Peach Perfume

[Noseandtoes]

(A/N): I am sooooo into these characters.  I hope you are too!  

 

 

 

It was 6:30 in the morning when she finally found the will to get out of bed. It had been a restless night, filled to the brim with lack of sleep, yet today she could not afford to sleep in. Today she was interviewing for an internship at her university, a position she'd had her eye on since she heard of the opening. It would be a wonderful opportunity for her; a job where she'd gain loads of experience in a psychology lab, doing research, spending hours analyzing and pouring over data...the usual things that all graduate students longed to do.

Emilia, having the desire of always wanting to be where she needed to be earlier than usual, showered, made herself up, grabbed a quick bite, and was on the road by 7:30, and arrived at her destination by 8:15, 45 minutes early for her interview. It was no matter; this was the kind of behavior she was accustomed to. She checked the building and location of her interview multiple times, just to be absolutely sure she knew where she was headed. However, with 45 minutes to spare, it's not like she couldn't afford to make a wrong turn.

The interview was taking place in the psychology department, as she might have guessed based on the nature of it. Psychology building, office 464. Emilia entered the elevator and rode it up to the fourth floor, trying to take deep breaths to calm her nerves. It was just an interview. No need to start feeling the butterflies. After all, she'd gone on dozens of these before. Perhaps this one was a little more exciting, being that it was her first as a graduate student, rather than an undergrad. She took another deep breath. Calm.

The fourth floor was bustling with all sorts of commotion. People walking around with piles of paper, words of data flew back and fourth through the air, phones were ringing, meetings were being held...it was everything she'd expected. Her heart skipped a beat with the liveliness of it all. This was where she wanted to be. Surrounded by people who shared her passion and affinity for the social sciences.

Emilia checked her watch. Ten minutes left. She decided she ought to find a restroom in order to freshen up a bit before heading into her interview. She smoothed her shirt, applied a tad more lipstick, and sprayed a quick spray of peach perfume before she decided she was ready. This was it. The moment was hers.

She entered the office, walking taller than she usually did.

“Hello, may I help you?” the secretary greeted her.

“Yes, I have an interview scheduled for 9:00 with Dr. Joseph Caldwell?”

“You are Ms. Bennett?”

“Yes ma'am.”

“Alright, you may have a seat. Dr. Caldwell will see you in just a few moments.”

Emilia chose a spot and prepared to wait for Dr. Caldwell to call her into his office. She wondered what it would be like. She wrung her hands together a few times before reminding herself that everything would turn out alright and that she would do just fine. After a few moments the secretary could be heard once more.

“Alright, I'll send her in. Ms. Bennett? He's ready for you. Just through those doors. Good luck!”

“Thank you!” Emilia took one final deep breath before pushing the door open and entering the office of Dr. Joseph Caldwell.

“Ms. Emilia Bennett?” His voice was deep, resonant, and forced her to look at him. He stood up, standing a good six feet, three inches tall, extending a hand for her to shake.

“Yes sir, that's me.”

“Very good to meet you, please, have a seat.”

Emilia did as she was instructed, trying not to stare at him. Beyond his height, he was...cute. Well-dressed in a button-down, tie, blazer, and dress pants, glasses that seemed to fit his face just right, and...what's this? A nose that put any other she had ever seen to shame. His nose was long, extending, and his nostrils seemed to go on forever, seemingly a bit...red?

Emilia forced her eyes back to his, trying not to stare. She felt herself blush. Maybe this interview would be more interesting than she thought! Once again she stole a quick glance at his nose, nearly enraptured by it's size. Who would have thought that her interviewer would have such a perfect schnozz? She cast her eyes down as her eyes filled with more blush.

“I received your resume, Ms. Bennett. Very impressive. A couple of research studies under your belt already, lovely subjects,” he paused. “And a few presentations. So tell me, why my lab?”

For a moment a few new answers sprung to her mind, none of which she could say out loud.

“Well, I have always been fascinated by...”

Here, in the middle of her sentence, she detected a slight...twitch in his nose? She swallowed hard and begged herself to continue, telling herself it was all her imagination.

