[The scene opens on a close-up of House’s fisted right hand, then there is a quick montage of images, some blurry; a bloody shoe, a bloody bandage, House’s mouth as he inhales deeply, a broken mirror, a baseball size hole in the wall, House’s left fist as it opens, and finally, his face as he bows his head and closes his eyes]

[The screen blacks out and the words “Eight Hours Earlier” appear]

[Cut to PPTH in the evening eight hours earlier. House limps through the busy clinic area and pushes open the outer door of Cuddy’s office with his cane. He is carrying a large brown envelope under his left arm. He hesitates in front of her office door for a split second, before opening it and walking in. Cuddy is beside her desk pulling on a pair of dark blue coveralls with the PPTH logo on the front]

Cuddy: A crane collapsed in downtown Trenton.

House: (looking down and sideways, but not at Cuddy) Don't care.

[Still not looking at her, House hands Cuddy the brown envelope. She pulls an old book out of the envelope, tosses the envelope on her desk and holds up the book. The title is Approach to the Acute Abdomen.]

Cuddy: (recognizing the author, Ernest T. Cuddy) My great-grandfather.

House: No, it's just a book he wrote. Open it up.

[Cuddy opens the front cover, revealing an inscription, which reads, “To Lisa and Lucas. Here’s to a new chapter. Best. Greg.” She closes the book and looks up at him]

Cuddy: Seriously, you're giving this to us?

House: It's a big step you're taking. I wanted to congratulate you. I understand that's the adult thing to do.

Cuddy: How did you know?

House: I've known for a while. The fact that you decided to cohabitate is not exactly a spoiler. Unless my intel is wrong.

[Cuddy turns to finish putting on the coveralls. House helps her put her arms in the sleeves and pull up the coveralls]

House: Trouble in paradise?

Cuddy: (quickly putting up her hair and ignoring the question) We have to get to Trenton.

[Cuddy leaves House standing there to wonder about her unexpected reaction to the gift]

[Cut to a battalion 228 f*re truck at the disaster scene. It is dark now and there are hundreds of rescue workers doing their jobs in an orderly fashion. Fireman are pulling out f*re hoses, policeman try to control the crowds, and EMT’s go about the business of rescuing victims]

[It is noisy. Emergency workers chatter, victims moan and call for help, helicopter blades thrum overhead, illuminating the scene with spotlights, and ambulance sirens wail. Foreman and Cuddy walk into the scene. They stop to speak with someone in charge. Into this chaos, rides House on his motorcycle. He pulls up just behind Foreman and Cuddy and parks. Taking off his helmet and grabbing his cane off the bike, House surveys the scene. He looks at Cuddy and starts to follow her as she heads to the triage area]

[House stops and looks up. The camera follows his gaze, which takes in the huge, toppled, construction crane. The camera pans into the building where the crane fell, destroying the structure and burying many of the occupants under tons of rubble. There is a huge hole in the center of the building]

[Cut to a close-up of House, who stands in awe of the overwhelming destruction]

OPENING CREDITS

[The opening credits are abbreviated. There is only a silent flash of the title on the screen, without the usual accompanying theme of Teardrop on the f*re and the familiar introductory montage]

[Cut back to the accident scene. The noise of the helicopters, sirens, and jackhammers, is deafening after the silence which accompanied the opening credits. Bright arc lights illuminate the scene, which includes EMTs bringing victims to the triage area and a working dog searching for more victims. House and Cuddy are doing triage on victims who have been pulled from the rubble]

House: (shining a light into the eyes of a young woman with blood running down her face) Can you hear me?

Young Woman: Hmm?

House: (to Cuddy) That sound like a yes?

[Next to House, Cuddy is examining a middle-age man who is lying on a stretcher]

Cuddy: Sir, we have to get you to the O.R. You have a bad wound, but we're gonna pack it and transport you as fast as we can.

[House reaches around and feels the back of his patient’s skull]

House: (to the worker recording the decisions of the triage doctors) Skull fracture. Glasgow coma score of 11. She's immediate.

[Cuddy has risen to talk to an EMT about transporting her patient. In the meantime, House has taken a look at Cuddy’s patient]

House: Move on. This guy's d*ad.

Cuddy: His wounds aren't so—

House: (pulling off his latex gloves) Forget the wound. Look at his toes. Atherosclerotic emboli. He'll never survive the surgery.

Cuddy: Maybe his shoes were too tight.

House: It's not the shoes. Skin shows smoker's facies. He's not gonna make it till morning. He'll just take up an ambulance ride, surgeon's time, and an ICU bed.

Cuddy: (to the emergency worker) He's expectant. Leave him.

[Cut to the cab of the crane, where Foreman and a number of EMTs are preparing to extract the crane operator from the cab]

Jay: I only nodded off for a second. I lost control of the load. I'm so sorry.

Foreman: Don't worry. We're gonna get you outta here.

Jay: I'm sorry.

[An EMT puts a strap around Jay’s head to secure the neck brace]

Foreman: He's secure.

EMT: Ready? Three, two, one.

[They lift Jay straight up out of the cab and load him onto a stretcher. House approaches]

Foreman: (to House) Crane operator. Made it through amazingly well. Lucid and responsive. s*ab fracture, right humerus. Haven't gotten to his lower half yet.

[House starts to examine Jay’s lower body as Foreman splints Jay’s arm]

House: (to Jay) Tell me when something hurts.

Jay: I fell asleep, k*lled all those people.

House: Something other than your conscience. Is that a pill in your pocket, or are you just happy to have a tiny pill-shaped penis?

