Broken Skies

Chapter Two

"Mum! Dad!" shouted Rose, as Jackie and Pete walked in. Jackie was cradling Tony and Pete was holding a large gift bag.
"Hi, sweetie!" greeted Jackie. She kissed Rose's cheek and set Tony down on the ground so he could crawl around. Pete hugged his daughter and set the gift bag on the table filled with breakfast foods.
"We got you something, sweetheart," said Pete as he made his way over to the couch.
"Ugh, typical." Jackie complained. "We come over to see our daughter and you lounge around on the couch!" Pete laughed as he plucked the Telly remote off the leather cushion.
"You didn't have to get us anything!" said Rose, picking up Tony who had began to eat a fake plant. She held him up to the ceiling and he giggled as she brought him down quick "whoosh".
"We decided you and John deserved a little something since work must be hard." Pete said, settling into the couch and turning on the telly. He lazily flipped through the channels, and John came out of the hallway, wearing a white polo and dark jeans.
"JOHN!" squealed Jackie. She grabbed his cheeks and gave him two wet kisses- one for each cheek.
"Hey..." muttered John, staring at Rose with desperate eyes that read, "help me". Rose smiled lightly and blew him a kiss as Jackie embraced him tightly.
"Hey, John." Pete said blandly. His eyes were glued to the telly. John waved at him while Jackie's arms were still firmly wrapped around him.
"Okay, mum, give him room to breathe!" laughed Rose, prying Jackie's arms off of John. "Let's open the gift."
"Ooh, a gift!" John said, celebratory fists pumping in the air.
Jackie, John, and Rose made their way to the dining room table and sat down quietly. Rose reached for the gift and pulled it towards herself, eager to find out what was inside. She pulled out the tissue slowly and then pulled out a large wrapped parcel. It was soft, through the gift wrapping, and squishy. Rose tore off the wrapping that confined the gift, and before she could say anything Jackie squealed,
"Do you like it?!"
Rose unfolded the gift and held it up. They were drapes; deep blue and silky.
"Oh, mum..." murmured Rose, running her fingers across the smooth fabric.
The color of the drapes were somewhat familiar, and made a burning sensation in Rose's mind. She dropped the drapes on the table and rushed outside. She needed fresh air.
The sky above was partly cloudy, and a breeze flew through the air. That blue was all too familiar and made Rose's head hurt. She ran to the pier, ignoring the rotting fish smell and dashed down the pier deck.
She stopped when she reached the edge. The ocean rushed in and out, and crashed against the deck, leaving ocean spray in the hem of Rose's jeans.
Tears flooded down her cheeks as she stared out at the ocean, letting memories fill in her.
That blue.
That distant blue.
That TARDIS blue.
*******************************************
She hugged her knees to her chest, sobbing. A yearning, a wanting tugged at her heart as the sky began to grow orange.
She couldn't truly, forget him. Honestly, who could? He was burned into her memories.
The stars.
The sky.
The endless, wonderful abyss of infinite possibilities and dangerous adventure.
All in a blue box.
A TARDIS.
She wiped her eyes, and hung her feet over the edge, breathing in sharply. She wasn't aware why some stupid drapes reminded her of what she once had, but they did, and she hated them.
Go away. said Rose mentally. Her thoughts seemed to taunt her as they swirled in her head.
Then there was a sound.
A sound that was unforgettable and undefinable.
The TARDIS.