A/N - Written for i dont trust quiet for the Christmas Gift Giveaway 2013.
Prompt: Doctor/Donna. Jealous of another man.
Date for A Date
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The Doctor wasn't much for waiting about. Actually, if anyone ever asked, he would have to admit, rather happily, that he never waited. No siree. Waiting was hard. It was all standing about and doing nothing, innit? Moving about, maybe, talking a little, or a lot, depending on the conversationalist who was willing to converse… It was all, 'How are you?', 'Been there?', 'Me neither', 'Goodbye then'.
Waiting though… Waiting was hard and tough and awkward and maybe a tad bit difficult. Yes, waiting. Waiting and waiting and waiting. Not much fun, it was, but here he was… waiting…
"You know what?" A very ginger voice said from behind him. "You could just leave."
The Doctor turned on his heel with a pout ready and set, his hands going deep into the bigger-on-the-inside pockets of his suit as he shook his head in what he thought was a very convincing manner.
"Nope, I'm good. Good with the waiting, me." He rocked on his heels and shrugged to show his absolute casual acceptance of the situation. "Go on, then. Go on with the…" He gestured somewhat, in what he thought was an acceptable gesture of flippant acceptance.
Donna didn't seem to see it that way, if the way her eyes narrowed at him was anything to go by.
"You're willing to stay here?" she asked incredulously. "Doing nothing? For an hour?"
The Doctor, who had found a bowl of grapes very interesting, spit out the fruit into his hand so to eye her incredulously. "An hour? What could you possibly talk to him for an hour for?"
"Oh, I don't know…" Donna said sarcastically. "His job, my lack of a job, his family, my family… Marriage prospects?"
The Doctor might have gagged at that very moment, but in all fairness, the grape he happened to eat wasn't as seedless as he first thought it might have been.
"Lovely," Donna muttered under her breath, before she straightened up and glared at him. "Like I said, this is a date put together by my Mum, who, bless her, really don't know one man from another, so all I need to do is pop in quick for a bit, talk to him for a mad minute and get out of there before desert. Any questions?"
The Doctor eyed her thoughtfully before he swallowed and grinned widely at her. "I think I found the seedless ones."
"Oh, for the love of—"
She didn't get to finish her words, however, since at that moment a waiter walked passed the Doctor, who got distracted by what he held on the tray. "Oh nibbles! I love nibbles!"
"Fine, then," Donna said with a roll of her eyes, "see you in an hour."
She stepped through the double doors into the dining room of the most fanciest restaurant she had ever been to, hardly noticing the waiter who was talking a mile a minute while regaling the Doctor with his life's tale.
Donna Noble hardly ever agreed with her mother's taste, but tonight, despite her reservations on the subject, she couldn't help but think that for once, she and her mother were both on the same page.
"It must be hard being a temp," Victor said in his extremely deep, extremely attractive voice.
"It is," Donna said readily. He needn't know that she was travelling the universe with an alien, after all. Blimey, that would be an issue with their future kids, wouldn't it? Maybe they could home-school them for a bit before they're old enough to leave alone. "But, it is a good laugh."
"I can expect so." He leant forward, his eyes glinting dangerously. "I expect you need a lot of skills since it is a highly demanding job."
Donna leant forward just enough to show her cleavage, tossing her hair over her shoulder so she could look at him with just the right kind of demure. "I do indeed have a lot of skills. Maybe I can show you some of them sometime."
His grin widened. "I'd like that."
"Well, then, hello! How are you doing this evening?"
Donna moved back in surprise as the Doctor suddenly appeared between them with a plate of onion rings. Her jaw dropped when he completely ignored her and turned towards her date.
"I'm the Doctor. Actually, I'm your server."
"You're a Doctor?" Victor asked incredulously.
"Well, yes, on some days. Mostly on weekdays. Sometimes on Fridays. Never on Mondays. Don't much care for Mondays. Here's your plate of onion rings."
"Oh, but we didn't order any onion rings."
"On the house, then. Eat them, enjoy them. They're very garlic-y, so you wouldn't want to kiss anyone with that mouth of yours." He cringed before he stood up straight and grinned widely at them. "Garlic is good, though. Trust me, trust the Doctor."
"Um… Okay…?"
Victor looked at her and all Donna could do was shrug and share in his confusion. Before she could say anything, the Doctor was gone, leaving a very flabbergasted Victor in his wake. "A bit of an odd chap, isn't he?"
Donna fought the urge to turn around and threaten the life of a certain alien. "Forget about him." She looked at him meaningfully. "You were saying something about me showing you something…?"
Her date grinned. "I was just saying that—"
"Hello! The Doctor again!"
Donna's jaw dropped again. "Oh, for heaven's sake."
He pulled a bottle of wine out of his pockets and held it out like a waiter would. "Brilliant year if I say so myself."
Victor squinted at the label, his eyes widening a minute later. "But that says it was bottled a thousand years from now."
The Doctor's eyebrows scrunched in confusion. "Does it?" He raised the bottle to his eye-level while pulling his brainy specs from the depths of his coat pocket and placing them on his nose. "So it is…" he muttered thoughtfully.
Donna spent this moment burying her face in her hands and wishing she had a cricket bat to clobber him with.
"Still…" The Doctor continued with great gusto as he put back the brainy specs and held out the bottle to her date. "Great year."
"Um… No, thank you," Victor mumbled uncomfortably. "I think we're good."
"Oh, don't be rubbish." The Doctor held out his hand. "Give me your glass. Come on then, hand it over."
Not being able to take anymore of this, Donna stood up and grabbed onto the Doctor's arm. "Excuse me," she said politely to her date. "I just want to… check something." With a big smile, she pulled the Doctor with her, trying her best to keep her anger in check until they were alone and she could really take it out on him.
Once they reached the entrance, he surprised her by pocketing the bottle and reaching for her hand. "There is this brilliant planet you have to see. Just brilliant. It's got glass flowers. Imagine that! Flowers you could break!"
She pulled her hand away from him, only to see him stop suddenly with a look of confusion on his face. "Aren't you coming?"
"No, Dumbo! I am not coming."
He stiffened as he looked away from her, his hands going into his pockets and a childish pout playing on his lips. "Oh."
"Don't 'oh' me." She stepped forward and hit the back of his head for good measure.
He stepped back and rubbed the back of his head gingerly. "What was that for?"
"You… are an idiot!"
He continued to pout like a kicked puppy as he kept rubbing his head. "I was only helping you. You said one hour, Donna."
Crossing her arms, she glared at him. "How long has it been?"
Hunching his shoulders, he looked down at his shoes and let out a low breath. "I don't see how that's relevant."
"How long?" she asked again.
He shrugged. "Oh, I don't know. One hour and sixteen minutes...?" He let out another low breath. "Give or take... ten minutes…?"
He said it so casually, so flippantly, she really did want to wring his neck. Shaking her head, she turned on her heel and continued to march towards the dining room, stopping only when she saw her date laughing with a very attractive waitress.
"You know…" the Doctor whispered into her ear not a moment later. "The flowers change colours, too."
Her eyes narrowed at her date. He really wasn't attractive enough for her. And he was a bit of a bore. "Can I pick any of the flowers?"
The Doctor stepped in front of her, his maniacal grin back in place. "Donna Noble, you can pick a bouquet."
She really couldn't help mirroring his smile with her own. "Lead the way, Spaceman!"
As the Doctor put out his arm, she took it, and they both walked back the way they came towards the TARDIS that was parked inconspicuously behind a large curtain, but not before steeling a few extra nibbles and waving goodbye to the Doctor's new waiter friend, Timothy.