The blaring sound of his alarm awoke the world famous inspector John Gadget. Right off the bat, the detective knew something was wrong. His eyes didn't seem to want to open and his arms felt heavier than normal when turning off his alarm. When he rose to sit, the dimly lit room around him began to spin. A light feeling accompanied by an ache plagued his head. Rubbing his eyes, Gadget glanced down at the clock next to his bed. 5:30, just like normal. The inspector got up early every morning, making sure to make Penny breakfast before she had to leave for school and get some chores done around the house before he received an assignment. He was usually happy to get up early and start the day, always chipper. This morning, however, Gadget felt anything but.
Suppressing a groan, the bionic man rose to his feet, only to stumble back to the ground a moment after. The light feeling in his head increased, as did the ache. Ignoring it the best he could, Gadget stood again. He leaned on the wall and waited for the world to stop spinning before he started to get dressed. He learned very quickly to take his actions slow, as the slightest rapid movement would send him toward the floor. With his white button-up, tie, pants, and shoes equipped, Gadget stopped and silently debated with himself whether struggling on his trench coat would be worth it. Deciding against it, the inspector made his way to the door and down the stairs.
Being up so early, Gadget took the stairs slow anyway to avoid falling and waking his niece, Penny. This morning, however, each step felt like an eternity. The light feeling in his head hadn't gone away yet and he didn't want to wake Penny early, so he bore with each crawling movement. Gadget made his way to the kitchen, a hand emerging from his hat and flicking on the light. The sudden brightness stung his eyes and made his headache worse. Gadget felt himself falling backwards and, suppressing a startled 'yelp,' caught himself on the counter. He knew he was clumsy, but this was getting ridiculous!
The developing tightness in his chest wasn't helping anything, either. Briefly, Gadget considered calling in sick but quickly dismissed the thought. It was like he always said, he was always on duty, sick or not. Gadget turned his attention back to breakfast, opening the fridge and peering inside.
As more and more time passed, the sun began to rise outside. Penny's eyes fluttered open, a yawn escaping her lips. She sat up and stretched, disturbing Brain at her feet. As the twelve year old looked at her clock, panic seized her. School was supposed to start in five minutes.
As Penny began to scramble, she wondered why she had woken up late. Her Uncle Gadget was usually always on top of waking her up in time to get ready, eat breakfast, and finish any last minute homework. The more she thought about it, something else struck her as odd as well. The house was completely silent apart from a soft noise from the kitchen and Penny's own rustling. Usually, her uncle would have fallen down or knocked something over by now. Curiosity drowned out her panic as Penny opened her door cautiously. The soft noise sounded familiar. Tentatively, Penny tiptoed to the kitchen. The noise grew louder and more recognizable as she approached. Peeking around the corner, Penny suddenly knew what the puzzling sound was.
In his shirt, tie, and apron stood her Uncle Gadget, mid-tomato dice and snoring. Penny smiled to herself briefly before she was taken over by concern. She reached out a hand and poked her uncle softly in the side, whispering, "Uncle Gadget?"
"Yipe!" Came the loud response. The inspector's knife went flying into the air, sticking firmly into the ceiling. Gadget followed it, his legs propelling him upward. His head was saved by a spring that suddenly surfaced from his hat, sending him sprawling to the floor. Penny stifled a giggle, kneeling to her uncle's side.
"Sorry, Uncle Gadget. Are you ok?" Gadget nodded in response, his eyes spinning. He grimaced, wincing as he did so.
"Yes, of course-" Gadget's voice died mid-sentence, startling both him and his niece. The man sounded as if he had swallowed sand all night, his voice grating and scratchy. Gadget found that his throat didn't feel much better either. Nonetheless, he struggled to finish his sentence after clearing his throat. "Of course Penny, just a little tired is all,"
"I'll say, you fell asleep cutting tomatoes," Penny reminded him. "You don't sound so good, Uncle Gadget. I think you should call in sick today,"
"Nonsense, Penny!" Gadget protested, his voice cracking a bit. "I'm always on duty!"
"Remember the last time you tried to go into work sick?" Penny asked, a motherly look on her face. "You nearly sneezed yourself through a window!"
"Well, I haven't sneezed yet!" Gadget reasoned. "Besides, I feel just fine!"
Penny sighed to herself, pausing for a moment and watching as her uncle raised himself from the floor and winced again. Then, she smirked. Doing her best to sound indifferent, she said,
"Well, if you insist on going to work, we could take you down to get a shot to prevent it from spreading," She watched in amusement as her uncle stiffened. He swallowed uncomfortably, resuming his tomato work. There was a long pause and Penny could practically see the wheels turning in her uncle's head. As brave as the detective was, there was one thing that terrified him: needles.
