Chapter 21

"Wow its beautiful", Jen breathed as she entered the TARDIS for the first time. At first she had watched the others disappear inside ahead of her and then she had taken her first tentative steps over the threshold to lay eyes on the most incredible and impossible sight she had ever seen.

"Wait for it", the Doctor smiled to himself as he watched Jen stumble back outside again and then rush back to look about her in absolute wonder, disbelieving her own eyes. "Any second now", he counted down to the inevitable observation that Jen was about to make. "Five, four, three, two, one…"

"That's impossible", she twirled around, arms outstretched, encompassing the huge space, "I mean it shouldn't be possible but it is…it's…bigger on the inside."

"Right on cue", the Doctor laughed. "Hurry up and shut the doors will you, there's a draft blowing in." He called back over his shoulder as Jen continued to stand, completely overwhelmed in the entranceway of the TARDIS.

"Sorry", Jen apologized as she tripped over herself in her excitement. "It's just this is all so much for me to take in." She hastened to close the doors and then smoothing down her clothes and taking a great effort to compose herself she joined Mickey, Jake and Rose who were all calmly stood around the console circling the central column.

"Welcome to the TARDIS, Jen!" The Doctor introduced her as he bounced about enthusiastically – showing off his pride and joy - his long, brown coat flying out behind him as he leapt about sprightly, beaming like a child in a sweet shop. "This is my ship."

"A spaceship."

"That's right", the Doctor nodded.

"It can fly?" Jen started to walk about, peering closely at the foreign elements that made up the TARDIS, with a keen fascination.

"Of course she can fly, anywhere you like." The Doctor answered.

"How about Spain?" Jen tested.

"Easy peasy, no problem. Just set the coordinates, whereabouts do you fancy? Barcelona? Madrid?" The Doctor called as he spread himself out over the console moving his hands knowledgeably over dials, levers and buttons.

"Doctor do you mind if we drop by Belgium first?" Rose blurted out hurriedly. "There's…someone I left behind there."

"Someone? Surely you mean something", The Doctor corrected her.

"No I mean someone", Rose said definitely keeping an air of secrecy.

"Ok and who is this someone? It's not just some boy you picked up is it? Remember Adam, what a disaster he was." The Doctor rolled his eyes and then couldn't resist clicking his fingers, with a small smile.

"No I didn't pick up a boy there", Rose glared, "and I never liked Adam all that much." Rose felt her face growing hotter and she wished that everybody wasn't looking at her as though she had suddenly gone mad. "Listen there's this…baby that…"

"A baby?" The Doctor cut in. "What baby? Your mother isn't due yet surely and what's it doing in Belgium…?"

"Stop interrupting me", Rose stamped her foot impatiently. It's not my mum's baby and before you ask it's not mine either", she shook her hair back off her face. "There was this old woman I met just after the Cybermen started their rampage and she had a baby grandson and she asked me to take care of him…"

"So you lost him", The Doctor raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't lose him", Rose was indignant, "I know exactly where he is, he's back at the hotel I was staying at."

"Right so you left this baby with total strangers?" The Doctor scratched his head.

"I had no choice it was either that or lug the baby about with me. What was I supposed to do? You wouldn't have wanted me to endanger his innocent little life. I was there to fight the Cybermen; he would have just got in the way"

"Alright fair enough, Belgium it is", he changed the coordinates. "So what's this little nipper's name then?"

"I dunno his real name so I named him, Nathan."

"Nathan", the Doctor pondered, "nice name, good choice."

"Thanks", Rose took that as a compliment.

Hey Doc is it alright if we give Jen the tour?" Mickey asked.

"Yeah knock yourselves out. Not literally though, might hurt quite a bit." He winced.

"Come on Jen this way" Mickey headed the way as Jake and Jen followed and they soon vanished into one of the many rooms of the TARDIS. Jen's excited exclamations becoming less and less audible.

