(TWO)

Sometimes traveling with the Doctor is the most, to put it in the simplest way the TARDIS will translate, gorgeous feeling in the world. Other times, like this time, it gives you the feel when you're falling asleep while reading, and all the words start to blur and mesh together into splotchy black lines. And as much as you try to regain your focus, you can feel yourself slip in and out of your state of consciousness and suddenly you're reading about accidentally pricking your finger with a needle when the last thing you remember was reading about the morning song of a blue bird. And then it's all gone as you've fallen asleep, only to wake up the next morning completely dazed and out of sorts.

There were no singing blue birds in the sky today. Instead there were reapers, the most terrifying creators Rose Tyler had yet to face. Other than the Doctor, as they had their first ever row. Oh blimey, that bloody stupid row..

"November the 7th?"

"1987."

For the short while that Rose had been traveling with the Doctor, she had never experienced his TARDIS make a softer landing than that day. That should've been her first clue to how hard the day would slap her upside the head.

"I'm just worried about you."

At the time -such a funny thing, that. Time.- Rose was touched by the Doctor's concern, but as always, figured she could handle herself. The Doctor had expressed his concerns and care for his companion almost often, though he would rarely ever openly admit to worrying aloud. But Rose hadn't thought too hard about that then, as all she was thinking about was the father she hardly ever knew.

"For once you're not the most important man in my life."

The walk back to the TARDIS, hand in hand with the Doctor, was merely just a blur in Rose's mind. As was his moving of the TARDIS into the vortex, and the walk to her room, the Doctor letting go of her hand as he went into her en suite to draw her a bath, and his departure from her room, closing her door as he left her alone. After a few blinks of her eyes and a sharp intake of breath, Rose shook her head to clear her mind enough to strip down, tossing her clothes carelessly as she walked to the lemon scented bubble bath.

Rose Marion Tyler was never one to cry much. Or sob. Nonetheless, she took in a shaky breath, holding it in for a moment, before letting it out with a soft but high pitched whine and let a tear or two run down her cheek.

"Let's see how you get on without me, then."

She drew her legs up close to her chest and rested her forehead against her knees, locking her arms under her thighs to close herself in as much and as tightly as possible. From this position, the water hit just at the top swells of her breasts while the white bubbles of the tub nearly reached her collarbones which was very lucky for her considering the Doctor soon walked in. Or at least Rose thought it was soon, but in fact, Rose had been in the tub for approximately 39 minutes, or so the Doctor had guessed, assuming his companion had gotten in within the first 5 minutes of his leaving her room. Knowing Rose usually took her time whenever she bathed, the Doctor would have let her clean and relax for as long as she needed, but today he was too overcome with worry and was unable to stop his feet as they quickly made their way to Rose's room.

"You'll get a stiff neck sittin' like that for too long."

Rose jumped a little as the Doctor announced his presence and sniffed before responding, turning to put her cheek on her knee, faced away from him.

"Didn't hear you come in. Everythin' alright?"

"You tell me." The Doctor's voice came out soft, causing Rose to bite her lip and squeeze her eyes closed tighter to stop any tears from flowing.
The Doctor shifted his weight back and forth on each leg, waiting 23 seconds for Rose to respond, then hesitated for a few seconds longer before kneeling down beside the tub.

"Alright, sit up and I'll wash your hair, but don't expect me to do it ever again. This is a one time offer, Rose Tyler."

"Doctor, I'm naked."

"No you aren't." He said as he pulled back a strap of her bra and and lightly snapped it back against her shoulder.

Furrowing her brows, Rose slowly pulled back and looked down at her wet brown bra. The water and bubbles were still high, still covering her up to the top of the swells of her breasts. Running her hands up her thighs under the water, she found she still had her knickers on as well.

"What'd you do that for, anyways?"

"Must'a been too tired to notice. Sorry."

"You've got nothin' to be sorry for, Rose."

"Just… Tell me you're sorry."

"I am. I'm sorry."

"Yeah." Rose croaked out, curling her body back up in it's former position, putting her cheek back on her knee, once again facing away from him.

"Rose."

She took in another breath through her nose, pushing it out through her lips before turning her head, resting her opposite cheek on her knee, facing the Doctor but keeping her eyes trained on anything but him.

"C'mon, sit up. I won't look anywhere but your hair, I promise."

"Why?" She asked, but got no response.