[House pulls a packet of pills out of Jay’s pocket]

House: Caffeine pills. You fell asleep taking these?

Jay: I drank two cups of coffee too.

House: Is that normal for you?

Jay: No, I hate coffee. I'm working on no sleep. My daughter has the flu.

House: (to Foreman) This much caffeine for a coffee virgin. There's no way he fell asleep. He passed out. Which means a neurological disorder caused the crash, not fatigue. (yelling to Cuddy) Hey. We're taking the crane operator back to Princeton.

Cuddy: They said he was barely hurt — he can wait.

House: (to Foreman) Steal an ambulance. And call the team. Tell 'em we got a case.

Cuddy: (coming over to talk to him) House. No! I need you here.

House: Well he needs me there. And he moans louder than you do.

Cuddy: There were over 100 people in that building. Only 76 have been accounted for. Foreman and your team can handle the crane operator for now.

[House looks discouraged as he watches a rescue worker pull a sheet over the body of the patient he rightly believed would not survive]

[Cut to the emergency room of PPTH. The scene is chaotic here also. Bloody victims sit waiting for care as doctors do their best to treat everyone. Wilson is pulling shards of glass out of a victim’s forehead. His cell phone rings, and he pulls it from his pocket, glancing at the caller ID before tucking it between his chin and his shoulder so he can continue to work on his patient]

Wilson: (talking to House on his phone) Having fun down there?

[The scene moves between the accident scene and PPTH as House and Wilson talk on the phone]

House: Lots! Every time Cuddy leans over a patient, it's another opportunity for a down blouse nip slip. What's going on between her and Lucas?

[House has limped into a part of the building which is still standing]

Wilson: Besides them moving in together? That's not enough for you?

House: I gave her the housewarming gift earlier. And she paused for a split second, like she was hiding something.

[House spies what looks like a vending machine, though it is covered in dirt. He bends down and manages to read the words “Cold Drinks” on the front of the machine. He stands, and transferring his cane to his phone hand, digs into his front jeans pocket for coins]

Wilson: It's probably her moral revulsion at housewarming gifts.

House: Or maybe she didn't want to accept a gift for something she wasn't gonna do.

Wilson: You actually think they're not moving in together?

[Finding no coins in his pocket, House looks around furtively before taking his cane in his right hand and using it to break the glass from the front of the machine]

Wilson: What was that? You okay?

House: (reaching into the machine and pulling out a drink) Yeah. Vending machine collapsed.

[The area where House found the vending machine appears to be a lounge. He sits down on a dirt-covered chair, propping his cane beside him]

House: She still using your ex-wife as a realtor?

Wilson: As far as I know.

House: Well, know a little farther, will you? Look into it.

[At PPTH Wilson lets his phone slide from his shoulder and puts it in his pocket]

[House pockets his phone and rubs at his right thigh. As he starts to open his drink, he hears a “clang” and looks in the direction of the sound. There is another “clang” and House gets up, following the sound. He pauses in front of a pile of concrete and waits, listening intently. There is third “clang,” closer this time. He turns and calls to one of the resucue workers]

House: Hey! There's somebody down here!

[Cut to the monitor of a piece of sensory rescue equipment which has been placed on top of the pile of concrete where House heard the clanging. It is now very quiet as House, Cuddy, and the rescue workers watch and listen. A dog is working the scene also]

Captain McCreaney: If you can hear me, tap three times, or call out. Is anyone there?

[The Captain looks at the worker who is listening for a response via an earpiece. The worker shakes his head in the negative]

Captain McCreaney: I'm not getting anything.

House: (who has acquired a flashlight) I heard something — there's gotta be a void down there.

Captain McCreaney: There's a million voids down there. It was the parking garage. But equipment hasn't picked up any movement. Dogs haven't picked up any scent.

House: There's smashed cars down there. The gasoline throw off their scent?

Captain McCreaney: Look, we gotta get back to work, okay? We'll get to this area soon. Excuse me.

[A whistle shrills twice, the small group of rescue workers break up and the hubbub in the background resumes. Cuddy looks at House, and then, she too, leaves to go back to work]

[House continues to examine the area where he heard the clanging. He spies a pipe sticking up out of the ground and when he whacks it with his cane, it sounds exactly like the clanging her heard earlier. He follows the pipe with his flashlight, and looking rather unsure, crawls into the space where the pipe disappears into the ground. He shines the flashlight around the small space and calls out]

House: Anybody hear me? Hey! Anybody hear me?

[He hears nothing but falling rubble and the muffled sounds from above. Looking reluctantly back at the opening to the tunnel, he continues to crawl further into the cavelike space. He slides down a gradual slope and finds a metal hatch, which he kicks open with his good leg. The space opens up a little on the other side of the hatch and he is able to continue in a squatting position. He continues moving forward, using the flashlight and his cane to feel what is in front of him. A hand reaches into the beam of the flashlight and grabs the cane, startling House]

House: Aah! Oh...

[A young women covered in concrete dust lies on the ground in front of House]

Hanna: Help me. (she groans)

[Cut to House sitting beside the young woman]

House: (brushing her free of debris) What's your name?

Hanna: (coughing) Please...my husband's gift. I was supposed to pick it up at the framers. It's on Elm.

House: Well, you should have told me earlier. I could have picked it up on the way. What's your name?

Hanna: It's a picture from our Tortola trip. For his birthday.

[House examines the young woman for injuries as he talks to her]

House: I'm not asking your name because I wanna become friends. I'm trying to gauge your mental state.

