The Doctor's Son

2 - The Time-Meddler

'Excuse me; have you got this in a medium?' Dorian asked the Henriks Department Store assistant, holding up a large navy blue jumper.

'I'll go check for you.' The blonde assistant replied. She had full lips and hooped earrings, she looked fed up and tired. Dorian didn't blame her; it must have been a long day.

'Thank you,' he checked the name tag on pinned to her pink hooded top, 'Rose.'

Dorian continued browsing while he waited for Rose to return from the store room.

'Here you go,' Rose said holding out a smaller jumper to him.

'Thank you,' Dorian said again, taking the jumper from her with a smile.

'Have a nice day, sir.' Rose returned his smile with a twitch of her lips before walking off to help another customer.

Later, Dorian met up with Ronan and two other friends. Gerard, Jo and Ronan were fellow second year students at Medical School. Dorian had always been brilliant at science, his best subject being Physics, but there was always a need for a doctor and it was an ever-changing profession. So Dorian had trained and practised as a doctor for at least a hundred years, in various conditions and places.

He also found it appropriate that he was a doctor son of the Doctor.

Between stopping at cafes for drinks they spent the entire day shopping. Jo needed a new dress so they headed back to Henriks.

'Don't be too long sirs, madam.' The uniformed security guard on the door said, 'Store's closin' in an hour.'

Dorian spotted Rose again as the three men waited outside the changing rooms for Jo to model her selection of dresses. She saw him looking and gave him a quick smile.

'Got an admirer there D,' Gerard winked. Dorian opened his mouth to object but Gerard's attention was redirected by Jo emerging from behind a curtain in a flowing elegant dress.

It was getting dark outside when Dorian and Ronan bid goodbye to Gerard and Jo outside Henrik's. The security guard on the door bade them 'goodnight' as they left.

Dorian buttoned up his jacket and lifted the collar up against the cold. He and Ronan set off on the walk back to the flat, promptly walking into a big eared, big nosed man in a leather jacket.

'Oh, I'm sorry,' Dorian apologised immediately, rubbing his arm. It felt a bit odd, like it had pins and needles.

'It's alright!' said the stranger brightly, Dorian detected a northern accent. 'You be on your way, back to your home like it's just another normal day! Tell you what, go mad, have a cup of tea! Tea's great!'

Dorian exchanged a look with Ronan. 'Right. Well, um, sorry again.'

'Best to stay away from here tonight, things might get a bit hot!' The stranger called cheerfully after the two flat-mates as they walked away. Dorian wondered if the man was crazy.

***

'Have you seen the news?' Ronan asked as Dorian brought their tea - Indian takeaway - into the living room.

'The whole of Central London has been closed off as Police investigate the fire...'

Dorian read the headline scrolling across the bottom of the TV screen: DEPARTMENT STORE BLAZE: Henriks dept store ripped apart by explosion. The picture changed to footage of a dozen fire fighters trying to put out the fire on the Department Store roof.

Dorian settled himself down on the sofa as the newsreader announced what the early reports indicate caused the blast. He couldn't help recalling what the strange man outside Henriks had warned. 'Things might get a bit hot.' Could the man have known? Dorian wondered. Could he have caused it? They ate their food and watched the news in a concerned silence.