A/N. There it goes, the oh-so-predictable (?) story about the Doctor and Rose being stuck in the TARDIS. You'd think I'd settle with a one-shot? Think again. As of yet, at least some more chapters are surely to come – three days are a long time. I can't guarantee very frequent updates, considering the amount of stories I must eventually finish or expand on… But this one is, at least for the time being, my biggest priority.

Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who.

Stuck

Rose shook her head, after having hopelessly attempted to make the TARDIS door open for the fourth time.

The Doctor shrugged at her, an apologetic look in his eyes. He had promised to bring Rose back to London in time, and they were obviously late already. The man breathed out, attempting to stop thinking about just how many problems the daughter's belated comeback might cause to his young companion. While he was never fond of having to face Jackie Tyler with her constant hysterics and basic commonness, let alone care about her, the Time Lord cared about Rose not getting into any additional trouble at home.

The Doctor had had quite enough encounters with the woman to learn that the two were hardly ever going to enjoy each other's company. But he could tolerate her, for Rose's sake. After all, the annoying woman was her mother, which meant there were some points to comply with. Luckily, the mother seemed to have understood it too… Nonetheless, the possible outcome of this unexpected incident with the TARDIS was making him anxious.

'I think you need to get home', the Doctor insisted back then. 'Didn't your mother mention some extremely important ball, some celebration that you were told not to miss under any circumstances? Who would want to miss it? It promises to be something exceptional, doesn't it?' Of course, the companion knew he was being sarcastic.

"Something exceptionally plain and dull with a dozen equally boring guests?"

Rose had rolled her eyes at him then just as she did now, foreboding the topic was to be brought up again now that the possibility of her participating in her mum's ball was growing thinner. Once again, she wished he could see just how little these everyday things mattered for her…

It was merely a week since Rose saw Jackie last, and she could always call... It wasn't the first time she was late for things ever since she began travelling with the Doctor. But something was stopping her, some persistent idea the blonde girl was subconsciously trying to dismiss from her mind.

Maybe the mysterious man had some secrets from her. Why wouldn't he, anyway? And it would have appeared strange if she wasn't trying to open the TARDIS' door. Although she soon knew it was pointless – the sonic screwdriver that the Doctor handed to her was of no help. This alone should have stopped her useless attempts, and, with an uneasy sigh, she did eventually stop.

Seeing a wry grimace – or was that a smile? – on her face , the Doctor approached the young human. "You should not bother trying, Rose. If I know my TARDIS well, and that I do, all there is left to do is be patient."

The companion rolled her big brown eyes at him. He could have said that at least half an hour ago. "You mean, we wouldn't be able to leave." She but considered the fact. After all, it was primarily for the Doctor's sake that Rose was trying to get the door open so desperately. Meeting her mother and her mum's friends was the last thing she wanted.

"I'm afraid not," the Doctor caught her look. Rose believed she could make out both discomfort and resignation in his. Suddenly, she wanted to laugh out loud and wondered if it would hit him none of these discommodities were actually bothering her as much, if it all. She wasn't startled, wasn't even uneasy. Maybe simply… curious about what had happened. After all, she was not stuck in the TARDIS on her own. They both were. And the Doctor would certainly come up with something. Not that Rose was burning with the wish to have everything fixed at once…

"I shouldn't have panicked. It can't be that bad," she gave him a small smile, believing it was quite enough of her playing the distressed damsel. For all that Rose knew, the Doctor was an even worse liar than she was. He must have missed all the 'distressed' part anyway.

"It is. We are stuck in here until the touchy lady decides we are worthy to get out." He did not seem happy about it at all. It wasn't often that his TARDIS was not listening to his orders. Of course, such things did happen occasionally – the blue box had a mind of her own. Most often, though, he was travelling alone when the machine decided to begin her reboots... "I wonder what's happened," the Doctor muttered.

"The TARDIS has decided to do me a favour, perhaps?"

The Doctor sent her a strange look. He seemed oblivious to the possibility that the girl preferred his company much more than that of people most of whom she barely knew.

"What about you go check the control room and I prepare us some tea?" Rose suggested, unwilling to give him any ideas.

