We're going jump forward a bit in time :) 3 months have now passed since Rose and the Doctor have discovered their soon to be bundle of joy. See how they're taking it, from both of their perspectives.
Pain, suffering, the loss of so many things from so many people pressed in on her and made her heart hurt. How could one person possibly bear this pain and live? She didn't know because she felt like she couldn't bear it. Afire had begun inside her and was gaining heat and speed, consuming her from the inside out. Events she had never lived and things she had never seen burst in front of her eyes as the fire burned out of her body and ripped her apart, threatening to consume her forever.
...
Rose jerked awake in bed suddenly, sweating and shaky. The Doctor, who was sitting beside her, tinkering with some device she couldn't identify while she had slept, turned toward her quickly, knowing by now her abrupt wake up meant that she had had nightmare.
"Are you okay, Rose?" The Doctor asked in concern, one hand helping her sit up while his other hand went instinctively to her rapidly developing baby bump.
Rose's heart was racing and her breath still racing but otherwise she was fine. "Yeah...yeah, I'm alright" she said quietly, sitting up and leaning back against the headboard.
"Nightmares?" The Doctor asked, turning on his side to face her. Already he knew without her answer that she had had a nightmare. It wasn't exactly an uncommon occurrence.
"Yeah...but I'm alright" Rose said, catching her breath and giving the Doctor a reassuring smile. When he smiled back, she felt herself calm and the nightmare dissipate.
Rose was now going on her sixth month of pregnancy and though she had grown used to some of her symptoms, they never ceased to surprise her. All of the changes that her body and her life had undergone in such a small time were both amazing and frightening. The nightmares she had begun to have shortly after becoming pregnant had continued the entire pregnancy, increasing in their severity as time went on. She couldn't ever remember much about them when she had woken, they just left her feeling panicked and scared.
Rose gasped a little as she felt a sudden and very persistent nudge from the inside of her womb. "Oh...well, someone else is awake now" Rose said, putting her hand on her belly as she felt the now familiar movement of their son.
The Doctor smiled broadly as he put his hand on Rose's stomach. He gave a small laugh as he felt the movement. "Yes, you are quite awake now. Don't you know its much past your bedtime? Well, I can't say I blame you...I don't sleep all that much either."
Rose laughed; she had a feeling little Pete (well, she had grown accustomed to calling him Pete. The Doctor did not seem sold on the name yet, but Rose was getting tired of having nothing to call him. Besides, she really did think it would be a nice name.) was going to be exactly like his dad. He was very active most of the time. It had freaked Rose out the first time that she had felt him stirring inside her. Having never been pregnant, she had no idea what to make of the 'd even had the Doctor scan her to make sure that nothing was wrong; she could still remember how much he had smiled when he had told her there was absolutely nothing to worry about, their baby was just making his presence known. Ever since then she had felt him swimming around, flip flopping and poking at her almost non-stop. If his dad was any indication, he would never stop.
Rose smiled down at the Doctor as he pulled up her shirt and put his warm hand against her skin. "You better calm down so your mother can get some sleep" The Doctor cooed down at her belly, exactly as if the baby could understand him. She felt that twinge of embarrassment still when he would expose her belly; she was not the least bit comfortable with that part of being pregnant. She was quickly finding all of her clothes tight and she just felt...big. The Doctor and her had become more and more open with each other but in the area of their physical relationship, nothing had changed and she was becoming more and more self conscious. She had tried to bring it up a few times; she wanted to know how the Doctor felt about this. About her. But he would always change the subject and Rose had not initiated such a conversation in a while. She couldn't understand how he could be so open and wonderful about their new family, doting over the baby almost constantly, and yet not feel anything for her. She had thought in the beginning that by now they would have crossed that bridge. But now, more than half way through the pregnancy, Rose was beginning to worry that when this baby was born, his parents would still be 'just friends'. Rose wasn't sure how much more she could take of it; it was hard, so very hard, to cuddle against him every night and yet never let herself go more than just simple touches. She loved the Doctor and she wanted to be closer to him. But it seemed that he didn't share those thoughts.
But despite the mixed feelings she had about how the Doctor felt about her, Rose knew without a doubt how he felt about their son. It was obvious that he was one hundred percent, completely in love with him. He was constantly scanning Rose to get a look at their growing son, rubbing her belly and cooing to him, often talking to him at length about whatever it was he was doing, usually describing the intricacy of the TARDIS and time travel to his budding little time lord. And it seemed that the Doctor didn't once leave the TARDIS without coming back with something to add to little Pete's nursery. She would often wake at night to find him awake beside her, reading a book and he would quickly recite to her some amazing baby development fact he had just discovered. She wanted for nothing in the pregnancy; she only had to wince in discomfort and he would be on her at once, rubbing her feet or back which so often plagued her now. He made sure she always had whatever strange foods her body now craved and a nice, relaxing warm bath was drawn for at the end of almost every day to sooth her aching muscles. He had risen to his responsibility of fatherhood better than she could have imagined.
But still Rose knew he was yearning for more. Sometimes she would see a sad look in his eyes as he gazed at the controls of the TARDIS or wake to find him staring off into space sadly. He would smile the second that he noticed her watching but she just wondered how much pain he was hiding. She knew he wanted to be among the stars again, that he desired adventure and excitement. When she had suggested they go somewhere, though, he had been adamant that they not travel while Rose was pregnant. But she knew that it was killing him not to and she just hoped he didn't get too bored. That the excitement that he had felt for this new family life continued and he didn't feel the need to run off somewhere without her.
