It had been a long time since Peri had been back in the States. It was strange how alien it was to be in a city of ordinary skyscrapers and familiar accents rather than a world of aliens or, perhaps strangest of all, Brits. This was home, she reminded herself, give or take 300 kilometres and 30 years.
She sat back down on the bench after her brief stroll, making sure not to wander too far off from what had been designated the Reconnaissance Point. Central Park was teased with springtime Sun and, of course, the paths and grasses were crowded with New Yorkers and, based on their gaudy Statue of Liberty and NY merchandise, tourists alike. A few minutes more of people-watching passed before she peered again down the path that the city's most alien tourist had disappeared down some time ago, but there was still no sign of him. She closed her eyes and felt the warm Sun on her face, slowly sinking into the bench. The picnicking couple nearby resumed their argument yet again after another brief truce whilst the old woman at the other end of the bench continued throwing her seemingly never-ending supply of bread to the birds. In other words, it was a very, very normal day.
"'A waste of time', you said!"
Peri leapt to her feet, her relaxed body suddenly alert. The old woman gave her a sharp look before deciding the pigeons were far more interesting.
"Here," the Doctor said, standing behind the bench with a cone made out of newspaper in his outstretched hand. "New York City's finest fish and chips." Peri, frowning, looked down at the Doctor's offering: French fries and salmon wrapped in a copy of The Wall Street Journal. "It was something of a DIY job," he admitted.
"I'll pass," she said. "Did you have to go and scare me half to death?" The Doctor waved his hand dismissively and held out his arm for her to take, flashing a smile. Betraying herself, Peri cracked a smile herself and, soon enough, found herself walking in the shade of the nearby hackberry trees, arm-in-arm with her travelling companion in his eyesore of a coat.
"The eleventh of April, 1954," the Doctor said, helping himself to another chip. He threw a bit of salmon into a bin as they passed. "Where better to rest than the most boring day on Planet Earth this side of the solar flares?"
"The most boring day before I get to college, maybe," she muttered, remembering some particularly gruelling lectures during her time at California State. "I find it hard to believe that nothing at all happened today."
"Nothing remarkable, anyway. There's a general election in Belgium but that's just about it. No notable births, no notable deaths. The ideal day to do absolutely nothing."
Peri raised an eyebrow. "You hate doing absolutely nothing. The least eventful day on Earth sounds like your very own Hell."
"Oh, it is," he said, throwing away another bit of salmon. "But if you're happy, Peri, then I'm… content." Peri caught his eye and they both laughed.
"Well, thanks for making this sacrifice for me, Doctor," she joked. She stopped and grabbed her stomach. "I'm not feeling too good all of a sudden." The Doctor furrowed his brow and gestured towards the grass.
"Let's have a sit down, shall we? I've got something for a bad tummy in a pocket somewhere…"
"The bench," she insisted, the feeling of sickness pulsing from her stomach up. "I want to sit back down on the bench."
"Of course," the Doctor said. He put his arm around her shoulder and turned around, heading back along the path the way they had come. "It wasn't the chips, was it?" He eyed them suspiciously.
"I didn't touch any." As they returned to the bench, she quickly dropped back into her seat. The old woman was still throwing breadcrumbs and paid them no notice as they sat beside her. The Doctor began rifling through his coat pockets whilst Peri closed her eyes, the feeling starting to ebb away. The Sun's warmth washed over her face.
"Here we are!" shouted a voice. Peri leapt to her feet and saw the Doctor sat next to her, holding up a sheet of pills and resting a newspaper cone full of fish and chips in his lap.
"Doctor!" she shouted. "Did you have to go and scare me half to death!" The Doctor's face quickly became one of confusion. She put her hand to her forehead in disbelief and glanced around. The old woman gave her a quick look of annoyance before returning to her pigeons.
"Peri?" the Doctor said.
She took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Doctor, you scared me." With a shake of her head she composed herself and held out her arm for her brightly dressed travelling companion to take. "Let's walk it off. You ran off for your fish and chips so quickly you didn't give me a chance to ask what we're doing here."
The Doctor looked at her as though she had just come out in feathers again and took her arm slowly. "The eleventh of April 1954. The most boring day on Planet Earth for quite some time." He seemed more concerned with his own thoughts than talking to her, which wasn't all that unusual.
"Until I get to college, maybe," she muttered. "I find it hard to believe that nothing at all happened today."
The Doctor gave Peri a sideways look as they entered the shade of the nearby hackberry trees. "You know, Peri? I think you might be right."