Donna Noble had never felt quite complete. She always had the feeling that some fundamental part of her was missing.
The only time the nagging feeling of being incomplete relieved itself from her was when her migraines would act up.
They had started about a year and a half ago after her fiancé dumped her. (Or had she dumped him? That memory always felt wrong to her whenever she thought about it.) It would start with a dull ache in the back of her skull that would grow until it filled her brain. When the snaking tendrils of pain touched her eyes, she would double over and hyperventilate while flashes of a medium blue blurred her vision.
During one of these attacks, she had begun to scream a stream of indecipherable words. "GallifreyTARDISturnleftbasic allyrun!"
She fell into a sobbing pile, muttering "basically run, basically run, basically run." It wasn't until several minutes of careful and conscious breathing that she realized her father, Wilfred, had ran to comfort her.
A week later, she had taken herself to a psychiatrist and was diagnosed with schizophrenia within two months.
Now she stood on the edge of a bridge, contemplating giving herself to the inky black waters below.
It was a cool London night, the moon indecisively flitting behind the clouds. Few cars passed the road behind her, their headlights spilling over the steel beams when they did.
Even though she had played the scenario in her head a thousand times, she still couldn't move her feet, which felt permanently welded to the I-beams they were touching.
Slowly, she inched her way forward until the front of her right sneaker hung over the water.
Taking a deep breath and sharply exhaling it, she began to move her left foot until she stood precariously close to the edge.
A harsh whirring sound cut through the air, giving Donna a flashback to when she was learning to drive and had left the parking break on before trying to move the car.
As soon as the quietness began to seep back, footsteps came running around the cornerand onto the bridge. "Donna Noble!" A young voice screamed loud enough that Donna was sure she'd see bits of the voice's esophagus on the ground if she turned.
"Donna!" came the voice again, much closer.
A hand grabbed her jacket and pulled her backwards until she fell in a tangled heap with a young man.
"Oi! Get offa me, freak!
The man on the ground flashed a hurt face, but quickly adjusted his bowtie and stood up. "Donna Noble, you beautiful human being!"
Donna's eyebrow shot up. "Just who do you think you are and how the hell do you know my name?"
The man stepped forward and looked in her eyes. "I'm the Doctor and you, , are a friend of mine who I care too much for to let you end yourself."
Donna stepped back, reestablishing the distance between them. "You're not one my doctors. I've never even seen you before!"
The Doctor gave a sad, knowing smile. "It's my name."
Donna shivered. "Doctor Who?"
The Doctor slipped out of his tweed jacket and draped it over his friend's shoulders. "Just the Doctor."
Donna Nodded, only halfway understanding. "Then tell me, Doctor, why are you here?"
"To stop you from doing...well, this," he responded, gesturing out to the edge of the bridge where Donna had stood only moments before.
Her eyes grew moist and her lip trembled, her face turned to the ground. "It's not worth your time. Just...go home. Leave me alone." Her voice squeaked, threatening to crack.
"Donna Noble," the Doctor started, pulling the woman into an embrace. "you are the most important person in the universe. You are worth so much more than you could possibly know." He stood quietly, rubbing her back. When she composed herself enough to stop crying, she immediately found interest in her shoes.
"Hey, hey. Look at me." The Doctor encouraged, lightly pushing her chin up with two fingers.
Her gaze trailed upwards and landed on the Doctor's forehead in an attempt to avoid his eyes.
"Now Donna," the Doctor instructed. "I want you...no, I need you to trust me. Open your mind to me."
Donna wasn't quite sure what he meant, so she just took large, deep breaths until she felt relatively calmer.
In a surprise move to Donna, the Doctor moved his hands until they were on either side of his face, his fingertips extended to her neck. He took a second to enjoy the pulse of her blood through her arteries before touching their foreheads together.
A music filled Donna's head, reverberated through her body, and carried with it a sense of immeasurable joy.
"Ood." She blurted.
The Doctor quickly pulled away, afraid she'd regain her memories of her travels and overload herself, causing her to die.
"What?" he inquired, worried.
Donna looked up, no longer in the throes of depression. "Huh?"
"Nothing." He replied, making the decision to let her listen to the 'Doctor-Donna' song.
When the music began to return, Donna got the distinct impression that she had a hand in making it, as if she had been the muse for the writers.
The Doctor, feeling the revelation in their combined mind, pulled away again but kept his hands on her face.
In a silent exchange, Donna nodded her head and the Doctor smiled.
Donna felt a sudden cold on her face, but didn't realize it was her tears until the Doctor brushed them off with his thumb.
"My dearest Donna Noble, you are important."
"I know." She responded, meaning it. Even though she didn't fully understand how, she knew in every fiber of her being that the pseudo-stranger before was right. She was important.
Keys jingled as they were pulled from Donna's pocket. "Do you want to stop in for a spot of tea?"
The Doctor shook his head. "I have places to go, people to see. Maybe another time," he answered, knowing there wouldn't be 'another time.'
Donna turned, then turned back. "Thank you, Doctor. Thank you so much."
The Doctor choked back the urge to sob. "Thank you, Donna Noble, for being strong. Stay strong, and know you're worth your weight in gold. No, platinum."
With that, he turned and walked calmly away to the direction he originally came from until he was out of sight from Donna.
She looked around and realized that she was still wearing the jacket he had given her.
"Doctor! She hollered, following his trail.
The whirring noise once again filled the night, making Donna hesitate. When it stopped, she walked several streets looking for her savior. After she got too cold, she turned and headed for her car while making plans to find her mysterious Doctor again.
A/N: I know Donna traveled with Ten, but for this I put her with Eleven. The reason for this is I figured either their timelines happened this way or the Doctor did it as one more safeguard against Donna regaining her memories.