away?" sitting on the living room sofa, Mom, atg TV, cheerfully asked while still dressed in a robe.

  "Yeah," carrying a few things aing them aside, I replied.

  "How did it go?" l the volume of the TV, Mom asked, causing Gabe, who was a few steps behio also hear the question.

  Sharing a quice with Gabe, "it was something," I said after a few seds while Gabe sighed and shook his head.

  Later that day, a few hours after helping Bob and Gabe his now pletely dirty truck, the Coopers returned from their own trip. Having a brief versation with Sheldon, the boy shared his disappoi at not being able to see the unch as well as the worst moment of his trip, when his father made him stand in the rain for a few seds.

  The day during Mrs. Ingram's css, the teacher reminded us of an exam scheduled for a few days ter, but other than that, nothing else iing happened during the school period.

  Upon arriving at House's office, as I did every day tely sihere wasn't an "iing" case acc to House, to drop off my things ao the library, I was surprisingly met by House himself sitting behind his desk.

  "What?" after hanging up my backpack, I asked intrigued by the calg look the man was giving me.

  "Surprising," leaning ba his chair while pying with his e, House said slowly.

  "Thanks, don't tell me too much, I don't want to be a total egomaniac like..." I said, jokingly pointing at him with my eyes.

  "You're not even going t a little?" squinting his eyes, House asked, ign my joke.

  "About what?" I asked.

  "Oh, e on, you know where I've been these past few weeks," with exaggerated exasperation, House said.

  "Oh, you've been taking advantage of the maternity loug soap operas, does the Wale to this hospital?" uanding what he was implying, I asked, taking a seat in front of him.

  "So, it was really you," amused, House said, "I thought there would be aeenager dumb enough but knowledgeable enough to assist in an emergency delivery in the middle of a forest."

  "It wasn't something I pnned. We had no way to get Mrs. Walce to a hospital," I quickly defended myself.

  "Wow, calm down. I'm not ied. I just wao know if it was really you," pulling out a handheld game from his drawer, House said sarcastically, "are you still here?" after a few seds, he shifted his attention back to his game and asked me.

  Slightly scoffing, I shook my head as I stood up, getting ready to go to the library for some videos before heading to a skills b.

  "By the way, mommy wants to see you in her office. She might not find your adventure as amusing," refog on his video game, House said as I was about to leave his office.

  "What could Dr. Cuddy need with me?" I asked, puzzled, as I hardly had any iion with the woman.

  "You caught on to 'mommy' right away, huh," smiling arrogantly, House said without answering my question, putting his feet up on his desk.

  Ign the exasperating doctor, I left his offiy way to Dr. Cuddy's office.

  "I think Dr. Cuddy is expeg me," arriving outside her office, I said to the woman's secretary, on some dots.

  "Ah, PJ, e on in," suddenly opening the door to her office, Dr. Cuddy, who seemed pletely excited to see me, said with a big smile.

  "Dr. Cuddy," I greeted the woman as I took a seat offered in front of her desk, she sat excitedly oher side.

  "How have you been? Has your time here at the hospital been useful?" crossing her hands on her desk, trying to hide aed smile, the woman asked.

  Strange, I thought, sidering the way House had told me that the woman was waiting for me, I thought it would be something bad. But from the woman's attitude and body nguage, I could dis an underlying i.

  "I've been very well, thank you. I've been taking advantage of the b skills and a rge number of surgical procedure videos," I said, still puzzled by the woman's attitude.

  "I'm gd, I'm gd," nodding slightly, Dr. Cuddy said, "besides that, is there anything you'd like to ask for? I know spending a lot of time with House be quite something sometimes, so if you need anything, just ask, and we'll see how to get it," she tinued with a big smile.

  Something was going on, "the videos are incredible, but I was w if there was a way for me to witness a live surgery?" I didn't know what it was, but I would take advantage of it given the ce.

  "Oh, that definitely be arranged," g her hands lightly, Dr. Cuddy said, "for obvious reasons, you won't be able to participate in any way, but being present with due care, asking questions, and closely definitely be done."

  "That would be amazing, thank you so much," I said excitedly, being ihe operating room other than being the patient would be an incredible experience for the future.

  "Anything for you," the woman tinued kindly.

  After that, a somewhat unfortable silence fell within the office. "So, was that all you needed?" I finally asked, breaking the silence a few seds ter.

  "I wao talk to you about this..." Dr. Cuddy quickly said, opening one of the drawers of her desk.

  Taking what seemed to be a long book, a JAMA from what I reized, she pced it on the desk with a joyful smile, opening it to a page.

  Donnall Thomas, Joseph E. Murray; bone marront.

