Sometimes he allowed himself to think of his son. Sometimes he even allowed himself to think of his daughter in law. Only sometimes though…
He had been watering their plants and changing the light bulbs in their house for almost 2 years now, he kept himself busy so he didn't have to think about what could have happened to them. Today he allowed himself to stop and wonder if they were having a good time, if they were happy traveling the stars and saving planets. He always knew his son would be extraordinary, whether it be by saving people's lives or saving planets. He knew he was extraordinary and was going to forever be extraordinary when he married that Scottish fire. He could see that she brought out everything good and beautiful inside his son, things he had never seen before. He knew they were always going to be together. He smiled to himself as he thought of how happy they were.
A week had gone by and he was still watering the plants and changing light bulbs, he had just gone into the house to refill the watering bucket when he heard a sound, a sound that meant his son had finally come home. He ran from the kitchen to the living room and waited outside the blue doors of the Tardis , he was waiting for that moment when his son and daughter in law would come out and engulf him in a hug, but that moment never came. Instead a raggedy looking man walked out …
"Doctor Are you alright? My goodness you look a mess." He looked at the raggedy man worryingly and asked with concern on his face "where's Rory and Amy? Are they coming out?"
The raggedy man moved towards him and placed a hand on his shoulder, his face began to contort in sadness; he spoke so softly
"I'm so sorry Brian." He didn't need to finish. In that one moment Brian knew he would never get to see his son again, he would never get to see his daughter in-law again; he began to feel the feelings of loss and pain crash onto his heart. He hadn't even responded yet, with his head looking at the ground he responded "What's happened to them?"
"Their dead Brian, they were taken by the angels."
His mind barely registered the word dead... Dead dead dead.
"They were taken back in time, they did live a life together but they are gone now. They are together." In a way the word together comforted him, Amy and Rory together always. Even still, his heart was breaking all the same, his son would never come back and worse he never had the chance to say goodbye to either of them. He never had the chance to just say goodbye. He looked up from the floor to see the doctor staring at him in concern; he gave the doctor a small smile and shook his head "thank you for telling me doctor. I appriect it."
He could see the look on the doctor's face he knew what the doctor wanted from him
"I don't blame you, I'm not angry." He barely whispered it but he could almost see the relief on the man's face.
He was engulfed in a hug by the doctor, "Brian, I loved them as well. I loved them both so much." The hug lasted less than a minute, but to Brian it felt like an eternity of grief had set in at that moment.
"I must be off Brian, Planets to save and all." The doctor gave him on last brief hug and went back in the Tardis.
Brian stood in the living room for what seemed like eternity , he would never see them again , never ever , he would never meet his grandchildren, he would never see them age together. He began to sink into the carpet with his hands up to his face, he cried for his son and his wife. He cried because he would miss them always, he cried because he was now alone.
For almost a week, he still watered the plants and checked the mail and even changed the light bulbs…all the light bulbs , just to trick himself into thinking maybe they were on holiday and they would come home soon, You can't come home to dead plants he told himself. If people asked about Amy and Rory he would say they would be home soon nothing to worry about, soon he kept saying.
One night after returning back to his own home, he began to walk in a direction he hadn't been in quite a while, HIS old room. He had locked away everything that would puncture the reality of Rory and Amy just being on vacation not being gone. He took away the pictures and the old random Christmas gift, all the cards and letters and locked them away in his son's room and made himself forget. Yet, tonight he was at the door, his hand on the knob. He almost wanted to break the illusion he created for himself… he needed to. The smell of the room almost brought tears to his eyes; it wasn't a bad smell just familiar. He began to slowly enter the room, the walls covered in photos of Amy and Rory , of him and his wife they were placed so well it almost looked like Amy had come in and done it herself. He walked further in the room where on the bed was a box wrapped in gold wrapping paper with a note on top. He picked it up so carefully like it would break, it read
"Dear Brian, I am truly sorry about them both but know they lived their lives together until the end, they were happy. I figured you wanted something to remember them by so I took the liberty of making this room for them. I also thought you should have this present, I don't know how it came to be but Amy really does think of everything." –Doctor
Tears were falling from his eyes before he could stop them, they were together, and they had grown old together. He gently put the note in his pocket and lifted the top of the box up, inside was a letter, book and a picture. He took the picture and held it in his hands it was Rory and Amy smiling with the doctor. He could see the stars in the back ground; he smiled at how happy they looked. On the back was a note. 4000 yr Neptune star gazing. The book was written by a River Song and the letter he recognized the handwriting immediately. Amy. He very carefully undid the string and opened the letter.
Dear Brian,
I suppose if you're reading this then that means we have left, I know it seems very cliché to write a goodbye before we even know what our fate was but it just seems fair. I'm sure you're quite confused as to why we have left you, we never meant to, we truly didn't mean to. I'm sure the doctor has come to see you and if he hasn't well you can slap him when you see him.
(Brian smiled ever so slightly at that)
I know that you must be worried about us but I will never leave Rory and he would never leave me so just know where ever we are, we are together. I promise I will never leave him Brian I love him too much. Please know that even though we are gone and you may be alone, please don't be sad … Rory wouldn't want it. Just live your life to the fullest and don't dwell on our leaving and don't be mad at the Doctor I'm sure he didn't know we were leaving. Please Brian, don't be mad and remember that me and Rory are together and we love you.
Love always, Amy.
He looked up his eyes cloudy with tears, oh, how he understood now. How he knew that even though they were gone they died happy. He was overcome with such relief and love that he almost fell onto the bed. His hands dropped the letter and went straight to his chest, he held a hand over his heart, and he thought he was going to have a heart attack, he was expecting the world to stop, but instead all he felt was his steady heart beat and another wave of sobs. His boy, his Rory was gone but he didn't die alone, no. He was loved where ever he was. He made to slowly get off the floor, at that moment he decided to leave that house. His legs were shaky and weak but they did the trick. He moved to slow almost as though he was stuck in molasses. He walked out of the room passed all the pictures, down the stairs, passed the lounge and there was the door. He opened it slow and peered outside to only see it was a bright and beautiful day and that everything was still the same. The world hadn't ended just because Rory was never coming home, He laughed. He laughed a big hearty laugh as he looked into the sky and whispered "Goodbye son." His legs began to carry him down the street maybe he would stop watering their plants, maybe he would start to tell people they were gone , maybe he would go and get a cup of tea first.
The End.