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Chapter 4 - Drink with the Lieutenant

The Doctor groaned as he walked back down the hallways of his home. Each step that he took, made his head ache even more. He sighed as he turned the corner and walked up the steps to the nursery. Jackie Tyler saw him immediately and held out her hand. "You….stop….right….there."

"I'm not contagious." He insisted.

She pointed at him. "You take yourself to bed. You are not getting these little ones sick! Off with you."

He groaned and looked around the room. "Where is Rose?"

Jackie held baby Samuel in her arms. "She's so upset. I tried to speak to her, but…."

He nodded. "Yeah."

"Is there really nothing anyone can do? I know I'm not supposed to know about this…weird stuff she can do…."

He swallowed the lump in his throat. "Believe me. We have talked a lot about it over the last few days. She, simply can't control it, Jackie. She would have already brought him back. Both of them."

Jackie closed her eyes tightly and shook her head. "She's blaming herself."

"I know."

"There's no way either of you could have seen this coming."

"I know."

"Do I need to tell her that I know?"

He scratched the back of his neck. "It won't help. If anything I believe it will put more pressure on her to do something."

"I suppose you're right." She sighed. "You're sick. Why hasn't she sorted that-"

"I don't know."

"And the boys-"

"I don't know. Believe me. Me and her are both just, learning as we go with this. I was told he would be alright."

"By who?"

"Someone I trust that would know."

Jackie shook her head. "She needs you. But, more importantly, you need to take care of yourself. As my Mum used to say, 'You can't pour from an empty cup'."

He nodded and smiled. "That's true. Thanks, Jackie."

She held Samuel close to her chest and didn't notice the Doctor had stepped over to her until she felt him kiss her on the top of the head.

"Ah! Get your germs out of here!" She insisted and slapped at him as he narrowly escaped her and left the room.

He was sure he heard her laughing under her breath as he went to his and Rose's bedroom.

He found Rose sitting on the side of the bed. Her eyes were closed and she seemed to be mediating. He put his hands in his pockets and walked over to her. She didn't move.

He looked at her and rubbed the back of his neck. What was she doing?

He glanced up at the open windows that welcomed the night air in from the sea. He couldn't help it and coughed.

Rose opened her eyes and they both glowed bright yellow as she focused on him.

"Well, hello. Fancy seeing you here." He smiled.

The Bad Wolf leaned back on the bed and her eyes returned to normal. "She has summoned me."

"She can do that?" He asked.

"If she gets upset. She's been containing it for days. Poor girl. She says she thinks she'll blow a hole in the ship."

The Doctor nodded. "Makes sense. She's told me that before."

The Bad Wolf rolled her eyes. "Moron. I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

"Forget me." He coughed. "My Sam. Where is he?"

"He is awake."

"Awake? I don't want that. I want to know where he is! I want him home. Karen wants him here."

"He has to be there. He has to stop him."

"Him who? Tony?"

She groaned. "He'll be fine. He'll be home soon. He has to finish this. This is his beginning."

He crossed his arms. "Can we just have some….bit of….."

"Proof?" She laughed.

"Reassurance."

She groaned.

He rubbed his face.

"You are ill."

"I'm fine."

She pointed at him. "You need to sleep." Then she thought and smiled with her tongue in her teeth. "Or…"

"I'm not doing that. Must I always tell you no?"

"Phhh….one day you won't tell me no." She insisted as she stood up. "Rose and I are the same. One day you will see it."

"Today, isn't that day." He told her and cleared his throat.

He smiled, "You just need a cup of tea."

"Tea?"

She pointed at him. "Yes. That will sort you right out."

"I've been drinking tea-"

"No." She sat down on the bed. "You don't understand. You need to go, downstairs, right now, and make yourself a cup of tea."

He was confused. "What? And that will make me well?"

"No. But it will entertain me. But, tomorrow, by this time, you'll need to apologize to someone. And then, you'll be well."

"That's the maddest shit I've ever heard in my damn life."

She giggled, "Oh wow. I love that little bit of Donna in you. You're so feisty! And you wonder where Genie learned it."

He closed his eyes and shook his head. "So, my Sam-"

She had returned to her mediation.

He rolled his neck back in surprise. "Rose?"

She continued to sit on the edge of the bed.

He scratched his chin. What should he do? Help her lay down? Was it a trick for him to touch the Bad Wolf while she lay on their bed?

He decided to go downstairs and make himself a cuppa. That sounded like what he needed at the moment.

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The Doctor arrived back in his kitchen. Pete and Lewis sat at the bar, while Lieutenant Bennett, Howard Shepherd, and Jake stood across from them. Each one looked up to see him walk back into the room as they sipped their teas and coffees.

Lewis smiled, "Hey, John! We thought you had gone to bed."