  "Oh, it's Dr. Thomas's published work," I said cheerfully, taking the journal from the desk and quickly reading the tents. It had been a while since I had been in touch with the doctor; I was gd to see his work published again.

  "Oh yes, look at the aowledgments se," stretg to point to the end of the article, Dr. Cuddy said, now doing a poor job of hiding her excitement.

  "Patrick John Dart Dun and Texas Tech - Medford Teag Hospital," I read the st of the aowledgments.

  "That's yours," excitedly said Dr. Cuddy.

  Certainly, the aowledgment leasant surprise. I knew my 'involvement' in the doctor's research wouldn't be enough for co-authorship. It wasirely why I did it. If anything, my past life taught me that having es when building your career was essential. Therefore, my iion with Dr. Thomas was merely to establish a e with someone who would be highly regarded in the medical world.

  "Do you know what this means?" Dr. Cuddy asked cheerfully.

  If in any way I had gotten her hospital's o an article that would likely, from her perspective, win the Nobel Prize.

  "This is definitely on the list of potential Nobel winners," tapping the journal lightly, Dr. Cuddy said.

  Yes, and she had no idea.

  Dr. Cuddy and I tio talk about my short-term future at the hospital and then going to medical school.

  "I thought you wao talk to me about the Walce baby," I said relieved when we finished discussing my future as a doctor, though I somewhat knew House ulling a prank on me.

  "What?" Dr. Cuddy asked incredulously, taken by surprise. "It was you?" she tinued.

  Notig how my knack for speaking aing into trouble had gotteo another fix, I remained silent for a few seds until I nodded defeatedly.

  "You helped deliver David Walce's son? Not only that, you saved his life?" Dr. Cuddy suddenly ughed, "I could kiss you, if you were a few years older," she tinued disappointedly.

  "I don't mind," I joked, relieved she wasn't upset. It was definitely a House prank if Cuddy took my as badly.

  "You spend much more time with House than you should," Dr. Cuddy said with mock exasperation, shaking her head amusedly.

  "The Walces left early today. The nurses overheard them arguing about a teenager who saved their son's life, and the doctor who received the paramedi the roof heard how a straeeook trol to expiients' ditions," Dr. Cuddy expined, wiping away tears from ughing too hard.

  As I left Dr. Cuddy's office, she grabbed my arm and gave me a long kiss on the cheek. "Keep up the excellent work," she whispered with a touusement in her words befoing bato her office.

  Taken aback by the woman's sudden as, I stood frozen for a few seds where I was before snapping out of my trand walking to the library with my journal under my arm.

  Passing by the reception desk of the Fryday free ic, which was in its usual pce, with a haughty smile, she poio her own cheek, silently indig it was dirty from my kiss.

  The day tinued, and at the hospital, nothing ged aside from my daily study and practice session.

  With Case and Tim during the night, havihe muscur man's notebook, I had many questions about the positions in which the teiques were performed. Case's attitude toward me had ged signifitly over these days, almost matg the much frietitude he had with Tim.

  "Are you following your diet?" Case asked with his usual furrowed brow, looking at my bare torso seriously.

  "Yes, I'm getting more used to it. At first, I felt like I was going to vomit," I responded, not showing the slight disfort I felt uhe muscur man's judgmental gaze.

  "You're developing real muscles," Tim said from the floor, surprisingly flexible for a man his size.

  "Yeah," Case agreed with Tim, "do fifty single-legs each," he ordered, starting his own training.

  During the retively short time I had been training with Case, I had learned maerms I hought I would learn. Every few days, Case had a ype of training for a eique to learn, each with their respective names, some even in Brazilian Puese.

  Following Case's instrus, we fihe training as we did every day, doing stretches that challenged my ligaments less and less each time.

  "See you tomorrow," I said goodbye to Tim, who nodded kindly, on my way to his van, while I stayed behind to hand Case the new notebook he had asked for.

  "Case," after knog on the man's trailer door, I waited a few seds.

  "What?" Case asked upon opening the door.

  "Here," I said, handing him a notebook like the one he had give pletely new.

  With the trailer door open, I could see several things Tim had oold me about: small fgs from other tries, including Brazil, Thaind, and Japan, adorned a small spa a tertop ihe trailer.

  Also, quickly, before Case moved to block my view, I could see photographs arranged uhe fgs, some of Case with other people wearing outfits simir to what I saw wheered the martial arts kids' css, others where he was with people very different from how he is now, with a big smile on his face, and very few where Case wasn't present, old photographs.

  "Same time tomorrow," uhe photos ihe trailer, Case, with a furrowed brow obviously annoyed, said.

  "Yeah," I said as calmly as I could.

