Rose woke up after a terrible nightmare. Again. She had nightmares about the Doctor turning against her. She trusted him, but apparently she was still scared that he would do something bad again. Rose told herself that it had been just a dream, that she was safe with the Doctor, that he wouldn't hurt her anymore. But still, she couldn't calm down completely.

Then she suddenly realized where she was. She was not in her own bed, but in the Doctor's. But the Doctor wasn't there, at least not anymore. He had probably tucked her in bed. She was even wearing a t-shirt that was way too large for her. Rose smiled at the thought that the Doctor had cared about her so much, that he had made sure she wouldn't get cold.

But when the door opened, Rose screamed, her nightmare coming back. The Doctor entered his room, fully dressed, with the knife he had used before in his hand. The blood was still on it, it was dry, but it was still there.

Rose shrank away from him. She had to be dreaming. This was still her nightmare. He was coming for her. He was going to hurt her. When he came closer, Rose screamed even louder. She was completely oblivious of the genuinely concerned look on the Doctor's face when he approached her, her eyes were fixed on the silver weapon in his hand.

'GO AWAY! DON'T HURT ME, PLEASE!' Rose screamed frantically.

'Rose! Calm down! What's wrong?' the Doctor asked worriedly, dropping the knife and hurrying over to Rose, who flinched at his sudden movement. 'Tell me what's wrong and I will help you!'

The fact that he had dropped the knife brought Rose back to reality again. He didn't come to hurt her, he was worried about her. He had taken care of her while she was sleeping.

'I'm sorry,' Rose trembled, 'I was just overreacting… I am sorry, Doctor…'

'No, don't be sorry, tell me what's wrong. Why did you think I was going to hurt you?'

'That knife…'

'I just wanted to put the knife away, so we would never have to look at it again. Is that the reason why you were so frightened?' the Doctor asked, gently cupping Rose's chin so she had to look him in the eyes.

Rose nodded.

'Tell me the truth,' the Doctor demanded. 'There is something else.'

Now Rose shook her head. She hated to lie to the Doctor, but she had no choice. She couldn't just tell him that she had a nightmare about him. He would think that she hated him. And that wasn't true.

'Do I have to enter your mind again to find out?' the Doctor asked sternly and Rose knew that he wouldn't go away before she had told him what was wrong.

'I- I will tell you, if… you promise me that you will not take it personally. I love you, nothing can change that, okay?' Rose said, still shaking a bit.

The Doctor wrapped his arms firmly around her, trying to make her stop shaking. He wanted to make her feel safer.

'I promise… Please tell me,' the Doctor whispered soothingly.

'I had a nightmare,' Rose told him softly.

'About me?' the Doctor was now truly worried. Even more than he already was. She had told him about having nightmares about him before, and now he knew that she was still having them.

Rose only nodded.

'What did I do in your nightmare?'

'You had that knife… and you wanted to… hurt me. I ran away, but you were chasing me. I wasn't fast enough and you grabbed me. Then I woke up, panicking. Until I realised that I was safe, that it had been just a bad dream and then I noticed how I was lying in your bed. I saw how nice you have been to me and then I remembered you didn't want to hurt me. Until you came in with that knife again, my eyes were fixed on that thing, not on you, and I guess I started panicking again,' Rose said. 'I am such a baby, don't worry about it, I will get over it.'

'Don't say that. You are not a baby, you are about the bravest person I know. I am so sorry Rose… I hate myself for what I have done to you… How can you still live with me? How can you be so calm in my presence?' the Doctor asked, clearly disgusted of himself.

'Because I know you have changed. At least you are trying to,' Rose clarified.

'But… looking at this face, it must hurt you so much… You will never lose your nightmares as long as I am still around,' the Doctor said, moving away from Rose. 'What we did last night… You didn't have to do that, you know? I don't want to hurt you anymore, never.'

Rose pulled him closer again when she noticed that he was afraid she would be uncomfortable with him being near her. She wasn't. She trusted the Doctor, he was so much different from Jimmy. Jimmy had been an abusive and evil man. The Doctor had been pretty much the same, but she knew he loved her, and what he did had been out of protection and love. And of course, out of revenge on everyone who had ever hurt him. He was lonely and sad. And that caused him to feel rage and anger, that was so much different from Jimmy. Jimmy had had no reason at all for doing what he had done.

'I know you don't want to hurt me, Doctor,' Rose whispered, kissing his cheek when he started crying.

'Do you… want me to… change?' he asked her, looking her in the eyes.

'What?' Rose asked, genuinely confused.

'If you want me to… regenerate… I would do that for you. If that would help you. Anything for you, my Rose. Anything. I could force a regeneration,' he suggested.

'What?! No! No, you are not going to die because of me! I just had a silly nightmare and you are not the man I had a nightmare about anymore! You can help me, but not with dying. I love you, and you know that.'

'Then tell me how I can help you.'

'Just be with me, protect me from my nightmares,' Rose smiled softly.

'I will. And I will never hurt you again for as long as I live. I promise you that. And I promise you that I will protect you from any evil that we face in our future,' the Doctor returned her smile.

'You can't promise that. You can't go too far in trying to save me. Nothing can last forever.'

'It can if it would be up to me to decide.'

'But it isn't,' Rose said, stroking his arm. 'One day you will have to find someone else to travel with, I am not a Time Lady, remember? I can still age and die. And I wouldn't want it any other way, I am human and I will stay that way.'