Howie laughed, "Ah, I imagine he's all chawed-up. I know I would be if this was my Jacob."

He groaned and joined them at the bar, sitting between Pete and Lewis. "Nah. I was told to come get a cup of tea."

Jake nodded. "Then I have you covered." He made him a cup of tea and handed it to him.

The Doctor looked up at the men, "And you're Karen's father."

He grinned, "I'm sorry we've not met. I'm Lieutenant John Bennett of the United States Navy."

They shook hands.

Howie insisted, "Well, he was. Damn Pete had to go and steal him from me."

Pete sipped his drink, "I needed the help. He became directly involved."

Lieutenant nodded. "That's true."

The Doctor sipped his tea. "How is Karen?"

He sighed. "She's…well how you would expect. She mostly sits out and stares at the sea."

Howie shook his head. "It's a damn shame."

"Arles has been with her, staying with us, since it happened. He's been…simply amazing."

Lewis grinned, "See, I like to hear that."

"He really has. Anything that needs to be done, he's managed. He had the guys bring her and Samuel's things back from New York. He has spoken to all of her professors and put school on hold for a few days for her. Not to mention, he's cooking everything for both her and my wife, Anne. Hell of a cook."

Howie chuckled, "Yes. Ole Arles is quite the cocinero."

The Doctor pointed at Howie and asked Pete. "How many has he had?"

Pete grinned. "One."

Howie pointed at the Doctor. "I'm not shot in the neck, Sawbones-"

"I'm not that sort of Doctor, Howie-"

"But, I'll shuck it down now. I'm a bit, fuddled."

The Doctor looked back at Pete who mumbled, "Tipsy. Not piss drunk."

Lieutenant chuckled with the rest of them.

The Doctor rubbed his face and remembered, "Oh, Jake."

"Yeah?" He asked.

"Did Rose speak with you about…Melissa and-"

"Oh yeah. I've got some guys on that. She didn't say why though."

Pete looked back at him. "What is this?"

"Melissa, Genie's mother, left a note with all of those papers that gave Rose guardianship after she died."

Pete sipped his tea. "Huh. I didn't know that."

"They way it read, it was almost as if she had expected something to happen to her. Rose and I want to know if her accident was something more." The Doctor explained.

Pete sighed. "I hope not. We just don't need another problem."

"The more I walk through life, the more I see the more forehanded a body is, the more full spit other folks will be." Howie insisted.

The Doctor looked back at Pete. "What?"

Pete chuckled, "I don't know."

Howie groaned and poured some more from his flask in his tea glass. He looked up and offered to the room. All of them politely refused except the Lieutenant.

The Doctor and Pete grinned as they watched him sip it and nod his head. "That's not bad."

"We call that Damn Whiskey." Pete told him.

Howie pointed at them. "They call it that. I just call it a damn drink. My Navy man is going to get half seas over here."

The Lieutenant chuckled. "Not off just one sip."

The Doctor pointed at Howie. "You can understand this nutter?"

"Of course not." The Lieutenant insisted. "But, I have heard that expression before."

The Doctor groaned, "What was with Genie?"

Pete shook his head. "I don't know."

Lewis asked, "Is she even still here?"

Jake scratched his head. "She went out to the ….bar area to play cards or have a drink. Or something. Legate said she needed to cool off. Oh, she was cross."

"I thought she was going to hit Tony." The Doctor admitted.

"He probably needs it." Pete insisted.

Howie chucked, "They sure did go all hammer and tongs, didn't they?"

Pete pointed at Howie. "Do you even understand what you are saying?"

"Listen here, Pancake-"

"Pancake!" Pete laughed.

"You know I know how to pop the corn."

Pete shook his head. "Oh, you do."

The Lieutenant put his cup in the sink. "Doctor Smith, may I have a word?"

The Doctor nodded. "Certainly." He turned to Pete and pointed at Howie. "And this man needs to be cut off."

"Ha! On the contrary! I'm taking these boys out to the bar! Come on, gents!"

Howie and Pete left with Jake and Lewis to the island casino to have a drink and continue their discussion.

The Doctor kept his seat at the bar and the Lieutenant stood across from him. "What's on your mind, Lieutenant Bennett?"

"Well, it would seem that our children are engaged."

The Doctor looked up at the man to see if it was something he was happy about or what. He couldn't read him at all. He reminded him, in that moment, of the Brigadier.

"I don't think it's an official engagement."

"She has a ring. I've spoken to her and it seems official."

"Really?" The Doctor coughed and sat his tea down.

"You need to go to bed-"

"No, we're talking about this. So, if we can get this son of mine home…we're going to be in-lawed."

The Lieutenant nodded. "It would seem so."

The Doctor rubbed his hands together. "Yeah."

