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"I don't think this is such a good-" River was cut off when the Doctor grabbed her hand and yanked her along with him. She stumbled into a run, coughing as dust flew up in her face.
"Ready?" the Doctor yelled excitedly over the roaring sound of tires. "Jump!"

EARLIER...
The Doctor used his sonic screwdriver as a flashlight. River followed closely behind the Doctor as they navigated through the TARDIS corridors.
"So...where would we go on a road trip to?" she asked, her voice echoing through the unusually silent time machine.
"I don't know...just, somewhere," the Doctor replied.
"Okay, well, what would we drive? The usual method of transport isn't exactly going to work," River pointed out.
"I have some ideas. And people. There seem to always be people who owe me favors around..."
River decided not to argue with his ridiculousness for once.
"Why've we come back into the TARDIS, again?"
"To get our 'things', of course! Don't people do that on road trips? Bring 'things'?" the Doctor said, as if he didn't entirely comprehend the usage of the word 'things' in that context.
"Well, yes...but what things do we have that we'll need for a trip this short?" River asked.
"Short? Who said the trip had to be short?" the Doctor said, turning to face River in the weakly illuminated greenness provided by his screwdriver. "Just because the TARDIS only needs 2 days doesn't mean we have to be gone less than that."
"What? Well, how long were you thinking, then?" River asked, still skeptical of the whole road trip idea.
"I don't know...a week? Three days? However long it takes!" the Doctor exclaimed, turning around and continuing to lead River down the TARDIS corridors.
"However long what takes?" River said. The Doctor stopped again and gave her a big smile. "However long it takes us to have fun!"

River finished packing her things into a suitcase, which was bigger on the inside. All she really had in it were clothes and her diary. The Doctor was handling the food, apparently, though she wasn't sure if she could trust the man who loved dipping fish fingers in custard. She shuddered, snapped her suitcase shut, and came out of the room to look for the Doctor. She found him in his room - she was the only person he'd ever shown his room to - packing.
"What could you possibly be packing?" River wondered. The Doctor snapped his suitcase shut, stood up, and turned around. He threw his arms up in the air excitedly, his face bearing an expression of childlike accomplishment. "Things!"
River smiled. "So, the food, then?"
"What about it?" the Doctor said, picking up his suitcase and putting it down next to hers.
"What are we going to do for food?"
"Oh, yes. I've got money," the Doctor assured, patting his jacket pocket.
"Let me see," River requested. She wanted to make sure the money wasn't from 14th century France, or something silly like that.
The Doctor handed her a bill, and it matched the time and place they would need it for.
"Okay. Good," she said, handing it back to him.
The TARDIS, which had recently acquired enough power to have the lights on again, groaned a little.
"We should go, leave the TARDIS to recharge," the Doctor said. River nodded and followed him back outside.

"Okay, so, where should we start? Don't we need a vehicle?" River said. The Doctor shook his head. "Why don't we go out for lunch somewhere first, and then start?"
River smiled. "Okay."
They found a cafe and ordered bagels, coffee, and pastries.
"Where should we go?" the Doctor wondered excitedly (excitement was apparently a common emotion for him today).
"How should I know?" River replied, taking another bite out of a strawberry strudel. "Shouldn't we start with how we're getting to wherever it is we're going?"
"I suppose...ooh!" the Doctor jumped up. "We could be stowaways!"
River almost spat out the coffee she'd just sipped; not because she was felt an opposition to his idea, but because she was surprised that he would consider doing something like that on purpose (because honestly, he did do things like that a lot by accident.)
"I'm all for it," she responded.
"Great! Then let's go!"
"What, now?" River asked, putting down her coffee.
"When else?" the Doctor said, reaching for her hand to take her and leave.
"We haven't even fin-"
"Come on!" the Doctor took River by the hand and made his way out of the cafe. Good thing it wasn't a restaurant, or they'd have had to wait for the bill, and she knew the Doctor hated waiting.
The Doctor let go of River's hand to switch hands with his suitcase. They walked down some streets, seemingly aimlessly to River.
"Are we going anywhere in particular?" she asked.
"No," the Doctor replied, before crossing the last road in the city. They were walking down a gravel road, and the Doctor could see a petrol station convenience store up ahead.
"Okay...loads of trucks probably come around here. Why don't we wait around until one shows up, then hop on just as it leaves?" the Doctor suggested as they approached the station.
"Sounds...bad," River teased. The Doctor clearly didn't get what she meant and looked confused.
"You bad boy," River added for clarity. He smiled, now understanding. "Oh, well, Doctor Song, you've had quite the effect on me," he flirted back. She laughed. "Oh, so you admit you get it all from me, then?"
"I never said that," the Doctor replied. They arrived at the station. The Doctor went in a bought a few things like trail mix and licorice. River waited outside, watching for truck drivers.
"Nobody yet?" the Doctor asked as he sat down on the pavement next to her. He shoved the plastic bag of goods into his suitcase.
"Nope," River replied. The Doctor sighed. "I guess we have to wait, then."
They sat silently for a few minutes, until the Doctor got bored and started sifting through his suitcase. He pulled out a pair of sunglasses and fiddled with them, making an annoying tapping noise. River glared at him until he stopped, and finally just put them on.
"Let me guess-" River began, only to be interrupted by the Doctor. "I wear sunglasses now. Sunglasses are cool."
"That's what I thought." River sighed, putting on her own pair of sunglasses. The sun beat down on them insistently, even though it seemed like hours and hours had passed since they'd arrived in Cardiff, and that sun had already been shining then.
"Wait," the Doctor said, spotting something in the distance.
"What is it? Is it a truck?" River asked, straining to make out the vehicle that was slowly approaching.
"I...think...yes! It is!" the Doctor exclaimed. A 2 ton truck came buzzing up the road until it pulled in to the petrol station. A logo on the side suggested that it was some sort of delivery company for furniture, but it was faded and barely visible and the truck had possibly been retired to the driver's personal use.
"Quick, move before he sees us!" the Doctor urged, rushing around the corner of the convenience store. River scrambled after him.
They watched the driver get out, fill his truck, and then go inside to pay.
"When should we go?" River whispered.
"Not yet. He could easily see us out the window of the store," the Doctor responded. The driver came back out of the store and got back in the truck. He started it up.
"Now?" River asked urgently.
"Uhh..." the Doctor hesitated. The truck started moving. "Yes! Now!" he realized he'd probably waited too long, but they ran after the vehicle anyway.
"I don't think this is such a good-" River was cut off when the Doctor grabbed her hand and yanked her along with him. She stumbled into a run, coughing as dust flew up in her face from the truck's wheels.
The Doctor sonic'd the back of the truck, causing the hatch to slide open and down.
"Ready?" the Doctor yelled excitedly over the roaring sound of tires. He threw his suitcase into the box of the truck. "Jump!"
The truck had gained speed, but the Doctor leaped forward and clung to the edge of the hatch. River sprinted after him and shoved him up. Once he had made it, he reached out to help her. She threw her suitcase at him first, and then, panting, leaped. The Doctor helped her up.
They sat on the edge of the hatch, trying to catch their breath. The Doctor started laughing. "That was fun! Ooh," he crawled into the box of the truck to retrieve his suitcase. He opened it and pulled out two necklaces with keys on them.
"Here, put this on," the Doctor said, handing one to River and putting the other around his own neck.
"What is it?"
"Perception filter. TARDIS keys. Saved them from a long time ago."
River put the necklace on. "And you didn't think to use these before we jumped into the back of a truck?"
The Doctor stiffened. "Eheh...no. I suppose not."
River smiled to herself. This was certainly going to be a different kind of adventure.