"Brian's log: day 2135. It's 8:25 pm. I went fishing today, managed to catch a salmon from the river nearby. It's been two months since Amy and Rory left with the Doctor. There's been no news from them since the cubes incident. You'd think they'd get here more often, what with them having a time machine." Brain looked up from the camera at the sound of the TARDIS materialising into the room. He stood up as the box came into his sight, eager to see his son again. The doors opened slowly. The Doctor walked out, but without his usual bounce. It was as if all the excitement had left him, his shoulders drooped and his eyes sad. The smile Brain had when he heard the noise faltered and disappeared. If the Doctor was looking this defeated, there must be something terribly wrong with the world. And Rory hadn't come out to greet him.
"Doctor?" he asked.
"Brian," the Timelord replied quietly, and then paused, looking sadly out the window into the garden.
The silence went on for quite a while, before Brian broke it, "Er, those are tulips Doctor. Where's Rory?"
The Doctor continued to say nothing. Brain became more concerned with every passing second. "Doctor, where is my son?"
The alien looked at Brain finally. There were tears in his eyes and his voice shook. "Brian. I'm sorry." Realisation started to dawn on Brain but he would not believe it until he knew for sure. "What has happened to my child, Doctor? Where is he? Where is my Rory?"
Tears ran down the Doctor's face. "I'm sorry Brain. He's gone. He and Amy, they can't come home anymore."
Brian sank down into his chair and broke down crying. He had always thought that this day might come. He thought he had been prepared. He was wrong.
The Doctor came and sat beside him, placing a hand on Brian's shaking back. They stayed like this for what felt like days to Brian but were only a few hours, the Doctor explaining what had happened to his recent companions. When Brian could cry no more, the Doctor stood up. Brian stood with him, following him over to the doors of the TARDIS.
"Doctor," Brian said, putting his hand on the alien's shoulder, his voice flat. "I want to hate you for taking my child away. I want to rage at you for not saving him. I want to be angry that they couldn't come back and you did. But I can't. You're a good man, Doctor. Just…be careful out there."
The Doctor gave a ghost of a smile. "Thank you. And goodbye."
He gave Brian a quick, sudden hug, then went into his box and closed the door behind him. Brian turned away as it dematerialised, not wanting to think about how it signified Rory and Amy being lost to him forever. There would be plenty of time for that for the rest of his life. He walked back to the camera, which was still running.
"Brian's log: day 1 without Rory. It hurts. End of log." He turned it off and sat at the table, staring unseeing at the wall until morning. It was going to hurt for a very long time.