Hanna: Hanna.

House: Okay, that's a start. What day of the week is it?

[He shines the flashlight down her lower body and discovers that her right leg is stuck under a fallen concrete beam]

Hanna: Tuesday.

House: Better still.

Hanna: What happened?

[House has been examining the area around himself and Hanna, trying to access the integrity of the collapsed structure]

House: You know that giant construction crane next door? It's kind of on top of you right now. Okay, I'm gonna try to pull you out.

[Holding the flashlight in his mouth, he tugs at Hanna’s leg, which is thoroughly stuck]

Hanna: Ow! My leg! Oh! Oh! Oh! (she whimpers)

House: Okay, okay.

[He looks around again with the flashlight and then sighs]

House: Whew… I'm gonna need to get help.

Hanna: No, stay! Someone else will come.

House: No one knows I'm down here.

Hanna: Please! Stay with me. Don't leave me in the dark.

House: I'll be right back.

[He starts to crawl back the way he came]

Hanna: (yelling) No! Don't leave me in the dark! Please stay! (she whimpers)

[A cell phone rings and the scene cuts to Foreman in the ER at PPTH. He is with Jay, the crane operator. Foreman looks at the caller ID, then answers his phone. The scene moves back and forth between House and the team at PPTH during the phone call]

Foreman: He's still in the ER House. We haven't had time to start a differential.

[House is aboveground again. There is a rescue worker close by cutting through some concrete, throwing up sparks as he works]

House: Perfect! Let's start right now. Put me on speaker. (shouting, to be heard over the noise of the saw) What causes syncope?

[Foreman holds out his phone so that Taub and Chase can also hear House]

Taub: Your guy's s*ab. The two dozen other patients—

House: Who don't need to be diagnosed. They just need to be bandaged. What causes syncope?

[House sits down on some broken concrete, puts his cane aside, and rubs his right thigh]

Chase: Vasovagal reaction...

Foreman: Meningioma, sick sinus syndrome.

Taub: Or you're wrong, and he just fell asleep.

House: How's he gonna sleep with 50 cups of coffee going through his veins?

Taub: Were you never a medical resident?

House: I hear ten, eleven, and twelve. Where's Thirteen?

Foreman: She's not here. And the answer to your next question is no. I don't know

where she is.

House: Do you have the answer to my question after that? Space-occupying lesion in his brain is most likely. MRI will prove I'm right.

Taub: Or it'll just prove he suffered head trauma from the crash.

House: Which we'd wanna find anyway. Two birds with one scan. Do it.

[House disconnects the call as an EMT approaches]

EMT: Having trouble finding a vein for Hanna's IV.

House: She getting weaker? Paler?

EMT: No, no. She's s*ab.

House: That means her blood loss in minimal. Buys us some time. Get the IV into her tibia. It's almost hollow, feeds into the venous system. (The EMT stares at him blankly) Which, they obviously don't teach you in EMT school.

[House stands, and picking up the EMT’s medical kit, heads back to the entrance of the tunnel. He hangs his cane on an exposed piece of rebar before crawling back into the tunnel]

[Cut to House pushing the medical kit along in front of himself as he enters the space where Hanna lies. Captain McCreaney and some other rescue workers are now present. They have brought in lights and are working to shore up the existing beams with blocks of wood. Captain McCreaney is using a drill in an attempt to break up the concrete trapping Hanna’s right leg]

Rescue Worker 1: This side's still leaning pretty bad. Gotta shore up this beam. What do ya got?

Rescue Worker 2: We need six 4 X 4s…..

[The rescue workers continue to work and talk in the background as House plops himself down next to Hanna]

House: Told ya I'd be back.

House: (unzipping the medical kit) Heard you might be thirsty.

[Captain McCreaney stops drilling and takes off his safety goggles]

Captain McCreaney: Ahhh...

House: (to the Captain) I assume that bodes well for the rescue?

Captain McCreaney: Structural beam. High compression concrete. I can't break it up.

Hanna: You can't get me outta here?

Captain McCreaney: Naw. Just means we gotta move on to a different piece of equipment. I got airbags comin' in that'll lift 70 tons.

[House prepares to insert the IV into Hanna’s tibia]

Hanna: What's your name?

House: You testing my mental state?

Hanna: I'm gonna be stuck down here for a while. I'd like somebody to talk to.

House: Look, the guy who just left is the one who's gonna be holding your hand through all this. You talk to him.

[House unwraps an IV needle]

House: Little pinch.

Hanna: (sitting up and crying out in pain) Aah! Oh! Ow!

House: Okay. Big pinch.

Hanna: I gotta call my husband. Can I use your phone?

[After inserting the IV, House hangs the bag from a ceiling beam]

House: Uh, no bars down here. L'chaim.

[House starts to crawl back down the tunnel]

Hanna: Where are you going?

House: Don't worry. f*re marshal Bill will be back soon.

[Cut to House approaching Cuddy at triage. Cuddy is wrapping a bandage around a victim’s leg. She gives another triage worker her stethoscope]

House: So I hope I didn't weird you out giving you that gift.

Cuddy: (continuing to roll and wrap the bandage) Can we talk about this later?

House: Of course. (He pauses briefly) Is now later? Maybe things aren't going so well with Lucas. If so, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to step into anything.

Cuddy: There's no problems. We're doing just great.

[The other triage worker returns her stethoscope]

Cuddy: (to the other woman) Thank you.

House: So why the weirdness?

