Joy - Recap

A man, Jerry, gets up in the morning and drinks endless cups of coffee and tracks his time. His daughter Samantha arrives and he wants to know why she’s running late. He offers to call a friend of hers to come over as a sleepover for her birthday, but Samantha tells him not to and leaves. Jerry reaches for another pot of coffee only to discover that every pot is empty. He gets a new can of coffee but turns to realize the coffee machine has disappeared. Samantha comes back and says that she has just gotten back from school. Jerry has blacked out for eight hours. He blacks out again and finds himself in the living room with Samantha.

House arrives at the hospital and Cuddy gives him Jerry’s case, but House is more interested in Cuddy’s impending adoption. He warns her that the birth mother probably has problems and warns it’s a bad idea, but she refuses to give up. In differential, House is more interested in starting a pool to see how soon until Cuddy gives up the baby. House sends Thirteen and Taub to check out Jerry’s house and they discover it surprisingly sterile and lacking personality. Taub doesn’t believe it’s any way to raise a child but is skeptical of any kind of family. Thirteen spots mold on the baseboard and they take samples. They then test Jerry and Samantha, noting some forms of moss can cause memory loss. Samantha says they never go anywhere: she goes to school and Jerry works at home. Samantha doesn’t seem particularly concerned about the loss of her mother several years ago. Thirteen notes to Foreman that Samantha is weird, and they spot Jerry at the elevator. He insists he has an appointment and has to go. Foreman checks his eyes and realizes that he’s asleep.

In differential, the team tries to determine what the symptom of sleepwalking indicates. House proves for ideas and claims he doesn’t have an answer already. The mold doesn’t account for the symptoms, and House suggests they let Jerry keep the appointment the ext time he sleepwalks.

Cuddy arrives at a café to meet the birth mother, Becca. She has one question for Cuddy: what she’s going to name the baby girl. Cuddy is considering the name “Joy,” but hasn’t thought about it much. Cuddy wonders why Becca chose her, a single mom. Becca says her grandfather, father and her boyfriend were all jerks and she wants somebody without the baggage. Cuddy notices a rash on Becca’s arm and insists on getting her checked out.

Taub and Thirteen set up in one of Jerry’s bedrooms to monitor him. They detect unusual delta waves and Jerry gets up and leaves. Meanwhile, Cameron examines Becca and says it looks like a heat rash but Cuddy insists they look at the blood tests. The blood work doesn’t show anything and Cuddy insists on admitting her and doing a full fetal workup. House notes that Cuddy is acting irrationally and throws a cup of baby vomit on her to give an idea of what she’ll be dealing with.

Taub and Thirteen follow Jerry as he drives through the city and picks up drugs from a woman. They catch up to him and find him awake but puzzled, and holding cocaine. The team wonders how Jerry got started on the drugs that led to the sleepwalking, and House suggests he forgot. He tells the team to score cocaine from a drug dealer so they can test.

Cameron detects pulmonary hypolasmia via the ultrasound which could cause problems if Becca gives birth right away. They medically delay the pregnancy and Cameron notes that Cuddy was right.

Taub and Thirteen go to find the woman, Sadie, who sold Jerry his drugs. Taub buys the cocaine and Thirteen tests it, then asks for the old weaker stuff. Meanwhile, House is in Cuddy’s office as she packs and reminds her yet again that she’s not maternal. He suggests she not make the child a victim of Cuddy’s biological clock and then dumps a lamp on the floor. Cuddy finally orders him out, and he meets with Taub and Thirteen who reveal the cocaine was cut with lactose. House concludes Jerry is lactose-intolerant and tells them to test him.

Cuddy tests Becca, who wonders if the meth she took seven months ago caused the baby’s condition. Becca wonders if Cuddy hates her but Cuddy is glad to have the baby and wouldn’t have if Becca lived a perfect life. Becca’s heart rate starts climbing and she bleeds when her placenta ruptures. House suggests they deliver the baby but Cuddy notes the fetus is 10 months early. Cuddy figures that Becca will do whatever she suggests and House still recommends Becca should deliver now. When Cuddy agrees, he notes that she’s not viewing the case and he wonders if she doesn’t really want the baby. Cuddy insists she’s giving the mother the safest route.

House goes to see Wilson for advice and Wilson tells him that he’s feeling jealous and acting childish. House responds by taking a bite out of his apple and leaving.

Jerry is under supervision and trying to keep track of time to avoid going to sleep. He wonders what inside of him wanted to do cocaine but Taub assures him that it’s not abnormal to dream about something you wouldn’t do in real life. He then notices that Jerry is sweating blood. In differential, Taub suggest it’s leukemia and House orders a bone marrow biopsy.

Cuddy talks to Becca, who wonders what Cuddy would do. Cuddy suggests she should wait and Becca wonders if that’s Cuddy’s medical or material opinion. Becca doesn’t want to wait and just wants to be done with it, but Cuddy says she should break the cycle and not do what her mother did.

As Kutner and Taub take the bone marrow sample, they notice that Jerry’s legs are tanned, and Kutner says it’s not leukemia but kidney failure. He’s only has a couple of hours left and is too weak for dialysis. House orders them to check Samantha to see if she can supply a kidney for transplant but since Jerry has a conflict, they’ll have to get Cuddy’s approval. Cuddy is busy in surgery as Chase removes the fetus. House interrupts to get Cuddy to give approval but she stays there and begs the baby to cry. It finally starts and Cuddy picks it up while Becca smiles. House congratulates her and tells her to get to work.

Cuddy and House talk to Samantha, who apathetically agrees. House notices and says they can’t proceed: Samantha is also sleepwalking. House concludes that whatever is killing Jerry will target Samantha’s kidney as well, making it unsuitable for transplant. She starts bleeding blood and House orders an array of genetic tests even though they’ll take weeks. He talks to Wilson and notes that Cuddy might still back out, but Wilson says that she wont’ suffer post-partum depression because of stranded dopamine receptors. House gets the answer. He tells father and daughter they’re going to be fine, but admits he isn’t entirely serious: he isn’t sure if they’ll be fine. He notes that both of them reacted apathetically to the news: their dopamine receptors are screwed up due to anhedonic. Jerry bought tricks to try and induce some pleasure. House asks what Jerry’s name is, and he admits that he’s Iraqi and changed his name after the first Iraqi War. They have a Mediterranean genetic disease that causes all of the symptoms. The treatment isn’t reliable once they sweat blood but they have no other choice.

As the team administers treatment, Cuddy paints the baby’s room. The next morning, Thirteen has Jerry open his eyes and he finds himself able to smile, and a cheerful Samantha is healthy enough to donate her kidney and save him.

Cuddy visits Becca, who apologizes for being selfish and says that Cuddy would have done the right thing. She saw the look on Cuddy’s face, and realizes she can’t give up the baby: she wants to have love in her life. Cuddy tries to convince Becca to take some time but she refuses to reconsider.

Cuddy considers the baby in the nursery and cries, while Jerry and Samantha celebrate and share a happy family moment. She goes back to the baby’s room and sits, and House comes to visit. She says she’s quitting, that she can’t go through it again. House says he would have made a good mother and Cuddy snaps at him, saying he’s reversing himself. She wonders why he has to negate everything and he admits he doesn’t know, then kisses her. They kiss for a moment, then he steps back, says good night, and leaves.

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