But for right now, in this simple moment she was just going to enjoy the sight of the Doctor fully engrossed in talking to their son, explaining to him how humans needed more sleep than he did.
"So you really need to calm down for a few more hours at least" The Doctor explained to his son. "You're mother needs to sleep now; when she wakes up, though, you can fully entertain her with your acrobats"
Rose giggled at his serious tone and marveled as a few seconds later she felt the baby calm down. "He's actually calming down" Rose said, surprised.
The Doctor smiled. "Of course he is" he said. "I'm great with babies"
Rose smiled; she was too tired to argue. "Yes, you do seem you have the magic touch" She agreed. She slid down, laying against the pillow, feeling tired now that her nightmare had dissipated and Pete had calmed down. The Doctor pulled the covers around her tightly. The last thing she saw before she closed her eyes and sleep claimed her again, was the delightful smiling face of her Doctor.
...
Long after Rose had gone to sleep, the Doctor laid in the bed beside her, turned on his side, propped up on one arm so that he could watch Rose while she slept. He could count her breaths, how many times her eyelids moved in her sleep and still be fully aware of how wonderfully beautiful she was. The Doctor smiled as he put his hand on Rose's stomach in her sleep and opened his mind toward his son. The second his mind touched his son's, he felt excitement touch him as he moved in Rose's womb.
Hello, there, little one, the Doctor reached out with his mind, I know you're excited but you need to stay still in there. Mummy is sleeping.
His son flip flopped, reluctant to stop moving, though he did relent after a moment. A flash of Rose's mind touched the Doctor through his son.
Yes, Mummy is so tired. You have to let her sleep. I know you're not tired...mummy needs more sleep than you, The Doctor spoke through his mind.
The sound of Rose's voice, the sound of her heart, the touch of her mind combined with their child's love for her hit the Doctor full force. The Doctor didn't think that he would ever get used to feeling, no matter how many times he had experienced it. As much as the Doctor loved Rose, his love for her increased so much more when he was able to experience her fully through his time lord son.
The past three months had been a whirlwind for the Doctor. He had been used to running around the universe at full speed and while things had slowed down in some respects, they had been faster than ever in other aspects. While physically he had slowed down, emotionally he was running around more than ever. Rose and he had been on Earth living a rather domestic life ever since he had found out she was pregnant. It was true that he was chomping at the bit for a little bit of adventure, a change of scenery. He knew that Rose could sense it but he was trying to hide it. As much as he wanted to travel, he refused to do so with Rose in her current state. His desire to keep Rose and their son safe was much greater than his need to travel. His life had suddenly transformed from running around from one danger to the next to dotting on Rose and the baby, taking care of their every need. He had been given a second chance at fatherhood and he was going to do everything he could to cherish that.
The Doctor had been monitoring his son's progress every step of the way and he was more than pleased with his development. He was perfectly healthy and so was Rose. Not only that, but he was increasingly able to interact with his son in a way that he had not been able to in a very long time. He had been sending his love to his son through their minds everyday since the beginning but had been fully able to experience their bound when a few weeks ago his son had begun to respond back. His complicated mind was developing rapidly and every day he was able to interact with him more and more. When his son would send out his love and his memories of Rose, it always took his breath away. The love of a child from within the womb was an unspeakably amazing love; it had brought tears to his eyes the first time he had felt it.
As the Doctor's thoughts drifted to Rose, he felt excitement press into his mind from the small, yet persistent mind of his son. The Doctor's mind was touched with the sound of Rose's voice, the sound of her heartbeat and sense of warmness and protection. It was topped off with a question.
The Doctor felt his smile beaming on his face. "Your mum isn't quite like us. She cant reach out to you yet like I can. But she is amazing...fantastic. She loves you so much and she will be so happy the second that she can speak to you too" To solidify this in the mind of his son, he let memories of Rose pass from father to son. Her excitement and happiness as they had purchased baby items, her eagerness as she had chatted to her mum about how to properly take care of a baby, the wonderful moment of love they had shared as Rose had seen the nursery the first time and the overwhelming sense of amazement they had shared as they had seen him the first time. He hoped it was enough to convey to the tiny time lord how much his mother loved him.
He could feel his son's happiness and warmth at the knowledge of how much his mother loved him. He moved excitedly in Rose's womb, so much so that the Doctor was surprised that Rose didn't wake again. The Doctor could feel him reach out desperately for Rose's mind, wanting to connect with her on a deeper level. When he couldn't make the connection that he wanted, he nudged at the Doctor persistently.
You sure are pushy...well, I suppose that makes sense, being my son, The Doctor thought happily. The Doctor thought about letting Rose connect with their son in the way that he wanted. The Doctor could bridge the gap between mother and son in that aspect, but it would be a very sacred and intimate thing. It was most likely something that would change their relationship in a very strong way. The Doctor had been struggling with what to do now for months; the desire to be close to Rose and the need to push her away had both been so strong in him that he had remained standing still. Rose had tried to bring it up a few times, but like a coward, he had changed the subject. He hadn't known what to say so he had simply changed the subject to avoid having to discuss it. But deep down, he knew the answer and that was what was so scary. He had always avoiding becoming closer to Rose because he didn't want to become too attached, to get to the point where losing her would break him. But he was already beyond that point. He loved Rose without a doubt and if he lost her, it might kill him. He would suffer deeply, whether he went further in his relationship with Rose or not. He could lose nothing by becoming closer to her, only could gain what being in a relationship with Rose would bring. He knew he needed to tell her, he just hadn't figured out the best way to yet. Connecting her and their child might just be the step in the right direction they both needed. A flutter of excitement stirred in him when he came to the realization of what he needed to do.