She was the kind of girl who put on a mask. That's the kind of girl Rose Tyler was. In all her travels with the Doctor, she was always the one to ask the right questions and act tough. But she never went out without that thick layer of makeup. Because, deep down, Rose Tyler wasn't all brave-face and courage. She was your typical, insecure young woman and that scared her to death.

Rose Tyler stood in front of the mirror in the fuchsia-walled TARDIS bathroom (painted specifically for her), fingering the tube of Ultra-Length, Ultra-Thickness mascara. She studied her eyeliner for a moment, then picked up the pencil again to retouch it. Finally, after too many minutes and too many applications, Rose applied the final layer of mascara and zipped up her makeup bag. When she looked up, she saw the Doctor looking at her in the mirror. Underneath his mussed (not-ginger) hair, his eyes were sad when they met hers.

"What?" she asked, turning to face him and leaning against the sink.

"Nothing," he said. He pushed himself off the door frame where he was leaning and put on a cheerful smile. But Rose could still see the sadness.

"No really, what's the matter?" The Doctor sighed and reached out to touch her face, brushing the skin right under her eyes.

"You never come out without this," he said, motioning to her makeup bag. "Nearly a year and I've never seen you without makeup." Rose blushed under her layer of foundation.

"Well I have to keep up my looks for you, don't I?" she asked, trying to hide her chagrin.

"No, no, no, Rose, that's the thing! Don't you see?" The Doctor grabbed her hand and spun her around to face the mirror again. "You don't need all this to be beautiful. You don't need to hide! Just be you!"

The Doctor reached for a facial pad and turned her toward him, wiping away the layers of makeup on Rose's face.

"Doctor don't – please, you don't want to see me without makeup, honest!" She struggled a bit to get out of his grasp, but it was no use. After a couple minutes and five facial wipes, all of Rose's carefully applied mask was gone. The Doctor swept the wipes in to the disposal.

"There," he said and turned her toward the mirror once more.

"Oh, Doctor, no I –" Suddenly Rose stopped. The girl in the mirror was someone she hardly recognized, though she saw her every day. Her eyes were a soft brown with green flecks that you couldn't usually see with all the liner and mascara. A light dusting of freckles adorned her nose, and there was a natural pinkish glow in her cheeks. Rose blinked in surprise. This girl in the mirror wasn't ugly; she wasn't even homely. She was…well, she was rather pretty.

"See?" the Doctor asked gently. "Not so bad, is it?" As Rose stared at her clean reflection, she couldn't stop the little tear that rolled down her cheek. She met the Doctor's eyes in the mirror.

"This is what you see?"

"Every day." Rose turned toward him and he cupped her face. "You need to know how beautiful you are. Then you can be truly brave." He kissed her gently in the fuchsia-walled TARDIS bathroom, and Rose Tyler made herself a promise.

She was going to be the kind of girl who didn't need a mask. That was the kind of girl Rose Tyler vowed to be. The kind to ask the right questions and be tough. The kind who wasn't afraid to go out without makeup. Because deep down, underneath all her brave-face and courage, Rose Tyler wanted had confidence in herself. Because the Doctor had showed her how beautiful she was.