She stands with her head and her palms against the cool brick for what seems like hours, but is really only a few minutes. She can't believe she left that life! The running, the racing, the yelling, the screaming. She let him go. And he didn't run after her, and that's what breaks her heart most.
But who is she kidding? Her life isn't some stupid romance movie. It never was and it never will be. She can't believe she stepped out of the TARDIS because of a text from Rory, and left everything behind. The chasing, the dancing, the laughing, the crying. It's gone. It won't come back.
When she finally pushes away from the wall, it's only to kick at it and let out a strangled yell of frustration and anguish and fist her hands in her ginger hair. And the tears start again, and then she drops to the ground and starts sobbing. He's gone. He's not coming back. Not in twelve years. Not in two years. Not in five minutes. No more of the reading, the spying, the sneaking, the dodging. And with him, he took her heart.
She's sitting there, on the ground, tears streaking her cheeks, face buried in hands curled into fists, bawling her eyes out, when she hears that oh-so beautiful sound that she's come to know so well.
And then she's shooting up off the ground, hands still balled into fists, but now at her sides, and the wind the TARDIS always seems to make is blowing her hair back.
And then it's there, and the door is opening, and he's running at her, and pulling her into his arms, and kissing her with everything in him, and she's kissing him back, and her hands are running through his hair, and his arms are around her waist, and everything is right again. Everything is perfect again.
When he pulls his lips away from hers, it's only to rest his forehead on hers and whisper come with me, like he did so many adventures ago, and I'm sorry and I love you and Please don't go. So she giggles (she can't help herself) and lets him pull her back into the TARDIS, where he puts her hand on a lever then covers it with his own hand and they pull it together, and then they're off, back into the stars.
Ten minutes later, the TARDIS is jerking around like she usually does and he's under the glass floor of the console room, fiddling with some time-vortexy thing. She's sitting on the jump seat watching him, zoning out, when her phone beeps and she jumps. She slides it open and reads the text.
I saw you kiss him. I saw you go with him. I just want you to be happy...
...So does this mean the wedding's off then? R xxx
She giggles at his try at a joke, then smiles softly. He understands. Understands that she can't stop this living this life. This life with the running, the racing, the yelling, the screaming, the chasing, the dancing, the laughing, the crying, the reading, the spying, the sneaking, the dodging, the smiling, the frowning, the swimming.
The loving.