Amy sifted through the drawers of clothes in the little guest room she and the Doctor were sharing trying to find something to wear on her night out with Sophie, Craig and the Doctor. She hadn't expected to be doing anything like this while they were staying on Earth. She wasn't sure what she expected them to be doing, really. She was so used to seeing him defeat aliens and monsters that it was hard for her to imagine him doing human things, like going out to the pub with friends or waking up in the morning and brushing his teeth. For the next month or more, she would see him in pajamas and eating breakfast and doing the dishes. Even if that was boring and mundane for him, it really was an adventure for her.
Amy finally decided to throw on an over-sized jumper over a pair of tights to replace the tank top and shorts she had put on this morning for the trip to Space Florida. She padded down the hall and went in to the bathroom where Sophie was putting on her makeup. When she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror she noticed what a mess her hair had become thanks to the TARDIS throwing her about. Sophie paused for a moment and watched Amy brush the tangles out of her hair. She reminded her of a school girl getting ready for her first date. She couldn't help but be curious about what was going on between Amy and the mysterious Doctor.
"So Amy," Sophie began nonchalantly as she put on her mascara. "How long have you and the Doctor been together?"
"Oh, we're not together. We're just friends. Best friends." Amy replied. She could feel her cheeks turning pink. She wondered how many other people, or aliens for that matter, saw them together and assumed they were a couple.
"I see. How did you meet him? Did he fall out of the sky into your front yard?" Sophie joked.
"Actually it was my back yard." Amy told her. "He crashed the TARDIS into my shed when I was seven. Then he came back twelve years later and saved me from an alien that had been living in my house. We've been running ever since."
"Oh, how romantic!" Sophie gushed. Amy laughed. It was nice to have someone who saw running away the day with a mad man and his box the way she did.
While the ladies were getting ready, the Doctor waited in the kitchen with Craig eating omelets the Doctor had made and making small talk about the TARDIS and the practical applications of being able to talk to cats. About the time they had started a discussion of the history of daleks, they heard someone on the other side of the room clear their throat.
"How do we look?" Sophie asked as she did a spin to show off the dress she was wearing.
"You're beautiful!" Craig boomed. He jumped up from his seat and ran over to her. Amy stepped out of his way so he wouldn't run into her as he fawned over his girlfriend. She walked over to the Doctor and stole a bite of his omelette.
"This delicious!" Amy said with a mouthful of food. "Who made this?"
"I did." The Doctor said smugly.
"Did you use your screwdriver?" Amy asked in disbelief.
"No! Why would I use my screwdriver on an omelet?" The Doctor answered in an offended tone.
"Well, you use it for everything else!" She defended. She didn't know he could do anything that could be considered domestic, let alone cook an amazing omelet.
"I'll have you know, Miss Pond, I learned to cook from the very best eighteenth century chef in Paris." He told her. She raised her eyebrows to show him how impressed she was and took another bite.
"Save me a bite!" Sophie exclaimed as she hurried over for a taste. The Doctor handed her Craig's fork and she cut herself a bit. She popped it into her mouth and her eyes widened in surprise. It was as delicious as Amy made it sound to be and more.
"If you don't mind, Doctor, you can just stay here and cook for us as long as you like!" Sophie joked as she stole another bite.
"Alright you lot, let's get going before we end up staying here eating omelets all night." Craig said as he ushered them away from the food and towards the door.
After a short walk through Colchester, the four arrived at The Kings Arms. It was a cozy little pub with a fireplace, candles everywhere, a dance floor and a little stage for live music. Over the sounds of the band was a constant hum of people talking and laughing. The place was packed to the brim, even in the beer garden outside. But that was typical for a Friday night in Colchester. A handful of guys from he football team sat at the bar in front of the tap flirting with the one of the bartenders. Craig saw them and led the group over to where they were seated. The team whooped with excitement at the return of The Doctor.
"Who's your friend?" Shawn asked the Doctor. He gave Amy a wink.
"Oh! This is Amy. She's my... companion. We travel together." The Doctor replied stepping in between the two.
"Nice to meet you, Amy. I'm Shawn." He said as he reached around to shake Amy's hand. "First round of drinks are on me!"