  Moving to the other side of the door frame, Case allowed me to see a small table in the ter of his trailer with a chess game in progress.

  I had never seen anyone here other than Tim. There were even days when I arrived before him, ae that, I had never seen Tim ehe trailer, so the game ossibly just Case against himself.

  "Do you py chess?" I asked, pointing at the table with my gaze.

  Raising one of his eyebrows, Case stared at me for a few seds before sn and nodding, "it's a great game for strategy," he replied calmly.

  "Would you like a game?" I asked.

  Apart from being a great game for strategy, it was an iing game for mathematics. Whenever I participated in math tours in my past life, I saw many other teenagers from other schools pying chess matches among themselves.

  Thinking it was some kind of study strategy, I learo py by reading dozens of books about it, never really having a ce to py against someone. In this life, I might have had a ce to py against Sheldon, but knowing the kid, he would use it to funt some kind of intellectual superiority, which I wasn't willing to experience against a nine-year-old, no matter how smart he is.

  "Wait here," sn once more, Case closed the trailer door and reope moments ter, "e inside," he ordered.

  Entering behind Case, I could see what he had done in the few seds he had closed the door—all the photographs that had been on dispy were now lying down to avoid being seen.

  "Left ht," as I took a seat across from Case at his small table ihe trailer, he ched his fists, giving me a choice.

  "Left," I said, causing Case to open his hand, revealing a white pawn.

  "Are you a fner?" after setting up the board, I moved my first pied asked.

  Frowning, if possible, even more, Case didn't respond, crossing his arms as he leaned ba his seat.

  "The fgs," pointing at the fabric fgs inside his house, I said by way of expnation.

  "I'm from Brooklyn," Case rexed his face, stretg his hand to move his own piece.

  "So, why are you in Medford?" I asked, surprised.

  "That's just how life is, py," he ordered, furrowing his brow obviously ging the subject.

  We tinued pying in silence; surprisingly, Case took a short time to think about each move. It was, to some extent, rexing.

  "Why martial arts?" after a few developing moves on the board, I asked again, feeling fident with the position I was in.

  Looking at the board for a few seds, Case remained silent without responding, "checkmate in ten," standing up, Case said without answering my question, walking to the 'kit' of the trailer to pour himself a gss of water.

  His statement took me by surprise; the game ractically textbook perfect, I hadn't made any very serious mistakes at any point, and I felt fident in the dire we were taking. Surely, all that fidend ess in developing my game as the books say had blinded me. After studying the position, I could see the muscur man's checkmate.

  "You have to see at least five moves ahead of your oppo," leaving his empty gss on the tertop, Case said with what I could reize as a self-satisfied smile as he opehe door, symbolically usheri of his house.

  "This won't end here; I'll win tomorrow," jokingly, I said as I passed by the man as a farewell, leaving the trailer with my things in hand.

  "Good luck with that," I mao hear before the trailer door smmed shut.

  Arriving home, as almost always since I had started training with Case, my family was getting ready for dinner.

  The day, as promised by Ms. Ingram, we had an algebra test, "as you all know, this test'll t for twenty-five pert of your final grade," as she handed out the test sheets, Ms. Ingram said, "be sure to show all your work," she tinued, finishing handing out the sheets and standing at the front of the in full view of everyone, "if you get stu a question, move on and e back to it at the end."

  Walking to her desk, the teacher took a seat, apparently remembering something, she raised her head seriously, looking at everyone. "And I shouldn't have to say this, but if there's any cheating, I will see it," she said, narrowing her eyes. "I got eyes in the bay head," she tihreateningly. "I got more eyes than a potato," she finished, sweeping her gaze over everyone in the .

  "Ms. Ingram," raising his hand straight up to his body, Sheldon said.

  "Yeah, Sheldon," with disappoi on her face after giving a small sigh, Ms. Ingram o him.

  "I'm done," calmly said Sheldon, making me sigh slightly as I tinued with my own work; it was really an easy test, obviously Sheldon would finish it in a few minutes.

  "What?" incredulous, Ms. Ingram asked.

  "I e very much," assured Sheldon, "I'll take another if you have one," he tinued with de.

  "No, I don't have another one," still incredulous, Ms. Ingram dehe boy, causing Sheldon to lower his head slightly in disappoi, "just read ahead iextbook."

  "Oh, boy," excitedly, Sheldon said, quickly opening his backpack to take out his book.

  A couple of mier, I had finished my ow, 'actally' leaving it aside on my desk, visible enough for Broext to me, following the previous indis. Ingram had given to Sheldon, I took out my own book from my backpack, one of the ones I had borrowed from the hospital library to study on my own.

