The Doctor was running away. Again.

She couldn't help it. She and Yaz had got so close, so close to addressing the tension that had been building up for weeks. She was bitterly disappointed that they hadn't kissed, but at the same time, equally relieved. At least they could use alcohol as an excuse for getting so close. For the dancing. For the touching.

If Ryan hadn't arrived at that point, The Doctor would have pushed Yaz against that wall. She would have kissed her passionately, and wouldn't have been able to stop herself. It would have put their friendship in jeopardy.

And her rules! The Doctor had become reckless, she realised. Each time she got romantically involved with a companion, it would always put her partner at risk. It was bad enough for her friends, but for a partner of The Doctor – it was almost certainly a death sentence.

The Doctor didn't quite know where she was running to. She wouldn't leave the venue, but she needed air. She downed her drink, not taking note of what it was, and set it down on the bar. She moved away from the bar, and made her way out to the smoker's area.

She emerged through the fog of smoke, and entered the small, secluded smoking section. She was not a smoker, but it was cooler than inside the venue. She wandered over to quieter part of the section, away from the congregating smokers. She needed some peace and quiet, just to come to terms with what had just happened.

And to come up with a plan.

She wanted Yaz. It was really that simple.

But. There was always a but.

In another lifetime, it could have worked. If The Doctor was human. If Yaz was a Time Lord. If she wasn't immortal.

The fact is, this wasn't another lifetime. And The Doctor couldn't fight the inevitable. Yaz would die before her. Unless The Doctor didn't regenerate. But either way, they would lose each other. That was so difficult to even think about.

She looked up at the stars, as if to ask them for guidance. At least the stars never let her down. They were constant and forever.
Hang on, that's not fair. Yaz has never let her down either. Yaz is constant too. She just isn't forever.

The Doctor sighed heavily, and put her head in her hands. She had been trying to hide her feelings for Yaz since the girl walked into her life. The young woman was obviously fond of The Doctor, but it hadn't been until tonight that The Doctor could see that something could be reciprocated. She was surprised she hadn't seen it earlier.

She supposed she had, in reality. But out of fear of being misunderstood or unreciprocated, she had pushed down all the signs. She saw them, but didn't know if they were really signs. She should have trusted her gut. This new body had many advantages, but for some reason it had also made her uncertain and she found it harder to gauge people.

Maybe she had always been like this. Certainly her previous self-had been. God knows how Clara and Bill had put up with him. But then, that's what her companions had always done for her – guided her towards good decisions and acted as moral compasses. She was grateful for every single one.

Clara. Bill. God, more names to add to her long guilt list. So far, Yaz hadn't made it on there. But it was only a matter of time. God, this was tearing her apart. Why did The Doctor always have to give up her happiness?

She ran frustrated hands through her hair, and growled at herself in annoyance. She sat back up, only to find herself confronted with Danny Biswas. The one and the only. The Doctor was not in the mood for this right now.

'Hello Danny.' She said monotonously, not really caring about what he had to say at that moment.

'It's The Doctor, right?' He asked, dragging a chair to come and speak to her.

'Yep.' She said in a clipped tone, hoping he would take the hint. He did not.

'Where's Yaz?' Danny asked, looking around the smoking area to see if he could catch sight of her.

'Why is that any of your business?'

'I just want to talk to her.' The Doctor looked at him more directly now. Despite her conflict, she still had to keep up her charade. For Yaz's sake. And she would not let her down.

'Not being funny mate, but why would I, as her girlfriend, point you, her ex, in her direction? Think it through.' Danny seemed to be a bit taken aback by her abrupt answer, but she just didn't care.
She cared about Yaz. That was all.

'I know, and I respect that. I don't quite understand but…'

'What don't you understand?'

Danny shuffled uncomfortably in his seat.

'Well, no disrespect, but she never said she was interested in girls. I was just surprised.'

'Maybe she didn't feel like she could.'

Danny squirmed again, clearly uncomfortable. The Doctor suppressed a smirk. Maybe she could make him so uncomfortable that he would disappear on his own accord. Maybe she could have a bit of fun here.

'How did you two meet?'

Seriously? What did he want?

'Danny, I don't mean to be rude, but I don't get what you want from me. Yaz and I are together. You left her. Leave the past behind.' Danny's face darkened a bit.

'I'm just asking, there's no need to go off on me.' The Doctor could feel her irritation wane and her anger begin to rise.

'Let me be frank, Danny. You hurt her. Can't you see I'm going to be angry at you?' Danny looked as if he'd been slapped. He was clearly shocked, perhaps not used to being spoken to like that.

'What has she told you?' Danny asked, perhaps a bit too anxiously. The Doctor smiled dangerously. Yaz had told her barely anything. All she knew was that Danny had left her broken-hearted. But that didn't mean that The Doctor had to let Danny know that. The smugness from earlier returned, fuelling her next moves.

