Take Me To the Stars
Chapter 1
Substitute Teacher
*Author's Note: Hi readers and Whovians! This is a little project I had started for fun but decided to post on the internet because... why not! I hope you enjoy and leave reviews!
"KC, are you awake?"
I slowly opened my eyes as I heard my mother's voice from up the stairs. Checking the time, I immediately forced myself to sit upright on the couch knowing that I only had five minutes to get ready before it was time to leave.
I internally face-palmed upon realizing that I forgot to set up my alarm the night before, then got up and turned off the alarm to let my dog out from his kennel.
"C'mon Woody, go outside now." I said as I opened the kitchen door to the backyard and watched him bump into my other growling dog, Penny. At night we have to bring Woody inside the house in a kennel because he has a barking problem and our neighbors complained. Instead of trying to teach him not to bark we decided to just bring him inside every night.
I hurried up the stairs to see my mom and dad already dressed and ready to leave.
"KC, you just woke up?" my dad asked, shaking his head.
"Yeah, I forgot to set up my alarm last night." I confessed.
"It's ok, I can get ready really fast."
I scurried to my room and hurriedly threw on a black and red flannel top as well as black tights. I decided to skip out on breakfast and proceeded to brushing my teeth. Having one minute to spare, I was sitting in the car, impatiently waiting for my parents to arrive.
"Wow, you got ready in a jiffy!" my mom said, pulling herself into the car.
I smiled. "I told you."
We drove to my school and arrived right before my first class, English was going to start.
"Do you have your phone?" My dad called from the driver's seat as I got out of the car.
"Yeah, I do! I'll see you later!"
"Ok, have a good day!"
I ran off to my classroom and was surprised to see that my professor wasn't there yet. Many of my classmates were waiting patiently outside, hoping that the class was cancelled for the day.
"Hey," I called to a girl standing next to me. "Is the professor coming? He's almost fifteen minutes late."
The girl glanced at me briefly and shrugged, turning back around.
"Ok then…" I thought.
A few more minutes passed and the fifteen-minute mark had arrived, meaning students could leave without receiving an absence.
A couple of them started to walk away when a tall man carrying flying papers and books ran to the classroom. He quickly made his way through the students and to the door, muttering, "excuse me, so sorry," repeatedly. When he tried for the door to discover it was locked, he moved all the papers he was holding to one arm then pulled a strange device out of his pocket. My classmates and I watched in confusion as he pointed it at the door and it made a peculiar, buzzing noise. To our surprise he tried at the door again and it unlocked, then he walked in.
"Who was that?" I asked the same girl I "conversed" with earlier.
She only shrugged like she did a few moments before and left without a single word.
'Ok, girl with rainbow yoga pants and purple hair: not much of a talker. Noted.' I thought.
The remaining students who stood by the door looked at each other, hoping for an answer from the other but to no avail.
"That's not Professor Ahearn," I heard one student say to another.
"Should we just leave?"
Immediately the strange man inside our classroom pops his head out the door, looking at all of us.
"Oi, you lot. What are you waiting for? Come on in."
We looked at each other again, but then apprehensively walk into the classroom.
I walked to the front of the classroom and stationed myself. When we all took our seats, I had a better look at the man who was apparently our substitute, even though I was sure that they didn't bring in substitutes at the college level.
He had long, thick brown hair that was gelled up with huge sideburns coming down the side of his face. He was wearing a long brown trench coat that almost reached down to his ankles, and under that, a blue striped suit. When he walked to the side of the desk and put on his dark rectangular glasses, I could see his red converse.
"Ok class, what sort of literature are you working on today?" he asked, emphasizing the word "literature." I was surprised to hear his clear English accent.
A man sitting a few seats away from me rose his hand.
After the substitute gestured to him, he asked, "Uh, who are you?"
"OH, YES, my apologies." he said, very loudly.
"Look at me, I'm complete rubbish! It's been awhile since I taught a real class." he picked up a dry erase marker.
"My name is, The Doctor." he said slowly, simultaneously writing his name on the board.
"May I ask what your last name is, sir?"
"Don't got one. Just the Doctor."
"But surely-"
"No, just the Doctor."
This made the man stop asking, and I knew his surrounding peers were a confused as he was.
"Mr. Ahearn has gotten in a," he paused.
"Er, mishap of sorts and has asked me to attend to his class."
"Now, what kind of novel are you reading?" he picked up my book from my desk.
"Ah, Frankenstein! Mary Shelley! Brilliant! However, I have got to say that monster was not as malicious as she says he was."
"What?" I ask aloud, unintentionally. The Doctor looked at me.
"He was a very friendly man, wouldn't hurt a fly!"
"Are you saying he's real?"
"Well of course he was! Where do you think good 'ol Shelley got her ideas from?"
He leaned into me, smiling.
"He was as real as you and me."
"That's impossible!" another man shouted from the back of the room. The Doctor straightened up.
"How could you know that?"
"Well, I've seen him."
"You what?"
"I've seen him. Shook his hand, went to his little cottage in the woods. Told him of this fantastic novel written about him." he held up the book.
The man in the back chuckled.
"You're joking aren't you?"
"No, I'm not."
"Yes you are."
The Doctor, seeing that he wasn't going to believe him, gave up and moved on with his analysis of the novel. My classmates brushed off this conversation, thinking it was a practical joke. I wasn't so sure; there was something in his voice that I couldn't make out, something that didn't sound like something of a liar.
The class proceeded, each sentence the substitute saying being extremely interesting. He was a strange, yet intriguing man.
"Alright, well that was a bit of fun," the Doctor said, closing his book.
"It was nice meeting you lot, but Professor Ahearn will be back next class meeting. I think."
I stayed there, watching the Doctor taking off his glasses and putting it in his pocket. He then picked up all the papers he came in with and threw them into the recycling bin next to his desk. I looked behind me, and all the other students left.
"Um, excuse me, Professor…"
"Doctor, just the Doctor."
"Professor Doctor?"
"No, only Doctor."
"You're not a professor?"
"No, not technically. Well, maybe in the 16th century France."
I ignored his absurd statement.
'This man is definitely a few slices short of a loaf.' I thought.
"Um, ok, anyways, I was wondering why you brought in all those papers if you didn't even use them in the lesson. It looked like you were having trouble carrying them."
"Oh, yes." he looked at his papers. " I brought them because I wanted to be like that professor in the movies who was always late and was carrying a huge mound of papers. I've always wanted to do that." he smiled.
"So you only brought them.. For looks?"
"Yup."
'OK then…' I thought.
All of a sudden I was getting the feeling that this Doctor wasn't supposed to be teaching us today.
"Well, off I go." he said smiling, leaving the classroom with nothing in his hands, unlike earlier.
I watched him go out the door.
'What is up with this guy?' I thought.
Author's Note: Hey everyone you made it! I really hope you enjoyed this story as much as I did writing it. I will hopefully get more chapters out soon. Don't forget to leave reviews and feedback! Bye!