  At the end of the css, after we all handed in our tests at the teacher's desk, we left discussing the difficulty of the test, "you probably didn't realize, but your test erfectly positioned for me to see it, but I promise I didn't copy it exactly the same," admitted Brock with what seemed to be a little regret.

  "Oh yeah?" I asked, pretending to be surprised, making An chuckle amusedly beside me, "don't worry about that," I assured him, lightly tapping his shoulder.

  "It's not fair," offended, Geie said, "you're lucky to have chosen that seat, I had to do this," stopping and cheg his surroundings in the hallway, Geie lifted one of his legs, showing us the sole of his shoe, where many things were written.

  "That's a good pn, wish I had thought of it," frustrated, David said, apparently being the one who did the worst of all of us.

  Later that day at the hospital, word had spread about how my name appeared in an important article; apparently, Dr. Cuddy had boasted about it in some sort of meeting with the department heads.

  "PJ!" as I walked through one of the hospital corridors after greeting many people and receiving their gratutions, I heard Mom's characteristic voiewhat agitated apparently as she walked quickly through the hospital.

  "Mom?" I asked as internally I berated myself for not thinking earlier about how to expihing at the moment when obviously my family would find out.

  "What's this about your name being in a journal article?" fortunately for me, Mom was cheerful as she reached my side, taking me by the arms with excitement, "I don't uand what it's about, but your name is there o the hospital's name," I could feel her hands squeezing my arms with a surprising strength for a woman of her stature.

  "Dr. House, as part of my studies, gave me tact with Dr. Thomas, and I only helped with small things; the doctor was very kind to include me," I said quickly.

  "Oh PJ, I'm so proud, no matter how small what you did was, it's still impressive," releasing my arms for a few seds to give me a quick hug, the woman said affeately, "but," she tinued, pulling away and, to my misfortuaking my arms again irong grip, "why did I hear about this from Brenda in maternity and not from my own son?"

  "I'm sorry, Mom, I think I saw it as some kind of assig and didn't want, I don't know, to bore you with it," I said, failing to find a better excuse; I had really fotten.

  "Oh PJ, nothing you say would be b to us, much less to me," softening her rea, the pregnant woman pletely believed my excuse.

  After chatting a few more moments with Mom about the article before she had to return to her 'station' at work, I arrived at House's office where he, along with the other three doctors, was talking seriously about something until I ehe room.

  "Uh, it got quiet wheeenager everyone in the hospital has been talking about ehe room; what could we be talking about?" sarcastically asked House from behind his desk.

  "I don't think it has anything to do with a pn to kidnap the president, right?" I asked, imitating his sarcasm as I left my things, looking at the people in the room suspiciously.

  "Okay, who told the kid?" annoyed, House raised his hands, "we said it was a secret," he tinued, looking at the other doctors, less Chase, who were not amused.

  "gratutions, PJ, you must be the you person to appear in su important medical article," getting to her feet amiably, Cameron said as she gave me a quick hug.

  "That's not true, I'm pretty sure the Japanese during the sed war did experiments with children youhan him and had tister it somewhere, right?" said House ically.

  "Don't listen to him; he's just jealous," Cameron tinued before returning to her seat and making way for Case, who was also ready to gratute me.

  "Impressive work, mate," less professionally than Cameron, Chase lightly tapped my shoulder, smiling widely.

  "Thanks," I sincerely said, grateful to both doctors, not expeg anything more from the others in the room.

  "gratutions," from his seat, still seated, Dr. Foreman surprisingly and, to my mistaken notiodded slightly.

  "Oh no, not you," frustrated again, House said, "I thought I'd have you to take the kid down a notch." House tinued, pointing at Dr. Foreman, and holy, I thought the same. "Cuddy was jumping for joy, the nurses are swooning over him, Cameron is her usual nice self, and Chase, well, he's Chase," House listed with disdain, "but you, Foreman, you hate the kid," House finished i.

  "I don't hate him," Dr. Foreman quickly and embarrassedly defended himself, "it's just that I used to think you were making a big mistake allowing him to be here," he tinued, pointing at House.

  "Well, thanks," I said at his ge of heart.

  "Stop it, no more gratutions," raising his hand in desperation, House said, sileng Dr. Foreman, "just look at what you've achieved, that arrogant smile," House tinued, pointing at me.

  "It's just you, House," suddeering through the office door, Dr. Wilson said, "PJ deserves the gratutions; not everyone has to be miserable geniuses." Arrivio me and putting his hand on my shoulder, the doctor tinued, "You too, of course," defeatedly House said with his head down.

  "gratutions, PJ, I read the article, it's amazing," with Dr. Wilson's characteristidness, the man said, a handshake.

  "Thanks, but it was all the work of Dr. Thomas and Dr. Murray; I just helped a little at the end," I said.

