Rose's legs were aching to the point where she thought they'd break off. The Doctor, in all stubbornness, had refused to let them stay overnight in the small area. They'd hiked through the forest until he finally recognized where they were. Kaylee had just about fallen down laughing when she learned he'd managed to get them lost. But they were back to the camp base now, and that was what mattered.
Reinette, much to Rose's surprise, hadn't talked to him at all when they arrived back. Instead, she watched from a distance while the Doctor gleefully talked to everyone. Rose was happy, though. She hadn't seen him looking so... alive in a while. He was grinning and laughing and teasing people. She watched curiously as his eyes scanned the area. To Rose's surprise, he glanced at Reinette and winced. Reinette's eyes narrowed and she spun around on her heels stalking off. He watched her go, his face screwed up in an unreadable expression. He ran a hand through his hair and glanced in Rose's direction. Their eyes locked and Rose froze, staring at him with wide eyes. He offered a small wave and a smile. Relaxing, Rose shot him a shy grin and returned the gesture.
Pursing her lips, she turned and hurried back to her cabin after the Doctor and gone back to speaking with Kaylee. She took a quick shower, brushed her hair and her teeth and sighed. They had gotten back an hour before dinner would be served- she was starving. She quickly changed into her pajamas and dug through her bag until she found her phone. She almost hoped there would be a message on it from her mother, or one of her friends, but the screen was blank. Sighing, she tossed it back in and, after a while of sitting in the middle of the room toying with the carpet, she decided to go back outside. She opened the door and squeaked. The Doctor stood right in front of her, hand poised to knock. His eyes widened and he took a step back, looking sheepish.
"Hello," he said, his voice sounding strangled. Rose blinked in surprise, gaping at him for a few moments before finding her voice.
"Hi."
The Doctor bit down on his lip and pointed behind him. "Dinner soon," he choked out. She watched him screw his face up for a moment before standing up straighter. "Rose Tyler, may I accompany you to the campfire?" He grinned brightly, but his eyes were bright with worry.
"You may," Rose said after a thoughtful pause. The Doctor's face lit up as she closed the door behind her and they both jumped off the porch, but didn't exactly walk side by side. Rose trailed farther behind. She glanced around. Most of the campers hadn't left their cabin yet, but she could smell the food. Her mouth watered at the aroma.
"So, what have you been doing for the past few days," Rose mumbled, trying her best to strike up a conversation. She'd never really been good at that, but she wanted to break the awkward silence between the two. She hated not talking to him.
The Doctor bit down on his lip as he glanced at her. "Sulking," he replied. They both stopped walking. The Doctor stared at her. Rose stared at the ground, suddenly too scared to meet his eyes.
"Me too," she said, swallowing. The Doctor sighed and she glanced up at him through her eyelashes.
"I don't want to sulk, Rose," he mumbled, staring up at the sky and rubbing the back of his neck. She almost laughed at how awkward he was.
"Then don't!" She said, holding her breath.
He blinked, clearly surprise, before her favorite grin appeared on his lips- that adorable, but slightly maniac one. "That's the simplest solution, innit'?" Rose nodded, giving him a tongue-in-teeth-grin. His smile faded. "Don't do that."
"What?"
"That. That tongue thing!"
"Why not?" Rose chuckled as they resumed walking. He glared at her, which made her laugh harder. Rolling his eyes, he gripped her hand lightly, as if afraid she would suddenly pull back. She, in return, gripped his hand tighter. That seemed to reassure him, because he seemed to suddenly let a breath of relief.
"When you and Kyra were talking earlier, what were you talking about?" He asked suddenly, arching his eyebrow at her. Rose bit into her lip, running her free hand through her hair.
"Oh, nothing much," she shrugged. The Doctor's eyes narrowed.
"That's exactly what Kyra said."
Rose pursed her lips, shrugging again. "Come on!" She chirped, beginning to drag him towards the smell of food. Once they were in the kitchen, the Doctor let go of her hand and strode forward, picking up a hotdog bun. He passed her a paper plate, nodding towards the food.
Rose snorted, "I don't think we're meant to be eating yet." Still, she picked up a hotdog and placed it inside the bun, then sprinkled on a few Doritos. The Doctor sniffed and piled food on his own plate.
"I'm a counselor," he explained, sucking on his fingers to get the hotdog juices from his skin. Rose glanced sideways at the sound of a door opening. She froze, as did the Doctor. Reinette stopped mid step, staring at them, casting Rose a death glare. Avoiding Reinette's eyes, Rose slipped over to the Doctor's side, staring up at him and giving him a questioning gaze.
"Reinette," the Doctor mumbled slowly, shifting uncomfortably. Reinette's gaze hardened.
"What are you doing?" She hissed through gritted teeth. Rose bit down on her tongue, keeping her gaze on the ground. She shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably. The Doctor's face had turned pale, his chocolate eyes wide. His freckles stood out more than usual. He opened his mouth, then closed it, then opened it again. He made a small noise in the back of his throat. Reinette gave him a weird look. "What?" The Doctor quickly shook his head as if to say 'nothing'.
Reinette rolled her eyes and looked back to Rose. "You're not meant to be in here," she said coldly. Rose pursed her lips, unable to think up a reply.
The Doctor quickly spoke up for her, "she's with me."
"So? She's still not meant to be here!"
Wincing, Rose slipped towards where they'd entered, plate still in hand. "I guess I'll be leaving then," she mumbled, scrambling from the kitchen. She could feel the Doctor and Reinette's eyes on her as she crossed the room. Closing the door, she heard some sort of indignant squeak from Reinette. She couldn't help but wonder what the Doctor could have said to her.
"Rose! Hey, there you are, I was looking for you, I wanted to... were you in the kitchen?"