"Sounds just right," he gave her an uncertain smile. The fair-haired companion imagined to have heard relief in his voice, but was uncertain if it meant something more than a wish to peacefully consider the apparently unexpected situation.

Making tea served as a perfect distraction. Rose could not believe that had happened to her. She was stuck in the TARDIS with the Doctor. Was it wrong she could only see positive things in the occurrence? Even though the Time Lord seemed somewhat touchy about it. She could have teased him about it, but did not want to. After all, it was no less her problem than his.

Handing the Doctor his cup, Rose breathed out. "For how long? For an hour, maybe two? I don't really think we wouldn't survive this for such a period of time," the smile reappeared on her face. "Surely, there is something we can do." The Doctor's expression was blank. She looked at him searchingly, traces of worry in her eyes. "Can we do anything?"

The Time Lord sighed, pretending to be considering the possibilities. And that was what he was doing… Making a choice. One was telling her the truth at once… Nevertheless, the Doctor decided upon the other.

"Some hours, that must be it, Rose," he smiled at her reassuringly. Or so he thought.

Rose rolled her eyes at him, not buying any of it. Even though she herself had uttered the guess moments ago, it was obvious she was mistaken then, after she had heard him to actually utter it.

"The Doctor lies, isn't it?"

He ignored the remark. "You wouldn't be so relaxed if you- The tone of his voice was hardly anything the blonde woman had heard before, and that frightened her.

"It's not that the world is ending?" Rose peered at him.

"Naaah. Only this planet. But you needn't worry. We're safe here." The Doctor gave her a grave look, realising his mistake at once. Still, it was a tad too late. "The planet is ending, and you-

At least one of his lies seemed to have worked – the worst one. The momentary dread in her eyes made the alien man want to slap himself. The terrifying sight of her planet ending before her eyes was obviously still vivid in her memories.

"You know it isn't, Rose! We have seen the Earth's end, you and me." For a moment the Doctor got distracted in his thoughts. Different face, the same memories… the same Rose. He kept peering at her until he realised the shock passed. Irritation was better than panic. Still, he wished both of those gone from her flawless features.

"It's just me failing at making jokes," the Time Lord assured her. "These are but caprices of the TARDIS," the Doctor was looking at the controls and screens worriedly, then grinned. He had to admit keeping something from Rose was never a good idea – especially things like this. But he was saved by the human herself.

"I don't think she likes it when you use words like this," Rose noted. "I wouldn't enjoy being called capricious."

"Only a woman can truly understand a woman," he rolled his eyes, then gave her a wide smile.

The Time Lord's companion said nothing to this for some time, but was looking at him searchingly. That was enough to have made him feel uncomfortable. Either she did not get the joke or there was something else wrong.

Rose could not pretend she was mad at the Doctor for longer than a few minutes. "Failing at making jokes again, eh? No, that one's actually pretty funny," she assured him and gave the Time Lord a small smile. "Do you talk with the TARDIS? Maybe she could tell you what is wrong? Like a human?"

"A human, or an alien, or a space ship, yeah," he grimaced at her knowingly, the frown turning to a grin for a moment. "Generally, though, it sounds as if you were putting your race above all others," the Doctor finished with a serious note.

"I didn't mean to." It was just that the majority of the newly-met races were not those of friendly kind. "I'm sorry!" Rose looked around her. "I really am," the final words were directed towards the Doctor, who has awarded her with a huge grin. It was strange not being the one apologising... rather unaccustomed… and not right.

"You begin to see the world in a different light, don't you, Rose?" He decided it was for the best he changed the subject as soon as possible.

"Ever since I'm with you, yes," she spoke, her eyes shining.

The Doctor took a deep breath and gave the human a knowing look. He had to tell her. "Rose?"

"Yes?"

"I have talked to her."

"And?"

The Doctor was glad to only see surprise and interest on the beautiful face.

"The TARDIS has decided she needs some time to recuperate."

Rose did not seem to have fully grasped the idea, but her eyes shone with unquestionable trust. And, as usual, he was ready to explain anything she did not understand. Especially since there weren't many such cases.

"The mechanisms must have overheated. The TARDIS now needs to find, or, more likely, create additional energy before she can take you home again."

Take her home. That was the last thing on her mind. "For how long are we to remain here?"

