"I'm always ready. I won't let you out of my sight."

She knew she was bothering him this evening, but his words kept ringing around her head. She'd held off until after the Olympics, determined to have one last time of fun with the man she adored above all the others. But just when she was starting to forget things and really believe that they were just here to see the greatest show on earth, she'd catch sight of him looking at her out of the corner of her eye. His face was drawn and pale, and he seemed to be looking at her more intensely than usual. As soon as she'd turned to face him, his face had creased into a wide smile and he'd made some sort of joke. But there was something not right.

"Rose, please, just forget I said anything," he groaned, stomping off down the TARDIS corridors. "I was tired, I'd been trapped in a drawing for half the day and I ran carrying a burning torch after that… do you know how heavy that thing was?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Very, that's the answer to that question!" Before Rose could get a word in, he grinned suddenly. "God, but that was a stroke of genius, wasn't it? I'm part of the 2012 Olympics, Rose! Me! A Time Lord!"

"Congratulations," Rose said dryly and continued before she could get cut off again. "But what you said… what do you mean, something's coming?"

"Rose, please!"

"No, I won't drop it!" Rose shook her head defiantly. "You can't just go being all enigmatic like that – yes I can use long words too! – and then not explain what you mean! It's not fair, Doctor, it's… it's not fair," she finished, in a much smaller voice. She didn't know why she was so angry with him. She didn't feel angry. She felt… scared. Terrified. Apprehensive. The look on his face had worried her all evening. That face hadn't belonged to this Doctor. It was so grave and serious and strange… if she hadn't known better, she'd have said he was starting to regress and his regenerations were going haywire. The old Doctor used to say mysterious things and then not explain them. She'd thought that now they were on an even footing, that he'd explain whatever was going on.

She took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to shout."

The Doctor nodded, his expression extremely guarded. "You look tired. Go and get some sleep."

"I'm not a child." Rose jutted her chin out.

"I know. But you are tired." When Rose still didn't move the Doctor saw he was beaten and sighed heavily. "I'm sorry for what I said earlier, I didn't mean to scare you."

"You didn't, I'm fine," Rose insisted.

"Rose." The Doctor gave her a pointed look and she felt herself give way.

"Okay, maybe you did freak me out a bit." She shrugged. "But it's cool."

"No, it's not. I've worried you for no good reason. Look, it's probably just my extra sensory Time Lord powers going a bit crazy, I need to recharge my batteries or something," he teased. "You know what I'm like, can never just enjoy a pretty firework display, have to read something more into it…" He tailed off as he caught Rose's dubious look. "Not being that convincing, am I?" he pulled a face. "Okay then. What do you want me to say?"

Rose shrugged. "I don't know."

"Come on, ask me anything, I'll answer it truthfully. I guess I owe you for getting me out of the slight fix I was in earlier."

Rose hesitated. "Did you mean what you said? About the storm and… everything?" She willed him to say no, that he'd just been overreacting. She wished she could have believed his recent retraction of the statement but she knew him too well for that. Even before she'd finished asking the question, she knew the answer. And didn't want to hear him say it.

But say it he did. "Yes. I did."

"What do you think it is?"

"I never said you could ask two questions!" The attempt at joviality failed and his face fell again. "I don't know. That's the truth, Rose. I don't know."

Rose nodded and walked around the control panel thoughtfully, trailing her finger on the edge. She stopped and looked up. "Do you think it's anything to do with what that… thing said?"

He knew what she meant and struggled to deny it. Eventually he shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know that either."

Rose nodded again. He hadn't denied it. He'd hadn't told her what he had before. It lied. Maybe he didn't believe that anymore. Maybe he never had.

"I might go to bed now," she said abruptly.

The Doctor caught her arm. "Rose." He pulled her into a hug and then held her at arms length to look at her. "Rose, I promise you, this storm, this thing, whatever it is… we'll be ready. I won't let anything happen to you. I promise." He raised his eyebrows. "Feel better?"

Rose nodded, but slightly half-heartedly. The Doctor squeezed her tight to him again and mumbled into her hair. "We'll be fine. I won't let you out my sight."

He'd never broken a promise before. Whenever he'd said he'd get her out of somewhere, he had. Sort of. From the moment she'd put her hand in his, she'd trusted him with her life, and he'd never let her down, no matter how much it had looked like it at the time.

That first time he'd saved her, she hadn't even realised she needed rescuing. Running down that corridor, she'd wondered what she was doing. It was just students, nothing terrible. But he'd known it wasn't just students and she couldn't help thinking… well, why was he there when she needed him? Why had he found her?

He'd been willing to risk the world for her. She remembered that like it was yesterday. It was strange, all the things she'd seen, all the places she'd been… you'd have thought she would have forgotten some of it. But a single smell or taste or word could trigger off dozens of memories, as vividly as if they were showing on a screen in front of her. He'd hesitated for one moment, not wanting to risk her life to save everyone else's. "I could save the world… but lose you."

And more recently, in that black hole… she was almost certain he was upset to have let her down. "I promised Jackie I'd always take you home." Even when she'd tried consoling him, insisting it wasn't so bad, he'd remained in the same mood. All he'd wanted was to protect her. Why her? What was so special about her?

He'd do anything to look after her. This time would be no different.

Lyrics from "I'll be ready" aka... the Baywatch theme tune! Love it!