Neither of them had talked about it, but the Doctor knew perfectly well what day it was tomorrow. And this knowledge freaked him out, because it was Clara's birthday and he didn't know what to do about it.
When he was her dashing young gentleman friend everything seemed so simple and natural. What did he usually do in these kind of occasions? He had no idea. He thought about it and... Nothing. Total blackout.
He was in the TARDIS control room. He had been standing there for a while, perfectly still except for his long, frail, fingers, constantly switching from calm to agitated. In that moment he caressed the console gently, continuing to stare intently into empty space, just pondering in search of a solution to a problem he had tried for too long to avoid. What did the pudding brains usually do when they had to celebrate a dear friend's birthday?
"They buy presents!", he said out loud, "Yes, that is good".
He finally moved from the position he had occupied for god knows how long. He ran up the stairs and grabbed a piece of chalk and started writing frantically on the blackboard. "Very good, Doctor", he congratulated himself. He would simply get her a present, it didn't need to be a big deal. He smiled, but then, all of a sudden, his face dropped. "What the hell am I going to buy her?", he stopped scribbling notes, the hand holding the piece of chalk lifted in mid-air. "What would she like?"
He grunted in exasperation. He was quite positive he knew her well enough to be able to find something she would like. Still, his usually hard working brain seemed determined not to collaborate that day. He finally understood what Clara had meant that first time on the TARDIS, about forgetting every single book ever read when someone asks which is your favorite. "Great. Now, that I remember!", he scowled, beating his forehead with the palm of his hand, "Is having a pudding brain contagious or something? I need to stop spending all this time with humans".
Think, think, think, he ordered his brain, while circling around the room with heavy steps and his hands behind his back. He suddenly stop on his tracks, realization dawning on him and a wide smile growing on his face. That last memory had actually given him the solution.
"Books!", he burst out. He chuckled, trodding back down the stairs. "She loves books -Honestly, when she starts, it's impossible to make her shut up about them- I've found the perfect present", he grinned happily to himself and breathed a sigh of relief, "That wasn't so hard, after all".
He reached for the controls and started the engines, when his phone rang. He lifted the receiver and brought it to his ear, while still focusing on the buttons he was pressing and the commands he was giving the TARDIS about the destination. "Clara, Clara, Clara".
"Doctor?", the girl replied, "Is that you?"
"Of course it's me", he said, "Who did you expect? Father Christmas?"
There was a pause, before she continued. "You're too cheerful", her voice was clearly doubtful, "You're being suspicious. What are you up to?"
He rolled his eyes. "Do I need to be up to something to be happy to hear from you?"
"Oh Doctor", he could practically see her shaking her head and rolling her eyes, "You think you're so clever, but you still don't understand that I can see right through you and I always know when you're hiding something from me".
"I am so clever", he retorted incredulously. He ignored her other remarks and asked her "What do you want?", instead.
"Just checking in", she said slowly, with a casual tone of voice, "When am I going to see you? Are you coming tomorrow?"
He voice sounded hopeful and the Doctor's hearts skipped a beat. "Would you like me to?", he asked, even though he had already planed a visit.
"Of course", he heard her smile through the receiver and he silently smiled back.
"I'll pass by your flat after you're finished working, then"
"It's a date", she said, before adding quickly, "Well, not a date, not in that way – oh, you know what I mean"
He chuckled quietly. "Sure thing, boss", he smirked, "Wouldn't want to make P. E. jealous, would I?".
"Oh, shut up", she laughed, and before hanging up she added "See you tomorrow, Doctor".
He landed his TARDIS in a deserted alleyway in the middle of London and went to look for a bookshop. He didn't have to walk long, because very soon he found himself staring at a big building which had a sign in capital letters telling him he had found a bookshop called "FOYLES". He shrugged and went inside, but he soon realized the implications of entering a five floors bookshop with the intention of buying a book but not having any specific idea in mind. There were too many choices.
His first impulse was to grab the first thing at hand, so it could be over and done with. It would have been so easy, but something inside of him stopped him. He wasn't sure, but he felt uncomfortable with giving her such a poor gift. He felt a big part of him grow with the desire of seeing her happy because of whatever he had chosen for her. He tried to suffocate the urge to get her something special, because he didn't want to make a big deal out of it and because he knew what an effort it would require in a place this huge. Yet, just the idea of walking out with a totally impersonal present was making him unsatisfied.
He walked around the shop for what he felt as forever, and that was saying something coming from a two thousand years old Time Lord. He spent what were probably hours staring at books and growling at them, until he heard a voice coming from behind him.
An "Excuse me, sir" startled him, making him almost jump. "Yes?", he snapped, "Can I help you?".
The girl he found once he had turned angrily to face the source of the voice didn't budge nor flinch to his aggressiveness. Instead she just smiled, utterly unperturbed and seemingly not intimidated one bit. "That is what I wanted to ask you, actually", she told him gently, "You seem a bit lost".