Not telling things did not count as lying. Frightening Rose did not seem like a pleasant outcome. "Are you missing your family already?" The Doctor teased, wanting to push the question away.

"No," she snapped. The Doctor was a part of her family now. "Not a little bit," Rose muttered to herself, a bit frightened of her own words. "I have you now, don't I?"

The Doctor grinned. "Oh, yes. Let's just hope we don't bore ourselves to death until the system reboots itself."

"And then what?" Rose realised that even if the Time Lord knew the answer about the amount of time they were to spend stuck in the TARDIS, he was keeping it away from her intentionally.

"Then you'll be safely taken home," he assured her. Seeing no traces of relief on her face, the Doctor tried again. "Safe and sound," he finished the sentence in a whisper.

This made her roll her eyes at him. Was he really this daft, or was he but running away from the obvious? "Whoever's made you think I'm looking forward to that?"

Rose gave the Time Lord an uncomfortable smile, then rushed to say something, subconsciously wishing for the sudden uneasiness to go away. They were friends, best friends… And she needed to stop thinking that maybe there was something more between them… She was the only one daft here.

Meeting his penetrating gaze, the companion managed to give him but a worried glance, fighting her thoughts away.

"Let's be serious, Doctor. For how long are we to remain here? Hasn't the TARDIS informed you?" The Doctor peered at her knowingly, seeing too well Rose wasn't worried about the situation at least half as any other person would be. He took a breath. This time, there was no way back. And there was no reason to put it away any longer.

"Usually, it takes no less than two days until the mechanisms are repaired… sometimes more."

Rose tensed slightly, not sure if she'd heard him correctly. "Sometimes?"

The Doctor shrugged, motioning for Rose to check it out for herself. Sending an apologetic look her way, he was ready for any kind of reaction. Even if, as it seemed, she was not against spending some more time in the TARDIS-

Seeing the strangely relieved look on her face when she came back from the control room, he tried to make out something more from the peer she gave him. "The countdown on the screen says 70. Seventy what?

"Seventy hours," he was expecting for anything but the grin on her face when she gave him an amused look.

"You don't seem upset," the Doctor noted gleefully.

"I am not," Rose muttered. "But maybe you are? I know, I can be extremely annoying... If you wish, I could simply lock myself in my room and-"

"Don't you dare," the Time Lord teased, reaching for her hand. "I'm sure we'll think of something, as we always do."

The companion knew then – the almost non-existent barrier between them was melting every passing moment. She could feel it almost physically. Nobody believed them when they continuously kept negating that they were a couple…

The thought made the blonde human sigh. She knew she would have given anything to learn that maybe, just maybe-

As if knowing what Rose had in mind, the Doctor waved his hand in front of her. "Something is upsetting you, nonetheless?" The grin on his face seemed completely out of place.

"You wouldn't understand," the companion muttered, unsure if she wanted to turn her eyes away or keep looking at him.

"I understand everything," the Time Lord assured her. He did, indeed. And if this incident with the phone box was what would make them admit their feelings openly… it was for the better.

"Do you?" Rose sent him a look which she imagined she was going to regret when she was back home – for a moment she considered the recurring idea that the TARDIS was no less her home than her place in London - again.

"You know I do. My Rose."

The companion sent him a disbelieving look, than hurried to close her eyes. "This gives me ideas friends should not have," Rose muttered, freezing, as the Doctor grabbed her hand. Taken by surprise, the brown-eyed girl looked at him, not expecting to meet his gaze.

"Shouldn't," the Time Lord agreed. "We should probably wait," he gave her a knowing look. "After all, we have three days completely to ourselves now."

Rose smiled uncomfortably. "Nothing changes between us, then?" The Doctor could read on her face that she wished it to be different.

"We could begin with what humans like best," he suggested. "Would you like to talk about your feelings?"

The companion wasn't sure if he was serious or making fun of her or of the human race in general. "You- you start," she addressed him carefully, almost afraid of what she might hear.

What has reached her ears was surprising. And it wasn't just the almost improperly sounding tenderness in his voice. "How do you think, Rose… Does having two hearts make me feel everything twice as strongly? Pain, loss, love?"

"I don't know." Rose pretended not to have been affected by his words as strongly as she was. "I suppose you don't really have the means to compare?" She attempted to jest. The moment she saw his face, the blonde wanted to disappear from his sight, but gazed at him instead. "I'm sorry." Once again, the Doctor had to ignore the discomfort he felt whenever Rose began apologising for no apparent reason.

"It's all right," he assured her. "Everything is, when we are together," the Time Lord spoke casually, knowing his companion was able to detect every trace of feelings in his voice. The understanding made him try to lessen the effect his words must have had on her. "Everything but the fact that we are stuck, of course."

The blonde but shrugged at the obvious, happy the Doctor kept smiling at her, obviously waiting for her to say something.

Rose felt she was not ready to simply admit the dreamed-of story was true. "Three days… what do you suggest we do?"

"For now, we should look through the rooms and see which ones are still available," the Doctor smiled at the woman. The questioning look he received from Rose made him shrug uncertainly. "Everything depends on her now. If we're lucky, some rooms will remain untouched. Don't worry," he assured the blonde with a smile, "the kitchen and the bathrooms are safe from being removed or changed. That I can guarantee."

Rose grimaced. She could remember the Doctor telling her about the rooms occasionally disappearing. "All the other rooms are not?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "The library, maybe? It's a matter of luck. If you find yourself thrown into the control room, I suggest you just stay calm and wait until this or that room is ready for using again," he grinned.

"You mean," she asked, just to be sure, "we are dependent on the TARDIS, and from what I can see on your face, there is nothing that can be done about it, right?"

"Pretty much so," he beamed, seeing how her big eyes were sparkling, no traces of uneasiness in them.

"Then I suppose it would be better if I brought some of my clothes in one of those safe places," she smiled at the Doctor playfully.

"Don't panic as of yet," he could not stop grinning at her. "I have never met someone so excited about being stuck together with an alien-" The Time Lord had to stop, as Rose put a finger on his lips. "Not when this alien is the best thing that has ever happened in my life," she spoke, sounding entirely serious. Having hurriedly taken her hand away, hence allowing the Doctor to speak, she had to face yet another surprise.

"Aren't you afraid of me, though?" The Doctor, unlike Rose, was openly teasing her.

"Why should I be?" She took over his manner of speaking.

"Because I'm not human," the Time Lord gave her what sounded like the ultimate, the most important and life-turning reason.

Rose decided to leave jesting aside. "Human or not… that's not what I care about the most. Of course, if you are against it, if your alien rules prohibit falling in love-"

Rose. "Do you want to know just how wrong you are about this?" The Doctor sounded thunderstruck. "Even if such rules, as you call them, existed, I'd be the first one to break them - with you," his voice was just low enough to resemble a whisper.

"Let's just… go and check the available rooms, and then-

Rose was so affected by his words she was grinning foolishly almost the entire time they were checking the rooms. Almost all of them were still present.

"This is a good thing, right?" she spoke, after the two have decided to stay in the library, as it seemed the most appropriate place… and the place least likely to get sealed among those that might be. "That the majority of rooms are still available?"

The Doctor shook his head. "On the contrary," he spoke. "But you will see," he teased.

"Is this supposed to sound frightening?"

"Not when I'm with you, Rose."

The human grinned. "Then… what about you just stay with me forever?"

This word... forever was a long time. "You will grow tired of me sooner than you think," the Doctor patted her shoulder playfully.

"I haven't yet," Rose smirked. She knew it was impossible for her to grow tired of him. But instead of saying that, she rolled her eyes at the Time Lord. "What about we go take some things we might need from our rooms before, and if, they disappear?"

"Sure."

Before leaving, the blonde grabbed his hand, believing the gesture would add some additional meaning to the words.

"I love being stuck with you, Doctor," Rose whispered, watching him, then letting go of his hand. But before she could go away, the Time Lord fixed his look on her. "I love you too, Rose."

"I know," she muttered back with a grin.

One thing was obvious for both of them - these days together were going to be some of the best time of their lives, even with no monsters to run away from and no planets to save. The very understanding's made their faces light up with anticipation.

A/N. I hope you enjoyed reading this. As you must have noticed, not even the first day is over yet – and they have three. Who's to say what might happen? During this, perhaps later? Thank you for reading! Please let me know what you think!