Doctor Who_ Hope - Mark Clapham [111]
Woah! said Anji, putting a finger to his lips to stop him. Dont say anything else, or youll be leaving me with deep, deep psychological issues. I want us to part as friends, and if you get to the end of that sentence that might not be possible.
Anji, said Dave after shed taken her finger away. I was joking. He grinned briefly at her obvious discomfort, and she couldnt help but smile back at him. There was something there, certainly, some essential Daveness. Her Dave, Dave I, would have made a sick little joke like that, she just knew it. This Dave wasnt the same man, but oddly Anji was certain that he had many of the same qualities, that this Dave would be kind, and gentle, and giving, just as her Dave had been. The temptation to stick around, to find out whether her instincts were correct, was strong.
Im going to go now, said Anji quickly, words tripping out of her mouth. I need to leave before things get complicated.
Dave nodded slowly. Goodbye then, Anji. It has been a pleasure to know you for this short time. It was a strangely formal thing to say, but Anji knew he meant it.
She stood on tiptoe, and kissed his cheek. For a second she stood there, her hands on his shoulders, cheek to cheek. And for that second she was somewhere else entirely, on a warm London day with a different Dave, long long ago.
Then the moment ended, and she stepped away.
Goodbye Dave, she said, backing away towards the TARDIS. He stood there watching her go, his arm lifted in a halfwave.
As she walked into the TARDIS, leaving Dave behind, Anji felt giddy. Tears pricked at her eyes, but she didnt feel heavy with sadness. She felt light, released, slightly delirious. Part of her life with Dave was finally, irrevocably over, and she was leaving the emotional baggage of that time behind her. But, although those were good times she was leaving behind, Anji felt the lightness of letting them go, the giddy sensation of moving on.
The TARDIS doors closed behind her. Goodbye Dave, thought Anji, certain that she would never think those words again.
Epilogue
Tonight We Fly
They had retreated into the cinema as the evening had become increasingly muggy a typical summers day in the heart of London, with the pollution curdling the air until it felt like you were breathing lead soup. The airconditioned cinema had been a respite from the heat and the bad air, the temperature and the pollen count. By the time they came out it was dark, and pleasantly cool. Crowds flooded the streets, wandering happily between pubs and clubs and other places of entertainment.
So, what did you think? asked Anji as they walked arm in arm down the Charing Cross Road, weaving around the tramps and the tourists without even noticing them.
Well, said Dave, thoughtfully. I think they could have made a better film from that premise.
Anji was suspicious of this sudden threat of mature insight she had watched the film with the sinking suspicion that Dave was hating every moment of it.
In what way? she asked.
Well, said Dave, stretching the vowel. Now Anji knew something was up, this was too dramatic a pause to be normal.
For a start, the Whisperer of the title should have been something more than a guy who talks to horses.
Like what? asked Anji.
Like the name of the spaceship, said Dave, smirking. He slid his arm out from hers, backing away as she threatened to hit him. A spaceship carrying a cargo of raptors!
He dodged as she took a swing at him.
And then the raptors could free themselves, and start rampaging around the ship, eating the crew of the Hors
Anji cut him off, grabbing him around the waist and demanding that he stop. He relented, and they both collapsed into giggles, leaning on each other as they walked up the street.
Some day, said Anji, squeezing Daves arm affectionately. Im going to drag you out of that SciFi world of yours and into the real world, where the