THE GRAND TOUR OF OKLAHOMA

Chapter Three

Rose sat in her seat, enjoying the air conditioning that was coming from above her. The bus rumbled along, stopping every so often to let people on and off. She scooted closer to the Doctor and laid her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes.

"Are you knackered already?" she heard him say.

"Mmm, no," Rose said, keeping her eyes closed, "just relaxing in the cool air."

"I'm enjoying being human," the Doctor said softly.

"Mmm, enjoy then," Rose murmured.

"I got a free t-shirt for being a human and I didn't have to pinch it from the needy."

"Belt up!" Rose said with a laugh as she kept her eyes closed.

She smiled when she felt the Doctor's face against hers and she relaxed further, happy to be with the man she loved on another adventure.

"The wheels on the bus go round and round," she heard the Doctor singing softly.

Rose giggled.

"Round and round," she sang back.

She waited for the Doctor to continue but he didn't and she mentally shrugged and enjoyed the cool air and the feel of his body against hers.

"Hey, Rose."

"Mmm?" she said when she heard the Doctor whisper to her.

"Ever see the film, Speed?"

"Mm-hmm," Rose said.

"What if we're on the Speed bus and we can't let the bus go below 55 miles per hour?"

Rose opened her eyes and saw the Doctor's look of mock fear and giggled.

"You first," Rose said, closing her eyes and snuggling up to him. "You go stop the driver and take her place."

She laughed when she felt him move and opened her eyes. She shoved him down in his seat when he started to get up.

"I was having you on," she said.

"Yeah but I was being serious. The next time she stops for a passenger, we could go ka-boom," the Doctor said.

"Then we'll die together," Rose said, closing her eyes.

The Doctor didn't say anything but she could sense him staring at her and felt his cheek on her forehead. Then he moved his cheek and she opened his eyes to see him looking out the windows across from them.

"Hey, where is the zoo anyway?" the Doctor said. "How do we know when to leave?"

"Ma'am, we need to get off at the zoo," Rose said to the driver.

"I'll let you off at Reminton Park, the zoo's next door," the driver said, glancing over her shoulder.

"What's Reminton Park?" the Doctor said.

"It's a horse racing track and casino," the driver said.

"Hey, horse racing and gambling, wanna do that?" the Doctor said.

"Thought you wanted to go to the zoo," Rose said.

"We can do both if they're side by side."

Rose shrugged.

"Whatever, as long as we do it together," Rose said, closing her eyes and laying her head back on his shoulder.

"What if the bus explodes and we die together, wanna do that?"

Rose giggled and nodded. She kept her eyes closed but she felt his breath on her face and knew he was looking at her. Her hearts raced when she heard him whisper "Beautiful," to himself and she snuggled closer to him while he put his arm around her shoulders.

"Remington Park!" the driver said to them.

Rose opened her eyes and she and the Doctor stood up while the bus slowed. They grabbed their backpacks and got off the bus. Rose grimaced when the hot air hit her face.

"Rose?"

"Yeah?" Rose said, looking at the Doctor while she shrugged her backpack on her back.

"Why is it hot beyond all endurance?" the Doctor said.

"Because you wanted to go to Oklahoma and didn't care when we went," Rose said. "And apparently we landed on a very hot day."

"I see. For a moment I thought we stepped off into Hell but Hell would be ice cold compared to this," the Doctor said as they walked up a grassy hill. "I can feel the heat and my body is equipped to deal with temperatures better than a human can."

They reached the top of the hill and saw a vast car park that stretched out for at least 300 feet before. Then there was another hill and they saw a huge glass and white concrete building. A large sign on the front said Remington Park. The Doctor looked off to the right and saw the Science Museum and beyond that the zoo. He looked at Rose.

"Want to look in here first?" he said, pointing to Reminington Park.

"Anywhere, just as long as it's cool," Rose said.

"Well, let's go inside before we melt then," the Doctor said.

Rose took his hand and the two of them hurried across the car park towards the building.

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