He stared at her in confusion, until he noticed the nameplate which told him she worked there. "Oh", he said in surprise, and added gruffly, "I can handle myself, thank you".
The young woman didn't drop her smile and neither did she move from her spot. "You've been here for hours, just walking around here as if all these books were your mortal enemies", she said half serious, half joking, "I'm here to help. It's my job".
He scrutinized her, doubtfully. Could a mere bookseller help a big, bad Time Lord as himself in one of his biggest quests to date? He didn't think so. All the same, he wasn't in any position to deny any word she had said. "All right, fine".
She beamed at him. "So, who's the present for?"
His jaw dropped and he looked at her with wide eyes. He saw her own eyes shift to a guilty expression. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be indelicate", she said in a hurry, "It was just to give me an idea what to look for".
It took a while for him to react, but when he finally spoke his voice showed his concern: "How did you know I was looking for a present?"
If he had expected her to confess to him that she was some sort of psychic or something, he surely wasn't prepared for her to burst into a laughter that clearly stated that his intentions weren't quite a mystery for the keen observer. "Oh please. If it had been for yourself, you wouldn't be so anxious in your decision. I've worked here long enough to understand these kind of things", her voice was kind and patient, "The effort you're putting into it means that the person you're getting the present for must be very special. I've hardly seen anyone struggling this much to find the right book".
"Yes. No, she isn't", he corrected himself at once. He assumed an angry expression, but this time not directed neither to the girl, nor to the books.
"There's no need to be shy", she looked at him sympathetically, "Are you two very close?".
He pondered on the right answer, trying to figure out in only a few seconds what he had difficulty trying to understand in a life time. "I suppose we are", he said, tentatively, "very close, in fact".
"Is she your girlfriend?", she asked, curiously.
"What?", he jumped, "Oh no, god forbids! Her boyfriend is a stupid P.E teacher, anyway".
She responded to the deep frown he always wore while thinking about Danny with a "I know something you don't" look. "I see", she just said, enigmatically, "Tell me a bit about your friend. What kind of person is she? What does she like?".
He thought intently before answering. "She's an English school teacher", he started, "She's very bossy and a bit of a control freak. She has a funny nose and a face that is simply too wide, but it just now occurs to me that this is probably not the information you were looking for".
"In fact, it isn't", but she didn't seem to mind at all, "She must be a great reader, since she's also an English teacher".
"Yes, she is", he nodded, "She has read so many books, I'll probably end up buying her something she has already read".
The Doctor watched the girl thinking, searching in her memory for an ideal gift for this unknown woman he hadn't managed to tell her much about. He saw the idea grow in her mind by the light in her eyes and smile she gave him. "I've got just the thing for you", she snapped her fingers and then gestured him to follow her.
He trotted behind her, uncertainty. There were too many books and she knew too little about Clara for it to be possible that she had already found a solution. She probably felt that he wasn't convinced because she looked back at him with a reassuring smile. "There is too great a risk, as you said, to choose a book she has already read. So, I thought, the best thing is to get her something that she loves but in a way to make it something special, do you understand what I mean?"
"Yes", he tried to keep up both with her words than with her steps, which were surprisingly fast, "And by yes I actually mean no. Explain yourself".
She finally halted and she gestured to the space in front of her. "Here you can find some classic novels of the English literature which have been printed relatively recently for passionate readers. What is so special about them and what makes them different from other copies of the same books, is that they are really beautiful, both on the outside than on the inside, and they also have some assays at the beginning and at the end written by contemporary experts", she looked proud while she showed him a few examples of what she was talking about. He had to give her credit. They were stunning and Clara would have loved each and every one of them. He saw Proud and Prejudice, Oliver Twist, Robinson Crusoe... And then he saw the perfect gift to give to her. He knew it at once, and suddenly any doubt freed his mind like a long lost memory.
"They are a bit expensive, but for your special friend I think it's worth it", she said, but he wasn't listening. He just stared, wide eyed at the book. He lifted it and started looking through it. He slowly moved his head towards the young bookseller standing next to him and he met her wide grin. "So, it seems we have found our perfect pick, have we?".
He nodded. "You have not idea how much".
"Good". They both stayed in silence as he continued staring at the book in his hands. He finally decided to go and pay for it, but before doing so he smiled at her. "Thank you very much".
He knew she could sense how deeply grateful he was, in a way a simple "Thank you" couldn't possibly express. "Don't mention it. I'm just doing my job".
He nodded, another thank you implied in his eyes. He told her goodbye and then turned away. He wanted to get out of that shop quickly. He had a couple of other thing he wanted to do.
The next evening, Clara's apartment was filled with a loud, wheezing sound. The Doctor looked out of the TARDIS doors and called her name, but no one replied. He thought that maybe it was still a bit early for her to be back from school already. He decided to wait for her to return in her flat, so he grabbed the well rapped present and a bottle of wine before stepping out of his blue box and into her bedroom. He walked out, closing the doors behind him, and went to the living room. He put down the objects he was carrying on the couch and sat down next to them.
