"That door is now the perfect shade of Tardis blue," the Doctor announced, over the Beatles wafting out of the stereo, coming in from the back yard.
Rose didn't bother looking away from the trim she was carefully covering in painter's tape. "I still say you wanted to paint that door blue, so you could find our house."
"Whether or not that is true, I happen to associate a blue door with home, so it seemed only appropriate that our front door be blue."
The words 'home' and 'our' coming from the Doctor, newly human, made Rose's heart flutter and she finally looked down at the man that was currently draped across the ladder she was standing on. The sight of him nearly made her topple off the ladder. The eyes, the face, and all that fabulous hair were as they had always been - except now there were streaks of blue paint across his face - but he was also brand new. Gone was the formality of the pinstripe suit and in its place was a blue painted stained Incredible Hulk t-shirt and faded jeans that they had picked up at the jumble sale, but it was more than that. He looked at ease and unhurried, serene even. During all their time on the Tardis, even though he was focused and unflappable in the face of all things, he had rarely seemed at ease or content in the moment. No matter where they were or what they were doing, the Doctor had always seemed to be thinking of what was to come next or remembering past pains and memories. In this moment, though, he was still and totally absorbed in the moment as he carefully surveyed the work she had done while he'd been in the backyard painting to door with an approving look. It was a new side of him, possibly part of his new found humanity, and it took her breath away.
"I must say, Rose Tyler," he said looking up her, "you are quite wizard with that tape. We can start painting and have this place looking like an honest to goodness home in no time."
"Well, now that the door is done, why don't you grab a roller and start on the bits that are already taped and I'll finish up with this." Then following what had been a forbidden impulse until the last few days, Rose crouched down and kissed the Doctor softly on the lips.
"Yes, ma'am," he said with a mock salute before heading to the pile of paint supplies by the doorway.
With one more glance at his familiar, but unfamiliar frame, Rose went back to taping the kitchen doorway, humming "Taxman" along with the stereo. For a few minutes, nothing was said as Rose and the Doctor busied themselves with the task at hand. Rose found herself thinking about quiet days on the Tardis where she had helped the Doctor work on the engine or clean some neglected part of the ship. It had been on those simple days, when he'd allowed for a domesticity, that she had believed that building a proper home and life together had actually been possible. Now painting the house that she had refused to think of as home, she couldn't believe that she actually had a chance to build a home and life with the Doctor. He might be a newly formed human Doctor and they were years away from their own Tardis, but he was her Doctor none the less.
Then the song changed and the whole mood in the sunny living room shifted ever so slightly. Rose took a deep breath and sighed as the lyrics washed over her, but she continued with her work. Although the song struck a sad chord in her, those days were hopefully long behind them and she wasn't going to let the memory of them take her away from the happy reality in front of her. Rose had almost quelled the threatening sadness when she felt the Doctor's hand on hers.
"Rose." She turned on the ladder to look down at him. The song had clearly had an affect on him too. What had been content in him only a moment ago, now had that same scared, vulnerable look he had given her when he'd asked her if she was going to send him away. As it it done then, the look melted and broke her heart in a single moment.
"John." Something about his tone and the look in his eyes made her use the his new first name, even though it still felt strange to call him that.
He gently pulled her down from the ladder pulled her against him, his eyes searching hers as she circled her arms around his neck. He apparently found what he was looking for in them and without another word, kissed her sweetly but soundly. This kiss started slowly, but quickly gained momentum and intensity. There was something desperate and possessive about the kiss, as if the Doctor was trying to reassure himself that this was real, that she was real. Before she could really process all this, her hands were burrowed in his hair and she could feel one his clever hands pressed against her the bare skin of her back and coherent thoughts began to slip away. Rose quickly lost herself in his lips; his arms possessively clasping her to him; his lean frame pressed against her. Even the Doctor's kisses were force to be reckoned with and they left her weak in knees.
"What was that for?" Rose asked when they broke the kiss when the need for oxygen had become too much.
The Doctor gave her a soft, serious look, blue paint still smudged on his cheek. "I realized that I could do that now," he moved a stray piece of blond hair out of her eyes, "and suddenly it seemed foolish not to be doing it."
Rose attempted to give him a serious look, but her patented grin broke through. "Well, I can't argue with that impeccable logic."
"Superior Time Lord brain, me." He smiled widely and leaned in until there was a breath between their lips. "And this incorrigible human biology."
With that the Doctor again pounced on Rose's lips. This time gone was the desperation. Rose could feel him smiling against her lips as he pulled her away from the ladder.
"What do you think you're doing?" Rose asked between kisses, "we still have work to do."
"I figured we deserved a little snog break for all our hard work this morning," he said kissing down her neck.
"Again," she said bringing him up to face her, "your logic is impeccable."
