Abandoned
A Tenth Doctor Adventure
Written by David Whamond
Clara McDonald's mind was miles away, sitting under a palm tree, gently sipping coconut milk. The rest of her was in a supermarket in the middle of a busy day. Her hands picked up a tin that said that it's contents was chicken soup.
The sound of the latest music was being pumped through the supermarket's old and needed to be replaced speaker system. She looked at her hands. They use to be doing far more important things then placing tinned soup onto stock shelves. They use to hold newborn babies.
A lot of things happened to her, each one of them chipped away at her, taking away large amounts of her self-esteem and made each day just that little bit more unbearable. She wanted to scream, she wanted to give up, she wanted to make sure that who ever it was that placed her there got a good piece of her mind when she met them.
“Excuse me.” came a voice from behind her. Clara turned to look at the person that asked the question. He was tall, skinny and hair that looked like it belonged on a hedgehog. His clothes were modern, yet looked completely out of place.
“Yes?” Clara asked, the man looked at her for a second and then said, “I'm looking for sardines. Very important. Vital in fact.” Clara paused for a second and then said, “Isle 12, several brands.”
The man smiled and said, “Thanks very much.” And with that the man was walking away. Clara's hands returned to picking up the tinned soup and placing them on the shelf. Her mind was wondering if it would like a dip in the crystal blue waters.
It was Eight PM at night. Clara walked out of the staff entrance of the supermarket and was heading towards her car. Sitting on the hood of the car was Samantha Gerald. Her daughter. “What are you doing here?” Clara asked as she approached.
“That's a nice way to say Hi to your own Daughter.” said Samantha as she slid of the hood. “I mean, is there something wrong for a daughter to see her own mother?” Clara looked at her and laughed. She hugged her and said, “It's been a while.” Samantha stepped back and said, “It's been over two years.”
Clara opened her car door and climbed in. Samantha sat in the passenger seat. “So, how's Arnold?” Clara said as she sat there, looking at the groups of people leaving the store and getting in their cars. Clara waved at someone who walked past. They didn't respond.
“Arnold's good. He just got a promotion.” said Samantha. “In fact, I have something to tell you.” Clara looked at Samantha and said, “You're not.” Samantha paused for a second and said, “I haven't even told you yet.” Clara quickly replied and said, “It's either Kids, Marriage or Divorce and those are just the three I can come up with right now.”
Samantha looked at her and said, “You always do that.” Clara looked at her and said, “Do what?” Samantha looked at her watch and said, “Try and be funny when your not.” Clara looked out the window and said, “Well, you've got big news, I'm guessing Kids because, you're already married to Arnold and you love him so much that you're not going to divorce him for anything.”
Samantha was shocked and said, “Yes, It's kids. I'm pregnant.” Clara just sat there silent. “Well?” asked Samantha. “Well what?” replied Clara. “I thought you'd be happy.” said Samantha.
Clara sat there and said, “Congratulations. Happy?” Samantha looked at her and said, “I know you've had it rough since Dad died and Simon vanished but still, Life goes on, People still have lives, deal with problems. It doesn't just stop because you've had it rough.”
Clara turned the car engine on and said, “Can I drop you off somewhere?” as she put her foot on the accelerator. The car left the car park.
The TV was on the news. The news was full of things that were grim and made you think that the word was going to hell in a hand basket. Clara watched as events were repeated every Fifteen minutes. She was about to change the channel when there was a knock at the door to her flat. Clara walked slowly to the door. It it was important then the person would wait. She reached for the door handle and opened the door.
It was the man from the shop. “Yes?” she said. It was too late for anything. “Yes, I heard about your situation and I'd like to help.” Clara just stood there and said, “Did Samantha put you up to this?” the man stood there and asked, “Who's Samantha?” Clara rolled her eyes and said, “You might as well come in. You promise not to rob me blind?” the man entered and said, “Promise.”
Clara entered her small kitchen. She turned the electric kettle on and watched as the man entered her living room. “So, What's your name?” the man entered the kitchen and said, “I'm the Doctor.” Clara quickly asked, “Doctor What?” the man smiled and said, “Everyone says Doctor Who.” Clara replied and said, “I always try and be different.”
The water in the Kettle reached boiling point and Clara quickly poured two cups of tea. She handed one over to The Doctor who accepted it and asked, “Any Sugar?” Clara handed him a tin with the words Sugar written on it. The Doctor quickly dumped two teaspoons into the cup and stirred it, he took a sip and released an “Ah!”
“So, your a Doctor that's here to try and cheer me up to the fact that my Daughter's pregnant.” said Clara as she sipped her tea. The Doctor looked at her and said, “Not really.” Clara looked at him and said, “I'm here to try and show you a better life.”
“Excuse me?” said Clara. The Doctor reached into his coat and pulled out a letter and handed it to Clara. Clara read it and looked at The Doctor. “I don't understand.” The Doctor looked at her and said, “It's a Pre-Destination Paradox apparently.”
“So, this is suppose to happen.” said Clara looking at the letter. She looked at the writing again. It was defiantly hers. “I hate explaining Temporal Physics. It says that I'm going to need your help in the next two days and this was how we met.”
“But what If I don't want to help you?” asked Clara, challenging him. The Doctor looked at her and said, “But your interested, there's that little voice in the back of your head.” Clara noticed it. “But what if I don't help you?” she asked again. The Doctor took a sip of his tea and said, “You've heard of Schrödinger's Cat haven't you?” Clara nodded, “Well, You either help me or you don't. It all depends on you, once choice leaves you alive and in a lead box, the other, leaves you radioactive and dead.”
Clara looked at him, “So I either help you or not.” The Doctor nodded. “This had better be good.” she said as she took his empty tea cup and placed it into the sink. The two of them left the apartment.
The phone rang. It rang again, “Hello, you've reached Clara McDonald's Answer Phone, I'm either out or asleep. Leave your message and I might get back to you.” came the recorded message. There was a loud tone and Samantha's voice came through the speaker, “Mum, are you there? Look I want to apologize about tonight. Are you there?” the line disconnected.
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Author's Notes: I've always wondered if the Doctor ever actually had someone's mum as a companion, someone who had kids and had lived a life that they were now no longer happy with. So this was just an Idea that I'm expanding on. You'll see more of Clara McDonald's adventures and probably other fan fics or original fictions as the days go by.
