Author's Note: Hey, everybody! As you all may know this is my first attempt at a full story. Normally, I do oneshots because I was always scared to write stories, because they would end up like straight up crap. But now I decided to challenge myself. Because I've been on FF since June of 2012 and I've been reading so much wonderful stories, and Tumblr posts as well, that I instantly got lots of ideas, and my writing skills got a little better over the years, so I decided that I'm just going to go ahead and do it :) . Anyway, the beginning of the story is loosely based on a very old and obscure movie I watched on YouTube, and features Whoufflé or Souffez, if that's how you see it, because that pairing came into my mind while thinking about this story. So, without further ado, on with the story! I don't own Doctor Who as it belongs to the BBC.
Chapter 1-September 1999
The bright rays of sunshine streamed from the purple curtains into the eyelids of the sleeping Clara Oswald. The rays of sunshine hit her face like daggers. She rolled face down on the bed trying to get more sleep. She couldn't. She groaned and sat up on the bed, her hair all over her face. She threw back the covers and stretched. She got out of bed and went over to the mirror. She recoiled at the sight of her face, her brown hair tangled, her droopy eyes, and dried drool on the side of her mouth.
"A shower would do good," Clara thought to herself.
Clara trudged to the bathroom to brush her teeth. She then stripped off her pajamas and jumped into the shower and washed as quick as she could. She didn't want to be late for her first day of the last year medical school, the pathway to her dream job as a nurse, and one of the keys of being a good example is good hygiene.
She finished washing, so Clara stepped out of the shower to get dressed. She decided to wear one of her most comfortable outfits, a purple flowery spaghetti strap dress, with a denim jean jacket, and black shoes. She pulled her dark brown hair up into a bouncy ponytail. She grabbed her bag from the door and went downstairs for breakfast. She couldn't find anything else, so she made herself some cold cereal. She ate quickly, but not too quickly.
She left her flat and was on her way to the bus stop. As she approached the bus stop, she saw one about to leave. She ran as fast as she could to catch the bus. Luckily, it stopped for her. Clara climbed aboard, thanked the driver gratefully, while out of breath,and paid her fare. She took a seat by the window of the first row. Clara thought that right now would be a good time to skim through her textbook, in order to see what's she's in for this year.
As she was skimming through her textbook, for some reason, she felt eyes watching her every move. She looked up to see a man seated in the window seat on the right hand side of the bus, his blue eyes locked on her. He didn't look that much older than her, and didn't look threatening. His face had some childish features, but he was quite a handsome man, with floppy jet black hair, a defined chin and jawline, delicate eyebrows, and firm lips. But that didn't stop Clara to feel threatened. The man noticed Clara looking at him and swiftly bowed down looking at his newspaper. Clara tried hard to concentrate on what she was doing. But yet again, he looked at her again. She stopped reading and looked back at him. This time, their eyes locked for a moment, each not taking their eyes off of each other. But that ended when the man looked down to his newspaper. Having enough of this, without him looking, Clara closed her book, put it in her bag, and got off the bus at an earlier stop and walked to her school, trying to get over what just happened. But it's pretty certain that she'll remember this for the rest of the day.
It was a productive day for Clara, she managed to get every assignment done before the last minute and just got her paycheck from her job at the mall. Now she's enjoying the free time she has at a popular bar in London, sipping her fruity drink, she wasn't that daring today. This was her favorite things to do after a long day. She glanced at the people out on the dance floor dancing crazily to "Believe" by Cher. She smiled in amusement at the sight of the people thinking that they dance, but they really can't. Just then, her face fell when she saw that same man from the bus this morning, dancing with his friends. Her heart pounded very fast. He was now leaving the dance floor to get a drink. She finished her drink, and rushed out of the club, hoping that he wasn't looking.
That night, after studying for tomorrow's lesson, Clara noticed that she hasn't ate yet. She went to the kitchen to get one of her TV dinners from the freezer. She would normally eat these or eat out, in which her mother would chide about. She would eat homecooked meals whenever she was visiting her parents.
As she was opening up the box and heated the meal, she looked out the window to see what the neighborhood's up to. Yet again, she saw that same weird man that was walking down the street, looking like he was finding something. He stopped and looked around for some reason. As his eyes laid on Clara's flat with Clara inside. His face lit up and went towards the window where Clara was. He just wouldn't give up until he found her.
"Great, just great, my life's just beginning, and I already have a stalker," Clara thought to herself, her heart pounding.
"Hello," the man greeted with a gentle smile.
"Hello," Clara replied, her voice trembling a bit.
"I was walking down the street with my friend and well... we seemed to get separated," the man said.
"You have no clue where she is?" Clara asked.
The man chuckled lightly. "He," he corrected.
"Oh," Clara laughed lightly at her mistake.
"Did you happen to see him? He has some sort of brown hair, this tall, and a raggedy leather jacket," the man said.
