Distance

Chapter 11-I'm Having Trouble Breathing

The Doctor and Clara had decided on a break after a few fast-paced and confusing adventures.
"Let's go to the beach!" Clara said.
"A beach sounds nice." the Doctor said. "What beach?"
"I don't know any alien beaches, Doctor."
The Doctor looked at her thoughtfully. "I know somewhere."
Clara nodded. "Let's go, then."
The Doctor smiled at her eagerness. His Clara would never get tired of surprises.
As he flipped the switches and pulled the levers, he grinned across the console at her. She smiled back.
The TARDIS took off and landed in a matter of five minutes.
"We're there, Clara." called the Doctor.
Clara sprung up from the armchair like an excited child and the Doctor took her hand.
They stepped out of the doors together onto a deserted beach with sparkling blue water and a purple sky with a brilliant orange-red sun visible. A broken umbrella was perched sadly in the reddish sand.
"Wow!" exclaimed Clara. "This is beautiful!" She thrust her arms around the Doctor, who hugged her back with no discomfort. He was finally, finally used to her unexpected hugging attacks. She kissed his jawline quickly before pulling away and pulling him toward the water. The Doctor allowed himself to be dragged to the shoreline where the two sat criss-cross on the beach with their hands shyly joined in the middle.
"The view, Doctor." Clara sighed. "It's amazing."
"Indeed." the Doctor said, gazing out toward the horizon.
They sat like this for a few moments until they were interrupted by a loud foghorn. They sprung up as two majestic, sparkling, great, big ships emerged from underwater, both firing madly. They were both loaded with crews of what looked like glistening merpeople. The two beautiful and terrible ships circled one another not far from where the Doctor and Clara stood. The sound of cannons filled the air.
"Doctor! What the hell is that?" Clara shouted.
"Oh no!" the Doctor yelled. "Oh no, oh no, I forgot!"
"Forgot what?" screamed Clara. "How could you possibly forget this?"
"The Merman War of 1812!" The Doctor yelled in ecstasy. "We have to go help the merpeople that are stuck underwater!"
"Saving merpeople?" Clara muttered. "Sounds like a normal day with the Doctor."
"What was that?" the Doctor shouted over the noise.
"Nothing!" Clara assured him.
"Let's go! The water is high in oxygen!" the Doctor shouted.
"We can breathe underwater?" shouted Clara. "That's so-"
"Scientific?" suggested the Doctor.
"Cool!" finished Clara.
The Doctor rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand again as they jumped into the torrent of waves. Once they were underwater, they could see and breathe just fine. The two swam towards the bottom of the ocean to rescue merpeople.
'This is ridiculous.' thought Clara as she freed a family from under some rocks. 'But still, it is quite cool.'
She grinned at the Doctor, who was some distance away helping another family. He grinned right back. Behind Clara, rocks were being lifted and thrown carelessly off the fish-like creatures by other families. Clara didn't notice a boulder was hurtling toward her until she saw the Doctor's look of dismay and felt the large rock thud against her skull. She instantly collapsed into darkness.
"Clara!" shouted the Doctor soundlessly underwater. "Clara!"
The Doctor swam towards her as fast as he could, gathered her in his arms, and swam to shore.
"Clara!" the Doctor yelled again, shaking her. She was motionless. He took a deep breath and made a split second decision. He leaned down and clamped his lips over hers to breathe life into her.
In, out.
Clara lay in pitiful silence.
In, out.
Her heart beat erratically.
In, out.
She stirred slightly.
Come on, Clara. Breathe for me. In, out.
Clara came to with a gasp and found someone's lips pressed to hers. She did the only thing she could think of. She wove her hands through his hair and began to kiss him.
The Doctor allowed himself to kiss her back fiercely for a moment before realizing what he was doing and quickly pulling away.
Clara sat up dizzily. "S-sorry." she stuttered. "Didn't realize-"
The Doctor looked at her, his pupils blown and his hair messed up. "I-I know." the Doctor said. "It's fine. Forget about it." He shoved his hands in his pockets and turned his back to her, facing the now-quiet sea. "Ah, look, the battle's over."
Clara stood up unsteadily and stumbled toward the Doctor before tripping and falling. The Doctor quickly caught her before she hit the ground. He pulled her close to him.
"Oh, Clara," he said softly as he looked down at her disoriented face. "You were always this. Always the strength over the weakness."
She clung to him desperately. "You are..." she croaked into his chest. "You're my lifeline."
The Doctor held her closer and pressed his lips to her damp hair. "I-I love-"
A wave pushed them over into the sand before he could finish. The Doctor quickly sprang back up, scooped the now unconscious Clara into his arms, and rushed to the TARDIS. She would be absolutely fine.