Touch The Sky: Doctor Who/Studio C [Book 3]

Partners in Crime (Part 1)

Partners in Crime

(Originally: 04x01, 'Partners in Crime'; aired April 5, 2008)

Wednesday morning came with the one-two sucker punch that not only had she already been carrying this pregnancy longer than the one she'd lost back in Aka, but that if she hadn't lost the latter, she would have still be pregnant with the first when the second was actually conceived.

It was a sobering thought that, with the exception of phone calls and appointments being made, kept Mallory pretty quiet through that day, trying to ignore the guilt nibbling at her and feeling the reality sink in more and more with each passing moment. By that afternoon, the knowledge of baby had settled on the fringes of her conscious mind, always in the peripherals and ready to leap forward at the slightest provocation.

"Oh, it's brilliant," came a voice from inside the break room that Mallory tried to ignore. As strange as everything UNIT dealt with was, on the more civilian side of things, it was startlingly similar to a typical office job. That was to say, with the exception of the alien invasions, boring. Things were different on the truly military side of the organization, but as 'consultants' she and Mark, while occasionally working with them directly, were not in the regular chain of command.

With any office job, there came the gossip. Mallory tried her best to stay out of it, creeping toward the fridge in search of lunch and attempting to avoid the gaze of two coworkers that were speaking much too loudly for polite company.

One of them, a brunette called Nancy, was fiddling with a pendant on her neck. "Lost fifteen pounds in a week, on my life," she continued. "These Adipose things, they're the future, I'm telling you."

"Oh, that's wonderful," the other—Jill—gushed. "And you do look lovely."

Nancy leaned back in her chair, tapping her foot against the scuffed laminate floor. "Mallory, have you heard of the Adipose pill?"

And there went her chances of escaping unnoticed. "No," Mallory answered flatly, bending down to retrieve her lunch from the fridge and wondering dimly how big a pain this would be in a few short months.

"My gosh, it's great. You've got to try it. Fifteen pounds in a week, like I told Jill."

Mallory tried not to bristle, at both Nancy's bragging and the implication that she needed to try whatever this Adipose was, when she knew for a fact that even without the baby, what she needed coming out of the Year was to gain weight, not lose it. She bit back a retort that said living in the apocalypse was an excellent way to lose weight, as well, if you didn't mind the whole 'imminent, daily risk of death' part. Instead she managed, "That's a bit... quick, isn't it?" She straightened up, lunch in her hand.

"All the better, if you ask me," Nancy said breezily. "Look into it, Mal—can I call you Mal? Anyways, you won't regret it."

"Yeah. Sure. Whatever. And it's Mallory." People she liked called her 'Mal.' Her friends called her 'Mal.' Nancy didn't fall into either of those categories.

Matt almost never called you anything else, a treacherous part of her mind said as she strode from the room.

Before she got far, another voice called her name. "Hey," Jill said, a little breathlessly as she half-jogged down the corridor. "Sorry about her. She's a little... insensitive sometimes."

You don't say. "It's fine. I don't care."

Jill paused, falling into step beside her. "Look, I know you haven't been here long, and it can be hard to settle in to a new place, but... well, a couple of us a grabbing drinks after work Friday night. Provided we don't have any... interference, if you know what I mean, here at work. It'd be great if you could come."