'Are you okay?' says Mara to the stranger, from a couple of steps
away. She turns in Mara's direction, lips pressed together, coat
twirling, surprised.
'Who, me?' says the stranger, as Mara bends over, coughing. 'Uh, that
sounds bad. Can I see? I'm the Doctor.'
Mara squeaks, out of breath, getting dizzy, failing to straighten up.
The other girl reaches a hand out to her and she takes it,
reflexively. A breath catches in her throat and a shiver passes
through her and suddenly all Mara knows is a foul taste in her mouth.
Bile and chemicals and soot. She spits on the ground, gagging, once
more certain she's about to vomit, and the girl steps closer, putting
a white-coated arm around her shoulders, a thoughtless gesture of
support.
'What the butt?' says Mara, spitting again, mouth mostly clean.
'That crap was in your lungs. Better out than in, right? Sorry, I
should have warned you. I'm the Doctor.'
'You said. What does that mean?'
'It's what they call me. Because I've got these healing powers.' The
girl, the Doctor?, fingers a thing on her wrist, a band of large
irregular stones Mara thinks may be pearls. Her eyes are white, with
a thin black ring where the iris should be.
'Oh. Huh. I guess that was some really bad smog.' Mara breathes deep,
touching a hand to her chest. 'Um. Do I owe you a big bag of money
now or something?'
'It's no big deal. It's a bit like blinking when you've got something
in your eye, actually.'
'Cool. Thanks. So, what are you doing here all alone, the Doctor?'
'I'm never alone with the voices in my head, but, just watching. The
water, the city.' The Doctor faces the river again, hands in her coat
pockets.
'I', says Mara, backing away without thinking. 'I won't bother you
anymore then. Thanks again. I just moved here today. Don't know the,
yeah, thanks.'
'You don't have to go', says the Doctor, with a strange, sad smile,
hands dug into her pockets like she's afraid of having them leap out
and strangle something.
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