"I have questions, but I'm not completely sure if I want to confess this to you."

"If it helps us with these children of ours, I think we should…"

"Be honest with one another. Yeah." He agreed. "Anne and I have been talking."

"Okay."

"And you're not old enough to have a son Samuel's age."

The Doctor smiled. "Oh, if you only knew."

"That's what I would like to know. How is that possible?"

"Well, it's an odd situation. Sam, Karen's Samuel, is from 18 years in the future."

"That's what he has told her. That's what she said."

"But, you don't believe it?"

"No, I believe it. After the time I've been in the service and seeing what I've seen, oh. I told her to believe it."

"Really?" The Doctor was surprised.

He crossed his arms and looked at the Doctor. "I imagine, this is something you and Mrs. Tyler-"

"Rose. We're about to be in-laws. Just call her Rose."

"Right. I imagine that's something you are trying to keep quiet."

"Understandability."

"Well, don't worry about that from me, or Karen. Or even Anne."

"Thank you." The Doctor nodded. "It's never been a concern of mine."

"So, can I ask, is Samuel from here?"

"I'm not. Rose is."

"So, Samuel is halfway from here."

"I suppose that would be accurate."

He nodded. "Okay. That's alright."

"Karen is…."

"Oh, I have no idea. Karen, was left on a ship I was serving on 19 years ago."

"What?"

"Damnest thing. I had watch there, on the port side bow. Destroyer. Usually, a person of my rank wouldn't keep watch, but…I couldn't sleep and decided to put my name in the hat for the rotation. There we were, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Hundreds of miles from anywhere. Middle of the night. I took my binoculars and scanned the horizon. When I put them down, there she was. Right next to me."

"Maybe a female service member."

"Women were not allowed on the destroyers then. The Doctor onboard examined her, and declared she was only a few days old."

"Where did she come from?"

"I have no idea. The skipper of the boat, Commanding Officer, is one of my best friends in the world. He put me and her on a helicopter to Germany and we created the story that she was born there."

"Karen has no idea." The Doctor realized.

"None. I've never told anyone because ….well…"

"No, I understand."

"And that's not even the strangest part of my story."

The Doctor coughed and grinned, "I love stories like this."

The Lieutenant smiled. "I dreamed of Rose Tyler before anyone ever knew her. I remember it clearly. I've never seen her before. Then, years later, she was all over the television and magazines."

"But, this was before then."

"Yes. Karen was a very small baby."

"What did she say?"

"That's the thing, I really don't remember everything about it. I remember it was about Karen. She told me that she had picked me and Anne, and she wanted her to be raised near the sea. I always called her my mermaid when she was a little girl. She insisted she was one, which wouldn't have surprised me at all given the entire situation."

"I can run a test on her to find out what she is."

"Only if she wants to. I've debated on when to tell her, and I'm believe now is as good of a time as any."

"Believe me. I know how you feel. I only just had a similar chat with Sam."

He nodded. "Any pointers? Father to father?"

The Doctor considered. "Be honest with her. Tell her that you will be honest with her about everything, and then tell her everything you know. She'll respect that and hopefully, in return be honest with you."

He rubbed his chin. "Yeah. That's good advice."

"I'd like to come see her. Meet her, finally. I've only seen a photo."

"One?" He laughed. "Lance brought an envelope of photos to our place this afternoon. Samuel took her to Stark Expo the other night. The night, everything happened. His girlfriend took some photos of them both. Beautiful pictures."

The Doctor smiled. "Jane takes amazing pictures."

"They are both a couple of good looking kids. I really hope we can get them back together. Karen doesn't need to go through this again."

"Again?"

"The only boy she's ever dated, before your son, was lost at sea while we were deployed."

"Never found?"

"No. We found him. There wasn't much left."

"Damn."

He nodded. "Yeah. She asked me, that night when we got her home, 'Daddy, why does this keep happening to me?' It tore my heart out."

"What did you tell her?"

"I told her not to give up hope. Believe he's coming back to her, so much that I wanted her to make plans for what she plans to do when he does get home."

"Hope, is so important. And you lot don't even understand how much yet. It's saved my life more times than I can count."

"Mine, too." The Lieutenant admitted as his phone dinged. He pulled it out and nodded. "And I have numbers to go look for. Good talk, Doctor Smith."

He smiled, "It was. Lieutenant Bennett."

"Ah. I suppose you could call me John."

The Doctor chuckled, "That's my name. How about, Doctor and Lieutenant?"

"That works." He smiled and pulled out a remote trigger. "I'll be up on Lewis' ship putting in these numbers. Good night."

"Night, Lieutenant."

He disappeared in a blue spiral.

The Doctor rubbed his face and groaned. "Sammy. Please bring yourself home."

He sat consumed in his thoughts, staring at the wall.

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