The group let out a roar and started giving orders to the bartender. She began pouring and mixing drinks furiously to keep up with the onslaught of requests. Shawn stood up and offered his seat to Amy. She looked back at the Doctor for approval. He shrugged and motioned for her to take the seat. He stood beside her protectively. He knew he had no reason to be jealous. It's not like Amy was his wife or even his girlfriend or something like that. But as he watched her talk to the men around her and saw the attention they were giving her, he felt himself turning green with envy. He couldn't blame them. Amy was gorgeous. That hair, those limbs... But even if she wasn't his in a romantic sense, she was still his Amelia Pond. He took off his jacket and hung it on the back of her chair. Goosebumps rippled across Amy's skin when she felt the Doctor's fingers brush against her back as he hung his jacket. She flashed a smile in his direction and noticed he seemed a bit cross.
"Roll up your sleeves and relax, Doctor. You're a normal human, remember?" She reminded him. Amy reached up and grabbed his arm, unbuttoned the cuff and began to roll his sleeve for him. He broke the dominating glare he was shooting and Shawn and watched her hands at work. He chuckled and ruffled her hair with his free hand.
"Can I get you guys somethin'?" A bartender asked the two of them as Amy started rolling up Doctor's second sleeve.
"I guess I'll have a glass of wine," Amy said. "And he'll have..."
"I'll just have a nice cup of tea. Maybe in one of those fancy glasses with the little umbrella? I love those." The Doctor said. The bartender gave him a befuddled look.
"Tea?" she asked, unsure if she'd heard him correctly over all the noise.
"Yes. I'm not much of a drinker, per say." He replied. The bartender shrugged and carried on mixing and pouring. A minute later, a glass of wine and tea in a martini glass appeared before the two of them.
"To a new adventure." Amy toasted and clinked her glass against The Doctor's.
"Cheers." The Doctor replied.
For the next couple hours the group chatted about Craig having the Doctor as a house guest and having a position on the team waiting for him if he wouldn't mind play for them. Drinks were flowing and the group boomed with laughter and high spirits. The Doctor did his best to loosen up and be a normal bloke. He watched the men around him take shots and guzzle down beer and laugh at the occasional drunk nutter who stumbled past, slurring words that no one could understand. Every once in a while, Amy would feel him brush his hand across her shoulders or tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. It took almost everything she had not to shudder when he did. She looked over at the Doctor and watched him him relax and have a laugh. She couldn't get over how perfect he looked when he smiled. Their first night out together was going so well. And thanks to the generous gentlemen around her, she had lost track of how many glasses of wine and cocktails she had drank. The room was spinning pleasantly around her and Amy Pond was all smiles.
When the band finished their set, the pub played music over the sound system and people began to migrate to the dance floor. Amy and the Doctor were arguing over whether or not the little umbrella in a drink really made it taste better when Shawn approached Amy and asked her to dance.
"Oh, I don't know." Amy said apprehensively. "I'm not sure that's a good idea..."
"Just one dance?" Shawn pleaded.
"I guess one dance won't hurt." She said, defeated and overcome by how easy-going the alcohol had started to make her. Shawn took her hand and led her to the dance floor.
"You're not from around here, are you?" Shawn yelled over the music and they danced.
"What do you mean?" She asked in a panicked voice. How could he know that she just came from another planet in another galaxy that no one on Earth will know about for the next ten thousand years?
"Your accent. It's Scottish, right?" He said somewhat confused.
"Oh. Right! Yes, I'm Scottish." She laughed.
"So did the you meet the Doctor while he was traveling or something?" Shawn asked.
"Yeah, or something..." Amy mumbled. Shawn seemed a bit confused by her answer but shrugged it off and spun her around the dance floor.
The Doctor turned back to his tea and tried to ignore the nagging feeling he felt in his chest. He stared at the fancy glass and twisted the little umbrella between his thumb and forefinger. The woman who had been serving their drinks all night leaned against the bar opposite of him.
"You're one hell of a fellow letting your girlfriend dance with that guy." She said motioning towards Shawn and Amy on the dance floor.
"She's not my girlfriend. She's my companion. It's... complicated." He tried to explain.
"Sounds like it." The bartender replied half-heartedly.
The Doctor watched the two dance for a moment. Shawn had one hand clasped with Amy's and the other on the small of her back in a drunken waltz. He spun her around and dipped down so her hair brushed the floor. She giggled as he pulled her back up and twirled her around some more.
"If you want I can help you out." The bartender proposed.
"How exactly are you going to do that?" The Doctor asked without taking his eyes off Amy.
"Easy." she replied. "I'm Lex, by the way."
"Nice to meet you, Lex. I'm the Doctor." he reciprocated.
