Sarah flushed, "Do you…want me to put it back?"
The Doctor's brown eyes grew old for a moment, but he snapped out of it before either of us could wonder why. "No, no…it's fine." He laughed to himself.
Toast shot him a confused look.
"Sorry," he saw her expression and commented, "It's only that you are the second "Sarah" to wear that scarf." He shook his head and chuckled, memories swimming behind his eyes. "Anyways, off we go!"
He looked over at me and raised one curving eyebrow. I watched his thumb and forefinger snap together, the doors flew open. An overconfident smile sugared his lips, his eye brows wiggled.
"Yes, yes very nice…" my sarcastic comeback died with a wheeze as I looked out the doors and my breath blew from my chest in a gust. Toast face nearly drained of color, her eyebrows shot up and her mouth fell slightly open. She started to walk out the doors when the Doctor walked over and took her arm to guide her steps. She was dazed, but not in too much of a distracted stupor not to feel his arm link with hers. She turned to him and shook her head.
Startled, he let go of her arm, "Sorry." She turned back to the scene in front of her. Well aware, despite his concerns, of where she was placing her feet.
It was painfully obvious that he was left by a loss as to what to do by her actions, he swallowed…fighting the urge to clear his throat. He blew out a quiet breath, his confidence slightly dampened. I looked over at him and felt a twinge of pity.
I really wasn't the type for this, I told myself, but this was another planet and he was alien. It didn't count. I leaned to the side a bit and nudged his elbow. He looked over at me. "Ok, so the snapping thing was a bit posh." I confessed.
His mouth dropped open just in the slightest, his dry lips parted. A fraction of a second past while he considered my compliment, his messy hair ruffled in the slight foreign breeze that blew across the extraterrestrial terrain. Slowly, a simple smile tugged itself into place. Not arrogant, not overzealous…neither looking to please. It was modest…it was a silent thank you.
We walked out of the doors onto a long ashen ramp running with veins of shining silver. Made of what looked like marble, it was slippery beneath the soles of my shoes. I tried my best to remain tactful. I was a naturally clumsy person at times, but I prided myself on class and respectability…and so it was in this situation that I was praying to God that I didn't slip unceremoniously. The sky was a dark gray, except just over the horizon where a vibrant burnt orange was starting to aluminate the atmosphere. The horizon had no mountains or hills; it stretched on in endless waters of bitter teal. The few rocks that did rise from the waters were jagged, like broken teeth and completely black. It was beautiful and mysteriously dark, smelling like salt water and a hint of incense.
"Ok…." The Doctor's voice floated though the alien air, a hint of treacherous uncertainty lingered in his tone like an omen.
"What?" Toast turned to him, "What is it?"
"Time frame…." He said.
"Time frame?" she responded.
I thought a moment. "OH no!" it hit me as if someone had just snapped the conclusion into existence.
He looked at me with huge wide eyes and biting his lip, but at my expression of fear, he turned guilty like a dog with his tail between his legs. He tried desperately not to break into the nervous smile that was crawling at the edges of his lips. "We should go…" he said.
We all turned at once to return to the TARDIS, confronted with the vintage blue doors of a police box slamming shut it in our face. It was a police box. My eyes grew large, he kept all of that in a police box?
The Doctor hissed in aggravation, "WHAT?"
He snapped. He tried his key. He used the small silver thing he had on the plane, though the annoying noise was not so loud in the open air. He stroked the wood coaxingly, nothing worked.
"Come on" his voice wavered, "you can't be dead locked."
"Doctor?" I set my hand on his shoulder, "Doctor why is it locked."
He whirled on me, "I DON'T KNOW!" he snapped. A desperate look was in his eyes. "I don't know."
My eyes widened. I shrunk away at his outburst, flabbergasted, and feeling assaulted. After I had given him a chance, been kind to him and gone out of my way and comfort zone for him…he responded like this? I breathed out a shocked, angry huff.
"Well when you find a way to open it," I tried not to lose my cool, "You can take me home."
He turned to me again, now my look of surprise was mirrored in his eyes. He saw the fear in my eyes.
"I think I have seen enough."