“I have always been fascinated by bipolar disorder. It is an amazingly intense disorder that is so stigmatized by the media. It is my goal to specialize in bipolar disorder and I believe that interning for you would be a great way to learn about the disorder in more detail as well as give me the skills I need to be a future psychologist.”

Dr. Caldwell nodded as she spoke, his chest beginning to rise and fall unevenly. Was she going to be this lucky?

“I see,” he said, brushing his thumb momentarily against the underside of his nose. For a moment he held his finger there, looking down at her resume. “It certainly would be a wonderful opportunity for you to learn...hahh...more in depth. Bipolar disorder is what I myself specialize in as well.”

“Yes, I researched you a bit before I came here.”

Dr. Caldwell looked up at her and smiled. “A good answer.” He chuckled. His nose was twitching more-so than before and Emilia tried with all her might not to have her eyes glued to it. It would be unprofessional. So it hadn't just been her imagination! What could be irritating it? She discretely tried to scan the room for the culprit, but found no trace of flowers or even dust to give the credit to.

“Ms. Bennett, I also notice that you attehh—hahhh...hahh...” His eyes glazed over and his hitching breath became evident with every passing moment. “Oh...excuse me...” he managed. His nostrils swelled and his nose became a very lovely shade of red. Mesmerized, all she could do at this point was stare. “Something...hahhh...hahhh...seems to b-be...” Here, he drew out a wonderful white handkerchief from his breast pocket and held is against his quivering nose. “Something seems to be...t-tickling...ahhh...hahhhh...” His large nose was completely at the mercy of the irritant, flexing and scrunching in a way that Emilia had never seen. “Tickling my...” He rubbed the handkerchief under his nose, trying to subdue the torture of the tickle, but found his efforts to be in vain. “My...hahhh...hahhh....HAAACHEWWW!! Oh...” He sniffed, dabbing the corners of his still-red nose against his handkerchief. “Tickling my nose.”

Emilia, in her own effort to make it seem as though she wasn't completely enthralled by what just occurred, asked, “Allergies?”

Sniffing once more and adjusting his glasses he laughed weakly. “The worst. I thought I would outsmart them by taking some medication this morning. That, paired with not being real close to anything like flowers or dust does a great job keeping them at bay. I guess...hahhh...I guess today will not be easy...hahh...” Once again his nose began it's allergic dance, this time pulsing, growing itchier.

Still, despite himself, he pressed on with the interview. “I see you attended the best school in the state for undergrad. Ex...hahh...excellent...” He brought his handkerchief once again to his bulging nose, trying to get the twitching under control. Dr. Caldwell sniffed largely, subtly running the handkerchief underneath his quivering nostrils. “D-Do you...hahh...hahhh...hahhh...oh...*sniff*...do you...hahh...oh...d-damn...I can't...can't...hahhh...hohhh...hold it...hahhh...b-bahh...back...” He turned his chair around so that he was facing away from Emilia, buried his appendage in his handkerchief, and let it out. “HAAAAESSCHEWWW!! HAAAAAEEESSSHEWWWW!!! HAAAESSSSCHEWWWW!!”

Three manly, powerful, allergic sneezes erupted out of him. Once again he dabbed at his large nostrils, this time putting the handkerchief back into his breast pocket when he was finished with it. He sniffed once, and turned back around, just as much blush in his cheeks as there was in Emilia's.

“Forgive me, Ms. Bennett. Like I said, the worst.”

Emilia offered him a smile, taking note of his allergic nostrils, black caves of wonder. What was the irritant...?

“Don't worry about it,” she said sheepishly, “I don't mind.”

Dr. Caldwell seemed to sigh in relief. “Well, as I was saying, you attended the best school in the state for undergrad, a good reflection of your drive. It takes quite a bit to maintain a good GPA there.”

“Thank you.”

“Well, Ms. Bennett, do you have any questions for me?”

Of course she did, dozens of questions swirling throughout her mind, although nothing that had to do with his study of Bipolar disorder. Still, she forced herself to ask a meaningful question.

