Disclaimer: Same as always. Also, the name of the store Rose works at is taken from , Rose's biography (since I couldn't remember the name off-hand.)
Author's Note: Yes, this is AU, just in case the prologue didn't give it away. I hope you enjoy! And I want you to know that I have nothing against the Doctor. I love the Doctor. I just wanted to twist the story around a bit because, well, I thought it would be interesting.
Rose Tyler worked in a department store in London called Henrik's.
Every time she walked into the store she had a vague feeling of wrongness. She felt as though she should be doing something…more. She was only nineteen years old, but she felt that she had accomplished precious little in her nineteen years.
Really, she felt she had done nothing in her life.
Sure, by some standards people would say she was lucky. She had a job, after all. Her mother loved her and she had a boyfriend who would meet her after work for dinner. Yes, she had a lot of things, but all of those things were so ordinary.
A few weeks before her twentieth birthday, everything changed.
Rose should have realized something was different when she walked into the department store and did not feel as though she shouldn't be there. Yet nothing was out of the ordinary.
While she was folding clothes she spotted a man wandering about the store.
The man was of average height, with brown hair that stood on end in several places and pale skin. He wore a dark, long trench-coat of sorts, and his eyes wandered sightlessly over the shelves as he walked.
A confused costumer? Rose thought, frowning. She abandoned the stack of clothes and headed over to the man, intercepting his pathway. He stopped, almost surprised to see her, and seemed to shake himself out of some kind of stupor.
"May I help you?" Rose asked, smiling.
The man sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I suppose so. I'm looking for a new suit."
Rose's smile widened. "I can help you, then. If you'll just follow me…" She walked through several sections of the store. The man was quiet, which wasn't unusual. Rose had to wonder whether he was actually looking for a suit, though, since his thoughts had clearly been elsewhere when she had confronted him. Still, she tried to strike up conversation. "Is there a special occasion?"
"Not really," the man admitted. "My old suit was destroyed. I feel terribly under-dressed in just jeans and a t-shirt, and I miss the feeling of looking a bit more…dignified."
Rose was surprised he had actually answered. "So I'm guessing you're not looking for something too formal? More like…a work suit?"
The man gave a sharp nod. "Exactly."
Rose led him to the section in question. The man's gaze swept over the selection and Rose wondered why he seemed so out of place. She could have gone back to folding clothes—certainly, the man seemed to not want company—but something made her stay.
"You have quite the selection," the man observed when it seemed clear that Rose was not leaving.
"We do." Rose found a pinstriped suit that seemed like it would compliment the man very well and pulled it from the rack. "I think this one would look great on you."
The man offered her a strange smile that did nothing for the coldness in his eyes. "No. Perhaps a long time ago. My tastes seem to run a bit…darker…as of late." He eyed a black suit.
"Well, try it on," Rose prompted, trying not to show how the man's answer had shaken her. The way he had spoken—it sounded as though he had been talking about more than the suit. Don't be silly, Rose. Shaking her head, she dismissed the thoughts.
The man disappeared into the changing rooms, leaving Rose to her own devices. She glanced at the pinstriped suit again and sighed. If the black suit doesn't work out, then perhaps this one will do…
The man appeared again, interrupting her musings, black suit on over his t-shirt. Rose noted with a small grin that he was wearing converse shoes, which seemed a bit odd for someone who needed a suit.
"You certainly have an interesting taste in clothes," she remarked. "Although the suit does make you look more…dignified."
The man nodded. "I like it. I think I'll buy it."
"Great." Rose waited for him to go change again, but he didn't move.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to wear this out."
"Oh!" A strange request, but Rose didn't think there was anything wrong with it as long as he paid. "Alright. I think we can manage. Come with me."
Something made Rose feel a bit odd as she led the man towards the nearest register. She almost felt like he was watching her as much as she had been observing him. She glanced back at him and smiled. He didn't return the gesture, instead staring straight ahead and ignoring her.
Frowning, Rose took her place behind the register. She ignored his ignoring her and watched as he paid, in cash, for the suit, took his bag, and left.
Suddenly, Rose found a strange desire within her to make this man stay. Or, rather, since she had already dismissed him, to follow him out of the store.
She found herself calling out to him. "Excuse me, sir!"
He turned, a strange expression on his face. For a moment she thought she saw something like anger in his eyes, but it passed and he was just there, expectant, waiting.
"You…still have a tag."
He looked at his sleeve where the tag was still attached and sighed, ripping it off. "Thank you," he murmured before turning away again.
Rose bit down on her lip and tried not to think about why his leaving made her feel even more anxious than his presence had.
The moment Rose stepped out of Henrik's, she heard someone calling her name.
Turning around, her mind led her to believe for a fleeting moment that it was him, the man from earlier. She could almost imagine his voice calling out to her. But then the illusion passed and she saw her boyfriend Mickey running towards her instead.
Mickey caught her in a strong hug and Rose returned the gesture. "I've come to kidnap you for the night," he breathed in her ear. "Look at what I've got."
Rose backed up enough for Mickey to show her the basket in his hands. She laughed. "Is that…a picnic basket?"
"Of course! I thought we could go to the park and have a nice sit-down and talk. I have a surprise for you."
Rose grinned. She loved it when Mickey surprised her. "Which park?" she asked, unable to keep the excitement from her voice.
"Hyde Park," Mickey answered. "Only the best, you know."
"Hyde Park?" Rose laughed. "That's across town!"
"That's why they installed the Tube," Mickey said with a grin. "So it won't take people like us forever to get to Hyde Park to have a picnic."
"Makes sense," Rose conceded. Mickey took her arm and led her away.
Rose had a very good feeling about this.
The sun was beginning to set and Rose couldn't remember having ever had a better time with Mickey than she was right now. They had finished eating and talking and now sat in silence, just content with the other's presence.
"Rose." Mickey's voice broke the silence. She turned to look at him and saw that his eyes were shining. "I hope you know this, but I love you more than anything."
Rose smiled and drew in a shaky breath. "I love you too, Mickey. I wish this night could last forever."
"Forever," Mickey echoed, shifting a bit, though in the waning light it was hard for Rose to see what he was doing. "I think that might be possible."
"What are you talking about?" Rose managed, her breath suddenly leaving her as her thoughts raced with his words.
Mickey held something in front of her, a small box. With trembling fingers Rose opened it and found herself staring at a ring, upon which glowed a diamond. Tears pricked at her eyes as she looked up at her boyfriend.
"Rose Tyler…" Mickey seemed choked with emotion as well. "Will you spend forever with me?" He let the implications of the words sink in before adding, "Will you marry me?"
Her life was changed with his request, and with her answer.
"Yes!" She threw herself into his arms, half laughing and half crying with happiness. She had started out the day not expecting anything, and it had turned out to be the best day of her life. She hoped fervently that it wasn't a dream. "Yes, yes!"
Mickey smiled, clearly relieved. "I love you," he whispered into her hair.
"I love you too, Mickey."
The moon itself seemed to smile down upon the two lovers.
On the other side of London, one man had never felt so alone.