Author's Note: I apologize for putting up the wrong date for posting my ninth chapter! I calculated my vacation wrong, so here is the chapter early! This message will be deleted later, so lucky you for reading it! Also, there's some extra information at the end of the story Author's Note!
In the quiet moments of the evening, the Doctor attacked a stack of papers on his desk. It was supposed to be the last stack a few hours ago, but Amiya had supplied him more. If it didn't stop, fighting paperwork would become literal.
With a sigh, the Doctor stood to stretch, releasing the tension in his body from inactivity. He trudged to the door to grab a cup of coffee from the cafeteria, but the door slid open. The Doctor jolted and warily stared at the incoming operators.
The Doctor prayed they weren't Amiya with more dreaded paperwork. He already had enough on his plate. Fortunately, the visitors were far from anything malevolent. The three operators were Suzuran, Shamare, and Popukar. And they were wearing adorable pajamas with a distinct style for each of them.
"Girls? Shouldn't you be in bed by now?" The Doctor asked.
"We still have an hour left to go, Doctor! But before we sleep, we wanted to invite you to a sleepover! It's going to be fun, and we thought it would be better if we did it with you!" Suzuran exclaimed, transferring a sheet of paper to the Doctor.
"Join us, Doctor," Popukar said, a smile dancing on her features.
Next to Popukar, Shamare nodded her head. Shamare embraced Morte tightly while Popukar hugged her red bunny plushie. Suzuran stepped back and joined her friends with a smile.
It was difficult for the Doctor to decide when he had a duty to fulfill, but it was also fun to cherish his time with them. The Doctor glanced at his paperwork and then at them. He would have rejected their request, considering their bedtime was near, but their pleading, expectant eyes rewrote any objection.
"Okay, but I can't stay forever." The Doctor compromised. "I want to, but we already got together today and spent some time. Still, I guess I can always spare some time for you three as long as I get my work done."
"Understood, Doctor! We promise not to waste too much of your time!" Suzuran agreed.
Suzuran took the Doctor's hand and guided him to the dorm they were assigned while Shamare and Popukar tagged along with equally elated expressions.
The Doctor matched their eager pace and took time to examine what Suzuran had given him. It was a drawing of the four of them. The Doctor could see himself drawn next to Suzuran while Shamare and Popukar were illustrated on the other side of him.
They didn't draw it intricately, but there was an overabundance of care and thoughts embedded into it. Did they draw this just for him? The Doctor felt a surreal emotion envelop him, staring at every minute detail on the drawing.
It was wholesome.
Their drawing continued to mesmerize the Doctor when they arrived at the dorm. However, the Doctor didn't stop, slamming straight into the door and crumbling on the floor.
"I'm going to feel that in the morning..." The Doctor groaned.
"D-Doctor, are you okay?" Suzuran asked. "I'm sorry if I didn't tell you to stop in time..."
"Morte can eat the pain you feel, Doctor," Shamare said.
"I don't know if Morte can eat physical pain, but I'm fine…" The Doctor said. The idea of a doll with two knives eating his emotions was frightening. "Should we continue?"
The three had varying degrees of concern. None of them believed he was fine until they could inspect him. When the Doctor relented to their worries, they investigated him for a 'booboo.' It was a term the Medical Department used to treat children without instilling fear in them. Once they were satisfied with the Doctor's well-being, they gave credit to his alibi.
Suzuran slid her identification card over the sensor and opened the door. Suzuran and Popukar tugged the Doctor inside with glee, expecting his reaction. The Doctor discovered a blanket fort established in the middle of the dorm with four fluffy blankets inside. It represented one for each of them.
"Oh, wow… This looks great. Did you create this all by yourselves?" The Doctor asked.
"No, big sister Dur-nar assisted us! It ended up being better than we expected!" Suzuran answered.
"Doctor, come in. The fort can handle us all! I think…" Popukar said.
Once the three fit inside first, they shuffled around to allocate space for him. But because of his adult size, his proportions didn't quite fit. Still, he fit cozily beside the closest operator, which was Shamare. His legs received the short end of the stick. They stuck out in the desolate expanse of the dorm.
"Oh, there's not enough space…" Suzuran said. "Sorry, Doctor. We wanted to make it bigger, but we ran out of blankets."
"I'm fine. You guys did nothing wrong, so don't feel any guilt." The Doctor said.
"We could have the Doctor lie sideways..." Popukar suggested.
"That could work… But where would we fit?" Suzuran asked.
"Oh, I didn't think of that… Hehe." Popukar confessed.
A momentary respite shifted by until Shamare remembered to hand him the blanket they chose for him. With words of thanks, the Doctor accepted the undersized blanket. He spread it over the lower portion of his body to protect himself from the cold. It was lacking, but it was the thought that counted.
