By the Gods, I am so dreadfully sorry about the wait! Things have been hella busy, what with finally getting back my test results and having my niece with me for a week for Vacation Bible School and my plans of visiting my brother in colorado falling threw at the VERY LAST SECOND has left me busy and in a foul mood. However, thanks to a wonderful thing called music, I was able to get back in the saddle and present you with this! A few things before we being, the whole medical business with Jack is actually based off the medical business I've gone through in the last two months, so I hope that his reaction seems real. Also, just for the purposes of this chapter, 11 will be addressed as Matt. Also...there was something else, hang on...oh yes! there is dialouge from "A Good Man Goes To War!" whoever guess it first, gets the honor of being as amazing as I am!
Right, don't own DW or TW, so please enjoy and please review. The title comes from "Meteor Shower" by Owl City and who you have to thank for this chapter.
Chapter Three
I desperately need you
Jack studied the letter that he had received from the hospital intently. After months of stomach cramps and crazy bowel movements and one very traumatizing colonoscopy later, the results were in. He had all but torn Ianto's hand off when he held out the letter to Jack, and the poor Welsh soldier was still rubbing his wrist and sending the captain dirty looks.
Jack closed his eyes and opened them again, re-reading the letter, hoping it would say something different, hoping it would say that it wasn't just all in his head. He jumped when his desk phone rang and he cleared his throat before answering, "Captain Harkness."
"You get your results yet?" Donna demanded to know, "cause I'm getting tired of mum phoning me every day."
Jack sighed. "Yeah, I got my results."
"And?" She asked, sounding serious and slightly anxious.
"Technically, there's nothing wrong with me."
"Thank god! I told you, you're fine, Jack! Just a bit of stomach problems, but you're alright!" She cheered.
He shook his head, not agreeing with his step-sister. "Donna, I'm telling you, there's something wrong with me! This results tell me that I don't have celiac, but I already knew that! The blood results ruled that out!"
"Then what's got your knickers in a knot?" Donna asked, exasperated.
"There's not a bloody thing here about crohn's disease! That's what they were supposed to have been looking for, since the blood test couldn't rule it out!" Jack ranted, his face turning slightly red as he ran a hand through his hair agitatedly. Donna sighed on the other end of the phone.
"Jack…why are you looking for something to be wrong?" She asked softly.
"I'm not looking for anything, Donna, I'm telling you, something's not right. I feel it." He answered, sounding dejected. And slightly scared. She wished she could've been there to hug him and try to convince him that he was fine.
"Look, Jack. I know things have been really rough past couple of months, but you can't look for something to force John home."
Jack was silent on the other end. It was partly true, but not as much as Donna was trying to make it out to be. Since she wasn't going to believe him, he decided to just take her explanation and use it until he could find out what was really wrong with him.
"Yeah, Donna, I know." He sounded sad, her heart went out to him.
"You heard from Rose?" She asked, changing the subject.
"Yeah, she phoned me couple of days ago. She's in Brazil, for some big celebration."
"She tell you when she's coming back?"
"Nope. I'm guessing it'll be around the time The Doctor decides he's done running."
Donna nodded, even though she knew her brother couldn't see her. "Look, I've got to go, but come over when you get off work and we'll hang out, just the two of us."
"Alright, Donna. Love you."
"Love you, too, Jack."
Jack hung up the phone and looked over the letter once more before crumpling it up in his fist and throwing it away. He was officially done with doctors unless he was on his deathbed.
Dr. Matt Smith leaned back in his chair, rubbing his eyes and yawning. Blimey he was so tired. He hadn't been sleeping well the past couple of nights, his worries about the project getting to him, plus Amy had been acting so strange lately. She had been very moody last couple of days, and she kept eating the strangest food combinations he'd ever seen.
He closed his eyes and folded his arms across his chest, listening to the rain as he sat in the lobby waiting for Amy and John's soft murmurings to himself so he read aloud to himself in order to stay awake.
There was an odd duck, John Smith. Well, they were all odd ducks, really, all running from something in their pasts. He knew Christopher had come to escape from the terrible memories of losing his family. Amy and himself had jumped at the chance to escape Leadworth, tried of being surrounded by nothing but bad memories. John…well, Matt wasn't sure what he was running. Something big, obviously, but if he had to guess, it most likely had something to do with a girl.
It was always a girl.
Deciding he was too hungry to continue waiting, he stood up and grabbing his jacket off the back of his chair. "So Amy and I are going across the street to get some food—want anything?" Matt asked, approaching John, tugging on a hooded jacket.
"A turkey sandwich please. How long are you going to be?" John asked.
"Three minutes, forty seconds. Amelia Pond! Get your coat!" Matt called out, flipping the hood over his head and dashing out into the rain. Seconds later, Amy raced after him, dragging on her own coat.
John closed his book, watching the couple dash out into the rain, holding hands and laughing. God, did he miss Rose. So bloody much. He slowly pulled out his mobile from his jacket pocket and scrolled through the contacts until he reached the single name he had under "R".
After his last conversation with Amy, he really had felt better, enough to ring Donna and ask for Rose's number. She had been shocked at first, but then began going on and on about how it was about time that they start to talk and fix things. He hadn't the heart to correct her, so he just let her talk. Of course, after an hour, her cut her off and thanked her.
Of course, he should've known he'd feel differently in the morning. When he awoke the next day, he had somehow managed to convince himself it was a bad time to be calling Rose right now, that he needed to focus on the project and that he wasn't even sure if she'd talk to him. So, for two weeks, he let her number sit in his phone, knowing he wasn't going to call her. It began to burn a hole in his pocket, taunting him, telling him how pathetic he was when all he had to do was hit send. But he was terrified, because as much as he'd love to blame her, the whole thing between them was his fault. And it had taken the long six months he'd been gone to admit that to himself.
Go on, John! His subconscious (which sounded suspiciously like Amy) encouraged him, What's the worst that could happen? She doesn't have your number, remember?
That was true. He had changed it when he got to America and had given it only to Jack and Donna. They would've told him if they had given Rose the number.
She won't know it's you, so there's no pressure! At least hear her voice, then talk if you want.
Amy—his subconscious was right! He could do this! Just like a prank call, only…not giggling or telling terrible jokes. He selected Rose's number and hit send, bringing the mobile to his ear and listening to it ring. It rang for so long, he nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard it click over.
"This is Rose!"
She sounded so cheerful! So light and carefree! He felt so much better knowing that she was doing alright. Awfully noisy where she was though.
"'Ello?"
He swallowed hard and started to answer but croaked mid word "Hel-"
"Hold on, I can't hear you!"
He heard her move away from the all the noise, laughing and calling out to people in - what was that, Portuguese? – before sighing and coming back onto the line.
"Sorry about that! Are you still there?"
He couldn't speak, his throat suddenly seizing up and he felt himself starting to panic at his silence.
"Hello? Is there someone there?"
She sounded annoyed, like she was about to hang up, but he still couldn't speak! Then, like a sign from the gods, he heard her ask
"Doctor?"
He quickly hung up, partly in panic, partly because there was no point if his body refused to cooperate. He closed the phone and smacked himself in the forehead with it. "Coward."
Millions of miles away, Rose Tyler slowly brought her mobile down and hit the end button, before raising it to her lips and resting it there. As she stood in a small alleyway in the middle of Rio de Janeiro, she tilted her head back against the brick wall…and smiled.
"John"
A sidenote: people have been asking for Rose and 9 to meet up! I am so very very tempted, but I will need your help for how exactly it should come to pass!