The Doctor: Chapter 3

I closed my door quietly, leaning back against it. Finally. Time to shower, cook, eat, maybe read a book-

Bang, bang, bang. The sound reverberated down my back.

Ugh. Visitors.

"Doctor? Doctor Naustus?" A male voice called through my door.

"Abergene, oh Abergene, come quickly!" Said the frantic female voice that followed.

When did I tell her my first name? I pondered, deciding if I was going to open the door or leave them until tomorrow.

Sighing, I swung the door open.

The Emrichs were standing in the hallway, side by side.

Mrs. Emrich sobbed dramatically as her husband proffered their dead cat in between us, holding him vertically under the arms so that his stiffening tail swung like the arm of a grandfather clock.

"Strawberry?" I offered, holding the fruit bowl out over the cat's head.

"Not now, Naustus, can't you see Sybil's in a fit?" His voice was more rough and gravelly than I remembered. He'll probably start coming to me himself soon. Then again, probably not. He doesn't care about his life, nor extending it. He just wants some peace and quiet.

"Again?" I asked.

Mrs. Emrich nodded wordlessly and bustled into my apartment, stepping over stray leaves and standing expectantly at my table. My dining table. Where I eat.

Before Mr. Emrich could follow and deposit the recently deceased Whiskers in front of his wife, I dragged out my folding table and gestured to it. It's a relic from when I used to allow patients to come to me. It's a good thing I stopped allowing that, since people are so respectful about leaving me alone after work hours now.

After washing the dirt off my hands, I grabbed the smallest, least-threatening kitchen knife I could find, pushed it through the cat's jugular, and licked a small amount of blood off the knife.

The cat bit me when he woke up. He always does. Nasty thing. He always seems to think I'm the one who killed him. Sometimes I am, but I'm also the one who revives him, so a little appreciation would be nice.

The small tumor that burrowed its way out of his chest joined what I believed to be a few small kidney stones on the table. I grabbed them with a tissue, avoiding Whiskers' claws, and tossed them all into the trash.

"You're going to have to allow him to pass at some point, Emrich," I suggested to the plush woman hugging Whiskers in what could easily be mistaken as a wrestling hold. The cat squirmed and hissed, but she just cuddled him more fervently.

"He'll go when he's good and ready," she snapped at me. The cat seemed quite ready to allow himself to pass, approaching his 26th year. Mrs. Emrich, however…

"See you in a few months, Naustus," Mr. Emrich grumbled as he led his slightly-less-hysterical wife out my door. I coughed cat blood into the crook of my arm as I shut the door behind them. At least, I think it's cat blood. My stomach dropped, and it felt like someone had poured cold water down my back.

How long has it been?

"Shit, shit, shit," I whispered forcefully as I stormed over to my wall calendar. It had been almost a year already. I couldn't risk another couple days. It had to be tonight.

I have a list, on my phone. It's a terrible thing to carry around with me, knowing what it is. But I can't risk misplacing a paper list, and I don't trust my memory. My hands were shaking, as they always do, when I dialed the phone number next to a random name on the list.

"Barrett?" I asked, steadying my voice into nonchalance.

"Hello," she ventured. It's a burner number. She doesn't recognize it.

"It's Naustus. Doctor Naustus," I add quickly. "I've had an opening. I can see you. Like you wanted. But it has to be tonight." I was rushing through my sentences; I forced myself to slow down. "Are you available?"

"I am, but this is a terrible inconvenience, doctor. I'm sure you can reschedule me for the morning." She sighed into the phone.

"I can't!" Then, more quietly, "I can't. Can I come, or not?"

"The price, again?" She said.

"5% of your annual income. Cash. Affordable for anyone," I assured her.

"Well, that's quite an exorbitant sum."

"The results are always well worth it." Please.

Silence, on the line.

"Fine."

As I breathed a sigh of relief, she gave me her address, and I hung up in a hurry.

I rushed to pack my things. I won't need them, but it's important to keep up appearances.