Chapter 3 (She Was Working as a Waitress at the Little Chef)
Day 6
Holly opened her eyes. She was aware of something in the room with her and she began to panic. She turned her head to the left and Lilly was sat there against the wall watching her. Holly sat up in the bed and frowned.
“What the hell, Lilly?”
“Did I frighten you?”
“Just a bit,” said Holly. “I mean I didn’t expect to see you sitting there.”
“You were crying,” said Lilly, getting up and sitting on the end of the bed.
“Crying?” said Holly.
“Yep. Don’t know what about though.”
Holly sighed. “It must be all this travelling. It’s probably doing some wacky stuff to my head,” she said, pointing to her temple and laughing.
“Ah well,” said Lilly. “You’ll get used to it.” She got up to leave.
“So you’re alright with me staying?”
Lilly turned and looked at Holly. “I’m okay, but I’m not comfortable.”
“Not comfortable?”
“Don’t make me explain it, Dangerfield,” said Lilly, turning to leave again. “Just don’t get yourself killed.”
Holly smiled and then got out of bed. She almost tripped over the rucksack she had brought from the TARDIS. The diary she had taken was threatening to fall out. She picked it up and sat on the end of the bed turning it over in her hands. She glanced back to the door to check Lilly wasn’t about to come in and start staring at her again, and then opened the diary to the second page.
Dear Diary,
Well, that was unbelievable. I know I’m not exactly a novice when it comes to being out in space and being in weird, alien dimensions, but actually getting to visit the Terrarcon Fault in Sector 5...well, it’s absolutely unbelievable! Amazing! Fantastic!
It’s a shame that Lilly didn’t share the same enthusiasm as us. Since we rescued her from Edinburgh she’s been very subdued. Granted, being shot and ending up in hospital on her first trip didn’t help her mood, but she’s better now. I guess the scars run deeper than the surface.
The other day I caught her sat in the TARDIS kitchen eating a tub of ice cream and crying to herself. When I asked her what was wrong she told me to clear off in much more colourful language than that. I asked her if she was interested in learning about her family - her real family - and she said she’d rather they all die. She said she’d rather she die as well. Then she threw ice cream at me and started laughing before running away.
I sat there for a long time thinking about her. I wish my sister could be the person she’s meant to be. She’s been damaged so much. I don’t know how I can help her.
She closed the diary when she heard Lilly re-enter the room and threw it under the covers. Lilly was dressed in a green top and black skirt and had tied her hair into a ponytail.
“Going somewhere?” said Holly.
“Taking you and the Doctor to breakfast,” said Lilly. “My apology for losing the job after an hour.”
“You don’t have to apologise, Lilly,” smiled Holly.
“Get dressed, Dangerfield, we’re off for breakfast.”
“Little Chef?” said Holly.
“Splashing out as always, Lilly,” said the Doctor.
Lilly had taken them to breakfast, but had simply taken them to a Little Chef that sat on the edge of the estate next to the entrance to the motorway.
Lilly smiled as she tucked into her bagel. “I lost my job remember. I never carry cash. I always used to go for a McDonald’s in Edinburgh.”
“I’ve never been to Edinburgh,” said Holly.
“Don’t bother,” said Lilly.
“Ah, now, Lilly, Edinburgh is a perfectly lovely city.”
“Not the parts I grew up in,” said Lilly solemnly.
Holly shook her head, clearing her thoughts away. She wanted to ask. She wanted to probe, but she didn’t want to lose this possible friendship she was developing with Lilly. She was already feeling bad for reading the diary.
“We need to come up with another plan of action,” said the Doctor, sipping on his coffee. “We need to find out more info about the residents in the flats.”
“Doctor,” said Holly, running her hand through her hair, “we could dig deeper and deeper into this and be no closer to finding out the real alien.”
“Dangerfield’s right,” said Lilly, draining her cup of tea. “We need to concentrate on the here and now. Delving into the past is only going to get us more and more confused.”
The Doctor nodded his head, resignation in his eyes. “I suppose you’re right.”
The waitress came bustling over and began clearing the table.
“Excuse me,” said the Doctor, “but we haven’t finished yet.”
“Your breakfast is gone. Your drinks are gone,” said the waitress, a frown on her face. “We have other customers waiting for your seats.”
