Sixteen
'Saved'
- aka Fathers' Day (Part One)
It was the anniversary of Rose's father's death. At least it was from the time zone that her mother had called from, in the Tardis time is bit weirder, it doesn't run in a straight line apparently, which will always be something that Rose won't understand no matter the amount of times the Doctor tries to explain it.
The day was always hardest for her mum. Rose remembered all the times when she was really little that her mother would call her into her bedroom with a couple of ratty old photo albums spread out along her doona cover. She'd flick through the pages delicately, pointing and telling a story about each of the photos he was in.
Rose was just a baby when he died, and there were only a few photos of them together. One at her birth, when he was all red in the face and teary eyed. 'He'd fallen asleep before you were even born, curled up in that hospital chair while I did all the work. Couldn't even do that right,' Her mother had groused countless times as though Rose had never heard the story before, but there was always a fondness to her eyes and a tinge of regret in her voice whenever she told it. And then there was a photo taken in some park near her grandparents house taken only a week before he had died.
Jackie had always struggled on any November the 7th past 1987 but it was harder for her now that Rose was gone. Her voice was quiet over the phone, she was definitely disappointed that Rose had missed it.
Guilt clawed in the pit of Rose's stomach and up the back of her throat, a lump grew in her throat that was that big it felt hard to swallow. She'd clutched at the phone in an attempt to feel closer to her mother as she uttered out a shameful apology for not being there for her.
"Not the first time it's happened," Jackie had sighed over the phone. "You were gone an entire year, remember."
So she'd left her mother alone for two years in a row. What kind of a daughter was she? She couldn't exactly turn back time now and go home for the anniversary, not now that her mother had already experienced the day and called her to talk. Apparently it was something to do with crossing timestreams, not that she understood that either.
It wasn't like she purposefully forgot to visit, it was more that she just got distracted with all of the amazing adventures they go on and all the cool places they travel to. It had just skipped her mind.
She reminded her mum that she was truly sorry when Jackie had uttered something about needing to go down to the shops to get some groceries, drawing the call to an end.
"Mum," Rose said hesitantly, her mouth dry. "I do love you, don't ever forget that yeah?"
"Of course I know that darling, I love you too. I'll see you when I see you... Take care of yourself."
The phone beeped in Rose's ear after her mother hung up and she kept her mobile up to her ear, let the sound linger for a bit before she shoved her phone into the pocket of her denim jacket with a sigh. Dragging a hand down her face, Rose smoothed back the side bangs that she had cut for herself in the Tardis bathroom with the aid of Ella the other day and tried to get rid of the forlorn look she knew was plastered to her face as she began her walk to the main console room.
If she couldn't go back and be there for her mum when she needed her then maybe she could think of doing anything to make her feel better. She was in a time machine, she could go and see her dad before she was born if she wanted to, just to see him at least once in her life.
Ella and the Doctor were already up by the time she got there, they were talking away to one another and Rose thought that it would be easy for her to just slip right into the conversation and begin debating on where to go to next. Ella was standing by the console, watching as the Doctor threw up and down a strange metal ball from his spot on the chair and Rose came to a stop next to Ella, trying her hardest to blend in. But it seemed like it was hard for her to keep a low profile when Ella took one look at her and knew that something was wrong.
"What's the matter?" She asked, immediately stopping the conversation with the Doctor and turning her full concentration to Rose.
She sighed, knowing that she couldn't lie well enough to Ella, it seemed that her friend could always tell somehow and looked down at one of the buttons on the console, running her fingers over the shape of it.
"Mum just called. It was the anniversary of my father, Pete Tyler's death for her and I missed it...again."
Ella put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed, her eyes full of sympathy. "Oh, Rose I'm sorry."
Rose slumped against the side of the console and tried to keep tears from welling in her eyes. "November 7 1987 - the day my dad died. He was on his way to Stuart Hoskins and Sarah Clarks' wedding, that's what mum always says. So I was thinking, could we? Could we go and see my dad when he was still alive?"
The Doctor lowered the ball he was playing with into his lap as a serious look slipped over his face. "Where's this come from all of a sudden?"
She hadn't meant to get defensive at the Doctor, truly she hadn't, but the thought of not even being able to try and do this one thing to feel better about herself, to feel like she was making it up to her mum was more than disappointing. "All right then, if we can't, if it goes against the laws of time or something then nevermind. Just leave it."
