Bits In Between

By Lumendea

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Cupid

AN: This takes place after Pyramid of Truth in Journeys in Time and Space.

….

The Doctor had a rule against killing his companions, but Jack was pushing it. When the pretty boy came aboard, he would have guessed that his frustration would focus on Jack flirting with Rose given their first meeting. However, Rose clearly only wanted a platonic friendship with Jack as she'd told him at the start, and the former Time Agent respected that. Oh, their banter had a flirty hint to it now and then, but it wasn't enough to make the Doctor worry.

No, the reason that the Doctor was beginning to consider killing Jack or at least dropping him into a black hole and letting physics do the work was that Jack seemed to have decided he was cupid. Jack would request to go off by himself on planets they visited, winking at the Doctor as he left him and Rose alone. He'd sprawl on the sofa, forcing the Doctor and Rose to sit close together during films and then vanish partway through. The Doctor didn't mind that last one so much. Rose would usually snuggle close to him and sometimes fall asleep in his arms. That part was nice. Better than nice, but Jack was getting annoying regardless.

He wanted to blame Jo. There had clearly been some kind of exchange between the two at the Pyramid, and he'd heard Jack talking to her on the phone. It was a strange new time in his life. Companions with phones that they used to call family and his old friends. He didn't like it much. It made them happy, which was good, but it made him very nervous. The Doctor tried not to listen in, but he'd already heard Jack complaining about him and Rose three times now to Jo. That was just inappropriate. It wasn't Jack's business or Jo's.

He'd been planning to discuss it this morning when he announced that he wanted Jack's help with repairs. Rose had been a bit put out that he hadn't invited her to hang around in the console room with them, but she'd announced that she'd work on one of her latest paintings. But once he got Jack out into the console room and the young man had been very serious about helping him, the Doctor hadn't been sure how to bring up the subject. But then Jack had cleared his throat in a way that the Doctor just knew signaled trouble.

"I really don't understand your hesitation," Jack said. The Doctor could hear the judgment in the young man's tone. "You like her. She likes you. Seems pretty obvious."

"Jack."

"Don't, Jack, me," Jack huffed. "Seriously, the unresolved sexual tension is killing me. Everyone knows you understand that right. Everywhere we go, there is a reason everyone assumes that you and Rose are a couple."

"Jack."

"On Beltagor, you didn't even correct the locals when they assumed Rose was your wife."

"That was safer for her." The Doctor's voice was tight. He reminded himself again that killing companions was bad. Jack, being hurt, would make Rose sad. "Unmarried woman traveling with two unrelated men would have been trouble there."

"Okay, fair, but the fact that everyone assumes it's you she's with and not me says something." Jack laughed. "You're gorgeous, Doc, but I'm closer to Rose's age." The Doctor did not tighten his grip on the sonic screwdriver and grit his teeth to avoid snapping at Jack. "And yet, everyone knows."

"Jack, it isn't your concern."

"The sexual tension is killing me. The longing looks are painful."

"Still not your concern."

"I'm worried about the two of you. I'm worried that ignoring this is going to hurt you both long term." Jack moved around the console, and the Doctor could just imagine the nervous energy. "I care about both of you, and I feel sad and frustrated that you have something so great between you and you're denying it. We lived dangerous lives, and I don't want you to lose each other because you can't work your feelings out."

"Jack…" the Doctor sighed and looked up at the underside of the console. There was really worry in Jack's voice, and the Doctor finally admitted that maybe this wasn't just about Jack's amusement. How often had he wanted to see people he cared about happy? "We're working on it."

"Too slowly if you ask me."

"I'm old. I've had a family before. I've had many wonderful people that I've lost. Letting someone in that far is… difficult. But, Rose knows."

That statement hung in the air. It was true. Rose knew how he felt. He'd said the words out loud. Yes, it had been under duress, but he'd said them. That wasn't ideal by any stretch, and hopefully, someday, the words would be easier.

"Is that enough?" Jack asked.

And now the Doctor wanted to hit him. It was a shame. Jack was a good companion. He knew the rules of time travel, he was respectful of alien cultures and had a good working knowledge of complex technology. Still, he was wearing the Doctor's patience thin.

"How's it going?" Rose's voice called.

Jack would live for now.

"Hi, Rose," Jack greeted. "I think we're nearly done. He's on the ground," Jack said pleasantly to Rose. "You could just straddle him."

The Doctor dropped the spanner on his head. A curse escaped him, and Jack laughed. The Doctor couldn't see the bastard, but he heard Jack laughing as he headed down the corridor.

"Ignore him," Rose said gently. "And don't worry about it." The Doctor felt like he should say something with regards to… everything, but didn't know what to say. "I'm going to make banana bread. Then maybe we can figure out a way to torment Jack a little."

The Doctor smiled. Rose nudged his foot with hers, and he relaxed. Listening to her hum as she headed down the corridor, the Doctor exhaled slowly and pushed thoughts of killing Jack out of his head.