Mini ep. 13: Book Club

Book Club

Featuring: Elizabeth and Colin
with: the Doctor
Georgia
Conner
Daisy
Gareth
Susan
Althorn
Aerie


Elizabeth walked over to the stairs.

“Colin!” she bellowed “hurry up! We’ll miss our first Book Club meeting!”

Colin emerged at the top of the stairs, looking hen-pecked. He walked down the stairs, and was ushered to the front door. Elizabeth doubled back and grabbed the book they were reading.

“Come on!” Elizabeth cried.

Colin stepped forward and opened Elizabeth’s car door for her. She got in, and Colin shut the door. Sliding into the driver’s seat, Colin revved the engine. Elizabeth peered out of the car window at the houses along the street.

“Drive slowly past number 56, I want her to see my new hat!” Elizabeth said.
“Alright alright, but if we’re late, it’ll be your fault,” Colin muttered under his breath.

They pulled up outside the church, next to the small village hall, where the book club was being held. Elizabeth pointed to the Library.

“Look!” Elizabeth said “they’ve redone the roof! I wonder where they got that money from. I bet it was Dorris from the Post Office. She sold loads of those games- Virtual Reality or something.”
“Well good for her- it was about time they did it,” Colin said.
“Yes well-” Elizabeth broke off.

Colin quickly opened the door to the car and stepped out. He walked around to Elizabeth’s door and opened it. She stepped out, and spotted the Vicar by the Church.

“Vicar! Vicar!” Elizabeth called, walking over to him.

Across the lawn, the Vicar shuddered.

“Oh no! It’s that Bell Woman!” he said.

Elizabeth reached him, brandishing her handbag.

“How are you Vicar? You must come to tea someday! You always seem to be busy!” Elizabeth smiled.
“I’m err, booked up for the next three years. Now, I’d better go inside- prepare the altar table,” the Vicar said, leaving quickly.

Colin regarded his sympathy for the Vicar. He wished he was booked up for the next three years. Elizabeth grabbed his arm and led him to the village hall, which would only be found in London, in the area in which they lived in.

Daisy quickly looked away from the window. She glanced at Gareth, her friend, and mouthed ‘oh no! It’s the Bell Woman!’ Daisy was an assistant at the Library, who Elizabeth insisted had to come for a cup of tea at least once every three weeks in the hope of persuading Georgia to redo her GCSEs while seeing Daisy with hers. This had fortunately stopped for most of the year, ever since Georgia went travelling with a Doctor. Medical trip or something, Daisy had thought, imagining Elizabeth insisting her do it in place of retaking her GCSEs.

Daisy had the habit of getting nervous around Elizabeth, so tended to spill the cups of tea Elizabeth provided, usually over herself, and the holiday brochures Elizabeth had once thrust under her nose.

Elizabeth and Colin entered the hall, and sat on two of the chairs in the circle. Three hours later, Colin shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Despite only going to the Book Club to keep up her image along the street, Elizabeth sat enraptured and interested. Colin’s back ached, and he quietly apologised while slipping out of the hall for some fresh air.

Once outside, Colin quickly pulled out his phone, which he put up to his ear after looking in his contacts for his daughter.

In the TARDIS, two Galaxies away, Georgia ducked around the Console, and ran for the cover as a crying alien baby waddled over to her. Her phone vibrated in her pocket, and she pulled it out.

“Dad!” Georgia cried.
“Hello Sweetie!” Colin said “how are you? Been to any exciting places recently?”
“Oh, you know, here and there. We’ve been to… 1066, the interplanetary scrap yard of Junk, 3378 (God that was scary, we only just escaped), Frantois, fought killer Tortoises (with HUGE guns), ended up in the Internet fighting Cyber Viruses, went to the birth of Anne Boleyn, saved Hackney from destruction, oh and we went to a Car Boot Sale (don’t ask), and right now I’m trying to avoid a crying alien baby whacking me on the head with a rattle. I can’t believe the Doctor said we’d hold that woman’s kid! Just popping to the toilet my arse. Just popping to the next flipping Galaxy’s more like it.” Georgia scowled.
“A ‘yes’ would have sufficed dear,” Colin said cheekily “I’m in a crisis of my own!”
“What now?” Georgia muttered.
“Your mother. She’s doing her clubs thing again,” Colin said.
“Which one is it this time?” Georgia asked, running around the other side of the console after the baby crawled over to her.
“The Book Club, by the Library,” Colin said.
“I’ll be right there,” Georgia said.

With a mutter of thanks, Colin headed back into the meeting.

“Doctor! We need to go! Family emergency,” Georgia explained.
“What about Althorn here?” the Doctor asked.
“Can we push him off an asteroid?” Conner asked.
“No, that would be too nice,” Georgia grinned.
“He can come with us, and then we’ll drop him back off. His poor mother will be worried,” the Doctor said sympathetically.
“I don’t think Aerie planned to come back,” Conner said darkly.
“Yeah well, hadn’t we better get going?” Georgia asked.

The Doctor knew Elizabeth well and hurriedly pulled a lever on the TARDIS console, for Colin’s sake. Outside the Book Club Meeting, the TARDIS faded into existence. Colin turned around to see Georgia step out of the TARDIS. Hugging, Colin asked Georgia to invent an excuse to get them out of the meeting. Georgia grinned, bemused at how her home life hadn’t changed, whilst her ‘Doctor’ life had.

“Thanks Sweetie,” Colin said, entering the building again.

Conner emerged from the TARDIS.

“God, another minute in there with him, and I’ll kill him,” he grumbled.

Unknown to Georgia and Conner, Althorn slipped out of the TARDIS and skipped into the village hall.

Colin sat down and looked sideways at Elizabeth. Even she couldn’t pretend for much longer; she was bored, and it showed. Chuckling to himself, Colin picked up his book.

A few seats away, Daisy picked up her book, after dropping it for the 56th time. She was shaking, and dropping her book every time Elizabeth looked within a metre of her. She looked over to the door and wondered if anyone would notice her run out, during one of Susan’s ‘close your eyes and think about the book’ moments. She enjoyed Susan’s regular Book Club meetings (particularly the woman’s only meeting- there was a lot of drink involved.) but Daisy knew any more with Elizabeth and she would have to stop coming. Looking at the door again, Daisy noticed a small creature slip into the hall. It skidded over the floor, and hid under Colin Bell’s seat. Waving shyly at her, the creature began to waddle towards her.

The Doctor ran into the village hall, with Georgia and Conner behind him. There were several chairs strewn over the floor, and most of the Book Club members huddled in a corner. Elizabeth, Colin, Daisy, her friend Gareth and the organiser of the Book Club meetings Susan were in the middle of the room, not daring to run towards the others because Althorn was stood dribbling in between the groups.

Georgia and Conner ran to Althorn, and tried to grab him. He skipped away down the hall, and the Doctor ushered everyone out. Throwing their books wildly behind them, the members of the Book Club ran out of the hall and headed for the Library, in search of better books, except Elizabeth’s group, who joined the Doctor.

Conner sprinted after Althorn, while Georgia ran back to the others to get them out of the room. Susan, Gareth and Daisy left quickly, Daisy glad to have an excuse not to see Elizabeth again. Colin and Elizabeth stood by the door to stop Althorn escaping.

Many hours later, Althorn was tucked up in his bed, Aerie was snoring in front of the Vid Screen, the Doctor, Georgia and Conner were off to the 67th Century, and Elizabeth had begun to plan her next attempt to keep up appearances.

The end.