s5e16 house takes methadone, it cures his pain completely, and when cuddy says he can’t take it at her hospital, he basically quits without a second thought. he's fully choosing a painless life over one that he's comfortable with and knows inside out, despite the recurring issue with him and change, be it positive or negative. whether this is destructive behavior, or if it's truly what he's willing to give up is your interpretation, but either way, he's choosing being pain free over anything else in his life, as he's done time and time again.
he will literally try ANYTHING to feel physically okay because he's so accustomed to living in constant agony. he's done extremely dangerous things to stop, delay, or even mildly treat it (experimental drugs, faking cancer for meds, life threatening treatments, etc). in the scene on the coma bus with amber, though its a hallucination, he has to rely on his own guilt/subconscious to pull him away from the choice of life or death. he's more than tempted to give up and accept death right then and there, because it "doesn't hurt here," and because he believes wilson will hate him if he comes out of it alive.
and THEN, you have the C word. when he willingly gives up the last of his vicodin to help wilson feel better. because as much pain as he himself is in, he doesn't want wilson to ever experience anything similar, and if he can even help just a little bit, it will be worth it. he couldn't give up pain relief for anybody in his life except for wilson. cuddy and stacy, two women i do believe he loved, were not enough for him to give that up. not his job, not his intellect, and not his pain relief. but for wilson? barely a second of hesitation. he can throw away his vicodin, his physical health, and entire being away if it means he can be with wilson, in any capacity and as unhinged as they are.
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