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Chapter Three
Rose's head started to hurt after this new revelation, and Jackie then decided it was a good idea for her and Tony to leave to give Rose some time to process this information. The young woman didn't know what to do, and she was currently in a quandary regarding the two realities she'd experienced.
Was the Doctor and the TARDIS even real? Or had it been a dream all of the time she'd been in a coma?
Rose couldn't tell.
She decided to root through her bag that her mother had brought earlier, and pulled out a deep blue, leather-bound journal and a black photo album. Curiosity got the better of her, and Rose decided to have a look through the photo album, and placing it on her lap and with baited she opened the front page. On the first page was a post-it note, and written in a swirly style handwriting that she didn't recognise was a note.
Rose,
I hope this brings you some sort of comfort, and hopefully steers you in the right direction into possibly regaining your memory. No matter how long it takes, we want you to know that as a family we're all behind you and will be supportive and patient, and will help you any way that you need it.
Love you sweetheart,
Dad X
Rose was touched by the sweet gesture from her father – if it even was him – and slipped the note into the cellophane layer of the album that protected the photos. She didn't want to lose this.
She turned the page, and the first two to three pages contained photos of Rose as a child, from a new born baby snuggling with her parents in the hospital, to celebrating her first milestones such as walking, and enjoying her first birthday party with her face smothered in chocolate cake and frosting. The further Rose went on, she discovered photographs where Pete was teaching her to ride a bike, to her actually reading it. There were pictures of Rose with Jackie on her first day of primary school, and more photos of Rose from certain events. The older Rose got, the more the photographs progressed. She now reached the age where she'd graduated from high school and going to prom, and eventually her graduation at university. The photographs then transitioned into dates with James – or the Doctor – and onto their engagement, until it reached a copy of an ultrasound with Rose's married name in the top left-hand corner.
Rose Tyler-Noble.
Another photograph showed Rose in a hospital bed, now cuddling a new born with fair hair and wrapped in a pink blanket.
Rose couldn't describe it, but as she looked through the photographs, she was starting to remember certain events, but the ones surrounding James and her daughter would simply not slot into place.
All she could see when she looked at James was the Doctor. And her memories with the Doctor she could recall. She could even visibly smell and hear everything occurring inside the TARDIS' walls. Even the interactions with her parents and little Tony didn't feel real. And she wasn't sure how to handle all of this.
Would anybody even believe her if she tried to explain this feeling?
The next afternoon after a fitful night's sleep, Rose was woken from a doze by a knock at the door.
"Come in." Rose called, not liking how hoarse her voice still sounded.
The door opened, and two people entered. A young woman and a slightly older man.
"My name is Marcus, and this is my assistant Lucy, and we'll be your physical therapists. We'll help you regain your body functions and to build your muscle tone that you lost whilst in your coma. On a scale of one to ten, how much pain would you say your currently in? With ten being excruciating pain."
"I guess I'm not in any pain," Rose responded honestly. "It's mostly a lot of numbness. It feels strange just flexing my fingers every now and again."
Lucy pulled out a clipboard, and wrote down notes from Rose's conversation with Marcus.
"That's to be expected with coma patients." Marcus pointed out as though it were obvious. "That's what were here for though, to help you every step of the way. We thought we'd start with something simple. How would feel attempting to sit in the chair next to you, rather than a bed?"
Anxiety suddenly overwhelmed Rose out of nowhere, and she felt pretty vulnerable. "I mean, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try."
It took just over an hour to get Rose sitting in the chair, and by the time she sat down, she was exhausted. It was at times humiliating, not being able to do something as simple as sitting up in a bed to get out of it. She longed for the time she could start functioning more efficiently again, and was quite devastated to be told that at least for the first two weeks, she should consider using either a frame or a wheelchair when she wanted to move about.
"This is only temporary, until you can move on your own again." Lucy reassured her, helping Rose settle back into the bed. "Don't be discouraged, you did very well today for your first session."
Rose only nodded, exhausted from her simple movements from the bed to the chair, and back again.
