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Doug started the new job in Vitex's PR department on a Monday and met the boss' daughter on the following Saturday. He asked her out exactly six weeks later.
Of course he recognized her. The Vitex Heiress, darling of the gossip rags (when they liked her), total ice princess (when they didn't.)
Doug was impressed with her, found her to be funny and kind. Rose had recognized him as well, since his picture had also appeared in some of the same rubbish magazines. He was usually buried several pages after the fascinating Vitex Heiress, but the Viking Funeral Dad could still be seen from time to time. Thank God, the public was starting to forget him and Abi and the kids weren't being harassed as much, allowing them to slowly heal.
Abi and the kids were off on a short holiday with the new boyfriend and he was surprisingly okay with it. This new normal, in which he and Abi decided to behave like adults, was starting to pay off dividends. Doug was happier. Abi was friendly.
The kids were definitely more secure. Jess had stopped sleeping with rocks and bricks, and Mickey wasn't obsessing over Vikings. Lottie was still writing lists but they were hopeful ones: "Six Businesses I Want to Start." The one about the qualities Lottie wanted in a future stepmum made him slightly nervous, but Doug felt like he could finally move on with life.
Rose was the cause of the happily anxious butterflies currently residing in his stomach, something he hadn't experienced since meeting Abi. Ironically, Abi was the one who'd encouraged him to ask Rose out. She'd dared him, in fact. He practically had to do it, then. (Maybe they weren't completely mature yet, but at least they were friends again.)
And that was how Doug found himself, sitting in his car outside Rose's apartment building. He was feeling suddenly jelly-legged and anxious, woefully unprepared to start dating again. His brain began to churn up all the old familiar "what ifs." What if they just brought out the worst in each other as he and Abi had done? What if the kids ended up hating her? What if she saw through his confident act and realized what a prat and a fraud he actually was?
"And what if she's the best thing that ever happened to you? Get up off your arse and go get her!" That voice in his head sounded suspiciously like Gordie McLeod. His beloved, irascible dad had turned into his own personal Jiminy Cricket. He thought his dad would probably enjoy nagging him from the afterlife, so he wasn't completely surprised.
So Doug took a deep breath and got out of the car. He leaned back in and grabbed several goldfish crackers left behind by Mickey and Jess, tossing them in a bin by the door.
He pushed the intercom button, and shortly thereafter he heard Rose's honey smooth voice calling, "Hello?"
"S'Doug, here for our date." He winced. For what other purpose would he be there? Pizza delivery? Air conditioner repair?
"Come on up," Rose said with a pleasant laugh. "Been lookin' forward to this all day."
"Me, too. On the way up." He let go of the button, smiling broadly.
An elderly lady he passed in the lobby returned his smile and said, "Hello, handsome," causing him to burst out laughing once he entered the lift.
For the time being the anxiety that had been weighing him down lifted off his shoulders. He was still nervous, but it was in anticipation of what the night might have in store for him and Rose. She had become his friend, and he was looking forward to spending the evening with his friend.
Doug knocked on her door and seconds later it opened. Rose Tyler stood there in a blue jumper and black jeans, smiling that tongue in teeth smile that had captivated him at work. She went up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. "Hello! Come on in. M'starvin'. Chips sound good?"
"Sure!" he answered. He took a deep breath, settling his nerves, and shut the door behind him. Chips and Rose sounded like a perfectly good way to start off a new phase in his life.