  "Don't be modest; it's a great achievement to be credited in an article like that," smiling, Dr. Wilson said.

  "Modest," spitting out the word, House said as he stood up, "e on, kid, I heard they need hands for rectal exams; I'm going to teach you how to do one properly," walking out of the office, House tinued.

  "Don't let his attitude drag you down, PJ," sn, Dr. Wilson said, "you be proud of what you achieved; not many people say they're involved in su impressive article, let alone someone ye."

  "Yeah, I'm pretty proud, thanks, doctor," shaking hands with Dr. Wilson again, I quietly said goodbye to the other doctors in the office, leaving behind House.

  Having me wear a b coat with his name on it, House forced me to perform several rectal exams; it was certainly humiliating to areme, but I couldn't imagine how humiliating it would be for the patient to find out that I was the one doing it, added to the fact that House, throughout the ey of the exams, was just in one of the ers pying on his handheld sole at a high volume.

  After the psychological 'punishment' that House applied to me for receiving gratutions in the hospital, presumably to somehow prevent the idea of receiving attentietting to my head, I went to my training with Case after washing my hands several times.

  "You're te," with his seemingly ever-present furrowed brow, Case said as he helped Tim practice his punches.

  "Sorry, had my fingers in someone's rectum," quickly ging my clothes, I stretched for a few seds before starting my regur training.

  "I've never heard that excuse in my life," Case said, bewildered, "but good for you, I guess."

  "Yeah," a bit out of breath, Tim cheerfully said, "good for you."

  "Yeah," I replied, starting to kie of the pung bags that Case had surely built himself.

  Like other days, Case had prepared what he was going to teach me; he wasn't a very friendly person, but at least he was a dedicated teacher.

  "Now, with your oppo on the ground, you have to trol their head and arms," said Case beside me as he instructed me on how to move; it was Tim's turn to serve as a test dummy, "hips down," he ordered, pushing my back with his foot.

  "Good," said Case dryly, "you're in the north-south positiht now; you're in trol. You avigate around Tim's defenses and, using pressure and your weight correctly, position yourself wherever you want to do whatever you want," he tinued, walking calmly around us, "move."

  After getting off Tim, Case calmly positioned himself on top of him in the same spot where I had been, "from here, you have several options; if you feel this elbow ing out a bit, you pass your arm underh and, using your weight, y back, applying pressure on his shoulder, like this," he said, demonstrating, causing Tim to tap out a few seds ter.

  "I got it," I said, kneeling back down, ready.

  Like that, Case had Tim and me switch positions, applying different locks to each other and showing us how to escape from them or how to apply them to prevent it from being easy to escape from them.

  "Do you want to py?" After all the training and saying goodbye to Tim, I asked Case, who surprisingly hadn't gone back to his trailer right away.

  "Yeah," Case responded seriously, indig with his head that I should follow him, "wait here," pointing to a small table with two chairs outside his trailer, Case ordered.

  This wasn't here before, taking one of the chairs, I sat down, waiting for Case to e out with the board and pieces.

  "Your turn with the bck pieces," putting the game oable, Case said.

  "All right," I responded, arranging the pieces, "any reason we're not ihe trailer?" I asked as Case finished setting up his own pieces to move one of his tral pawns.

  "You're ing from having your fingers in someone's 'rectum'; I don't want you to get the wrong idea," joking lightly, Case said.

  "Ah, so you don't mind if I ask you questions about your life; I'm gd, yesterday I noticed some disfort from you when answering my questions," I said with false relief, realizing that it made the man unfortable for someoo inquire about his life.

  "You're funny," with aremely furrowed brow and without smiling, the frankly very intimidating man said, making me immediately regret my jokes; I've probably been around House for too long.

  During our chess game, which Case won again, he hardly respoo any of my questions, causio stop talking altogether to focus on the game.

  "It was a good game; you still o learn to think a few moves ahead," Case said, taking the pieces to put them away.

  The day was the delivery of graded exams by Mrs. Ingram. Sheldon, who was the only oo volunteer, was distributing the papers, giving ents to each person before moving on to the . "Surprisingly average work, a B plus," Sheldon said, handing Brock's exam to me.

  "As expected, an A plus," Sheldon handed me my own exam, nodding slightly, much more formal than any child should be. "Thank you, sir," I mimicked his formality, ining my head before he moved on to the cssmate until the st one.

  The day tinued like the previous one, with House, feeling that rectal exams weren't humiliating enough those days, f me as a "lesson" to assist in ing ied wounds in the emergen.

  With Case, it was more of the same, physical and teique training before a game, this time a bit lohan before. My focus was entirely to predict Case's moves before and after eaine, whifortunately didn't lead to success, resulting in another defeat.