Rose watched the Doctor fondly as he worked, tinkering away, fixing this and that as only he knew how. As he moved about expertly she admired his slim figure and boyish good looks and the mess of glossy brown hair, which he now ran his fingers through. She had often seen him ruffle his hair in this way usually when he was agitated, urging himself to think and find solutions to the many problems that confronted him. Her eyes were still trailing over him when he looked up.

"What?" He asked curiously as he sensed Rose's eyes on him.

"Nothing", Rose blushed. "I'm going to go and check out my old room."

"Good idea, perhaps you could tidy up a little", the Doctor teased her.

Rose let herself into her bedroom and closed the door softly. The room hadn't changed at all since she had last seen it. There were clothes still strewn about all over the place and the vast array of cosmetics and all manner of beauty products that she had accumulated were just as she had left them, cluttering up her dressing table.

The drawers were spilling over with articles of clothing that had been roughly stuffed inside and her wardrobe wouldn't shut properly; she had always been too busy to clear up after herself. The next adventure was always about to begin and the Doctor wasn't about to wait around whilst she tidied her bedroom. So she concluded that it wasn't entirely her fault that she had lived in what could quite frankly be called a pigsty.

She looked over at what remained of her once exotic plants that she had acquired during their journeys. They had long since wilted and died through months of negligence. The Doctor wasn't much of a gardener and Rose supposed he would have found it too difficult to go into her room to water the plants, knowing that she was gone. Also he might have felt awkward about invading what had been her private space.

She was back now though and she felt rejuvenated and alive again as she happily began picking through the mess of clothes everywhere - clothes that she thought she would never see again - looking for something to change into. As she rummaged around she caught sight of herself in the mirror and stopped to study her reflection with a critical eye.

The first thing that immediately leapt out at her about her appearance was her hair. Her blonde locks had grown straggly and the roots were beginning to darken and show through. A trip to the hairdressers was certainly in order before they embarked on their next lot of adventures - there was no way she was travelling to far-flung planets with bad hair - who knew how long it would be before she set foot in a salon again. Of course if she was desperate she could always take her mum along for the ride – she flinched at the idea – perhaps not.

Rose also wanted to look her best for the Doctor since he always managed to look good completely effortlessly, something he had been blessed with in this current regeneration. He certainly wasn't showing his nine-hundred years in fact he didn't look much over thirty-five and the energy he possessed was phenomenal. Rose had always had trouble keeping up with him as he hared about all over the place and she was barely out of her teens. Now she was getting annoyed, why couldn't she find something to wear?

Forty minutes later there was a knock at her door and she was ready to open it. On the other side was the Doctor who whistled and grinned broadly as he saw Rose. She wore a tight, white top – which showed off her tanned midriff perfectly – coupled with a cute little skirt which fell to a couple of inches above the knee. She had also pinned back her hair and applied some make-up in a bid to impress the Doctor which judging by his expression she had succeeded in nicely. She met his twinkling eyes shyly, feeling ever so slightly ridiculous.

The Doctor gazed down into her beautiful, young face and put out a hand to stroke a pinkened cheek, her skin was so soft to the touch. Rose sighed as he traced a finger down to her chin and then he kissed her. It wasn't a sensational kiss but a quick brush of the lips before he seemingly snapped to his senses, jumping back as though he had received an electric shock.

"Come on, Belgium's waiting and I want some chocolates. There's nothing like Belgian confectionery." He rambled as he grabbed her hand, and practically dragged her through the control room and out onto the streets of Brussels. Once outside he dropped Rose's hand and stuffed his hands inside the pockets of his coat.

Rose jogged along beside him struggling to keep pace with his huge strides. She wanted to ask him why he had kissed her before but she knew that it was less than likely that she would be given a proper answer. The Doctor would either fall silent or he would become even more talkative and just rattle off a load of nonsense at 90mph, most of which Rose wouldn't be able to make any sense of.

They searched around for a while and then there it was in front of them, the hotel, more difficult to spot in the daytime because it wasn't illuminated. Rose preceded the Doctor inside and they stood waiting at the reception desk for Lambert to appear. There was no sign of anyone even after Rose had rung the bell several times for service. The minutes passed and then they thought they heard the click of a door opening or closing somewhere and the shuffle of footsteps on wooden flooring.

