If Clara was completely honest with herself, she would have admitted that the Doctor wasn't as much of a jerk as she thought he was. In fact, she had thought that his shyness was rather cute.
What caught her attention most on their second encounter was not his attitude or his rather expressive eyebrows but his trousers. Clara was sure that the Doctor is in his early 50s or late 40s and she has never in her life, seen a man of his age wear plaid trousers before.
When she reached her flat, she saw Donna getting out of her car.
"You look like you've had an interesting day," Donna commented with a smile.
Clara beamed and adjusted the books she was carrying in her arms. "I did actually – bumped into the Doctor again and he apologised for his rude behaviour," she explained, waiting for the landlady to unlock the front door.
"The Doctor actually said more than two words? That's new."
"But that wasn't the best part – he was wearing plaid trousers."
Donna shot Clara an amused look. "See, I told you. The man's a Martian."
Her tenant merely giggled at her far-fetched claim as both entered the building.
"Next thing you know, you end up in his time-machine or you're kidnapped by an alien Santa-robot!"
Clara arched a brow as she stood in front of the flat while Donna continued to walk up the steps to hers. "I doubt he has a time-machine and I definitely doubt there's alien Santa-robots running around."
"You never know these days!" Donna exclaimed. "See ya."
Once Clara was able to enter her flat after struggling balancing her students' books in one arm while unlocking the door with the other, she let out a sigh of relief before leaving the books on the kitchen table.
She decided to make some tea, feeling the day taking its toll on her. While she was enjoying her job in a new school, memories of the past still had a habit of resurfacing in her mind.
Clara glanced at the books sitting innocently on the table as she waiting for the kettle to boil. It had been more than two years. Two painful years of losing Danny and yet, it felt as if he died just yesterday.
She was beginning to wonder if coming to this small town was a mistake. Everything still reminded her of Danny. Clara felt her eyes moisten and closed her eyes for a moment to stop the tears. No, she had to be strong. She had to be.
John's day had turned out to be the complete opposite of productive. He had slaved away hour after hour the following morning into his work and yet, his mind refused to cooperate once again and he was getting more frustrated each time.
His mind seemed to be wandering off else where rather than focusing on his research. Damn his mind. Damn his heart.
Letting out a defeated sigh, he took of his reading glasses and gently placed them on the desk before massaging his forehead. "This is going nowhere."
The Doctor glanced at his watch and pondered. The bookshop he frequented closes at five and he could pop in really quickly to get the book he needed for his research, if it has it in stock, of course or he could just order it online.
He considered his options carefully before opening his laptop. Typing in the name of the book, he waited for the website to produce the search results.
"Five days?!" he exclaimed, reading the estimated shipping time again.
He didn't have the patience to wait for a book that long.
A decision was made. John was walking to the bookstore. When he reached the town centre it was half an hour before closing time and so, he made his way quickly to the one place where he hoped would have the book he needed.
The bell chimed as he entered the shop and a friendly voice with a London accent greeted him. "Hello, Doctor, fancy seeing you here again."
"Hi, yes," he replied, almost in a whisper, eyes wandering all over the bookshelves before he walked towards the counter. "I was wondering if you happen to have this book in stock," he said and produced a small piece of paper from his jacket pocket.
Donna read the slip and furrowed her brows. "I don't think we have it but I could check."
John nodded as he saw Donna type the name of the book on the computer.
"Yeah, we don't have this book but I could place an order for it. It's going to take two to three days."
A couple of days was certainly a lot better than five. "That's fine."
Once Donna finished ordering the book, she gave him the order receipt and a form. "I'll let you know when the book gets here but I need your phone number for that so if you could just fill in the form, that would be great."
While John was filling up the form, she decided to strike up a conversation with him. "Clara told me she nearly burned you with her coffee just a couple of days ago."
At mention of Clara's name, the Doctor immediately looked up from the form. Confusion was written all over his face and Donna decided to spare him from questioning her.
"She's my tenant."
John silently nodded before completing the form and handing it back to Donna.
"Right, that's it really. Once the book's here, I'll phone you."
"Thank you," the Doctor said before stepping outside.
Not wanting to return home just yet, John made his way to the park. The weather was nice, although it was a bit chilly. The park was as expected, a lot less crowded than the town centre and much more peaceful.
Taking his seat at his favourite bench, John watched the waves of ocean move periodically. He couldn't help but smile when reminded of his days an undergraduate, learning all about the wave equation.
His thoughts then drifted to his late wife. How could she break his heart like this? Was she ever going to tell him the truth? John would have been lying if he said he wasn't upset but what broke his heart the most was the thought of being played. He loved River dearly despite their short-lived marriage.
The Doctor's train of thought was interrupted when he heard a familiar voice.
"Do you always go here every evening?" Clara asked curiously, keeping her distance.
John turned and was greeted by the sight of her in a black coat. He immediately rose from the bench. The cold air had caused her to button her coat all the way up and hair blowing in the same direction as the wind.
"Yes," the murmured, mesmerised for a second by her beauty before quickly gazing back at the ocean. "It's nice and quiet up here."
Slowly, Clara moved closer until she stood next to John. "It is definitely nice here."
"It is," he agreed awkwardly before taking his seat once again. His companion joined him shortly after.
Both sat in silence for a few minutes, unsure of what to say to the other but it was Clara who finally decided to break the ice.
"Is it alright if I ask you something? I'm just curious."
John glanced at her. "I suppose it depends on the question. What is it?"
"Is it your name really 'Doctor'?"
Clara saw the Doctor's eyes bulge before he let out a chuckle. "No, no, that's just my nickname, I guess. People always call me that."
"So what's your actual name then?"
John licked his lips and said. "I'm afraid you'll be very disappointed. It's a very generic name."
She gave him a playful look. "Oh come on, it can't be that bad. I told you mine – it's only fair if you tell me yours."
"Amadeus Pepperidge Cumbersnatch," John said with a serious face.
When the name he had given her rolled off his tongue, she had thought he was serious until she saw the glint in his eyes. Clara let out a small laugh, realizing he was simply joking. "And here I thought you were the serious type."
The Doctor beamed at her. "I am not a robot, Clara."
"My landlady thinks you're a Martian."
John shot her a surprised look. "A Martian?" he repeated. "But I'm not from Mars. I would have been fine if she said I'm from Space Glasgow."
"Are you really from Space Glasgow, then?"
"Yes."
They shared a laugh before John cleared his throat and told Clara his actual name. "John Smith. That's my name. Told you it would be a generic one."
"Still a lot better than Amadeus Pepperidge Cumbersnatch," Clara commented before taking a quick glance at her phone. "Right, it's getting late."
She rose from her seat and grabbed her belongings before smiling at John. "It was nice chatting with you, Amadeus Pepperidge Cumbersnatch."
"And you, Clara…"
"Oswald. Clara Oswald"
"Clara Oswald," John repeated her name, rolling the 'r'.
She turned and walked away before stopping a few seconds later. "Will you be here tomorrow?" she asked, almost nervously.
"I might. I usually am, it seems," he said, tiredly.
Clara found it odd how he said it as if it was more like a burden to him. It piqued her curiosity of him even more. Without another word, she left the park.
If Clara didn't know any better, he was probably here the same reason why she was in the first place but she shook the thought away. She found it hard to believe that he was a man trying to move on from his past. Why else would he wear a wedding ring in the first place?