“Why was it your decision to study Bipolar disorder? What was the draw for you?”

Dr. Caldwell nodded her head at her question. “For me it was the manic episodes that drew me in. I was fascinated by the state of the mind in a manic state. I had to know more.”

“Interesting!”

“Very. Mania is a fearsome state of the mind to behold.”

Emilia glanced at his nose again, noting it's seemingly persistent irritation. How badly did it tickle now?

“Well, I do believe this has been a wonderful interview, Ms. Bennett.” He stood up and she followed suit.

“Thank you so much for your time!” She leaned closer to him to shake his extended hand. There. As soon as she leaned forward.

Dr. Caldwell's large, desperately allergic nose, swelled once again, this time to a titanic size. It quivered. Trembled. His nostrils shook with the intensity of the tickle that was feathering it's way inside. He tried with all his might to keep the desperate sneezes at bay, wriggling his nose, holding his finger under the large, gargantuan nostrils, forever widening and tickling him. With shaking hands he brought out his used handkerchief, now seemingly no longer able to contain his immense nose. He hitched, hopelessly trying to make the tickle disappear. But it was no use. Dr. Caldwell was on the verge of a very, very allergic, itchy fit.

“If you'll...hahhh...hahhhhh...hahhhh...f-f-forghhhhhiiii...forgive mehhhhahhh... B-but...I seem...hahhh...hahhh...seem to be...hahhh...” He desperately tried to talk around the tickle, growing itchier and itchier within his nostrils.

Emilia, rooted in place, could not do anything but ogle the desperate, trembling, allergic, sexy man in front of her.

“Hiiihhhh seem to be...” He wriggled, scrunching his nose up, to the side, giving Emilia an absolutely spectacular show. “Very alllhherhhhh—allergic...t-to...” Would his nose ever stop growing? It seemed to have double in size. Allergic tears flowed from his eyes. “To your...hahh...hahhhh...hahhh...HAHHH...”

Suddenly, the realization came over her.

Her perfume.

That's what it was! The perfume she sprayed earlier was wreaking havoc on Dr. Caldwell.

“Your...your...hahhh...HAHHHH...!” Was he still trying to speak? Unbelievable! “Perfuuuuuhhhhmme! HHAAAAASCHEWWWWW!!!!! HAAAAESSHHHEWWW!!! HAAAASCHEWWWW!! AAAASSSHEWWWW!!! Oh...dear...*sniff sniff* there's...hahh...there's still more....HAAAAAHSSSCHEWWW!!! HAAAAESSSCHEWWW!!!” His desperately held the handkerchief to his nose, although at this point, it wasn't doing anything but shielding his large appendage from Emilia. But it would be too impolite to but it down and sneeze freely without a handkerchief. No, that would be inappropriate.

“HHAAAAASCHEWWWW!! ESSCHEWWW!! Oh...s-so...tickllhhh...tickly...oh...I...HAAASSSSHEWWWW!! I have to...to...hahh...HAAAaAESSSCHEWWWW!! Sneeze...I need to sneehhh...sneeehh...hahhh...HAAAAESSSCHEWWW!!”

Emilia's amazement could not be matched. This interview was giving her more than she bargained for.

“Dr. Caldwell, are you alright?”

“J-just...HAAAESSSCHEWWWW! Just a m-moment...” He turned himself around once more, wiping away residue from his nose and getting himself in order. He sniffed. How humiliating. He felt his face flush to an even more brilliant red than the edges of his nose.

“Dr. Caldwell?”

He turned around to face her, his face full of apology. “I am so sorry, Ms. Bennett, I...” he trailed off, shaking his head.

“No, no, it was I who wore the perfume. I should be apologizing.”

“Oh please you had n-no..ahhhhschewww!! Oh... You had no idea that it would affect me...”

There was silence for a moment, except for the occasional sniff.

“It doesn't bother me,” she murmured after a pregnant pause.

Dr. Caldwell looked at her, his finger absentmindedly rubbing beneath his nostrils.

