Nothing's Ever Good Enough

Clara Oswald is a rising musician with her entire career ahead of her. The Doctor is an ageing rock star whose career never really took off at all. So when their managers have the crazy idea for a joint album, neither one of them is so very keen on the idea. The aversion between the singers is instant and mutual.

Hello there, my faithful readers :) Glad you decided to come back for this one and I hope you're gonna enjoy the rollercoaster of fame and feelings. The new story about our two favourite idiots comes with a little change, however.

I've had a closer look at the comment section and realized that most readers seemed to come back every other day, which is understandable cause we all have our busy, busy lives. But because the Christmas season is going to be a little more stressful than the rest of the year for me as well, I decided to make a little change in my posting schedule that I hope will suit me as well as most of you. From now on, new chapter updates will happen Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. I think semi-daily plus a little weekend bonus is something I can keep up during the Christmas season and it's a schedule that will allow busy readers to catch up as well. I might, however, throw in a little extra chapter every once in a while (cause I want to post the Christmas chapters on Christmas and it won't work otherwise haha) :)

Now, lean back and enjoy the journey the Doctor and Clara are about to embark on...

Prologue

Sarah Jane Smith felt a little nervous when she entered the café and she took a deep breath when she spotted the Doctor already sitting in a window seat, his gaze probably set on something out on the street, but she couldn't be sure behind his Wayfarer sunglasses. Music and interviews with famous musicians weren't usually her métier, but she had begged and pleaded with her bosses to let her have just this one. Sarah Jane had admired the Doctor ever since her teenage years, long before his big breakthrough and even though she was only a few steps away from him, a part of her still couldn't believe it. When she had finally reached his table, her heart was hammering inside her chest and she awkwardly cleared her throat. The Doctor looked up and it seemed as if she had woken him from a daydream.

"Oh, you're the journalist," he said and sounded almost surprised. Wherever his mind had wandered, he had been far, far away from this table and this café.

Sarah Jane smiled nervously and extended her hand. "Hi, I'm Sarah Jane Smith from The Guardian. I'll be writing the portrait about you," she introduced herself and when the Doctor shook her hand, she couldn't help but notice how soft his skin was. His touch was strangely gentle for such a tall man like him.

"Not just writing, I assume?" he asked.

Sarah Jane needed a moment to realized what he was referring to until the Doctor nodded towards her camera bag. Then it finally clicked.

"Right, yes, sorry," she stammered. "I'll take some photos as well if that's alright with you."

"Fine by me," he replied and sank back in his seat while Sarah Jane finally took the spot across the table.

She exhaled sharply, trying very hard to gather her thoughts and get that hammering heartbeat under control. If the Doctor noticed that she was a spluttering fangirl like all the other women queuing up for his autograph, it would be a disaster. However, the Doctor didn't really seem to pay her any attention at all because he looked out of the window once again. Sarah Jane gave it a short glance but couldn't spot anything out of the ordinary on the busy London street.

"Shall we take the photo right away?" she asked him.

The Doctor turned his head and granted her a short smile. "With or without the sunglasses?"

"With," Sarah Jane confirmed. "They're your signature accessory."

"Alright," he replied and placed his elbows on the table. The Doctor folded his elegant fingers and once again, turned his head, looking out of the window. Sarah Jane couldn't help but think that he was a handsome man, maybe even more handsome than he appeared in photographs or music videos. Even though he was in his early 60s, the distinct features and silver curls gave him a certain something that made him undeniably attractive. But when she had readied her camera and pointed it at him, Sarah Jane noticed something through the finder than she hadn't seen before: a wedding ring decorating the ring finger on his left hand and it was shining as if it was still brand new. She took the photo and set the camera down.

Sarah was about to ask him about the ring when she realized that he still wasn't paying her attention. "I'm sorry," she said. "Are you waiting for someone to join us?"

Finally, the Doctor turned around and reached for his sunglasses, taking them off his nose to place them on the table between them. His eyes were smiling.

"Don't mind me," he replied. "Just ask me what you wanna ask."

Sarah Jane uttered a nervous laugh. "Couldn't help but notice your ring. Have you made an honest woman out of Clara Oswald at last?"

Now it wasn't just his eyes that were smiling. The Doctor's entire face lit up until she could see a sheepish, almost playful grin. "I think you'll find she's no longer called Oswald."