Rose spun around, staring at Kaylee with a sheepish grin. "The Doctor took me in there, yeah." Kaylee arched an eyebrow, opening her mouth to reply, but neither of them got a chance as there was an annoyed shriek, followed by Reinette stalking out of the kitchen, face red with anger. Her eyes were filled with tears. Rose's eyes widened.
"It's your fault," Reinette spat at Rose as she shoved past her. The Doctor stumbled out soon after, plate-less, his eyes even wider than before.
"What did you say to her?" Kaylee gasped, her face alight with amusement. The Doctor shrugged, fidgeting with his fingers. Rolling her eyes, Kaylee lightly smacked him on the back of the head as she walked off. He grinned sheepishly and scrambled to Rose's side.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing much. She just gets... emotional..."
That didn't really sound like him, Rose thought, but didn't ask again. Instead, she motioned towards the circle of logs, where Mr. Hardy, Clara Oswald, and Steve were sitting. "Weren't we heading there?"
Nodding in agreement, he started to hurry towards the campfire that had yet to actually be a fire. Rose followed more slowly, not wanting to spill her food. When she got there, the Doctor was crouching by the pile of wood, matchbox in hand. He looked frustrated. Steve and Mr. Hardy were both snickering. Clara was just grinning. "This is stupid, I think it's broken," the Doctor growled.
"Rubbish," Clara laughed. "You just can't light a match for your life."
Giggling, Rose sat down her plate and walked up to the Doctor, lightly taking the matchbox and match from his grip. He huffed at sat back, his eyes narrowed. She scraped the match against the side and it instantly lit up. She leaned forward and stuck her hand inside to catch the dried up leaves. A fire instantly sprung up. The Doctor stared at her in exasperation. "What!"
Everyone there, except for the Doctor, burst out laughing. "What?" He repeated, running a hand through his hair. Rose giggled and handed him the box, waving the match up and down to put it out. The Doctor huffed and stood up, crossing his arms over his chest. "Now that- that's rubbish!"
Still chuckling, Steve stood up. "Where's Lollipop?" He asked, glancing around.
"I think she went into the counselors cabin," Rose suggested. Nodding, Steve left to go check. Clara stood up, brushing off the back of her pants.
"Rose, Doctor, will you two help me set out the food?"
XXX
It took them nearly half an hour to get everything out. By then, many of the campers were outside and complaining they were hungry. Mr. Hardy (Rose would have to find out his first name; calling him Mr. Hardy was getting dull) was trying to entertain them. As soon as Clara told them that the food was ready, all the campers surrounded the tables. The Doctor and Rose squeezed their way out, both laughing when they finally broke away from the crowd. He pushed her lightly on her back, pointing towards the counselors cabin. "I need to get something- come with me?" He said it with a squeak in his voice. He was obviously still worried she was going to reject him.
Rose nodded and the Doctor instantly took off, trying to run, but Rose grabbed for his hand. He slowed down, frowning. "What is it?"
Swallowing, she nodded towards the cabin. The Doctor stuffed his hand into his pockets, arching an eyebrow at her. They continued walking slowly towards the cabin. "I was just wondering- I mean, not to be nosy, or anything like that but... you and Reinette? Are you two still...?"
The Doctor glanced away, his jaw clenching a little. "No," he sighed after a few minutes. He opened the door to the cabin for her.
"Oh... how come?"
The Doctor snorted, "I think you know." Rose felt blood rush to her cheeks. The Doctor smirked in amusement, glancing away. "Stay here," he said, when she didn't reply. Rose nodded, watching him scuttle into a room and shut the door behind him. Alone for the moment, Rose glanced around the room. It was, obviously, the biggest of all the cabins. There was an old white phone hanging on the wall next to the door. A laptop sat on a cherry wood desk to the left. The room she currently stood in was spacious. Several doors lined the wall next to the room the Doctor had entered. Most of them were labeled with names, several of which that Rose didn't recognize (Amelia, Luke, and Adam).
Shuffling towards a cabinet that sat on top of a desk-thing, she lightly pulled open the large door, curiosity getting the better of her. The top shelf was stacked with several different kind of books. The next one down had pictures frames. Rose grinned at the middle one. It was one of all the counselors of this year together. Clara was doing some sort of superhero pose, while the Doctor stuck his tongue out of her. Kaylee was giving bunny ears to a ginger woman. Steve was sitting on the ground, looking mock annoyed while Mr. Hardy (Luke?) and a young looking boy with short brown hair messed with Steve's hair. Reinette, Rose noticed with a small sigh, had her arms wrapped around the Doctor, an affectionate look in her eyes.
"Well, that's a little nosy."
Rose jumped, gasping and swirling around on her heels to look at the Doctor. She opened her mouth to apologize, but nothing came out. He was no longer wearing his green counselors suit, but had changed into an actual suit- a brown pinstriped one with a tie. His hair was gelled up even more than usual.
"Well?" He grinned, stuffing his hands into his pockets and twisting around to show her. "What do you think?"
"Looks brilliant," Rose grinned. "Is it new?"
"Yup. Just got it today. Steve ordered it online for me. Thought I'd look better in it than the green one."
"I think it looks better, yeah," she agreed, studying him. Feeling a blush rising up to her cheeks, she pointed to the door. "Well, we had better get going," she said quickly.
The Doctor smirked at her reaction, waggling his eyebrows. Rose scowled at him, making him chuckle. He crossed the room, hopping towards the door. Rose smirked, looking him over again from the backside. Yeah, he definitely looked better in that suit.
A/N: Sorry for the long-ish wait. I've been a bit busy. *awkwardly shuffles into the shadows*
I don't know when the next chapter will be up, since school starts soon...ish and stuff, but I'll try~