Rose hadn't meant for his flat to become her base of command for everything wedding, it had just happened. It was the one place that she could get away and sift through the numerous brochures, seating charts, menus, and invitation lists that her mother had given her without her mother hovering over. When she and the Doctor had first announced their engagement to her parents it hadn't been a surprise when Jackie began listing off ideas and suggestions. Rose smiled and eagerly joined with her mother with the anticipation that only a newly affianced woman could. However, days turned into weeks and the small ceremony Rose had wished for was becoming the social and media event of the year.

She knew it was essential, not only for her own mental health but also for her mother's physical health, for Rose to have some time away from the house. That was why, after one particularly bad row with her mum a week ago, she'd packed up everything wedding and transported it to the Doctor's flat. He had looked on with poorly hidden amusement as she'd unpacked boxes of 'wedding paraphernalia' whilst she muttered about over-bearing mothers, caterers, and florists. At one point during her tirade he simply took her face in his hands, kissed her soundly, and led her to the bedroom.

Part of her felt guilty; this was his flat, not theirs. This was his space, the space they had both agreed that he needed. Forever was coming soon enough and she worried about encroaching on his territory, of her constant presence and the stress of the wedding forcing him to do a runner like he had during those first days. Even though those dark days had been left so very far behind, they still haunted her. Small reminders of the past had a way of creeping up on her, often overwhelming her. The more she focused on the wedding, the more frequent these moments of anxiety came. The frequency had her sniping at those closest to her. Jake had gotten so fed up today that he'd finally demanded she "go home and come back when she could act like a grown woman and not a spoiled two year old."

So she had fled, first to the park, where she sat on a bench eating way too many chips; then to the Doctor's flat, where she resumed the never-ending riffling through wedding plans. The Doctor was still at the university and though she knew she should make dinner as a peace offering for once again invading his space, she could not find the energy to do so.

The key being turned in the lock was the only thing that alerted her that the time was much later than she realized. She was about to call out when she heard the Doctor talking on the phone, "I don't know where she is, Jackie."

Rose groaned and dropped her head onto the table. She had turned off her phone after Jake had kicked her out of the office, wanting just a bit of time entirely to herself.

"No, Jackie," the Doctor continued. Rose could tell he was wrestling to take off his coat while balancing the mobile. "She didn't come by the university." A pause. "Well I just got home, let me check."

He rounded the corner from the entry way and she frantically shook her head no. He quirked an eyebrow at her, as if to say, "Really, because knowing your mother she isn't going to give up easily." Rose shook her head more emphatically in response.

"Nope," he said, popping the p for emphasis. "No Rose. Which I find rather discouraging myself. If she happens to arrive shall I have her ring you?" His voice was serious but his face was full of mischief and Rose couldn't help the smile that started spreading across her face.

"Right-o, Jackie." Rose suppressed her laughter when he shuddered at the expression he'd just used. "I'll have her ring you if she comes around. Only if you do the same."

A pause and the Doctor dramatically rolled his eyes, causing Rose to giggle.

"Yes, I must go now," he said hurriedly, then shut the phone. He turned to address Rose. "Your mother is looking for you."

"I know," Rose answered, "why do you think I'm hiding out here? She wants to discuss china patterns."

"I assume by china patterns we aren't talking about the country's need to move troops to the Indian border." Rose rolled her eyes and the Doctor smiled before adding, "Thought not."

"So you see the need for me to hide out," she said, standing up and moving towards him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and breathed him in before placing a small kiss on his mouth.

"Hi."

"Hello." His voice was deeper and a bit more gravelly then it had been moments before. "Have I ever told you how nice it is to come home and find you here?"

She blushed at his confession, "Good, 'cause it's something I plan on doing for a very long time."

Hours later, their take-away dinner finished, they sat on the couch flipping through the more extravagant and ludicrous brochures that her mother had picked up for them.

