A/N: Right guys, this is the penultimate chapter. Enjoy! xx

Rose sat forlornly on a swing in the local playground. Scuffing her feet idly along the ground as the warm breeze rocked it gently back and forth, she sighed deeply to try and hold back the sob she felt rising in her throat. Looking for something to distract her, she glanced around at the various bits of graffiti covering the park walls. When that didn't work, she pushed herself off the swing disconsolately and dawdled home. As she reached the council estate, she paused where the TARDIS had once stood. Leaning back against the wall, she closed her eyes and tried to imagine standing inside it again, the soft, blue-green glow of the central column soothing her. Her eyes snapped open as a thought occurred to her.

Would he come back?

Surely, he wouldn't just leave her alone to get on with the rest of her life, not after what had happened, not after promising that he would never abandon her, would he?

She took deep breaths to calm the rising panic and walked back to the flat, trying to come to terms with the fact that he may very well have lied to her. But why? Maybe, she thought, this was his way of dealing with it. But he hadn't even left a note, just a few words to explain why he had to go. Nothing.

She reached the flat and let herself in. Jackie was in the living room watching telly and Rose flopped down beside her, snuggling into her shoulder. Jackie planted a kiss on her head and said 'tea?'

Rose nodded her head against her and pulled away as she got up. Five minutes later Jackie came back in and handed Rose a mug of hot, sweet, milky tea.

'Thanks Mum,' she said weakly. She settled back against the sofa, enjoying the comforting liquid as it slid down her throat, warming her. She tried to concentrate on the old black and white love story on the TV, but in the end it just made her feel worse.

Jackie was engrossed in the film, and moaned when there was a knock at the door. She got up, muttering to herself about what she'd do to whoever was there if she missed a good bit.

Rose heard the door open, but there were no voices. A few seconds later the door closed. Bloody kids, she thought.

Jackie walked back in. She looked like she'd seen a ghost. Rose got up and went towards her.

'Mum? What's wrong?'

Two figures appeared behind her. Rose dropped her mug of tea in shock and it smashed on the floor. Not knowing what to do and feeling like she was going to be sick, she ran past the figures and out of the flat. Throwing herself down the stairs, she didn't stop until she reached the bottom, gasping for breath. She held on to the railing to steady herself as she felt a wave of dizziness come over her. Blinking it away, she vaguely heard a noise from above and she forced herself out of the double doors and into the fresh air. The TARDIS was sitting in the courtyard as if nothing had happened and she sped past it, concentrating on getting away from the voice which was now calling her name, a voice which sounded shaky and desperate.

'Rose!' the voice yelled out in panic as she ran across the road and into the path of an oncoming car. She screamed as it swerved, narrowly missing her, horn beeping angrily. This seemed to wake her up, and she collapsed against a wall, gasping for air, choking on the sobs which were rising in her throat.

He was by her side in a heartbeat. 'Rose', he whispered, pleading.

She forced herself to look at him. Did she dare believe it? Or was the grief and lack of sleep causing her to hallucinate? She stood up, eyes on him, and backed away slowly. She then turned, ran the few short paces back into the deserted playground, and came to a holt.

The Doctor came to a stop in front of her and looked at her, terrified. She looked so fragile, like a glass that was teetering on the edge of a table, about to smash into a thousand pieces.

Rose willed herself to pass out, thinking that when she woke up she would be back in the flat and this would all just have been a dream. Not that she wouldn't give her life for him to be alive again, but she was told he was dead. She'd buried him. She closed her eyes.

'You're not real,' she whispered.

When she opened them, he was still there, looking at her with frightened eyes. A tear slipped out of one of them and ran down his cheek.

What have I done to her? He thought penitently.

Whack!

Before Rose realised what she was doing, she slapped him, hard, round the face. He stumbled back slightly in shock, trying to grab her arms as she lashed out at him, fists thumping at his chest.

'You're not real!' she screamed hysterically. 'You're not real!'

The Doctor put his arms around her, holding her tightly as she crumbled and slipped to the ground.

'Oh Rosie,' he mumbled into her hair as her body shook violently against him. He buried his head in her shoulder and wept with her.

'I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry.'

Jack and Jackie appeared at the park gates and stood frozen to the spot as they watched the scene in front of them. Jackie let out a sob and Jack put a comforting arm round her.

'How did you know?'

'I don't know. I just… something wasn't right. And I'm sorry for running out on you daughter, I am. But I had to know.'

Jackie looked up at him, a small smile on her lips. 'Thank you.'

They watched as the Doctor rocked Rose back and forth, whispering soothing words into her ear.

'I never thought I'd say this,' Jackie whispered, 'but I'm so glad he's here. Seeing her so delicate… it broke my heart.'

Jack gave her shoulder a squeeze. 'I know.'

The Doctor pulled away from Rose slightly and held her tear-streaked face in his hands. He studied her for a moment, taking her in.

'I never thought I'd see this face again.' He ran his thumbs under her eyes and wiped her tears. 'This beautiful face.'