“I just won't come any closer,” she teased.

He half-smiled. “You're too kind, Ms. Bennett. Hahh...now...I should be in touch within...hahhh...the next few days after I've mehh...meditated on your interview, and others... Thank you.”

Emilia smiled. “Thank you.”

 

[Animegirl966]

Oh Wow!  That was really good! 

[M214186]

This was such an intriguing idea. 

[Raven]

You always write such fantastic stories and this one is no exception!

[Colds-and-Cuddles]

This is one of my favourite stories that I've read on here! I hope you're planning to continue it!

[HideAndGoSneeze]

Oh man..I love this so much!!! Please tell me there's a continuation to this tale...I would love to hear more of the good doctor's allergic reactions as he's teaching something to her, or showing her something up close..

You have such a talent for writing! I love your stories!

[Juniebee]

Mmmm, although I'm slightly paranoid that something like this would happen to me ,idk how Emelia could tolerate it.

Bless him.! Poor,delicious man. 

Okay for some reason " I thought I coukd outsmart them with medicine and avoidig flowers" made me laugh i think its because he couldn't predict she would wear perfume,and his medicne wouldn't help XD

[omgomgg]

I so hope you plan to continue this!!!! 

[GroundIntoDust]

Oh my gosh...incredible!!!

[Snzlover]

Love the talking around sneezes

[sneeziecutie]

You have to continue this! Please, it's fantastic, I'm dying to read more

[Timberlane]

Awesome story.  I really hope you continue!

[Noseandtoes]

Part Two

 

The email arrived three days after the glorious interview had taken place. With bated breath had Emilia waited for the sneezy psychologist to get back to her about his decision. Only now, her reasons for wanting the position were so much more than academic. She felt a tad guilty about this, not wanting any budding emotions to get a hold of her; after all, he was her senior. Her very, tall, allergic, sneezy senior. The way his nose and thereby his allergies, dominated everything about him, bringing him to his knees so to speak, made Emilia feel giddy. Thoughts of Dr. Caldwell and his allergic fit at the scent of her own perfume played over and over again in her head for the three days she waited, and only excited her more as she read his email:

Dear Ms. Bennett,

It is with much pleasure that I inform you that I have decided to take you on as my lab assistant. Should you wish to accept, please let me know at your earliest convenience. I look forward to working together!

Best regards,

Peter Caldwell, PhD,

School of Psychology

 

Emilia's heart swelled with joy as she quickly responded with her acceptance. How exciting to officially be able to work in a psychology lab! It was everything she had ever hoped for.

Beyond her excitement for being able to start with hands-on experience, she felt excitement too, at the thought of having the opportunity to work with Dr. Caldwell, for obvious reasons. She privately wondered how many times he had sneezed while composing his email to her.

 

Next week, Emilia was jittery as she once again entered the building that was now her place of employment. She rode the elevator up as she had before, becoming more and more excited with each passing floor. Being in Dr. Caldwell's company made her adrenaline rush.

“Good morning, Emilia!” Dr. Caldwell greeted her in the bay to his office, looking as good as ever. Crisp shirt, creased slacks, a tie. It was an ensemble to make her weak at the knees, sucker as she was for a well-dressed man with a big nose.

“Good morning,” she smiled pleasantly and shook his hand.

It was only slight, but trained eyes could detect Dr. Caldwell leaning into her, only subtly, trying to discern whether or not she had on the tickly perfume this time. Emilia, not wanting it to appear obvious as to why she would opt to wear it, did not use it this morning. After he admitted to her that her perfume was the culprit, it would just seem rude to wear it again, wouldn't it? When Dr. Caldwell didn't go into an allergic fit as he had, he too could tell, and appreciate, her lack of fragrance. It relieved him. No need to have yet another unhinging allergy attack in front of his new lab assistant. It was too embarrassing; too improper, even with his handkerchief.

“Today I thought I'd start you off with something a tad light, if you will. If you'll follow me.” He guided her into an office that was situated next to his. “This is your workspace. Feel free to decorate it as you'd like, just...” He trailed off, not wanting to totally admit that he would prefer her not to bring in vases of flowers.