"Well, Doctor, all you have to do is wait here. You'll figure out when to come in." She said. She threw back her head and downed a shot before hopping over the bar and sauntering out to the dance floor. She started out at a group of guys, rotating her hips and flipping her blonde hair. The Doctor wasn't sure how this was helping him get close to Amy. But she danced, she inched her way closer and closer to where Shawn and Amy were dancing. As the end of one song and the beginning of another blurred into each other and Shawn and Amy paused to catch their breath, Lex bumped into Shawn and worked her magic on him. He was defenseless against her fluttering eyelashes and the way she moved her body against his. Amy bowed out gracefully and looked around for the Doctor.
"Oh, that's what she meant!" The Doctor said to himself. He fought his way to the crowd to get to Amy.
"Would you... Do you want to dance?" She asked, stumbling over her words. Before he could answer, she wrapped her arms around his neck and started moving against him. The Doctor wasn't sure what to do with himself or her.
"You're new to this, aren't you?" Amy teased. She took his hands and placed them on her hips and in return put her hands on his and tried to get him into some kind of rhythm. When she accomplished that, ran her hands up his stomach and wrapped them around his suspenders. She pulled him closer to her so their bodies were pressed against each other. Then she slid her hands back up around his neck and tangled her fingers into the hair at the nape of his neck. For the next few songs they moved their bodies against each other, unaware of anything else going on around them. But soon the alcohol caught up with Amy and she began to lose her balance and started tripping over her own feet.
"We should probably get you back to your seat." The Doctor recommended. He put Amy's arm around his shoulder and guided her to an empty chair at the end of the bar where Lex was cleaning dirty beer mugs. He helped Amy into her seat and tried to sit her up right but it was more than she could manage in her current state. She laid her head down on the bar and told the Doctor she wast tired. He grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair she sat in earlier and wrapped it around her.
"I think it's time to get her home. I'll watch her while you round up your friends." Lex offered. The Doctor nodded and weaved his way back through the dance floor to try and find Craig and Sophie. He finally located them under the disco ball in the middle of the floor snogging the face of one another.
"Craig, Sophie, hate to interrupt but we have to go." The Doctor said trying to break the two up.
"Just a minute, mate." Craig said in between kisses from Sophie.
"No, we have to go. Amy's had too much to drink and I have to get her home." The Doctor explained quickly.
"Just go on without us. You have a key." Craig said in a flustered tone before returning ins attention back to Sophie.
The Doctor ran back to Amy and checked the pockets inside of his coat for the spare set of keys Craig had given him a few months back. He pulled them out and tucked them into his pocket and turned his attention back to Amy.
"Hey, I called a cab for you. Didn't think you'd want to carry her all the way home." Lex said. She flashed the Doctor a smile.
"Lex, give me your hand." He said as he reached in to his other pocket and pulled out a small handful of cash. He slapped in into her open palm and shot down any objection she gave him. "You deserve it."
The Doctor scooped Amy out of her chair and carried her to the exit. Outside, as promised, was a cab waiting for them. The cabbie opened the door to the backseat so the Doctor could lower Amy in. He slid in next to her and gave the man directions back to the flat along with a few bills for cab fare. When they reached their destination, he tried to help her out of the back seat but she swatted him away and insisted she was fine. She swung her long legs through the cab door and began to stand up. She stood straight for a few seconds before inertness took over her and caused her to fall forward. The Doctor caught her mid-fall.
"Okay, maybe you should carry me." Amy giggled.
The Doctor carried her through the flat and in to their room honeymoon style. Unlocking the doors was a bit of a challenge along with trying to navigate the narrow hallways with Amy's legs dangling over his arm. He hoped that she wouldn't remember him accidentally hitting her ankle off one of the door frames when she woke up in the morning. When they got to their room, the Doctor laid Amy on the bed and helped her take off her shoes. He pulled back the covers for her so she could side into them. When she was comfortable and tucked in, he patted her head and got up to leave the room.
"Doctor? Where are you going?" Amy slurred.
"Just out to the living room to wait for Craig and Sophie so you can get some sleep." He said.
"Will you stay with me?" She murmured.
"You really need to rest..." The Doctor said nervously.
"Please?" Amy whispered. "At least until I fall asleep."
The Doctor nodded. He pulled his shoes off and slid under the covers next to her. She curled up next to him and tucked her head under his chin.
"Goodnight, Doctor." She said quietly.
"Goodnight, Amelia." He said back to her. He kissed the crown of her head and watched her drift off into an effortless sleep.