'Me too,' she said , placing a hand to his cheek andcatching her breathas a sob shook through her.

He went to place a kiss at the corner of her mouth, but she turned and he caught her lips.

'Sorry!' he said, all too quickly, in case she was about to slap him for it.

She looked at him longingly, feeling the electricity between them. She gave him a quick peck. He returned it, breathing heavily. The next time she kissed him she let it linger, and she moaned softy as he took over. It became desperate, urgent, the devastation from the last few days pouring out and overflowing. Then they reluctantly pulled apart, breathless, their foreheads resting together.

'They tricked me,' she whispered painfully. 'I left you to die -'

'No!' he said sternly, making her jump. 'No,' he said again, gently this time, pulling her into a tight hug.

'I was so angry at Jack for leaving,' she said into the crook of his neck. 'But now I'm so glad he did. To think we might have left you there forever…' she trailed off as she choked back another sob, fresh tears falling.

'Shhh,' he said quietly. 'It didn't happen. It's not worth getting upset over.' He stroked her golden hair and she calmed slightly.

'I'll never leave you again,' he promised. 'Never, ever.'

All was quiet. Jack was snoring lightly on the sofa. In her bedroom, Jackie was sleeping peacefully, the worry that had been etched on her face for the past few days no longer visible. In Rose's room, two figures clung to each other, both in a deep sleep.

An hour or so later Rose woke. She looked down at the man next to her and smiled. Smiled because she still couldn't quite believe it. Smiled because of how peaceful he looked. Smiled because of how luckythey were.

The Doctor fluttered his lashes and slowly opened his eyes.

'Whatcha doin'?' he mumbled sleepily, pulling her close.

'Just checking.'

He smiled into her neck. 'I told you. I'm real and I'm not going anywhere.'

She hesitated for a moment, then said nervously, 'I love you.'

He blanked his face so she couldn't read it. 'I know. Jack told me,' he said lazily.

She looked incredulously at him. She opened her mouth to speak but his sudden grin cut her off. He pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. 'I love you too.' He kissed her again. After a while she hesitantly pulled away, an idea popping into her head.

'Don't you have something to show me?'

'Only if you show me yours first,' he teased, and winked at her.

Rose rolled her eyes and shoved him playfully.

'Orion's Belt.'

'Oh.' he feigned disappointment, but couldn't hide his grin for too long. He sat up. 'Come on then,' he said, holding out his hand. She took it and he pulled her up andpassed her her jacket and shoes. She looked at him as he tied his laces. Maybe they could pop to the TARDIS on their way back…

'Ready then?' the Doctor said, startling her out of her reverie.

'Ready,' she confirmed.

They sneaked quietly out of the flat and made their way to the roof. Rose shivered slightly as the cold, nightair hit her face, and the Doctor wrapped his arms around her.

'Right,' he said, taking her hand and pointing it towards the sky.

She looked past the end of it and saw three stars twinkling brightly.

'It's beautiful,' she breathed.

He moved her finger along. 'That,' he said, 'is Orion's sword. That's his left hand… there. See he's carrying what looks like a skin. And in his right hand…' he moved again, '…is a club.' He pointed her hand to something else. 'That's the plough, also called 'the big dipper' and if you look closely you can see that the plough is the tail of the constellation Ursa Major, also referred to as 'The Great Bear.' See?' he said, moving her hand around it's shape.

Rose nestled closer to him as he continued to point out different constellations, sighing happily.

Whilst looking at a cluster of stars that were shaped like a saucepan, she noticed something streak across the sky and caught her breath. A shooting star.

'Make a wish,' the Doctor whispered in her ear, making her tingle. She did.

'Did you know that shooting stars are actually -'

'Space debris that burns up upon entering Earth's atmosphere.' she said, and turned to grin at him. He returned it.

'I'm impressed,' he said.

She raised her eyebrows at him. 'I may only be a stupid ape, but I'm not completely without knowledge you know.'

He smiled softly at her. 'You're not stupid.' He kissed the top of her head. 'So, what did you wish for?'

'Not supposed to tell you otherwise it won't come true.'

'Fair enough.'

She cleared her throat. 'You know, I also happen to know that some of these stars died a long, long time ago and the reason they're still twinkling here is because they are light-years away and it hasn't reached us yet. And I also know that the sun and the moon aren't planets, but a star and a satellite respectively.' She looked up at him to find him beaming at her proudly.

'So, I suppose you know how many planets are in your Solar System then?' he said, playfully trying to catch her out.

'Nine,' she said confidently.

'And can you name them?'

She thought for a second, then said, 'Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto.' She smiled triumphantly, then added, 'Venus is the closest planet to Earth.'

'Well, listen to you all clued up'. He spun her round to face him and kissed her. Her lips were cold.

'Come on, lets get you back to bed before you freeze,' he said, frowning slightly.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled wickedly. 'To sleep, or…?'

He licked his lips suggestively. 'Definitely 'or'.'

'To the TARDIS, then?'

'Yep.'