Cuddy: (motioning to another doctor) Can you help? (She pulls House aside and takes off her gloves) When I opened it, I didn't think it was a housewarming gift. I thought it was an engagement present. (House looks stunned) It just happened last night.

House: No wonder you wanna hide this from me... Since I'm such a delicate flower.

Cuddy: I didn't know what to say. And I've been slightly distracted.

[The camera cuts further back to show House and Cuddy talking amidst many fireman, EMTs and other emergency personnel]

House: That might make sense, 'cept you're not wearing the ring. (The camera cuts back to a closeup sh*t) So...You are hiding it, which begs the question—

Cuddy: (putting her hands on his arms and speaking to him as if her were a child) House...It's in my office drawer because I knew I was coming here. It's not weird. There's no mystery. I'm just getting married.

Captain McCreaney: (approaching quickly) 'Scuse me.

[Cut to PPTH. Chase and Taub are doing the MRI on Jay]

Jay: (speaking from inside the MRI machine) How much longer?

Taub: Uh, less than a minute. Are you in any pain?

Jay: Nothing new. Just a little claustrophobic. Shouldn't you be taking care of those other people, the ones that I hurt?

[They conclude the test and the table slides out of the machine. Taub and Chase leave the control room to talk to Jay]

Chase: Everything checks out okay.

[Chase removes the headbrace and Jay sits up. He wipes at his nose with his hand]

Jay: My nose is bleeding.

Chase: It's expected, given the trauma you've sustained.

Taub: (pointing) That's not expected. (There is also blood seeping from Jay’s right eye)

[Cut to a quick sh*t of the fallen crane and the disaster in the background, then cut to the underground space around Hanna, where House, looking hurt and confused, is sitting with Hanna, Cuddy, and Captain McCreaney. The support beams have been shored up with wood blocks and bright emergency lights illuminate the scene]

Captain McCreaney: The way things fell, this support beam is now holding up a giant pile of rubble. We can't lift it without jeopardizing everyone down here. So it's time to discuss amputation.

[Captain McCreaney is mostly talking to Cuddy, but he glances at Hanna, knowing that she does not want to hear what he is suggesting]

Hanna: (vehemently) No.

Cuddy: (to Hanna) Please listen to me. You’ve been down here almost two hours. By the time they clear away the rubble—

House: (Interrupting) We are not cutting off her leg. (to Hanna) You don't have to rush through this to make his job easier. (He motions toward the captain)

Captain McCreaney: You kidding me?

Cuddy: We leave the leg pinned, we're risking crush syndrome.

Hanna: What's that?

Cuddy: Your leg isn't getting enough circulation. The longer it's pinned the more the muscle dies.

Hanna: So what does that mean, like a limp?

Cuddy: Dying muscles release poisons. We free your leg, the poisons rush back into your system. It could stop your heart.

House: So could cheeseburgers. (to Captain McCreaney) Let's get your lazy friends to start moving that pile. She's got two more hours before crush syndrome could possibly set in.

[Cuddy looks angrily at House]

Captain McCreaney: We're digging up there by hand. I can't guarantee I can get 10 tons of debris pulled off in two hours.

Hanna: Well, you need to try. It's my leg.

Captain McCreaney: (to Hanna) It's not just crush syndrome you gotta worry about, okay? There's gas leaks. There's f*re. We can never rule out secondary collapses, no matter how much we shore this thing up.

House: You think chopping off someone's limb inside a pile of dirty rocks is safe? Sepsis, fat embolism, a hemorrhage.

Captain McCreaney: Those risks are nothing compared to the risk of this thing coming down again.

Cuddy: Captain, he's a jerk. But it's what the patient wants. Can we please just give it a couple more hours?

Captain McCreaney: (sighing, he answers softly) Yeah. (He moves away)

Cuddy: I gotta get up to triage.

[Cuddy scoots back up the tunnel as House checks Hanna’s IV line]

Hanna: Thank you, doctor?

House: House. You don't need to thank me. It just makes sense.

Hanna: Just promise me you won't let them cut off my leg.

House: (crossing his fingers) I promise. Does that make you feel better?

Hanna: For some reason, it does.

[House’s cell phone rings. He pulls it out of his jacket pocket]

Hanna: Your phone is working down here.

House: (flipping open his phone) Switched carriers. Better rollover minutes. (into the phone) Talk.

Foreman: (talking to House on the phone from the diagnostics conference room) MRI was clean, but afterwards, he started bleeding out of his eyes and nose.

House: So there was something wrong before the collapse.

Taub: Unless it's just conjunctive coagulopathy from the trauma.

House: Yeah, yeah, yeah — you don't think he was sick before. We get it! You're wrong.

Chase: Brain infection?

Thirteen: (entering the conference room) Sorry I'm late.

House: (to Thirteen) Where were you?

Thirteen: Physical therapy. I left my phone in my locker.

Chase: The infection causes neurological symptoms, goes systemic, and D.I.C. causes the bleed.

House: Good theory. Except for the part that there's no fever. Get an X-ray venogram. See if you can find a reason for your existence. Also look for venous sinus thrombosis.

Foreman: Would have seen it on the MRI.

House: Not if you were too busy not looking for it.

Thirteen: We should X-ray for a facial fracture first. This could all be simple trauma.

House: Just do what I tell you. Be back in ten minutes. (He disconnects the call)

Hanna: You're leaving?

House: There's a dozen people here who can save you. I'm apparently the only one who can save this other guy.

