Nijimura Shuuzou was a simple man with simple wants, so when his favorite pair of basketball shorts sported a minor hole, well, he did what any sane human would do: He went off to buy another pair of basketball shorts.

However, in retrospect, this simple decision was a mistake and practically sealed his fate.

Since today was a Sunday and his day off, he ventured off to the shopping district and entered into the nearest Dick's Sporting Goods store. He was in a relatively good mood and perused through the large and insurmountable selection this franchise provided him. There was soft music playing in the background, and surprisingly enough, the store wasn't crowded as usual. Shuuzou had to admit that today was the perfect day to go shopping for basketball shorts.

Lest did he know that today was not the perfect day to go shopping for basketball shorts.

The man was conflicted as he held up two shorts into the air. One pair was in a typical black design with a gray stripe at the sides, fully donning the Nike symbol at the bottom right. Shuuzou glanced at the other pair and grimaced. He supposed he could reach for an adventurous look as he checked out the pair with its solid teal background with light blue crisscross patterns. As he was about to make his choice, a hand suddenly grabbed his forearm.

Shuuzou flinched and jumped backwards. He turned his head toward the perpetrator, ready to tell the intruder a piece of his mind and fuck off, but the words died in his lips as he looked at the person's face, or rather, the lack thereof.

"What the hell," he whispered harshly under his breath, and that was the best response a person in his disposition could say at the moment.

He wrenched his hand away and immediately dropped the shorts. He realized that the person wasn't even a person at all. It was a mannequin.

He warily stepped back from its imposing figure, but the creepy mannequin followed after him. He turned around to make a run for it, but he couldn't even do that as he noticed he was somehow surrounded by its friends. From the corner of his eyes, he could tell that the exit was blocked.

"Crap," he muttered as he felt his heart rate pick up.

He picked up his fists and stepped his dominant foot forward, ready for battle and for what is going to come next. He jolted as he felt another hand touch his wrist and instantly spun around to elbow whatever this thing is in its faceless face. However, before he could make contact, a pair of warm crimson eyes met his. The stranger's palm stopped his motion with a bemused smile. He tugged him forward as if he knew all the answers to his questions, and based on his gleeful expression, he probably did.

Shuuzou's heart picked up, but oddly enough, it was not due to his natural fight or flight response.

"Run," the stranger said.

And so, Shuuzou ran.

If his future self traveled back in time and told him that he would eventually encounter an alien and follow this alien to the depths of time and space, he would have socked himself in the face.

However, according to the stranger, he would not recommend this ludicrous action for that would most likely cause a time paradox and distort the fabric of time and space. The Shuuzou of this time does not know he would ultimately become one of the Doctor's reliable companions. Right now, Shuuzou was one step closer from pulling all the hair from his pretty, little head.

"The what?"

"The Autons," the stranger answered back matter-of-factly. "Those mannequins that attacked you earlier were the Autons, and they are an ancient alien race. They wanted to start a war here and overthrow the human race because they deemed now is the perfect time to colonize this planet."

He said this so bluntly that for a split second, Shuuzou wondered if this whole event was an elaborate prank. He almost lost his footing and tripped once the stranger picked up the pace. Dread filled his entire being. Truthfully, he is slightly overwhelmed by the grim news and wanted to doubt this crazy man wearing a tweed coat that looked a size too big for him. Not waiting to beat around the bush, questions spilled out of his mouth.

"Wait, why do you know this? How do you stop them?"

Shuuzou forcefully tugged his hand back and looked back at the stranger with defiance. He nursed his wrist, noticing that the heat from the man's hand is still there.

His voice is laced with suspicion and hesitation as he asked, "Who are you?"

There was a brief period of tense silence. Shuuzou was pretty sure the stranger would have replied by now; instead, the man flipped his expectations and whipped around to head toward a blue telephone booth.

"I can answer your questions later after we hide," he called back to him over his shoulder.

Irritation began to rise in Shuuzou's gut. He does not appreciate being ignored. He pressed his lips together and stomped over to the man who just went inside the telephone booth.

"Listen here! Hiding inside a telephone booth is not going to stop them from finding u-" he started to say but had to cut himself off. He stopped right in his tracks as he noticed every inch of the room. The sight in front of him was something he had never seen before in his life. There were gadgets and gizmos aplenty. An unidentified object to one side was beeping and moving as if it was alive. He was speechless. He didn't know what to say as his eyes traced each and every detail.

Shuuzou stumbled over his words. "It's… It's…"

"Bigger on the inside?"

Shuuzou's eyes flashed over to the source of the voice and saw the stranger leaning over a rail with a cocky grin in place.

"Uh. Yes." Shuuzou answered, dumbfounded. "It is bigger on the inside."

He blinked a couple more times more to ensure he was not dreaming this concoction up. He narrowed his eyes once he was absolutely sure he was not hallucinating. Even though pointing a finger at a person accusingly is considered rude, Shuuzou will make an exception for this case.

