7Checking Up
#1
Donna
"Oi! Can't you see I'm crossin' the road?" the loudest voice you'd ever hear bellows over traffic. The truck then skids to a stop harshly, the driver dazed and obviously confused.
"No, don't apologize now. Not after you tried to kill me." That distinctly voluminous voice belongs to a fiery-headed lady, with an expertly annoyed scowl on her face. She doesn't seem to care that she's stopped traffic on the little crosswalk that leads to the park. She simply continues yell and answer back at the nasty mailman, who decided there and then on which finger was his favorite.
"Fine, your mother too then!" she snaps back, flipping her red mane over her shoulder in that I-could've-just-used-my-hand-but-I'm-just-too-fabu lous-for-that-commoner-shit way and strutting off, like Naomi Cambell after she injured another assistant.
But that presistently rude mailman just has to blare his horn as he speeds away, earning him this commentary:
"I AIN'T BOVVERD! BITE ME, MAILMAN! You too, grandma!"
And that just happened to be Donna Noble's mother, who was innocently standing there with her two beautiful grandchildren.
"Johnny, Jack, and Rose! Come over now or you'll starve."
Three ginger-haired maniacs - I mean, children come running down from the park over to the bench where their mother sandwiches waiting for them. They devour them hungrily but to their mum they are the most precious things in the universe.
"Jack," Donna scolds, "chew your food. Nobody is gonna take from you."
Jack, who is 7, swallows harshly before yelling out, "Rose always takes my food when you're not looking."
"'Cause you always take it first," Rose chimes in, her strawberry-blonde ponytail bouncing around like her. She is only five-and-a-half years old and already as her mum's attitude. Her dad Shaun loves it when she and his wife stare each other down like a two lions ready to pull some hair.
"Enough already," Grandma interrupts. "You two are horrible examples for Jack. Get along, go play."
Jack gulps his juice box and pulls his sister's hair and, before you know it, a flash of orange and yellow wiz by, chasing each other.
Little Johnny is only a two-year-old, so Donna's mother heads over to watch the two psychoes as her daughter stays behind with her youngest.
Donna is beyond happy. Watching her animals play with her mom, she takes a deep breath and just savors the moment. She's been happily married for eight years, her grandad's still alive and kicking, and she has three beautiful children and another on the way. Sometimes she felt like she was missing something, or someone, but when she counted her blessings, everything faded away. It is just her and life and it is beautiful.
"'Cuse me, can I sit here?"
Donna snaps out of her thoughts and looks up. A young man - a young, handsome man - is standing over her, looking almost like a lost puppy with those big, sad eyes.
"Um, sure. Take a seat."
"Thank you," he mutters shyly. He seats awkwardly and messes around with the small, brown bag in his hands.
Donna decides to make small talk since he looks so nervous. (Poor thing.) "Watching your kid?"
"Um, no. Actually," he stammers, "I'm waiting for a friend. She should be here."
"Oh, has she arrived yet?"
"I really don't know. See, she's an old friend and I haven't seen her in a very long time. I don't know if she's changed or anything."
"Oh, don't worry. I bet she's still the same girl. People don't really change very much."
"I guess so," he says with a sigh. He really looks so sad...
"Does she have kids?"
"Yes, three."
"Oh, so do I."
"Oh, cool. I guess this is your youngest?"
"Oh, yes. This is Johnny."
"Hello, John," he says kindly. "My name is John too."
"Really?" Donna says. "I've always loved the name John."
"Me too."
"And that's my mum with my other two, Jack and Rose."
The young man laughs. It's that sort laugh that's by a sad person, but who finds just a moment of happy in their lives. "Terrific names."
"Thanks. I gotta another on the way. But I'm not sure what we're gonna call him or her." Why was she telling him this?
"Been there. It's hard getting a proper name after so many."
What does he know about kids? "I know. If it a girl, we want Sarah or Jane. If it's a boy, we don't know."
"I like old names. Ones with meaning. My friend's youngest is named Wilfred."
"My grandad's named Wilfred."
The man just looks at her and then to Johnny. He grabs his little hand.
"Maybe Wilf," she says thoughtfully.
"Great choice."
Donna finally turns around to get a better look at him, but he gets up. He squeezes the boy's hand and smiles at his mom. "My friend. She's over there." He points across the park to a cute little brunette with round eyes and rosy cheeks.
Donna stands. "She's cute. Looks too young to have three kids, though."
"Why, so do you."
Donna's taken aback, but grins as she playfully pushes him. "Don't go saying things you don't mean. I'll kick your ass for that."
"I know." And that's all he says he begins walking away. But Johnny calls out and waves fiercely good-bye.
The man stops dead and turns around, stopping to crouch in order to properly shake Little Johnny's hand. "Good-bye, John," he says with a warm smile. But his eyes suddenly fall on Donna. "Good-bye, Donna."
He walks away, toward that girl across the park, and before she knows it, Donna is whispering:
"Good-bye, Doctor."