Chapter Twenty Nine

"Right, now that that's sorted we can get back to the task at hand," the Doctor said as they walked back into Suzanne's room.

The Doctor smiled when he noticed that Suzanne looked better than when he left the room. The color had returned to her face and she was sitting up and smiling. Jonathon was standing beside her, a huge grin on his face.

"Wow, whatever that stuff was Jonathon used, it worked wonders for me," Suzanne said when the Doctor and Rose came up to the left side of the bed. "What was that?"

"Oh, just a special blend designed to boost the immune system and increase energy," the Doctor said. "Something I came up with during one of my many moments of brilliance. And speaking of brilliance, I'm also brilliant at paddleball."

Suzanne laughed when he pulled out the paddle and ball and began to bat the ball up into the air.

"Um…Jonathon told me the truth about you and him while you were out there," Suzanne said.

"Not now, I have a rhythm going," the Doctor said.

He sniggered when Rose rolled her eyes at that and stopped the ball in midair.

"Only joking. What exactly did he tell you?" the Doctor said, putting the ball and paddle back in his pocket.

"I told him how I was related to you and a brief explanation of how I landed up here," Jonathon said.

"And what do you think?" the Doctor asked Suzanne while he pulled a syringe out of his pocket.

"Um…well, it's a bit of a shock hearing that my best mate was a clone grown from someone else's hand and that he's half alien," she said while the Doctor injected a pale green liquid into her IV tube.

"I tried to tell her that I won't anal probe her or eat her brains or anything like that," Jonathon said.

"Nope, Jonathon's a top bloke, a real keeper, you won't find a better friend," the Doctor said. "Now...what I just put in your saline drip will also help to boost your immune system. You see, I need to get you to my ship so I can do a proper cure."

"I thought it was your office," Suzanne said, amused.

"Well, it is an office of sorts, a very, very big office. But…wait here and I'll find Matron and ask if we can take you out of this wretched place."

"It's not wretched, they have a little shop," Rose said.

"Oh, never mind then, I take that back," the Doctor said while Rose giggled. "Any hospital with a little shop is not wretched. Anyway, gotta go, gotta go, be back in a mo!"

The Doctor left the room. Suzanne watched him go and then looked at Jonathon.

"So…you came from him, did you?" she said while Rose giggled.

"Yup. This used to be a part of him," Jonathon said, showing her his right hand. "I grew out of this bit of body part."

"Um, hey, everyone…"

Suzanne and Jonathon glanced at Rose and saw her pointing to the next bed. Suzanne groaned.

"Oh, I forgot about my roommate," she said to them. "She's most likely been listening in."

"I most certainly have, love," the elderly woman said from behind the curtain. "Interesting conversation, I must say. Now that I've been discovered, you wouldn't happen to have more of that energy boosting stuff, would you?"

Jonathon walked behind the curtain and saw her. She was short and extremely thin but her blue eyes were bright and her hair was long and silky and it flowed down her back while she sat up in the bed. She had an IV drip with the needle going into her right wrist and on a nearby table was a pitcher of water and several pill bottles.

"So…what's your name then?" Jonathon said.

"Bertie," she said. "Bertie Warwick."

"Nice to meet you, Bertie Warwick. I'm Jonathon Smith. I would love to help you but I'm not the one in charge of the meds. I'll have to ask the Doctor when he returns. What's wrong with you?"

"Cancer, dear, like her. I have colon cancer."

"I'll see what I can do. Wait here," Jonathon said.

"Love, I don't think I'll get very far if I try to leave," Bertie said with a chuckle. "If I could walk, I wouldn't be here."

"Doctor, you're needed behind the curtain," Jonathon heard Rose say.

He looked over when the Doctor poked his head around the curtain.

"Um…Rose said I'm needed," the Doctor said with wide eyes.

"This is Bertie," Jonathon said as he gestured to her. "She heard everything and she wants your help."

"I wouldn't mind a bit of that energy stuff you're giving her," Bertie said to the Doctor as he came around the curtain. "I have colon cancer, you see, and I could do with a bit of a boost."

"Well, I have extra but…you see, I had to fight to get my friend discharged and I don't think they'd let both of you go and my ship has to reserve power so…"

Bertie held up her hand.

"Love, I'm 87 years old, I'm ready to go," she said to him. "I don't want a cure for this old body, just a bit of a boost for today so I can do my crossword puzzle. If you can do that for me, I'd be grateful."

"Very well then," the Doctor said, reaching into his pocket.

He pulled out a syringe and injected the sea green liquid into her IV tube. Bertie smiled as she watched the serum mix with her saline solution and she patted his hand.

"Thank you, love, I needed that."

"Happy to help," the Doctor said, disposing of the syringe in a nearby trash can. "I only ask in return that you don't tell anyone what you heard today."

"What do you think I am? Thick?" Bertie said while Rose giggled. "You do realize at my age if I go around telling people a space alien and his clone were in hospital injecting people with magic boost potion that I would be declared senile and most likely sectioned? I'm old but I'm not stupid, thank you very much."

They laughed when she winked and took turns giving her hugs. They wished her well and Bertie wished them luck as they walked back around the curtain. Suzanne was sitting up in bed.

"Doing your good deed for today?" Suzanne said to them.

"I always do my daily good deed. I'm a good little boy scout," the Doctor said. "In fact, come to think of it, I probably invented the boy scouts. But…let me go get the nurse since she's waiting for you and she'll bring in a wheelchair so we can get going. Jonathon, Rose, look after her, I'll be right back."

He left the room and Suzanne looked at Jonathon.

"So…I take it once we're finished here, you might not be coming back to work with us?" Suzanne said.

"I don't think so. I think he's going to take us with him. Pete wants to get his claws into me and I'm not safe here any longer," Jonathon said.

"I'll miss you and I'm sure everyone else will as well but if you have to go," Suzanne said.

Rose smiled when Jonathon gave her a hug.

"You won't miss me, you'll be glad I'm gone ten seconds after I've left," he said to her.

"Yeah, you're right, I'll miss Boots more than you," Suzanne said.

"That's right, we can't forget my Bootsie," Jonathon said.

They looked over at the door when the Doctor came inside followed by an African American nurse. The nurse was wheeling in a wheelchair. She put it by the bed and locked it.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" the nurse asked Suzanne.

"Yes, I'm sure," Suzanne said. "This man is my doctor and he has a new treatment he wants to try on me. I figure I have nothing to lose so I'm going."

"Alright but you have to sign the discharge papers on your way out," the nurse said as the Doctor and Jonathon helped Suzanne stand up and ease down into the wheelchair.

After she was in the wheelchair and comfortable, the nurse unlocked it and Jonathon led her out the door while the nurse and Rose followed. The Doctor held back for a moment, stuck his head around the curtain and said goodbye to Bertie with a wink. Bertie giggled and waved back at him and he gave her a big cheesy grin before he hurried to catch up with everyone else.