scarfman | Dinner And A Show 1/1; Martha/Doctor PG-13 (Reply)

Title: Dinner And A Show 1/1
Author: scarfman
Characters/Pairing: Martha/Doctor, sort of
Setting/spoilers: Blink
Disclaimer: This work is derivative of property of the BBC and Paramount Pictures. No profit shall be made and no market of the owner(s) is infringed upon.
Betareaders: persiflage_1 (honorable mention for ringing up her parents for the sake of a minor detail), ladyrutile
Summary: Sometimes you just have to bring it out and deal with it.
To any other writer this short bit would be just the introductory scene to a PWP, but I don't post those ~~publicly~~.
This is the first story in my journal not to retroactively be tagged shipping. I tried to write a series 'shipping the Doctor with my favorite companion - but when the second story over two hundred words went to beta, and I was told it hadn't any real ending which I already knew damn well, I realized it wasn't working. I don't believe that nine hundred year old heroes have One True Loves and I can't force myself to write stories that pretend they do (any more than I can write fix-its instead of leave-it-brokens for Children of Earth). But instead I thought I'd do a series about the companions the Doctor goes to bed with anyway; hence the shipping tag. This story is also for taking a shot at explaining why the banter between the Doctor and Martha in Blink (and, to a lesser degree, in Utopia) approaches normal Doctor-companion banter more than any other dialog they have together.
crossposted scarfman dwfiction lifeonmartha loves_them_all

When they sat down to their third dinner in their flat in 1969, the Doctor actually brought his stone knives and bearskins to the table with him. Martha slammed her fork onto the table and stomped off to the bedroom. Instantly she was inside she thought better of it, and stomped back to the table, picking her fork back up and taking a bite. But the Doctor had definitely looked up from his fiddling.

"Look," Martha said, once she'd chewed and swallowed, "we can't kid each other any more. I've fallen in love with you. We both know it, and we both know you don't feel the same way. But I can't live with you in two rooms, even working eight hours a day, without sexual tension driving me crazy."

The Doctor waited till he was sure she was done, then said, "I'm sorry."

"Well, you certainly could've come up with a more circumspect way to transfer genetic material," Martha said.

The Doctor set his equipment down. "Martha, humanoids and humans have such varying attitudes toward sex, between individuals never mind societies, that I don't even try to understand them any more. No, I'm not in love with you, but I think you're brilliant and beautiful. I'll do whatever you need me to."

Martha swallowed the forkful she was on. "Did you think I was proposing we should start sleeping together?"

"The suggestion was implied in what you said."

"I don't know what I was suggesting. Do you think that's wise?"

"I just told you, I'm going to let you decide what's wise."

Martha looked him in the eye a moment, then turned back to her meal. The Doctor did the same, this time leaving his work undisturbed next to his plate. Even though she had half a plate's lead he finished eating before she did.

When she'd finished, she looked up and said, "One condition."

"Yes?"

"You never come out with anyone else's name when you're in my bed."

"Agreed." The Doctor stood and cleared their plates to the sink and started in on the washing. "Now, if I'm meant to be seducing you tonight - We've already had dinner, and we can't afford to go out for a show but Doctor in the House is on -"

And he never brought his project to the dinner table again.

fin