'Everything.'

That one word seemed to shake Danny up. He gulped nervously.

'Right.'

'So what do you want to talk to her about?' The Doctor enquired, suddenly changing tack. Her years of dealing with enemies had taught her how to put them on the back foot. She had the upper hand and she knew it.

'None of your business.' Unbelievable. The Doctor huffed in laughter.

'Alright mate, I think you'd better back off. She's quite clearly taken.' She pointed to herself. Danny looked at her carefully, then packed his next punch.

'Then why are you out here alone?'

'I just needed some air.' She responded.

'Sure,' he answered in a clipped manner. The Doctor's anger began to rise again.

'Ever since you saw us together, you've been watching us all night. Don't think I didn't notice you, scrutinising us. My advice. Let her go, and go back to your friends. She's moved on.'
Again, Danny looked hurt.

'To a woman.' He said, softly. The Doctor rolled her eyes. Dear god.

'Yes, good observation, Danny Boy.'

'I just… don't understand…'

'Seriously, are you still on that?'

'Well, I know she hasn't been with anyone else since me…'

'How do you know that?'

Danny looked surprised.

'Well, my mates tell me what's going on back home. I always felt bad about what happened between us, but seeing her tonight…' he tailed off, momentarily forgetting who he was speaking to.

'Reminded you of how amazing she is?' The Doctor finished for him, as they finally seemed to agree on something. He looked at her directly.

'Yeah, I guess.' The Doctor was annoyed by his response. He guessed? Yaz deserved so much more praise than that. She leaned forward on her seat, ready to lecture him on why Yaz was the greatest.

'Let me tell you about Yaz Khan. She is honestly one of the most beautiful spirits I have ever met. She is selfless, she is funny, and kind, and just damn right badass. She has pulled me out of more scrapes than I care to mention. She looked after me when I was mess, and made me into the woman I am today. She is patient and optimistic. She looks at the world in the most beautiful way. She just cares so much, and I'm in total awe of that.'

Danny squirmed again in his chair. Good.

'Well.. I…' He started to say, but lost his words half way through his sentence.

'Yeah. That's Yaz. Extraordinary.'

Danny looked back at her, defeated and deflated.

'You must really love her.' The Doctor felt herself stiffen. She had never said the words out loud. Not even to herself. If she didn't answer him, the charade might fall apart. This was for Yaz. And maybe, maybe a confession couldn't hurt.

'Yes.' She answered simply. Danny slumped even further in his seat.

'I think I do too.' Wait, what? The Doctor felt her rage swell.

'Come on Danny. I think this conversation needs to end now. This is beyond inappropriate…'

'But I…'

'For god's sake, Danny give it a rest.'

'Does she love you?' Well that got The Doctor's attention.

'What?'

'Has she told you she loves you?' The Doctor could feel the charade fall apart. She was a master liar, but that one vulnerability, that one second pause, was enough for Danny to notice. He sat back up in his chair, suddenly renewed. 'She hasn't, has she?'

'That's none of your business…'

'She told me she loved me. Within a couple of months. How long have you been dating?'

'Danny, if you don't back off, I'm going to…'

'What? What are you going to do?' The Doctor's face darkened.

'You just leave her alone.'

'But what if she still loves me? Isn't it her right to know all her options?' That was what The Doctor was afraid of. Given the choice, would Yaz go back to Danny?

'I thought you respected our relationship?' The Doctor countered. She was itching to leave, to go and find Yaz and keep her away from him. But Danny wasn't letting up.

'Don't you want Yaz to be happy? It's her choice. I mean, can you satisfy her like I can…'

'Oh my god, do you hear yourself? Back. Off. I love her. She chose me. Now if you don't mind, I would quite like to go and find my girlfriend, to go and enjoy the rest of our night. Together.'

She stood up to leave, but Danny pushed her back into her chair. She looked at him, affronted.

'I want to speak to her, alone.' The Doctor attempted to stand up again, but was pushed back down again. Frustrated, she stood up for the final time. He tried again but she was prepared.

'I'd be careful if I were you.' She warned, her eyes flashing. For a moment, Danny looked genuinely scared, for the first time since their chat had started. The Time Lord in her was emanating tonight.

Before he could respond, Yaz came through the entrance of the smoking area. She glanced around, clearly looking for someone. Her eyes first settled on The Doctor, and she smiled. But when her gaze settled on Danny, her smile fell. She glanced between the two of them, taking in their aggressive energy and rigid stances. Ah, this couldn't be good.

Despite the awkwardness of The Doctor running away, she looked relieved for Yaz to have found her. She returned the smile briefly, before glancing between Yaz and Danny.

