Chapter Text
Clara Oswald looked down at the piece of plastic in her hands.
Positive.
She was pregnant. Of course, she loved children. She’d been a nanny for years before starting her teaching career, but she never imagined having any children any time soon. Hell, she still ate pot noodles three times a week for dinner and slept in until noon on her days off. She wanted to be settled, married, with a proper house and stability before thinking about having kids. However, that was no longer the case.
She looked over to the phone sitting on her bathroom counter, she’d have to call him soon and tell him the news.
How would he react? They had only had one night together and had never spoken about it. He had been delirious, and she was overwhelmed from seeing his regeneration and crashing in Victorian London. Would he be happy to be a father again after thousands of years? He never spoke of his family, he alway kept it himself. It was understandable, she was the same way when it came to conversations about her mother.
She then thought to Danny Pink, her new colleague and rebound crush. He’d asked her out on a date before she’d had the chance to take the test, and now she’d have to tell him that it wouldn’t work out.
‘Sorry Danny, I’m unable to make it to our date...you see, my best mate is an alien who changes face and one day we had sex resulting in my pregnancy…’
Definitely not the way to share that type of news.
She picked up her phone, biting the bullet and called him.
“What is it Clara?” The Scottish brogue rumbled.
“Hi Doctor, what’re you doing right now?”
“I’m in the vortex. What do you need?”
“Can you come pick me up?”
“It’s not Wednesday…”
“I know that. I just need to see you.”
“Clara is something the matter?”
“Just pick me up Doctor!”
“Whatever you say boss.” He grumbled before hanging up.
She walked out into her living room before hearing the TARDIS materialize.
She opened the door after the noises ceased and walked in. The TARDIS hummed happily as she walked to the console. She probably already knew, which explained her out of character, kindness in the previous weeks.
“I’m picking you up just like you told me.” He greeted. “Now why did you call?”
“I haven’t seen you in two weeks Doctor…”
“I was going to pick you up this coming Wednesday…”
“I wanted to talk to you.” She began.
He looked down sadly at her words. “I know what this is about…”
“You do?”
“I do, and I completely understand. Things have changed a lot since the regeneration…”
“They certainly have.” She sighed.
“And I know it’s difficult...watching a regeneration is never easy. Clara, if you want to leave, I’ll respect your decision. I know that I’m not the young and handsome Doctor you remember and I don’t want to make things….
“Leave?! What are you talking about?”
“I thought you no longer wanted to travel with me.”
“No. It’s actually quite the opposite. I think you’re probably stuck with me…”
“What are you talking about Clara?”
“I’m pregnant.” She admitted. She saw his eyebrows shoot up in surprise. “I know this isn’t the news you were expecting to hear, but I’ve taken a test...it must have happened the night when we were at Vastra and Jenny’s.”
Before she knew it, he was standing right next to her, his hands on her belly and his eyes closed; feeling the link between himself and their unborn child.
“Doctor, I don’t know what to do.” She sighed. “How am I supposed to tell my family? And how the hell did this even happen?!”
“I’ll help you Clara, I will. This is our child and I won’t let you deal with this on your own.”
“Thank you. How long are Gallifreyan pregnancies?”
“Twelve months.”
She groaned. A year of being pregnant sounded unappealing.
He silently lead them to the med bay, Clara had no clue how far along in pregnancy she was and due to his genes, seeing a doctor on Earth was out of the question.
He let her lay back on the examination table and watched as she lifted her shirt to reveal her flat belly. He placed the transducer on her stomach with some gel and watched the screen.
Both of their attention turned to the screen before them. Two heart beats beating simultaneously and a small peanut shaped creature. This was their child.
“You’re five and a half weeks along…” He said in a hushed voice.
She couldn’t respond. What she had seen on that screen was both incredibly exciting and terrifying at the same time. She wiped the gel off of her skin and walked to the library. She left him alone in the med bay, unsure of how to move forward. Until this point, they had never spoken about what had happened the night they conceived. He’d told her that he wasn’t her boyfriend, he had tried distancing himself from being domestic and now here they were doing the exact opposite.
“What do we do now?” She asked as she walked into the console room.
“What do you mean?”
“Well first, I’m pregnant with an alien baby and I’m human. Second, you live in a time machine and I live in a one bedroom flat in London. Third, we spend our spare time saving planets and getting chased by dangerous aliens…”
“I don’t know Clara.” He replied.
“Well we need to figure it out! I’m terrified and nervous but also really excited and happy. Seeing our child on that screen made it real for me. We need to start figuring it out before I give birth.”
“I know, I just need some time to adjust….I haven’t been a father in years.”
“That’s alright. Will you still pick me up on Wednesday?”
“Are you sure you still want to travel?”
“I do. As long as it’s not too dangerous.”
“I’ll see you Wednesday then.” He replied before watching her walk back out to her flat.
After the TARDIS dematerialized, he stalked off into his bedroom. He rarely used it for sleep, but more so as a place to think without distractions. He walked over to the shelf and looked at the mementos of his past. A baby’s bonnet from when his first child was born, knit socks that belonged to Susan that his wife had made. He was going to be a father again and he was scared out of his mind. He never imagined that he’d have the chance to be a father once more, he didn’t know if he even deserved it. He was old and jaded and he’d lost sight of who he was. Would he be good enough to raise a child? And Clara, his Clara, would she resent him for sticking her with this life?
Clara watched the TARDIS dematerialize before her. She wasn’t surprised with the reaction she had received. If it had been with the other Doctor she would have expected his face to flush before his flailing limbs took over. Not this regeneration, she knew he would remain collected and calm, she just wished she could read him better.
She sighed and shrugged before opting to change into her pajamas and making herself dinner consisting primarily of comfort food.
She fell asleep that night on her couch with a late night chat show on in the background.