The Rose & Crown

Chapter Nine

Two and a half months passed almost faster than Clara even realised. So much had happened since the last time she saw the Doctor. The look upon his face as she left him in his TARDIS for the last time burned itself into her memory. She tried not to think about him, about the anger she felt towards his actions. It was as if there was an enormous void in her life after she left. And Danny, though she still had him for now, he hadn't taken the news well.

"There's something I need to tell you."

"I love you too," he replied, smiling brightly.

"Oh, uh, yes that!" She tried to sound sincere as the words she needed to say were stuck trying to escape. She stared down at the table and absent-mindedly fiddled with the untouched food on her plate.

"Is there something else?" he asked, observing her distracted gaze.

"Um, well..."

Later, she watched as a now enraged Danny angrily paced at the end of the table. His eyes refused to connect with hers. He screamed in frustration as she continued to sit, too ashamed and terrified to move.

"It's his, isn't it?!" he shouted.

"Yes," she whispered as tears fell from her face.

"How could you do this to me?! I love you!"

"Danny, please! It wasn't like that!"

"Tell me then, Clara. What was it like?" He glared at her.

"You wouldn't understand," she replied, reciting the Doctor's words.

"Oh, I understand perfectly. You love him, don't you?"

"No, not in that way." She was so quick to answer, she didn't know if she was being genuine. She didn't know how to feel about him anymore.

"Tell me the truth," he demanded. His suspicion of her true feelings for the Doctor had taken precedence in his thoughts ever since the moment he discovered with whom she had been spending all of her free time.

"It wasn't consensual."

"You're telling me he raped you?!" His temper exploded.

"No! He would never do that! That's not what happened!"

"So he had his way with you," he continued, ignoring her words and making his own assumptions. "Then dumped you off here to raise his kid alone while he ran off like a coward?" His words brought her to tears as she shielded her face in her hands. He continued to pace in silence. He grasped the sides of his head and tried to control his fury. "I can't do this anymore, Clara. This, this is just too much for me." He snatched up his coat and headed for the door, slamming it shut behind him.

She spent the next few weeks after their fight barely able to bring herself out of her bed. Her pillow was constantly wet with tears. They had to bring in a substitute for her at her the school after informing them she was recovering from a serious flu. But in reality, she couldn't bear even the thought of passing him in the halls. Then one day, she heard a knock at her door. She rushed to it, her heart racing, hoping to see her best friend as she threw open the door. But it wasn't who she expected.

"I'm sorry," Danny admitted, his hand wrapped around a fresh bouquet. She stared at him, not knowing what to say. "Look, this isn't easy for me. It's not every day your girlfriend tells you she's pregnant with an alien." A small smile escaped her at his words. "I want to make this work. If he doesn't want to be there for his own kid, then that's on him." He stared sadly into her eyes. "Clara, I love-" he tried to say as she rushed to him, threw her arms around his neck, and kissed him passionately. He embraced her and walked them into her flat, kicking the door closed behind them.