[House crawls back toward the entrance to the tunnel]

Hanna: W–wait! Don't go. (She whimpers, looking scared)

[Cut to the accident scene above. House clips his cane onto his motorcycle and mounts the bike. Cuddy approaches him]

Cuddy: Hanna's freaking out. She's having a panic att*ck. She can't breathe. She's gonna rip out all her IVs.

House: (zipping up his jacket) So calm her down.

Cuddy: She wants you.

House: I'm flattered. Give her oxygen. (He starts up the bike engine)

Cuddy: They won't let O2 down there. Fear of expl*si*n. You have to go back. She needs you, House. (He turns off the bike engine and grabs his cane)

[Cut back to the present in House’s apartment. There are glimpses of House limping down his hallway, standing in front of his bathroom mirror and rolling a pill bottle around in his hand. The scene cuts briefly to a longshot of House, sitting on his bathroom floor. He bows his head]

[Next is the sound of velcro ripping, then the camera cuts to House putting a blood pressure cuff on Hanna’s arm]

Hanna: You only came back because I freaked out. Right?

House: Not at all. I just realized how... big and scary the world is and how cozy and safe this little place is. (He takes off his leather jacket)

Hanna: Thank you. I'm sorry I needed you.

[House reaches into his jacket pocket, takes out his phone, and flipping it open, hands it to Hanna]

House: Here. Call your husband.

[Hanna is breathing hard as she dials her husband’s phone number. House pumps up the blood pressure cuff]

Hanna: (into the phone) Charlie? I'm here in... They called you? They're helping me. Are you coming? (breathing hard) I don't know how this could happen. It's your birthday. I'm so sorry.

House: See? This is why I lied about the phone. Your BP is spiking, so you're bleeding faster from your leg wound. I'm gonna have less time to save it. Hang up.

Hanna: Okay. (to Charlie) Okay, they're telling me I have to go.

[Whimpering, she hands the phone back to House, who flips it closed]

House: That was stupid of me.

[House puts the phone back in his jacket pocket. He then ducks under the low ceiling beam and settles himself back against the concrete wall]

Hanna: It was nice.

House: I don't see that as a contradiction.

Hanna: He was already on his way. He was in Baltimore, and they all saw it on the news. How many people were hurt?

House: What did I tell you about not raising your blood pressure?

[The space appears to be secure. Wooden blocks support the beam. A crushed car is seen in the background. House rubs his right thigh]

Hanna: Can I ask what's wrong with your leg?

House: Crane fell on it. (Hanna laughs) Small world.

Hanna: (smiling) You could have just said no.

House: I'll remember that for my next human contact.

Hanna: Would you pray with me?

House: No. I'm not in the habit of encouraging my patients' superstitions.

Hanna: How is that a habit? You plan on getting trapped under a building again?

House: I don't believe in God.

Hanna: I don't either. Please?

[House clasps his hands together and closes his eyes in prayer. Hanna does the same. There is silence for a minute, then Hanna opens her eyes]

Hanna: I always thought... If I did the right thing, if I treated people right, then good things would happen to me. You think that's how it works?

House: I didn't use to. Then recently I tried... Now I don't know.

[Scrabbling sounds are heard at the entrance to the tunnel. Captain McCreaney crawls through carrying some new equipment]

Captain McCreaney: Good news.

[Cut to PPTH where Taub and Thirteen are performing the X-ray venogram on Jay]

Taub: Advancing catheter through interior jugular vein. You told House you were at therapy.

Thirteen: Did you transcribe the entire meeting? Entering the cavernous sinus.

Taub: Your therapy's on Thursdays.

Thirteen: Got rescheduled. Injecting dye.

Taub: Really? I'm not gonna rat you out. We're friends. I Just wanna make sure you're okay.

Thirteen: (looking at the monitor) No filling defects. Don't worry. I'm okay.

[Cut back to the underground parking garage. Captain McCreaney is preparing to use the airbags to lift the beam off of Hanna’s leg. House takes down the IV bag and lays in across Hanna’s stomach. House is wearing his leather jacket again]

Hanna: (to House) You think we can be friends when I get outta here?

House: Yeah. We'll catch a ball game or... group sex show or something.

Captain McCreaney: (handing House a wedge of wood) Put the cribbing in there.

[House shoves the wooden wedge under the beam next to Hanna’s leg, and gives the wedge on the other side of her leg an extra push also]

House: Okay, now when the beam starts lifting, you're gonna feel pain. It's gonna be like your foot's gone to sleep times a billion. You'll notice that I'm waiting till now to tell you.

Captain McCreaney: All right. We're ready.

[Captain McCreaney turns on the air compressor]

Captain McCreaney: Lifting.

Hanna: I'm feeling the pain already.

[House pushes the wooden wedge farther under the beam as it starts to lift]

House: That's good. That means the pressure's coming off. Much closer to getting out of here.

[The beam groans and rocks and dirt fall on top of them as the beam continues to lift]

Hanna: Aah!

[The building creaks as House and Captain McCreaney move up by Hanna’s head and shoulders]

House: Come on. Pull her out.

[They tug at Hanna from her shoulders, but the creaking and groaning is getting louder]

House: Come on!

Hanna: It's moving!

[Rumbling, creaking]

Captain McCreaney: Pull!

Hanna: Aahhh!

[Something gives way and falls, and they are all showered with dirt and rubble. The scene stops]

[Cut to shortly after the collapse. They are all covered in rubble. Lying on his back, House opens his eyes. Captain McCreaney coughs and switches on his helmet light. House coughs also and pulls himself out of the rubble]

House: Hanna! Hanna! What the hell happened?

