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Chapter 25

In the back of her head, Clara knew just how wrong it was and the longer their kiss lasted, the more she forgot that they shouldn't keep doing this, especially not in public. It was one thing to cheat on Danny in private, but it was another to do it in the back room of the radio station where a journalist could burst in any moment and expose their secret. That thought was the one that finally made her pull away and Clara was gasping for breath when she did.

"Not in public," she reminded him strictly and distanced herself from him. "I can't even imagine the newspaper article if they figured us out. Clara Oswald is sleeping with the ageing rock star that she hates and is supposed to record an album with."

"That's a stupid headline."

"Exactly," Clara argued. "So let's just keep that in the privacy of my apartment, okay?"

"Okay," the Doctor agreed and then the smile returned to his lips. "So, shall we go to the privacy of your apartment?"

Clara smiled in return and then made her way towards her purse that she had discarded on one of the chairs when they had arrived at the radio station. "Let me just check that appointment," she explained but she hadn't even reached her purse as the door opened and when she looked up, she all of a sudden remembered her appointment.

"Danny," she blurted out in surprise. How could she have forgotten about that? Clara had told Danny about the radio interview and he had promised to pick her up afterwards. She truly was the worst girlfriend in the entire universe.

Danny had obviously picked up on her shock because a moment later, his forehead lined in a frown. "You forgot that I said I'd pick you up, didn't you?"

"No," Clara argued instantly and then forced herself to laugh. Even in her own ears, it sounded utterly nervous. "How I could forget about you, Danny? Never."

Instead of a frown, Clara now earned a raised eyebrow. She had forgotten about their dates on multiple occasions and Danny knew it as well as she did. She was going to have to make it up to him somehow.

"Ah, the altar boy was the appointment you couldn't remember," the Doctor said and he wore a smug smile on his face as he appeared next to her. Clara turned her head and glowered at him, but she knew better than to expect any kind of support from the Doctor.

"Why do you keep calling me that? I am not an altar boy!" Danny replied angrily.

"Are you sure?" the Doctor wanted to know. "I mean, have you checked?"

"Stop it," Clara demanded and gave him a look that was supposed to remind the Doctor of the last time he and Danny had crossed paths in her flat about two weeks ago. After that, she had threatened him with sex withdrawal if he didn't start being nicer to Danny. Only grudgingly, the Doctor had agreed.

Next to her, Danny sighed and when Clara looked at him, she was surprised to see a smile on his face. "I guess I shouldn't blame you," he said softly. "You're over-worked and you're tired and I can only imagine how that guy is getting on your nerves. I shouldn't be mad at you for forgetting a silly date when you're so busy being amazing."

Clara smiled at him in return and this time, it was almost honest. That was what she appreciated about Danny the most. He really, truly cared about her.

"Are you sure you can't get a few weeks off during the school break? We could go on holiday together and just relax for a while. It will do you good, I promise," Danny said as he laid his arm around her waist and bent down to leave a kiss on her cheek.

"No, she can't," the Doctor replied gruffly. "We have work to do."

Clara cleared her throat. "Doctor," she began sternly, "right now, you are my colleague, not my manager. It's not up to you to decide when I can get a week off and when I can't."

Finally, he shut up and when Clara looked at him, she thought that for a brief moment, she saw a flash of anger in his eyes. Or was it insecurity? Jealousy? Was the Doctor jealous of Danny despite claiming otherwise? He had asked her to leave Danny on multiple occasions, saying that she didn't love him, saying that he wasn't the one for her. How could he be jealous when he didn't even like her?

"Come on," Danny eventually tore her out of her thoughts. "Let's go. I promised I'd cook you lunch. How does that sound?"

"Uhm, great. That sounds great," she spluttered, but still Clara glanced back at the Doctor even while Danny was beginning to pull her away. Was he jealous? Did he like her after all, even just a little?

When they left the radio station, Clara decided to push the thoughts about the Doctor aside at least for the time being and instead focus on her loving boyfriend who tolerated all of her quirks and moods and the fact that they could probably never have a normal relationship. Clara knew that she wasn't being fair towards him and she had considered stopping, but she wasn't quite sure just what she wanted to stop.

"I don't like him," Danny said when they had been walking through the street for a while.

"Who?"

"The Doctor, of course," he replied. "He's. . . I don't know. There's something about him that bugs me."

Clara laughed. "Everything about him bugs me," she joked. "But he's a great musician. Danny, you should hear the songs we've written together. They're amazing! The album is gonna be amazing!"

To her surprise, Danny stopped dead in his tracks, forcing Clara to come to a halt as well. For a moment, he only looked at her.

"I think he's into you," he said after a while.

Again, Clara laughed. "Don't be silly," she told him. "We don't even like each other."

"That doesn't mean he can't have feelings for you," Danny argued. "I think he's jealous and that's why he's being especially rude around me."

"He doesn't have feelings for me," Clara told him, but she couldn't bring herself to lie about the rest. If Danny had picked up on it, maybe the Doctor really was jealous, but what did that mean for them, for her? And if Danny had picked up on it, what should she do about it?

"Clara-"

"I'm serious, Danny, he's rude all the time. Have you listened to the radio interview?"

"I have, but-"

"Then you know I'm right," Clara said exasperatedly. "The Doctor is a jerk and he's winding you up on purpose. He's winding me up on purpose. The difference is that I refuse to play along. Just let it go, Danny."

"I can't," he replied angrily. "Not while I'm thinking that he's after you. I just don't trust him."

"Do you trust me?" Clara wanted to know.

Danny hesitated for a moment but eventually, a smile spread across his face. "Yes," he said in a soft voice. "I always trust you."

Somehow, the way he said it stung like a dagger driven right through the pit of her stomach. Danny loved and trusted her and she had been cheating on him for weeks, months even. And for what? A man who couldn't even stand her. The Doctor wasn't worth it, but how on earth was she supposed to stop? How was she supposed to end their affair when he could make her feel things she had never felt before in her entire life? Was that really more important than the love and trust and stability Danny had to offer? Clara couldn't say. She just didn't know.

"Shall we go home?" Clara asked and she was surprised when her voice sounded a little broken. Quickly, she cleared her throat and put on a smile. "I remember you mentioning food."

"Yes," Danny agreed and finally cracked a smile as well before he placed his arm back around her waist. "Let's go home. But promise me to think about the holiday. Two or three weeks, just you and me on a Caribbean Island, doing nothing at all."

"I promise," she said weakly and let Danny lead her away. Something had to change, Clara knew it. She just didn't know what.