Taphophobia; the fear of being buried alive.
Rose started to stir, slowly coming to from a deep warm sleep. She shifted slightly, dreamily remembering and registering at the same time that she was pressed up against the Doctor; she could feel his double heartbeats thumping gently under her fingers splayed across his chest. Dimly, Rose also registered a pattering sound, almost like rain, but more rhythmic, like in a pattern. Almost like the Doctor's heartbeat. Her back and neck were stiff from lying half on the Doctor for most the night, she assumed, so with her eyes still closed, she started to sit up to stretch. Before she even got an inch away, his arm curled around her waist and pulled her back down to him.
"Rose, go back to sleep," the Doctor murmured in her ear; it didn't sound like a bad idea. Her brain felt sluggish, and she was still tired… but the combination of his arm curled protectively around her torso, keeping her body tucked close to his, and the underlying tension she was sure she heard in his voice gave Rose a chill down her spine. And not a pleasant one.
"Doctor…" Rose groggily opened her eyes and of course was only greeted with blackness; it was still the middle of the night. But wait; she could see. Vaguely. Only just. As her eyes adjusted, she could just make out the Doctor's outline before he covered her eyes with his hand.
"Rose, trust me. Go to sleep." Now fear gripped Rose's stomach, which only furthered to wake her up more. She peeled his fingers from her face, and he sighed.
"Doctor, what's goin' on?" she demanded, trying to loosen his grip on her so she could sit up. The rhythmic clattering got louder as she became more aware of it, and Rose turned toward the direction of the noise. And that was when it hit her. It wasn't rain… it was dirt. Dirt being dumped on top of them, but somehow not hitting them; what was going on?
A surge of adrenaline shot through Rose and she wrenched herself free of the Doctor's grip, only to crack her head on the glass box shielding them from the dirt as she shot up.
"Rose," the Doctor protested, grabbing at her arm, having to force himself to stay lying down. She yelped in pain, gasping and flopping back down, now realising her stiff neck and back were due to lying on hard glass instead of the soft TARDIS mattress her body was used to. When she put her hand out, Rose couldn't even fully extend her arm before it hit a glass wall, slowly being covered with more and more gravelly earth. "Rose, you've got to calm down," the Doctor said quietly, bringing her back into his arms and giving her a gentle kiss on her forehead. "We've got to conserve air, just try…. breathe…. slowly… there you go, just try stay calm."
Rose's breaths were getting shorter but not because she was calming down. They were being buried alive. Her worst nightmare.Please let this be a nightmare. Buried alive, underground, where no-one could find them, ever. They were going to die, Rose was certain, and it was making her petrified with terror. Am I dreaming? She considered the possibility for only a second; the throbbing in her forehead felt real enough, so she dismissed the theory.
"Doctor," she squeaked, unable to stop shaking with fear, and a hysterical sob rose in her throat. She pressed her face into his shirt, clenching the fabric tightly with her hands and trying not to hear the fading clattering of dirt hitting glass. A thought occurred to her; how did they even get in here? The last thing she remembered… Come on, come on, think, Rose told herself desperately, but she couldn't recall the last thing they did. This realisation served to only panic Rose more; she couldn't breathe, too many hysterical thoughts running through her mind at once. "Doctor, how'd we get here?" she managed, tears starting to flow. Why couldn't she remember?
"They drugged us," he replied quietly, rubbing her back softly to contradict his ominous words. "You more than me; silly human, you fought back." He chuckled, and she focussed on his calm voice. Only his voice. "Must've given you a bit of amnesia, plus that knock on the head you just gave yourself can't have helped much," he continued, and Rose felt another kiss pressed to the top of her head. She sucked in another shaky breath, trying to stop the tears. "Trust me Rose, I promise you, I am going to get us out of here," the Doctor insisted, pulling the sonic out of his pocket and scanning the glass. "Ahh," he said nonchalantly, and Rose surfaced hesitantly.
"What is it?" she whispered, forcing her fear down, and he quickly turned off the blue light of the sonic.
"Nothing to worry about, just figurin-"
"Doctor, tell me!" she demanded shakily, nudging him in the side. "You're only freakin' me out more by not tellin' me…" She felt rather than saw him frown, but he flicked the dim blue light back on. It illuminated the glass above them, riddled with cracks, webbing and intersecting across the top and down the sides, and Rose's body went slack as she stared in horror. Her eyes followed as the glass cracked even more, spreading further down the sides, weighted down by the ever increasing amount of dirt being dumped on top of them. "Doctor…"
He didn't reply, but in the last second, pulled her close to him and tucked her head into his shoulder, tangling his fingers through her hair and covering as much of her as he could. Shielding her from the coming inevitable onslaught of crushing dirt and sharp pieces of broken glass. Her arms curled around his thin torso, and she felt him trembling just as much as her. A shattering sound, almost deafening, reached Rose's ears, and she screamed.
* - * - * - * - *
Rose flinched so violently as she awoke that she almost fell off the couch she was curled up on, tucked close next to the Doctor.
"Rose," he exclaimed, startled. He put his book down and placed a hand on her back as she leaned over, breathing heavily and trying to shake off the remnants of the awful nightmare. Her gaze flicked up and found his face; she sucked in a breath and flung her arms around his neck. "Whoa, hey, it's alright, I'm here," he assured her, hugging her back. "Rose, you're shaking," he said, surprised.
"You would be too if you jus' had the nightmare I did," she muttered back, taking a deep relieved breath. He didn't reply, just squeezed her tightly until she was ready to be released. She lingered for what felt like ages in his arms, but eventually pulled away, brushing hair out of her face and giving him a relieved smile. The Doctor raised his eyebrows at her, then smiled as she tucked herself back into his side.
"You alright, then?" he asked, looping a protective arm around her shoulders. She nodded, snuggling close. "Don't want to talk about it?" Rose shivered, shook her head and yawned.
"Jus' wanna forget it," she sighed, closing her eyes, feeling safe next to her Doctor, his arm tucked around her. The last thing she felt was him, pressing his lips softly to her forehead before she fell asleep.