Clara Oswald took a quick glance at the buzzing phone before placing in back down on the bedside table, having no intention to answer the call.
"You have to talk to him at some point," John pointed out.
"At some point which is not now," she stated, leaning back against the soft pillows.
They were on their final day in York and in a few hours, John would drive them back to London. They spent the past few days cooking meals, swimming in the lake and exploring a small town an hour away from their accommodation.
He stared at her for a moment before deciding to let it go. It wasn't any of his business after all.
"Got anywhere nice to go before we leave this place?" she inquired.
"No, I just thought that maybe we could relax and enjoy the tranquillity before I return to the madhouse that is Scotland Yard."
"Ah yes, Donna will surely interrogate you."
"Along with the rest of the team," he added. "Even if they're doing it through her."
Clara grinned. "I'm sure they miss their grumpy detective chief superintendent."
"It's probably the eyebrows," he said, wiggling them. "They're too expressive."
"Which isn't necessarily a bad thing."
"Is that so?"
Clara giggled. "Yeah, it's easy to tell if your happy or grumpy just by looking at them."
"Hilarious, Miss Oswin," he muttered although he wasn't able to help himself from smiling.
By noon the couple was ready to leave the cottage. The schoolteacher waited in the car while John went to the reception to return the keys.
She had her head leaned against the window, watching the calm lake. She wouldn't mind coming here again the future despite what happened just a few days ago.
"I don't think we left anything back at the cottage," the detective commented as he climbed into the driver's seat.
"I'm sure we have everything."
"I hope you enjoyed the trip even if it was… it took an unexpected turn at first."
Clara's shrugged. "At least you made everything better and I hope we can come here again."
"Exactly what I was thinking," he agreed, starting the car.
"Oh, that reminds me," she said. "Why don't I drive half-way through?" she offered.
John arched a brow. "Are you sure?"
"Yep, you drove us here while I slept like the dead."
He grinned. "Only if this old girl allows you."
Clara raised her eyebrows. "I didn't realise this car has a mind of her own."
He chuckled, driving away from their little holiday getaway. "You can drive when we get to Leicester."
"Deal."
It had been two weeks since the incident in York and Dave hadn't been successful in contacting his daughter. He was assured by Danny that she was fine and well, which relieved him, but the thought that she was ignoring him bothered him.
He knew what he did was wrong, and he was at fault, but the wedding would have been tense and awkward with a police detective present when so were his 'business partners'. How the hell was he supposed to explain to them that his daughter is dating the very man tasked to shut them down?
Dave Oswald was only left with one choice and as much as he hated taking that option, for fear his daughter would be even more cross with him, it was the only way he could talk to her.
While the plan may sound simple, executing it wasn't. Whenever he made the decision to see his daughter at her flat, he would be informed by Danny that she wasn't at home or she was out with John Smith until finally, he received the news that she was home, but with her boyfriend.
Well, to hell with the detective. He wanted to speak to Clara.
And that was exactly what he did one afternoon when he showed up unexpectedly at her doorstep.
"Dad," she said as confusion washed over her face. "What are you doing here?" she whispered.
"I came to talk and explain some things I should have had the courage to explain when I had the chance," he answered.
Clara thought for a moment before she decided to let her father in by stepping aside and allowing him to enter the flat.
"Ah, John, good to see you again," Dave said cheerfully, forcing a smile at the man who was lounging on the sofa.
The detective was taken by surprise by his presence and scrambled to his feet. "Mr Oswin," he greeted.
"I apologise for interrupting your date at home, but I believe I owe Clara an explanation," Dave stated, gazing at his daughter.
John took the hint and headed for the bedroom.
"So, the explanation?" she asked, waiting for her father to elaborate why he hadn't invited his own daughter to the wedding.
"First, I would like to say I'm sorry," Dave began. "I know that it was wrong of me to leave you out of something so important in my life."
Clara remained silent as she listened to him.
"I… well, the wedding was supposed to be held next year, but Linda said she wouldn't mind getting married to just a few friends and family members present."
"Clearly."
Dave realised his mistake. "That's not what I meant," he sighed, hiding his face in his hands. It wasn't like Linda and Clara got along anyway.
"Would you care to rephrase your sentence then?"
He sighed defeatedly. "I was afraid that your safety might be compromised – if John recognised one of my-" he said quietly.
"So you're blaming John then, for not sending me an invitation?" she concluded calmly.
He grimaced. "Clara, you have to understand that someone like John-"
"Or do you care more about your friends more than me?" she hissed.
