Playing Doctor

~tarotgal

"I'm so sorry," he said, his voice sounding a little congested, and of course I knew why. "I just can't seem to shake this… head cold… Pardon." His pauses, too, I knew all too well. They seemed like the regular sort of pause any speaker would make. But they were hardly that; he was holding back sneezes. Rob got sick a lot, it was just in his nature. Every few weeks there'd be another sore throat or cough or sniffle. Luckily, it was in my nature to coddle and cuddle and caress him. He continued talking, finishing finally with, "So I hope you enjoy the show!" He made a charming gesture and stepped to the side as the curtain opened, then he stepped down off the stage all together and disappeared into the darkness of the theatre.

A few minutes later, he settled down into the char beside me in our little box seats. "That sucked," he said plainly.

I smiled, patting his leg. "You're always too hard on yourself when you're sick."

He sniffed and withdrew a wad of tissues. He pulled one out, unfolded it, and rubbed it against his nose a few times. "When am I not sick?" He sighed. "Man, I hate when they give me those long introductions to do."

"You were wonderful," I assured him. "Really."

He shook his head but said nothing further, as the production began the opening dance.

After the first scene, our college's auditorium lit up with applause, and I beamed with happiness, and looked over at Rob to share in the proud moment. It was then I noticed he was asleep. Not just dozing, but fast asleep. Poor guy. I sighed and shook him gently.

"Huh?" he woke, groggy, sniffing.

I'd been prepared for this, expecting it almost. And I was ready to say what needed to be said. "Let's go home."

He shook his head. Of course he wanted to stay- this was his baby. He'd spent weeks looking forward to this night.

"You need to be in bed. They know that. They'd much rather see you not there than falling asleep on them."

He shook his head again, eyes closing. His fist went to his mouth and just below his nose. Powerfully, his body snapped forward, "eeehhhhAHHHHTISHHHH!"

"Bless you."

But he wasn't finished. "eeeeAAAHHHHTISHHHH! eeehhhhhhhAHHHHSHHhhhhhhhhh! EeehhhhAHHHHCHIITTTT! Eehhhhh… ehhhhhhAHHHHSHHHHH!"

"Bless you, bless you, bless you and bless you!" I exclaimed, handing him a fresh tissue from my pocket.

He smiled, blowing his nose softly as the dying applause hid it only a bit. "Thank you, thank you, thank you and thank you." He's such a sweetheart; that's why I loved him. Oh, don't get me wrong, he's just as tough as the rest of them… but inside he was as soft as anything.

I stood up, pulling him with me. "Come on, tough guy. Let's get you home."

Reluctantly he nodded, leaning on me a bit to steady himself.

 

Home was an apartment we shared with a girl named Melissa. We each had our own room, though it was known that Robert and I shared one or the other's from time to time. Melissa was gone for the week on her first of many 'business trips', meaning that companies were dying to hire her and sent her around the country interviewing with them. Lucky girl. She was a senior, and only a good seven months until graduation. Rob and I still had another two years to go.

The bus ride back to the apartment was uneventful. The bus was practically empty, so I sat while Rob lay out, sprawled out over 3 seats with his head in my lap. I caressed him, and rubbed his nose for him when he complained it felt 'itchy' or 'runny'. We got off at our complex and climbed the four flights to our room. I quickly shed my jacket and checked the answering machine, while Robert hovered by the doorway, blowing his nose.

He really didn't seem too bad off, but I knew by tomorrow it would catch up with him. "Come on," I told him, taking off his jacket and hanging it up. "Let's get you into bed."

We walked over to his bedroom, and he made us stop in the doorway. "Can we play tonight?"

I felt his forehead- warm, but not hot. I looked at his eyes- tired, but not bleary. He could handle it, I knew. I hated to push him, but if he felt well enough to suggest it, and I felt as horny as I did, I was not going to turn down the opportunity. So I nodded, kissing his nose gently, making it tickle and wiggle. "You sure you feel up to it?"

He nodded.

"OK… then go get undressed and under the covers." I giggled. "A doctor will be with you shortly."

He gave another nod, and started to unbutton his shirt.

I closed his door and sighed, savoring the moment of expectation. Then I nearly raced to my room, tore open my closet, and dove into the back of it. After bit of digging, I came upon what I'd been looking for, a thin white doctor's coat. I smiled mischievously. Rob and I had come upon what we referred to as 'our play' over a year ago, when we were at a Halloween party.

