I have been really inspired lately; having posted two chapters for two other stories I had written and now here I am with another one-shot!
Disclaimer: Doctor Who belongs entirely to the BBC and I do not write for profit.
Summary: A simple act of kindness lands Matt Jones the woman of his dreams.
The Knight with the Plaid Umbrella
A sigh escaped her lips as she bid farewell to Martha and exited the pediatricians office she worked at; willingly (no, not really) immersing herself in the current rain storm that had drowned half of London. She could feel the water drench her Hello Kitty scrubs as she came to a halt at her bus stop. All too quickly the sound of the rain hitting her hood was replaced by the soft pattering of it falling on the brown plaid umbrella that was now over her head.
Rose turned to the stranger to offer her thanks and smiled. It was not every day a man – especially one around her age in London of all places – would willingly share an umbrella. Or have one in his possession at all. "Thank you."
The man behind her smiled back; it reaching his sea green eyes. "Always happy to help. I'm Matt, Matt Jones."
"Rose Tyler." She returned with an offer of a hand, smiling wider as he met her eyes and shook it. "You work around here?"
"Yeah actually I work at the computer repair shop." Matt laughed a little. "You must work at that doctor's office, right?"
"Yeah I'm a nurse actually." Her eyes lit up at the mention of her chosen path and he could clearly see she loved her work.
The bus pulled up beside her the stop, making her smile drop just a little. "It was lovely to meet you Matt; maybe we'll see each other again sometime, yeah."
"Maybe yeah." He replied and watched her get on the bus.
Rose showed the driver her bus pass and walked toward the back end for a seat. As she sat down she looked out the window at the person she had just met and saw him walking away from the bus stop.
He had stopped just to save her from getting wetter than she already was.
Rose really hoped she'd see him again.
XOX
The next morning Rose walked into the clinic with a spring in her step and a smiled on her face despite the raincoat on her back. "Good morning Martha."
"Morning Rose." Replied the new doctor as she checked her list of patients for the day. "How was your evening? Did you get soaked?"
"For a bit yeah but then this guy shared his umbrella with me." Rose replied, his smile creeping into her mind.
"Ooh, dish!" Martha replied, eager to find out just who this guy was if he had actually turned Rose's head. "What'd he look like?"
"Well, he had these green eyes, yeah and this floppy brown hair." Rose said trying to explain with her hands how floppy his hair was. "God Martha he was a bit of alright."
"Did you get his number?"She asked, pouring hot water into two cups of tea. "What's his name?"
"Matt Jones." Rose said. "I should have asked him for his number."
Martha shrugged and began to open the clinic for the day.
XOX
Rose had decided to have lunch in the park that day; grabbing a salad from the Tesco close by and a bottle of juice. She fed her croutons to the ducks at the pond and read some more of the novel she was reading before heading back to the clinic. She was hanging up her bag when Martha entered with a cat-that-got-the-canary look on her face. "So guess what happened while you were at lunch?"
Rose's face was one of panic as her eyes flew to her friend. "Please tell me that she made it out of surgery alright?"
One of their little patients had been diagnosed with a hole in her heart; and even though Anna was now a tiny patient of Great Ormond Street Hospital, her mother gave them regular updates and today was the big surgery day. "Yes of course sweetie Anna is fine; she made it out and stabilized quickly. Susan said she'd bring her by when she's out. Anyway, someone came by to see you."
"Oh, was it my mum?" She pulled her raincoat off and hung it up. "She and I are supposed to have dinner tonight."
"Nope." Martha replied; popping the 'p' with excitement lacing her voice. "It was a certain man."
Rose span around. "He didn't, did he?"
Martha held out a brand new pink umbrella with a note attached and grinned even wider. "Go on, I wanna know what it says."
Rose took the umbrella with a shaky hand and opened the note.
'Rose,
It was truly a pleasure to meet you yesterday; and I'm sad that your bus came before I could get your number –'
She gasped as Martha shook her shoulder. "Oh my god keep reading!"
'- I had planned on getting it from you tonight because it is supposed to rain again but I have to work late. I don't tomorrow so if you'd like to, let me cook you dinner.
Matt
07091-439-5781'
"Oh wow that is so incredibly sweet." Martha sighed. "He can't share his umbrella with you tonight so he bought you one. A nice one."
Rose giggled excitedly to herself and pulled her phone from her purse and added his number. "Martha will I seem desperate if I text him now?"
