Chapter 1: See a Doctor
As the morning light flickered through the bedroom curtains, Doppler stirred in his sleep. He shifted his head sideways and opened his eyes. He frowned and gave a long yawn. He concentrated on the right side of the bed, which was empty, and the duvet looked as if it was shoved over him in a hurried scramble. Where's Amelia? Once again, Doppler frowned. Suddenly, a sound came from the bathroom. Doppler's ear twitched at the sound. He thought for a moment then groaned. Not again! Sleepily, he slumped out of bed and sneaked up to the bathroom door. Pressing his ear against the white wood, Doppler listened eagerly. After two minutes, there came a soft sound of someone retching. Doppler sighed. "Not again, Amelia!" he said loud enough for Amelia to hear. A series of sounds came from the bathroom; a sniff, the sound of a toilet flushing, the run of a tap, snap of toilet roll and finally, the grab of a knob. Doppler stepped back and watched the door open. There stood a twenty-three year old Felined with shoulder-length, silky red hair and piercing green eyes. She was pale from retching; her small hands trembling slightly. She looked at her canid husband and smiled. "Good morning, honey." she greeted. Amelia embraced her husband and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "Don't you try and snake out like you did yesterday." Doppler scolded. Amelia gave him and innocent look. "Out of what?" she wondered. Doppler raised an eyebrow. "You know what!" he exclaimed. He pulled himself out of Amelia's grasp and flopped down on the bed. Amelia placed her hands on her slim waist. "What?" she asked again. Doppler sighed.
"You need to see a doctor." he declared.
"It's only a bug! It'll pass." Amelia retorted.
"I've never heard of a bug that lasted eight days" Doppler said in a matter-of-factly way.
"Well you have now. Anyway, I don't like medical doctors. You know that." Amelia mentioned.
Doppler remembered the day when they came back to Montressor Spaceport and practically had to drag Amelia into the hospital because of her ribs. They understood why when she met one of her admirer's. One of them tried to kiss her but then Doppler gave him a right whack across the face. He needed bandages and painkillers for his knuckles then. "I still can't get over his face." Doppler joked then added a chuckle. Amelia let out a half-hearted laugh. "I didn't know you had that in you, love." giggled Amelia. Doppler snapped back into reality. "You're still going to see a doctor." he reminded. Amelia groaned. "I swear it'll pass. I don't need to see a doctor." she argued .
"Yes"
"No"
"Yes"
"No!"
"Yes!"
Amelia let out a cross between a sigh and a moan. "Please, go and see a doctor. Amelia, I'm worried. What if this isn't a bug? What if it's worse?" pleaded Doppler. Oh God, he's giving me the eyes!. Doppler looked at Amelia with adoring eyes and Amelia felt her heart melt. She let out another sigh. "Fine, I'll book an appointment later." mumbled Amelia. Doppler grinned and kissed her on her cheek. "Thank you. I promise you won't regret it." he assured. Amelia smirked. "Bet on it." she said as she held out her hand."Deal." replied Doppler and he shook his partner's hand.