He felt the warmth of her skin, the blood pumping through her veins; no longer an echo or a figment of his imagination but real flesh and blood. And eyes. And hair. A glorious crown of golden curls and a halo of frizzy flyaways which he could not resist. Before his tongue came untied and he could breathe a word to her, he reached out with both hands and ran his fingers through the cascades of corkscrews. His bride was more beautiful than he remembered. He had never looked at her that way before. The Doctor and River had always kept their respective secrets from one another, given their complex timelines, but in these new eyes River could see right through him. The sadness, the trepidation in his eyes revealed him. He remembered her, but it must have been quite some time since he had seen her. He could barely believe that she was there right in front of him. She would not dare to ask him why.

"River," he finally exhaled. He wanted to keep her, right then and there, in that light, in that never wanted to see her go. He couldn't bare it.

"Should I leave you two alone then, " Clara chimed in, reminding them both that she was in fact still in the room. Broken from their reverie, the Doctor and river suddenly realized just how indecently River was dressed in front of their companion.

"No, that's alright, Clara. I, um," River looked back at the Doctor, "I better get going. The Tardis is stable now so you should be fine from here on out."

"No," the Doctor could not stop himself. He took hold of her hand, a rare public display of affection for him. "Please, just stay." He would not let go of her hand. He had never pleaded with her like this before. His eyes eagerly begged, "Travel with me." This was so unlike the man she had married, always reserved, always resistant. This Doctor was desperate for her and could care less if anyone knew it, especially Clara. He saw an opportunity for a second life with his beloved. He would not let this slip away.

River was too young, too naive to see a problem with this. While the older River would refuse this request, this younger River simply smiled and said, "Yes." Remembering Clara, she then turned to her and smiled, "I guess we're on an adventure then! Could be fun. Could be dangerous. Either way it should be exciting."

"You might want to get dressed then," Clara replied quietly.