"He never said that, Rose," Ella cut in, her hand stilling from the patterns she was rubbing into her shoulder.
The Doctor shook his head. "No, I can do anything. I'm just more worried about you."
And she definitely hadn't meant to let her voice crack when she rumbled out an explanation, her lips trembling with emotion. "I wanna see him."
"Your wish is my command," He raised his eyebrows at her then as she rose from the chair and made his way over to the console to flick at a couple of buttons and throw them into flight. "But be careful what you wish for…"
He'd taken them just where she asked, to her parents wedding. They'd somehow managed to get into the service, sat between random people that Rose had never met before in her nineteen years of life. No one questioned their appearance and they kept a low profile on the back row of seats in the cramped registry office, but there was still that swell of anxiety that someone would recognise her, even though that was beyond impossible. She wasn't even born yet.
The air gleamed with the overpowering scent of the air freshener sprayed before the service began and Rose had to stretch to peek around a couple of women with their massive head pieces stuck on top of their updos.
Somehow, it was exactly how she had imagined it to be. Her mother had told her basically every moment of the day - from the dread and nerves she felt when she woke up, to the way her dress was just a bit too tight, because if you know her mother you know that the woman likes to stress eat to solve all her problems. Her mother, Rose's grandmother had berated her for it just before she stepped into the office to get married, said that she should've watched what she ate before the big day and god forbid did that set her mother off. If Rose looked closely now she could see the slight uptick on the corner of her mothers' lips, a true sign that she was trying her hardest to conceal her irritation.
But Rose wasn't here to look at her mother, even though she did look beautiful in her simple white dress (with massive shoulder pads sewn into the shoulders, might she add) and her hair styled into a posh bun with a simple necklace and a set of dangly pearl earrings. It was her father that she was here for. But for some reason she found it hard to truly look at him.
His face held the same structure and appearance of the one captured in many photographs she had seen and yet the fact that he was right there before her in the flesh still had yet to sink in fully. He looked handsome in a dorky kind of way with his grey suit and large flower pinned to the jacket pocket to match the colour of the trimmings on her mother's dress. There was a blush so deep on his face that it almost blended in with the ginger of his hair and he was staring at the registrar with such intensity as he coached her dad on what to say.
The registrar was the image of calm as he regarded her father, gaze flickering out among the crowd every so often as though to make sure that he still had everyone's attention. "I, Peter Alan Tyler, take you, Jacqueline Andrea Suzette Prentice…"
Pete shuffled a bit on his feet and looked back over at her mother - his soon to be wife - intently. "I, Peter Alan Tyler," He repeated, voice shaking with nerves. "Take you, Jacqueline Susanne - Suzette, Anita…"
He trailed off hopelessly, the blush on his face only intensifying as Jackie pinned him with a disappointed look and Rose leaned forward in her seat to watch the moment closer. Her mother had never told her about this happening, maybe she'd blocked it out. Pete looked at the registrar who clearly didn't know how to proceed given the way that silence stretched between them.
"Oh, just carry on," Jackie insisted, sounding impatient. "If it's good enough for Lady Di…"
The Doctor stifled a laugh beside her and shared a grin with Ella, but Rose was staring too intently at her parents to respond to them. Her eyes raked over her father once more, trying to take everything in. Jackie had always made it seem like her husband towered over her in height, so much so that he would always make fun of her for it, but looking at them together now he only really had a couple of inches on her mother.
"I thought he'd be taller," Rose muttered under her breath, gaze stuck on her parents.
"...To be my lawful wedded wife," The registrar continued after a beat of silence. "To love and behold 'till death us do part…"
Back in the Tardis, the Doctor had tried to move on with the day but Rose wasn't satisfied. She had seen her dad in real life, she should feel better about the entire situation. But all Rose could think about was what her mother had told her when she was seven. Sat up in her mums' bed, her short legs struggling to reach the ground and kicking out restlessly, Jackie had told her that her father had died alone, limp body cold on the street before the ambulance could even get there.
"I only wish there'd be someone there for him," Her mother had said, eyes distant and pain filled when young Rose caught a glimpse of them. Those words floated around her mind now, all those years later. She could be that person, hold his hand while he died. She could do that for her mum.
Rose traced patterns on the surface of the console and looked over at the Doctor and Ella. They were waiting for her to say something, to okay their travel plans to go to some beach planet but Rose had other plans in mind.
