Chapter Text
You stood in a bustling cafe, surrounded by a blurry haze of people talking on their phones and clutching their steaming takeaway cups. The air was filled with the sound of overlapping chatter and the smell of coffee beans. You stretched a little and shifted your weight from one leg to the other. It was around midday on a Tuesday - maybe - and you had just ordered some drinks and a bite to eat, and were patiently awaiting your name to be called.
The Doctor had sent you on a little "mission" before heading off on your next trip. You two had been in the console room having a conversation about where you'd head next, unsure of where you should go, when a very important topic came up.
Tea.
Very important indeed.
"I know just what'll help us decide. A nice cuppa!" She'd exclaimed.
She was underneath the console, laying down and facing up, fiddling with some wires. You were stood next to her, arms folded, quietly watching her tinker away.
"But let's try something different. Hmm, something exotic," she mumbled. "Can you go out and find something? I'm sure Earth has some interesting stuff."
She'd been at it for hours trying to fix something on the telepathic circuit. Whether or not she was getting anywhere with it, you weren't sure. you'd often enter the room and offer your help; although most of the time, you had no idea what she was doing. Deep down, you knew you just really enjoyed keeping her company.
"Yeah, I'm sure I can find something. Are you after anything in particular?" you asked, tilting your head.
She scooted out a little and sat up, lifting her goggles to look at you properly. It left her hair adorably messy.
"Nah... not really. I'll leave that up to you. Oh, and empty pockets," she scrunched up her nose, tapping her pockets. "Could you pay? We landed in the right country, didn't we? You've got the right currency?"
"Yeah, of course," you replied, tapping your jacket pockets to make sure your wallet was in there. You weren't rich by any means, but you knew you definitely had enough cash to buy you both something to drink. It was the least you could do for a friend with a time machine, honestly.
"I'll see what I can find nearby."
She flashed you another dazzling smile. "Brilliant. Thanks!"
And with that, she put her goggles back on and scooted back under, returning to her little tinkering zone.
You pulled open the TARDIS door and were met by a cool breeze going through your hair. You closed your eyes and took a deep breath.
"Draught!" A muffled voice uttered from inside. Whoops.
"Got it, sorry," you replied, gently pulling the door shut behind you.
You turned back and let the chilly air brush against your skin. As much as you loved travelling with her, nothing beats a good lung full of fresh Earth air, as strange as that sounds. You learned to appreciate the things you normally overlooked - such as delightful Earth oxygen and remembering what day of the week it was.
You turned onto the busy main shopping street and pushed past the sea of people. Everyone walked by absentmindedly, minds caught up in their own individual journeys, whether that be work, meeting friends, education or running errands. Keeping busy, as human beings should.
You supposed your version of a "busy" life was something completely different to theirs.
Every cafe you passed looked interesting, but you were after something particular to fulfil the Doctor's "exotic" request. Knowing her, she just meant something that was a little bit out of the ordinary. You were early in the third decade of the 21st century and people were into all sorts of quirky stuff, so you figured it wouldn't be too difficult to find something different.
Thus, her request led you here, a few streets down to a bustling local cafe. You figured the sheer number of people crammed inside the little establishment was a good sign - surely that meant the drinks were good.
It was around midday, so it was packed to the rafters with grumpy businessmen needing a quick lunch, freelancers on their laptops and friends catching up over coffees. You had a glance at the menu and joined the line, put in the order, paid with your oh-so-fancy Earth cash and went around to the counter to wait for the order to come out.
You felt a little bit like an intern, fetching drinks for the 'boss'. It was a fun thought to amuse, although you didn't see it that way; you were just doing a favour for a friend.
Eventually, you heard your name being called, and picked up the two takeaway cups in a cardboard cup holder and the paper bag holding your lunch. You thanked the barista on your way out, being careful not to bump into anybody.
You'd offered to buy some food for the Doctor too, but she politely declined. You'd rarely seen her eat or sleep, yet she always had so much energy. You were quite the opposite. You'd wake up in the middle of the night and groggily go for a walk down the corridor to find her working away in the TARDIS, similar to today. Always work to be done, she'd say. You'd imagine the upkeep of a time machine was no walk in the park, but often wondered if she ever rested at all.