  "You're thinking too much," was all Case had to offer as a farewell before entering his trailer.

  "Yeah, or not enough," I said to no one before walking to my car.

  The day, during lunch, I went to the library on my own to see if there were any useful books on chess. "Hello, Miss Huts, did you do something different with your hair?" I asked, resting my arms on the librarian's desk with a friendly smile.

  "Oh, PJ, yes, I did actually, thank you for notig, you've been the only ooday," she immediately put aside what she was doing with a big smile.

  "It looks great; I noticed right away," I said, I noticed more than just her hair, I observed things like the faint smell of bad breath masked by gum, a slight swelling in her eyelids, a rash on her neck, and a tiny Tupperware with an uizing sad. Miss Huts was, among other things, trying to lose weight, even taking medication for it.

  "You're very kind, PJ," she said with a big smile. "If only you were a few years older," she added in a murmured tohat I mao hear.

  "It's nothing. I was looking for chess books," I said a little unfortable, ign her ent.

  "Oh, of course, over there," the librarian pointed in a dire ihe library.

  "Thank you, Miss Huts," tapping the desk lightly, I said, preparing to leave.

  "I told you, PJ, call me Sheryl," she said as she walked in the dire she had given me.

  Yeah, no.

  At one of the tables in the library, and by a few bookshelves where I found a few chess books, Sheldon and Tam were sittiing their lunch quietly.

  "Hey, what are you doing here?" with two books under my arm, I approached the kids, greeting Tam for the first time.

  "Oh, PJ Dun, my friend, I see you're ied in chess," Tam said, pointing to the books under my arm in his usual strange way of referring to me.

  "Uh, I love those books, good choice, PJ," Sheldon added. "And to answer your question, the library is usually empty at lunchtime, so it's a quiet pce to enjoy your meal," the boy tinued.

  "You're right," taking a seat in one of the free chairs, I said after 'listening' to the silence for a few seds. "What's this?" pig up a sheet of paper from the table, I asked.

  "Dear Coach Wilkins, please excuse my son, Sheldon, from P.E.," I read before Sheldon could take the note from my hands, "he has experienced a testicur hernia and o rest for the six to eight weeks," I tinued, "uh, that sounds bad," I said, amused by the worried look on my little friend's face. "Sincerely, Mary Cooper," I finished reading the obviously fake note.

  "I didn't know you'd experienced a testicur hernia, buddy. I'm so sorry," I said, avoiding ughing at Sheldon's ge of expression, from to extreme relief when he saw that his fake note had mao fool me.

  "I hope you get better," tapping Sheldon's shoulder lightly, I said. "Tam, always a pleasure," I tinued, saying goodbye to the Vietnamese boy, who cheerfully returhe gesture as he walked towards Miss Huts's desk.

  "By the way, Sheldon, fold your fake note," I said, enjoying the surprise on the boy's face, "when your mom 'gives' you a note, you always fold it before putting it in your backpack; that way, it's more believable," I finished smiling at the startled boy before turning baiss Huts.

  The days passed with my routine unged. On Saturday, as promised to Gabe, we went to the moruck show with Bob; it ectacur show, and everyone, especially Gabe, e to the fullest.

  When Monday came around at lunchtime, I went to the library again to return the books after a short chat with Miss Huts. Also, ihe library, I found Sheldon, this time by himself, pushing a small cart full of books while arranging them with a big smile.

  The week went by, and the weekend arrived. Early Saturday m, after my usual Saturday m routihe doorbell rang. As I usually do after exerg, I watched TV with Gabe for a while before doing other things, so I was the closest to the door.

  "Tam," I said, surprised to find the Vietnamese boy with Sheldon and Billy Sparks.

  "Hello, PJ. Tam will show us a bame, and we were w if you wao join," Sheldon said with his usual formality when speaking.

  "I'm Billy," Billy Sparks said with his ever-present i smile.

  "I know, Billy," I said, always surprised by the obvious itive issues the boy had. "Yeah, sure. Hey, Gabe, let's py. e over," I tinued, not giving my brother a ce to refuse.

  In the Carage, Tam expihe rules of his bame, Dungeons and Dragons. It had dozens of rules, as the book Tam had said, but the simplest oo py a game were summarized by the Vietnamese boy.

  The game wasirely simple, but once we pyed for a few minutes, it was easy to get used to it. The funny thing about the situation was that apparently, the game relied entirely on the pyers' imagination. While Tam acted as the steor, the "dungeon master," the rest of us had almost absolute freedom to do whatever we wanted, as long as it was within the rules established by Tam and Sheldon at the beginning of the game.

