XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Chapter 24 - And the Years Go By

After they were done eating breakfast. Pete went upstairs to lay down for a few minutes and Howie had been called away on a phone call. Harriet was chatting with Jacob and Tony as they ate their breakfasts, while Rose in a stool, facing the Doctor. Caroline had just finished trimming his hair.

It looked wonderful, just like Rose had told him it would. Caroline was a very talented hair dresser. She ran some gel through it and it was standing up the way he liked it best. Rose thought that he looked even more handsome than she had ever seen him. Even though he had an impressive amount of stubble grown on his face.

As he stood up and rubbed his neck, Caroline asked him, "Are you growing a beard, Doctor?"

He rubbed his stubble and replied, "You know, I've thought about it. It seems to grow faster in the past month than it ever has. I don't know. What do you think, Rose? Me with a beard? I've never had a beard before."

Rose shrugged her shoulders. "Your face, mate. Do what makes you happy. Doesn't matter to me."

"It would help hide you and Miss Tyler." Shakes told him as he walked in the room. "Might be a good idea, Doctor."

"Hey, Shakes! How are you?" the Doctor turned to shake his hand.

"Very well, sir. I wondered if we could have a quick word?" Shakes asked him.

"Of course." The Doctor said, "Thank you, Caroline. I've never been happier with a haircut, ma'am."

The Doctor walked out of the room with Shakes to the back porch. When they were alone, the Doctor asked him if he had heard from Jake.

"Yes. He returned safely to Torchwood. The incident where the woman was killed in jail was not related to the situation with Miss Tyler."

"Ah, we sort of figured that." he excused.

"Us leaving to go to New York today has me concerned a bit." Shakes told him.

"How's that?"

"With Pete going to New York, it might be assumed you and Miss Tyler will be going as well. I think we need to probably do something in order to make people think you are someplace else."

"I see your point. Hmm... ah! We are supposed to still be on a cruise, tell people that's where we are. Harriet had one of her aids take a picture of us that first night we were dining together. I'll ask her for it. Will that work?"

"Perfectly. Good idea." Shakes told him.

"Is Jackie really okay? This flu story sounds made up to me. More of Pete's secrets?"

"No, it's true. Pete has a woman hired to stay with her and take care of her. She's doing better today than she has been."

"Hmmmm... whoever thought I'd be spying on Jackie Tyler?" the Doctor realized.

"What would you like to do while we are in New York?" Shakes asked him.

"I'd like to take Rose to the Empire State Building tonight. Can we do that?"

"Of course. She has an activity for you tomorrow night."

"Oh that's right. You are in on my surprise. I don't suppose you will tell me what it is?"

Shakes shook his head. "No. But I believe it will be very enjoyable. I'm personally looking forward to it."

"Anything you and your men want to do while we are there?" the Doctor asked Shakes.

"I appreciate you asking, sir. I think I would like to see Ground Zero. Where the World Trade Center was."

"That happened here in this dimension, too?" he asked.

"It did." Shakes told him.

"Okay, let's plan for that tomorrow as well. I better go see if Rose needs any help. Thank you, Shakes."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Howie had Tony, Jacob, Harriet and Caroline all on horses when they were leaving. Tony had insisted the Doctor ride the horse with him for a few moments. The Doctor swung up on the horse and sat Tony in front of him so he could see where they were riding. He was such a tiny little boy, he could almost fit into the saddle with the Doctor.

Rose laughed at them both. The Doctor was very happy to have use of both of his hands again. He used one to hold onto Tony, and the other one for the horse's reins. Rose laughed at the pair of them and used her phone to take their picture together on the horse. Tony beamed as 'his brother' talked the horse into tapping his foot. Howie was impressed.

The Doctor stood up in the saddle, and moved Tony into it. He jumped down, and handed the boy the reins.

"I'll see you in a few days. Have a good time with Jacob. Call me if you need me." the Doctor told Tony.

Tony leaned down from the horse and kissed the Doctor on the forehead. Rose was thrilled she still had her phone's camera ready. She got the perfect picture of the moment.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

They left for New York City in the same helicopter that they had came from the cruise ship with. It took a surprisingly short period of time to get to New York City. The Doctor really wanted to confront Pete for keeping secrets from him, but couldn't with Rose riding with him. There would be the right time to do that. It just wasn't now. He took the time they were flying to read some of Sarah Jane's history books that Rose had gotten him. He couldn't help but smile as he heard Sarah Jane's voice in all of the words. Rose must have noticed him smiling. She lay her hand on his thigh and squeezed it. He took her hand and kissed it. Pete noticed and smiled.

She was wearing a dark blue skirt with an ivory blouse and tan wool jacket. She looked lovely. The Doctor was back in his new usual clothing which was his jeans, t-shirt with an oxford shirt. He was also wearing a jacket from one of his suits.

Once they landed in New York City, they were put into a limo and taken into the city. Pete was dropped off at his meeting first. He kissed Rose good-bye and shook the Doctor's hand.

Then, the driver took them to their high-rise hotel in Manhattan. They had the penthouse. There was a huge sitting room with a view of the Empire State Building that was breath-taking. The room was mostly taken up with a huge U-shaped sofa. It was probably big enough for twelve people.

Rose made herself and the Doctor a cup of tea as they stood in the living room relaxing and enjoying the view. She had both taken off their jackets.

"New York City. The City that never sleeps." the Doctor began as he drank his tea. "Have you ever been here before, Rose?"

"No, I've always wanted to come. But, just hadn't made it. I remember New New York that we went to."

The Doctor's face broke into a wide grin. "With the apple grass. That was the first place we went together when I got this face, wasn't it?"

"Yes. It was. With that crazy Cassandra!" Rose laughed.

He laughed. "Yes. I remember her."

