Thoughts: Christmas 2010 3/5
“Ow!” Rose bit down on her tongue to keep from hissing out the expletives that wanted to rush through her teeth.
She sucked on her finger - anything to ease the sting of the needle in her skin. That’s why, she explained to herself, I don’t do this kind of domestic.
Rose was on her bed in her room in the Tardis with the door locked. The Doctor was busy tinkering or breaking (was there really a difference) something under the console leaving her to work on the task without interruption. Dressed in comfortable pajamas - her favorite purple sleeping shorts and tank, she was laying against the mahogany headboard, legs crossed with her project in hand. She had called her mum earlier in the week (whatever a week consisted on the Tardis) and she had informed Rose that Christmas was next week. Surprised that she wasn’t keeping track of her days aboard the time-traveling ship, she right away thought about what was best to give the Doctor. The man…errr…alien could have anything he wanted - what could she possibly give him?
And then it occurred to her that it should be homemade - and by that definition the Tardis had become her home. So the needlepoint whose needle was currently trying to stab her was quite fitting. Rose hadn’t worked on something like this since she was in middle school and her mum thought it would keep her occupied and out of trouble (ha!). Still, she always did enjoy it and thought of no better reason to start up again.
She was just doing the last stitches on the word “TARDIS” when the sound of her doorknob jingling made her jump and caused her to drop the cloth from her hands and over the side of the bed.
“Rose Tyler - why is your door locked?” the Doctor’s voice sounded perplexed and angry at the same time. Rose rolled her eyes - never occurred to him why a human female would want the door closed.
So daft.
Before she could answer, Rose heard the humming of the sonic screwdriver and the popping of the doorknob as it was opened. Her mouth agape, she stared at him in disbelief.
“I could have been changin’!” she wasn’t, but seriously!
He looked down at her, his arms crossed, “But you weren’t. Besides - MY ship!”
Rose rolled her eyes.
“Now that we have that settled,” his almost electric blue eyes roamed around her room before they settled back on her, “what were you doing behind a locked door?”
Rose pushed herself up on her knees and laughed. What would the Time Lord do if she answered him in a less than innocent way? Never even occurred to him.
Ignoring a slight pang of disappointment at that - she remembered exactly what she was doing. Her laugh trickled out until it disappeared.
“Uh…” she started - quite not knowing how to come up with a lie quickly. Lies, for some reason, never came fast enough around him.
Then, she clumsily turned and lurched behind her to the side of the bed where her needlepoint had fallen. Almost instantly, the Doctor walked with his lengthy steps and easily reached down to grab what she was trying to grasp.
How did he do that??
“What’s this then,” his favorite question that wasn’t really a question. He’d tell you what it was no matter what you said.
Rose sat back down on the bed and grumpily searched for the gift’s frame in her bedside table. Might as well finish it - no point in waiting.
She was so busy gathering what she needed that it took her a moment to notice that the Doctor hadn’t spoken in awhile - which for him was quite disturbing.
Looking up, she saw that he was staring intensely down at her, the needlepoint with the depiction of the Tardis and the words “TARDIS SWEET TARDIS” spelled so meticulously across the white cloth. She gulped nervously, her mouth gone dry and her heartbeat racing.
“Uh…it was supposed to be a gift…for you…it’s Christmas next week,” she reached for cloth, “my mum said so,” she finished lamely.
The mention of her mum brought him out of his reverie, “Well if your Jackie says it is…” He didn’t finish the thought, the annoyance drained from it.
Not knowing what else to say, she placed the cloth against the frame, ready to cut and set with the backing so it could be ready to hang somewhere. Rose avoided looking at the Doctor, the tension palpable in the room. She knew he was staring at her.
“And this,” he said softly, “is my gift?”
Rose looked up at him then, “Yeah, I mean, I know it’s nothin’ big or…anythin’ but I thought it’d be nice,” there was a twinge of defensiveness in her voice.
Having sensed it, the Doctor sat down next to her, almost careful not to touch her, the bed creaked slightly under his weight, “No Rose - not what I meant. I just…” the sentence was lost as he stared at said gift in her hands.
But Rose couldn’t help herself, “What, Doctor?” It was barely a whisper.
His eyes locked on hers and he said with a small grin, “No one’s ever given me a Christmas gift before…let alone made me one”
Rose smiled brightly and handed him the framed work, “Well, I’m just too good.”
She giggled as he enveloped her in a tight embrace.
***
The Doctor threw the coats over the chair next to him as he sat down. His quick eyes searched the nearly empty restaurant for Rose. She had told him to sit down and he obeyed willingly.
Blimey, how things have changed.
He tugged at his cuffs, rolling them up. A heavy sigh escaped him. All he had wanted was to show Rose a lovely evening out complete with a play and delicious dinner.
But things had gone wrong from the start.
First, he ran late because he had lost track of time choosing a bouquet of flowers for her. Then, his scarf got stuck in the taxi and well…yeah.
You think he would have learned by now.
The play was boring, he’d forgotten to make reservations so dinner was no longer an option at the posh place he’d wanted to take her.
He sighed, such a defeated sound, onto the table in front of him. The sound of glass on the tabletop snapped him out of his inner turmoil.
Two large glasses, one filled with chocolate and the other with something yellow, sat in front of him. The Doctor looked up to see Rose in her dark purple, strapless satin gown smiling down at him. Her hair was up and ringlets framed her face. Smokey black eye shadow made her eyes seem brighter. Or maybe that was just her smile - it made everything light up.
She sat down across from him, “Why the pout, Doctor?”
The Doctor covered her hand with his, aware that he was, indeed, pouting.
“I just wanted tonight to be special.”
Rose smiled sweetly as she cupped his cheek, caressing it.
“But, Doctor, it is special. Always when it’s with you.”
He felt himself flush and slid the chocolate milkshake in front of her.
“And this yellow concoction is for me, I gather?”
Nodding, she said, “Yea’, banana. Bananas are good, you know.”
The Doctor laughed merrily, this was surely one Christmas Eve they wouldn’t be forgetting anytime soon. Nor would he want it any other way.
“Yeah, they are. Merry Christmas, Rose,” he raised his glass to her.
Rose beamed and tapped her glass with his, “Merry Christmas, Doctor.”
And together they watched the snow fall outside the large window, their laughter and teasing breaking the winter’s silence.
***
Four