"Who… Who are you?" he repeated his previous question.

The man couldn't be older than him, he surmised. His fashion sense leaves much to be desired, he added as he gives the stranger another once-over. At the top, he looked like an academic fellow with his tweed coat that looked like it freshly came out from the dry cleaners and a nicely pressed tie. On the other hand, from the waist down, he wore gaudy checkered pants and goth-inspired boots. Although he emitted an air of wisdom and calm, his outward appearance screamed a rich kid who is secretly a punk.

Shuuzou snapped out of his stupor once he heard the man continued to talk.

"I'm the Doctor."

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion and made the ugliest expression. "Huh?"

"You asked who I was, and I told you that I am the Doctor," the man reiterated.

"The Doctor?"

"Yes, that is who I am."

"Doctor who?"

A small grin graced the Doctor's face. "Just the Doctor," he said with finality. "That is my name."

Shuuzou hunched over a fire extinguisher and released a huge breath he did not know he was holding earlier. The duo solved that the mastermind behind the invasion was the Nestene Consciousness, an entity that wanted to inflict revenge upon the Doctor. Shuuzou rolled his eyes as he recalled the Doctor getting captured. There was a vat that contained the Nestene Consciousness, and Shuuzou reacted quickly to rescue the Doctor. He was on the upper floor, hiding behind machinery and equipment as the Doctor communicated with the alien, vying for peace. There was a hanging chain in his vicinity, and once the Nestene Consciousness declared the Doctor's death, he swung down and kicked the remaining Autons guarding the Doctor into the vat, therefore killing the Nestene Consciousness and the rest of the Autons.

As a result, the day has been saved.

"You were very brilliant out there," the Doctor praised him.

Shuuzou returned a crooked smile with a faint blush.

The Doctor continued and bowed in a perfect right angle. "Thank you very much for saving me back there. Your bravery was commendable."

Shuuzou awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, unaccustomed to such compliments, and mumbled about how it wasn't a big deal. Thankfully his athleticism and the adrenaline in his veins pushed him to action. The Doctor spoke up again, and his ears perked up at the offer.

"You know…" The Doctor transitioned carefully as if he was stepping on knives. "You should travel with me. Go on adventures. Explore anywhere in the universe."

Shuuzou widened his eyes. The Doctor tilted his head as he waited for a response, and Shuuzou had to bite his tongue from thinking how cute that gesture was.

The Doctor strolled over to the TARDIS, which Shuuzou remembered as his spaceship, but he wasn't allowed to say that because then the Doctor would get offended and defend her honor. He gently knocked the door with affection and adoration in his eyes. A slight breeze caressed his beautiful crimson hair, and Shuuzou held his breath, cursing himself from being so mesmerized by this alien.

The Doctor gave him a smirk as if he could read his traitorous thoughts. "She could also time travel," he added enticingly.

Shuuzou stood there, awestruck and baffled by these turns of event. Here he is, given the chance of a lifetime, and here he took a moment to think about what he was sacrificing to follow this mad man with a box. His father had already passed away a few years ago, and his younger siblings were also happily married in their own respective families. He had a few friends, but they were focused on their careers and other relationships. Overall, there is no anchor in this world keeping him from going.

Then he reevaluated his opinion of the Doctor. Despite his idiosyncrasies and otherworldly existence, he remembered the desperation in his voice as he pleaded the Nestene Consciousness to spare the humans. Compared to him, Shuuzou was miniscule to the grand scale of things. However, he reminded himself that the Doctor had faults of his own. He remembered watching the regret and pain etched into his eyes as the Consciousness revealed to him his failure of saving its species.

Despite the Doctor's outrageous exterior, Shuuzou can somehow sense that this man was more than meets the eye. His posture was straight and refined, but his aura contained a weariness only a veteran can identify. In a sense, the Doctor was probably in need of a friend.

Even though that was a simple reason, that reason gave Shuuzou the confidence he needed.

"Yes," he said firmly. "I would like that."

The Doctor's smile brightened at his answer. Shuuzou stepped into the TARDIS to begin his adventure and his new life as the Doctor's companion.

"Shuuzou," the Doctor stopped him and gestured toward the bottom half of his body. "It seems you have a rip in your shorts."

Shuuzou paused in his trek into the telephone booth and assessed the damage. Just like the Doctor pointed out, there was indeed a rip at the hem of his shorts. He sighed and wondered if they got caught onto something while he fended off the Autons.

The Doctor gave him an encouraging smile and said, "You don't have to worry." He walked into the TARDIS with confidence and ease. "Fortunately for you, I have a closet consisting of all the fashions the world and universe has to offer in different time periods."

His outward arms were inviting and congenial. In contrast, his expression was wistful and calculating.

Shuuzou was a simple man with simple wants. However, he forgot that sometimes what he wants is not what he needs. He stepped forward with a lighter heart and eyes renewed of energy.

"That would be great," he said. "Do you happen to have blue shorts?"