[The only light is the one on Captain McCreaney’s helmet. The ceiling is now considerably lower than before. House belly crawls closer to Hanna and the captain]

Captain McCreaney: I think the adjacent beam snapped during the lift. (He calls for help on his radio) Mayday, mayday, mayday! We had a secondary collapse. We're all right. How are you guys?

Radio Answer: Rescue one, copy the mayday. Main tunnel is fine. Rescue's on the way.

[The light shows that a large piece of concrete has fallen on top of Hanna’s midsection]

Captain McCreaney: Lift this up.

House: One, two, three—

[Groaning, they manage to lift the concrete off of Hanna. Her breathing is fast and shallow. House puts his ear to her mouth]

House: Kit. Gimme the kit.

Captain McCreaney: All right.

[Captain McCreaney drags a duffle bag toward House]

House: No breath sounds on the left side. Tension pneumothorax. Okay, Hanna.

One of your lungs is collapsed. I'm gonna have to reinflate it, okay?

[Ripping the syringe packaging open with his teeth, House performs a needle thoracostomy to reinflate Hanna’s lung]

Hanna: Uh...(coughs)

[Hanna is still wheezing, but her breathing sounds better than before]

Captain McCreaney: (to House) Hey. You better get back up top and make sure you didn't nick an artery.

[House puts his hand to his neck and pulls it back to find blood on his fingers. He has also sustained a scratch on the right side of his nose]

House: (holding Hanna’s hand for a second) I'm gonna have to go.

[House crawls toward the tunnel entrance]

Captain McCreaney: (to Hanna) It's okay. You're all right.

[Cut to the surface. House is sitting just inside a building entrance. Cuddy is attending to the wound on his neck. He has a long scratch on his nose also. Helicopters are still flying around overhead and many, many rescue workers are still on the scene]

Cuddy: (bandaging his shoulder) You're lucky this isn't worse.

[House finishes the water in a plastic bottle and tosses it aside. He rubs his bad leg]

House: You know who's even luckier? You and just about every other human being (His cell phone rings) who wasn't down there.

House: (answering the phone) What did the venogram say?

[The entire team is gathered in the diagnostics conference room]

Thirteen: Clean. Now the guy's starting to spike a fever.

Taub: Subarachnoid bleed.

Foreman: Meningitis?

Chase: He didn't say his neck was sore.

House: That's 'cause everything's sore. He just took a 15-story swan dive into concrete. Do an LP.

Taub: We also have to consider other infections.

House: So you're suggesting we do an LP.

Taub: I guess I am.

House: Genius.

[He flips his phone closed as Captain McCreaney approaches. Cuddy is finished bandaging House’s shoulder. She takes off her gloves]

Captain McCreaney: Hey, bad news. Because of the collapse, we can't try the airbag again until we get everything off the top. Be five, six hours at least.

Cuddy: Then we have to amputate.

House: No.

Cuddy: It's been four hours already. It used to be a long sh*t. Now it's...crazy.

House: Crush syndrome is basically a buildup of potassium. If we remove potassium—

Cuddy: We're already treating with sodium bicarbonate.

House: But not with glucose and Insulin. We have glucose in the kit. There's gotta be a diabetic here somewhere.

Cuddy: You wanna dose the insulin here in a non-hospital setting? That is insane! It's not worth it.

House: (still rubbing his leg) Really? 'Cause I think I'm the only one here who knows what a leg is worth. And fortunately, you're not the one in charge — he is. And he knows that I'd testify against him if Hanna sues for cutting off a leg without exhausting every option.

Cuddy: (to the captain) Give us a minute?

[The captain moves off and Cuddy turns back to House]

Cuddy: I know you're angry, but please don't put her life at risk just to get back at me.

House: Really? (standing up and towering over her) Wow. So this is all about you now.

Cuddy: You took her side against me right after you heard about my engagement.

House: Yeah. That must be it. It's not that you're a pathetic narcissist.

Cuddy: I don't love you. So just... accept it and move on with your life instead of making everyone miserable.

House: That's great. A life lesson from a middle-age single mom who's dating a man-child.

Cuddy: Screw you. I'm sick of making excuses for you. I'm sick of other people having to tiptoe around you and make their own lives worse while they try to keep you from collapsing. I'm done. (She walks away from him)

House: (calling after her) Fantastic. Just stay away from my patient.

Cuddy: (turning around and coming back toward him) What are you clinging to, House? You're gonna risk her life just to save her leg? Really worked out well for you, didn't it? What do you have in your life, honestly? Tell me. I'm moving on. Wilson is moving on. And you... You've got nothing, House, nothing. I'm going down there, and I'm gonna convince her to let me cut her leg off. If you have any decency left, you'll stay out of it.

[Cut to Cuddy talking to Hanna]

Hanna: No. Dr. House promised.

Cuddy: If there was any other way...

Hanna: It doesn't hurt right now. I can wait.

[House crawls through the tunnel entrance]

Hanna: (seeing him) Dr. House. Tell her.

[Cuddy hangs her head, sure that she is going to get another argument from House. He crawls close to Hanna and speaks softly]

House: Hanna... We have to amputate your leg. (Cuddy looks up at him, surprised)

Hanna: No. You said... that there was time.

House: There was. And it's run out.

[Cuddy looks at him again, not believing that he is going to be sensible for once]

Hanna: No.

House: You asked me how I'd hurt my leg. I had a blood clot, and the muscle was dying. And I had all these doctors telling me I should amputate, and I said no, and they did this... very risky operation. I almost died.

Hanna: (shivering) But you saved your leg.

House: I wish I hadn't.

