It's gone….it's gone…. Rose watched with tears in her eyes as the TARDIS faded from view, carrying with it every hope of seeing The Doctor again. Her knees felt weak and she felt like she was going to collapse, but a firm hand grabbed her shoulder. She turned and looked into….his eyes….Rose ran a hand through her hair.

"Wow…..you look just like him….wow…..umm….this is going to take some getting used to….." There he stood, the perfect clone of The Doctor, created out of his own DNA. There was only one difference. This…man that stood before her…was human. He would grow old and die, as would she.

"Oh, well…..That's good, right? I mean, I am him, he is me…we share memories….I remember everything about you Rose." A tear fell down Rose's cheek and she brushed it away. Then she looked to where the TARDIS had been standing only moments ago. Then she took a deep shuddering breath and let it out slowly.

"Yeah, I suppose…" Her sentence drifted off. The Other Doctor looked like he might speak, but she cut him off. "Well, what should we call you…..after all; we can't call you Doctor…" The Other Doctor beamed.

"Just call me Smith, John Smith, or Doctor John Smith if you prefer" He smiled at Rose, warmth in his eyes, but Rose looked away. John frowned slightly, but he couldn't stay mad, after all that had just happened…..he had just watched her lose the man she loved. Sure, she had feelings for him, and he shared all of his memories, but her heart would always belong to The Doctor. John took her hand "Come on Rose," He whispered "Let's go…..we have a lot to do." Rose nodded, without saying a word, and walked over to her car. It was just where she had left it, but it seemed so strange and unfamiliar, as things always had when travelling with The Doctor. Out of habit she walked to the passenger side door, and rested her hand on the doorknob. Looking back over her shoulder, she saw John standing awkwardly in front of the car.

"Doc-uh….John, aren't you coming?" John ran a hand through his hair and smiled sheepishly.

"Oh, yes, well I would of course, but unless driving a car is like driving a TARDIS…." He broke off, but immediately continued "But what the heck? Allons-y" Rose opened her mouth to protest, but John had already jumped into the car and shut the door behind him. Rose sighed and got after him.

"Alright, but if we die…I swear John…..I'll…..I'll" She caught John's eye and stopped.

"Rose, trust me, we've done a lot more dangerous stuff than this, right?" When she didn't respond, John started the car, and put it into drive. Alright, let's see, two pedals, one presumably for gas, and one for break. Drive, park, reverse. Alright, Allons-y. Within a few moments they were on the road, ready to take the long drive from Darlig Ulv Stranden to London.

An awkward silence had filled the car, but Rose was too lost in her thoughts to notice. Memories of her and the Doctor swam around in her mind. "Rose Tyler, defender of the Galaxy" "I could save the world, but lose you." "How long are you going to stay with me?" "Forever" "Rose Tyler, I-" warm tears rose to her eyes and threatened to spillover. She couldn't break down like this, not in front of John…he was all she had….the only thing that reminded her of The Doctor, that proved he existed. She saw John glancing over at her, and she quickly looked out the window.

"Rose…will you be alright?" The hurt in John's voice pierced her heart like a sword.

"Yeah…I'm fine." Rose took a deep shuddering breath and continued out the window at the passing scenery, looking with glazed eyes. Suddenly, the car came to a jarring halt, causing a few cars around them to honk their horns in protest. Rose flew forward, and was pulled back by her seatbelt.

"What the heck?! Are you MAD? You could have killed-" The look in John's eyes silenced her.

"Look Rose, I know you wish I was The Doctor, but I'm not. I never will be. I may not have a TARDIS and a sonic screwdriver, and I may not be an immortal timelord, but I have something that The Doctor doesn't have. I have you. I will grow old and die, with you. I will never change, never. The Doctor in fifty years will have a new face, a new companion, and maybe even a new TARDIS, but in fifty years, I will still have you."

"John I-"

"No, I'm not finished. The Doctor may be a brave man; he fights Daleks almost every other day, he's saved the Earth more times than anyone can count, but I did that too, and I did it with you. In fact, I think I'm braver than The Doctor. Do you know why?" When Rose shook her head, he continued "Because I said the one thing that even The Doctor was too afraid to say. I said 'I love you,' and no matter how old we get Rose, no matter how wrinkled and hunched over, that will never change…..Alright. I'm done." Rose had tears in her eyes again, but they were different now.

"John, I'm so sorry….I didn't mean to….I didn't know...I love you John" With that she leaned over and kissed him full on the lips. When she pulled away, she found herself looking deep into John's eyes. "We can make this work" she murmured.

"It won't be easy…but I promise Rose Tyler, I will never leave you again." With that, John pulled back onto the road, and the two of them headed off to London, setting the marker of their new life together.