Puppy love

Groaning, I blew my nose for the umpteenth time, tossing the wrinkled tissue on top of the growing pile on my bedroom floor. I was caught in the throes of the fearsome common cold, replete with a sore throat, barking cough, and a constant low-grade fever. Picking up my homework halfheartedly, I pushed back sweaty flyaways from my forehead and readied to pick up a pencil and get to work. Suddenly, I stopped, cocking my head. Just over the dull ringing of my dual ear infections, I could hear impatient scratching and short, tempered huffs. 

With more effort than I care to admit, I hauled myself out of bed and opened the door to see my dog, Tobi, waiting excitedly for me on the other side. I clambered back in bed sluggishly, and Tobi held no qualms about climbing over and plopping himself down across my chest. What was to me a minor discomfort functioned as a great luxury for Tobi: my fever. And so I passed my day home sick, peering over the mass of fur at my laptop while Tobi slept contentedly with his new furnace.