The Joy of Christmas

7

The sound of the TARDIS materializing was the only thing to interrupt the peaceful stillness of an early London morning. The doors opened and an over-excited Rose stepped out, followed closely by the Doctor.

He was pretending to be annoyed by Rose's holiday enthusiasm, but secretly he loved it. The way she bounced around on her toes and was constantly smiling and had taken to wearing red and green sweaters around the TARDIS was, honestly, a refreshing break from exhaustion and running for their lives.

Rose, on the other hand, was openly thrilled. She laughed, sticking her tongue out to catch a snowflake. Then, scooping up a clump of snow, she tossed it at the Doctor. He spun around, then realized it was only Rose. He grinned and threw a snowball right back at her.

Thankfully, the TARDIS had materialized right outside of a shopping center. They hurried through the doors and stopped just inside, giving themselves a moment to indulge in the heat. Then, as though just noticing it, the pair turned around to face the shops. Immediately, a childish grin spread across the Doctor's face, and Rose began to wonder what he was up to.
He gestured to a small toy train that ran along the perimeter of the shops. He quickly pulled out his sonic screwdriver, pressed a button, and laughed again as the train doubled in speed. Rose rolled her eyes but couldn't stop a smile from forming.

"Well," she said, taking the Doctor's hand, "may as well get some holiday shopping done."