Born of Fire (Doctor Who AU)

Chapter 30 Half Truths makes for ugly Nightmares

Daniel didn't bother stopping at the house after school. He simply walked out of the building, mounted his bike and roared from the car park intent on making it to Glesga faster than the usual two hours. If he pushed a bit over the edge of the seventy miles per hour speed limit, he could shave at least a few minutes off that time. He had one goal tonight and the majority of his thoughts focused on bringing his plan to fruition. His month of suspension was drawing to a close, and with her job in Edinburgh ending six days ahead of schedule, the timing was perfect. Winter threatening to make an early entrance added to his decision to ask her now. Neither of them needed to make this trip once the snows started.  

An hour after leaving school the carriageway skirted Loch Lomond. The hills, turned golden by the late afternoon sun, reflected in the water. The landscape, more brownish orange now, reminded him more everyday of Mount Lung. Every day, except Wednesday and Friday, were spent taking his camera around the Highlands, capturing the changes wrought by the late autumn weather. But on these two days, he only thought about getting to Glesga, and Nora and Robbie.  They made being stranded without a TARDIS on this rock bearable.  

At five ten, he arrived on the outskirts of Glesca just in time for the height of rush hour traffic.  He weaved in and around cars and lorries competing for every bit of pavement rehearsing his speech in his head. The words had to be just right. Telling the kids in his class off came easy, but he was rubbish at formulating the right words when he needed to ask a woman to make a life altering decision. Rose was proof of that. While that had not turned out the disaster he'd thought, the fact remained, he did not have his progenitor's glib tongue. This time, he would make the question more about her and less about why he had built the bloody house. Besides, she already knew that part. He would have to make a few changes to things so that the house reflected more of her and less of Rose.   

Working out a way to support a family was an entirely new experience. It was not something the Doctor had to worry about for seven hundred years. Daniel, at least, had Donna's common sense and stringent accounting skills to keep his finances straight. Of course, if he messed up the accountant would call. He'd talked to Pete about family insurance plans, but the conversation hadn't gone quite as expected. Pete kept asking if things were moving too fast. He'd known Nora almost as long as he'd known them, so he knew they weren't moving too fast. He lay in bed at night dreaming of what the house would sound like with Robbie there all the time. 

Someone's blaring horn snapped his attention back to the traffic around him. Working his way between the cars occupying the neighbouring lanes, he crossed the bridge over the River Clyde for the fifteen-minute ride to the exit leading to Gilshochill and Milngavie Road just as dusk began settling across the city. The sight of Robbie playing with his friend in the front garden brought a warm smile as Daniel pulled his bike behind Nora's sedan. He barely had time to pull his helmet off before two small, bundled up, squealing boys made a dead run for him. He dropped his helmet on the saddle and swooped Robbie into his arms. 

"Hi, Daniel. Do you have treats?" the excited boy next to him squealed whilst still jumping.

"No, Tommy," he answered, as he dropped Robbie on the saddle of the bike. He handed the helmet to Robbie and swung Tommy up behind his best friend. "Mind your legs, the muffler is very hot."

"Hello, Daniel," Tommy's mother yelled, waving from her own garden. "Nora just beat you in," she laughed.

"Yeah, thanks, Margaret. Alright, you two monkeys, it's getting dark. Let's get in." He tapped the helmet on Robbie's head before lifting him off the bike. He walked the boys back to where the woman stood by the fence. "Was she tired?"

"Yeah, but I have a feelin' she'll perk up when she sees you." The woman flashed a cheeky grin sending a flush of embarrassment through Daniel. "Can I tell you something?"