Rose casually pointed out the dress that her mother was insisting she wear, innocently asking his opinion; she thought the dress overwrought and bordering on hideous. The yards of lace, chiffon, beading, and silk had sent the Doctor into peals of laughter which abruptly stopped when she showed him the tuxedo which had been selected for him.

When she mentioned that her mother was planning on serving Maple Poached Pears, a delicacy on Pete's World, his faced blanched and he asked, "When did this stop being our wedding and start being your mother's?"

He was mostly joking, she knew. But his question pierced her. He was right; it was no longer their wedding. Their wedding had been small and simple with a cake, an elegant dress, and a traditional black tux. This wedding was something in which she would look very much like a meringue, he would look like a dandy, and there would be pears. This wasn't what she wanted any more.

Rose knew there should be many reasons to look forward to her wedding, but now the only reason seemed to be that the day would be over. When had the day that she had dreamed of since she was a child turned into the day she couldn't wait to be over so she wouldn't have to dread it anymore?

She turned back to her fiancée and watched the look of amused horror slowly disappear from his face, only to be replaced of a look of concern.

"Rose?" he questioned, his voice mirroring the concern etched on his face.

"I don't know," Rose answered quietly.

"You don't know what?" he asked, the concern on his face now matched by his voice.

Despite her best efforts to keep them at bay, she felt the tears welling in her eyes. She shook her head unable to answer him. He looked at her with such concern that she no longer was able to meet his eyes or even look at him. This remarkable man had given her so much. He had told her the words she had ached for years to hear. He had given her a brilliant Christmas to make up for what he had seen as mistakes in the past. He had accepted her family. And he had accepted her, despite all her faults. What had she done in return? She was forcing him to participate in a wedding that neither of them wanted.

She tried to find a way to articulate her thoughts and feelings when he asked, "Rose, are you happy?"

His question was quiet, sincere, and broke her heart. Her eyes flew up to his and she could see the uncertainty in his eyes.

"Of course," she rushed to assure him. At his skeptical look she took his hand in hers and continued, "I am. I love you. This wedding is...well, the plans are out of control. But you and the idea of marrying you, being your wife, makes me happy."

She felt him relax and she smiled. Leaning up she pressed her lips to his and added, "Very happy."

"Good," he answered before leaning down to capture her lips again.

***

A few hours later found them snuggled together in his bed. Rose's head lay on the Doctor's bare chest and she let her eyes drift closed as he ran his fingers through her hair. It was the quiet moments like these that she cherished. There was a time during the "dark days" that she had thought this wouldn't be possible – those days when they had nearly given up on each other. If it hadn't been for Jake... well, it had all worked out alright in the end.

Rose sighed, knowing that it was getting late and that she should get up and go back to the mansion. The temptation to stay here in his flat, in his bed, with him was growing more and more each day. She found herself longing for the days when this, or some other flat with the Doctor, would be home. Someplace where she wouldn't need to leave or to hide out from her mother. She simply wanted this man to be hers legally and to have a sheet of paper that said she never had to leave. Rose once again found herself fervently wishing that the wedding she was dreading would hurry and arrive so they could start on the part of being married.

Opening her eyes she noticed that the bedroom clock now read 10:32 pm. She really should get home. She shifted against the Doctor, preparing to get up, and grinned as he grumbled disapproval at her plan. She looked up at him; even with his eyes droopy with sleep and his hair tussled, he looked divine and Rose wondered again if it would be so horrible if she stayed yet another night.

"Time to go?" he asked, with a tired grin.

"Yeah," she sighed, but made no movement to get out of bed.

"Call me when you get home?" he asked, not moving, holding on to her tightly.

"Of course," Rose said in a teasing voice, "you can talk to me all about department chairs that don't recognize your genius and students who fail to grasp even elementary physics yet are in your advanced class, until I fall asleep."

"Oi!" he shouted and Rose couldn't hold back the giggle. She pulled herself off him but made no other move to leave the bed. They now lay on their sides, heads propped up against arms. "At least my conversation is better than what your mother wants for our wedding. Wonder if Jackie is trying to make up for the wedding she didn't get. Now that would be an interesting look into the human psyche. Is this something all mothers do? Take over their daughter's weddings, and why? I should talk to Jean over in the psychology department. She might have..."