  "You walk down a hallway and e to a woode," Tam, doing his job, was narrating what was happening with the darkest voice the boy could muster.

  "Mister Cure-ious mender, what do you do?" Tam asked me, using the name I had chosen for my character, a cleric.

  "I want to use the spell to search for traps," I said, making Tam nod, allowio roll a die that beloo him. "Awenty," surprised by the result, the Vietnamese boy said. I had mao roll several "natural twenties," as Tam had called them, during ame. "Ultimately, there are no traps in the chest beyond a tiny splihat someone could get if they touched it carelessly," Tam tinued, iing funny things.

  "That's dangerous," worried Sheldon said.

  "Fire Beak, what do you do?" the oer me was Billy, who, I was sure, didn't uand what was happening the whole time we were here.

  "Billy?" After a moment of Billy not reag to the mention of his character's am spoke again.

  "What?" Intrigued but still with his i smile, he asked.

  "You are Fire Beak," Tam reminded him, being the third time he had to do shout the game.

  "Okay," Billy said, smiling even more.

  "So what do you do?" Tam asked again.

  "I'm Fire Beak," proudly stated Billy. There was definitely something off about this kid.

  "Hey guys," entering through the garage door, Mrs. Cooper, with a tray full of cookies, said, smiling, "I brought snacks." Pg the tray oable, she tinued.

  "Thanks, Mom," Sheldon said, taking one of the cookies.

  "What are y'all pying, Chutes and Ladders?" Seeing the small figurines oable, Mrs. Cooper, in what I could dis as , asked.

  "Tam is teag us Dungeons and Dragons," Sheldon said formally. "We're on a quest to find the pitchfork of a devil named Baalzebul," he expined.

  "I'm Fire Beak," added Billy.

  "And is this the devil?" Mrs. Cooper asked again, taking the small figurine from the table, her growing being more obvious.

  Clearly, the religious woman was having a silent panic attack.

  "No, he's just a monster who doesn't ants," Tam calmly expined with a friendly smile. Yeah, that doesn't help.

  "I see," Mrs. Cooper said slowly as she pced the figurine ba the table. "Yes, he's just hanging right out there, isn't he?" she asked, still keeping her gaze fixed on the figurine.

  "Mrs. Cooper, in one way or another, we're pying a game where we join forces to fight against evil, in this case, a demon. I 't think of anything more Christian than that," I said, trying to ease the panic the woman was experieng.

  "Well, not really, this isn't Christian at all. Your character would be sidered pagan by Christian standards; Billy's character uses magical powers, and historically, magid Christianity don't get along very well," Sheldon said, throwing my little effort irash.

  "Okay, well," elongating her words, Mrs. Can to walk robotically out of the garage, "you kids have fun," she said before pletely leaving.

  "Great," I said, shaking my head slightly. I was sure the game would end in a few moments.

  "What?" Sheldon asked, tilting his head.

  "Oh, you'll find out very..." I was saying, but Mrs. Cooper's voiterrupted me. "Gee!" from inside her house, the woman shouted loudly, "soon," I finished.

  A few mier, Mrs. Cooper, closely followed by her husband Mr. Cooper, interrupted ame, borrowing everything Tam had brought with him.

  On Monday, when I returned home, Bob, as at the beginning of every month, was waiting with several sheets in front of him on the living room table.

  "Champ!" excitedly, Bob said, indig that I should e closer. "You know I don't uand all this very well, just the total, it grew again," taking one of the sheets from the pile, Bob said, pointing to a number he had previously marked.

  "It's a little more than double," I said, having added up the totals mentally.

  "Don't you think it would be a good idea to withdraw something?" Bob asked nervously, surely thinking about the total amount of money on his own. Every time we received correspondence from Warren regarding the growth of my portfolio, Bob always had the same problem. Upon seeing that there was indeed growth, the man would panic, thinking it might go down, which could be true if it were any other iment, but in this case, it wasn't.

  "No, Dad, everything has to stay for at least a few more years. In fact, if I get more money, I'd like to ihat too," for the third time since we received this correspondence, I reassured the man, who nodded slightly before carefully putting the papers away in a box.

  The week passed without any issues. The game of the season occurred as usual on Thursday, where without Sheldon's pys, it ended in a rather wide defeat for us. Our major problem was the defensive line, which was almost always leaky. Unfortunately, part of that problem was Geie, who seemed increasingly physically overwhelmed by our oppos.

  The weekend, the Coopers anized a barbecue to watch a game. Helping Bob carry his cooler, we arrived at the Cooper's house where everything was already set up in the backyard.

  "Aces, tell me you have alcohol there," from the table in the backyard, Meemaw, with a soda in her hand, excimed in desperation.