"Congratulations," Sarah Jane said sincerely. "I'm surprised you managed to keep it quiet. The press has been very interested in your relationship from the beginning, especially because Miss Oswald-"

"Mrs Smith," the Doctor corrected her. "I'm not here to talk about her. Unless you want to know about our honeymoon. We went to New Zealand. It was nice."

"I think it was a little more than just nice," a female voice suddenly came from behind her and Sarah Jane turned around to see that Clara Oswald/Smith had appeared at the café. She was about to open her mouth and say hello but found herself speechless when Clara walked around the table and slid into the seat next to the Doctor, greeting him with a kiss on the lips. "Why don't you tell the journalist the story about the kiwi that attacked you and chased you around?"

The Doctor cleared his throat. "Because this article is supposed to make me look good and not like the idiot of the century who got chased down the hotel corridor by a lost kiwi."

Clara shrugged. "I never said I would provide them with photos of the incident."

"Why have you come here exactly?" he wanted to know. "Other than to tell embarrassing stories about me?"

"Embarrassing?" Clara arched up her eyebrows. "The zoo staff wouldn't stop thanking you for returning their precious bird safely. You're their hero."

"A hero that ran from a bird the size of a house cat," the Doctor growled and then suddenly turned towards Sarah Jane again. "Please don't mention this in your article."

For a moment, the journalist felt a little lost for words. She had prepared for the Doctor, not for him and the famous Clara Oswald/Smith. She didn't even know what to say and she felt a little bad for speaking up at all as if she was somehow interrupting their intimacy. The public didn't know much about their relationship even though many journalists had tried, but no article had ever been more than wild speculations. They were in a relationship. Period. That was all they wanted the world to know. But seeing them with her own eyes, Sarah Jane was sure of one thing: the Doctor and Clara were undeniably in love.

She watched the Doctor reach for Clara's hand, holding it so gently as if the woman was made out of glass, as if she was incredibly precious to him. The look that Clara threw him in return was so full of love and gratitude that Sarah Jane suddenly felt the urge to leave. She was witnessing something that she shouldn't.

"Go on," the Doctor suddenly prompted her and when Sarah Jane looked up, she realized that she had been staring at the singers for far too long and they were both looking at her expectantly. "You've got an interview to conduct, right?"

"Right," she replied and cleared her throat. Sarah Jane glanced at her notes and finally grabbed that golden thread again that she had lost when Clara had entered the room. "So, uhm, forgive me for saying this, but your success came kinda late in your career. What's it like to suddenly get all of this attention in your 60s? To see your face on posters and have people queue up for autographs?"

The Doctor granted her a smile. "It feels good, I guess. I mean, I've been in the music business for decades, but it's nice to have finally found my. . . my groove-"

"Please don't say groove," Clara said and rolled her eyes next to him. "We're no longer in the 80s."

"Excuse me, I believe this is my interview," the Doctor replied and turned his head to look at his wife.

"Uh-huh," she hummed. "And you asked me to come cause you wanted to avoid embarrassment."

"So your solution is to embarrass me before I can?"

"Exactly, now go on," Clara said and gave him a soft nudge, making the Doctor turn back around to face Sarah Jane.

"Yeah, uhm, my dream was never to be famous. It's more about doing what you love and knowing that people out there love what you're doing. I enjoy that a lot."

Sarah Jane couldn't help but giggle. "Well, to be honest, I've always loved it. I've been a fan of your music from the beginning," she admitted. "What do you think changed? What caused your breakthrough?"

"Oh, that's easy," the Doctor replied with a grin and once again Sarah Jane thought he looked incredibly happy. "Clara. She changed everything."

"How so?"

The Doctor tilted his head a little and his eyes wandered back to the woman by his side. There was nothing but love and admiration on his face and Sarah Jane watched Clara smile in return. "It was the album that we recorded together three years ago."

"And you were terrible to work with," Clara remarked.

"Just for the record, you were worse," he countered.

They both started giggling and Sarah Jane once again felt the urge to leave and bother the loving, bickering couple no further. But there was the interview and the fact that she still couldn't quite believe this was actually happening. She was the first journalist to ever really witness the two of them together and somehow, she couldn't quite believe how two people so different had found love in each other. She would never know because Sarah Jane was well aware that whatever had happened in the last three years, neither one of them would ever speak about it and they didn't have to. Whatever had happened, it didn't seem to matter to either one of them any longer.