THE GRAND TOUR OF OKLAHOMA

Chapter Six

"Okay, Jumbo, where's Dumbo at?" the Doctor said to the elephants while Rose giggled.

They found the elephant enclosure, a huge glassed in area with several rocks and a larger pond and some trees. There were three females and a little baby that was resting near its mother. The Doctor pointed to the baby.

"Is that Dumbo? I don't see the ginormous ears though," the Doctor said.

"Maybe It's freak Dumbo," Rose said. "Remember that Twilight Zone episode where they had the pig people and the one pretty lady who was the freak because she was pretty? Maybe it's like that?"

"How?" the Doctor said while Rose laughed. "The pig people looked different from the woman because they weren't human and she was, these are all elephants, how does your analogy apply to them?"

"Just saying," Rose said.

"Yeah, you're just saying but only noise is coming out."

He ducked when Rose tried to smack his head. They walked on and turned left to go towards the big cat area. On the way, they stopped when they saw another enclosure. The animal resembled an ugly elk without antlers. The Doctor looked for the plaque but couldn't find any.

"I see it," Rose said, walking further down from him. "Says it's a mule deer," she said when she got to it.

"That's not a deer, it's some sort of mutant cow experiment," the Doctor said when Rose came back to him. "It's nothing like a deer. I think it's a cow experiment."

"A mutant cow deer?" Rose said.

"Yes!" the Doctor said while she laughed, "a mutant cow deer, well said."

They walked on and looked at the different animals. While they did, the Doctor kept a close eye on Rose. She was sweating but so far seemed to be alright. They managed to find the big cat area which was shaded in with big oak and elm trees and Rose took advantage of that to find a bench and rest in the shade. Rose took another swig of the water while the Doctor sat down beside her.

"If it gets to be too much, tell me," the Doctor said. "We don't have to see everything if you don't feel up to walking through this heat."

"This is insane, it's boiling out here," Rose said. "Does Oklahoma get this hot? I'm glad they had a place to put the backpacks because I'd be dead by now."

"I know. Perhaps we should leave and come back later when it cools down? Do something else that's indoors?"

"Sounds good to me," Rose said. "I think I'll faint soon if we don't get somewhere cool."

"Do you wanna find somewhere to eat?" the Doctor said. "You don't have to use your winnings, I'll pay."

"I saw a McDonalds near here, let's go there and at least get out of the heat," Rose said.

The Doctor nodded. He sat with her while she rested and felt the back of her shirt. He grimaced when he felt it wet with sweat.

"Yeah, you need to get out of the heat," he said. "The back of your shirt is completely damp now."

"And you're wearing a suit, I envy your ability to take the heat like this," Rose said.

"Yes, but even I'm feeling it. I don't think I'm in danger of heat exhaustion or stroke but you are so I don't want to take any chances. Just take it slow going back and keep the water handy."

Rose nodded. They rested for another twenty minutes before they stood up and headed back. They walked slowly and Rose kept taking swigs of water. They tried to keep to the shaded areas but even there the heat was oppressive. Finally, Rose spied the tram coming towards them.

"Thank God," she said, flagging it down.

It stopped and the Doctor and Rose breathed sighs of relief when they climbed on and sat down near the back.

The tram was heading away from the exit but they were shaded and there was a bit of wind with the movement of the vehicle. They looked at the animals while the tram did a complete circuit around the park. A half hour later, they were back at the front gate. She groaned when they got their packs and she put hers back on her back.

"I think we picked the wrong year to do a hike, Doctor," she said to him as they headed towards the entrance.

They left the zoo and tried to stick to the shaded areas but when they reached the end of the driveway, Rose groaned when they saw McDonalds was down the road from them. The Doctor took her hand and gave her some encouragement as they walked along the hill towards it. After twenty minutes, they reached the door much to Rose's relief.

"Air!" the Doctor said, imitating Rose when they went inside.

Rose mouthed "Fuck you," to the Doctor while he sniggered.

They put their backpacks down inside a booth and went to the queue in front of the cashier. Rose kept her eyes on their stuff while they waited for the line to go down. While she was doing that, the Doctor looked at her. Her face was beet red from the heat and sweaty but he was relieved to see it was going away now that they were inside. When it was their turn, Rose ordered a small cheeseburger and a hot fudge sundae and the Doctor ordered a small cheeseburger and a Coke. Once they got their things, they walked back to their seat and the Doctor watched while Rose put the chopped nuts on her ice cream and took a huge bite.

"Oh, that feels so good going down," Rose said, swallowing the ice cream.

"Sure you'll be alright?" the Doctor said.

"Yeah, just need to rest and cool off."

"I have the schedule so I'll keep an eye on the time and we'll go outside when it's nearly time for the bus to be here. That way you're not out there, getting all red faced again."

Rose touched her face.

"Am I red faced?"

"Extremely. I was getting a bit worried. We should have held off on the zoo until it was cooler. Shouldn't have let the fact that it was free bring us here. You saw what I did with the cashpoint so we didn't have to risk heat stroke to come here. Sorry."

"No worries, I had fun, just couldn't take much more of the heat, that's all. I don't care what we do as long as I'm with you."

The Doctor smiled at that and sipped his Coke while Rose ate her ice cream. The Doctor kept an eye on the time and when it was nearing time for the bus to come, they gathered up their things and walked outside to the bench beside the bus stop.

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