Difficult and awkward communication was sort of something Clara was used to. It came with all the travelling she did, different places on Earth and then of course different planets in the Dreams. Either way though, she was much more comfortable with peculiarities and the oddness of Orange County than John seemed to be. Five plus years in the place and specifically on the network would do that to a person. It could take time to figure out the specifics, usually trial by fire.
So when he ran towards her, she just offered her hand in such a typical Doctor-Companion move that she didn't consider it (honestly she liked to switch that dynamic around as it were since usually it was the Doctor grabbing someone's hand but she was the one in that role right now) and led him to her TARDIS, though it appeared only as a diner to him. At least the front part.
But being in the TARDIS would make the challenging aspects of communication vanish thanks to the translator circuit. Still she turned so he could read her lips as she signed,