"I…" He swallowed again, "I guess you're right, Penny. I… wouldn't want anyone else potentially… catching anything from me," Penny would be lying if she said she wasn't impressed. Usually, the threat of a needle would send Gadget running for the hills. He must be very determined this morning.
"Can I help with breakfast?" Penny asked, feeling sorry for her uncle. Without a second thought, Gadget smiled and nodded.
"I'll need a pan pre-heating on the stove," He said. "I'm making scrambled eggs with vegetables in them."
"Sure thing," Penny reached down into a cupboard for a pan and placed it on the stove. After dropping a bit of butter into it to prevent sticking, Penny retrieved the eggs out of the refrigerator, cracked two into a bowl that Uncle Gadget had set out for her, added some milk, and began to scramble. Once the mixture was blended thoroughly and the vegetables were cut, the two combined their ingredients into the skillet. A mad sizzling began, causing both to step back for a moment. Soon, the sizzling died down and a wonderful scent filled the air. Well, Penny considered it wonderful, anyway. Her Uncle Gadget, however, thought otherwise.
The man tried his best to ignore the rising icky feeling in his stomach, but it didn't take long until he was rushing to the bathroom and emptying the contents of his stomach into the toilet. Penny cringed, turning off the stove before rushing to her uncle's aid. She found him lying on the floor, the natural color of his face drailed to be almost a sickly green. He looked at her, sighed, then looked at the floor.
"I guess a day off would be nice," he croaked, defeated. Penny went to him and knelt down beside him, rubbing his shoulder comfortingly.
"It's alright, Uncle Gadget. I'm sure Chief Quimby will understand."
Just then, a telephone ring burst from Gadget's right hand. His arms shaking ever so slightly, Gadget pulled an antenna out of his thumb and raised it to his ear.
"Is that you, Chief?" There was a brief pause. "You're where? I'll be right-"
Penny wrenched her uncle's hand from his ear, shooting him a disappointed glance before speaking into his pinky finger.
"Sorry, Chief Quimby, but Inspector Gadget can't make it in today. He's sick with what seems like the flu. Ok, I'll tell him. Thanks, Chief. You too, goodbye." With that, Penny guided the antenna back into Gadget's hand and gave it back to him. He stayed silent, looking a little embarrassed. "Quimby says to get better soon, and not to worry about any more assignments until your better. There's no point in stressing yourself out and delaying your recovery even further."
With a sigh, Gadget said, "You're right, Penny. I need to get some rest if I'm going to get any better." Penny smiled, proud of her uncle's response to the situation. After helping him to his feet, Penny guided him back up the stairs and to his room. Without even changing, his clothes, Gadget crawled into bed and nestled under the covers. After taking off his shoes for him, Penny placed a hand on his forehead and reeled back.
"Wowzers, Uncle Gadget, you're running a fever!"
"It did feel a bit chilly downstairs…"
"You wait here and I'll get you a washcloth." Penny trotted down the stairs, headed for the kitchen she was gone, Gadget rolled over and absent mindedly glanced at the clock. 7:30.
"Wowzers! Penny should be in school!" Inspector Gadget proclaimed. By the time Penny made it back upstairs, Gadget was wrestling his shoes back on. Even the simplest of tasks become difficult when the world won't stop moving.
"Uncle Gadget, what are you doing?" Penny asked in dismay.
"You're late for school because of me! The least I can do is drive you there." Uncle Gadget insisted, struggling to tie his shoe. Penny gently pushed him back upright by his shoulders. He shivered under her touch, no doubt because of the fever.
"That's alright, Uncle," Penny said "I can ride my bike. My teachers will understand."
"Are you sure?" Gadget asked, his croaky voice filled with concern. Penny flashed him a smile, nodding. "Besides," she added, "you are in no condition to drive."
Growing too tired and feeling too sick to argue, Gadget simply nodded and laid back down. Penny placed a cool rag on his forehead and stepped back, reminding him to call for her if he needed anything. Gadget was asleep within minutes, too tired to gather than Penny implied that she wouldn't be going to school that day. The blonde haired girl closed the door as softly as possible and tiptoed downstairs, picking up the phone on the wall. She dialed her school's phone number and waited.
"Hello? Yes, this is Penny Gadget. I won't be going to school today, my uncle and I have both come down with the flu. I'm sorry, he can't come to the phone right now, maybe he can call you back later to verify? Ok, thank you very much. Have a good day. Goodbye." She hung up the phone and, after a quick stretch, sat on the couch and opened her computer book.