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Tickets for Three-Starter// James
Donna leaned up against the bar and waited for James to have a free moment. (Okay, a slight pause in activity would do at this point.) She smiled as she watched him work. He was good.
Seeing her opportunity, she took it, “Oi, Spaceman,” she called over the din at the bar, waiting for him to come over.
Got Your Back-Starter//James
@jamessmithbartender
Donna was so wound up between trying to figure out how to handle what was going on with Christina, and now having to deal with the likes of Captain John Hart, that she was ready to walk out the door of the club and just keep walking.
Instead, she was hiding in the stock room, knowing it was only a matter of time until James showed up to gather what he needed for the bar and the she could talk to him in private. Donna sat perched on a case of some sort of expensive wine, chewing nervously on her thumb. She was worried about Hart pushing James too far; he wasn’t going to be too happy when he met this particular captain.
Starter
@jamessmithbartender
Chris had gone to check on Jack earlier that morning and Donna was feeling a bit bored and out of sorts. As she sat alone in the house on this rare, sunny afternoon in March, she would definitely say she qualified as both bored and a bit sad. She already walked Idris to the park where they played ball for awhile before returning home. The tired dog wasn’t much company as she was now snoring gently away in her bed. So Donna baked a batch of chocolate chip cookies. Followed by a shower and then reading another chapter in her book.
She stared down at the open book resting in her lap, not really reading the words that swam before her eyes and sighed. She glanced at the time on her phone and sighed even louder. No, really she groaned. Time was crawling by! Donna set the book on the coffee table and stared at the phone in her hand when a smile started to slowly spread across her face.
Quickly she started the text, her grin growing bigger and her eyes shining brighter as she typed.
[Text: James]
I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages! Why don’t you come by in that car of yours and we’ll go get a bite to eat and do something... Anything! I’ll even let you chose! I miss my best mate!
XO Donna
Oh yes! This was exactly what she needed! Donna thought to herself as she hit the SEND key.
Starter
@jamessmithbartender
Before she headed outside with Idris (Chris’ dog) Donna checked the time on her phone. It was certainly late. No normal person should be up at this hour. Good thing for her, working at a nightclub meant she and her friends kept later than average hours. Even then, James seemed to be up at all hours anyway. Still, she hesitated before composing her message to him. She knew that Rose was staying with him now, but that last nightmare she had was still needling at her. This one had Chris and James in it, and like all the previous ones, she was helpless to do anything but watch.
Donna knew James would be fine, most likely reading something she wouldn’t understand or tinkering on some project. However, after everything that happened today, she just wanted to reach out to the only other person in this world she considered family. She needed to know he was okay. She needed him to tell her she was going to be all right too. Though, she did understand that this probably wasn’t the best time.
She sighed and stared down at her hand. If anyone could understand what she did, how she could do it and not judge her, not make her feel there was something terribly wrong with her, it would be him. Chris had been wonderful! But she had put him through so much already today.
And when she really thought about it, she just missed her friend. That settled it! Even with one hand, she was still incredibly fast at texting. Grabbing for her mobile, she composed a quick message to James.
[TEXT: James]
Hey Spaceman I figured if anyone was awake, it was you. Today was not a good day. I am all right, I am always all right, that’s our motto, right? I just wanted to let you know that I am staying at Chris’ house now and I doubt I will ever go back to the loft. Not saying I am staying here forever. I am sure he’ll be tired of me in a few days. See you at work tomorrow. Maybe we can find time for a cuppa?
Miss you (but will deny I ever wrote this later!)
XO Donna
She wasn’t really expecting a reply tonight but she just needed to say it. ANd if they could find 15 minutes for a cup of tea tomorrow; and they could sit together and talk…or not even talk, all the better. She could just really use a hug from him right about now. No one knew her better and no one would understand how devastated she felt without her needing to say a word.
Starter
@jamessmithbartender
“Oi! No way, James! You’ve put this off long enough!” Donna insisted, “Now, shift your skinny behind into gear, grab your keys and let’s go! You promised we’d go Christmas shopping and out for a bite weeks ago. No more stalling!”
@christophersmith
Donna muttered a small groan in protest as she rose up from her desk. The deadline was fast approaching for her to get all the employee tiles updated before the county’s next “surprise” inspection.
She took a moment to smooth down her skirt, apply a bit of tinted lip gloss and touch up her mascara before she ventured out into the club to find whomever this new security guard was that was brought in. She still needed him to sign an insurance form (protecting the club in case he got hurt) and scan a copy of his ID into the computer. Still, she didn't want to hit the floor looking sloppy; Harry wouldn't like that. Grabbing the missing forms from a file in the office, Donna made her way towards the enticing rhythm that reverberated just beyond the door.
Releasing her hair from the clip that held it back, she gave her head a final toss before emerging from the quiet cocoon of the office into the wild, free for all that was the club. She glanced around looking for signs of someone new dressed all in black. However, the mash up of bodies made that an almost herculean task. Instead, she opted to head towards the bar. James was sure to know where the new guy was stationed, and chances were, it would be close to him. That’s where Harry usually placed the new guys while they got their feet wet.
Deftly, she weaved through the crowd with a satisfied smile on her face. There was a good crowd in the club tonight, a fact that, as one of the club’s managers, filled her with pride.
Somehow, she managed to reach the bar without a single drink being dumped on her. Not an easy feat mind you. She squinted for a moment as she tried to figure out what in the world James was (or was not) wearing when her attention was diverted to the man he was speaking to. Their backs were to her, but she could almost make out their voices as they spoke. There was James’s Estuary accent and then the other guy... What was that, a northern accent? Manchester? Liverpool? They didn't’ get too many people from up north here, but something about the way this man spoke caused her stomach to flip.
Donna set her papers down on the bar and planted one hand upon her hip and reached out to tap James on the shoulder.
The bartender turned around as did the man he was talking to. The man with the northern accent.
The man with piercing blue eyes and a northern accent.
The man that Donna Mott Noble (she added the “Mott” after her grandad’s murder) had given up thinking actually existed.
It may have been 15 years, but Donna would recognize that face, those eyes, anywhere! If she closed her own, she could still picture them, clear as day.
They were the same eyes her daughter had, in the one dogged-ear picture she kept in a drawer next to her bed. The only picture that her mother hadn't found and destroyed before cutting off all contact with the adoptive parents back in Glasgow.
She knew this man.
He was Chris Smith.
He was fucking Chris Smith and he was standing in her bar, next to her best friend.
She suddenly felt very, very ill.