"Nope, haven't seen him," Clara replied smiling apologetically.
"Bollocks," the man frowned.
Just then, a crash of thunder sounded, the night sky rapidly turned from dark blue to brown, and was illuminated with lightning, signaling another thunder crash.
"Oh, looks like a storm's coming," Clara said peering out the window.
"Yeah, 'spose it is," the man said with a smile.
"Wanna come in?" Clara asked. She couldn't let the poor man get stranded in the rain, and he doesn't seem like a psycho stalker to Clara anymore.
The man grinned. "Yes," he replied.
Clara went over to the door to let the man in. The man came in and shut the door behind him. The rain suddenly came down in sheets. He followed Clara into the kitchen.
"Would you like some coffee?" Clara asked.
"Oh, yes please," the man replied.
Clara poured a cup of coffee for the man.
"Sugar?" Clara asked.
"No, thanks," the man said.
Clara handed the man his coffee.
"Thank you," the man acknowledged as he recieved his coffee.
"You're welcome," Clara replied.
"So, what you're gonna cook?" the man asked, while taking a sip of his coffee.
"Oh, just my usual steak and mash from a box," Clara shrugged.
"Sounds delicious," the man said.
Clara only chuckled and shook her head. There wasn't anything special about a TV dinner.
The man noticed Clara's shyness, her head hung down and the fidgeting.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"Oh, yeah, I'm fine. It's just that... I only hear a man's voice in my flat when my parents are over or when the repair man comes," Clara said with a small smile.
The man let out a light laugh. "Well, we experience new things every day. It's a way of life, you know".
"Yes, of course," Clara agreed.
The man took another sip of coffee. "Why'd you run away from me at the club?" he asked.
Clara was at a loss of words. "Crap, he saw me," she thought to herself.
"Do I frighten you? 'Cause you know, I don't mean any harm," the man said.
"Oh, you don't scare me. You don't look that suspicious," Clara replied.
The man smiled at Clara, but instantly had a horrified look on his face. Clara was alarmed at this.
"What's wrong?" Clara asked.
"Well, I'm in your flat, drinking the coffee you made, and I haven't introduced myself. John Smythe," he introduced, holding out his hand.
"Clara Oswald," Clara replied, putting her hand in his. It felt good shaking his hand.
"Nice to meet you, Clara Oswald," John said.
Throughout the storm, John and Clara were seated in the living room, talking about their lives and families. Clara liked it when John smiled and laughed. Everytime John flashed that smile, it kind of made her heart melt.
"So, how'd you manage to get this place? It's beautiful," John said, looking around.
"Well, it was a gift from my mum and dad. They help pay the mortgage and I work as a department store clerk after school to pay my share of it, just to not be labeled as a freeloader who lives off their parents' wealth," Clara replied.
"Hard work, isn't it," John commented.
"It sure is," Clara replied.
"Anybody live here, other than you?" John asked.
"Nope, just me," Clara replied.
"So, you have this big house, all to yourself?" John asked, with a shocked expression.
Just then, John's friend came through the door all drenched from the rain. He coughed, startling John and Clara.
"I've been looking for you everywhere!" John exclaimed once he saw his friend, while Clara got up to get a towel.
"Well, you were the one that wandered off," John's friend retorted.
He then turned to Clara. "Hi, there. Sorry for barging into your home like that. I'm Rory," he said.
"Clara. Take off those wet things and have this towel," Clara said, handing a towel to Rory.
"Thanks, Clara," Rory said gratefully.
After Rory was dry enough, the rain stopped and the clouds parted revealing the night sky.
"Well, John and I must be going. It's getting rather late," Rory announced, getting up from his seat and taking his now dry coat.
"Yes, Rory, for once, you're right," John replied, following suit, earning a glare from Rory.
"Clara, I can't thank you enough for letting me and Rory stay here while the storm was going on,"John said gratefully.
"Yeah, you're one of the few hospitable people around here," Rory added.
"Oh, it's no worries," Clara replied.
"Well, bye, now. John, hurry up or get left," Rory said, while going out the door.
John turned to Clara.
"I hope I see you again, Clara," John said.
"I hope I see you again, John," Clara replied.
John smiled and gathered Clara into a hug. John then surprised Clara by taking her right hand and kissing it.
"John! Coming or not?" Rory called.
"I'm coming!" John called back, making Clara giggle.
"He's always impatient," John said.
"I could see that," Clara commented.
"Bye," John said, waving goodbye.
"Bye," Clara replied.
John smiled as he went out the door, closing it behind him.
Clara went over to the microwave to get her dinner, which was perfectly warmed up. She looked down at her right hand and grinned.
A/N: Well, done with my first chapter! Please review if you want me to continue with this or not. Constructive criticism is accepted, but flames are not. Thanks for reading!