Hey guys! Oh my gods! Three new stories and an update in two days. I'm on FIIIIRRRRRREEEE! (Not literally. That would be dangerous.)
Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who.
I.
The music at Rory and Amy's wedding reception was loud and compelling, the colorful lights flashing. He knew he should dance (even though he knew he couldn't), for Amy. She had surprised him, yet again, with her ability to completely shatter the laws of the universe, and he felt her owed her for bringing him back. He danced, though his heart wasn't in it at all. Amy and Rory needed to see that he was happy, so bust out with some ridiculous moves. He even taught them to some kids. Because, of course, it was their wedding and they deserved to not worry about him.
II.
They were sometime in the 1950s, Earth, he and Kazran and Abigail. The Doctor saw Abigail disappear a while back, but didn't think anything of it. He planned to do a duet with Frank Sinatra, something he hadn't done in quite a while, so he sent Kazran after her. When they didn't come back, the Doctor knew why. Even if he looked young, he'd been alive about a thousand years and had definitely noticed the looks they had exchanged on the TARDIS.
Not wanting to perform without an appreciative audience (this regeneration was nothing if not a show-off), he resigned himself to sitting in a chair near the corner of the room. Soon, though, a blonde woman approached him. It was Marilyn Monroe, the iconic American singer/actress.
In the beat of the music, she brought him to the dance floor. He danced with her reluctantly, and his thoughts kept straying to the blonde woman he wished she would turn into, the only one he really wanted to dance with. What was the point in dancing, anyway, if your partner wasn't Rose Tyler?
III.
The Doctor did end up visiting Barcelona (the planet, not the city), just not with his Rose.
Nothing was as fun as he imagined.
Yes, it was interesting to see dogs with no noses. But Rose's face would have been hilarious.
Yes, the all-day, all-night party once a year on the Barcelonian approximation of the human Boxing Day was kind of fun.
But Rose would have laughed her beautiful laugh at his comical dance moves. How he wished she was here to laugh now.
The Doctor danced with some Barcelonians (they had two noses, maybe because their dogs had none to speak of and the owners had to compensate), who were much better than he was. No one even came close to comparing to his Rose.
Maybe one day he'd dance with her again. Someday. When both universes decided to collapse again.
And despite the fact that that could mean imminent death for many, the Doctor started to grin. He would take her to this very planet with him and they would explore and he could erase this visit from his memory and replace it with that one. Maybe he'd introduce her to Amy and Rory, and she and the fiery redhead could trade stories about his mishaps and quirks. (For some reason, whenever his companions met that's the first thing they discuss. He'd never admit it aloud, but he loved it when they did that.) He might even introduce her to River Song, and she'd be the only person he'd tell about how he saw her die in that library. He would teach her to write in Circular Gallifreyan and how to listen for the TARDIS's voice. They'd fly through the stars, the Doctor and Rose, in the TARDIS, as it should be.
But until then, he'd just fake a smile and keep going.
IV.
He was much older now, with wrinkles and grays and everything. The people of Christmas depended on him to save them all the time, and he oddly liked staying in one place. He was needed, and maybe that was enough.
The Doctor knew he only had a little longer. He was going to really die this time.
Above all, he wished he had found her again.
He had pictured their reunion a million and one times. She would see him first. Then she would come up behind him and pretend to be lost and asking for directions.
"Do you know the way to Harrods?" Rose would smile brilliantly at him and his hearts would stop at the sight of her.
"Um—I, uh," he would stutter, and she would smile even brighter (if that was even possible).
"Do I know you?" his Rose would ask tentatively, but teasingly. A mischievous glint would glow in her eyes, and he would melt.
"I should think so," he would smirk and her eyes would widen.
"Er…" Then it would be her turn to be tongue-tied. And then he would know exactly what to say.
"If it's my last chance to say it, Rose Tyler," he would start, and watch the tears well up in her eyes. "I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you, and I will never, ever stop loving you."
She would wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him, sweetly, and then with more fire, because she was Rose Tyler and he was the Doctor and they'd been waiting for this for so long. Then they would fly away in his beautiful box and see the stars once again.
The Doctor had always liked the children best. They were so full of life, just like he was. He even taught them how to dance. His favorite move was called the "drunk giraffe" (he liked the looks on the kids' faces when he mentioned adult-like things), and they did it all the events. He saved the town again and again from alien attacks, but he also saved them from going crazy with anxiety. He helped them "get loose" with his frivolous attitude and dance. He danced for them, and for everyone.