#temperature taking

• a hand on the forehead and thermometer under the tongue at the same time. their temperature hasn’t registered yet, but the poor thing is definitely running a fever.

• a mindless little forehead kiss followed by a second more prolonged forehead kiss followed by “… are you sick?” when they realize their partner is far too warm

• having to check someone’s temperature in their ear while they’ve got a raging ear infection.

“i know it hurts, but you have to be still. you’re burning up and i gotta see how bad it is, okay?”

•sick stubborn character insisting there’s no reason to check their temperature because they don’t have a fever. they’re sure of it. stop asking. but when they zone out for a moment, they come to with a thermometer beeping between their lips.

A kiss on the head after work, running your hands through their hair, touching their cheek before a kiss.

The caregiver, concerned and taken aback, says “You feel a bit warm. I think you might be running a fever…”

The sickie seems to ponder for a minute. “Oh. So that’s why I feel so tired/achy/thirsty/cold…”

So turns out I had a lot harder time finding scenes where an actual thermometer is used which is a crying shame cause that’s a great trope. So good. I don’t have any fic recs for that trope (surprisingly) or actual videos but you can check out these episode/movies and see what you think.

Roswell 2x10 - Max Evans

Fantastic Four 2005  - Chris Evans when he’s first getting his powers

The Red Sea Diving Resort 2019 - another Chris Evans

McLeod’s Daughters S03E21

NCIS 2x23 Tony has his temperature checked by Ducky

So I’m a nursery school teacher and my co-teacher is a very beautiful man with a lovely spanish accent. Tall, built, permanent beard scruff and generally the kindest person in the world.

Today when we sent our class to lunch, he closed the door on them and immediately groaned and sagged to floor, and said, “uughhhh ok I feel really bad.” We walked back to our class together and he had his hoodie pulled up over his face and walked slowly slowly. “Sorry to be so slow, my legs are aching.” I hadn’t even noticed he was ill (!) but then we hadn’t been in the room much together, he had been outside and I’d been in the art room.

When we came into the class he sat down. Our classroom teacher walked by and said, “You look awful, go home!” 

“I don’t know if I can go home. But I will take my temperature because I took it before and it was 38.” He got out the first aid kit and took his temperature with an ear thermometer. 

And I was dying. I’ve literally never seen anyone take their own temperature before and he does it all casual just like that because he’s so capable and he’s a great teacher etc. 

“Eh, 38.3″

So me and the classroom assistant basically made him go home.

Poor guy. He’s the sweetest and really deserves a rest and clearly felt so guilty for leaving me.

...

Also I had to explain to the kids all afternoon where he had gone. And they had sooooo many questions about was he in bed, and was he at the doctors, and was he taking medicine and did he have a temperature and uuuugggggh it felt weird. I said the words, “He’s poorly.” So many times. 

I've been looking back through the archive, and actually been quite surprised to see I haven't written many stories with temperature taking at all.

There's strong clinical vibes in part 3 of The Sit Down Dance, but that features an enema rather than a rectal thermometer.

So it looks like School Nurse is currently the only story where temperature taking is explicitly described.