Chapter 2

As soon as I'm inside, I feel a rush of warm, yet cool air. The place smells fantastic. Salad, bread, fruit, hot soup, cocoa. It smells so good I can nearly taste it. To be honest, though I pass this place very frequently, I have never been inside. Obviously I haven't the money for a nice sophisticated place like this.

The nice-haired Doctor tells me to order whatever I want and that he will pay for everything. Normally, I don't allow strangers to be that generous to me, but, considering it's New Year's Eve, I let him get away with treating me. I order a cheesy steak Panini, a bowl of fresh clam chowder, hot cheese buns (for the both of us, of course), and chips, my absolute favorite.

After the Doctor orders, we take our food and find an available table. He chooses one right by the window so I can keep an eye on Mickey. "So, tell me 'bout yourself, Rose," he demands, with his mouth adorably stuffed with buns (how can someone pull off an adorable full mouth?).

"Well," I respond. I take a quick moment to think about some things about me. Awkwardly, nothing comes to mind. "Ehm, I'm really nothing special. No job, no house. That's me." I jokingly give a thumbs-up to lighten the mood. He doesn't buy it.

"How'd you lose your job?" he questions. Oh, god, he's getting into personal business. Okay, I'm starting to dislike this conversation now…

Nevertheless, I answer him honestly. "Oh, it's so cliché it's embarrassing really. You know, had a relationship with the boss, things got intense then messy. He laid me off, plain and simple. The house soon followed after the job… I just didn't have the money. Both my parents are dead – my mum quite recently actually – and I have no siblings. There was no one to turn to. So, here I am. Wandering the streets of London. A homeless beggar." I say the last part with a scorn or hiss almost. I have no idea why in the world I'm being so open with this man I know nothing about. I guess he just has that trustworthy feel to him.

"Well, that's enough jib jab about me." I say after an awkwardly prolonged silence. "How about you, Doctor? Who are you?"

I almost wish I'd never asked. He goes on and on about time travel and space and a red (or was it blue?) box called a TARDIS I believe. Daleks, cyberpeople, Face of Poe, a planet called Gallifrey… it gets dull after the sixth description of his time machine (and, for the record, I believe absolutely none of his story, thank ya very much). My mind drifts as he rambles on, and I fiddle with my chips. Even though this kind stranger is handsome and charming, I really just wish I was practically anywhere else right now.

"So would you like to?"

"Huh?" He suddenly catches my attention, but I honestly don't know what he's chirpin' about.

"Me, you, time travel, TARDIS, eh?" The hopeful look in his big puppy eyes just kills me because I don't know how to respond to that.

"Well, ehm, could you tell me about it again, perhaps?" I try to act like in innocent girl who simply has bad hearing. My hand reaches up to tuck blond hair behind my red-from-the-cold ears. Just my luck, my sleeve falls down my wrist as I hold it up and reveals my fresh cuts. Instantly, I cover them up again, hoping the Doctor didn't notice them. He did. Of course.

Thank goodness, he says nothing. But that's also the bad thing; he says nothing. Absolutely nothing. I would rather have him yapping about how I should never self harm and how I'm young and have a hopeful future if I follow my destiny yada yada yada. But not a word escapes his lips. He stares me straight in the eyes, not moving a muscle. This gets my extremely uncomfortable, and I start to fidget nervously. This smooth doctor man is getting on my nerves.

Right when I'm about to thank him for the food and leave, he reaches across the table to put his hand on my shoulder and says, "Rose, I want to show you something. Your life will never be the same, and you'll never look at the universe the same way again. But you'll love it. Oh, how you'll love it." A goofy grin paints his slim face. Soon enough, a serious expression creeps back on. "Follow me. If you're willing." The Doctor pushes himself out of his chair and walks to the exit. I follow him, because now I'm curious to see what all this talk is about.

Grabbing Mickey tightly by the handle, the Doctor swings my cart around and pushes it down the sidewalk. He has a very brisk pace, and I struggle to keep up. The way he turns corners is very sudden. Occasionally, I lose track of where I am with him. Soon enough, we come to a stop in front of a big blue box that reads "Police Box". I'm panting from the fast-paced hike I just experienced. The Doctor pushes Mickey aside and steps up to the box. A key is slid into place, and with a click, he pushes open the door to this mysterious box (funny how he pushes it even though it says to pull… huh).

Turning to me, he says, "All-righty then, come on in," and gestures for me to step inside the box.

I laugh a single "Hah!" and then remark, "No way I'm gettin' in that snog box with you, mate!"

He's taken aback. "It – it's not a snog box!"

"Well, what else could it be? It only has enough room for one person! Well, unless you're that kind of person…"

I can see now that the Doctor doesn't like it when people play jokes on him. "Wait, wha- NO of course not! Just come in. Everything will make sense. Trust me; I'm a doctor." With that last cliché statement, he steps inside. Anyone who knows me is aware that I can never ever turn down a dare, so, therefore, I walk cautiously into the box.

Then I run out of the box.

I walk around the outside of the box.

Then back in again.

Out the box.

Farther in the box.

For the last time, I go outside the box and feel its walls up and down. I can't believe what I'm seeing. I just can't. It's impossible, and impossible things just don't happen. I stand outside the entrance of the blue box. "Doctor!" I yell inside. "W-what in the world is this?!" (You're probably wondering why I would have to yell inside a box that fits a single person, but hang on a sec. I'm nearly there.)

"This, Rose Tyler, is my dear old TARDIS," he answers. "That's Time And Relative Dimensions In Space, and, well as you can now see obviously, it's bigger on the inside!"