Chapter Two: When the Past Haunts the Present

The Doctor walked into the TARDIS' control room and Jack's eyes sharpened immediately at the rather downcast expression on his friend's face. Before he could ask what was wrong, the Doctor spoke, "She's here."

He did not have to ask what "she" he was talking about. Three months ago, the Doctor had been stupid – and Jack had told him so many times before – and now she was back. While he knew they could never really return to the way they were before, he had his hopes that this time things could be worked out. Jack closed his eyes and remembered...

----

The three time travelers collapsed onto the floor of the TARDIS control room in a fit of laughter, or, rather, two of them were laughing and one was brooding. It was strange to believe that escaping certain death had become commonplace, but it had. Life had become a sequence of tea in the morning, a death-defying escapade by lunch, and a comfortable dinner in the TARDIS' kitchen. Jack would not trade this life for anything else, especially since he had the Doctor and Rose. He grinned widely as he reached over to tickle Rose, her delighted squeals of laughter and protests only encouraged him. However, Jack missed the Doctor's expression as he tickled Rose. He missed the sadness and the fear that darted across the Time Lord's face as he watched Rose fight back against Jack's questing fingers.

"JACK!" Rose laughed, "STOP IT!"

"You didn't say the word!" Jack grinned, continuing to tickle her side.

"Uncle! Uncle!" Rose replied.

"Nope, not it," Jack turned his attention to her foot – which he knew was another ticklish spot from the last time they had watched a movie together.

"Rose," the Doctor said suddenly, and Jack noticed that his voice sounded strange – as if he were desperately holding in some deep emotion, "I'm taking you home."

That caused Jack's hands to still and for Rose to turn and look at him curiously, "It's not my Mum's birthday until next week, Doctor. Fancying some chips?"

"I'm taking you home," he repeated, and his expression was masked as he stood and walked to the console.

"What are you saying?" she asked, and her voice broke slightly as she stared at the leather clad Doctor's back.

"I'm taking you home. I thought that would be obvious to your tiny ape mind," the Doctor replied, his voice sounding suddenly harsh in the control room.

"Doctor, don't be an idiot," Jack said, standing and walking over to the console, "Why are you taking Rose home?"

"She doesn't belong here with us – it isn't safe."

"Not safe! I don't believe you, Doctor! After all I've seen, you want to dump me on Earth like some forgotten plaything? I'm not having it," Rose folded her arms in front of her and glared at the Doctor.

"You," the Doctor said as he activated the console, "Don't have a choice in the matter."

"Of course I do! Doctor, I can't stay on Earth now. Not after this, not after you. Please, don't leave me," Rose's voice broke and she silently damned herself for it.

The Doctor remained stubbornly silent as the familiar wheezing groan of the time travel machine echoed through the control room.

"I won't let you do this, Doctor," Jack said, "You're making a mistake."

"I won't see her hurt!" the Doctor replied, and Jack could suddenly see the reason for all that he was doing in his eyes. The Doctor was in love – and it terrified him.

"And this won't hurt her?" Jack asked, for the moment ignoring the trembling girl in the room to meet the Doctor's anguished gaze.

"She'll be alive. That's all that matters," the Doctor said and the TARDIS rumbled to a stop. He walked to Rose and grabbed her arm, steering her to the doorway, "You'll thank me for this later," he said, but even Rose could hear the hurt in his voice.

"Doctor, please," she swallowed nervously as he opened the doors to reveal the familiar flats of what had once been her home, "I belong here, with you."

"Not anymore," the Doctor said, and pushed.

Startled, Rose fell to the concrete and behind her she could hear Jack's astonished shout of "DOCTOR!" before the TARDIS began to disappear. Rose Tyler was alone.

-----

"Well, where is she? Why didn't you bring her home?" Jack peppered the Doctor with questions, and each time he could see the Doctor's wince.

"She's working at a bar called Slimey's. And...she wouldn't want to come home. Not after what I did to her," the Doctor looked at some phantom point over Jack's shoulder to hide the hurt in his eyes.

"I can't say I blame her," Jack said, and he felt a little guilty at the noticeable flicker of pain in the Doctor's expression, "But she's here. You're here. Maybe we can fix this."

"You've been trying to do so for the past three months, Jack, what makes you think that this time you'll be successful?"

"Because," the former Time Agent said as he stepped forward and grabbed the Doctor's chin to force him to look into his eyes, "I'm sick and tired of seeing you like this. You wanted to protect her, right? You didn't want to see her hurt? Well, you made a mistake, Doctor, and you're going to have to face up to it. If you don't, you're going to end up moping around in the TARDIS like you have been for the past three months for the rest of your life. I want the old Doctor back. The one who was in love with Rose and didn't care what might happen in the future because for the moment he had her and he had me and all was right in the universe. I want him back. And I want her back," Jack released the Doctor's chin and turned away, for the moment not caring if the Doctor decided that he had crossed the invisible line of excusable and non-excusable and kicked him out of the TARDIS.

"Oh, Jack, what have I done?" the Doctor whispered, "I think I lost her."

"Then we'll find her again, Doctor," Jack said, his voice infinitely gentle, "Come on, we need to find her." He mentally added, '...and then we need to lock the two of you into a room until all of this is sorted out.'