She closed her eyes, hesitating for a moment before complying, straightening her back and pulling her knees more into her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs protectively. She opened her eyes to see the Doctor take off his leather jacket and roll the sleeves of his jumper up to his elbows. The Doctor cupped his hands together and put them under the bubbles and Rose closed her eyes as the Doctor poured a few handfuls of water slowly on her head. She had to admit, it felt nice to have the Doctor massaging the shampoo and conditioner into her hair. But both travelers kept quiet the whole time- Rose afraid if she spoke she'd either never stop or cry, or both; and the Doctor half unsure what to say, and half unsure if he even should say anything. Rose kept her eyes closed the whole time. She wasn't sure if she might've cried a few times or if it was just the water the Doctor poured on her head, but either way she felt like she might have at least once or twice.
Once Rose's hair was thoroughly washed, she decided to lay back, reclining against the tub and stretching her legs out straight; stiff from their previous bent position, and rest her head against the rim of the tub. She sank lower under the bubbles so that she was only visible from the neck up. Luckily for her, the bubbles, from some market planet she couldn't remember the name of, were meant to stay perfectly stable, not popping or disappearing until its anti-bubble solution was added. Still, she kept her eyes closed but became more relaxed as the Doctor started to slowly run his fingers through her damp her.
To put it simply; Rose felt like shit. She mucked up big time today. Nearly lost the Doctor.. again. But this time she was so sure of it. And it would've been all her fault.

"I did it again. I picked another stupid ape."

I am just another stupid ape.

"No, you're not, Rose." Either she was hearing the Doctor's voice in her head, or she said that "stupid ape" bit aloud.

"Didn't mean to say that out loud."

"Thought not."

More silence. And Rose continued to keep her eyes shut.

"Right, then. Up you get, Rose Tyler. Time to dry off." The Doctor got up, grabbed a towel from the towel rack, and held it out in his extended arm towards Rose, not looking at her, as he promised earlier that he wouldn't.
With a sniff and a loud clearing of her throat, Rose finally opened her eyes and reached for the towel as she got up. Giving a quiet thanks, she took the towel from the Doctor and wrapped it around herself.

"I'll be about the TARDIS if you need me." And with that, the Doctor grabbed his jacket and left, quietly closing the door to Rose's bedroom as he left her to drain the bath.

She wrapped the towel around her head and hair and removed her soaked bra and knickers, dropping them to the floor without a care. Then she took the towel off of her head, using it to wildly rub her hair from a few seconds before tossing it on top of her wet undergarments.

"When we met, I said, 'Travel with me in space.' You said no. Then I said, 'Time machine.'"

"It wasn't some big plan. I just saw it happening and I thought, 'I can stop it.'"

Rose ran a hand down her face, pausing to cover her mouth as she attempted to muffle yet another sob as tears started to fall. Without hesitation or second thought, she quickly got into bed before her mind could even process that her body had moved. She pulled the duvet up over her head, curled her body inwards in a ball-like formation and turned her head into her pillow as she continued to sob, now shaking almost violently.
She wasn't sure how long she had been asleep for. In fact, she didn't even know that she fell asleep, but apparently she did. At least she thinks she did. She feels-

Well..

Opening her eyes, she let her eyes roam around her room as she waited for the sleepy blurriness to fade away. Once her eyesight finally came clear, she noticed a deep blue door in the corner of her room. She had seen that door before a fair number of times and knew it was the door to the Doctor's bedroom. But why would it possibly be in her room? How could it possibly be in her room? Rose decided to get up and check it out, but as she reached the door, she came to realize that she was completely naked. Under any other circumstance, or maybe if she was feeling different, or, well, maybe if she was actually feeling anything, she might have blushed. But she did not. And so, with a sigh and rub of her eyes, she turned towards her dressers to find some undergarments and her warm, pink dressing gown, tying it securely at the waist.

"I'm not stupid."

"You could've fooled me."

She thought that maybe she should knock. Raising her right arm, she made a loose fist but hesitated, keeping said fist suspended in mid-air, only a few feet from the door. Swallowing hard, she nodded her head, telling herself that she's fine and she began to extend her arm to knock, until the door opened on its own before she could touch it.

"Rose! What's your door doin' in my room?"

"What's yours doin' in mine?"

The Doctor frowned, knitting his brows, "Dunno, must've been the TARDIS." He paused for a second, his face softening as he looked at Rose's eyes, seeing they were focused on the floor. "That alright?"
"Yeah, yeah s'fine."

"And yourself?"

"M'fine."

Stepping into Rose's room, he pulled her tightly into his embrace, wrapping his arms around her and resting his hands near her ribcage. "No, you're not." He cooed softly into her hair.

She rested her face against his chest, her cheek pressed between his two hearts. Closing her eyes yet again, she listened to his steady dual heartbeats, taking in even but quiet breaths through her nose. She slowly moved her arms under the Doctor's leather coat and let her arms hang loosely around his waist.

"No, m'not," She eventually whispered back.

