Rose trudged sleepily into the control room of the Tardis, rubbing her eyes lazily she winced at the noise of a loud metallic whirring.
"Morning Rose," called a chipper voice from the floor "Hope I didn't keep you awake all night with my screwing."
Rose looked down and saw Jack lying on his back slid halfway underneath part of the Tardis console with a silly grin on his face. He was fiddling with a sort of screwdriver and another odd-time-space-junk-thing of the likes she had long ago quit inquiring about. She contemplated stepping on his face as it was only around six in the morning and she was not an early bird type. Too many times she had seen the Doctor and Jack become as giddy as children in a candy shoppe rummaging enthusiastically through a pile of equipment to which had little semblance to any earthen made electronics. Their backs turned to her she would become invisible as they pawed through a crate of "space stuff" causing loud clanks of metal. The press of odd buttons and twists of dials would elicit chirps and beeps that Rose deduced meant something important, unless the Doctor and Jack liked laughing too loudly and slapping each other on the backs for the sake of it.
"For once I'd love to see something with a made in China label on it." said Rose crossing her arms across her chest looking at Jack in dismay.
Jack's eyes lit up as he jumped up to retrieve another odd piece of equipment from who-knows-where. He handed Rose a small flat copper disc.
"Uh...and you are handing this to me because?"
"Made in China sweetheart, year 3029." said Jack, Rose rolled her eyes but smiled in spite of herself.
"Alright then, Captain Jack" she added sarcastically "what exactly does it do?"
Jack closed the distance between them quickly standing a few inches closer than necessary and looked her in the face with his hazy blueish green eyes,
"Well Rose," he said softly "It-" Rose cut him off giggling, "Your doing it again, your little "flirting" thing of yours. You think your such a charmer don't you?" Jack grinned "Is it working?"
Part of traveling with Jack was becoming accustomed to his ritualistic flirting with just about anybody with two legs and the best way of dealing with it was to play back a little. Rose tilted her head and gently traced her fingers along the neckline of Jack's shirt, pushing him back gently with her pointer finger she replied with a dismissive "no." She sauntered away turning around blowing him a kiss
"Hey!" Jack said as he faced his palms upwards turning her direction "don't you want to know how it works?"
"Want to know how what works,?" boomed the chipper and invigorated voice of a doctor striding in wearing his familiar worn leather coat which he never seemed to take off...ever. The Doctor unlike Rose was a morning person. "Nothing much Doc, just offering to show Rose how my equipment works."
"Okay with me, just cut back on the late night screwing, I couldn't plan coordinates last night
with the mess of noise coming from in here."
"Your wish is my command," bowed Jack with a flourish of the hand.
"Alright then, he's done working on me...making his rounds on the doctor," said Rose to herself amused.
The rest of the morning passed uneventfully with Jack and the Doctor conversing in time-travel speak while Rose ambled through the Tardis without much to do. She sighed to herself; in the midst of travelling when something was happening she felt alive and capable as the Doctor's companion but in the Tardis with two professional time travelers she was starting to feel like a third wheel. She was new to the whole skipping-through-time scene and could offer even less information to the Doctor about earth now (thanks to Jack joining their trio.) It was not the Doctor and Jack who made her feel this way; they teased her a bit sometimes, in good nature, but never belittled her for being a young human with little to offer on time and space. In fact, on many occassion she found herself a captive audience (quite literally captive in the Tardis) to their long, unending lectures on topics such as converting heat emission from stars into fuel or the appropriate way to haggle with space traders in the more remote areas of space. After straightening her quarters in the Tardis for a third time she decided she had enough.
Re-entering the main room of the Tardis she glared at Jack and the Doctor, her arms crossed while she tapped her foot impatiently. Clearing her throat loudly she waited for them to notice, which they didn't.
"Really, can we be off now? I'm about to lose my bloody mind listenin' to the two of you go on and on. Let's GO! Somewhere, anywhere...the past few days I've kept my mouth shut but enough is enough, I'm really goin'to lose my mind if I don't do something, give me potatoes to peel if you have 'em!"
Both turned and looked at her with surprised expressions,
"Potatoes? Rose, why would I have potatoes on the Tardis...that's ridiculous, unless of course you favor potatoes, I'll fill the room up with them if you'd like!" said the Doctor
Jack snickered as Rose rolled her eyes.
The Doctor laughed "Alright then, seems your having a bit of cabin fever...I'm quite pleased to see that in ya you know, not comfortable with sittin' about, that's the spirit!"
Rose relaxed and then smiled "So what we goin' to do about it then Doctor? Chase down an alien outlaw? Save a planet? What will it be then?" Her eyes sparkled at the prospects of getting out again.
"Vacation." said the Doctor.
Jack's face broke out in a grin "I'm in, as long as the landscape is nice if you know what I mean," he said giving Rose a conspiratorial wink.
"Really? That sounds marvelous! I never thought you were the type for havin' fun," giggled Rose.
"Now now, I'm over 900 years old, you can't tell me you seriously think I haven't had a holiday."
"I can." said Rose and Jack at the same time.
"I'll show the two of you that the Doctor can cut loose and relax like any ole bum!" said the Doctor.
Jack came up beside the Doctor and slapped him heartily on the back "Don't worry pal, I'll show you the way."
"Enough chat boys, where shall we go?" said Rose "I'd favor a place with a beach if you don't mind...a tropical sort, not a cold coast if you mind much."
"Tropical? Oh Rose, I can give you a far better place than just tropical. Let's think bigger; like the "Burning Sands of Saharasa." Sounds a bit like your "Sahara" except bigger, and better. There's an ocean vaster than all of Earth's combined there."