The Story of Emily Evans

V: Every Journey Has A Beginning

As I walked up the stairs of the flat, I noticed Mickey as he was walking down them. He waved a quick hi/bye with the plastic arm that I had last seen Rose with before he continued on his way down the stairs. As I opened the door of the flat, I noticed Rose sitting down on the couch while Jackie was in the kitchen...most likely cleaning it up from when she ate dinner.

"You're back late." I heard Jackie say as I closed the flat's door behind me.

"Didn't Rose tell you I'd be back later than usual...?" I asked her as I looked at Rose, who slightly nodded her head in my direction. A sign we both understood, she did tell Jackie that.

"Where is your bag?" Jackie asked me, just now giving me her full attention. At that, Rose also gave me a puzzled look as she probably just noticed that I didn't have it earlier as well.

"Oh, um...." I stammered as I realized that I had left it in the Tardis. "I knew I was forgetting something at the library...."

"Explains why you didn't answer your phone." Jackie told me. "Don't you normally keep it in your bag...?"

"Yeah." I told her as I let out a slight yawn. "I'm gonna go lie down." I turned towards my room, when Jackie stopped me.

"You eat dinner yet...?" I heard her ask me.

No. I told myself. "Yes." I lied, lying was easy, not getting caught on the other hand...that's the hard part. Luckily, I've had some practice. With that out of the way, I went into my room, closing the door behind me.

I instantly went to my closet and grabbed out a circular, dark grey, duffel bag. I set it on my bed, then opened it, before I started to sort different styles of clothes into it. Not everything I put in was a boring, librarian, type of clothing...but most were...and all of them were pretty basic in design.... With what most people would call boring...yeap...I suppose all my clothes were a type of boring.... But what can I do...? Jackie's a control freak with our clothes...mine more so than Rose as I'm younger....

"W-Why are you packing...?" I heard Rose ask me as she entered my room.

"After tonight...." I told her, my mind back tracked to all the excitement and adventure that I didn't realize were possible in only a matter of hours...never mind me realizing that they were actually, physically, possible. "I've realized...there's so much to see and so little time to see it in."

"What do you mean 'so little time'...?" She asked me.

"We could die at any minute, any second." I told her. After all, those living plastic monsters tried to kill me in the alley and at Rose's work. "My life is so dull, tedious, repetitive...so boring."

"Boring...?" Rose asked me. "You finished school when you were 14, not everyone does that."

"And what have I done for the past two or so years?" I asked her. "I've spent time reading books...I've only been working at the library for about a year now and ever since I started.... I go to work, come back home, go to sleep, rinse and repeat. I rarely go out unless I'm dragged out. I spend so much time reading about adventures." I then grabbed my favorite book and showed it to her. It was about an otherwise normal girl who found her way into a magical world filled with wonders. "Isn't it time I have one...?"

She grabbed the book from me and placed it on my bed. "You aren't Alice." Rose told me. "This is real life, it's supposed to be boring."

"Boring...?" I asked her as I thought about what had happened tonight. "We were attacked by living plastic, living plastic! How is that possibly boring...?"

"It's dangerous." Rose told me, pleadingly. "I thought you liked the safety of books!"

"I do!" I exclaimed. "...but they aren't real...I want, need, something real...."

"They've always been real to you." Rose told me. "Why aren't they anymore...?"

"...I don't know...." I told her before silence seemed to engulf the room. We stood in silence for a moment longer before Rose left, leaving me to continue packing...alone.

The next morning, I woke up around 6am, got dressed, and ate breakfast. After that, I left a note on the fridge since everyone was still asleep: 'Went out for coffee before work. -Emily'. Jackie'd wake up soon, in a couple minutes actually, and then Rose would considering it's already 5 til 7am. I then grabbed my duffel bag from my room and headed out the door.

I took my time walking down the stairs, taking a couple minutes to do so as I had plenty of time to get to the library. I did haft to work, from 8am to 12n and it was 7am, I have about a 40 minute walk ahead of me. It would take me about 10 to get to the coffee place, about 5 for the line, and about 20 or so from the coffee place to the library. By the time I ordered my coffee and walked the rest of the way to work, it was already 7:39am. I didn't normally walk to work, I'd take the bus or a train, but if I wanted coffee...I'd haft to leave early so I could walk there. Otherwise...it's too big of a detour for the bus or a train.

"You're here early." I heard my co-worker tell me. She's always the first person here as she normally unlocks the libraries front doors. However, today, I got here about a minuet or so before she did.

"I've got things to do after." I told her. "I couldn't wait."

"Got a date...?" She asked me.

"Something like that." I told her as she unlocked the doors to the library. Not really a date date but I am meeting up with him later today.

After work, I went over to a place nearby and ate some lunch. Then, I headed over to the park I was supposed to meet the Doctor at. I sat down on a bench, placed my duffel bag on the ground beside me, then I started to eat my lunch.

After a couple more minutes of waiting, after I had finished eating, the Tardis began to materialize in front of me. I grabbed my bag as I stood up from my seat just as the Doctor opened the door of the Tardis.

"You left your bag in here." He more so informed me just after he opened the Tardis's doors.

"What better way to make sure you'd return...?" I told him, even though I just forgot to take it with me when I left last night. At that, I entered the Tardis as he went up to the console. I looked around, only to not see my bag where I had left it. "Um...where is my bag exactly...?"

"I put it in your room, didn't know if you wanted Rose to see it or not last night." He told me.

"My room...?" I asked him, a little confused. Then again, I was going with him and just where would I sleep? In a room, in a bed. Definitely somewhere other than the control room.

"Down the hall." He then pointed in a direction, towards a hallway that branched off from the control room. "Take the first right, 3rd door on the left." I went down the hallway, followed his instructions and sure enough, found a door labeled: 'Emily's Room.'

Inside the room, I found a queen sized canopy bed with velvet red sheets and white curtains in the left corner of the room, my bag was on top of it, a nightstand to the right of the bed, a bookshelf to the left of the door that was hallway filled with books, a wardrobe along the wall to the right of the door, a desk to the left of the wardrobe, as well as a fire place in the far right corner of the room. I sat my duffel next to the bag that was on the bed before I started to get everything out only to sort them into the wardrobe, bookshelf, or nightstand. When I was done, I placed both bags, now emptied of their belongings, beside the wardrobe. I then laid down on the bed as I looked up at the ceiling, which I just noticed held different star constellations across it like a gigantic, breathtaking, mural.

~~~

Word Count: 1451