"So sorry to keep you waiting, may I help you?" A familiar voice asked from behind them.

"Lambert, it's me Rose." Rose smiled pleasantly.

"But of course young Miss Rose, I remember you. You've come for little Nathan?"

"Yeah that's right", smiling was beginning to make her face ache.

"Is this the father, how very nice to meet you?" Lambert shook the Doctor's hand.

"No this isn't the father…he's just a friend of mine."

"Oh I'm so very sorry. How rude of me to be making assumptions, you must accept my apologies."

"Don't worry about it." The Doctor grinned. "Easy enough mistake to make", he glanced at Rose who was blushing furiously.

"I'll go and fetch your baby now Miss Rose." Lambert smiled, bowed and turned on his heel, leaving an awkward silence lingering in the air.

"Sorry about that", Rose was deeply embarrassed.

"I was a father once, long time ago." The Doctor half whispered, raising his eyes to look at the ceiling thoughtfully.

"Yeah you said but I didn't like to ask you about it."

The Doctor shrugged, "I had a whole family…"

"You've got me", Rose squeezed his hand trying to be of some comfort.

"Now I'm the only one left…just me."

"You can be a part of my family." Rose's voice contained such gentleness and genuine kindness and feeling.

The Doctor gave her a fleeting look, "thanks Rose", he smiled thinly but it was clear that his mind was far away. Then with a shake of his head he was back with her again, smiling broadly his usual chirpy self. "So what's going to become of Nathan then?"

"How do you mean?"

"Well he'll need a new home and before you even think to ask there's no way he's staying with us in the TARDIS.

"I wasn't going to ask", she paused, "wait so that means you're taking me with you when you leave?" Rose forgot about Nathan for a brief moment as it dawned on her that the Doctor fully intended to leave with her. She nearly kissed him with joy.

"I guess so, there's a vacancy for a companion and I can't think of anyone better qualified to fill the position. " He winked cheekily and grinned. "But if you're busy I suppose that I can always ask Jen", he continued grinning until Rose punched him. "Maybe not, anyway I think she's rather smitten with old Mickey."

"Yeah I thought so too", Rose frowned.

"What's up?"

"Nothing…no… I'm really happy for him. It's great…just what he needs."

Lambert strode back in carrying baby Nathan in his arms and carefully handed him over to Rose who cradled the small child adoringly. Nathan gurgled in instant recognition when he saw her and reached out a tiny fist, tugging at Rose's ear playfully. Then he spied the Doctor and started kicking his little feet and gurgled louder. It was as though he sensed something different about the Doctor and was fascinated by this tall, strange man looking down on him with a mixed expression.

"Do you want to hold him? Rose said turning to the Doctor. "He won't bite."

"Wow is that the time", the Doctor exclaimed glancing at an imaginary watch. "We should be getting back, or the others will have wandered off. I always tell them, I do you know, I tell them don't wander off but as soon as my back's turned they've done a vanishing act." The Doctor moved quickly over to the door. "Very nice meeting you, Lambert wasn't it? Yes very nice indeed", and with that he ducked out of the hotel leaving Rose to offer an explanation for his strange behaviour.

"Is he always that energetic, your friend?"

"Pretty much", Rose smiled with fondness. "Thanks for everything Lambert, I owe you one."

Rose rejoined the Doctor outside, "What's got into you?"

"Huh nothing…let's go back to the TARDIS."

"What about your chocolates, I thought you wanted to buy some?"

"Nah, I have to watch my figure", he patted his stomach.

They returned to the TARDIS – Mickey, Jake and Jen had completed their tour and were idly wandering about waiting for Rose and the Doctor to get back. Presently the Doctor appeared in a flap of his coat and ran to the console; he was shortly followed by Rose carrying whom they presumed to be baby Nathan.

"Right, where to next?" The Doctor asked as he saw that they were all assembled inside.

"Home", Rose replied reluctantly. "I think it's time that I let mum and dad know I'm ok and see how they feel about having an extra Tyler in the house."