Yaz was frozen for a moment. She didn't know what she'd walked into, but she guessed Danny and The Doctor weren't bosom buddies. She took in their positions, and guessed they must be having some sort of argument. Whatever it was about, she was on The Doctor's side. Always.

The Doctor had acted for her tonight, to make her feel comfortable and safe. She owed it to The Doctor to save her from this situation. So Yaz put on a big smile, pretended it wasn't her ex standing there, and approached The Doctor.

'There you are, babe, I've been looking all over for you!' The word felt alien on her tongue, but Yaz stuck with it. The word felt quite nice, actually. She put her arm around The Doctor, and pressed a lingering kiss to her cheek. Flashes of earlier came to her mind, but she suppressed them for the sake of the situation. She just wanted to get The Doctor out of there. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Danny flinch as she approached The Doctor. Good. Maybe now he'll know how it feels.

She turned towards him. Better to face the challenge head on. And besides, she had The Doctor beside her.

'Oh, hi Danny. You been chatting to The Doctor?' He nodded in response.

'Yep, just getting to know each other.'

'Actually, Danny was just leaving.' The Doctor said seething, glaring directly at him. Yaz glanced between the feuding pair. What had got The Doctor so riled up?

'No, I wasn't. Yaz, I need to talk to you.' Yaz stiffened, and The Doctor felt it immediately. She brought her hand up to Yaz's shoulder and squeezed reassuringly. Luckily for Yaz, that was all she needed to confront her ex. She was no longer the stuttering version of herself from earlier. She wanted to hear what he had to say.

'About what?' She asked, feigning ignorance. Actually, she wasn't sure what he was going to say.

'Can we talk privately?' Before The Doctor could rage at him again, Yaz interjected, coming across calm and collected.

'Anything you want to say to me, you can say to me in front of The Doctor.' She turned her head, and smiled at her friend. 'We're kind of a package deal.' The Doctor relaxed at that, and returned the smile. Danny looked at the two women, sizing them both up. He noted the way their bodies were drawn together, the placement of their hands, and the smiles they were sharing.

And in that moment he knew he'd lost.

'You know what, never mind. See you around Yaz.' And with that, Danny Biswas disappeared back into the club.

Once he was gone, Yaz turned to The Doctor.

'What was that all about?' Yaz enquired, concerned for her friend. The storm was still raging in The Doctor's eyes, but it was beginning to subside. The Doctor pulled Yaz into a tight hug. With the question she was about to ask Yaz, she didn't want Yaz to see her face fall if it wasn't the answer she wanted.

'Do you still love Danny?' She asked, bluntly. Yaz, taken aback by the question, pulled out of the hug. She wanted to look The Doctor in the eye.

'What?'

'Are you still in love with Danny?' The Doctor didn't quite meet her eye when she asked her question. 'Because if you do, you might want to run after him.' Yaz blinked in surprise.

'Why?'

'Because he was talking to me about you. Him seeing you tonight, made him rethink things.'

'Oh.'

'Yeah.'

Yaz looked at The Doctor, who was now watching her with fascination and… was that sadness she detected? She never wanted to see that look on The Doctor's face again.

'No, I don't love him anymore.'

'Not even a little bit?' The Doctor asked, surprised. Yaz sighed.

'He left me, broken-hearted and alone. It took me a while to get over it. But now, I'm so much happier. Why would I want to go back to someone who made me ill?' The Doctor cocked her head, as if to question that statement.

'What happened, Yaz?' She asked softly. Yaz, suddenly feeling the alcohol catch up with her, felt tears prick in her eyes. She shook her head.

'Listen, let's get out of here. Go grab a chicken kebab or something. Then I'll tell you. But not here.' The Doctor nodded in understanding. A small tear fell down Yaz's face. The Doctor reached up to wipe it away.

'Hey, he's gone. Come here.' The Doctor gently pulled her into a long, tight, comforting hug. Yaz let herself be held. The awkwardness seemed to have dissipated, and Yaz brought her arms to encircle around The Doctor.

'Thank you,' Yaz whispered into The Doctor's ear. Yaz could practically feel herself bursting with love, wanting to just tell The Doctor. But of course she didn't.

The Doctor pulled out of the hug, and just looked at Yaz for a long moment, before planting a small kiss on her cheek. Yaz felt herself well up again at the small touch of affection.

'You're so important to me, you know that, right?' The Doctor told her seriously. Yaz nodded, a little unsure, but feeling the warmth spread through every part of her again. She smiled.

'Come on then, chicken kebabs are on me.' The Doctor grinned at her.

'Oh, go on then. If you insist!' They grinned at each other, before Yaz led The Doctor back through the venue, hands tightly connected.