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Rehearsals at the Moon Theatre were running like clockwork.Having spent the final few days of December adding the finishing touches to the next Moon Theatre show’s script, Buster had made the announcement to his troupe on New Year’s Day: their next production was to be their own interpretation of The Little Mermaid. And much to Steff’s delight, the koala had eyed her for the titular role, alongside Ash as her love interest. The porcupine agreed to it on the condition that she wouldn’t be forced to wear a dress, remembering full well the tacky ‘popstar princess’ dress.Today’s practice was nearing the last few minutes as Steff and Gunter went over one of their scenes onstage. Buster and Miss Crawly observed from their usual seats in the front row.“Annette, how many times must I tell you to stay away from ze surface?" The pig scolded, puffing out his chest. "Anything that’s not a mermaid are, like, totally disgusting monsters! Zat's why I banished my freaky eight-legged sister Coralia!”Trying not to giggle at the broom he was wielding in place of a trident, Steff put on her best timid voice. “But, father, they’re not all monsters. If you could just see them like I do, all the things from their world I've discovered on the ocean floor…”“Not another word, young lady!" Gunter interrupted. "So long as you live in my kingdom, you live under my rules!”“Can’t you pl..." The skunk broke character briefly to clear her throat. "...please listen to me for once?”“No, this is ze last time I want to hear of you going up to ze surface!" Gunter banged the end of his broom onto the floorboards. "If you disobey me again, you'll get, like, far worse than a scolding! Is zat understood?”Steff let out a defeated sigh and clasped her hands in front of her. “Yes, father.”"AAAnd end scene! Nice job, you two!" All the spotlights came back on as Buster rose from his seat, clapping his hands together with a grin. Another satisfying rehearsal.“Alright, everyone, you all did fantastic today!” He cried, running up the steps just as everyone else came out from the wings. “Gunter, loving the line delivery, and you're definitely wielding that broom well! Ash, your chemistry with Steff was really shining through in your meeting scene! Heh, not that you girls need any help with that. Johnny, that piano solo in yours and Gunter’s number is sounding great! And Meena, so’s your duet with Ash! Rosita, just be sure to learn those last few lines in your scene with Steff and it’ll be excellent!”The koala’s smile dropped a tiny bit when he came over to the lead actress. “Steff, you're doing great as well. Although I couldn't help noticing you sounded a little scratchy in places today, especially your I Have A Dream number in the grotto. Are you feeling okay?"“Just a bit of a tickly throat, Mr. Moon.” Steff replied, patting her throat. “Nothing a lozenge can't soothe.” Buster regarded her with slight incredulousness before his smile returned.“Well alright then.” He said before turning to face the rest of his talented cast. “Well you all be sure to have a good night’s rest for a great Valentine’s Day! You’ve earned it!”Everybody then made their way backstage to grab their belongings, all while discussing their arrangements for the romantic holiday tomorrow. Buster and Eddie were walking side-by-side, the sheep asking him for certain whether he had made a reservation at Les Calmars. Gunter had happily agreed to babysit Rosita’s kids again while she and Norman had some time to themselves for a walk along the beach. And Miss Crawly, of course, had made plans with Herman for a moonbathing session in the park. Johnny and Meena were the only members who hadn’t a special someone in their lives at the moment, though neither were particularly upset about it. Meena wasn’t in any rush to start a relationship while Johnny, in his own words, hadn’t found the right bloke yet.Steff, meanwhile, was especially excited for her and Ash’s first Valentine’s Day together. She had booked a table at an Italian restaurant they’d been wanting to try out for quite some time, followed by a trip to the movie theatre. The porcupine had never particularly cared for this holiday, especially with her ex, but her girlfriend's enthusiasm for their simple but sweet plan had admittedly rubbed off on her too.“So, angel, we still on for our date tomorrow?” She asked, shutting her dressing room door behind her.Steff just couldn’t resist. “Does coffee reduce liver damage?”Rolling her eyes at another of her girlfriend’s coffee-based rhetorical questions, the porcupine playfully turned to walk away. “Y’know, maybe I’ll ask Miss Crawly if she and Herman want our table instead…”“Of course I am!” Steff laughed, pulling her closer to plant a kiss on her cheek. “I wouldn’t miss our first Valentine’s Day for the world.”The entire taxi journey home, however, the skunk found she couldn’t stop clearing her throat every couple of minutes. This tickly throat she had developed only yesterday was starting to grate on her. Still, Steff made a mental note to have a lozenge and an herbal tea before bed. She hardly ever got sick, and no way was she about to let a minor annoyance like this ruin a potentially wonderful day with her girlfriend.The morning rays peeked into Steff’s bedroom through a gap in her curtains.The skunk squinted at the light shining in her face before beginning to stir. Sitting upright to rub her eyes, she pulled off the covers and swung her legs over her bedside to put on her slippers. She then went to swallow some saliva that had built up in her mouth overnight.