She kissed him again, laughing against his mouth. Kisses and laughter continued as the Doctor awkwardly guided both of them towards the couch. He flopped down on it, pulling Rose down on top of him until they were stretched out on the brown leather. As she settled her knees on either side of his slim hips, Rose again found herself amazed and thankful for the recent turn of events. Here she was on the couch kissing the Doctor like he was a normal, everyday boyfriend. It wasn't whisking around time and space, but it was an adventure that she could definitely get behind.
The Doctor and Rose continued to snog on the couch, forgetting the paint, and the tape, and the Beatles. For a span of time, they only existed to feel and kiss one another.
"Rose! Doctor! Where are you? Are you alright?"
Rose started at the sound of her mother's panicked voice. "Mum, what are you doing here?" she asked sitting up so that she could see over the back of the couch.
Jackie Tyler crossed her arms across her chest as her worry was replaced with anger and annoyance. "What am I doing here, you ask? I was driving on my way to pick up Tony from play group, minding my own business, when I drove past my daughter's house and realized that her front door was gone. Knowing the kind of mischief you and that alien of yours tend to get into, I figured you were fighting for your bleeding lives."
"Mum, thank you for your concern, but we're fine." Rose tried to reassure her mother that everything was fine before she asked too many more questions and realized where the Doctor was.
"Is that so?" Jackie demanded, not persuaded. "Then where is the door? Why is this place a mess? And why do you look all roughed up?"
"Well..." Rose began unsure of how she was going to answer, trying her best not to look down at the Doctor for help and reveal his position.
"We're redecorating," the Doctor said pushing himself up, so he could peek over the couch. His hair looked like he'd stuck a fork in a light socket after all the attention that it had received from Rose, he was still flushed with excitement, and was even a little out of breath. "This place was a fright when I got here - apparently I have you to thank for the fact that there's any furniture at all," he continued as he sat up fully, making no attempt to hide the suggestive position they were in.
"So, you're redecorating, fine, it's about time Rose turned this place into a home." Jackie uncrossed her arms, and placed her hands on her hips, a smirk toying with the corner of her mouth. "That doesn't explain why both of you lot look a mess. Hair stuck up in all directions; covered in blue; and are all flushed and flustered like a couple of teenagers caught snogging on the couch?"
A blush rushed into Rose's cheeks as she hid her face behind her hands and glared at the Doctor. The Doctor seemed un-phased and smiled at Jackie, almost pleased with himself. "Well, the missing door is in the back yard with a fresh coat of blue paint on it and I guess we were having a bit of a break from all the taping and painting."
Unable to handle the Doctor calmly explaining their situation, while she still sat straddling him, Rose somewhat clumsily pushed herself off of him, attempted to straighten herself out, and set about ushering her mother out the door. "Mum, thank you for checking in on us, but really we're fine. And as you can see we still have a lot of work to do, so we better get back to it. We'll have you, Dad, and Tony over next week once we've got everything sorted." Rose walked her out the open doorway with a pleading look, hoping she'd go away before Rose died of embarrassment.
"Well, I suppose," Jackie said giving her a knowing smile. "Besides," she lowered her voice, so only Rose could hear her, "it's about time you and that bleeding alien started doing what I always assumed you were doing in that crazy blue box."
"Mum," Rose scolded her quietly, turning a deeper shade of red. She paused. "You're going to be late to pick up Tony," she said unable to think of anything else to say.
"Quite right and you've got work to do," Jackie winked at Rose, "but, I'd get that front door back up first if I were you." Without another word, she was gone with a wave.
Still blushing furiously, Rose walked back into the living room. "I can't believe that just happened. A grown woman doesn't get caught snogging her boyfriend on the couch, but I just did."
The Doctor, who was not sitting on the back of his couch gave her an understanding smile and opened up his arms. Sighing, Rose walked into the comfort, burying her face in his neck. "And now that she's gone, where were we?" he asked as brushed her hair off her neck and dropped a few kisses there.
Rose couldn't help but moan softly before she snapped out it and stepped away from the Doctor. "No, there will be none of that until we have a front door again - I will not have anyone else drop by unexpected - and in order to do that we need to paint the living room."
The Doctor looked like he was about to argue, but then stopped. "You're right we've got to get this house looking like a proper home. But, once we're done...?" he trailed off waggling his eyebrows at her suggestively.
Rose reached out her hands out to him and pulled the Doctor off the couch, slipping into his arms. "I suppose once we get our little home put together, some more of this might be in order." With that she pulled him down to and kissed him deeply. "But, until then," she said breaking the kiss abruptly, "back to work."
She pushed him toward the paint supplies with a little smack on the bum and a smirk before returning to her own task. With one final adoring look at the Doctor and their little home in progress, Rose couldn't wait to finish putting together their little house with the Tardis blue door.