"The man bought you an umbrella because he couldn't get your number from you tonight." Martha snorted. "He's well eager if you ask me. Don't make me text him for you."
Rose's fingers flew over her phone as she sent her answer.
'I'd love dinner, where and what time?'
His reply was almost instant. 'I live a block over, what time are you off work and I'll meet you there.'
'Off at five, see you then.'
"Bring your clothes and everything and you can just get ready in the bathroom." Martha said. "Alright, we should get to work."
"Yeah." Rose put her phone back in her purse and started to mentally flip though her wardrobe. What on earth would she wear?
XOX
Matt Jones flooced into his flat that night. Floocing is the name his roommates – the Ponds- had given his excited kind of hop-steppy leaping action not long after he had moved in and amidst the laughter of seeing this grown man hop-steppy leap onto the couch after a particular piece of good news; a bottle of wine had dubbed the action floocing.
Rory looked at the man wiggling around the kitchen and yelled for his wife. "Amy – he's floocing again!"
The red headed woman came running into the kitchen and stopped before her friend. She noticed the way he hastily flicked every door open and closed, leaping from one to the next with a small wiggle. He stopped at the freezer and muttered a 'perfect' before pulling out steaks to defrost. Her mind quickly deduced that it must be a woman; she'd only ever seen him like this once when he had been with River. "What's her name?"
Matt turned with a spin and grinned widely at her. "Her name's Rose, I met her at the bus stop last night."
Amy nodded silently and turned to her wide eyed husband. "Well, I guess we should make plans for dinner tomorrow. Wanna go and call Clara darling and I'll have a little chat with Matt."
Matt's actions slowed to a still and he sat down at the small kitchen table. "She's a nurse Amy, if that's what you were wondering. She's not going to bugger off to Africa and come back married alright?"
"I'm not saying she will." Amy sighed, hugging her friend close. "I just want you to know we'll be here if you need us, we love you and don't want to see you sad."
"Do you think she'll like steak and salad?" He asked meekly; he really liked this girl.
She smiled and laughed a little. "Why don't you text her and ask her? You do have her number right?"
"Yeah." His cheeks tinted pink as did the tops of his ears. "I didn't get it from her last night but today I bought her a pink umbrella and left it with one of the doctors at her office with a note that had mine on it."
"Oh my god Matt, you are such a sweetheart ain't ya?" She replied. "Buy a girl an umbrella because you forgot to get her number."
He pulled his phone from his pocket and swiped the screen a massive grin spreading across his face. "She just texted me!"
"Well, what did she say?" Amy asked, her voice raising a few decibels.
"She said she was looking forward to dinner tomorrow and should she dress warmly?" Matt's massive grinned remained on his soft face. His fingers typed his reply quickly and he smiled up at Amy before getting up from his seat. "I'm going to bed, night Pond."
Amy shook her head at his retreating form. He was hooked and they hadn't even had their first date.
XOX
The next day found Rose flinging most of her wardrobe onto the floor of her room. There was a sparkly pink dress hanging from the ceiling fan and black leggings on her shoulder from where she had unsuccessfully tried to fling them over her shoulder and missed.
"God fucking damn it!" She yelled in exasperation. "JACK!"
Her tall, blue eyed incredibly attractive (and incredibly flirtatious) roommate walked to her bedroom door, eyes widening. "What can I do for you Hurricane Rose?"
"Not nice Jack." The blonde replied; pulling a ridiculously short black dress off its hanger and frowning before tossing it over her shoulder. "I have a date tonight and I don't have anything to wear and he's so cute Jack...help."
The black haired man rolled his eyes and smiled. "Alright Rosie, how about that adorable pink long sleeve and those black jeans you got that time we went to that market on the East End?"
"How about my blue skirt from that place I got the black jeans and that floaty pale yellow one my mum bought me?" She said, pulling said skirt and top from her closet and shoving them in her friends face.
"That would work. Where did you meet this guy anyway?" He said, sitting on her bed.
A dreamy smile graced Rose's face; the kind that Jack had come to associate with babies and the guy that played Watson on 'Sherlock'. "We met last night outside work and he stopped at the bus stop to share his umbrella with me. His name's Matt Jones, and he's gorgeous!"
"Is he taking you out for dinner?" Jack asked. "Or a film?"
"He's making me dinner at his place. I'm so nervous Jack; what if he thinks I'm crazy?" She sighed, making Jack chuckle.
"Everyone knows you're crazy Rosie and none of us care." He got up and went to hug the woman in a sea of fabric. "You are awesome and that's all that matters."