He waited. And waited. The minutes ticked by and he grew all the more impatient. He had the impulse of leaving and he decided not to just because she wasn't usually late and, after all the times she had been patient with him - ditching her in Glasgow for coffee and not coming back for three weeks came to mind -, she probably deserve some patience on his part, too.
He felt incredibly tired, all of a sudden. He lied down, trying not to squash the present and thought "I'll close my eyes just a second", before falling fast asleep.
It was the noise of Clara turning the lock with the key that woke him up. He jumped to a standing position, startled by the fact that he had managed to fall asleep. He looked outside and the hour on his wristwatch made him realize he must have been asleep for a few hours. He saw her come in and stop when she saw him, too.
"Doctor!", she burst out, worried, "You're here!"
He stretched awkwardly. "Of course, I'm here. I thought we had an appointment".
Deep guilt dawned on her. "I know, I'm so sorry", she gave him an apologetic look, "At the last second, Danny and some other colleagues of mine surprised me by taking me out to celebrate. I couldn't get out of it, so I tried calling you many times but you weren't answering. I left a voice mail, so I was hoping you heard it. I'm so sorry".
He flinched at Danny's name and couldn't help being a little hurt that he had somewhat stolen her from him. But he was her boyfriend after all, he had every right to do so, unfortunately, so he just shrugged and told her not to worry about it. "I left the TARDIS in your bedroom, so that's why I probably didn't hear the phone ring".
She was about to say something when her sight was caught by something near to him which made her eyes widen in surprise. "What's that?"
He followed her gaze and realized she was referring to the present he had left on the sofa. "Oh, right", he hurried to pick them up, a little bit embarrassed "It's nothing, just – Happy birthday!"
He dropped both the book and the wine in her hands unceremoniously. She looked even more startled after his rough reaction to her question. She started at them for a few seconds and then raised her eyes to stare at him, with her mouth still open in surprise. "You knew it was my birthday?"
Of course I know, I always know, he thought, but he shrugged and gave her a casual "Yeah".
Her mouth curled into a smile and her eyes softened. "Thank you so much, Doctor", she came forward and tried to hug him, but it all resulted with an awkward attempt to embrace him with her arms occupied on her part and a struggle to brake free on his side. She ended up just patting carefully his shoulder with the hand which was holding the book.
Clara left him to go and switch on all the lights and he followed her in the kitchen where she went to put down the bottle of white wine. She turned to smile at him one more time. "It was so thoughtful of you. I feel guilty even more about leaving you waiting, now".
"You should be", but he mirrored her smile, "It's not a big deal. Is this what you do, don't you? In the world of pudding brains. It's a customs to give each other presents, isn't it?"
She gave him a cheeky smile, which meant that she didn't buy his attempt to come across as totally unconcerned. Her eyes asked him for the permission to open the package and when he nodded she started tearing excitedly the paper wrapping.
"Calm down", he laughed, "You're not so young, anymore. Please, try to contain yourself".
"I just received a present by my favorite big, bad Time Lord, you can't understand what an honor it is. I can't wait to see what it is", she joked and then looked down at what she had uncovered.
Her eyes widened for the second time that evening and she stared at the book in silence. She studied intently the front cover and then the back cover, before opening the book and examining the pages. Eventually, she closed it and pulled it to her chest, still without saying a word.
"Clara?", his voice betrayed his concern, "Is everything OK?"
She looked up at him and he notice immediately that her eyes were slightly veiled by tears. This scared him more than he wanted to admit.
"Clara?", he gasped, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you".
She laughed and shook her head. "I'm sorry", she wiped her eyes with her sleeves, "I didn't mean to get so emotional, but I'm not sad. Actually, I'm very happy".
He stared at her in confusion. "So why are those...things in your eyes? It's a roller-coaster with you humans and your... emotions."
She leaned her had to the side and looked at him sweetly, without saying a word. Then, she read the title out loud: "The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood"
"Yes, I'm aware of what I got for you, thank you for reminding me, though. Look at the first page, you missed something", he nodded encouragingly.
She quickly opened the book and found a few words. While she read them her smile grew and when she finished she laughed. She looked up from the book and he could see her eyes shining in happiness.
"As you can see, I paid a visit to an old friend", he spoke before she could, "You're probably the only person in history who has a copy of The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood singed by Robin Hood, Earl of Loxley".
"I am a really lucky girl".
"It would seem so", he said and they both grinned at each other.
Clara grabbed a couple of glasses and opened the bottle of wine with a bottle opener. She poured the contents in the two cups and turned to face the Doctor. "This calls for a celebration", she passed him his glass.
He took it in his hand, without looking away. "Happy birthday, Clara"
She leaned her cup to his, to make a toast. "To the most beautiful present anyone has ever given to me", the air sounded of the gentle collision of their glasses, "Thank you Doctor".