“Ow!”
A blazing pain instantly shot through her throat. Steff hesitantly gulped again, wincing sharply as the same pain stabbed at the back of her mouth. She’d had colds before but they’d never been this excruciating.“Argh, my throat’s on fire!” She froze at how raspy her voice sounded. She was really starting to worry as she clasped her throat. Steff leapt to her feet and flung open her door, dashing down the hall to the bathroom. Approaching the mirror, she turned on her phone’s flashlight and cautiously shone the beam into her open mouth.The entire back of her throat was swollen and red, an overabundance of sickly white splotches covering her tonsils.“Eww! What the heck?!” The skunk cried out, nearly dropping her phone at the ghastly sight. Hastily opening her Internet app, she typed into the search bar ‘white spots red throat swollen uvula’. A boatload of medical articles flooded the webpage. Clicking on each of them and frantically giving them a onceover, a single word in particular showed up in every article:
Tonsillitis
“Oh, dear God, no...”Ash had just finished getting dressed and was heading into the kitchen when her phone rang. A smile graced her lips at her girlfriend’s name lighting up the screen, hoping she was calling to wish her a good morning."Morning, angel!" She answered, putting the phone on loudspeaker as she placed two slices of bread into the toaster."Hi, Ash."The porcupine’s smile immediately dropped at the croakiness of her girlfriend’s voice. “Steff, are you okay? You don't sound too good.”“That's why I'm calling. I'm really sorry but… I don't think I can make our Valentine's date this evening. Remember that tickly throat I had at rehearsal yesterday?” Ash winced as a wretched cough sounded from the other end. “…It’s tonsillitis.”“Tonsillitis?!” Ash exclaimed, her plate almost falling from her grasp. “Oh, God, Steff, I’m so sorry."“Yeah, I feel awful.” Came the hoarse reply. “I woke up this morning and found the back of my throat all sore and disgusting. My mom’s gone to buy me some penicillin before the café opens but… yeah, they told me I need to rest. Take it easy.”Ash’s heart crumpled at how dejected the skunk sounded. She knew how much she’d been looking forward to their first Valentine's together. Surely there was a way they could still make it work?“Steff, don’t you worry.” She replied at last. “I’ll be right over.”A blanket draped over her legs, Steff sat miserably on the living room couch with a bowl of warm oatmeal and honey resting on her lap. She made sure to gently blow on each spoonful so it wouldn’t hurt too much when she swallowed. She wasn’t in the mood to watch any TV so she had settled for her favourite romance book. But even that didn’t do much to take her mind off of how crummy she was feeling.It all seemed like a cruel joke for her to be sick at home on what was meant to be the most romantic holiday of the year. The skunk had no clue how she’d even caught this illness, given how Buster and the others seemed fine at rehearsal yesterday. In spite of all the touching ‘get well soon’ wishes everyone had sent her on the Moon Theatre Troupe group chat, it still bugged her to know how her and Ash’s plans had been sabotaged like this.A trio of footsteps coming from the stairs made the skunk’s ears prick up. Craning her head over her shoulder, her eyes widened as Ash, Johnny and Meena all set foot in the living room.“Hey, guys!” She said, pleasantly surprised to see her two other friends.“Hi, Steff.” Ash replied, sitting beside her and giving her a peck on the cheek. “Thought I’d come round early before my shift at Tunes Through Time started.”“Me and Johnny came along too.” Meena added, setting the soup container she was holding on the coffee table. “We both brought you a little something to help soothe your throat.” Johnny followed suite with his metal flask of tea, sending a smile her way.“Aw, thanks.” Steff said, the corners of her mouth curling up for the first time today. “That’s really sweet of you all.”“You okay?” The gorilla quickly backpedalled at her and Ash giving him a deadpan stare. “Right, sorry, stupid question.”"I'm not even kidding, this might be the worst pain I've ever been in.” She rubbed her throat with a groan, prompting Ash to lay a caring hand on her shoulder.“Have you had tonsillitis before?” The elephant asked curiously, kneeling down to her level.Steff shook her head, eating another spoonful of oatmeal. “No. I'm 19 years old and never had it in my life before now. I rarely ever get sick, and even when I do, it’s usually just a common cold. Stuffy nose, sore throat, never the ‘bedridden-for-days’ kinda bad. I read this article that said tonsillitis only affected kids from 5 to 15.”“Actually you’d be surprised, Steff.” Johnny sat, leaning against the couch arm. “It can affect anyone at any age. My Uncle Barry had it a couple of years ago.”“Yikes.” The skunk winced sympathetically before glancing at Ash and Meena. “What about you guys?”