The first time she met the Doctor she was eight years old. Fifteen years later, she still remembered that first encounter it like it was yesterday:
The day was a cold one; it was pretty common weather for the end of fall. The grass on the playground were still frosted over from the night before and crunched when her new shoes stepped on them. Other kids were running around, playing, laughing… But not her.
She sat on an old, rusted swing that rested between the very edge of the playground and the thick trees that bordered the edge. Tears were in her eyes and her nose was running.
Why did Mariah have to be sick today? She was her best and only friend. No matter how hard she tried, the other kids just never wanted to play with her.
She rested her head against the creaky chain of the swing. A noise from behind the trees suddenly captured her attention. It was a strange sound; like whirring of the dishwasher in the kitchen.
The noise stopped.
Childhood curiosity piqued, she hopped off the swing and cautiously walked towards the trees. Her shoes crunched on the fallen leaves on the ground. A sudden rustling of branches caused her to stop in her tracks.
A man quickly stepped out from the trees, swatting branches away from his face while muttering to himself.
She stared up at the man; he was old. Like, dad-old. He had on a leather jacket with a dark red scarf loosely wrapped around his neck and his nose was big just like his ears. She didn't know what she should do; should she talk to him? Mummy had warned her not to talk to strangers, but what was a grown-up doing hiding in the trees?
She didn't have much time to make decision though. His eyes met hers and a huge grin appeared on his face.
"Hello," he said cheerfully. His smile faltered when he noticed the little girl's puffy eyes and tear-stained face. Immediately concerned, he knelt down in front of her. "What's the matter, little one?"
The girl sniffled a bit and used her sleeve to wipe her cheeks. For some reason this strange man didn't worry her. "Mariah isn't here and no one else wants to play with me," she said sadly.
The man frowned. "Well, where did Mariah go?" he asked.
She looked down at the ground before speaking. "She's at home. She got sick."
"Oh, no…" the man said, sounding sad. "Being sick is never fun." She shook her head in agreement.
"No," she said sadly.
"Here," the man suddenly reached for the red scarf around his neck and tugged it loose. He looped it once and placed it over her head.
She looked down at the scarf with a confused look on her face. "Won't you get cold?" she asked shyly.
He shook his head. "No, you look like you need it more than I do." A small smile appeared on his face. "What's your name?"
She gave a crooked smile and looked up at him. "Kit."
"Kit, do you want to know a secret?" Kit nodded and leaned in closer. "I came from up there." The man pointed up towards the dismal-looking sky.
"Up there?" she asked, her voice laced with doubt.
He nodded. "There are so many fantastic things on the other side of this sky. More than you could possibly imagine." Kit's eyes were wide with fascination.
"Can I see?" she asked eagerly. The man gave a low chuckle and reached over to tighten the scarf around her neck.
"Maybe someday."
"Why not now?" she whined, a pout now present on her childish face.
"Because," the man started as he stood up. "You wouldn't want to leave Mariah behind, would you?"
Kit shook her head. "No, she's my best friend."
The man looked down at his wrist to check his watch and stood up swiftly. "It was fantastic meeting you, Kit, but now I really must be off." He straightened his jacket and took something that looked like a wand out of his pocket.
"Where are you going?" Kit asked while eyeing his strange device.
The man winked. "I'm off to save the world." With that he turned and began walking away.
"Wait!" Kit cried out. "What's your name?"
The man looked back at her. "You can call me the Doctor." With that, the Doctor resumed his path and walked out of the gate at the back of the playground. Kit was just watching him turn the corner when a bell rang. Recess was over.
Kit didn't see the Doctor again until 7 years later.