A/N: My apologies for the wait. I have excuses, but long story short... Life is hard work. Many thanks to my amazing followers, to those of you lovelies who have favourited, and to you wonderfully supportive readers who have taken the time to review. I love you all. *hugs*

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That all goes to the BBC.


~24 and 34~ (Part Two)

It was funny, Rose thought to herself. When she woke up this morning she never thought her day would take the turn it had. She had been looking forward to her meeting with Ianto Jones and his fiancé Jack, since she's received the call two weeks prior. She had only seen Ianto once since moving to Cardiff three months ago and was excited to spend time with her old friend. Little did she realise that the meeting would reunite her with even older friends. To say seeing Donna Noble was surprising would be just about right. To say seeing Ian Noble was like a huge shock to her system would be putting it lightly. She'd tried conducting her meeting in a professional fashion, even more-so than usual, but couldn't stop thinking about the man sitting across from her. Blimey, he was just as handsome as he'd always been. Though, there was a tiredness about him that hadn't been there before. She wondered, not for the first time, what his life had been liked since they'd parted ways. What gave him that weary look deep in his eyes.

She'd tried so hard over the years to forget her last encounter with Ian, but no matter how hard she tried, she never could. His disappointment in her, his cruel words to her, would forever haunt her. Just as her anger and nasty attitude with him would. That argument would always be one of her biggest regrets. She tried not to dwell on it, she couldn't change what happened in the past, and honestly, even if she could change things, she wouldn't. Not if it meant not having her sweet little girl. Her precious Imogen. That was one event she could not, would not, regret. The circumstances surrounding her life at that point were unfortunate, but Rose did her best to rise above them. To create a better life for her daughter. Her daughter. Even after four years it was still a strange thought. She was a mum. There was a little person in the world who existed because of her. Who relied on her. It was humbling and terrifying and every other emotion in between. There was always a sense of pride there when she introduced her daughter to someone and there was nothing different about when she introduced her to Ian and Donna, though there was an accompanying feeling of trepidation. Unless her own mum had been over talkative with Sylvia Noble, Rose was almost positive her old friends had no idea that she had even been pregnant. She could practically feel Ian's curiosity vibrating off him as Rose introduced Imogen to the group.

Though she could see the questions threatening to spill out of him, thankfully, Ian kept them to himself as they sat through dinner. Rose, with years of practice, kept the conversation focused on the others as she learned of Donna's marriage to her now husband, Lee. She smiled as her old babysitter described meeting the quiet man when she was temping at a speech therapy office where Lee was being treated for a severe stutter. She explained how after only a few months of knowing each other they snuck away to the Registrars Office with only Ian knowing their whereabouts, and were married. A few months after that, Donna learned she was pregnant with twins, Josh and Ella, who were now two years old. It pleased Rose to no end to know that Donna had received her much deserved happy ending, but never in her wildest dreams did she ever imagine sitting with her old babysitter exchanging their children's potty training horror stories.

As the evening wore on, Ian stayed suspiciously quiet, only injecting quick comments here and there about whatever subject was being discussed. By the looks Jack and Donna were both shooting him, Rose wasn't the only one who found his behaviour odd. Ian was rarely so silent. It wasn't until they were leaving the restaurant and everyone was saying goodbye, that Rose realised why.

"We are not going seven years without speaking or seeing each other, you here?" Donna commanded as she hugged Rose tightly. She would have liked to have spent more time together, but she was expecting a call from Lee and she wanted to check in with her in-laws and see how the twins were doing before he did.

"'Course not!" Rose agreed, hugging her back. "You've got my number. And if nothing else, we've got Jack and Ianto's wedding to look forward to."

"Will you need a cab?" Ianto asked, knowing she lived close by.

She shook her head. "Nah! We're not far from here. Walking won't hurt us, will it?" She looked down at her little girl who smiled and shook her head.

As Donna's cab pulled up, she looked to her cousin. "Are you coming Ian?"

"Uh, no," he answered carefully. "Think I'll walk Rose and Imogen home. You know, make sure they make it safely and all that." And Rose knew. He was waiting. That's why he had been so quiet through their meal. Clearly he hadn't shared their last encounter with the others and he wanted this one, possibly their last, to be in private. She only hoped he would wait until she got home and got Imogen to bed before he began the interrogation.

Jack smirked. "Right. You do that. Call me tomorrow, okay?" Ian nodded as everyone said their final goodbyes and parted.

"So, which way are we headed?"

"That way." She pointed to the left. "Not that I don't appreciate it or anything, but you really didn't have to walk with us. Im and I are fine. We walk all the time."