“Yep, I was 11 when I first got it.” Ash admitted, grimacing at the memories. “Most painful ten days of my childhood.”“13, and right after my birthday too.”“I caught it when I was 8. Bloody horrible, I couldn't eat my favourite crisps.”The porcupine smiled tenderly, rubbing her girlfriend’s shoulder. “Believe me, Steff, we know how much it sucks. Big time. It's probably the worst disease a singer can catch. But just give it about ten days and you’ll be back on that stage singing your heart out alongside your beautiful Princess Christina.”Hearing these empathetic stories and words of encouragement from everyone had lifted Steff’s mood significantly.“Well... if Mr. Moon decided to change The Little Mermaid to a Bathound show right now, I wouldn’t complain.” She made her voice as deep and raspy as she could without hurting herself. ”’I am vengeance! I am the night!’”The four of them all shared a laugh together before Johnny glanced over at the clock on the wall.“Well I suppose we’d better let you rest.” He said. “But keep us posted, Steff.”“And if you ever need anything else, don’t be afraid to tell us.” Meena added, getting back on her feet.“I sure appreciate that, guys.” The skunk replied with a grateful smile. “And thanks again for the soup and the tea.”“No problem.” Johnny gave her a thumbs-up before him and Meena made their way back down the stairwell.“I’d better get going too. Don’t wanna be late for work.” Ash said, beginning to stand up.“Hey, before you do, there’s a present for you on the kitchen table.” Steff pointed over the back of the couch. “I was going to give it to you tonight, but I may as well let you have it now.” A curious smile spreading across her mouth, Ash headed toward the kitchen. Twenty seconds later, the porcupine returned holding a rose bouquet and a box of donut-shaped gourmet chocolates that read ‘DONUT KNOW WHAT I’D DO WITHOUT YOU’.“Aw, thanks, Steff.” She leaned down to give her girlfriend a hug, followed by another soft kiss on her cheek. “I’ll see you after work.”“I’m counting down the seconds! Happy Valentine’s Day!” The skunk called hoarsely as Ash walked out of the living room. As soon as she’d gone, Steff helped herself to another warm spoonful of oatmeal, now in much better spirits. Perhaps this Valentine’s Day wasn’t a total disaster.Hours later after drifting off, the skunk found herself awoken by a pleasant aroma wafting into her nose.Her eyes fluttering open, Steff stretched the stiff muscles in her arms before pulling her phone out of her pocket. Her brow furrowed at the 6:30PM lighting up her screen; surely her moms couldn’t be cooking right now when they had their own Valentine’s Day date booked?“Well look who’s awake.”Jolting upright, the surprised skunk looked over to the familiar voice coming from the kitchen. Her girlfriend was stood by a pair of pots on the stove, waving playfully at her with a pair of tongs as a ribbon of steam wreathed over her head."Ash?" She sniffed the air once more. "Are you… cooking?"“Yep. Soft-cooked veggies with warm cheese sauce.” She called in response. “My mom made me this when I had tonsillitis. It’s no classy Italian cuisine but it works wonders.” Turning the heat down to the lowest setting, she then grabbed something off the kitchen counter and hid it behind her as she sauntered over to the couch.“I… I don’t get it.” Steff faltered, adjusting her glasses."I may have made secret plans with your moms before I came upstairs earlier.” The porcupine said with a coy smile. “Our original Valentine’s Day plan for dinner and a movie might have gotten skewed, but I figured it was still salvageable. We can just enjoy it from the comfort of your home.” Steff was speechless as the porcupine sat down beside her.“Plus I bought a little dessert on the way over here.” She added, producing a tub of mint ice cream from behind her back. Misty-eyed, Steff wrapped her girlfriend in a joyful embrace.“Aww, rock star!” She cooed in her ear. "You're just the best!" Ash gladly returned the hug with a chuckle.The second it was ready, the two of them ate their food side-by-side on cushioned lap trays, happily discussing plans for their scenes as Annette and Princess Christina. Not once did Steff feel any discomfort with every bite she swallowed; each vegetable had been cooked just right, never scraping against the back of her throat, nor was the sauce hot enough to burn her. And soon after, Ash found herself loving the musical movie her girlfriend picked out. Featuring an strong-willed island girl teaming up with a burly demigod to traverse the ocean, there was plenty of humour and action for them both to enjoy.Even when Steff slowly fell asleep on her shoulder a few minutes before the credits, the smile never left her face. This cozy, intimate date at home had turned out just as special as a fancy, expensive outing. Gently laying her back down, Ash kissed her lovingly on the forehead before whispering gently in her ear.“Best Valentine’s Day ever.”