"My mum said he died alone," She trailed, trying to pick her words properly. "She wanted someone to be there for him. I wanna be that someone, so he doesn't die alone."
The Doctor didn't try to talk her out of it, merely clarifying the date of her fathers' death. "November the 7th?"
"1987," She confirmed with a nod.
And so there she was, standing sandwiched in between the Doctor and Ella on the sidewalk near the road her father died on. Some generic '80s pop music played in the distance and she stared out at her surroundings, looking for anything and everything that could've been out of the ordinary. Wind whipped strands of her blonde hair across her face but apart from that the day was a completely normal one.
"That's so weird," Rose said, eyes flickering about, trying to take in everything at once. "The day my father died. I thought it would be all sort of grim and stormy. It's just an ordinary day."
"The past is another country. 1987 is just the Isle of Wight," The Doctor supplied.
Ella's hand wrapped around Rose's arms, smoothing the fabric down as she went and drawing her attention over to the brunette. Her friend looked hesitant and worried. "You sure you want to do this?" She asked softly as though tip-toeing over fragile eggshells.
Rose didn't want her to worry even though deep down the dread of seeing the moment her father died in front of her very eyes was beginning to cut away at her nerves. She nodded despite herself and her answer sounded strangely resolute and confident even when she felt neither of those things. "Yeah."
The street that the car hit him on was eerily quiet with very little traffic. She'd spied the political posters taped haphazardly on the brick walls as they took the shortcut here, something about not wanting to re-elect Thatcher for another term in Parliament, something that her mother would've undoubtedly yawned at. Her mother had never been one for politics...Rose wondered if her father was.
"This is it, Jordan Road," She took a breath, tried to calm her nerves. The way that Ella's shoulder was brushing against hers as they stood on the lip of the gutter below them helped a lot, and she shot her a half-lipped grateful smile as she continued on shakily.
"He was late...he'd been to get a wedding present, a vase. Mum always said 'That stupid vase'," An uncomfortable laugh spilled from her lips at the memory, thinking about all the times her mother had blamed herself for fighting with Pete to get the present - a good one - and get to the reception on time. It wasn't her fault though, it could never be.
A deep green hatchback that looked like it had seen better days turned the corner onto the road they were standing on slowly. Her father, Peter Tyler, was in that car, hands balanced haphazardly on the steering wheel as he pulled the car to a stop on the curb right near them.
"He got out of his car," Rose said, unable to tear his eyes away from her father who was rifling around looking for something on the passenger seat. "...And crossed the road," She stared at him, realisation hitting her like a ton of bricks. "Oh god this is it."
The Doctor's hand linked with hers and the brushing of Ella's shoulder against her was firmer, more protective as her father got out of the car and shut the door behind him without a care in the world. There was a car that rounded the corner faster than her father had just seconds before, its matte brown paint clearly in need of a patch up and tyres just the slightest bit too flat to be roadworthy.
Rose watched on in horror as her father was oblivious to the danger that awaited him in just seconds. He was still in the middle of the road as he turned to begin walking but the car was going just the slightest bit too fast to stop on time. And her father saw that, his eyes widening in unimaginable fear as he looked head on at the car, unable to do anything to help himself.
Tyres screeched as the unknown driver tried to slow down, but there wasn't enough grip on the tyres to stop in time. It rammed into him with a sudden bang, and Rose hid her face in the soft material of the grey jumper that Ella wore as the car skidded but continued to drive on, picking up speed as it went. She couldn't bring herself to watch her father die.
The vase shattered into thousands of pieces on the sidewalk and Rose watched one of the pieces spinning around on the ground from the impact. It came to a stop right by where her father lay and her eyes reluctantly traced along the arm that was hanging out by his side, twitching away. The rest of his body was still, unresponsive. He was dying right in front of her and there was nothing that she could do to stop it.
This was an awful idea, why had she ever thought she could do this?
"Go to him. Quick," The Doctor instructed, she was running out of time to do what she wanted to do.
His arm stopped twitching and then he was dead. Gone before her very eyes.
Tears streamed down her face a few minutes later as she sought shelter around the corner. Sirens rang, their noise gaining in sound as they grew closer. They weren't going to be able to do anything though, no one could.
She rested her head against the cool red brick, listening to the sounds around her and closed her eyes. "It's too late now. By the time the ambulance got there he was dead," And she didn't even do what she had set out to achieve. She turned to the Doctor and began to beg for another opportunity. "He can't die on his own. Can I try again?"
The Doctor's lips stretched into a thin line.
There was more urgency in the Doctor's steps as he led them back down to Jordan Road. She'd heard him muttering something about how he shouldn't be doing this again when they were in the Tardis just before, and had been serious ever since.
They came to a stop around the corner of the building, peering around it to see the earlier them waiting out on the sidewalk. The Doctor blocked both her and Ella from moving any closer and began to instruct them on what to do.
"Right, that's the first us. It's a very bad idea, two sets of us being here at the same time. Just be careful they don't see us...wait 'till she runs off and they follow, then go to your dad."
Rose watched on, nerves bristling and eyes still wet with tears as the whole thing started to unfold out in front of her once more. Her father's car pulled to a stop, he still took his time to get what he needed in the front seat before exiting. She could hear the blood rushing through her veins and she began to talk herself out of it once again.
"I can't do this," She whimpered tearfully.
"You don't have to do anything you don't want to," Ella assured from her side.
"But this is the last time we can be here," The Doctor told her sternly, no room for argument in his tone.
A breath shuddered out of Rose as she watched her father reach for the handle on the car door and without even stopping to think she sprung forward, racing down the street to get to her dad in time.
The Doctor called out behind her, alarmed by her actions, but it was too late now, she was doing it. She was going to be the one to save her father. She ran past the old versions of herself, Ella and the Doctor, paying them no mind as she got to her father and pulled him out of the way just in time.
They fell to the ground, his body bracing her fall as she tumbled to the asphalt. The vase toppled to the ground too, but remained intact, rolling across the cement towards them. Rose reared back and looked her father in his eyes. They were widened in fear, but he was still alive, still moving.
"I did it," Rose said in wonder, unable to tear her eyes off of him as he looked around trying to figure out what happened. "I saved your life!"
Pete Tyler, her father, pushed himself up from the ground and looked off in the direction of the corner the car was flying around, Rose following him. "Blimey, did you see the speed of it? Did you get his number?"
"I really did it. Oh my god look at you, you're alive! That car was gonna kill ya!"
He brushed off his jacket and avoided eye contact with her as a flush travelled over his face in embarrassment. "Give me some credit. I did see it coming. I wasn't gonna walk under it, was I?"
Rose couldn't stop looking at him. She'd actually done it. Here he was, standing alive in front of her. "I'm Rose," She found herself introducing with a smile.
"That's a coincidence, that's my daughter's name," He told her a little sheepishly.
She laughed a little breathlessly. "It's a great name. Good choice. Well done."
Pete nodded awkwardly and then hesitated, getting antsy on his feet as they stood in the middle of the road. "Right uh, I better shift. I've got a wedding to go to."
"Is that Sarah Clark's wedding?"
His eyes lit up in recognition."Yeah, you going?"
"Yeah," She said, lying easily.
Pete pointed out to something behind her. "You and your friends need a lift?"
Rose turned. The Doctor was glaring, arms crossed over his chest while Ella was just staring on with wide eyes. Neither were happy at what she just did.
The air was wrong...stiff as a now alive Peter Alan Tyler unlocked the door to the apartment and let them in. He rattled on inside, a bit of an airhead, jumping from one topic to the next every two seconds. He even forgot to close the door to his apartment, willing to leave it right open if the Doctor hadn't closed it behind him.
While the Doctor was the pure image of calm there was a sea of anger rolling around in his body. He'd just allowed a young girl to change the entire history right in front of his eyes and he didn't do anything to stop it. And there the nineteen year old was, laughing and giggling and staring in awe at the man who should be dead. The man who wouldn't stop talking.
"...Milks in the fridge," The Doctor heard Pete say as he drew closer to the man. "Well it would be, wouldn't it? Where else would you put the milk? Mind you there's always the windowsill outside. I always thought if someone invented a windowsill with special compartments, you know one for milk, one for yoghurt, you could make a lot of money out of that, sell it to students and things...I should write that down," Pete decided with a nod. "Anyway - eh, never mind that, excuse me a minute, gotta go and change," He mumbled, moving out of the room without a second hesitation of leaving three randoms in his living room.
Rose did what any daughter who had just broken every law of time by saving her father would do...snoop through the place. Ella stuck close by his side, looking at Rose hesitantly as though she too knew that something had gone very wrong. It was only Rose that was oblivious to what damage she had just caused.
"All the stuff mum kept. His stuff," She said, peering around at the place. "She kept it all packed away in the boxes in the cupboard. She used to show me when she'd had a bit to drink. Here it is...on display. Where it should be."
She was looking at the Doctor, testing to see if he'd say anything but he simply crossed his arms, waiting for her to get it all out before he had to spell it out for her. His mind was brimming with all of the possible things he could say to her, bursting with ideas.
Rose carried on, pointing down at the trophies. "Third prize at the bowling. First two got to go to Didcot...health drinks," She said enthusiastically, bending over to look at the litre bottles littering the floor. "'Tonics' mum used to call them. He made his money selling this Vitex stuff. He had all sorts of jobs, he was so clever."
She pointed over to some blueprints scattered across the table. "Solar panels. Mum said he was going to do this. Now he can," The facade was beginning to crack and Rose rubbed her hands over her jeans trying to think of an excuse. "Ok look -"
"-When we met, I said 'travel with me in space'. You said no. Then I said 'Time machine'," The Doctor said simply, trying to school his voice to be calm.
Rose swallowed. "It wasn't some big plan," She stated defensively. "I just saw it happening, and I thought, 'I can stop it.'"
His anger spiked before he could help himself. "I did it again. I picked another stupid ape. I should've known. It's not about showing you the universe. It never is. It's about the universe doing something for you."
"So it's okay when you go to other times and you save people's lives, but not when it's me saving my dad?"
"I know what I'm doing. You don't! Two sets of us being there made that a vulnerable point," The Doctor shot back.
"But he's alive," Rose insisted.
The Doctor pushed off of the wall he was leaning against and moved closer to Rose, eyes burning with anger, though he managed to keep his voice down. "My entire planet died, my whole family. Do you think it never occurred to me to go back and save them?"
"But it's not like I've changed history," Rose argued. "Not much. I mean...he's never gonna be a world leader. He's not gonna start World War Three or anything."
"Rose, there's a man alive in the world who wasn't alive before. An ordinary man. That's the most important thing in creation. The whole world's different because he's alive," He insisted.
She pinned him with a blank look, trying to play him like a fool. "Would you rather him dead?"
"I'm not saying that."
Her sights were set on someone else, she looked over to Ella as her frustration continued to grow. Her words were harsh as she spoke them, and clearly judging by the look Ella had when she was called out, it was something that she wasn't expecting to happen.
"What about you, El, huh? You've been quiet since we got here. Do you think it's better if my dad's dead?"
Ella held up her hands in defence. "I've never said that, or thought that. Not once. But you should've listened to the Doctor. I don't think you should've come here in the first place. Seeing a parent like that...it's not something you should volunteer to do."
It seemed that her comment riled Rose up more and she thrust a finger in her direction. "You wouldn't know, you don't have any parents. You don't have any family to care for."
Ella reeled back, her face painted with sadness. "You're right," She said with a shrug, it looked like she was trying to cover all of her emotions up but it was more than clear that she was hurt. "You're right, I don't know what it's like. But thank you for pointing it out. Like I'll ever forget," Ella turned around, making her way to the door before either of them could stop her. "I'm going to the Tardis," She called over her shoulder, slamming the door shut behind her as she went.
The Doctor turned back to Rose - took in the petulant look on her face.
"You shouldn't have -"
" - No I get it," Rose cut in, flapping her hands about. "For once you're not the most important people in my life!"
The Doctor shrugged, trying to act like her words were no big deal to him. "Let's see how you get on without us then. Give me the key," He demanded, holding out his palm flat in front of her. Rose hesitated with wide eyes but he wasn't going to give up. "The Tardis key. If I'm so insignificant, give me it back."
"All right then I will," Rose said as she reached into the pocket of her denim jacket and grabbed it out, slapping it down onto his palm.
He turned the key over and then shoved it into his jacket pocket. "You've got what you wanted, so that's goodbye then," He headed for the door with Rose following after him.
"You don't scare me," She said. "I know how sad you are. You'll be back in a minute. Or you'll hang around outside the Tardis waiting for me 'cos Ella won't ever let you leave without me,"
The Doctor brushed past her and opened the door, moving outside without a second glance back as he went.
"And I'll make you wait a long time!" Rose yelled out after him, slamming the door like a stupid little child having a tantrum.
The Doctor's body was thrumming with anger as he traced his steps back to the Tardis. He couldn't believe that he'd gone and trusted yet another person using him for their own benefit. He'd bet that she had this plan cooked up all along, working him and being friendly until he trusted her and then BAM, manipulate him into caring enough about her to let her save her dead father.
How stupid of him.
Something loomed above him. A whoosh of wind hit the back of his head and neck at the wrong direction sending a cold snap through his body. It felt like he was being watched by something. Briefly, he wondered where Ella had run off to. It was clear that she didn't really know where a lot of things were on these streets, wouldn't be a surprise if she got lost in her state. But then he saw her figure the closer he got to the Tardis.
She was leaning against a brick wall near where he'd parked the Tardis just staring off into space. She didn't even notice his presence until he was stood directly in front of her. Must've been in a mind of her own. She blinked once she realised he was there and then squinted over at him.
"Where's Rose?"
The Doctor's mouth twisted into a bitter smile. "Off playing happy families. You alright?"
Ella shrugged, staring down at her nails.
"Guess so. It was just too...creepy in there...Too wrong," She added as an afterthought.
He nodded his head because he really did understand what she was going through and reached into his pocket for the key. He still hadn't made up his mind about whether or not he was going to leave Rose here, but one thing's for sure, he did want a quick trip away to get his thoughts in order.
He could feel Ella watching his movements, scrutinising him as he made his way over to the Tardis, key poised in the lock.
"What about Rose?"
The Doctor paused, shoulders tensing. "What about Rose?" He shot back flatly, pushing the key into the lock and turning.
It took him about half a second to notice that something had gone horribly wrong. Half a foot in the door, he didn't feel the thrum of his Tardis talking to him, didn't feel the warmth of the lights on his skin. It was cold and dark and empty. His Tardis had been reduced to a simple police call box with four straight edges. There was no ship. It was gone.
"Oh no," The Doctor breathed, reaching out to grab at Ella's hand and dragging her down the street. This was bad. This was very, very bad.
The same car that was meant to kill her father nearly took Rose and Pete out as they went to the church. It sped round the corner, car in the middle of the road, heading straight for theirs. In her horror she'd noticed the way the driver lifted his arm up over his face as he drove - the exact same way he had when he'd killed her father. Heart in her throat, she'd called out to her father, used the name dad to get his attention.
Pete swerved, car going up over the gutter of the sidewalk right in front of the church, pulling to a hasty stop right before he crashed into the tree in front of them. Snapping on the handbrake, Pete arched his head to look out of the rearview mirror. It seemed she wasn't the only one who noticed it was the car from before coming back to haunt them.
"It was that car. Same one as before," He said a bit breathlessly, pulling himself out of the car. Rose followed him, grabbed the vase as she went and joined him as he rounded the car looking for any damage. "It was right in front of us," He pointed out, eyes squinting to see down the street. "Where's he gone?"
Rose hesitated. It felt like there was a heavy rock sitting in the bottom of her stomach. She'd been travelling with the Doctor long enough to understand when something was wrong. But it was her dad, surely him being alive wouldn't change the course of history. He was just one simple man.
Pete turned his attention back onto Rose, eyes narrowing in suspicion. "You called me dad. What did you say that for?"
Her mouth opened, trying to formulate an answer. She could chalk it up to a slip of the tongue...her dad had been in a car accident when she was younger and now she has a complex...that excuse was far too close to home. Whatever she was going to say was cut off by the sound of a very irritated, very familiar voice.
"Oh, wonderful. Here he is, the accident waiting to happen! You'd be late for your own funeral and it nearly was!"
Her mother had come over, her younger face contorted into anger as she regarded her husband. She barely spared a look at Rose as she went, but Rose couldn't stop staring at her. God, that hairstyle…
"No damage done," Pete said defensively.
Jackie narrowed her eyes at Rose, pointing over at her. "And who's this?" Rose couldn't stop staring, and that didn't sit well with her mother. "What you looking at with your mouth open?"
"Your hair," Was all that Rose could bring herself to say. Her mother hated curling her hair, would always stick to the straighteners Rose's entire life. But looking at her now, with those hairsprayed ringlets locked in place and massive light pink flower clipped in behind her ear, she looked the pinnacle of a woman in the '80s.
"What?"
"I've never seen it like…" Rose stopped, had to catch herself from giving who she was away. "I mean...It's lovely. Your hair's lovely."
It was then that Rose noticed her mother balancing a baby carrier between her hands. That's her, there in the carrier. That's a younger version of her staring up at her quietly. Rose was staring at herself as a baby. She edged forward, trying to get a better look.
"And that baby you're holding...that would be...your baby."
Jackie's judgemental eyes roamed her body. "'Nother one of yours is she?" She asked Pete.
"She saved my life!"
"Oh that's a new one!" Jackie shot back, eyes full of fire. "What was it last time."
"I didn't even know her," Pete said, feeling the need to explain himself to Rose when she glanced over at him with disbelief. "She was a cloakroom attendant. I was helping her look for my ticket. There were three duffle coats all the same. Somehow the rack collapsed, we were under all this stuff…"
Surely her father hadn't of had an affair. "Were you playing around?" She interrogated.
"What's it got to do with you what he gets up to?" Jackie cut in with a scowl.
"What does he get up to?"
"You'd know!"
No she really wouldn't. Her entire life her mother had painted Pete as some sort of hero. The best man in the world and the best father. They'd fight, sure, no couple was perfect and Jackie was young enough when she got pregnant that there was barely any time to settle in with her husband - get used to married life. They made do, her mother was happy with him. Or so Rose thought. She'd never once heard that her father would sleep around, or that her mother ever even suspected him of cheating.
"Oh, 'cause I'm that stupid. I play around and then bring her to meet the missus! You silly cow."
"But you are that stupid," Jackie insisted.
"Can we keep this stuff for back home, just for now?"
"What, with the rest of the rubbish. You bring home cut-price detergents, tonic water, Betamax tapes, and none of it works. I'm drowning in your rubbish," Jackie turned to Rose then. "What did he tell you? Did he say he's this big businessman? 'Cause he's not. He's a failure. Born failure, that one. Rose needs a proper father not one who's playing about -"
"- Jackie I'm making a living. It keeps us fed don't it -"
"Stop it!" Rose yelled. This was not how they were supposed to act around each other, not how she imagined it. They were supposed to be happy. "You're not like this. You love each other," Her voice cracked at the end, tears welling at the corner of her eyes.
"Oh Pete you never used to like them mental. Or I dunno, maybe you did -"
"-Jackie wait, just listen -"
"-If you're not careful, there'll be a wedding and a divorce on the same day," Jackie yelled, walking away and shushing a crying baby Rose - a crying her - as she went.
Keys were slapped into her palm then, replacing the vase as Pete went to go after her.
"Wait here," He said distractedly. "Give us a couple of minutes with the missus. Tell you what, straighten the car up. Stick it round the corner or something. Don't cause anymore trouble!"
It wasn't supposed to be like this, Rose thought when she returned to the church after moving the car. She stood a bit away, watching as her parents continued to argue. They were calming down a bit now, and she caught Pete promising her that things will get better soon, that he'll sort it out.
A little boy ran past dressed in a fitted suit and tie screaming that monsters were coming as he bounded into the church. Some of the bridesmaids cooed at him teasingly as he went, and Rose stared at the boy, wondering if he was Mickey Smith.
And then she could hear the pattering of feet running towards her quickly from behind her. She had an inkling of a feeling that she knew who it was and the desperate sounding voice went and confirmed it for her.
"Rose!" The Doctor yelled behind her.
A smirk curved at her lips because she just knew that they were going to come back. She had bet it after all. She took her time to turn around and face them. The Doctor and Ella were sprinting towards her, hands interlocked as they continued to run.
"Rose! Get in the church!" He called out again, face deadly serious.
There was a loud flutter of wings above her. At first she didn't think anything of it, until her eyes caught sight of a large stretched shadow on the pavement. Heart sinking in her chest she stretched her neck to look up at the thing.
A massive winged creature hung directly over her, looming. It looked like a giant bat with sharp, gangly winged arms and it was lunging right at her. She tumbled to the ground, the Doctor's arm on her shoulder keeping her down as the thing swooped down and then sprung back up into the air.
Rose scrambled to her feet with the help of Ella tugging at her arm and moved towards the church when the Doctor was calling for everyone to get inside.
The panic in the air was palpable. Guests stood on the lawn staring at the aliens in horror, frozen as more of the creatures appeared out of thin air and started flying around. They were cut off at the gate on the way in as one swooped close to them, its glowing red eyes focused on the bride. The Doctor told the people in the church to keep back but one of them ran and the thing chased after it, devouring him as he screamed in agony.
Another one was distracted by the priest which gave the Doctor the opportunity to usher everyone into the church, closing the doors behind him.