Emilia, having a heightened sense of awareness, smiled knowingly and said, “No flowers. Got it.”

Not sure whether to be self-conscious or flattered about Emilia's keen sense of understanding, Dr. Caldwell blushed and said, “Right.” After a pause he continued. “Like I said, I'll give you something light to do today, being that it's your first day working. Inside that filing cabinet you'll find a stack of transcripts from focus groups that were conducted here a few years ago. I'll have you read those, just so you can get an understanding of how running those work and to get a little more insight as to what people with Bipolar Disorder, specifically mania, are going through. Read them, and pick out the recurring themes you find.”

“Sounds good to me!” Emilia was all to eager to get her hands on some work.

“I'll leave you to it then! If you need anything, just knock.” Dr. Caldwell strode out of the room and you could hear his office door close behind him.

Emilia let out a breath, admittedly a little sad to be out of his company for the time being. The filing cabinet was shoved into the corner of the room, seemingly not touched in years. She tugged on the handle, only to find that it was locked. Damn. Feeling silly for already having to bother Dr. Caldwell for something, she knocked on his door.

“Come in!”

“Sorry to bother you so soon,” she began, “but--”

“Oh it's really no problem, Ms. Bennett. If you didn't have questions I'd be surprised.”

Emilia was grateful for him saying this. “Thank you, sir, but I just thought I should tell you that the filing cabinet is locked and I can't get the transcripts.”

“Oh of course!” Dr. Caldwell stood up in a rush, pulling his keys out of his pocket. “Allow me. Should have had this unlocked before you even came in today.”

Together they went back into Emilia's office. For a man as meticulous and organized as Dr. Caldwell, for a man who doesn't let dust collect in his office under any circumstance, you'd think it would have occurred to this brilliant man, that the office Emilia now occupied had been vacant for a good while, thus, not having been dusted in a good while either.

The moment he approached the filing cabinet, he could feel it. That particular tingle in the back of his nose. It was subtle at first, a tiny tickle. A prick, a sensation, a small urge. His usual first line of defense was to sniff the tickle away, however, being this close to the dust prevented him from doing this. He could take out his handkerchief in an effort to shield himself, but this would just make it obvious to Emilia that he had become agitated. And he didn't want a repeat of what happened during her interview.

He resolved to hold his breath, a tactic that he had used before when his others were unavailable to him.

Emilia felt the familiar twinge of excitement course through her again as she noticed what Dr. Caldwell was doing. How wonderful, to watch him.

Carefully, Dr. Caldwell selected the correct key from the ring and unlocked the filing cabinet, fishing out the desired contents. The transcripts were dusty. Damn, how long had they been sitting in there? His hands seemed coated in the dust. He felt his heart rate increase as he knew there was very little chance of escaping a sneeze. Even holding his breath he could feel the tickle spread within his nostrils as he handled the dusty paperwork. The most he could hope for was to hold it off until he was safe behind the door of his office, where he knew he could sneeze freely without anyone seeing him. It was one thing to have someone see you incapacitated by your allergies, but not so bad if it was only auditory.

“Th—hahh...there you gohhh—go, Ms. Bennett.” The tickle moved quickly, his nose becoming itchier with every passing moment. He could already feel his nostrils twitching involuntarily, becoming redder and redder as the tickle continued it's stealthy work. “Oh...hahh...hahhh...”

“Thank you.” He handed over the dusty transcripts, feeling the allergic tears form in his eyes as he tried his very best to contain the sneeze. Just hold it back. He pleaded internally with himself, not wanting Emilia to once again catch him as she had before.

As his tickle became more and more present, Emilia was feeling more and more excited. She could see the way his nose flexed, trying to keep a sneeze at bay.

“So recurring themes? Do you want me to type the data in a document, or just highlight directly on the transcripts?”

“T-tyhhh...hahhh...type them out...hahhhh...Word doc...document.”

“Gotcha.”