"Do you not want me to?" he questioned, sounding incredibly unsure of himself. "I was just hoping maybe we could talk. You know... without the others. I've just... It's been so long, Rose."

Suddenly, Rose wasn't sure it was an interrogation he had planned. She cleared her throat. "I don't mind. I'd like that actually. To catch up, I mean. Just the two of us." She was stopped by a tug on her coat by her yawning daughter.

"Mummy, I'm sleepy," the little girl said, her voice taking on the higher pitch of a tired child.

"She speaks!" Ian proclaimed, a grin splitting his face. All throughout dinner, despite everyone trying to pull her out of her shell, Imogen had stayed stubbornly silent. Rose had apologised profusely for her daughter's shyness. It was a constant struggle for the two of them. Imogen blushed a bright red and buried her face in Rose's leg.

Running her hand through her daughter's messy blonde curls, Rose picked her up and said dryly, "Occasionally."

"Nothing wrong with being shy! Plenty of famous people were shy. Albert Einstein, for instance. Or, OR, Eleanor Roosevelt! She was painfully shy as a child, but grew up to be one of the most well known political figures in the United States. There's also Lucille Ball, she was a pretty shy kid as well. Not to mention one of my all time favourite authors, Agatha Christie. Little known fact, she was an accomplished pianist, but her shyness kept her from pursuing it. Didn't stop her from writing though."

"Well, I don't think she knows who any of those people are, but I appreciate the sentiment."

"Doesn't know...? Doesn't..." he sputtered. "How does she not know Agatha Christie?! What kind of parent are you, Rose Tyler?"

She guffawed. "The kind who doesn't think The Unicorn and The Wasp is an appropriate bedtime story for a four year old!"

"The Unicorn and The Wasp!? That's not even a real story! For shame, Rose Tyler. For shame."

"Oh my god. You are such a geek."

"You love it." He winked, caught up in their banter.

"Yeah," she said softly before stopping in her tracks. "Uh, this is us. Told you we weren't far. Do you... Do you want to come up for some tea?"

Ian gave a visible sigh at the invitation. "I'd love to."

As they walked up the stars leading to her flat, Rose sent a silent prayer of thanks that she'd thought to pick up the place before she left for dinner (the reason she was a few minutes late) so it wasn't too much of a tip. There were the few boxes that had yet to be unpacked since their last move, but there wasn't much that could be helped for that.

"Sorry about that," Rose apologised as she unlocked the front door, nodding to the boxes in question. "This place is a bit smaller than our last and I've yet to find room for everything. There's stuff for tea on the counter if you don't mind starting it. I'm just gonna get this lump down for bed. Shouldn't take long, she's half out of it already."

"Sounds like a plan." He clapped his hands and rubbed them together. "Goodnight, Imogen. Sleep tight."

"Night," the little girl quietly responded, her voice thick with sleep.

He wiggled his eyebrows at Rose. "She speaks again! I think she likes me."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Go make the tea," she ordered, smothering a giggle when he responded with a salut. Falling back into their old ways was proving surprisingly easy. But that's the way things had always been between the two of them. Easy. Up until the end that is. It was then the nerves and butterflies came rushing back. Pushing them aside, Rose focused on on the nightly ritual of getting her daughter ready for bed and tucking her in. It was familiar and comforting and brought her back down to Earth. This is who she was now. She wasn't little Rose Tyler following Ian Noble around on adventures, hanging on his every word. She was a mum. She she had made her choices, some of them poor ones, and she'd survived. As Imogen's eyes fluttered to a close, Rose kissed her daughter's cheek and mentally braced herself as she went back towards the main room.

"Hope you still take your tea the same way," Ian said when he saw her enter. "I probably should have waited to prepare it until I asked."

"It's perfect," she told him, taking a sip from the mug he'd handed her. "I see you still take yours with far too much sugar."

He shrugged. "Why mess with perfection?" Throwing some chocolate biscuits on a plate, Rose lead them towards the sofa, watching as Ian did a lap around the room, staring at the pictures of her daughter hanging artfully on the wall. "You're still painting, I see."

"Just for myself," she responded as Ian trailed one finger along the frame of the one picture on the wall that was actually taken with a camera. It was taken minutes after she'd given birth by the nurse Rose ended up naming her daughter after. "Go ahead," she surprised herself by saying.

He turned around and frowned. "Sorry?"

"You can ask. I know you're dying to."

"Rose..."

"Just ask, Ian," she told him.

