A/N: In which Rose meets Donna, Jack and Jenny get in a fight, and the Doctor is a jerk.
Rose woke up with a groan as her alarm clock blared, marking the start of another day. She turned it off, but didn't sit up. Jack was still sound asleep, snuggled against her side and holding her close. He had always loved hugging and cuddling.
"Mummy?" he whispered, sounding tired.
She kissed his forehead "Yes, Jack?" she whispered back.
He squirmed in her arms "I don't wanna go to school today… I'm sick." He said, faking a cough.
Rose smiled "No you're not." she knew him too well him too well for it to work. "And remember. In just two months, we are going on vacation."
Jack smiled and nodded, a little happier than he had been before. He sat up and rubbed his eyes "I'm gonna get dressed," he announced, looking through his dresser.
Rose smiled at him, going into the bathroom to have a shower. After her husband's death almost 3 years ago, her life had become more routine. Get up, get ready, drive Jack to school, go to work, go shopping, cook, clean, sleep, and repeat.
She took a quick shower and applied a light coat of makeup, before going back into her and Jack's shared room to get dressed. Jack had already left, and she dressed in a pair of jeans and a fuchsia T-shirt.
She smiled at Martha who was already cooking breakfast. "Oh, thank you," Rose said "Any exams today? Or just studying?" she asked.
"Studying today. My next exam is on Monday," Martha said. In just a month she would finally be a doctor. That is if she passed her courses.
Rose nodded. "Alright, then. Don't worry, I'll do the cooking and shopping this weekend."
She set the table and noticed that Jack was eyeing the scrambled eggs Martha was making, and Rose sighed. He was going through a picky phase, and wouldn't eat anything with any sort of flavour, unless it was sweet, of course. She got him a slice of toast and put butter on it, and he seemed more satisfied with that. They ate in silence, well, except for Jack smacking his lips as he chewed.
While Rose was cleaning after their breakfast, Jack looked through his backpack for something. He came running over to her with a sheet of paper. "Ya hafta sign this," he said, putting it on the counter next to her.
"Jack, when you want me to sign something you have to show me in the evening, remember?" Rose sighed. She lifted him up and read the paper to herself. Apparently they were going to a museum, and he needed permission and money for the entrance fee.
She signed it, and helped Jack put his jacket on "We'll stop by a cashpoint on the way to school." She said. She put on her own purple leather jacket, and took her purse.
"See you later." She called to Martha.
She got into the car after fitting Jack into his seat in the back "Mummy?" he asked "Can I have a puppy?" he asked.
Rose frowned. "Since when do you want a dog?" she asked.
"My friend Jenny said she is getting a dog, and she'll bring it to school for our next show and tell. Can I have one? Pretty please, Mummy…" he begged.
Rose sighed. If only John had still been alive, she would have been able to give him what he wanted. But now she didn't have the time to take care of a puppy, and they certainly couldn't afford it "I'm sorry Jack… Maybe when you get a little older you can ask Father Christmas for one." She suggested.
"But Mummy, Christmas is months away." he complained.
"I'll think about it." Rose sighed. She really wanted to make him happy, but she was already working as hard as she could.
"Jenny said she is getting hers for her birthday, and that's next month." He kept complaining.
"Well, I'm sure Jenny's parents had to think about it too." She said, getting tired of his begging.
Jack shook his head. "Did you know that Jenny doesn't have a Mummy?" he asked after a few moments.
"No, I didn't know that." She answered, "I've never met Jenny."
She got out of the car and helped him out too. Despite how much he loved to be carried anywhere else, he always wanted to walk by himself when he was at school. When Jack had been born, John had decided that a nearby private school would be the best. They had payed the full tuition fee when John was still alive.
Jack ran inside and started playing with his friends. Rose smiled, before looking around for his teacher, Sarah Jane Smith. Rose spotted her trying to end a fight between two boys who couldn't agree on who should play with the Legos. Rose waited for their dispute to be settled, and for them to run off before greeting her.
"Hello, Rose." Sarah Jane said smiling.
Rose smiled back at her. She always felt at ease in the older woman's presence "I just wanted to give you this." She said, handing the note and payment to Sarah Jane "I know it said to hand it in yesterday, but Jack had forgotten to show the letter to me," she said.
Sarah Jane chuckled "It's fine. He did seem a bit nervous yesterday when I asked them to hand them in, so I figured that he had forgotten. Don't worry, it happens all the time." She said.
Rose nodded, glancing over at Jack "Sorry, but I really have to get going. I can't be late for work today." She said.
Sarah Jane bid her farewell, and Rose hurried towards her car. Whilst walking, she took a water bottle out of her back and opened it.