To the Doctor's surprise, Shamare also handed him something else for his troubles.
"Doctor, if you ever have a problem, Morte is always here for you. Talk to him and he'll help you." Shamare said, handing the possession of Morte to him.
A drop of figurative sweat rolled down the Doctor's head as he graciously, but nervously welcomed the doll in his grasp. "Right... I'll do that later when I get the chance. Did you want him back for the time being?"
Shamare shook her head, trusting him with Morte, so despite the Doctor's reluctance, he placed Morte in between them.
Meanwhile, Suzuran had stepped out of the blanket fort to bring an amusing toy in. It was a simple game Closure created for Suzuran, Shamare, and Popukar specifically. In doing so, Closure tried to sell it to them for a hefty amount of LMD as a limited custom-made toy, but was stoutly blocked by Kal'tsit herself.
The toy was an Originium Slug with artificial spikes sprinkled across the back. Whenever a player pressed any spike, it would sink in and stay. The toy would either remain the same, declaring the player safe, or glow a flamboyant crimson to pronounce them as the unfortunate victim.
While Suzuran and Popukar looked around the toy, searching for the switch to the game, the Doctor laid his head down, patiently waiting for them to start.
Suddenly, a voice was heard. It sounded like Suzuran's voice and nearly dreamlike. Then it registered in his mind as reality.
"Doctor? Doctor...?"
"Hmm...?"
"Are you trying to sleep? It's your turn and... Sorry to wake you up."
With a grunt, the Doctor lifted his head. He discovered the three of them staring at him. The toy illuminated a yellow tint, waiting for someone to press its spikes. The Doctor held his disoriented head induced by his lack of sleep.
"I fell asleep, didn't I? I apologize."
"No, it's okay, Doctor! We know how tired you are. Did you want to still play or... Get some extra sleep?"
Off on the side, the Doctor saw Popukar situating her plushie next to Morte. Shamare glanced over her shoulder to see how the Doctor was managing while Suzuran looked at him with expectant eyes.
"I'll still play." The Doctor answered, but when he pressed on the spike of his choice, the toy flared up with red.
"Aw, Doctor, you lost! Let's go again! You'll win the next round for sure!" Suzuran comforted.
"My intuition for this game isn't as sharp as my paperwork skills."
"But this is much more fun than wielding that pen, right, Doctor?" Popukar asked.
The Doctor chuckled. "It's far more enjoyable, Popukar."
For the duration of their sleepover, the Doctor indulged himself in their entertaining activities. Time flew by, but eventually, it led the three of them to drowsiness. A glance at the clock told the Doctor he needed to tuck them into bed and give the children their much-needed slumber.
And that's what the Doctor implemented, gently urging each of them to sleep, so he could shelter their bodies with the blankets they had. And to protect them from any unwelcome cold air.
Just as the Doctor was about to leave, he heard Suzuran calling his name. "Did you need something, Suzuran?"
"Doctor... Don't forget the drawing."
A moment of pause.
The Doctor walked back and picked it up. "That would be bad, wouldn't it? Good night and don't let the bedbugs bite. See you tomorrow?"
Articulated by her smile, the Doctor knew another visit was inevitable.
"We'll be there, Doctor… Good night!" Suzuran murmured sleepily.
"Alright, I'll be waiting."
The Doctor hung back to ensure the three of them were comfortable before closing the door. He looked down at the drawing and smiled. However, the Doctor bumped into Dur-nar, who stood outside the door. Frozen with fear, the Doctor hastily walked away from her.
"Excuse me, Dur-nar. I'll be going back to my office to do some paperwork."
A grin crossed Dur-nar's features as she tailed him, unwilling to let this moment go. "So it seems like the kids invited you for a sleepover. How did you like it? Was it fun?"
"It was. It was enjoyable, despite me falling asleep halfway into it... We played a few games together, and they showed me their blanket fort. It was a very sound structure. I'm told you helped them out."
"Yeah, I gave them a hand. I didn't want their blanket fort falling on them in the middle of the night. You know, they were asking me how you would fit inside of the blanket fort, but I convinced them there was enough space."
"Unfortunately, there wasn't, but it was still cozy."
Dur-nar laughed and walked closer to the Doctor's side. This allowed Dur-nar to take a peek at the drawing in the Doctor's hand. "Doctor, is that something they drew?"
"Yes, uh..." The Doctor trailed off, hiding it from her view. "I'm not sure if I should show you since they only drew it for me."
"Aw, c'mon. Don't be like that, Doctor. How about I barter a glance at that picture with this chocolate bar?" Dur-nar asked, trying to sweeten the deal with something the Doctor might like.