She was used to her father not being all that present in her life ever since her mother died. He left her with her aunt and just focused on his business with the excuse to 'secure their future', whatever the hell that meant.
Dave felt ashamed and couldn't bear to look her in the eye. "I love you, Clara, more than you will ever know," he whispered. "Everything, I do, it's all for you."
"I never asked you to do any of this."
His shoulders sank. "I just wanted what's best for you."
She stared at her father before looking away. "I know it's not easy or simple to leave your life behind, but the least you could have done is tell me you're marrying her rather than having to discover it myself."
"It was foolish of me not to," he admitted. "I'm sorry… is there any way I can make it up to you?"
She shrugged. "I honestly don't know, dad."
Dave decided that it was time to leave. He got to his feet. "I won't take any more of your time," he murmured. "I hope we can have dinner together, with or without John – up to you."
"I'll think about it."
He nodded as he headed for the door while she trailed behind him. Just as he stepped outside, he turned around and faced her. "If my life had been slightly different, I would have welcomed John with open arms," he confessed. "You two seem to be enamoured with each other."
Clara was taken by surprise by her father's comments. At least it was something compared to him saying he didn't approve of her boyfriend. "Thank you, dad, it means a lot to me."
He nodded. "Bye, Clara."
"Bye, dad."
She watched her father disappear down the staircase before shutting the door, processing the conversation she had with her father.
"John?" she called. "You can stop hiding now," she chuckled.
The detective emerged from the bedroom while eyeing her cautiously. "Are you happy or sad or angry or any of those combinations?" he inquired, unable to tell.
Clara paused for a moment. "I'm not so sure," she said. "I mean, it was a bit of a rollercoaster."
"Would you like to talk about?"
The schoolteacher suddenly felt the urge to make herself a cup of tea and so she headed for the kitchen. "He said he's sorry and wants to make it up to me."
"Ok," John replied, waiting for her to elaborate further.
"I'm still a bit mad about that."
"Right."
"He also said that he approves of you, in his own complicated way – he didn't say it directly," she revealed. "Which is a good thing since it finally puts an end to you worrying so much," she said lightly.
John arched a brow. All he ever cared about was her happiness and if her father's approval makes her feel slightly better, then he's happy. "That's good, I guess."
"It definitely is," she agreed, setting the kettle on the stove before turning around to wrap her arms around him. "Though I'm still mad at what he did."
"You've mentioned it twice now," he murmured.
She wriggled free from his embrace. "It's going to take more than an apology to fix things."
"Boss," Dylan greeted as he entered his superior's office before shutting the door, knowing full well why he was summoned.
"Anything on Davros?"
The DCI shook his head. "Nothing, I mean, I haven't found any useful leads."
John nodded. "Just keep looking and make sure to keep it discreet."
"Bit difficult to do that when I'm asking special branch questions."
"Look elsewhere if you have to," the DCS suggested. "The last thing I want is Kate wondering why I'm looking into this."
"Speak of the devil," Dylan commented as he caught sight of the commander making her way to them.
"DCS Smith, a word with you?" Kate said, face devoid of any sort of emotion.
She waited for Dylan to leave before questioning John. "What's this closed case that's got you bothered?"
John tapped his finger on the desk. "Vincent Mayhew's sister said that a man named Davros tried recruiting him into his gang."
"These people do that all the time in case you've forgotten."
"The problem is that I don't think the killer gave a full confession."
Kate furrowed her brows, not quite seeing what her colleague was trying to say.
"Brooks became nervous the moment we asked him who Davros is," John continued. "And he just immediately confessed – it's as if he's afraid of him."
"You think there's a conspiracy?"
"More of a turf war."
Kate sighed. "Again, this sort of thing is their modus operandi."
"I think it's worth looking into who Davros is – we've never heard of him before until now."
The commander thought about a decision for a few moments. "Fine, I'll give you what you need for this but no sneaking around," she said. "If you find something, tell me."
John was taken by surprise. He had expected her to downright tell him to forget about the case. "You think I'm right, don't you?"
"Don't be so smug about it and please keep this a low profile," she muttered before getting to her feet.
"That's what I've been trying to do."
"Not good enough since I'm here," she commented with a smug look. "How's Clara by the way?"
"Fine, she's enjoying the summer break away from her rambunctious students."
Kate flashed him a kind smile. "So I guess you had a great time then, taking that week off?"
"First my team and now you and no comment," John grumbled as his superior left his office. He then checked his phone for any messages.
There was one from none other than Clara.
'Fancy having lunch with me?'
John's lips curved upwards. God, he loves this woman.