House balked a little at the greeting, but recovered after a second, shaking his head with a small smile. "Um, no, sorry. I figured you could just use someone else to come give you a bit of sunshine in this hell-hole." The phrasing got him a glare from one of the nurses, but he just shrugged her off.
"So. How're things holding up on the inside?" He gave her an eyebrow waggle, trying for levity.