-It Was Happy Back Then-

Series of one-shots set before Doomsday.

(Sorry if some of the chapter are short.)

Pairings in this series:

9/Rose

10/Rose

Includes characters 9, 10, Rose, and maybe if you're lucky, some Jack.

Chapter one - I didn't mean it

She watched in horror as her Doctor held his abdomen in pain. He said it was the Time Lords' way of "cheating death". To Rose, it just looked like death. He was gritting his teeth and grunting, but still he managed to smile at her. That was her Doctor, alright. She felt like crying, but it seemed that she was to much in shock to cry. This theory was soon proved wrong when she slowly blinked a hot tear down her left cheek.

He watched as the tear rolled down her red cheek. He felt like it was all his fault. But, in reality, wasn't it her fault? It was her, going off and absorbing the Time Vortex. Not him. Stop it! You know she was trying to help you. She saved your life. And then you saved hers, he told himself. He hadn't needed to kiss her, but he wanted to. And so he did. He didn't find it to be inappropriate, mostly because he knew she wouldn't remember a thing. But he had no idea if she remembered or not...for all he knew she could have enjoyed it. No. No of course not. It could never be.

Rose watched as he leaned against the console even more and gripped his stomach. He lifted his head and tried to say something, and she almost didn't want him to. She couldn't imagine what he would sound like. Raspy? A grunt in between every syllable? Crackly? All three, maybe? More tears fell as she watched.

He slowly lifted his head with what looked like great struggle and looked right into her eyes.

"I love you."

She gasped as bright lights poured out of his hands and head. She shielded her eyes partially with her arm and held her breath. She stood, flustered.

The lights stopped, and he looked indescribably different. Younger, wild hair, freckles.

"Hello!"

She stared.

"Oh. New teeth. That's weird," he said, running his tongue along his teeth. "Where were we?"

He looked down at himself and examined his arms.

Rose found words she thought she'd never find again. "You just said..."

He seemed to remember and blushed. He cleared his new throat.

"Oh...um...well, see, sometimes doing regenerations I say things I don't mean."

"You...you said 'I love you'."

He seemed to really remember and blushed a darker red in his cheeks. He stared at her with those new, glowing brown eyes.

She liked his old blue eyes.

Did he really say that? It was hazy. He couldn't quite recall. What a disaster. She wasn't supposed to know anything about that. He tried to adjust to his new body as his thoughts raced. His thoughts were new, not like his old ones, which was a good thing, as well as a bad thing. One, he couldn't remember if he said what she said he said. Two, he was a new man who didn't think the same anymore. If he had been his old self he would have absolutely hated this, but now, as he leaned against the TARDIS' console, he thought maybe it wasn't a bad thing after all. No, wait. It was definitely a bad thing. Especially if she got scared and ran off and never traveled with him again, and even thinking that made him ill to the stomach. He had to travel with Rose... He just had to. No buts. But, if she didn't want to travel anymore, he never could say no to her. He never was able to. It hit him just then. That he did say those three words he swore to himself never to say.

"Did I?" he said, stalling. Maybe if she heard his new voice and he acted different enough she would forget.

"Yes," she said in a small voice.

Oh, rats. This was bad. Really bad. What a great way to start off a new regeneration, saying 'I love you' when you don't want to. But really, only this new self didn't want to. He thought he did, but he changed his mind. But his old regeneration, Mr. Leather-jacket-that-was-too-big-for-his-new-self, obviously did want to tell her. So he just blurted it out like a flaming idiot. Nice.

He needed to say something, and fast. He couldn't just let her stand there wondering what just happened in front of her. No, he couldn't do that, that was cruel. So he said the first thing that came to his mind.

"I didn't mean it."

And she believed him.