No Longer Alone
"I thought about you all the time you know. You were always with me, even after you were gone. Especially after." Rose shifts so that she can see the Doctor's face. They were lying on the roof, looking at the stars and making travel plans whilst their baby TARDIS continues to grow safely in the building hidden behind their house.
"What do you mean?"
"After Canary Wharf. After I lost you. I thought about you all the time."
"Doctor, what brought this on?"
"I don't know. I just wanted, no I need you to know. After I burned up the sun and then the connection was lost before I could tell you how much I love you, I told you about Donna, yeah?"
"What about Donna?" She was trying to follow along but it wasn't easy.
"How she had just appeared in the TARDIS almost immediately after you faded. Well, I'm standing there trying not to cry and suddenly there's this furious bride yelling at me and shouting questions and demanding answers and all I could think was, 'Rose is gone. Rose is gone and I don't remember how to do this without her.'
Rose shifted so that she was even closer to him, she wrapped her arms around him, and held him tightly. "Doctor, it's okay. You don't have to do this."
He looked at her then, "Yes, I do. So, there's this ranting, shouting, angry bride and all I can think is that I didn't get to tell you how much I love you and that I'm never going to get that chance again. So Donna and I have a few mishaps, set-backs, and issues but eventually, she and I do manage to get to her reception. Which looked like quite the party, by the way. I think you would have enjoyed it."
"They had the reception without her? How do you have a reception without the bride?"
The Doctor laughed a little, "Yeah, Donna wondered about that too. Well, more like she yelled about it but same thing. Anyway, she manages to get everyone to shut up and the next thing I know, as a group, they go from yelling questions and demands for answers at her to consoling her and then the music starts and everyone is dancing."
Rose, now more confused then ever was about to ask what any of this had to do with anything but he continued, in a quiet, broken, voice before she could the words out.
"Everyone was dancing. There was this couple. The woman, she didn't even look like you, not really, but she had blonde hair and that's what caught my attention. Anyway, she's dancing with her partner some bloke and all I could see was you. I was by the bar, watching this couple, trying my damnedest not to cry, and all I could think about was every time I ever got to hold you."
He took a breath to steady himself, "And how many times I didn't hold you. How many times I ran from you or pushed you away. How many times I let my fear get the best of me."
She brushes the tears from her eyes and she brushes away his tears too, "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry that I put you through all that."
The Doctor reached over and kissed her firmly, "No. Don't apologize to me. At the time, I wasn't sure I'd survive the pain and numbness but I did. And you, you brave and brilliant woman, found a way to do the impossible. Not only did you find a way to cross universes but you somehow managed to allow yourself to love a broken Time Lord."
"You're not broken. And I do love you."
"I love you too. And I don't ever want you to doubt that again."
"I won't. I never really did. I knew you were scared and you had good reason to be, if I'm being honest, but it all worked out and we're here, we're together. We're happy. Aren't we?"
"Oh yes."
"So, what brought this on?"
He shrugged, "We were talking about travelling and making plans and suddenly I was in one universe and you were in another. I don't really know."
"That's never going to happen again. No matter what. You know that right? I mean that's why I stole the dimension cannon from Torchwood so that we could keep it safe on our TARDIS but also so that if anything like Canary Wharf ever did happen again, because I'm still scared too, we would already have a way to get back to each other."
"Rose Tyler, you are brilliant. You know that?"
"You could tell me again."
He laughed out loud at that, "I'll tell you everyday. Right after I tell you how much I love you. How's that?"
She pressed a quick kiss on his lips before laying back down, "That sounds absolutely perfect. Now, where did you say you were taking me for our anniversary?"