He waited eagerly the next day for her to come. Where is she? She's going to miss her bus.
She ran towards him. Does she see me? Does she know who I am?
"Oh, Donna," he whispered to himself, "please, please, please, please don't recognize me. I want you to more than anything. But I really need you to NOT, right now."
She ran past him and got on the bus. At least one of his hearts raced to catch up with her. He quelled it by sitting as still as he possibly could. Again he felt the hair on his neck stand up.
She sees me!
This unnerved him more than anything. It felt so good. So right. It filled him with hope. And yet, his stomach tied itself into knots as he contemplated the other outcome of her discovery. He watched her closely for any signs of mental distress. Unfortunately, this remained unclear, because at that moment the bus decided to pull her away from him.
He paced all day wondering when she was getting off work. Now that she was aware of his presence, how did it affect her mind? He saw the bus approach and felt he better sit down, just in case. Breathe! Breathe in. Breathe out. That's it. Breathe in. Breathe out.
Screech!
He sucked in a quick breath and held it while Donna got off.
He watched her intently. She was looking thru her bag. Or, more accurately, pretending that she was. Oh, who does she think she's fooling? I know she's really looking at me. Does she think I'm dead or something?
He let out the breath he had been holding.
She shuddered.
Gotcha!
"Ugh, hello," she said.
He stared in surprise. Did she just say hello? The silence got a little awkward.
"G- Good night," she said, and turned to go.
Do something! She's your best friend, for heaven's sake! Acknowledge that you saw her! He grabbed his hat and tipped it towards her.
She hesitated a brief moment and smiled before she walked away.
She was smiling!
Come to think of it, so was he. A lot.
The bus was running late this morning. He was glad. It gave him a little more time to see how her mind would handle his presence.
She sat down next to him, opened her bag, pulled out two scones and offered one to him. "Want one?"
His stomach growled in response. She's still taking care of me. He eyed her closely. She looked a little puzzled so he quickly took the scone and nodded thanks. He tore a chunk off and ate it in an effort to loosen the tightening knot in his throat.
They ate in silence. As each minute passed he could feel the tension ease in every muscle of his body. Well, that's interesting. Is it the scone or her company?
When the bus finally came, Donna waved goodbye as she got on. He smiled back and held up his half eaten scone in thanks. He sighed. He could feel the tension returning. He tore another chunk off and continued to eat. This worked before; maybe it would again.
"My name's Donna. What's yours?"
He just smiled.
"Not going to say, huh? You are a crafty old man, aren't you?"
He laughed. He couldn't help it. He loved how direct she was. Oh, how I've missed you!
She shuddered. Then he saw the spark of electricity flow thru her. Oh no! What have I done! He started to panic inside. He poised himself ready to grasp her temples in case an overload of energy was imminent.
She laughed heartily instead. He was so caught off guard that he couldn't help but join her. When the laughter died down, she inhaled a quick breath and warned him "Well, if you won't tell me your name, I'll have to make one up. What shall I call you, then? Tootie Fruity? BusBoy? No, that isn't respectful enough. Bus man? No..."
She looked at him for suggestions. He just shook his head.
"Smiley?"
He considered it and then nodded his approval.
"Smiley it is then." She grabbed her bag and stood up. "Well, Smiley, I gotta get home. See you in the morning?"
He smiled and nodded.
Of course he'd be there. Because something was happening to Donna Noble in front of his eyes. He didn't know how. He didn't know why. But meeting with her on the bench at this bus stop seemed to be healing her mind. It made no sense. Yet there it was.