“D-do you...hahhh...have any mohh...more questions?” As badly as Dr. Caldwell wanted to excuse himself from the room, he knew he had to see to it that Emilia was as well-prepared as she could be.

Pausing for a moment, just to see him struggle for a moment more, Emilia watched as the tickle seemed to grow once again. She could tell it had grown, because Dr. Caldwell had surrendered to taking out his handkerchief to hold it to his quivering nose. Today, his handkerchief was a lovely shade of blue, matching the stripes on his tie. How meticulous. He desperately held the handkerchief under his large nose, letting it twitch freely there, where she couldn't see how irritated it was. Just a few more seconds, he prayed, was all he had left in the godforsaken dusty room.

“Hahh...hahhh...hahhhh...”

“No more questions, thank you.”

“Then...if...if...hahhh...you'll pahhh...hahh...HAHHHH...pardon m-meh...me...” He couldn't finish, he quickly exited the room, shutting his office door behind him and allowing himself to surrender to the intensity of his allergies.

“HAAAAESSSSCHEWW!! HAAAAESSSCHEWWW!!! HAAAAESSCHEWWW!!!” Each sneeze he caught within the folds of his handkerchief, wiping under his nose after he was done. For a moment, he held the handkerchief was, knowing better than to lower it just because he stopped sneezing for the moment. “HAAAASCHEWW!!” There it was, the phantom sneeze. He dubbed it this because there was always a sneeze in every fit that came without warning, without any tickly build-ups, as his sneezes usually were.

“Hahh...hahhh...oh...s-so...hahhh...duhhh...dusty...*sniff sniffff*...my nose...HHHAAAASCHEWWW!! HAAAAESSSCHEWWW!! Hahh...hahhh...HAAASCHEWWWW!!! HAAASCCCHHEWW!!” Dr. Caldwell dabbed at his reddened nostrils tenderly before putting his handkerchief away. “Oh dear...” he moaned. “Excuse me.”

On the other side of the wall was Emilia, mesmerized, and completely smitten with the sound of his sneezes. Try as she might, she sat at her desk to read the transcripts as she had been instructed to do, but all she wanted to do was count the sneezes that erupted from him. One, two, three, four...by the time she got to seven she was as light-headed as if it was been her who had the fit. All she could think of doing was running back into his office to tend to him in whatever way he needed. Poor man. Desperate and allergic to even the most common allergen. But she had another job to do, and that was to read these transcripts. She buried herself in her work, trying to put Dr. Caldwell and his irritated nose out her mind for the time being.

[WWEFan]

So happy for part two, this is awesome I especially love the way you write the build ups

xxxx

[HideAndGoSneeze]

Oh... My... Goodness... I love the second addition!!! The way you write about the itchy appendage and his buildups... I love this! If you can please continue!! 

[Shamaël]

I've just discovered the whole story and it's really great! 

13 hours ago, Noseandtoes said:

There it was, the phantom sneeze. He dubbed it this because there was always a sneeze in every fit that came without warning, without any tickly build-ups, as his sneezes usually were.

I loved this sentence, it describes perfectly the way the character sneezes.

13 hours ago, Noseandtoes said:

On the other side of the wall was Emilia, mesmerized, and completely smitten with the sound of his sneezes. Try as she might, she sat at her desk to read the transcripts as she had been instructed to do, but all she wanted to do was count the sneezes that erupted from him. One, two, three, four...by the time she got to seven she was as light-headed as if it was been her who had the fit.

And this is exactly how I would feel if I was in such a fantastic situation!

Thank you for this story and feel free to continue it!!!

[Juniebee]

Nnn I love this!

Bless him! He's so embarrassed Awwwww

Looks like his medicine isn't helping him 

[GroundIntoDust]

This is amazing! I hope to see more from you!

[JustASneeze]

I absolutely love this piece! You do a wonderful job with the buildups. Honestly, buildups are my favorite part. When you have the anticipation build and build, it just really adds to a scene. I also wish to compliment your ability to truly establish defining characteristics of each character. I could really picture them and, for some reason, started to envision Fifty Shades of Grey except with a twist regarding my fetish. Fantastic job, keep up the good work.

