The TARDIS door swung open with a Bam!
Rose Tyler and the Doctor hobbled inside, with the poor girl leaning heavily on the Doctor.
"Oi! Watch it!" Rose yelped as she nearly ran into one of the TARDIS pillars because of the Doctor's stumble.
"Sorry! I'm not usually accountable for more than one person when walking!" He shouted in exasperation.
They finally reached the bench of the TARDIS and flopped down, clearly winded. They had just retreated from a strange alien planet, one that the Doctor was not completely familiar with. Apparently the inhabitants were hostile and they chased them all the way back to the TARDIS.
Unfortunately, on the way there, Rose was nearly caught by one of their unsightly alien pursuers, and took a hard fall. The good news is the Doctor was quick enough to heave her up and get back to the ship. The bad news is that Rose seemed to have been injured in all the commotion. Now she could barely walk and was limping horribly. So horribly it made the Doctor wince.
She sat on the bench in the TARDIS and examined her leg. "I don't even know what happened!" She said angrily. "I was falling and—everything just happened so fast I just—"
"Hey… It's okay!" The Doctor tried to calm her down. "No reason to panic anymore! We are safe inside the ol' TARDIS!" He patted the console lovingly.
"I know…" She looked down at her leg. "I—I just don't want to get injured on an alien planet, you know? There could be a disease, or a plaque, or a—"
"Stop right there, missy." The Doctor put a hand over Rose's mouth. "Your fine, the TARDIS will protect you." He thought for a moment, dropping his hand. "I know what will make you feel better! Why not go and wash up in your room? Get all o' that alien residue off you, and such."
Rose nodded gravelly, standing up in a staggering position. She gently eased herself towards her room, leaning heavily on the railings and pillars. She stumbled a bit and let out a small cry.
"You alright? Want some help?" The Doctor said with a worried tone.
"No no! No, I'll be alright… I'll just be a while…" She said through gritted teeth.
"Um… Okie dokie…" The Doctor muttered as she hobbled out of the room. He immediately felt terrible for making her stagger all the way there, but it wasn't as if he could go into the ibathroom/i with her. No matter how badly he wanted to…
He quickly shook his head, shaking that thought out with it. He promised he would check out Rose's injury as soon as she got back from cleaning up.
But that proved to be a longer time than usual.
He eventually found a book and began reading it idly, kicking his feet up on the console. It was a nice book, one that had been in a pile sitting out, waiting for him to read. It was about a beautiful planet he wanted to take Rose to. The clouds were always purple and the sun was always red, and it made the sky a bright vibrant shade of pink. She would love it, the Doctor thought wistfully. Maybe he could take her there one day and tell her—
No!
No. He wouldn't… Too sudden, too soon.
The Doctor focused back on his book, scolding himself for thinking so foolishly. Had he learned nothing in his nine hundred years of life?
So the book enveloped him again. He was lost in it, like the science man he was, and somehow forgot about Rose. It had been quite a long time, and he hadn't seen her. He set the book down and thought about going to check on her. But wouldn't it be rude to step into her room? But is she okay?
While he was in decision mode, another book caught his eye. He picked it up and began to thumb through it, forgetting once again about his injured companion. More timed passed without the clueless Doctor noticing. He simply sat with his Converse clad feet stretched out in front of him.
Finally, much time later, Rose began walking out of the TARDIS corridor. The Doctor's back was to her, so he couldn't see that she was clearly upset. She hobbled towards him, put on a tougher face, and walked around to the front of the TARDIS bench.
But her straight faced entrance didn't work out so well. "Doctor, I—Ah!" Just as the Doctor looked up from his book to see Rose approaching, her knees buckled out from under her and she went down like a rock. The Doctor threw his book, and managed to reach out just in time. He barely caught her by the elbows.
"Rose! Oh my—are you alright!?" He asked as he hauled her up to the bench next to him. He pulled her up in such a way so that her legs were situated on his lap. He thought of it in a 'Doctor's Examination' matter, not realizing that it would be such an intimate position.
Rose winced so much it made the Doctor hurt. He was sure he saw tears building in her eyes.
"Oh…" She said through gritted teeth. "I'm… not quite sure…that I'm alright…" She held back a sob. She stared at her leg, which was bent in a painful-looking position.
"Rose! I'm so sorry! I really should have seen it was more serious!"
"No, it's fine… I just…" She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to endure the pain coming from her leg. "I just…"
But it was too much. She broke.
"Oh Doctor!" She cried, as tears started to roll down her face, which soon turned into a gushing downpour. "It just—it hurts so much! I want to go home! I want to go back home to my mum, where I'll be safe and warm and I can heal! It's just so scary, being out here, not knowing where I am, or what is so terribly wrong with me. I'm—I'm so far, out in space! I—I don't know what—"
"Shhh." The Doctor stopped Rose's irrational babbling by setting a hand against her face, stroking it softly.
The Doctor was hit hard by this; seeing her so vulnerable and exposed. She was his strong Rose, his stable Rose, the very Rose that could help him through anything. It seemed as though all that standing up, staying brave, it finally caught up to her, and she simply couldn't hold it all in.
"Shhh." He soothed.
Rose instantly froze. "But—"
"No, no, no. There will be none of that," He murmured. His soothing voice seemed to have frozen her in her tracks, as if she was suspended in time, unmoving.
"I know where you are…" He said gently. Rose didn't speak, but she pleaded with her eyes.
"You're in the TARDIS, safe and sound." He said softly. He thought he had gotten through to her, but he saw the tears threatening to fall again.
He stroked her face in the most caring way possible. "My sweet, fallen Rose… You don't have to go back home to your mother." He leaned closer to her, pushing her blonde hair away from her eyes. "You couldn't be in better hands. I do happen to be a Doctor you know…"
Her breath instantly caught in her chest. And that was exactly the reaction he wanted.
Instinctively, as if he didn't know any better, he pushed a little closer and pressed his lips to her, while pulling her face to his. It wasn't any grand kiss, merely a whisper of a touch against one another. It was bittersweet, both sad and wonderful. A lingering tear rolled down Rose's cheek, and it slid down to where their lips met. The Doctor could taste the salty sorrow of it. After several lingering seconds, he pulled away. He didn't particularly want to, but he was shocking himself by even this small show of affection. But he knew that this way, he was sure to convince his amazing Rose to stay with him.
As he opened his eyes, he dared not to laugh, simply because of Rose. Her eyes were the size of the moon, and her mouth was fallen agape. All thoughts of her injury were long forgotten. How rude it was of him, to use this method of manipulation to keep her with him.
But it was beneficial both ways, he thought slyly, still tasting Rose on his lips. It brought a tiny grin to his face.
"See?" He said, still in the calming, somewhat seductive voice, "No reason to go back home. I can take good care of you, right?"
Rose nodded numbly, her eyes still wide. The Doctor saw that she was still dazed, her eyes glazed over slightly in shock. He was pretty certain she still hadn't remembered she was hurt. And it made him happy to see her so.
"Good…" He pulled his hands away from her face, trying not to smile like a madman. "Now let's see about that leg."