“Forgive me,” said the Doctor, gesturing around the empty room, “but I don’t see many more customers.”
“It’s policy here. As soon as you are done you have to leave.” She finished clearing the table and then bustled off.
“Charming,” said Holly.
“Suspicious,” said Lilly, tapping her chin.
“What do you mean?” said the Doctor.
“She’s taken an instant dislike to us,” said Lilly, narrowing her eyes. “One to watch maybe?”
“Hmm, maybe,” said the Doctor.
The waitress looked over at them again.
“I think we better be on our way,” said the Doctor.
They returned to the house and Holly made her way into the kitchen to get a glass of water. It was a warm day so she unlocked the back door and ventured into the garden. It was then that she noticed something at the base of the fence.
She put her glass on the picnic table and walked down the path towards the back end of the garden. It was a brick with a piece of paper tied to it. It had obviously been dropped over the fence.
She picked up the brick and unfastened the paper, unfolding it carefully.
On the piece of paper, written in black marker pen was one simple word:
“LEAVE”
Holly frowned, put the brick down and then unlocked the back gate. She looked both ways down the alleyway, but there was nobody about. Not a soul.
“Everything alright?” came the Doctor’s voice, making her jump.
“Not really,” said Holly, showing him the note. “It was attached to that brick.”
“Hmm,” said the Doctor, picking up the brick and turning it over in his hand. “And there’s no sign?”
“No. Nothing.”
“The alien has obviously been rattled by our presence here.”
“Not only that,” said Holly, “but it also means they’re on to us.”
“But they haven’t been aggressive yet,” said the Doctor, placing the brick at the base of the fence.
“No,” said Holly. “They didn’t throw it through a window or anything.”
“That’s a good thing. A plus point.” The Doctor looked up at the blue sky, the fluffy white clouds casually floating above them. “He’s out there somewhere, Holly. I can sense him.”
“It also can’t have been the waitress. This brick was here when we got back so it had to have happened whilst we were at Little Chef.”
“Yes,” said the Doctor. “Normal, grumpy teenage mood swings I suppose.”
“Tell me about it,” said Holly. “I was a right little moody cow when I was her age.”
The Doctor smiled and put his arm around her. “C’mon, Miss Dangerfield, we better go and tell Lilly what we’ve found.”
After a quick coffee break and a rundown with Lilly on what they had found, the Doctor returned to the front window, gazing out at the sand-coloured brick buildings each with their own little fences. They all looked identical with only the odd hanging basket or front garden birdbath to distinguish them all from each other.
Across the road Maggie Hatfield opened her door and took out the rubbish. She gazed over at the Doctor and he gave her a wave. Maggie stared back at him angrily, swung the bin bag into the wheelie bin and then went inside.
“Charming,” said the Doctor. “The trouble is,” he said, moving away from the window and sitting down on the arm of the sofa, “is that it could be anyone. Just because someone is grumpy or moody or chatty and friendly, it doesn’t mean they’re an alien.”
“We could outright ask them,” said Lilly.
“That’s not an entirely good idea,” said the Doctor. “The alien might be scared off.”
“No, wait,” said Holly, her eyes lighting up, “Lilly has a point.”
“We can’t knock on everyone’s door and ask them if they’re aliens,” said the Doctor, exasperated.
“No,” said Holly, “but we could hold some kind of event. A fun day.”
“A fun day?”
“Yeah,” said Holly. “Lots of small communities have them. Get everyone together.”
“And ask if they’re aliens?” queried the Doctor.
“No,” continued Holly, pacing up and down the room, “but we’d stand more of a chance of observing them if they were all together.”
“There’s no guarantee that the alien would turn up.”
“I reckon he would though,” said Lilly. “If they are determined to blend in, then the alien is going to appear.”
The Doctor nodded. “It could work. At least it’s a start. But how do we arrange it? Surely the alien would suspect what it was for?”
“I’ll ask Arnold,” said Holly. “He’s the local Scout Leader. We’ll get him to put on a fundraising day.”
The Doctor click his fingers. “Excellent.” His face fell. “Wait…Arnold may be the alien.”
“So what if he is, Doctor?” said Holly. “Arnold trusts me. He’s a nice man. He’ll do this for us.”
The Doctor broke out into a huge grin. “Then we’ll do it. Oh, I do like a good challenge!”
To be continued...
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