[Juniebee]

I saw that this was updated and was disappointed that it was just a comment.....

LKjal;skfjals;dkfjal;sdkfj sneezey profs....

[HideAndGoSneeze]

1 hour ago, Mwsapphire said:

I saw that this was updated and was disappointed that it was just a comment.....

LKjal;skfjals;dkfjal;sdkfj sneezey profs....

I did the SAME. THING.

[Noseandtoes]

Part Three

 

(A/N): And thank you for the patience.

 

 

Emilia sat in the office, trying desperately to focus on the transcripts that sat in front of her, still a tad dusty from being in the filing cabinet. But unfortunately, or rather, perhaps fortunately, Dr. Caldwell was on the other side of the wall, sneezing mercilessly, incessantly, hardly having time to take a breath. Concentrating was something Emilia prided herself on. Her analytical mind, being able to focus on whatever task was at hand the majority of the time, was rendered useless in this situation. She was weak in the knees, and her mind wanted nothing more than to give its full attention to him.

 

“HAAAAESSSCHEWW!!” Yet another muffled sneeze escaped.

 

Emilia had absentmindedly began to make a hierarchy of allergies in her head, ranging from what made Dr. Caldwell sneeze the least, to what made him sneeze the most. So far, perfume took the “least” spot, while “dust” took the “most” spot. She couldn't help but wonder where other allergies would fall on her Hierarchy of Allergies. Emilia bit her lip for a moment. Focus...

 

“Hahh...hahhh...oh...”

 

How was it possible that she was hearing even his build-ups from behind the closed doors? Emilia felt her heart racing.

 

“Hahhhhh...hahhh...d-damn...hahhhh...it...oh...hahhh...hahh...”

 

It was...stuck? What to do? She knew what she wanted to do: go over there and help him out, the poor man, so overwhelmed with dusty allergies. She listened further.

 

“Hahh...M-Maria? Hahh...I...I...hahhh...I thought I...” On the phone perhaps? “I thought I t-told hahhh...told you to...hahhh...cl-clean...hahhh...damn...to clean out that office?” She could only imagine the tears, streaming down in cheeks, his nose, reddened and raw, nostrils desperately trying to expel the tickly sneeze from his nose. “Hahh...hahh...d-do I sound...hahhh...do I sound...hahh...like you cleaned it? Hahh...Maria...y-you know...hahhh...I've...I've told you before...hahhh...” Oh what absolute torture he must be in! All tickles with no sneezes! This build-up was the biggest she'd heard before. “That I n-need...hahhh...need it prophahhh...properly duhhhhh...hahh...hahh...dusted!”

 

Emilia heard the phone slam down. “Pl-please...hahhh...oh come on...” he pleaded with himself. “Please...hahh...sneeze...hahhh...”

 

Unable to to take it anymore, unable to concentrate on anything else, Emilia stood up, exited her office and stood in front of the door that separated her and Dr. Caldwell. She paused only for a moment, unsure of how to approach this situation. Should she knock? Just walk in? What did she plan on doing once she was granted entrance? Deciding to be polite, she knocked.

 

“Y—hahh...hahh..yes...?”

 

“It's just Emilia, Dr. Caldwell, I—”

 

“Juhhh...just a m-moment...please...hahhh...hahh...”

 

Emilia, knowing what he was waiting for, knew that it was not coming any time soon, so she took a breath and opened the door. The sight in front of her was astounding. There he sat, head titled upwards, his handkerchief inches from his nose, preparing to catch the sneeze that would never come. His nose was furiously twitching, each hitched breath causing it to wiggle more and more, an unending itch, torturing to the fullest extent possible. And being so focused on his own allergies, he hadn't even heard her enter the room.

 

She shut the door behind her and walked straight up to his desk, knowing that business needed to be taken care of.

 

“Hahhh...hahh...hahh...ohh...” He sniffed largely, hoping that this would trigger the sneeze he so desperately needed. It didn't. Deciding to use his handkerchief, he traced the rim of his red nostrils, but all it did was cause them to scrunch and itch more. He wiped his nostrils and allergic tears flowed down his cheeks. “Hahhh...hahh...”