[A tear runs down Cuddy’s check as House reveals his true feelings about what happened to his leg]

House: They cut out a chunk of muscle about the size of my fist, and they left me with this, mutilated, useless thing. I'm in pain... Every day. It changed me. Made me a harder person, a worse person. And now... Now I'm alone. You don't want to be like me. You’ve got a husband who loves you. You have friends. You can start a family. You have a life. And this... This is just a leg.

[Cuddy is still looking at House as he concentrates on Hanna, silently pleading with her to do what is necessary to save her life]

Hanna: (after a lengthy pause) Okay.

[The decision made, House looks somberly over at Cuddy]

House: I got it. (He picks up the amputation kit, taking responsibility for the amputation upon himself)

[Cut to shortly afterwards. New emergency lights illuminate the space and House and Hanna are alone as he prepares her for the amputation. House is wearing only his t-shirt]

House: I can't put you out. It could depress your respiration too much. This should take away some of the pain. (He pushes a drug into her IV)

Hanna: Will it be quick?

House: I'll use a scalpel to slice through the skin, muscle, and fat. That should go pretty fast. Then I'll switch over to the electric saw when I get to the bone. It's two bones... About as thick as a broomstick. Takes about as long to get through. I'm gonna cut as close to the concrete, as I can, save as much of your limb as possible. Then the orthopedic surgeons back at the hospital will clean you up, have you fitted for a prosthetic. You'll be running circles around me in no time.

[Hanna chuckles]

Hanna: How bad will it hurt?

House: Like nothing you've ever felt before.

[Hanna holds out her hand, which he takes. Hanna then grasps both their hands with her other hand. Letting go of her hands, House takes a scalpel, a gauze pad, and the electric saw and, ducking under a low beam, moves down to where Hanna’s leg is trapped. House rips open the gauze pad, wipes her leg with it, and then, taking one last look at Hanna, uses the scalpel to cut deeply into her leg]

Hanna: (eyes closed and groaning loudly) Aaaaah!

[House tosses the scalpel onto some medical draping and picks up the saw. A group of rescue workers are watching from the tunnel opening, ready to take Hanna out when House is finished. House wriggles into a comfortable and s*ab position on his belly and turns on the saw to test that it is working properly. He positions the saw on her leg and begins to cut into the bone. Hanna screams, arching her back and pushing up on the ceiling beam with her hands]

[Cut to aboveground, where Cuddy, Captain McCreaney, and more rescue workers stand waiting. They look at each other solemnly as Hanna’s wails of excruciating pain rise out of the underground tunnel]

[Cut to Hanna being loaded onto a plastic stretcher. House, still in the tunnel, looks defeated. The emergency workers pull the stretcher out of the tunnel and then pick it up and move toward a waiting ambulance. A helicopter is whirring overhead, spotlighting the scene]

[House limps out of the tunnel, putting on his jacket as he exits. His cane is left behind, hanging on the rebar near the tunnel entrance. The EMTs load Hanna onto a gurney as Cuddy motions to Hanna’s husband to come closer]

Charlie: Hanna.

Hanna: (smiling) Baby. I'm so sorry.

Charlie: Shut up.

Hanna: You always loved my legs.

Charlie: I don't care about your legs. Baby, I love you. I love you.

[Charlie leans down to kiss Hanna as the EMTs prepare to load her into the ambulance]

Hanna: I love you.

[House has come up to stand beside Cuddy. They glance at each other uncomfortably as Charlie and Hanna declare their love for each other]

[House climbs into the ambulance after Hanna has been loaded. He turns and looks briefly at Cuddy, then closes the ambulance doors]

[The ambulance leaves for the hospital and the siren wails as an EMT attends to Hanna. Charlie sits beside her and House sits on the bench at her feet. House’s cell phone rings. It’s Foreman. He and the rest of the team are gathered around Jay’s hospital bed. Jay’s wife is present also]

House: (into the phone) What?

Foreman: He's fallen into a coma. LP was clean, but...

House: What are his vitals?

Taub: Excuse me, officer.

[A police officer moves aside so that Taub can see the monitor by Jay’s bed]

House: What do you mean, officer? How long has there been a cop there?

Thirteen: I don't know. Ten minutes. He was being questioned when he fell into the coma.

House: Was anything else making him nervous or worried before his other symptoms?

Taub: He was claustrophobic right before the bleed and before the fever. We told him that he probably did fall asleep.

House: Was his BP spiking?

Foreman: But that didn't cause his first symptom.

House: Yeah, it did. All the caffeine. We thought the problem was in his toilet — by that, of course, I mean his head. Which distracted us from the fact that it could have been just a clog in his sewer pipe, and by that, of course, I mean his spinal cord. And blah, blah, blah, blah. You get the idea.

Chase: An arachnoid cyst on his lower spine. That's why we missed it. He's been sitting ten hours a day. Spiked his spinal fluid pressure.

House: Run a CT—

[Hanna starts wheezing]

EMT: (to House) BP's 72 over 42.

[House disconnects his phone and moves quickly up beside Hanna]

Charlie: Hanna? Hanna?

EMT: Heart rate 148

Hanna: I can't breathe. I can't breathe.

[Hanna is breathing too fast. House uses a stethoscope to listen to her lungs]

House: Breath sounds bilaterally. It's not another pneumothorax. (He puts his hands on both sides of her neck and turns her head from side to side) Neck vein’s flat. There's no tamponade. (to himself) Damn it, I went in too high. (to Hanna) Hanna, you've got a clot in your lung. I'm gonna fix this. (to the EMT) IV streptokinase.

