As they walked back to the TARDIS, Rose rejoiced in feeling the Doctor's hand in hers. She felt like this was where she belonged, beside him, hand in hand.

He pulled her close to him and put an arm around her shoulders. "You, Rose Tyler, need to stop being so jeopardy-friendly."

"OY!" She playfully elbowed him in the ribs.

So, it shocked the hell out of her when he went down on one knee and then toppled over, holding his ribs. "Doctor!"

Sam and Daniel heard her shout. They had decided to walk in the park and talk instead of braving the crowds at O'Malley's. They broke into a run.

When they reached Rose, the Doctor was on the ground and Rose was on her knees beside him, crying, but afraid to touch him.

"What happened?" Sam asked as they stopped next to her.

"We were joking around, yeah? I hit him. Not hard though. Not hard."

"Doctor, can you tell me what's wrong?" Sam asked.

"Ribs cracked," he rasped. He couldn't remember pain like this, actual physical pain that is, since the bunker in Utah.

"We need to get him to a hospital."

"You can't!" Rose's declaration startled the two but they nodded.

"My house then. I might be able to help him there."

"What?"

"Dad left me a healing device after the whole Alpha site fiasco. He said it would be a good idea to keep it close and not let anyone know. That way I would have it 'when' I needed it. He seemed to think that I was more than a little jeopardy-friendly."

"You have to admit, Sam. That year saw you in more trouble than the rest of us."

"Help him!" Rose cried. Sam and Daniel broke off their playful banter for the moment and pulled the Doctor to his feet. They started off across the park toward Sam's house, just hoping that no one would stop them.

Meanwhile, Rose was right behind them, hoping that these people really could help her Doctor.


Daniel helped to lay the Doctor on the bed in Sam's spare room. Then, Sam went and got the healing device her father had left her.

Both Daniel and Rose saw the tears in her eyes. Only Daniel understood the pain that Sam went through every time she mentioned her father, which wasn't as often as it should be.

As Sam began using the device, Rose watched in amazement. "What is that?"

"It's a device we picked up from some friends of ours. It heals people."

"How?"

"We don't really know just yet. But we're trying to figure it out."

About 30 minutes later, Sam's hands fell to her sides. Daniel steered his friend to a chair in the room when he noticed her swaying. "Are you alright, Sam?"

"Just tired now, Daniel. That takes a lot out of a person." She looked up at Rose. "So are you an alien too?"

The look of surprise on Rose's face made Sam smile and dip her head before explaining herself.

"First off, you didn't want him to go to a hospital. That could have been explained one of two ways. Either he's a wanted criminal or an alien. Second, it's kind of hard to miss two heartbeats when using the device."

"I haven't been traveling with him long. Yeah, he's an alien. I'm just a human though." She looked over at him and smiled almost sadly. "Or, as he sometimes says, stupid ape. When he gets frustrated he tends to insult humans as a species."

Her look grew a little distant as she went on. "He's always so worried about me. So protective. He just doesn't understand. I want him safe. My doctor." For a moment, Rose stood there as she looked at the Doctor with a gold tint to her eyes. Suddenly, she looked back at Sam. "We look out for each other, yeah?"

Rose was asleep in the chair beside the bed and the Doctor on the bed when Teal'c knocked at the door. The three friends sat down in the living room to watch a movie, figuring that Sam's guests would be resting quietly for a few hours yet.

They couldn't have been more wrong.