The Doctor moved one arm down, resting his hand on the curve above her hip and pulled her into an even tighter hug, and used his other hand to gently craddle her neck, threading his fingers in her hair. He placed a kiss on top of her hair before laying his cheek on her head, and began to slowly sway them back and forth.
They stayed like this, wrapped up in each other's arms, swaying from side to side, for 14 minutes and 6 seconds before the Doctor pulled away and grabbed Rose's hand. He pulled her along into his room, and out through another door. Silently, Rose went with him. They walked hand in hand for a minute before the Doctor finally stopped, encouraging Rose to move ahead of him. Still keeping their companionable silence, the Doctor put one hand over Rose's eyes, and placed his other on her hip. She stood there, too sad to argue or stop him.

"Can't do anything right, can I?"

"Since you asked — no."

Rose heard the opening of a door, and felt the Doctor push her along. Willingly, although it didn't seem she had much of a choice anyways, she complied. The Doctor lead her along until he nudged at her hip, tried to imply that she sit down, and so she did. The Doctor sat down with her, resting on her side. She could tell he was on her side because she felt their sides press together and he moved the arm on her waist closer to her belly, pulling her close into his own side. With the hand over her eyes, he gently inclined her head to rest on his shoulder and he finally removed his hand, bringing it to rest in his lap. As Rose slowly opened her eyes, the Doctor extended his legs out and rested them over the side of the cliff- CLIFF?

"Alright, calm down. You're not gonna fall, I promise. Not as long as you stop shaking, Rose."

Extending the arm that was starting to become crushed between their two bodies, Rose reached out and grabbed the Doctor's hand from his lap, gripping it firmly, trying to will the rest the rest of her body to calm. The Doctor rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb, and Rose sighed as she relaxed into the Doctor's side.

"The TARDIS makes new rooms sometimes when she's bored-"

"She gets bored?"

"Course she gets bored. What with half her companions spending most of their time onboard sleeping and the other half only using about 5 rooms during the other half's sleeping time, she's got to entertain someone."

"So she just does it to entertain herself?"

"Yup!"

Unsure of what to say next, Rose looked around, taking in the view of the new room instead. They were sitting on a small cliff, encircling the door by only a few feet. Below, was a deep canyon that housed fields of different colored flowers, kinds too far away and probably too alien to her knowledge to make out herself, that seemed to stretch on for miles. Rose knew the TARDIS housed many garden rooms, even several greenhouses, but this was something completely different, as it didn't seem there was any way to get down. She figured the room's sole purpose much be to see, not touch, as some other rooms were.
The flowers were different assortments of colors, all no lighter, darker, or brighter than pastel shades. The sky matched, fitted with a pastel sunset, the sun being a soft glowing white, almost like that of Earth's moon. The canyon itself was colored like a conte crayon. A rusty red.

"I know how sad you are, you'll be back in a minute. Or you'll hang around outside the TARDIS, waiting for me. And I'll make you wait a long time."

"S'beautiful." Rose said quietly as she looked down at the flowers.

"Yeah." The Doctor said quietly as he looked down at his flo- Rose.

They sat in silence, letting the minutes roll peacefully on by.

"Alright. I'm sorry. I wasn't really going to leave you on your own."

"Y'know, I was never gonna leave you, Rose." The Doctor said, as if he could tell Rose was going over the memory of their row.

"I know."

"I don't think I could ever just leave you."

Rose lifted her head off the Doctor's shoulder and looked up at him.

"And I'm never gonna leave you, Doctor."

The Doctor stared at his companion for a moment, turning over her words in his head, then gave her a wide smile.

"Good! Otherwise I'd have to find someone else to make my banana bread. And I doubt anyone could make banana bread better than you. Other than myself, a'course."

Rose let out a laugh for the first time in what was probably hours. In response, the Doctor gave her a soft smile and reached into his coat pocket, pulling out a small box-looking device, pressing a small bottom on top as he pointed it in Rose's direction.

"And what's that, then?" Rose asked, eying the box with furrowed brows.

"73rd century camera."

"Pretty small for a camera. Whatcha got it out for anyways?"

"First time you've smiled in hours. Best to save moments like that."

"And why's that?"

"I'm a Time Lord. My whole point of existence is to make as many moments special and important as I can. And this moment, Rose Tyler, is both very special and very important, and I don't want you forgetting it."

Rose nuzzled her forehead into the crook of the Doctor's neck, whispering out a soft, 'thank you,' before turning her head and looking out towards the canyon once more. The Doctor grabbed her hand and squeezed gently as he used the arm still wrapped around her waist to pull her in even closer.

"Your wish is my command."

The next time Rose stumbles upon this room, she'll find a copy of the picture the Doctor took, lying in a gold plated frame in the middle of the cliff. Another copy will sit in the Doctor's pocket, day after day.