[House pulls two syringes from a high shelf, and pops the caps off with his thumbs]

Charlie: What's happening. What's going on?

House: Her body won't get any oxygen unless we can bust the clot. This is a blood thinner.

[House pushes the drug into Hanna’s IV line]

Charlie: Is she gonna be all right?

House: It's gonna make her bleed more. We'll take care of that next.

[Hanna continues struggling to breath]

House: It's not busting the clot.

EMT: Maybe it's her heart.

[House listens to Hanna’s chest with his stethoscope and then collapses onto the ambulance bench looking helpless]

Charlie: What?

House: It's not a clot. It's a fat embolism. From the amputation.

[Hanna is looking at House beseechingly]

Charlie: Okay. So–so what can we do? Come on. Do something. Please, please, do something. Come on, guys, do something. Come on. Come on. Please, come on, do something! (yelling) Come on, do something! Do something!

[Hanna continues to look at House, who is completely devastated]

[Cut to PPTH. Foreman races toward the ambulance bay as the ambulance backs in. He opens the doors, and finds House, Charlie and the EMT gathered around Hanna’s d*ad body]

[Cut to a short time later. House is still sitting in the now dark and empty ambulance. Foreman stands outside]

Foreman: There's no way to prevent a fat embolism. Even if you'd done this in an O.R., you couldn't have saved her.

[House tosses the stethoscope aside and climbs out of the ambulance. His is holding his right thigh and limping heavily. Foreman follows him into the dark and empty hospital lobby]

Foreman: You can't blame yourself for her death. This wasn't your fault.

House: (turning toward Foreman and shouting) That's the point! I did everything right. She died anyway. Why the hell do you think that would make me feel any better?

[House stumbles as he limps over to the reception desk, grabbing onto it for support]

Foreman: You shouldn't be alone right now. You're bleeding.

House: (standing up and sounding menacing) I'm gonna give you a task as an employee. Get out of my way.

[Foreman stands aside and House limps wearily toward the hospital entrance]

[Cut to House’s dark office at PPTH. Thirteen is standing by House’s desk. She lays an envelope on the desk and turns to leave as Taub enters from the conference room]

Taub: What's that?

Thirteen: I'm asking for some time off.

Taub: What's wrong?

[Thirteen looks at him knowingly, and he sighs]

Taub: Are you okay?

Thirteen: Obviously not.

[Thirteen walks out of the office and the music swells dramatically]

[Cut to House, just entering his apartment. He throws his keys down and limps down the hall and into his bathroom. Turning on the light, he stares at his reflection in the bathroom mirror. He pulls down the neck of his t-shirt and glances briefly at the bloody bandage there, then puts both hands on the sides of the mirror and bows his head in pain, both physical and emotional. He looks into the mirror again and sees a dying Hanna staring back at him. The music stops. He jerks the mirror off the wall and throws it into the bathtub, where it breaks. Behind the mirror is a hole in the drywall, and in that hole, are two bottles of Vicodin. House takes the bottles out of the hole and sits down on the floor, leaning against the tub, and breathing heavily]

[Shaking with pain, House stares at the bottles in his hands for quite a long time. He puts one bottle on the floor and clenches his fist around the other pill bottle, willing himself to resist. The music begins to build again as he struggles with the pain. He finally pops the lid off the bottle and spills two pills into his left hand. A figure appears in the doorway, and the music stops. House looks up to see Cuddy, still dressed in the pink scrubs she was wearing at the accident scene]

House: (inhaling) You going to leap across the room and grab them out of my hand?

Cuddy: No. It's your choice if you want to go back on drugs.

House: Okay. Just so you know, I'm finding it hard to see the downside.

[Cuddy comes into the bathroom and leans against the linen cabinet directly across from where House is sitting on the floor]

Cuddy: You need to re-bandage your shoulder.

House: Is that why you're here? Foreman sent you?

Cuddy: No.

House: You here to yell at me again?

Cuddy: No.

House: Well, I'm running out of ideas.

Cuddy: Lucas...

House: Oh, great. You're feeling uncomfortable again. Probably means you just got back from some quickie wedding in Vegas or you're already pregnant.

Cuddy: I ended it.

House: (shocked) What?

Cuddy: I'm stuck, House. (sighing deeply) I keep wanting to move forward. I keep wanting to move on, and I can't. I mean, my new house, with my new fiancé, and all I can think about is you. (exhaling) I just need to know if you and I can work.

House: You think I can fix myself?

Cuddy: I don't know.

House: 'Cause I'm the most screwed-up person in the world.

Cuddy: I know. I love you. (pause) I wish I didn't. But I can't help it.

[House pushes against the floor with his hands, and attempts to stand. Failing, he reaches a hand up to Cuddy, who pulls him to his feet. The camera focuses on Cuddy, who looks up as House enters the frame, standing just inches away from her. Soft music plays as House, very tentatively (as if he cannot believe it is real), and very gently, kisses Cuddy. He then stands up straight and looks at her]

House: How do I know I'm not hallucinating?

Cuddy: Did you take the Vicodin?

[House and Cuddy both look at the pills still in the palm of his left hand]

House: Nope.

Cuddy: (smiling sweetly) Then I think we're okay.

House: (also smiling sweetly, yes, sweetly) Yeah.

[House drops the Vicodin tablets on the bathroom floor and turns back to Cuddy for another kiss. The last sh*t is of their intertwined hands as they kiss]

THE END
{"type": "series", "show": "House", "episode": "06x22 - Help Me"}