Taking a big gulp of his tea, Ian positioned himself on the sofa, close enough to touch if they wanted, but far enough away that they both had their space. "Who's the father?"

"You don't know 'im."

He quirked an eyebrow. "Not Jimmy?"

Rose snorted and took a biscuit off the plate. "No. He was long gone by that point, thank god."

"Did he hurt you?" he asked, reading her like an open book.

"A bit, yeah," she admitted, "but that was a long time ago. I'm over it."

"What happened?"

"Where do you want me to start?"

He thought for a moment before saying, "How about where I showed up at your bedsit three days after our last fight and you were long gone. Where did you go?"

Rose felt like her heart stopped beating. Never in her wildest dreams did she expect him to say that. "You came back? Why?"

"Because I wasn't ready to give up on you."

"But I was awful to you! I said terrible things."

"Well," he drew out, "to be fair, so did I."

She took a deep breath. "We went to Blackpool. Jimmy had a gig lined up there. We were only supposed to be there a week tops, but we ended up staying much longer. Well, I ended up staying much longer."

Ian's eyes narrowed. "He left you there?"

"Yep. Three months after we got there he met some girl at an arcade while I was at work and went with her to Amsterdam. Course, not before he stopped by our flat and took the money I'd been saving up for us."

"Where were you working?"

"A chippy on the Central Pier. That's where I met Rhys, actually. You know, that bloke at the restaurant tonight."

He shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair. He munched on a biscuit for a moment before finally asking, "Why didn't you come home? After he left, you why didn't you come home?"

Rose closed her eyes. This was a question she'd asked herself many times and no matter how often she thought about it, the answer was never clear. "Money, pride, fear, embarrassment. I don't know, Ian. There were so many reasons. Eventually, I left the chippy and got a job at a little boutique. I made some friends, and just went day by day. I'd been there over a year, when this guy came into the boutique where I was working, looking for a birthday present for his mum. He was sweet, and charming, and ridiculously smart. Found out he was originally from London, but now worked for some fancy tech company in America and was just in Blackpool for a few days on business. He ended up staying in the shop until I got off work so he could take me out for meal. We ended up spending an entire weekend together," she finished with a blush.

"Then what happened?" Ian prompted with barely concealed jealousy.

"He eventually went back to work in America, said to call him if I ever found myself in Utah, and that was that. A bit later the owner of the boutique told me she was opening a second location in Belfast and asked if I'd be willing to go and be the assistant manager. I jumped at the chance to leave Blackpool."

Ian took a deep breath. "Belfast? That's where you've been living up until you moved here, right? I thought I detected something a bit different in Imogen's accent."

Rose left out a small laugh. "Yeah. I'm curious to see how she'll sound after living in Cardiff for awhile."

"So, you moved to Belfast. That's where you met Ianto, I'm guessing."

"Yep. He was the manager for the boutique." She groaned as she thought back to her first meeting with her now friend. "Let's just say we didn't exactly hit it off right away though."

A small smile played at his lips. "Why?"

"Well, he introduced himself, nice and polite, and right as I opened my mouth to do the same I vomited all over his fancy loafers. Let's just say that was the day morning sickness hit with vengeance. And that's when I figured out I was pregnant."

He nodded. "The bloke from Blackpool?"

She snorted. "Sounds like a cheap paperback, but yeah. The bloke from Blackpool. To say I was terrified would be an understatement. I had no idea what to do... I was... I felt so alone."

"Rose-"

"I still had the number he'd given me, so I gave him a call and shared the news. He didn't take it well."

"What did he say?" Ian bit out.

She turned away, unable to look at her old friend as she shared the next part of her story. Staring out the window, she wondered when it had started raining. "He accused me of lying. Said, if a stupid chav like me would sleep with him after only knowing him a few days, who's to say I don't do that with every man I meet. Said I only picked him to be the dad since he's probably the best I ever had," she rolled her eyes, "and the told me I wouldn't get a thing out of him. I, uh, I offered to get a blood test to help convince him he was the father, but he had some less than kind words for me when it came to that. Told me I was best off getting rid of... it." Steeling herself, she snuck a peek at Ian and found him clenching and unclenching his fists as he stared at a painting she'd done of Imogen as a baby.

"His name," he said suddenly.

"Sorry?"

Ian snapped his head towards her. "You never said his name. What is his name?"

"Adam."

"Adam what?"

She shook her head. "I'm not telling you that. You're going to stay out of it, Ian. He doesn't matter. Honestly, after I heard him say that I realised how lucky I was that he wasn't going to be in mine or my child's life."