* * * * *

Halloween, 13 months ago:

"eeehhhAHHHCHHHH! Eeeeaaahhh-CHOO!" Rob sneezed into the crook of his arm, swaying from the force.

"Bless you, bless you!" I answered him. I always blessed people when they sneezed. Sometimes, I went far out of my way to do it, but I liked the feeling it gave me, and I loved the smile Rob gave me whenever I blessed him.

"Dack you." There was the smile.

I melted. Sigh. My hand rested on the doorbell of the house we stood in front of in full Halloween party garb. He'd been planning his costume for months, a full-fledged cowboy. And he looked every bit as rough and rugged as I'd hoped. I, on the other hand, had been rather pressed for time. I managed to get a doctor's coat at the last minute from my sister's third year medical student friend. I figured it would do and so there we were. Well, partially there. Rob came down with a rather heavy cold that morning and had popped a few cold pills to little avail. While they spaced him out a bit more than I liked, at least he'd stopped complaining and agreed to go to the party with me. "You're sure you're ok?"

He nodded, straightening his lasso.

I laughed, and rang the bell.

The party went relatively well, and it was nice to see some of my friends since I'd moved off campus. Rob, who hated sneezing or seeming at all weak in front of strangers, made frequent trips to the restroom. At one, I followed him, closing the door behind so we could speak frankly. "You all right, tough guy?"

He nodded, sitting down on the toilet seat and tearing off a handful of toilet paper from the roll. Rob blew his nose a few times, then nodded again. "Jusd fide."

I highly doubted that. I went to him, sitting down on the edge of the tub, and putting my hand to his head.

He shook his head and grabbed my wrist.

At first, I thought he was going to be angry at me for doing it; I'd only been trying to help. But then he turned over my hand so that the back of it, not my palm, was against his forehead.

"Lige dat," he snuffled, closing his eyes.

"You're warm," I told him. "How do you feel?"

He shrugged, sniffing, and he could not have looked cuter if he tried. All I wanted to do was curl up in bed with him and caress him until he felt better. It was motherly instinct, it was the natural care of a girl friend, but there was also something more to it. It's hard to explain, but in a way, seeing him like that, gave me a bit of a thrill. I only wished we could still do what I'd planned for that night.

"I feel sick," he said plainly, eyes still closed tightly.

Just to hear that made something powerful rush through me, warming me. I ignored it for Rob's sake and rubbed his arm through the flannel, checkered shirt. "Why don't we just go home, then?"

He hesitated a moment, then nodded. "I'b so sorry. I did'd bead to cob dowd wid a code, sniff, id by head."

The sensation rushing through me heightened. I wanted him, and wanted him now. My sex drive was in overdrive, pedal floored, engine screeching forward at full force.

It must have been obvious, because Rob made a comment then that I would remember forever. "I cad sbell the lust frob here. Are you ok?"

I nodded and made sure the buttons of the coat were done.

"Jeddifer?"

"I um…" I struggled to talk, but I wanted him so badly that my secret poured out of my mouth before I could stop it. "I'm not wearing anything under this. And I think you are the sexiest man in the world right now."

His jaw, literally, hit the floor.

Gently, he unbuttoned the top button of the coat, then slid his hand under, and caressed my bare breast. "Jesus…" he said softly, seeing the look in my eye. "You're dot kiddig." He stood on two wobbly legs and pulled me to my feet. "Let's go."

"You sure?"

He nodded, nuzzling his face into my neck, giving it a soft, cold blow. I shivered and buttoned up the coat. "Sure."

We barely made it to the backseat that night before tearing clothes off each other.

* * * * *

I hadn't realized why, then, but after several more nights of fun, it occurred to us both that it was the doctor in me that made the love-making so passionate. So, the next time he got sick, we played around a bit… And now we had it down to an art.

So, I stripped down to nothing, and pulled on the white coat. It wasn't the same one, of course, it was one we'd bought together at a costume shop. It was all cotton, which made it soft, and I adored the feel of it brushing against my nipples. It was short, just barely coming down halfway to my thighs when I sat down. In the pockets, were little things we replaced each time, which I did now. Some of the things we kept in the bathroom, others in various spots in the house. It took a few moments to get them all, then I checked my makeup in the mirror and fixed my long brown hair back into a lose bun. With a happy sigh, I returned to his bedroom, knocking on the door once to let him know I was coming in.

