The Doctor is running through the street, jumping over the debris left from the Daleks and the Cybermen. He's still crying from his goodbye with Rose, but doesn't notice the tears on his cheeks. All he can think of is the message he got on the psychic paper, the message he got during the fight but was too busy to notice.
"Doctor, do something!"
He knows that the only way she could have sent him that message is if she was so terrified that she willed the message to go through, just from her fear. He hates himself for not checking the message when he got it, for thinking it couldn't possibly be more important than saving the world. But it is.
"Please, don't be dead." He breathes through his teeth, running up to her building. "I can't live with that, not today."
He runs down the hall, seeing the signs of Cybermen. He clings to hope, until he sees her door. Seeing it splintered and broken down, his last scrap of hope quickly fades. His breath catches, a sob building up in his throat. He carefully steps over the broken wood, looking into the room with teary eyes. He can see where the Cyberman stepped, and follows the path of destruction. Then he sees her body. Huddled in a corner, where it had been trapped by the Cyberman.
"No!" He screams, running to her body.
He wraps his arms around her body, cradling it in his lap. As his tears fall onto her face, she looks up at him.
"Doctor?" I mutter, hardly believing my eyes. There are tears rolling down his cheeks, his eyes red and puffy. "It is you!" I grab hold of him, feeling him fall under my body.
"I thought you were dead." He sobs, holding me close to him. I couldn't believe he was crying like this, it seemed so unlike him. "I- I thought I had lost you." He chokes on his words, his voice cracking.
"Hey, it's okay." I stroke his hair, shocked by how shaken he is. "Shh, it's okay. I'm okay." I gently rock back and forth, doing my best to comfort him.
Once he's composed himself, he touches my cheek. "I'm so sorry, I didn't see your message until it was too late."
"What message?" He holds up his psychic paper. "Oh… I didn't know that went through."
"I saw your door…" His head swivels to the broken wood, quickly looking back to me again. "I thought the worst." He strokes my cheek softly, pulling my body a little closer to his.
"Bad day?" I ask, wiping the tears from his face.
He inhales, his breath shuddering as he does. "Rose is gone."
I look at him closely. "What?"
"Um, there's this parallel world, and she's there." He hesitates.
"I don't understand…" I rub his back as I speak, seeing how upset he is. "What happened, Doctor?"
He draws in another shuddering breath. "The Cybermen, they came from that parallel world." He goes on, describing the Void, the Daleks from the Void, sending the Daleks and Cybermen back into the Void, and Rose almost going in herself. "She wanted to stay with me so bad, she gave up her family for me." Another sob escapes his throat. "And she almost died for me." I hold him close to me, rubbing his back and stroking his hair. He sobs out barely understandable words, something about burning up a star for her. "She told me she loves me."
I feel my heart sink. "I'm so sorry, Doctor."
His head on my shoulder, his body shakes against me. "And I never got the chance to tell her, I love her too." His voice is muffled and hoarse, but the words are clear.
My heart aches selfishly. "I didn't know…" I had thought they were just friends. I had been under the stupid assumption that I might be the only woman in the Doctor's life, the only one he cared about in a romantic way. Stupid me.
The Doctor sits up, wiping his face. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't..." He takes a deep breath. "These aren't your problems."
"Yes, they are." I touch his chin, looking into his big brown eyes. "I'm sorry you lost her."
"Yeah." He sniffs, looking away.
We sit for awhile, holding each other but not talking. I watch him, but he continues to stare into space. I can't stop thinking about him, but he barely seems to notice me.
I love him, but he loves Rose.
"Well." He draws the word out, standing as he speaks. "I should probably go." He walks absently to the door. "Things to do, planets to save." He turns back to me, still on the floor where he left me.
"Don't go." I whisper, trying to ignore the tears welling up in my eyes.
He sighs, leaning against the doorframe. "I think I should."
The tears fall, pounding against the floor at what seems to be a deafening volume. "Please stay." I sob.
"I can't." And with those words, and a broken expression, he leaves.
