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Published: 2014-12-01 03:48:20 +0000 UTC; Views: 311; Favourites: 1; Downloads: 0
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What if the Doctor had kissed River for the first time in "Day of the Moon," and their reactions were swapped?The Doctor stood in front of River, regarding her features and analyzing her subtle smile. The area around them was all quiet; no prisoners at Stormcage were kept even in a cell near River Song. River's golden curls shone, even in the dank, bluish atmosphere.
Amy and Rory were in the TARDIS, waiting for him to come back from dropping River off after having fought the Silence in 1969. The Doctor had rather enjoyed River's incessant flirting, which seemed to be turned a notch higher than usual. Maybe it was because he actually participated this time - he was giving in. He shouldn't encourage her.
The Doctor leaned against the steel frame of the prison cell. He suddenly realized how much he actually enjoyed having River around. He'd been running away from her, but now, he wished he could run to her, or better yet, run with her.
"You could come with us," he suggested, though it was really a hidden request.
"I escape often enough, thank you," River replied. She was side-stepping again - he hated it when she did that; when she wriggled out of his questions with a mysterious answer that only replaced his question with another.
"...and I have a promise to live up to." She reached up to touch his bow tie. He stared at her, still confused, but not bothering to ask any more questions. After all, he'd "understand soon enough". Somehow, he doubted that.
But that didn't stop him. He couldn't fight it - this woman - anymore. For this moment, he wasn't even sure he cared who she was. Before he knew what had come over him, he was kissing her. He felt her lips quiver unresponsively for a moment, and slowly begin to ease into his touch. When he let go, which seemed like a little too early, he saw the bewildered look on her face, and it broke his hearts. His reaction to that face was to want to back away, towards his TARDIS. He wanted to hide in his box, with Amy and Rory, and pretend that that had never happened. Instead, he held his ground and simply asked, "What's wrong?"
She hesitated before responding. "You've never done that before."
"Done what?"
"Kissed me."
The Doctor was frozen now. Wasn't River supposed to be from his future, meaning his future self should have kissed her past self?
"I haven't?"
He supposed, if he felt this stupid after having done it, that his future self wouldn't want to subject himself to it again.
"Look at the time. You ought to be off," River said, strongly hinting that she was very uncomfortable with the situation. As the Doctor continued to stand there, unable to move, all he could think to do was talk. "You know what they say."
River didn't verbally respond; she stared at him with those cold, yet enticing eyes.
"There's a first time for everything."
Then he backed away and ran off to hide in the TARDIS. He couldn't understand what he'd done wrong. Perhaps, in fact, it was what he was going to do wrong. She said he'd never kissed her...but perhaps, she meant that she'd always initiated their kisses. What an idiot he was - how could he hurt her like that? She must feel so unloved by him, being the one to always have to proclaim her love and get nothing in return. It must feel similar to how he was feeling now. He shook the thoughts weighing him down and turned his mind to other problems, like Amy's pregnancy, for the moment. He sent Rory off to get the thermo-couplings - good old Rory. Why was it that the women in his life always caused all his problems?
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Comments: 2
fishieandco [2014-12-01 14:32:39 +0000 UTC]
Oh wow, that's beautiful. You've got the Doctor and River just right.
Out of interest, have you read The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger? The book inspired Moffat to create River, and your writing reminds me a bit of how the book is narrated.
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Kettle-and-String In reply to fishieandco [2014-12-02 01:53:18 +0000 UTC]
Wow, thanks! I actually kind of just quickly flurglurbed (flurglurbed?) this as soon as I thought of it - I didn't even think it was all that good. I have not read The Time Traveller's Wife, but I saw the movie a while ago (at the time, I didn't know it was even based off of a book). Thanks for the comment!
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