"I think this drawing is worth more than a chocolate bar." The Doctor said.
"Alright, I didn't mean it like that, Doctor."
The Doctor chuckled, slowing to a stop in the hallway to show Dur-nar their drawing. A quick scan was enough to invoke a smile from Dur-nar and bring a hand up to her chest in an endearing manner.
"Ah, kids. They're so innocent and precious, don't you think?" Dur-nar asked.
"Yes, they're precious. I find it odd to think how it all started, but I'm thankful for their continuous interactions with me. But I feel like they're doing this on purpose to give me an intentional break. It's almost like they trained me to expect their presence every day… Does this mean I'm an experiment?"
Dur-nar laughed at the absurdity of his question. "Doctor, I don't think they thought that far into their simple moments of wanting to be with you. It's like how us operators want to be with you. The simplest explanation is the answer, right?"
"Right, right. I was just thinking a little much." The Doctor said. He received the drawing from Dur-nar. "Hey, uh, did you actually have that chocolate bar?"
Dur-nar laughed as she reached into her pocket to pull out the sweet treat and hand it to him. "As promised, and thanks for your troubles. It might be a little melted, but I don't think you mind."
"It's no problem… Oh, this is the good one!" The Doctor said.
Dur-nar tilted her head. "What do you mean by that?"
"Er… Haha, I meant nothing by that. I'll be on my way now."
The Doctor grabbed the chocolate bar and tugged on it, but the snack stayed put. With drops of sweat running down his head, the Doctor dared to extract his prize again, but its lack of movement was telling.
"D-Dur-nar?" The Doctor asked.
Dur-nar didn't respond at first. Instead, she raised her other hand and placed it on top of the Doctor's. With a bright grin, Dur-nar wrapped her hand around the Doctor's securely. "I have you exactly where I want you."
"Dur-nar? W-What does that mean?" The Doctor asked.
Silence.
"Please Dur-nar, that was just a slip of the tongue. I know how hard you work to provide us with snacks, so I'll take those words back." The Doctor said.
"Too late," Dur-nar said. A second later, Dur-nar giggled and squeezed his hand once more before she let go. "Okay, I took that jest too far, didn't I? You're fine, Doctor, but your reactions were comedic."
"I-I legitimately thought it enraged you for a second there."
"Of course not! We take the reviews of our most loyal members seriously. Like you. And just like that, that gives me an idea. Do you want to join Dobermann and me for a drink at the Rhodes Island bar, so we can discuss this further? I want to hear your thoughts on how we can improve."
"I would love to, but I'm not good with drinks."
"Okay, we'll just get you orange juice. I know you have work to do later tonight. As you always do."
The Doctor nodded his head and looked at the drawing in his hand. He lightly shook it to bring attention to it and pointed in the relative direction of his office.
"Would you mind granting me a second to transfer this to a safer place?"
"Oh, of course. We wouldn't want to taint their precious picture. Here, I'll even escort you."
"Much obliged." The Doctor said, walking by her side.
Her proximity was closer than usual, but he didn't deem it necessary to focus on it. After all, he had garnered trust with most operators, so it wasn't out of the ordinary. But a part of him told him it wasn't out of just trust.
When they made it to his office, he entered and glanced around the room for the perfect spot to hang the drawing. Dur-nar also joined, inspecting the perfect spot for the illustration to find its permanent home.
"How about there?" Dur-nar asked, pointing at the front of his desk. "If you have some magnets, you could stick it on."
The Doctor considered the location and nodded his head. "I like that. Whenever the three of them wander in tomorrow, they can see it there."
The Doctor pulled a magnet from the drawer connected to his desk and hung it up. The Doctor dusted his hands to commend himself and followed Dur-nar out the door. But just as he was about to leave the office and partner up with Dur-nar and Dobermann at the bar, he found his eyes gravitating toward the drawing again.
"You coming, Doctor?"
"Yes, I'll be right there." The Doctor answered, turning the lights off and leaving his office.
There would be plenty more days like this where the three children would continuously visit him, so a part of him couldn't wait for tomorrow. It was nice to cherish their time spent together, but for now, he had a drink date at the bar.
Author's Note: This was a Doctor X Dur-nar story the entire time under the guise of a wholesome, general story! Muahahah!
But on a serious note, this concludes the main parts of the story I wanted to write! However, there will be bonus holiday chapters on Dec. 24th 2023, and Dec. 31st 2023! Be on the lookout for those two! And thank you for sticking around for every chapter!
If you enjoyed it, don't be afraid to leave some interactions!
With sleepy love from your favorite writer, Out4Lunch!