"Thank goodness our utilities are fixed," the Doctor said when Rose finally emerged from the bathroom, scrubbed clean. "The amount of water that took's probably doubled our usual monthly use."
"Next time we get the Easy-Clean variety," Rose agreed, towelling her hair. "Still, it was worth it."
The flat looked a lot more welcoming with a bit of colour, and the smell wasn't too bad—especially since the Doctor had opened the windows wide, despite the rain trickling down the shutters.
"We've still got a bit of paint left," the Doctor said, peering in at the tin. "What shall we do with it?"
"Keep it," Rose said immediately. "In case of any further accidents."
"Oh. Yeah, good idea."
"Where's Elsa gone?"
"I'm making sandwiches," called a voice from the kitchenette.
Rose raised her eyebrows at the Doctor. "Why's Elsa the one doing lunch?"
"What? She offered! Don't look at me like that. Anyway, I had to wash too."
"I've done the measurements," Elsa said, coming into the studio room with plates of sandwiches and setting them on the table. "After lunch we can draw up a plan."
"Great. Thank you, Elsa," the Doctor said sincerely.
"You're welcome. Now eat up, both of you."
After going over a room plan, the three of them went out, armed with Elsa's measurements, to a second-hand home shop that Elsa knew. Although Rose fell in love with a set of freestanding old wooden shelves, Elsa firmly pointed out that they wouldn't fit—and anything in that style that would fit, would just serve to make the flat feel even more cramped than it already did.
"We talked about this, Rose. In a place as small as yours, with storage, the key is to get as much as possible under the bed. If there are leftovers, we find more flexible ways to accommodate them."
"You're right," Rose said with a little sigh.
The Doctor, as reluctant as he was to give up a bed that not only had been provided free, but also gave him an excuse for sleeping so close to Rose during the night, couldn't help but be cheered up when they reached the bed section. There weren't many beds with drawers—the ones that came with them were quite small. But the Doctor found one which was high off the ground, with plenty of space underneath, which came with a much more comfortable mattress than their current one. Admittedly, it didn't throw two sleepers together, but it did sort of mould to their body shapes, and he was sure with a bit of tweaking and imagination, excused snuggling with Rose could continue.
"This one," he said firmly.
Rose took a flying leap onto it. "Ooh. I second that. This is nice." She sat up. "And I like the headboard."
The Doctor looked round. It was an old-fashioned metal frame, the bars of which curled in spirals at the top. "It's … interesting. Can you see a price anywhere?"
"Two hundred and ninety-nine staples, ninety nine quarz," Elsa said, reading off the side.
"You could have just said three hundred," Rose pointed out. "That's definitely not bad for a bed that looks hardly used."
"I told you, this place is excellent," Elsa said. "I almost completely furnished my house from here. You won't find bargains like this anywhere else. You definitely like this one?"
"Yes," they said together. Elsa whipped out her measuring tape.
On the way back home, laden with their portable goods and the order for the heavier items, the conversation petered out. It had been a long and exhausting day, and the next day was Staday—the beginning of the working week.
"Well," Elsa said as they parted. "This is my stop. Back to it next Funday, right?"
"Right. Thanks again, Elsa."
"You're welcome."
It wasn't until she was gone that the Doctor realised something. Not once had Elsa commented on their sleeping arrangements. It probably hadn't done anything to convince her that they really were just friends. Oh, well. He couldn't bring himself to care about it right then. Not that he could make out what he was supposed to feel about that.
"So," Rose said once they stepped back into their new yellow flat, "what's going to happen to the old bed?"
"The landlord said he'll stick it in the garage if we don't want it. And Elsa's talked to him about the other stuff, he's okay with it. Especially since she'll be billing him for the table and chairs."