"You should get some rest." Marcus advised, a gentle smile on his face. "No doubt you'll be exhausted after today. We'll come every couple of days, and in the meantime, you can try small movements on your own or with assistant from a nurse. Take care, Miss Tyler."
Doctor Sanchez had no choice but to admit with himself, but he was impressed. Particularly with his coma patient, Miss Rose Tyler. The average patient recovering from a coma would take weeks, even months to recover with the basic necessities.
Not with Rose.
Within two weeks, she had managed to walk by herself without an aid or a crutch, even if her movements were still a little robotic. As long as there was a hand rail in the bathroom, Rose could even wash and dress herself without little assistance.
She was quite a miracle when it came to coma patients. Her parents were thrilled with her progress too, and couldn't believe how far she had already come, and were eagerly anticipating the time when Doctor Sanchez deemed her well enough to come home.
On one condition, that Rose could get through her therapy sessions.
Her first session was this morning after breakfast, and to say Rose was anxious was an understatement. She was sat on the bed in her room, her legs gently swinging back and forth, waiting for an orderly to take her to Doctor Sanchez's office. An orderly soon arrived, and Rose learned that his name was Jackson as they walked through the corridors, and the more they talked, he reminded her more and more of Jack Harkness.
The corridor was long and a muted grey, not very inviting at all. The only thing that made a difference was the natural light coming in from the windows that overlooked the residential garden.
Jackson turned left down a shorter corridor, where at the end was a steel door with a square glass window. Beneath the window was a golden plaque with Doctor T Sanchez inscribed. Jackson knocked on the door, and waited patiently for a response.
"Come in."
The orderly opened the door, and encouraged Rose to follow. "I've brought Miss Tyler for her therapy session with you, Sir."
"Excellent, thank you Jackson. Send her in."
"Yes, Sir." Jackson motioned for Rose to enter the room, which she did.
Doctor Sanchez was sat behind his ornate, wooden polished desk to the far-right hand side of the room. On his right was a marble fireplace that was lit, and gave the office a homely and cosy feel compared to the rest of the hospital Rose had seen so far. Above the fireplace was a large, circular mirror. On the other side of the room was a large window with a seat, and a bookcase lined with books relating to the brain and psychology.
"Good morning, Miss Tyler, please come and take a seat." Doctor Sanchez greeted Rose kindly, indicating the seat in front of him. "How are you feeling today?"
"I'm feeling a lot better, thanks." Rose confirmed, taking a seat. "Although I have been nervous about this session."
Doctor Sanchez folding his hands together, and leaned slightly on the desk. "Why have you been feeling nervous?"
Rose shrugged. "I didn't know wha' to expect. Since I woke up, I've been takin' it day by day."
The Doctor took out a folder from his desk drawer, and to Rose's surprise, it was full to overflowing. "I must say, we've all been very impressed with your speed of recovery. Most coma patients tend to take at least several weeks or months to grasp the basics, but you have managed to achieve all of the above within two to three weeks. It's really quite remarkable, and has had a lot of us scratching our heads."
Rose couldn't help the blush that lightly spread across her cheeks. "Thanks, I guess?"
"You're most welcome." He then opened the file, and flicked through several pages that had plenty of papers stacked together. "Now, where were we?"
"Can I ask you a question?" Rose wanted to know, focused on the file herself.
"Of course. That's what this session is for."
"Why is my file so big if I only woke up a few weeks ago? Why does it look like I've been here for a while?"
Doctor Sanchez sighed, pulling off his glasses and placing them on the papers. "Miss Tyler, how much of your life before you woke up do you remember?"
Rose shook her head. "Nothin', why?"
"We've had this conversation before." Sanchez explained carefully. "In fact, we've had it multiple times before."
"This is the first time I'm properly meeting you." Rose pointed out, not liking where this conversation was going.
"No, it's not. Miss Tyler, you've been a patient at Royal Blue hospital on and off since 2005 for varying reasons."
Rose felt her blood turn to ice. How could that be possible? "Wha'?" She was stunned. "Wha' type of hospital is this?"
"This is a general hospital," Sanchez reassured her. "But we specialise in patients struggling with mental and psychiatric problems. You have been a patient in our psychiatric ward for two years."