He practically growled. "But, Rose, he-"

"No buts, Ian. He is nothing to me or my daughter. Look at me. I'm okay. Yes, it was difficult at the time, but I made it through that time. I have a beautiful little girl who I love more than anything in this universe. She is the very best of humanity and I will not let even the thought of her biological father taint that," she finished passionately.

That was when Ian looked at her, really looked at her. Eyes shining with an emotion Rose couldn't quite place. "Rose Tyler," he whispered. "You've grown up."

"Yeah," she whispered as well. "Having a kid does that to you." When she felt Ian's hand move to rest of hers, she lost any semblance of control. "Oh god, Ian, I missed you so much and I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I was such a horrible cow to you. I said the most awful things and I didn't mean them, I was just confused and upset and I'm so sorry," she sobbed.

"Hey, hey, hey," he said, pulling her into his arms. "Listen to me, Rose Tyler. You were never a 'horrible cow.' You were young. And I said things too, things I shouldn't have. But that was years ago. I forgive you, Rose. Do you forgive me?"

"There's nothing to forgive," Rose told him vehemently.

He smirked. "Humour me, sweetheart."

"I forgive you."

"Thank you."

"I mean it though. I've missed you so much. You have no idea how many times I've almost called you..."

He brushed an errant chunk of hair behind her ear. "I'm here now. So, let's dry those tears, yeah? You never finished telling me what happened with Ianto after you tossed your biscuits all over his shoes."

Rose threw her head back and laughed loudly before remembering her sleeping daughter in the next room. "Oh gosh. Poor man. After he found out I was pregnant and not hungover like he'd originally assumed, he forgave me. Told me I wasn't allowed to let it affect my work though and to expect no special treatment from him just because I was 'with child.'"

Ian's eyes grew wide. "He said that? Mister Polite himself, Ianto Jones?"

"It was all for show. He ended up making me a cup of chamomile tea every day and even went with me to a few of my doctor's appointments."

"Now that sounds more like Ianto. Now tell me, where did you get the name Imogen?"

She grinned and nodded to the framed photo on the wall. "It was the name of the nurse who took that picture of me and Im right after I'd given birth. She was a gem throughout my labour and felt bad that I was alone and no one was there to document anything, so she snapped that picture of me with her mobile and had it printed before I was discharged."

"You were alone? But what about your mum? Haven't you been in contact with her at all?"

Rose took a deep breath. "Things with my mum have been... complicated. I called her after I found out about Im. Thought it was time to swallow my pride, you know? And it was great at first. I apologised, we cried, we laughed, we were doing okay. Until I shared my news with her. She flipped out. Called me irresponsible and insisted I needed to come home so she could help raise the baby. Said I had no idea what I was getting myself into and I obviously needed her help. We had a huge fight. It hurt that she didn't think I could do it on my own and I was determined to prove her wrong."

"So, you and your mum...?"

"We've spoke a few times, I've sent her some pictures of Imogen, but things are strained. I hate it, I just don't know how to fix it."

"Come home," he said suddenly.

She furrowed her brow. "Sorry?"

He squeezed the hand he was still holding. "Come home to London, Rose."

Rose closed her eyes. Of course it had crossed her mind. Of course it had. But she couldn't just up and leave. She'd used up a good portion of her savings getting her and Imogen to Cardiff. But how could she possibly explain that to Ian? Money had never been an issue for him before and she wasn't sure how she could possibly explain it to him. Besides, what would she do with her painfully shy daughter in London? It was bad enough when the neighbour woman who had been keeping an eye on the four year old today called and said Imogen had locked herself in the closet and refused to come out. "I can't just leave, Ian. It's not that simple. I'm setting up a life here as a photographer, I'm finally getting some clients-"

"You can be a photographer in London!" he argued.

"Yeah, cause London is in short supply of photographers," she said, dripping in sarcasm. "It's taken me a long time to set myself up in this profession. After the boutique in Belfast closed, I didn't know what to do. I got a job as a waitress using every bit of my tips making sure that I could provide for my baby. It wasn't until I saw an ad for a free photography class at the local community center that things started to look up. It's been hard, but coming to Cardiff was a strategic move on my part. There's nothing for me in London."

Ian leaned in towards her. "I'm there."

She bit her bottom lip. "Ian..."

"Come home, Rose."

"I can't."

He leaned closer. "I missed you so much, Rose. You're my best friend."

"Still?"

"Always have been. Always will be. Come home."

