What the Doctor thought would have been a one-off event, playing with Suzuran, Shamare, and Popukar, turned out to be the opposite. The very next day, they visited his office again, but with bright smiles this time. Their overflowing anticipation of showing him something was palpable before they even spoke up.
The Doctor put his pen down on his desk and trained his attention on the three. No matter how he looked at it, they were still kids, not operators, and they deserved every ounce of fun coming their way. "Girls? What are you doing here?"
"Doctor, we have something we want to show you! Could you follow us, please?" Suzuran asked.
"I'm a bit busy, so is there any more information I'll receive to entice me to follow you?" He asked, trying to tease them a bit, but it seemed like they took it seriously.
Suzuran opened her mouth to answer but stopped herself. Her indecision on what to say was obvious. Suzuran quickly turned around to huddle with her two friends and discuss what the next correct course of action was. The inaudible whispers whistling around were barely perceptible to the Doctor, who leaned in a little to get a grasp of their hushed conversation. Only he didn't go so far when they turned back around.
"I apologize, Doctor, but we want to keep it a surprise for you, so could you just follow us?"
Once again, it was difficult to reject their invitation, so he obliged their request and exited his office to follow them to the dorm room they were assigned to. When they made it there, the door opened up to reveal Angelina watching and testing her phone by letting it float in the air. Angelina noticed the sound the door produced and retrieved her phone back into her hands. She turned around to face the four of them with a warm smile.
"I was wondering when you girls were going to return... Oh, Doctor, I didn't see you standing there. It's nice to see you too." Angelina waved her fingers in his direction.
The Doctor lifted his hand and waved back. "The girls told me they had something to show me and brought me out here. Do you happen to be a part of it?"
Angelina laughed and nodded her head. "I guess I am."
"Doctor, come on!" Suzuran exclaimed, waving him over to a blanket spread out on the rug.
Popukar was already beside Angelina, tugging on her sleeve. "Miss Angelina, can I be the one to do it this time? Suzuran and Shamare looked like they had fun, so let it be me!"
A lot was happening all at once, but it didn't deter the Doctor from making a decision. But before he sat next to Suzuran, he looked down to see Shamare still standing right beside him. Her ears twitched as she stared back at him.
"Shamare, let's go see what this is all about."
Shamare nodded her head and walked in front of the Doctor to lead the way. "I hope you like it, Doctor. Come on, Morte, we have something special to show the Doctor."
When everyone assumed their positions, Angelina began to roll Popukar up into the blanket while the rest of them sat around, spectating the joyous activity.
"A blanket burrito?" The Doctor guessed.
"Bingo, Doctor! It's a blanket burrito, and the kids wanted to show it to you. They thought it was the most wonderful thing ever when they first saw it." Angelina said with a giggle. "You should have been there when we first did it to Suzuran and Shamare. Their reactions were priceless."
The Doctor reached over and poked Popukar. Popukar giggled, unable to do anything, but still happy nonetheless. "Huh, I don't think I ever had anyone do this to me in my life. Is it comfortable, Popukar?"
Popukar lit up as she snuggled with the blanket, embracing her. "I love it! The feeling is fuzzy and nice, Doctor! It almost feels like the numerous times I hugged Spot when he wasn't noticing!"
"H-He allowed that?"
"Yup! He's really fuzzy!"
The Doctor didn't know how to respond to her answer, but it seemed like Reserve Op Team A6 had a soft spot for Popukar. And this was considering Spot wasn't someone who spoke kindly. "Looks like fun. Was that all there was to it? I apologize, but I still have an astounding stack of papers in dire need of being finished."
Angelina was the first to protest his leaving. "Wait, Doctor. Don't you want to try this blanket burrito thing for yourself? You said it yourself that nobody did it for you, so how about now? It won't hurt to create a special memory like this. It'll only take a minute."
The other children also joined in, expressing their thoughts and excitement about him being wrapped in a blanket.
"Doctor, don't leave yet! You should try it! It's really fun!" Suzuran exclaimed.
"Please, Doctor?" Popukar echoed Suzuran's sentiment.
"I mean... Okay, I can do it. But just one roll, please." The Doctor said, giving into their request, which received a cheer from all four of them.
While the three of them reset the blanket and freed Popukar, the Doctor waited with Angelina, who sat beside him. A moment of silence passed by, the two of them observing the children. Angelina sighed and pulled her knees closer to her chest with her arms wrapped around her legs. She rested her head on her knees in a comfortable position. It almost felt like she was going to say something, so the Doctor waited patiently.
"Doctor… Just so you know, it's not too healthy to keep yourself cooped up in the office all the time. You need some fresh air once in a while."
"I know. But it's difficult to take extended breaks when there's so much work to be done. Thank you for your concern, though."
"Instead of blowing it off, did you want to join me one of these nights to go flying through skyscrapers near Lungmen when we're there? I think it'll be relaxing, and you know, we can spend some time with each other in leisure."
The Doctor smiled under his mask and nodded his head. "If that's what you want, then I wouldn't mind."
Angelina was twirling her hair on her finger, slightly embarrassed to make her feelings known. However, upon hearing the Doctor's answer to her question, her eyes lit up, and a smile crossed her face. Her continuance of twisting her hair with her finger was very telling. "I look forward to it then~."
It was at that moment, the three children finished up and beckoned for the Doctor to lie down at the edge of the blanket. Once he laid down, they counted up to three before rolling him up. The Doctor watched as the world spun around like a washing machine until it came to a stop with him staring straight up at the ceiling.
"Doctor, what do you think?" Suzuran asked, peeking into his vision. The others were also interested in the way they looked at him.
"It... It feels rather tight." The Doctor commented. "But it's comfortable."
"Yay! The Doctor likes it! Mission accomplished!" Popukar exclaimed.
Just before the Doctor could request to be freed, the door to the dorm suddenly opened. Kal'tsit stood at the doorway, fixating her gaze on all five of them. The Doctor froze up in fear and remained rigid, though he could not move, anyway. If there was a moment in time he desperately didn't want to meet her, it was now.
He knew she was going to come to his office to nab a few documents, but not this early. And he also didn't expect Kal'tsit to hunt him down with vigor until she found him.
Her gaze landed on the children and Angelina first before securing itself on the Doctor. "Doctor, what are you doing?" Kal'tsit asked, her tone rich with harsh, cold ice.
"I'm in danger." Was all the Doctor could say.
Author's Note: Look, I think blankets burritos are cute when done with cats, so I thought why not add it to this story?
With fuzzy love from your favorite writer, Out4Lunch!