 

It pained Emilia to see him in such a hopeless state. She walked around the desk, pulling the chair around with her so that she might sit beside him. “Dr. Caldwell,” she said, taking the handkerchief from his hand, “Please, allow me to assist you...”

 

“E-Emilia...hahhh...n-no...please...” His face burned with embarrassment. “Pl-hahh...hahh...y-you...” But whatever sentence he was trying to say was overtaken by his overwhelming urge to sneeze.

 

“I won't take no for an answer. I am you lab assistant after all...” She smiled, though through his glazed eyes, he could not see her.

 

“Hahh...hahhh...hahh...”

 

She removed a bobby pin from her hair. “I promise you will feel better after this.” Carefully she gently pushed the bobby pin up against the side of his large nose. He sniffed, and hitched in response. “This will get the job done.”

 

Emilia held his handkerchief in one hand while her expert hand began to coax the bobby pin into his itchy red right nostril. “Oh...hahhh...hahh...y-yes...” She pushed it in further, tracing his itchy nostril, drawing ovals. “Hahh...hahhhh...y-yes...hahhh...Emilia...f-furhhh...further...” She pressed on, loving the way his huge nose twisted and twitched against the oncoming sneeze. “Hahh...hahhh...oh...it feels...s-so...goohh...good...tickles...I'm...hahhh...tickle me...tickle me more...” She did as instructed, trying to find that one sensitive spot in his nose that would surely cause him to explode. “T-trace...trace my nohh...nostril...agahhhh...again...hahhh...that f-felt so...so good...hahhhh...y-yes...yes...hahhhh....hahhhh...I'm...I'm going to...gohh..going to...!” His face contorted into the sexiest pre-sneeze face she had ever seen, and he finally, at long last, was able to release.

 

“I'm...hahhh hahh...going to...I'm going to...sneehhh...sneeze! HAHHHH...HHAAAAAESSSCHEWWW!! HAAAAESSSSSCHEWW!!! Oh...please...hahh...more...it feels so...so good to...hahhh...to sneeze...” She tickled his poor nose further. “HAAAAEESSSCHEWWW!!!!” He sniffed. “M-more to cohhh...come...! HAAAESSSCEWWWW!! HAAAAESSSCHEWWWW!!! HHAAAESSSCHEWWWW!!!” And Emilia, the dutiful lab assistant, caught every one of these precious sneezes in his handkerchief. “HAAAAAESSSSCHEWWW!! So...so good...HAAAAAESSCHEWWW!! HAAASCHEWWW!!”

 

After a moment Dr. Caldwell blinked through his tears, looking at Emilia for the first time. “Oh...thank you...HHAAAESSSCHEWWWW!! That was...hahh...torture.”

 

“No need to thank me,” Emilia said, light-headed herself. “This is what I'm here for.”

 

Dr. Caldwell took the handkerchief from her, dabbing at his still-red nose, sighing deeply. “I'm so so...hahh...so sorry you had to see me...like that...”

 

“Dr. Caldwell, I won't have you apologizing to me for that.”

 

He looked at her, somehow more grateful to her than he thought he was originally.

 

“Looks like I know what my side-project will be,” she jested.

 

He raised an eyebrow to her.

 

“Dusting that office!”

 

He blushed and continued to wipe at his nose.

[HideAndGoSneeze]

Oh...My...Lanta. 

 

That....was...AMAZING. Oh, what a lucky lab assistant!!! The way you describe the hitching, and how he talks during it all...amazing!! I hope you update soon!!!

[starpollen]

I love this man   Looking forward to more of the items on his "allergy list!"...

[queenie]

I can't wait until Emilia has drawn up a full chart of data on this poor sneezy man... especially if there's something he doesn't yet know he's allergic to and Emilia has to tell him "oh, you sneeze like this every time you're around X" to identify the source of his unexplained sneezing. She's a good scientist!