Chapter 11
Chapter 11
The lab was significantly larger than the hub, as well as significantly cleaner. Each station was immaculate; every syringe and vial had its own place, carefully organized and ready for use. Owen was impressed as he walked in; the enormity of it all was astonishing and the endless amount of supplies nearly made him ecstatic. He grinned, imagining the pranks he could pull on the team. Jack walked beside him, looking bored.
"It's not...homey. Reminds me too much of a hospital." he commented. He smirked at several of the scientists that watched them walk by, sending a particularly nice looking blonde a wink.
"Over here Jack!" Martha stood at the opposite end of the room, by several of the large testing machines. Jack threw his coat over a chair and surveyed the mass of metal and wire behind her.
"That is impressive, some of this stuff won't be invented for another four centuries!" he said touching one of the screens. Owen tossed his bag on the table and ruffled through it, pulling out the vial and heading over to one of the more high tech scanning machines. River watched him work for several seconds before tsking loudly.
"Why is it that you scold me for stealing other people's technology, but the American's get away with it?!" she asked as the Doctor meandered by. Donna noted his tense posture, and wondered vaguely what was bothering him. He sat on the edge of the table, accepting a mug of tea from Donna and glared at her.
"Because I can't stop them." he replied dryly. She grinned sweetly back at him then turned to Martha.
"You haven't met me yet. I'm River Song, time traveler, archaeologist..." she paused. "Professor." she said proudly. Rose rolled her eyes.
"You're not a professor yet River." she giggled slightly and Donna groaned.
"She's at a different point in time isn't she?" she asked exasperated. The Doctor nodded and Donna scowled. It was confusing enough to time travel, but her head was still swimming from the day before. As if River didn't seem to think rewriting time was enough, she had to come back and confuse them all the more. "So...this is past River?" River grinned and saw Martha's look of confusion.
"The Doctor and I never meet in the right order. Strictly speaking, I travel backwards across his timeline." she explained. Martha's eyes widened in amazement and a grin spread across her face.
"So you know his future?" she looked at Jack and they both shared a mischievous look. The thought of knowing something that the Doctor didn't begged to be used against him. "So, tell us, are we expecting any baby Time-Lords soon?" The Doctor choked on his tea, spewing it all over his suit as Jack and River burst into laughter.
"Oh I like you, Martha Jones." River turned to watch the Doctor stare at them, his mouth moving in an attempt to retort. He couldn't even look at Rose, whose cheeks had flushed beet red. Jack was still chuckling until the Doctor finally snapped his mouth shut and glared at him. He stopped laughing and leaned over to Martha.
"They're not..." he paused, searching for the right words. "They haven't, defined their relationship yet. I don't think he knows how to, he's complete rubbish." he said softly. Martha's rolled her eyes in agreement and they both began to giggle.
Rose attempted to ignore them as she helped the Doctor clean off his suit with the sonic screwdriver. She refused to look him in the eye as she scanned his sleeve, her thoughts awhirl. She knew how he felt, she thought, but did he want that? They weren't officially a couple and she wondered if he didn't think it was too domestic. He was tense, before her, and she wished she knew what he was thinking. He was embarrassed, she knew, and hopeful. Rose bit her lip; she didn't know how she knew, but she did, almost as if he'd told her himself. Hopeful was good, she thought unconsciously, at least he wasn't angry or upset.
"Rose..." his voice was quiet and shaky. She looked up at him, making sure to keep her face guarded. He shook his head and looked away, not knowing what to say. Did she want that? Did he? His mind was racing with possibilities, but he didn't even know if she wanted that with him. A family, the words were so foreign and domestic, but the thought of sharing that with Rose was comforting and filled him with Doctor stared at the table, keenly aware of Rose in front of him.
"Is that...I mean..." Rose stammered, trying not to sound so embarrassed and afraid. She let go of his sleeve and twirled the screwdriver in her hands. Briefly her eyes snapped up to his and her mouth began to twitch into a smile. "Would you want that someday?" A smile began to form on his face and he opened his mouth to speak, just as Owen let out a whoop of excitement.
"We have a match!" He exclaimed pointing to the screen. The Doctor scowled, squeezing Rose's hand before reluctantly walking over. He tried to hide his disappointment, burying his hands in his pocket and lodging those thoughts away for later. "According to this, we have a very rare and fairly harmless particle radiation. Not much is known about it now aside from the fact that it is a mutation of Zeta radiation." he looked up at the Doctor. "That keeps coming up, but what is it?"
"Zeta radiation is an element of the Time Vortex, years from now the Time Agency is going to attempt to use it as an energy source." he squinted at the screen. "So whatever that thing was back there is giving this off. That explains why it was repelled by me and Jack. Contact with the essence of the true Vortex would cause an adverse reaction..." his voice trailed off as he looked up at Rose, the implications of his words nearly knocking him over. His first thoughts were watching her on Satellite 5, the fear of her dying immobilizing him.
"Jack has the Time Vortex in him?" Gwen asked incredulously, she looked skeptical. "Is that some kind of joke? How'd he do that?" Jack looked at the Doctor, waiting for him to answer. "Is that why you can't die?" Gwen asked. Rose had to turned to him, horror on her face as Gwen spoke. He had the Vortex in him because of her, she'd tried to save him all those years ago and she'd thought she had failed. Yet here he stood, evidence of what she'd done.
"You can't die?" she asked softly. Jack nodded, his jaw tense. She stood, shock sweeping over her and she realized what that meant. In trying to save him, she'd cursed him and made him, wrong. She didn't know how, but she knew whatever he'd become shouldn't have happened. The Doctor was staring at her, open mouthed, waiting for her to speak. He was hurt that she'd lied to him and so afraid that he was going to lose her again. He wouldn't be able to go through it again.
The room had gone quiet, waiting as Rose met the Doctor's eyes again, both of them stricken. "You lied to me." she finally spoke, her voice hoarse. "You let me think he was dead, when instead he was alive, cursed with this." Her guilt and anger raged through her, tears creeping into her eyes.
"Well what about you?" he responded, his own voice cracking. "You can't even tell me what's happened to you? How do I know that it isn't going to try and kill you again?!"
"I didn't know until Pete's world, and we haven't exactly had the right moment since I got back. But you had a year to tell me, a year!" she stepped forward, her anger getting the best of her. "He's our friend, what kind of excuse do you have for that?"
"I don't have to justify myself to you." he stood straighter, his own anger flaring.
"No, but you could have told me the truth." she answered, tensing her jaw.
"Calling the kettle black, are we?" he retorted, his eyes clouding over. A whistle pierced the air and all eyes snapped to Donna.
"Oi! Both of you will take this outside and sort it, and you will not return until you have." she glared at them. "I will make sure you are locked out of the building." The Doctor clenched his jaw together and looked at River and Jack. Both of them avoided his eyes, smirking at each other. Donna was glaring specifically at him now and he cringed. The Doctor looked back at Rose. She refused to meet his eyes, leaning back on the table and pressing her lips together, she was waiting for him to say something. Part of him wanted to sweep her in his arms and reconcile it right there, but he was still bitterly hurt that she didn't trust him with this, and so very afraid of what might happen next. He finally took a deep breath and turned to Jack.
"Rose will have her cell phone; you can call if you need us." He looked back at Rose, resisting the urge to hold out his hand. Instead he shoved his hands in his pants pockets and glanced at the door. "Coming?" she nodded curtly, following him as he led the way outside. Donna frowned, watching the two walk out separated from each other for the first time since Rose had come back. She turned back to the group.
"Come on guys, back to work." Jack stepped back towards Donna. "They'lll be fine." He whispered to her. She smiled faintly.
"They better."