She reluctantly shook her head, trying hard not to focus on how close Ian was to her now. Just a breath away. "I can't," she repeated, though she was well aware how unsure she sounded. She wasn't sure what was happening. This was Ian and if she just moved a little closer her lips would be on his. She still loved him, had never stopped, but it never occurred to her that there would be a time where he might reciprocate her feelings. Is that what this was though? She had no idea, but she so wanted to find out. "Ian?"

His lips brushed hers. "Rose..."

She'd just started to return the pressure when a loud crack of thunder shook the flat before a high pitch scream tore them apart. Rose jumped off the sofa as her little girl ran full pelt out of the bedroom. "Shhh. It's alright, baby. Mummy's here," she cooed, scooping her daughter into her arms. Looking over her shoulder at Ian, she saw him taking deep calming breaths. She was nervous about how he would act after their barely there kiss, but he merely smiled at her as he rose to his feet and joined her and Imogen.

"My but those are some big tears," he commented, running his hand through her daughter's tangly curls. "Did that thunder frighten you ?" She she answered with a small nod and he grinned. "Oh, good. I thought I was the only one!"

Imogen's head popped up, looking thoroughly confused. "You were scared?" she asked quietly.

"Oh yes!" Ian answered enthusiastically. "But do you know what helps me not be scared?"

"What?"

"When I think about what thunder really is. Do you know what it really is?" She shook her head no. "Time for a science lesson then," he said just as another peal of thunder echoed through the room. Rose barely held back her shock as Imogen practically flew out of her arms and into Ian's. "Well, hello there. Come sit with me and I'll tell you all about thunder and what makes it so noisy."

Rose watched in wonder, unable to tear her eyes away, as Ian snuggled with her daughter on the sofa and explained the science behind thunder. He didn't sugar coat things for her, there were no silly stories of angles bowling or vampires playing baseball, he just, in the simplest of forms, explained what thunder really was. And Imogen was mesmerized. Rose briefly wondered if the look of awe that was gracing her daughter's face was the same that she'd worn when she was child around Ian.

"Mummy," her daughter said, pulling Rose out of her thoughts. She moved beak to the sofa and grinned as the little girl crawled off Ian's lap and into hers. "Did you know that the thunder is actually the sound of lightning?"

Her eyes widened in mock, but sincere, interest. "Really? That's amazing. Not so scary then?" As if on cue, more thunder hit.

"I still don't like it," she admitted, burrowing closer into Rose.

Ian nodded sympathetically and handed the little girl a chocolate biscuit. "Neither do I, but at least when we think about it in scientific terms it's not so scary. Right?" Imogen looked like she didn't understand half of what he just said, but she happily took a bite of her treat and gave a nod. "You know, the Native Americans have some fascinating legends about thunder. Would you like to hear them?"

Imogen looked to Rose for approval. She could say no. It was late, way past the child's bedtime, and the responsible thing to do would be to put her to bed and say goodnight to Ian. And forget that kissed ever happened. But she wasn't ready to let Ian go. Not yet. "Well, if we're going to be telling stories, we better get comfortable. Let me go grab some blankets and pillows!"

"Yay!" her daughter cheered.

There was something about Ian's voice that she'd always found intriguing. He could have been a professional storyteller. Was that even a real thing? If it was, Ian should be one. It was comforting, lying there listening to Ian tell stories of far aways places and the legends that come with them. It was familiar. How many times had they done this in years past? Memories of stargazing in the Noble's backyard filled her mind. So many nights they would spend out there as Wilf and and Ian took turns sharing stories of the stars. It was the best of times. Something she'd secretly hoped she could recreate with her daughter someday. If they couldn't have that, at least they could have this. Or maybe it was a dream, she thought as she cuddled closer to her daughter, unwilling to open her eyes and wake up just yet. So many mornings she'd opened her eyes only to realise the the reunion she thought had taken place was merely a figment of her time spent with morpheus. She wasn't willing to let go of this one yet. Not when she still had that kiss to think about, brief as it may have been. She'd dreamed of similar moments before, but no matter how heated her dreams may have been, never had a kiss felt so... intimate.

A shuffling sound finally brought Rose out of her dozy haze. Opening her, eyes, she was met with the sight of her daughter, curled into her side and wrapped in the quilt off their bed. Looking around for the source of the noise that woke her, she was met with the sight of Ian, yet again, staring at the paintings on the wall.

Not a dream then.

"You stayed," she said, just loud enough for him to hear.

Ian turned and rubbed a hand over his stubbled jaw before giving her a soft grin. "Of course I stayed."


Please review! xoxo