Outside it was a cold blustery December afternoon. As they approached the mall entrance, Jon wrapped one arm around Karyn. They made eye contact briefly but they looked away quickly with matching blushes. They still didn't move away from one another until they were inside.
The local mall was fairly average as far as malls go. It obviously hadn't seen a renovation for many years and the talk for years had been that it was going to be shut down so a more modern, expensive mall could be constructed. It hadn't happened yet, though, and as always the center was packed with people.
The food court was located on the second floor, though the lines were rather long. Jon and Karyn found seats at a table near the trash bin to watch the lines. As they waited, they chatted idly.
"Wonder where the Doctor is now," Jon said, his eyes on a fairly disruptive pair of teenagers exiting a store across from the food court.
"Probably in London," Karyn responded. "That's where everything seems to happen in the show. That or Cardiff."
Jon glanced at her with a grin. "Hopefully we won't end up there so much. London's boring."
"You've been there?" Karyn asked, curiously.
He nodded. "Yeah, every summer break. Didn't I tell you? My grandpa lived there for a long time before he..."
Jon fell silent.
Karyn extended a sympathetic hand. "It's still pretty raw, huh?"
Again, Jon nodded. "I still don't think he's dead, but... It's hard, you know? He's usually always there for me. Whenever I had a problem at school or something else, I could always depend on him. He's the one who introduced me to Doctor Who, you know."
"Really?"
Jon nodded. "Yeah. Course, he liked the classic ones. I never could get into, I have to say."
They sat in silence. Karyn decided to change the topic.
"Speaking of Doctor Who, when do you suppose the Doctor's going to show up?"
"I dunno," Jon shrugged. "I was kind of hoping he'd just turn up randomly later tonight." He frowned. "Come to think of it, we probably should have been more specific in how we worded it. Y'know, a time, location, under what circumstances and whatnot."
"You're right, we really should have," she agreed. "That stone has way too many loopholes."
"Yeah. C'mon, the lines are much shorter now. Let's go grab some food and head back to my place."
They stood. And in that instance, everything began to shake.
It started as a slow tremble, but that slow tremble rapidly became an intensely wild quake, so intense it became near impossible to remain on their feet. Jon managed to stay upright by clinging to the trash in near their table and Karyn clung to him. The rest of the food court, however, wasn't so lucky as Jon and Karyn.
The room filled with screams and shouts. People toppled into one another or into walls, tables, or chairs. And everywhere the sounds of falling merchandise and breaking glass.
"IS THIS AN EARTHQUAKE?!" Karyn shouted over the ruckus.
She couldn't hear Jon's answer over the noise, but he looked just as lost as her.
After what must have only been seconds, the shaking stopped. They slumped to the floor in a quivering mess. Around them, people were still screaming throughout the food court and the rest of the mall. Many were sobbing and clutching injured limbs and loved ones. Karyn noticed a vending machine had toppled over in one of the corners and, beneath it, lay a small prone figure. A middle-aged woman pushed futilely at the machine, shrieking and sobbing...
Karyn looked away feeling sick. Beside her, Jon was as pale as a ghost.
"It's my fault," he whispered. "It's all my fault..."
"Jon, what do you mean? How could this have been your fault?"
He looked at her with haunted eyes. "I wished for no alien invasions while we were out. The stone... It must have interpreted "out" to mean..."
"... outdoors," finished Karyn, horrified.
The mall intercom suddenly crackled to life. And from it came a voice...