However, before she could make it back outside, a tall man clad in a pinstriped suit (with some really great hair) carrying girl who looked to be around Jack's age. Her ponytail bounced with each of his long strides. "Faster Daddy, faster," she giggled, clapping her hands. The man smiled down at her, but because of this didn't notice Rose.
He bumped into her, and the water from the bottle spilled on all three of them. The little girl looked at Rose in shock, then over at her Daddy who looked equally shocked but also angry, and she couldn't help but laugh. "Daddy, it's like a water fight," She giggled.
"Yeah, it is Jenny." He said hurriedly, putting her down to assess the damage. He glared at Rose "Watch where you're going next time, will you? I have a meeting in half an hour, and this little stunt might cost me a contract worth more than what you will earn in your entire life," He hissed.
That was definitely not what Rose had expected him to do. "Oi! You were the one who walked into me! And you shouldn't be that rude in front of your daughter…" she huffed. She had seen him a few times before, but never actually talked to him.
"Tell you what, I won't make you pay for a new suit if you stop trying to tell me how to raise my daughter, okay? Now, if you will excuse me," he said, the annoyance plain in his voice.
She gaped after him. She would definitely have to talk to Sarah Jane about this man. Who did he think he was, walking in here like he owned the place, and blaming her for not paying attention to what he was doing?
She sighed, and tried to dry off the water stain at the centre of her shirt with some paper towels, but it was no good. She would just have to leave the air conditioner on, on the way to work. Hopefully it would be dry by the time she got there.
The stain didn't dry, and Rose's day only got worse when they held a staff meeting (which she was late for) to tell them that they had to cut down on the amount of part- and full time workers, and the least efficient workers would be dismissed at the end of the month.
Whereas the other girls in the shop were hunting down potential customers, circling the shop like vultures looking for their next prey, Rose tried to be of help when the customers actually needed it.
This, however, turned out not to be the best of strategies, so Rose was stuck folding clothes.
"Excuse me, will you help me?" a female voice asked her.
Rose plastered on a fake smile and turned to face a ginger woman a little older than her "Of course, Ma'am. What can I do for you?" She asked.
"Well you see-" she stopped to look at Rose's name tag "-Rose. My company is having a charity gala in a month's time. I need help finding a dress for me and my niece" She asked.
Rose actually smiled genuinely at that. Not many people bothered looking at her nametag, probably because knowing her name would make them feel obliged to treat her like an actual human being.
"Sure Ma'am." Rose said. "Shall we start with one for you? I think I know one that will fit you perfectly."
The woman smiled "It's Donna. No need to call me ma'am."
Rose couldn't remember when she had last had that much fun at work.
"Did he really get so drunk that he started flirting with a tree?" she laughed.
Donna who had tears in her eyes from laughing that much nodded "He did! He thought it was a woman named Jabe, and when we told him it was a houseplant he told us that they could work that out. He's a proper spaceman, my brother."
They both laughed again, until Rose's manager looked pointedly at her. She covered her mouth to try to stop
"All right, be honest. Which dress should I go with?" Donna asked her.
Rose thought about it "Take the blue one, it makes your arse look great. The neckline of the black one is way too revealing." She said.
Donna chuckled "Aren't you supposed to try and make me buy the more expensive one? So you can get more in commission…"
Rose shrugged "The other girls might have done that, but I value actually helping the customers. Seriously go for the blue one. It will make that husband of yours, and every other man at the party, drool over you."
Whilst Rose was ringing in the dresses Donna had settled for her phone started ringing. She looked down at it and sighed.
"What's wrong?" Donna asked genuinely concerned.
"Sorry, but I'll have to call someone else to ring your items out." She said.
"Is something wrong?" Donna asked worriedly.
Rose sighed "Just something at my son's school. I'm really sorry for the inconvenience, but I'm sure one of the other girls can help you. Hold on, I'll just call for someone." She asked for assistance over the intercom, and let to find her manager to say that she had to take the rest of the day off.
After a stern warning she was on her way to Jack's school, wondering what trouble he had gotten into. Everyone in his class loved him, and likewise. Unfortunately, this also meant that whenever one of the older students was picking on one of Jack's peers, he would stand up for them.
Once she got there, she sat down outside the headmaster's office. The school's headmaster was a young woman named Amelia, or Amy, as she preferred. Rose had met her a few times, and knew that you definitely didn't want to get on Amy's bad side.
She was let in, and was told that Mr Noble, whoever that was, would be here soon.
It wasn't long before someone knocked on the door.
"Come in," Amy called.
Rose looked up, just as the person she least wanted to see stepped inside.
"It's you!" exclamied The man with the pinstriped suit from earlier. "Oh, great."