He sat upright in bed, wearing no shirt, covers up to his waist. He smiled to see me, and sniffed gently, scooting over in bed so that I could sit down beside him.

I sat down beside him, legs bent to the side, and smiled pleasantly at him, though in truth I wanted to do nothing else but jump at him. "So… I hear that you have a cold again Robert?"

He nodded.

"You remember what the doctor said last time about colds, don't you?"

He sniffed, running a finger, then the side of his hand, under his nose. "What's that?" He was playing coy, and I loved him for it.

"Sex is good for your cold."

He nuzzled his face into my neck, sniffing a few times, but also touching it in that way that drove my crazy.

I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him closer against me.

"eeeeAAHHH-CHHIITTTT!" he sneezed suddenly, pulling back rubbing his finger, then side of his hand under his nose as he did so often. He looked at me, smiling, waiting for me to say it.

I tried to hold back, giggling, feeling my body surge, but he was no match for me. "Bless you," I said softly.

He chuckled, using the part of my sleeve as a hanky.

I grabbed a tissue for his runny nose, not handing it to him but going straight to his nose and rubbing it for him.

"Mmmmm…" he mumbled, purring. "Take care of me, doc?"

"And what's the magic word?"
He laughed. "HMO?"

I hit him with a pillow.

He laughed, rubbing more at his nose. "All right, all right…" in his most whiny and pitiful voice, "I feel sick!"

I nearly swooned, kissing his nose, his chin, his cheek, his lips, though I couldn't begin to describe the sensations rushing through me at that moment. In my best doctor's voice, "What seems to be the problem?"

"My throat's kinda scratchy," he complained, rubbing at his throat. "Hurts when I swallow."

My hands went to my pocket and took out a new tongue depressor. I took it out of its packaging and instructed softly, "Open up and say 'Ahhhhhh!'"

"Ahhhhh!" he did as he was told, letting a hand slip to caress one of my breasts through the fabric.

His throat was red, but otherwise all right. "A bit red… let me see what I can do about that." I reached over, getting one of the ice cubes. I put it in my mouth, sucking on it a little, then, kissing him passionately, transferred it over to his. He smiled, letting it melt slowly in his hot mouth, coolness running down his throat.

"Mmmmmm… feelsh good," he said around the ice cube. "My forehead feels hot, too."

I resisted the urge to coo. "Does it?" I asked, placing the back of my hand against his forehead. Then I reached into my pocket, pulling out a thermometer. "Under your tongue, to the side. And no opening your mouth!"

He nodded, lifting his tongue as I slid it into place. We sat there together, motionless. He was under the covers, but sitting up, hands folded in his blanket-covered lap. I was beside him, legs bent under me and to the side. We stared into each other's eyes, waiting.

He sniffed.

I gasped, realizing his hand was still over my breast. He rubbed the nipple through the fabric.

Then, his nose wiggled.

"Are you going to sneeze?" I inquired, moving his hand off my breast and taking them both in mine.

He nodded, wiggling his nose and sniffing.

"Don't open your mouth now," I said strictly, squeezing his hands in mine.

He shook his head, then moved it, rubbing the tip of his nose against his shoulder. I knew that move too well—he was getting desperate. I loved it.

"So… how long have you been feeling like this?" I let go of one of his hands.

He held up a finger.

"One day?"

He nodded, sniffing, and used the free hand to rub more at his nose, but that only made it worse. His eyes closed despite themselves and his body heaved back with tension. "eehhhhhh…" his lips parted slightly, the thermometer teetering, still inside. Then he snapped forward with force, "eeeeAAHHHHH-CHISSHHHTTT! Eehhhh-HEEEEHHHSHHHHH! HEHHSHHOOO!"

"Bless you thrice." I picked up the fallen thermometer, and pushed the button on it to reset itself. Then looked at him, nose running, with a sorry puppy dog expression on his face.

"I'b sorry, doc," he said, reaching for the tissues, then blowing his nose a few times.

I gave him a stern look, but it was all in fun. "Shall we try that again?"

He nodded eagerly, knowing how much I loved this.

"This time, if you have to sneeze, do cover your mouth, would you?"

He nodded again, taking a few tissues in hand, just in case.