"Thanks honey." She mumbled before looking at her bedside clock and leaping up. "Shit! Can you put this in a bag and put it by the door I've gotta get ready for work!"
Hurricane Rose then flew out the bedroom door.
XOX
Matt checked his watch and glanced down the street that Rose was supposed to meet him on. It was only just five and he was already a wreck of nerves. He did not date often (or ever) and it had taken him all night and some of the next day to work up the guts to go and see Rose. He had called her clinic to see if she was there and upon finding out that she wasn't breathed a sigh of relief. He walked past the clinic and straight into the Marks and Sparks; finding a pink umbrella (he assumed it was her favourite colour as her scrubs were pink) and writing a quick note he was back on his way to her work. After two agonizing minutes of waiting he had practically flung the umbrella at the doctor behind the desk and all but ran back to his own job; heart beating erratically from the stress.
The minute he saw her coming his heart leapt into his throat and he could honestly say he had never been more nervous in his life. She came up to him with a smile on her face and looking adorable. "H-hey Rose, you look nice."
"Thanks Matt you too." She replied, unable to meet his eyes. "I like the bow tie."
He stood a little straighter as he adjusted the red bow. And Amy said he shouldn't wear it.
'It makes you look like a math teacher!'
There was a small silence before he offered her his arm. She took it and they were off.
Rory and Amy were just leaving the flat when they arrived and the Scottish girl was quick to introduce herself. "You must be Rose; I'm Amy and this is my husband Rory, it's nice to meet you."
"It's nice to meet you guys too." She shook Amy's hand and then Rory's.
"We should be off. Have a nice night." Rory said. The door closed behind them and silence filled the flat for the briefest of moments.
"Would you care to listen to some music while I cook dinner?" He stopped mid stride and spun from the hallway leading to the kitchen back to Rose who was hanging up her coat.
"Um, yeah alright. I'm an easy listener." She nodded, smiling at him.
He led her to the living room, flicking on the Bose as he motioned to the couch for her to make herself comfortable and began scrolling through Amy's iPod. As Rose sat on the couch he found something and hit play; the soft music came from every speaker in the room.
"Hey I love this chick." Rose laughed softly to herself. "I just bought her album last week."
"Amy likes her too; I can sing almost every one of her songs without missing a beat and I don't even know her name." Matt laughed. He opened the doors in the middle of the divider wall that separated the kitchen from the living room and smiled through them as he began pulling the steak from the fridge. "You aren't veggie are you? Or vegan?"
"No I'm too much of a carnivore." She responded with a snort; quickly turning to him worried that she may have offended him. "Are you?"
He shook his head as he pulled the meat from the marinade and turned the stove on. "No I tried and lasted about six months."
"Yeah me too but my mate Shareen offered me a bacon sarnie a week in and it was all over!" She shook her head with a smile and laughed.
XOX
Things progressed well over the course of the evening and come the end of it both of them were sad it was over. Matt held her hand as he walked her to catch her bus; a beaming grin on his face as Rose told him about her little brother Tony. He had found out that Rose's dad Pete had died when she was a baby and after fifteen years of looking her mum had found love once again with a lovely man who she married three years ago and her brother Tony came soon after. He had told her about his older brothers and how being the baby of the family wasn't always a walk in the park. David had stabbed him with a pencil once – four stitches.
They came to a stop at the bus stop, Rose regrettably allowing him to drop her hand. He surprised her by taking it again and smiling softly while he run his thumb over the back of her hand. "I had fun tonight Rose, can we do this again?"
"I'd love to." She blushed watching the rhythmic movement of his thumb. "My place next time, yeah? I make a mean spag bol."
"I love spaghetti." He replied, his eyes coming up to her face and watching her smile. He ran his free hand over her cheek softly and squeezed her hand. "Feels like the space between my fingers was meant to be filled with yours."
Her eyes came up to meet his quickly and he wasted no time in capturing her lips in a soft sweet kiss; just before her bus rolled up beside them. He placed another kiss on her knuckles before dropping her hand. "Until next time my sweet Rose."
"Goodnight Matt and thank you again for a delightful evening." She stepped onto her bus and waved a goodbye to him. "Text me when you're free and well have dinner at mine, yeah?"
He walked away with a smile on his face and a light feeling in his heart.
Matt Jones had found the one; and it had taken him a mere twenty one years.
XOX
As I bring this to a close, I am thinking of maybe making this a two shot. Let me know what you think.
Roxy x