Imaginary Worlds

Damn. "He must have worn himself out." the Doctor muttered softly as he frowned down at the lad. He didn't want to wake the kid.

"I need to put him down for the night. Sleeping on the couch won't do him any good." the Doctor murmured, carefully lifting his son to do just that.

The Master followed along after the other man with his hands in his pockets. "He had a long day, bet he didn't have a nap, kids rarely do when they have sitters."

Koschei never did, it used to drive him mad actually. The Master headed into the Doctors bedroom while the man handled putting his boy to sleep. Why not move upstairs?

The Doctor took care of his kid before retiring to his bedroom with a small smile. "All settled on now and good to go for the night." he chirped.

Always a good sign. "Here. You can borrow these." the Doctor murmured, handing over a pair of sweatpants that he dug from a drawer.

"Oh goodie," the Master remarked as he looked them over, they were quite the step down from his usual wear but when in Rome. Taking off his shirt and trousers, he pulled on the sweats and dropped on the bed.

"I need to bring my own clothes here," the Master agreed with a small sigh, he didn't like how long the legs were on these, it was mental.

"Sorry? I'm taller than you and a bit on the thin side. You can't expect things to fit you. I'll clear a spot out for you if you want or you can take over the dresser in the guest bedroom." the Doctor murmured as he changed and sat upon the bed.

He really didn't mean for the other to end up uncomfortable. "Look. Just try not to think about it."

"It's fine," the Master offered as he shuffled up on the bed for the Doctor to come and join him. It was still early really, they had some extra time left over.

"Do you fancy watching something or having a drink?" the Master asked with a small frown, they had a whole night to kill yet.

The Doctor settled in close with a small smile. "Whatever is fine. I don't particularly care one way or another." he assured firmly. And why would he care?

He was content to just cuddle up and call it good. Then again, the Doctor was that sort of person.

The Master wasn't big on cuddling but hey, he wasn't going to kill the Doctors toy. He settled for putting on the TV and enabling the man by letting him cuddle up.

Turning his head to the Doctor, he shot the man an amused smile. "You really like affection."

"Let's say that I don't get it very often outside of my son." the Doctor mumbled. It left him craving companionship and the like.

"Does it bother you? I know you said you weren't big on it." the Doctor said soflty, frowning a bit. He wasn't sure how to take that.

"I'll never be a cuddling person nor a hugging type but I don't mind," the Master granted, he didn't mind, he could hug his son so why couldn't he hug the Doctor?

It was much easier with the Doctor as well, he knew where he stood. "What about Iros? Not a cuddler?"

"Only after a fight. Or if he wanted sex and needed me in a good mood to get it. I tried to initiate it once and ended up on the couch for being clingy." the Doctor scoffed.

Which would explain why he was more that happy to give the Master some distance when the man desired it. The Doctor didn't want to irritate the other. "He doesn't matter." the Doctor assured firmly.

"Don't get why you'd date that idiot," the Master remarked with a roll of his eyes, he had some bad dating history but it didn't even compare. Usually he was the distance aloof jerk though.

He dodged a lot of the negative sides of relationships by making it clear who he was and what he did with his life.

"He was different while we were just dating and changed once Marnal and I moved in. I was working through a degree and an apprenticeship for teaching, which made it convenient to stay with him." the Doctor admitted sheepishly.

"I didn't have to worry about Marnal being left alone with a sitter or finances. I just cleaned and cooked. And I was lonely. I dated on and off since Marnal and whatnot, but he was the first one to stick. I lived with him six months, I dated him two years prior to that." the Doctor admitted sheepishly. Not his proudest moment.

"Well maybe a sitter would of been better, clearly he was not the best thing for the kid," the Master pointed out, he didn't get how anyone could be with a jerk like that.

"Two years? So you were with him since Marnal was... 2? Woah," that was unreal when put into context, who could date someone that long when they were such a jerk?

"It's like I said. Iros was different before we moved in and I was lonely. I'd just gotten a relationship again and I was terrified to be alone again." the Doctor stated.

It wasn't as though he'd taken the man to be a complete ass at first. That was sort of just how it ended up being.

"Well I'm sure you had good reason for what you did," the Master offered, he knew people dated for odd reasons and sometimes judging people was hard, he knew that too well.

"Well I'm sorry things went so badly in the end," the Master offered with a small shrug, he wasn't but it seemed like the right thing to say.

"I know that you aren't, but that's alright. Really. I'm glad that we ended things when we did." the Doctor assured.

"I'd have never met you had they not. Who knows? I might have even ended up marrying the jerk." the Doctor deadpanned with a wince.

"Good thing you didn't, he sounded a bit... erm, odd," the Master said as politely as possible but what he really meant was the man sounded like a complete and utter dick.

"Well, best forgotten I suppose," the Master remarked with a small shrug of his shoulders, the man clearly did plenty of damage as it was.

"He had his definite moments. I learned to just roll with it." the Doctor mumbled with an awkward shrug. Nothing else he could do.

And really? Why would he bother to worry over that? It wasn't as though he had anything to do with Iros any longer. The man was a memory and nothing more.

The Master nodded in agreement, he wasn't worth thinking on and he was more than happy to simply forget that it had happened for now, it was easier.

He just lay beside the Doctor and let him cuddle up as they watched boring TV. It was all very domestic.

"You know the one thing which has bothered me since I moved in this house?" the Doctor asked softly. It was a bad topic to get into, but he needed to talk abou it.

If only to clear his kind of it. "There's this door. You don't see it, not really, but it's there. Just out of the corner of your eye. But I can never really find it or see it." the Doctor admitted. "It bothers me."

"John, that sentence made no sense," the Master pointed out with a small sigh because, come on, it seemed insane. It was impossible for there to be a door that somehow couldn't be seen.

Yet awareness of it was possible. "Show me? I want to see it. I mean, it sounds interesting."

"I know how it sounds! Imagine how it feels." the Doctor shot back. Alright. So maybe he was a little defensive about the entire thing. Who wouldn't be?

"Come on. It's inthe kitchen." the Doctor murmured as he headed down. And it was there. Always in the darker corner, hidden away from their makeshift existence. It as maddening.

The Master frowned, it was there but he didn't want it to be there and he didn't want to be near it. He winced and looked away, giving the Doctor an unsure look.

Because frankly it didn't make much sense really. It was just like the Doctor said. "Okay, that is pretty creepy."

"Imagine how I feel living with it. It's there and I know it's always there. But I can't really see it. It's unnerving." the Doctor murmured.

At least he wasn't alone in seeing it. That was at least something to go with.