I replaced the reset thermometer, and we sat again, staring at each other. After a minute, I was sure he was not going to sneeze, and I so wanted to drag the fun out as long as possible. So I went with plan B. "While you're doing that," I told him. "Let me just check your reflexes, ok?"

He tried to answer, but quickly I replied with, "Keep that mouth closed!" So he nodded obediently.

I let my hair down out of the bun, shaking it free and loose. After tossing a bit over my shoulder, I picked out few pieces that looked especially strong. Then gently, ever so gently, I guided it down his chest to his tummy.

He snorted, trying his best to keep from laughing, and I looked up at him. "Keep that mouth closed!"

He nodded, smiling.

So I went back to work, running the hairs up and down his sides, until he shook, and then burst out with laughter, still short of the thermometer's beep; it had fallen out again.

"You don't make a very good patient when you do things like this!" I told him, then kissed his cheek. "Shall we try once again?"

As his laughter died down, he nodded.

But I noticed he looked a little tired, and wondered if he didn't want to stop with the play. "Rob… you all right?"

He nodded. "Yes, doc."

I shook my head, kissing him gently on the lips. "It's me asking. Do you need to stop? Do you want to stop?"

He shook his head, whispering, "I just feel like I could start eeehhh… sneeeeehhhh…sn-sn-sneehhhhh…" he rubbed at his nose. "Sneezig agaid at ady tibe."

Though it gave my body stronger rushes and urges than ever before, my concern for him won out. "We can finish this up after you snee—"

"eehhhAHHHSHHHHH! EeeAAAHHH-TCHTTTTTT!" his sneezes couldn't even wait for me to finish.

"Bless you."

"eeeAHHHHSSCCCHHHH! Eehhh-AHHHH-AAAHHHTISHHH! eeeaaaahhhhhSHIIIIISHHHHH! EeehhhhAHHHHSHHHH!"

"Bless you again."

He nodded, smiling.

I handed him a few tissues and waited for him to finish sniffling and blowing his nose.

"Try again, doc," he said playfully, opening up his mouth and lifting his tongue.

I smiled, patting his leg through the blankets and then sliding the thermometer back in. We sat for a minute, listening to his sniffles. His nose wiggled from tickles, but this time he managed to keep it in long enough for it to beep before he burst forth with more sneezes.

"eeehhhh.. hehhh.. eeeAAAHHH-CHIIITTT! EeehhhhhSHOOO! eeehhhAHHHHHSHOOO!" He sniffed liquidly and rubbed more at his nose. "What's it say, doc?"

"You don't have a fever. Your temp's normal." I leaned forward and kissed his forehead. "Any more symptoms to report?"

He nodded, rubbing constantly at his nose. "Just one."

I raised an eyebrow, preparing myself for the answer. "And what's that?"

"A very runny, tickley, stuffy, sneezey nose."

I jumped him. I had meant to hold off longer, much longer, but I simply couldn't. I tore off the covers and threw myself onto his naked body, warming him, touching him, loving him.

His hands undid the buttons of my coat and skillfully slid it off, so that we were naked together, against each other.

I kissed him passionately as his hands slid from my neck, down my back, and grabbed hold of my cheeks, pulling me into position.

"So what's the sniff diagnosis, doc?" he asked weakly.

"A cold," I replied with a small shriek in the middle, which had been when he entered me. "A wonderful, wonderful cold."

"Won sniff wonderful?" he said, trying to hold himself back and bring me closer at the same time.

I nodded, falling hard against his weak, cold-ridden body. "Sneeze for me, baby. Let me make you feel better."

He sniffed again strongly, pushing himself deeper into me. "I'll do my sniff my best…"

FILL YOU IN:

Obligatory Sex Scene

"You really should consider going premed," he said, panting, coughing, lying on his back, weak and spent.

I shook my head. "That would take all the fun outa it, and you know it."

"Yes, but," he closed his eyes and cuddled up against me, glad to find that my body went to his, arms reaching around to hold him securely, protectively. "Think of all the colds I could catch hanging around the waiting office for you."

I smiled, looking over at his peaceful, sallow face. I kissed his nose again, this time to calm it. "You don't have to get sick another day in your life and I'll still love you."

A happy smile slid over his face. "I love you, too," he murmured as he fell into a gentle sleep of exhaustion and fatigue in my arms.