"Marry me," Rose blurted out in a rush, surprising herself as much as she did the Doctor. It was rash, she knew, but the more she thought about it the more she realized that she didn't want to wait for their big lavish wedding. She wanted to be his wife now.

"Rose?" he questioned, baffled. When she didn't respond he continued, taking her hand and rubbing his finger over her ring, "I think we've already had this conversation. Remember? You, me, a coffee shop. I gave you a ring, you gave me... well you didn't give me anything now that I think of it, rather rude of you. I gave you this lovely ring and you…"

She put her finger on his lips to silence him, grinning as a plan began to cement in her mind.

"No you silly man. Marry me right now. None of the frills. No press. No flowers. Just you. And me. And an officiant." She punctuated each of the last few phrases with a kiss.

"Your mother will kill me, slowly and painfully," he protested, but she knew him well enough to know that he was giving in; he wanted the big lavish wedding even less than she did.

"She'll get over it," Rose answered.

"Only when we give her a grandchild. Of course, then she'll probably kill me for sleeping with her daughter."

"Oh, I think she already knows," Rose stated, running a finger down the Doctor's torso.

"She can't," he whimpered. It took Rose a moment to realize that the whimper was more out of fear of Jackie knowing what the two of them got up to behind closed doors rather than for other more pleasurable reasons.

Rose had to stifle a giggle at that and stopped what she had been doing to look up at him.

"What do you imagine that my mum thinks we're doing when I spend the night here, Doctor?" she couldn't resist teasing him as she tried to bite back a smile. "I promise she doesn't think we are up late playing board games and then you sleep on the couch while I have this luxurious bed all to myself." She lay back on the bed and stretched her arms out to make her point.

"Rose," he warned, his voice deeper than it had been a minute ago. "I'd prefer not to think that your mother knows anything about this." His hands gestured between the two of them making his point.

She smiled at him and felt her heart overwhelm with love as she leaned over and kissed him gently. Drawing slowly back she knew she would be spending the night in this bed, there would be no going home for her tonight. This revelation in place she added, "I'd rather not be thinking of mum at all."

The Doctor stared at her and suddenly she felt self-conscious. She reached for the duvet and started to bring it up to ward off the cold and to signal to the Doctor her plans for the evening. He reached out and stopped her hand, forcing her to look at him again.

"You're serious?" he asked, "About eloping I mean?"

"Yes."

It was whispered and Rose was taken aback by the intensity of the moment.

"We'll have to apply for the license," the Doctor said quietly, looking very thoughtful, "Someplace small maybe, where the media wouldn't find out. Maybe we could go back to the place we stayed at over Christmas. Remember the quilts? Never did investigate them properly, it would be a perfect excuse for you to leave. We might even be able to get Torchwood to foot the bill." His eyebrow quirked up and Rose felt herself release a breath.

"Are you trying to write off our wedding as a business expense?" she asked, trying her best to glare at him and not give into the giggles. His gaze intensified, and Rose felt herself grow very still and quiet."You're okay with this?" she finally asked, not quite believing that they were actually going through with this.

"Of course!" He said excitedly, shooting her a look as if she were daft, before continuing, "Term break is coming up soon and Jake's been after you to get away. Too bad there isn't a Vegas here- both the city and the planet. It would make this eloping thing so much easier; we could jump in the car right now and do one of those drive through weddings. That would be spectacular, don't you think? Wouldn't even need to get all dressed up. We could wear our robes if we wanted."

"I am not getting married in a robe or in a drive through," Rose stated trying to mask her delight that he seemed as thrilled with this idea as she was.

"Of course not," he answered. "York. How about York? Nice people in York."

"York is fine." she answered, and lay back down, resting her head on his shoulder. Yes, York sounded perfect.