Author's Note: I KNOW I have two unfinished stories and the guilt is nearly driving me to insanity, but I have several ideas that are just DYING to be written so TADA! I'd love to know what you guys think!

It was a truth she had run from, denying its existence with her very core. Now it glared at her with all the horror of the obliterated ship that smoldered below them. Tears were already streaking down her face and she turned away. Rose took a deep breath and looked for her Torchwood team. She'd only called for backup a half hour ago, they'd still be at least five minutes away.
"You had a choice," she whispered. "They needed you..." her voice cracked.
"Are you disappointed?" Jon faced her, his expression bitter and desperately sad. "Heart broken that your Doctor didn't save the day?" Rose held a hand to her mouth as she sobbed, trying to keep her eyes focused for her incoming team. Anywhere but behind her.
"You were never my Doctor." she managed to gasp out.
"No." The metacrisis turned back to the field and stared at the damage he'd created. It was nothing compared to the damage behind him, and he knew it. A car roared up to the field and his eyes narrowed as the car doors slammed behind him.
"Jonathan!" Mickey's voice was harsh and concerned.
"We're fine." he replied calmly. Rose screamed suddenly behind him, hurt, frustration and anger tearing through her.
"No! We're not, we're universes from fine." she yelled. Mickey's jaw dropped, watching her as she stormed up to Jon. He warned his team to stay back, wary of Rose's sudden outburst.
"How dare you?" she asked him, her voice dropping dangerously low. He turned calmly toward her and held out his hand to her, attempting a peace offering. "Don't touch me!" she stepped back, staring at him with disbelief. "What happened? We were going to make it work, I was going to make you better, but you haven't changed..." She shook her head and wrapped her arms around her body, trying to ward off the cold fear that settled in her heart.
"It wasn't you Rose, it was never you." his voice softened, and she sobbed harder. That voice, so much like the one she would have killed to hear, too much like her Doctor. "Our choices always seem to be made for us." Her jaw tightened, her sobs slowly beginning to calm. "I only wanted you to love me for who I am, not him. I wanted to be different, for us, because I didn't think I could live in that man's shadow."
"And this is who you have decided to become?" she asked quietly. He nodded.
"I did it for you, because I love you and I couldn't change that if I wanted to. I just wanted you to love me."
"Would you change it, if you could? Wipe your memory of me and everything that we were?" Rose's eyes narrowed at him and he shook his head.
"That wasn't us Rose, it was never us." he replied, his voice cracking. The very essence of his being denied that, but he fought against it, struggling to find his own reality in the myriad of memories and emotions in his mind. Rose knew, could see his inner battle as she stood there watching him. "How I feel will never change, never." he managed to say, yearning for her to run up and comfort him.
"If that wasn't us, then this is us," she gestured between them, her arm shaking as she struggled to stay calm. "And we don't have a very good history. I think it's time we stopped." Mickey's jaw dropped and Jon stumbled back, her words nearly knocking him over. "I can't do this anymore."

Four Months Later

Rose leaned her head back and took a deep breath, calming herself as the sounds of chaos echoed below her. She took comfort in the familiar white wall that loomed behind her, the memory that came with it somehow managing to stave off the cold fear in her heart. How uncomplicated things had been then, even when her world was falling apart. Since the Republic had decided to take over Torchwood, the little she had left in this reality was crumbling before her.

"It's brilliant isn't it? Watching them run about trying to make sense of all of this..." Jon was standing at the doorway, watching her. "Are you going to tell them?"

"What are you doing here? Haven't you done enough?" Rose straightened her legs against the floor and stared at her feet.

"I didn't do this. They were planning to overtake you long before I stole that equipment. The people feel that they deserve to have a say in this madness." he leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms.

"These are the same people that caused Canary Wharf, it's because of them that the Cybermen leaked into my world." Rose snapped her head up and glared at him. "Because of them my life has become hell and now my family is about to be investigated, or do you not care about that? Do you care about anything anymore?"

"Of course I care." he said with a note of harshness. "Do you think I wanted this? What's important here is that they can't find out about you, have you got any plans?" Rose narrowed her eyes at him. How could he have known? They hadn't even worked together in months, and she'd made Mickey swear he wouldn't tell him. "It doesn't matter how I know, we'll talk about that later. If the Republic finds out about you...well you may not leave this building for awhile."

"I don't know what I'm going to do, I've got nowhere to go remember? The only family and friends I have will be under suspicion." she commented bitterly.

"Maybe not in this world." Jon pulled one of the jumpers out of his pocket. Rose nearly choked at the sight of it. The familiar anticipation and dread that she'd felt so many years ago came back in a tidal wave of emotion. "You're bound to go back, there will be nothing for you here."

"What if I don't want to go?" fear gripped her as she wondered what she would do. She couldn't even think about him, but what would she do without him?

"You will, if not now, you will later, because you don't belong here. Never have, but he's just too big-headed to see it." Jon tossed her the jumper. "Quick, they're making their way up the stairs." Rose stared at the jumper in her hand, yellow popping out at her, reminding her of the sunflowers she used to love in her world. Bright and cheerful, it seemed to promise a better life. Her fingers clenched around it and she frowned. As far as she knew there was no better life, it was only hard and laborious and sometimes miraculous. A miracle was exactly what she needed.

"Come on." Jon stepped forward. "You're going home."