  "Here you go, Meemaw," I said, handing her a beer.

  "Hello, PJ," o the old dy, Sheldon, with a rge book, greeted me formally.

  "Sheldon," as always, mimig his formality, I greeted the boy, taking a soda for myself.

  "I was w if you were ied in joining my religion, Mathology. It's based on a universal binary system," the boy calmly said.

  "Sure, why not," sitting dowo Gabe, who was reading one of his ics, I replied, amused.

  "Perfect, that makes two gregants," excitedly nodded Sheldon.

  "Tell me, does yion celebrate anything? Christmas, for example," I asked, smiling at Meemaas also amused by my iion with her grandson.

  "Of course, we have celebrations, March fourteenth, for example," Sheldon said obviously.

  "What's that?" Nnizing the date, Meemaw asked.

  "Three point fourteen, pi," I expined, quickly uanding what the boy meant.

  "Correct," nodding happily, Sheldon said.

  "Speaking of Christmas," as Mrs. Cooper set ptes oable with different foods before the barbecue was fully ready, Meemaw said, catg her attention, "I invited Merle and his family for this Christmas," with a big smile, the woman said.

  "Uncle Merle is ing; it'll be an incredible ge for them, going from the icy weather of Mia to the heat of Texas," smiling, Mrs. Cooper said.

  "Oh, yes, but they're already used to ge, ever since you-know-who..." Meemaw said, making strange facial expressions as she moved her body.

  "Then it's real?" Surprised, Mrs. Cooper asked, "I always thought he was a bit strange, but I thought that w on the farm, you know, man's work, would cure him..." embarrassed, the religious woman tinued, "may the Lord five him," looking up to the sky, she finished.

  The meal with the Coopers, as well as the game, were very iing. Both Bob and Mr. Cooper performed their duties at the grill, making burgers non-stop for hours, while drinking beer and watg the game. Surprisingly, Sheldon and Gabe started chatting on their own about the ics eae had, and Missy and Teddy, separated from everyone else, shared secrets by whispering to each other.

  The days passed, and during the following week at the Cooper's house, something had happened. Mrs. Cooper, along with her younger children and a rge suitcase, on Monday night when I returned from my training, headed towards Meemaw's house.

  Geie at school didn't bring his usual lunch, causing the teeo have to collect from others.

  On Wednesday of that week, the Nobel Prize ceremony would take pce. Despite knowing very well who would receive the prize, I stayed up until the early hours of the m to listen to the broadcast on Bob's radio.

  The winners of the Nobel Prize in Medie, as in my past life, had not ged. Doctors Thomas and Murray gave a brief spee which they thanked all the important people in their lives and those who had made the research of the article possible.

  The procedure was something that would help thousands of people around the world over time, and I was extremely proud to be at least a part of it.

  "Did he win?" Surprising me from behind, Mom in her robe with tiredness on her face asked.

  "Yes, he won," I said, smiling happily.

  "Oh, PJ, gratutions," walking over to the couch, Mom said as she hugged my neck.

  "Thank you," I said, even though I hadn't won it.

  At school, obviously no one, beyond Sheldon, arently had also listeo the awards, khat the Nobel Prizes had even been awarded. The boy had mainly listened for the Physics prize, but out of respect, he had listeo the others too.

  When I arrived at the hospital, it seemed that nothing had ged. The nurses, with their usual joy at seeing me, greeted me when I arrived.

  In House's office, only he was sitting there with a furrowed brow. "If you let it get to your head, I'll make your life hell," he said annoyed wheered.

  "Yeah, yeah, I get it," I said, downpying the issue, "I uand that my participation was almost nil. You don't have to worry about it getting to my head at all," I said, getting my things ready to leave. "Wait," House said, pulling an envelope out of his coat, open.

  "So, are you going to keep reading my mail? I remember your excuse was that it was addressed to you; this one isn't," I said, showing my name on the front of the envelope.

  "Would you believe me if I said it arrived like that?" House asked.

  "No," I replied, taking out the tents of the envelope, a letter from Doctor Thomas.

  Iter, he thanked me again for my tribution to the research. "Also, my dear teenage friend, you are cordially io a party my friends and family will make. Attached to the letter are your pickets. See you this Friday at Logan Iional Airport," I read raising my voice, gng sideways at House, who ying with a ball, ign my gaze.

  "What?" he asked with obvious feigned innoce.

  ---

  Author Thoughts:

  As always, I'm not Ameri and not a doctor.

  9k words, see you ter :D.

  With that said,

  I think that's all. As always, if you find any errors, please let me know, and I'll correct them immediately.

  Thank you for reading! :D

  PS: PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW.