The Lesbian Lorax, I Guess

foreman tells her she's afraid of commitment and doesn't know what love is. he 'jokes' that chase needs to treat her well because she'll be so unbearable if she's heartbroken, and later 'jokes' that if chase isn't careful he'll be stuck with her forever; he similarly makes fun of cameron's crush on house. there's the article theft thing, which... isn't quite as bad as cameron makes it out to be (he didn't steal her article), but still a rude thing to do to a friend or colleague and at the very least shows a lack of concern/regard for her.

cuddy complains she's "not nearly as delightful as she thinks she is," and both cuddy and wilson have feuds with her in s1-3.

amber in whatever it takes, the second time they've ever spoken, says that "everyone" finds cameron "so annoying," which taub doesn't correct or refute.

thirteen spends most of their shared scenes in living the dream rolling her eyes at everything cameron says.

house... oh boy, house. is he a bit obsessed with her? absolutely. is he attracted to her? definitely. is he remotely kind to her...? not all that often! he tells her her feelings are bad and fake and she's a selfish person on their date. he regularly calls her annoying or makes fun of her. he bets with foreman about her HIV test, and doesn't show the slightest concern or care: he laughs at her for her care in euphoria and uses her as a mockable example in three stories. he openly delights in proving cameron wrong. and sure, house is Like That, he's Mean Because He Cares, whatever. remember how she was crashing out and he made fun of her for it? what do you mean, which time? sure, he can also be kind to her, treats her differently than others, but he also very frequently makes a point of belittling cameron or tearing her down. (compare cuddy, who he also, of course, mocks -- but will drop it to avoid crossing certain lines, or will sometimes do something very sincere. he also doesn't regularly imply cuddy's deep seeded issues or health problems are mockable.)

people! do not! like cameron! it isn't even only this: nurses gossip about her and tell patients about her (one day one room); patients often don't like her all that much, for that matter. and cameron can definitely be prickly and judgmental and even mean: she gives as good as she gets. (let's discuss how much of her punchy attitude is in direct response to cameron knowing people don't like her and will dismiss her simply for being a woman with opinions: she says as much in control.)

but you know who does like cameron?

chase is the only one of the original cast to never make fun of cameron's husband. not even once. he's a bit jealous of the guy, but he tells cameron it was a "perfect relationship," not -- as foreman and house do -- that it was a fake one that didn't count.

chase is the only one to show concern for cameron and check up on her in hunting. he doesn't participate in the HIV test results bet. in euphoria, when foreman tries to infect cameron, chase is absolutely pissed at foreman the rest of the episode.

chase does tease her a little about her crush on house... but not as much as foreman. and he actually gives her good (or, what he thinks is good) advice on that front, both when she confides in him about it, and before the date. he also teases her less than foreman after the date.

in general, while chase does sometimes tease or poke fun at cameron -- spin is a great example -- it tends to be pretty light. he very rarely rolls his eyes at her (ie, in skin deep, when she tells him off for being flippant). he never complains about her being "unbearable" or "annoying" or accuses her of being unable to love, having never been in love. that isn't to say he's universally 100% sweetness and light where she is concerned: chase can be sarcastic and dismissive for sure. but he's not mean.

in fact, chase only ever gets upset with or unkind to cameron three times. first, in heavy, in a moment that is fully intended to be out of character/to show how desperate he is: chase throws her under the bus to keep his job. the second, in lockdown, when... you know... he's a bit hurt about the divorce. and even then, he drops it almost immediately. the last is saviors, where he dumps her and is justifiably angry with her after she ghosts him... and he still happily proposes and takes her back once she's cleared the air. (he is upset at her -- kind of -- in a few other episodes, but in act your age, the itch, under my skin -- he's still very clear about understanding her issues and wanting to give her time, or wanting to reassure her.)

chase! likes! cameron! he is nice to cameron! he worries about her! he checks up on her! he doesn't mock her and her issues or roll his eyes whenever she speaks or jokingly call her annoying! is he the Perfect Guy? hellllll no. he laughs along at other jokes; he calls her "easy" in human error. but it's. it's not a contest. it's not even close.

SO MANY, because this is one of those things we know did happen, actually?

Cuddy adopts Rachel in the middle of S5. We see that she and Cameron have become friends by this point -- Cuddy taps Cameron to be assistant Dean, etc. -- but also we see Cameron visiting Cuddy and Rachel at home! Cameron (and Chase) are the only people invited to Rachel's naming ceremony besides Wilson and (kind of?) House; Chase is obviously just a plus one, but Cameron's inclusion is pretty huge, right? Cuddy didn't invite Taub or Foreman.

But at the same time, Cameron and Chase's relationship is getting increasingly more serious: in a few months time, they'll be engaged and living together in a new house, and planning for a family of their own. So like. It must have come up, right? Cameron has met and hung out with Rachel; Chase loves babies, even if he avoids Cuddy like the plague you know he wouldn't resist getting in some playtime with Rachel too. And it's the cliche, right? "Oh, when are you two going to get started on your own...?" So it must have some up. They're planning on their wedding and starting a family and there's a baby right there. They had to have talked about it!

So all that to say:

I think it's pretty likely that Rachel inadvertently did trigger the "do you want kids?" "How many kids?" talk. I mean, they're actively looking for an apartment; we know it's a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment. If they hadn't already had the talk... I mean, Chase in Both Sides Now is pretty certain of the three kids thing.

I love to imagine Cuddy and Cameron having like. Girl Talk. About this. Also because I think Cameron and motherhood is an interesting discussion: she, unlike Cuddy and Thirteen, never really shows much interest in children or having them. That isn't to say that I don't think Cameron wants kids, but it clearly isn't a huge priority for her as it is Cuddy. Has she always wanted them? Was it a "if it happens, it happens?" situation? Did being with Chase make her want kids?

For that matter, does Chase want kids? We know he loves kids. But he also has some pretty specific parentification baggage: I can see him being a bit more ambivalent than he might appear.

No I love to think about Cameron's family, because I feel like the reason we never hear about them is mostly "they're boring and normal," but also the crumbs we do get are like. Okay!! (She was based on a woman who lost multiple siblings in a fire and there's a throwaway line in Paternity where she has a Strange Reaction to the question of if she's an only child -- like, okay, they clearly dropped that thread, but also: excuse me?)

In fact, we really know very little about her family. Here, brace yourself for the grand total:

She's from the Chicago area.

Her parents are, as of 2009, alive and married.

Her dad yelled at her mother Christmas 2007 or 2008, and Cameron told him off, and Chase predictably found this incredibly attractive of her, which is so funny, I can't.

She has an older brother.

Contextually, we can safely assume a bit more.

Cameron is on decent terms with her family: she visits them for Christmas at least sometimes (and took Chase along one year), and she moves back to Chicago in S6.

She's a bit naïve about certain types of abuse: she's well aware of sexual and physical abuse, but she's confused by John House and Rowan Chase's brands of neglect and verbal abuse. Cameron isn't an idiot, I'm sure she's aware of the possibility, but it does speak to her not being all that attuned to the concept. From which I think it's safe to assume that her parents might be difficult or not have a perfect marriage, but are ultimately good people and good parents.

But otherwise? What did her family think of her Dead Husband? What is her relationship with her brother like? Do they approve of her career and ambition? Who knooooooooooows

So all this to say! Here's some headcanons I have about her Older Brother.

He's 4-5 years older than Cameron, so they were never that close growing up. They got along okay, but they never really overlapped in school or activities.

Their parents had a miscarriage or two between them, which accounts in part for the age gap, but also led to Allison and Brother being lowkey treated differently: she was very much the "precious miracle" baby and he was very much the Oldest Son. It wasn't fully terrible or toxic, but it was a Dynamic. Allison was encouraged to Follow Her Dreams because she is So Gifted. It isn't that Brother wasn't encouraged, but... you know?

He works some specialized blue-collar job: a mechanic or electrician. He got married relatively young -- so did their parents -- and he and his wife did the whole "suburbs and names with extra Y's and keep having kids until we get a boy" thing. Conversely, as adults, he's sort of the "favorite": Allison's ambitions and dreams were cute until they kept going. Why does she need to be a famous doctor? Why does she need to move so far away? Why is she 35 and still unmarried? Her parents love her and are proud of her, but her brother's path is more familiar and to them feels more in line with expectations/what you should do and be proud of.

and yes, this is inspired by the painting: Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan