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Chapter 52 -Watching the Game
Harriet held Genie in her lap as Jack leaned over and kissed Genie on the top of her head.
"How long have you known the Doctor?" Harriet asked.
"Oh, a long time. Well, I knew Rose before I knew him. We go way back." Jack told her. Jake brought him a beer as he sat down next to him. "Thanks, Jake! Yeah, we all traveled together for a while."
"I've heard of some of the things Rose and the Doctor did. Sounds wonderful." Harriet said.
"Yeah, it was a lot of fun! Good times! Helped a lot of people. That's his thing, you know. He wants to be helpful."
Rose walked back in the room with Gobbo the Quauhtin and Jackie. Everyone greeted Jackie as she took in her surroundings. "Rose said Tony is doing something I need to see."
They brought her to the window just as the annoucer started.
"Welcome to tonight's football match. Arsenal versus Aston Villa! As a special thank you to our President Harriet Jones for her continued support of our fine sport, we have a special ceremony for everyone before the game gets started. Coming out to the pitch now is Tony Tyler, escorted by Doctor Johnathon Smith, creator of the bone regrowth machine and many more medical advances that we'll be hearing more about in the next few months!"
Jackie smiled and covered her mouth. "Oh my gosh! Are they safe?"
Howie had his hand on her shoulder. "They have four body guards with them. They are alright."
Harriet smiled. "I was supposed to go out there. Security couldn't be higher."
They all watched as Tony and the Doctor, flanked by their four body guards ran out on the pitch to join the team. They all shook hands and several of the players rubbed Tony's head.
Rose stood at the window watching them. Jake asked, "Do you think he's excited or what?"
Rose didn't take her eyes off of the Doctor as she smiled. "He's about to burst. He's so happy."
They continued to watch as the players gave Tony and the Doctor a shirt that looked just like the one they wore with their kit. Then they handed both of them a ball and lead them over to a goal. The keeper stood in front of it. Tony lined up his shot.
The refereee blew a whistle and Tony kicked his ball, traveling up the pitch. As he got close to the net, he shot the ball and it went right in the net. The room erupted in cheers. Genie yelled, "Yay, Tony!"
The players on the pitch cheered for him as he ran over to join them. Then it was the Doctor's turn. Rose could feel his nervousness.
'Just relax, and enjoy the moment.' she told him.
'Right.' he said.
'Pretend that ball is a Dalek.' Rose helped.
She felt him relax.
The Doctor laughed and pointed at the television camera. They saw him in the room and laughed.
Jackie fussed, "He can't take anything seriously."
Rose smiled as she chewed her thumb.
Jake sat up and smiled, "Wouldn't it be great if he actually scored?"
Rose closed her eyes and imagined the ball flying into the goal.
The Doctor lined up his shot as the referee blew his whistle. He ran up to the ball and kicked it. The keeper dove and just barely missed not catching it. The room went crazy as the ball hit the back of the net. The team ran up and congratulated the Doctor. They ran off of the pitch with Tony on their shoulders. The Doctor ran with the team.
Rose turned and hugged Harriet. "Oh wow! He's going to be hard to live with now. Both of them are! Thank you, Harriet."
Jackie laughed and hugged Harriet. "Yes, thank you. Tony will never forget that!"
Jack leaned over and asked Jake, "Does this sort of thing happen often here?"
Jake chuckled. "With this lot, anything can happen."
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The game was well underway when the Doctor and Tony rejoined the crowd in the room. The Doctor had a box of footballs and shirts. He tossed them around the room to everyone. Genie ran up to him and jumped in his arms. He was still wearing his shirt they had given him on the pitch. Tony was bouncing the football it off his head. The Doctor knelt down and grabbed a shirt and helped Genie put it on. He found a pink ball and handed it to her. "There. I picked that one out just for you." She took it and kissed him on the cheek.
Rose joined them and hugged him both. "Good kick!" she told him.
"Completely luck!" he laughed at her. He kissed her quickly.
Jack walked by, "Yep, still not used to seeing that. Very strange."
They both laughed.
After the shirts and the footballs were passed around the room, everyone was engrossed in the game. The Doctor sat on the sofa with his arm wrapped around Rose. Genie wore her shirt he had put on her. It went down to her ankles. She was sitting on a sofa watching the game with Tony, and Michelle's twins and laughing. Tony and the twins, along with Michelle's other three sons, were spinning their shirts around their heads and cheering. Their older brother, Logan, sat back and laughed at them.
Howie sat behind the children with Harriet. They were deep in some conversation. Both of the Presidents always tried to make the most of every meeting. Howie was holding his shirt and watching the game sitting next to Harriet with his arms crossed. The Quauhtin all stood around the back of the room.
The Doctor rubbed Rose's back. 'I only wish Pete were here. He would love this.'
'He'll be back in the middle of everything very soon.'
'I need to pop over there and see him tonight. Give him an update about himself. He asked me to do that yesterday.'
Rose smiled, 'I'm sure I don't have to remind you of your other plans this evening.'
'Nope! I have thought of very little else all day. And lollipops just don't work anymore.'
Rose looked up at him and giggled. 'Are you alright? You feel so...'
'Happy. Very happy at the moment. I'm sorry if I'm shielding it. I'm trying to keep all of my dirty thoughts to myself.'
Rose laughed at him. 'You have it bad.'
'Oh, gosh you have no idea. It's so difficult to sit here next to you, wearing that dress, wondering what's under it. Tell me, is there anything under it?'
Rose looked up at him. He rested his forehead on hers and smiled. 'You can find that out later.'
'You could just tell me. Put me out of my misery.' he teased her.
'It wouldn't help your misery to know. Trust me.'
He slapped the arm of the sofa and bit his lip. 'Damn. That tells me my answer. You are such a mean woman. How can I concentrate on anything else now?'
Rose giggled, "You are so funny."
He ran his hand through his hair and drank his wine, clearly frustrated.
Jack was watching the Doctor and Rose have their private conversation. He sat, with Jake, on a couch directly behind them. Jack drank his beer and shook his head. He leaned over and asked Jake. "Have they been like that ever since he's been here?"
Jake looked at the Doctor and Rose. The Doctor continued to rub Rose's back as she leaned into him on the sofa. They saw as the Doctor leaned over and kissed her on the top of her head and then cheered with the rest of the room over a great play from the football game. Jake shook his head. "Not really. It's just been here recently I've noticed it. Before, they both just ... I don't know. It's like it was there, but they danced around it."
Jack looked at Jake and pointed, "Now that! I remember! Yes! They didn't want to admit it to one another. I traveled with them both for a long time, and they were exactly like how you are talking about."
They saw Rose giggle at the Doctor as he smiled down at her.
Jack made a face. "Ugh. I feel like I ended up in the Twilight Zone sitting here watching this."
Jake laughed as he drank his beer. "Yeah, they've only had Genie about a week. Maybe a week and a half. I guess it's hard for them to find time to be together with everything going on. The Doc at Torchwood, running that business with Pete -"
"Wait! Doc has a business?"
Jake nodded his head. "Oh yeah! He makes machines to help people. Like medical things. His first one is this thing that regrows your bones when they break. I bet that's because he broke his hand so badly when he first got here. I know that had to hurt."
Jack shook his head is disbelief. "I've never known him to ever get hurt. He broke his arm? How?"
Jake laughed. "Rose punched him out of the bed. She told me. I wish I could have seen it! He was trying to wake her up from having a nightmare and she popped him one."
Jack doubled over laughing. "Oh, that is brilliant!"
Jake laughed. "Yeah, he has been sick. But, he's alright now. In fact, he's cashing in a favor. I owe him one. Well, two. He asked me to watch the children tonight while he takes Rose someplace. I don't remember where he said."
Jack nodded his head. "He do that often?"
Jake shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, since he got these watches working. It's going to be helpful with Rose doing all of this press for that Nobel Prize. Oh, I hope she wins it."
Jack's eyes got huge. "The what?! What?! Rose what?!"
The Doctor and Rose looked back at them. The Doctor laughed, "What are you on about up there, Jack?"
Jack shook his head and bent over the back of the couch where they sat. "Jake said something about he hopes you win something?"
Rose looked confused. "Win, what?"
The Doctor smiled as he realized what they had been talking about. "The Nobel Prize, sweetheart. I didn't tell Jack about that. I thought I'd just send him to your speech at Princeton, Monday. Wait is that Monday?"
The Doctor shouted at Michelle. "Michelle! Is Rose's at Princeton, Monday? I can't remember."
"Yes. Monday afternoon. It's in your phone." Michelle smiled at him.
"Right. Thanks!" he told her.
The Doctor rubbed his head. "I don't know how I would keep all of this straight without Michelle. Yes, Monday."
Jack was in shock. He pointed at the Doctor. "Okay, no wait. You, I can see winning the Nobel Prize."
The Doctor shook his head and told him quietly. "No. I couldn't do that. You know that. And you know why." The Doctor looked into Rose's eyes and spoke to Jack. "Rose, though. She's brilliant. She wrote this amazing paper, and did some other stuff that we will have to talk about later. She's nominated for a Nobel Prize in Physics. She's simply amazing."
Jack was still confused. "Ugh. Gross. Yeah...well we will be talking about that later! I need to be filled in! What in the hell is going on here?"
Jack got up and sat back down with Jake. "Totally popped out in the Twilight Zone. With a bunch of football nutters!"
Jake slapped him on the back. "But, the beer is good! Right?"
Jack raised his glass and smiled as he clanked glasses with Jake. "Indeed! So is the company!"
The Doctor fussed at him, "Stop it!"
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