You walked back down the street, carefully balancing the cardboard cup holder with the teas in one hand and wriggling your sandwich out of the paper bag with the other, taking care not to stumble over your feet. Knowing your luck, that's exactly what would happen if you got distracted for a second or two, and you didn't really fancy seeing your beautiful sandwich sprawled out across the pavement.
You made your way through your lunch during the walk back. She'd made a comment once about crumbs on the floor in the TARDIS and how they absolutely cannot touch the console, and you'd taken that on board carefully. You wouldn't want to go messing around with a time machine, nor did you want a cross Time Lord on your hands, so lunch on the go it was.
Eventually, you turned a corner and walked back into the alleyway, and there stood the familiar blue box you'd grown so accustomed to over the past few months. Months? You couldn't tell how much time had passed, in all honesty. It's pretty easy to lose track of time in a time machine, funnily enough - but you knew it was long enough to adjust to this new life, and unable to imagine it any other way.
"Hello again," you smiled at the blue box, not expecting a response. You fumbled with the inner pocket of your jacket, pulling out your very own TARDIS key and gently nudging the door open, then pushing it shut behind you.
You found the Doctor still in the same position, assuming she hadn't moved an inch in the time you were gone. Similar to a cat peacefully snoozing in a spot of sunlight, but a lot more productive in her situation.
She must've heard you enter, because you heard a muffled "hey" come from underneath the console.
"I'm back," you said, chipper. "I got you some tea. Not sure if it's exactly what you wanted, but..."
She immediately scooted back up from underneath the console and removed her goggles and gloves, placing them on the floor beside her. She wiped her sweaty palms on her clothes, then beckoned you over.
"Let's give it a try, then," she said, rubbing her hands together in anticipation. You kneeled down beside her, carefully holding your drinks. "This one is yours," you handed over one of the cups, the tag from the tea bag sticking out from the lid. "Careful, it's hot."
She gave the cup an inquisitive look and sniffed it. "Smells fruity. Is it berries?"
"Pomegranate and raspberry, from a cafe down the street," you shrugged. "It looked interesting. Is that exotic enough?"
Instead of answering my question, she took a sip without hesitation and flinched immediately, squeezing her eyes shut and exhaling sharply.
"I did just tell you it'd be hot," you sighed, shaking your head. "Give it a moment to cool down."
"It's pretty good. Seven out of ten," she concluded with a smile, completely ignoring your comments. "Good, now I can add that one to my tea journal."
You furrowed your brows. "Do you actually have one of those?"
"Yeah, of course. It's all in here," she said, tapping her head. She raised her cup and took another sip, flinching again. "Come on then, aren't you going to try yours?"
You shook your head again and you diverted your eyes away from her in a sorry attempt to stifle a giggle.
"I just got my usual, I already know it'll be good. I'm just choosing to wait until it's at a drinkable temperature."
"No time for that," she scoffed in an attempt to hide her embarrassment. "Places to go, people to see."
"We're in a time machine, Doctor, we've got all the time in the world."
"Hey, that's not how it works!"
You shook your head and carefully plonked yourself down beside her on the floor. You're sure what she said made sense in some strange, timey-wimey way, and you weren't about to argue with her on that.
You sat cross legged, clutching your cup of tea, letting the toasty takeaway cup warm up your cold hands. You told her a little more about this "exotic" Earthy tea, how it was locally made and only available at this niche little cafe. She continued sipping as she listened, forcing herself to be unbothered by its scalding temperature so you couldn't mock her for a third time.
Although you were telling her about such seemingly boring things, she gave you her full attention. You appreciated it, and she appreciated the tea facts; a win-win for both of you.
It was a very grounding experience being there with her, sitting on the TARDIS floor, chatting about everything and nothing. You closed your eyes and listened to the time machine's familiar background humming overlapped by the Doctor's soft voice responding to the conversation. You could listen to her ramble for hours, and she often would.
You took a moment to appreciate how peaceful it all was, how much you enjoyed little moments like these, and how she brought your soul a sense of contentment you'd never felt before you met.
You took another sip of your now slightly-cooled-off tea, and felt incredibly lucky.
The cup of tea might've warmed up your hands, but there was something else warming up your heart.