'But I don't want anyone else,' the Doctor whined.

Rose couldn't find a fitting reply to that. She wanted to stay with him, but she knew she couldn't stay for eternity. And the Doctor knew that too, someday he would have to live on without her.

'My pink and yellow human,' he smiled, pinning her down back on his bed. 'What would I ever do without you?'

'You would go back to doing your alien things, hurt other people again, destroy some planets for no reason,' Rose teased.

'Do you really think it is a wise thing to say those things about me when I have you pinned down on my bed?' the Doctor smirked. 'I don't think so, Tyler… Maybe you should apologize before I show you how alien I really can be…'

'Maybe I shouldn't,' Rose stuck out her tongue between her teeth.

'So you wish to test me, eh?' he continued in a whisper. 'Just to reassure you, I won't hurt others and I won't destroy anything anymore, I promise. I won't.'

'Then I should take back my words,' Rose said solemnly.

'Oh no, too late for that. I am not letting you go, my love. Not before you have convinced me how sorry you are with a kiss,' the Doctor said sternly. If Rose wanted to tease him, then he could be as bad as she was.

'Or else?' she laughed.

'Are you laughing at me?' the Doctor asked, pretending to be offended. 'You are in my territory here, laughing at me could lead to some very unpleasant times for you in the TARDIS…'

Rose tried to wriggle herself out of his grip, but he held her down. At first she wanted to play his game along, but when he didn't let go of her, she started to feel threatened. Even vulnerable. The dark look in the Doctor's eyes was probably lust, but Rose only saw darkness in them.

'Let me go, Doctor,' she said, still struggling to get away.

But the Doctor didn't even loosen his grip. He just thought she was playing around with him.

'First I need to punish you for laughing at me, Tyler…' the Doctor said grimly.

'NO! NO, LET ME GO! PLEASE!' Rose yelled terrified, and the Doctor quickly let her go.

'I am sorry, Rose! I didn't mean to scare you!' he said, backing away, his hands up while Rose cowered back from him.

'I know!' Rose breathed, calming down.

'I have ruined it, haven't I? You can never look at me the same. Please don't ever leave me… please… just love me…' the Doctor begged as he moved closer again.

'Just- leave me alone… For a moment,' Rose said as gently as she could, jumping off the bed and hurrying away.

The Doctor was left alone again, and he knew it was entirely his own fault. He should have known that Rose would react like this. He shouldn't have said the things he had said, not after what he had done to her. He didn't mean to harm her, and maybe she truly knew that, but that didn't matter. The words he had said were the same words he had used against her. She needed some space. The problem was that the Doctor hated it to be alone without Rose. But he would give her the space she needed, she could have all the space she wanted.

'Doctor?' the soft voice of Donna sounded from the door opening.

'Yes?' he answered, looking up at her concerned face.

'I saw Rose running away from your room. She seemed to be upset. Did something happen between you?' Donna asked carefully.

'I have been an idiot. She must hate me so much…' he answered.

'No, she doesn't hate you.'

'She has nightmares about me and I am the one who caused them! Of course she hates me! And now she ran away, because I said some stupid things I didn't mean to say,' the Doctor spat.

'What's this?' Donna asked, picking up the knife that was still on the floor.

'I was going to put it somewhere far away.'

'Are you sure?'

'Why? Why do you think I wish to hurt someone with that? That's what you think, isn't it?' the Time Lord shouted frustrated, jumping off the bed.

'No! That was not what I was saying! I was just… wondering. That's all. And don't shout at me, Space Boy,' Donna snapped.

'Sorry,' the Doctor said embarrassed.

'You are sad, I get it,' Donna said quietly, pulling him in for a hug. 'Rose will forgive you, I am sure. She doesn't hate you. She is just scared.'

'But I don't want that,' the Doctor sobbed.

'Too late for that now. Just give her some time and she will come back to you herself.'

'I am never ever going to hurt you for as long as I live… I don't want to be alone, I just want my companions to love me,' the Doctor said seriously, looking Donna in the eyes as if he was waiting for her to give him a satisfying reply.

'We do love you, silly,' Donna smiled.

'And adore me, and worship my genius,' the Doctor smiled back.

'Maybe Rose will do that if you ask her, but not me! Your ego doesn't need to get bigger,' Donna retorted.

'Then what's the point of having you here?'

'I am here to slap you when your ego gets too big. Rose wouldn't do that to you. That's why you need me,' Donna laughed.

'Oh no, you will not,' the Doctor said, feigning fear and stumbling back.

'Then apologise for trying to belittle us human beings,' Donna threatened, raising her hand.

'I am sorry! Please leave my pretty face intact! I still need Rose to come back to me and she won't when my face looks like a mutant!'

'Did I hear your ego there?'

'What?'

'What should I leave intact?'

'My face! Just my face! Nothing pretty about it!'

'See? It won't hurt anyone to be modest sometimes,' Donna grinned. 'Rose adores you way too much. If I wouldn't be there to stop you, your ego would lead to megalomania. And we all know what that does to you, don't we?'

'I am so grateful, Donna Noble,' the Doctor said sarcastic.

'And so you should be. Now, if you'll excuse me, I am going to get Rose and then the three of us are going to do something nice. And since you have shown me some modesty, you can choose our destination,' Donna said.

'Okay!' the Doctor said enthusiastically, and when Donna was out of sight, he mumbled, 'I still have a pretty face, miss Noble.'