Rose sat down her tea glass and walked over to wrap her arms around the Doctor.

"This will be the first time I'm here with a beard. Gosh. I can't believe I'm growing a beard!"

"You and your beard." Rose smiled. "Are you sure you have never had a beard?"

"No. Not that I can remember. I might have though. You forget a lot when you are as old as me."

Rose remembered him telling her about being stuck on the moon for 450 million years. She wondered if that was true or not. When he told her, she was sure he was joking. But after she had thought about it more, she wondered.

"I have a question." she told him as she sat down on the huge couch.

"Yes, ma'am." he replied as he came and sat next to her. He sat his tea mug next to hers on the coffee table.

"How old were you when left Gallifrey?" Rose asked him.

"Why?" he asked her with a serious look on his face.

"Just curious. You've never said."

"Well, which time? I went back." he asked her smiling.

Rose sensing he was trying to wiggle out of answering her question, "The first time. The very first time."

He lay down on the couch dramatically. "Geez. Let me think. 200 and something. 236, I think. Why?"

She lay down on top of him and kissed his lips. "I just wondered. You never had told me."

Sensing there was more to this than she was letting on, he wrapped his arms around her. She began to give him a wonderful, wet kiss that made his hair stand on end. He ran his hands down her back and under her shirt.

She stopped and looked at him.

"Why are you so suspicious?" She asked him.

He lay back on the couch and exhaled. "Damn, I forget you can feel that when our skin is touching. It was just out of the blue. We were talking about New York, then you are asking me that. It was just strange. Honestly, why did you ask me?"

"You said something strange last night. That's what made me wonder."

He raised back up on the couch and looked her in the face very seriously. "What did I say? Who heard it?"

"Just me. You were talking about when you left Gallifrey. You said you crashed on the moon and something broke on the TARDIS and you were frozen for a very long time."

"How long did I say?"

"450 million years?" Rose offered.

"Oh, it was that time." he said as he ran his hand through his hair. "And I crashed in the moon. Not on it."

"That time?" Rose asked him. "It happened more than once?"

He suddenly looked very surprised. "I told you about that? Really? Why? What was I even talking about?"

Rose suddenly felt embarrassed and wished she hadn't brought it up. She covered up her face with both of her hands.

"We really don't have to talk about it." she told him.

He pulled her hands down from her face and moved closer to her. "No, it's okay. I'm not mad. If I didn't want to you know, I wouldn't have told you. Just, what did I tell you?"

"If you were frozen for 450 million years, how can you be 906? Or whatever?" she asked him.

He looked away from her. "Damn. I should have known you would figure that out." He said as he patted her leg.

He ran his hand through his hair. "Do you really want to know this? It's weird. I don't want you to see me any differently."

"I don't know. I want to know, but I feel like I've sortof over stepped a line or something."

He shook his head at her. "No, sweetheart. If I didn't want you to know. I wouldn't have told you. I just don't know what I told you."

He lay his arm on the back of the couch and sighed. He brought his other hand up and ran it through his hair again. "I've really got to stop drinking that damn whiskey. Well. Blimey. Where do I start?"

He rested his hand back on the inside of her thigh. "Well, I left Gallifrey and I was 236. That's the last time I could tell you how old I really was. As soon as I got into the TARDIS, I just lost count. You've time traveled. You know how it is. It's not like you have a normal day. You're not marking a calendar. I was extremely old when I first regenerated. I died of old age. Which is a feat for a Time Lord let me tell you."

"But, 450 million years?"

"Yeah, I don't count it. I wasn't living. I don't even remember anything during that time. So, I really wasn't living. It doesn't count." he shrugged his shoulders.

He continued, "People always ask me how old I am. Age a big deal with beings who live in a linear time. The fact is, I have no idea. None at all. I used to have some idea, but...well...honestly no didn't either."

"When I regenerated the eight time, I just gave up and started over. Then the Time War happened. If you died, you could be brought back to fight again. It is weird. Is this too weird?"

Rose looked at him. "No. It's okay. Was you ever brought back?"

"I couldn't tell you if I was."

"Couldn't or wouldn't?"

"Yeah." the Doctor agreed.

Rose shook her head. Jell-o to a tree again. "When your Mum asked me how old I was when I brought you back that time, I knew I would have to come up with something. So, I picked 900. It was old enough, but not too ancient. I've told people that for a very long time now."

"So, how long have we even been apart, then? For you?" she asked him.

He rose his hand to his hair, "I have absolutely no idea. You told me four years, so I went with that. It feels like a lot longer for me, but I have no way of knowing."

Seeing her face, he grabbed her hand. "Is this okay? Or is this too weird?"

"You act like that time on the moon wasn't the first time something like that had happened."

"It wasn't." he said as he rubbed his hand though his hair. "There were several incidents similar to that."

Rose looked at him. "You are really ancient."

He laughed, "I really am. Didn't I tell you I was an old man? And now, I'm in the last act. No regeneration. Just a quick, human life. Over in a flash."

Rose looked concerned. "Oh, don't talk about it like that. That sounds horrible."

"But, you will live on. Trust me, it's not what people would make it out to be. You will forget a lot of what happens. You will remember the strangest things at the strangest times. Smells bring back memories from thousands of years ago. Songs bring back emotions that you thought you had buried."

"I don't want to talk about this." Rose told him as she shook her head.

"We need to talk about this Rose. I won't always be here with you. I have no idea how long you will live on after I've gone. There are things you really should know about this."

A tear rolled down Rose's cheek.

The Doctor continued. "The best advice I can tell you is to know who you are. Make a promise of the purpose of your life. Remind yourself of it as often as you can."

Rose was crying softly now. "I don't know who I am without you. What will I do when you're gone?"

He held her in his arms. "I'm not leaving anytime soon. But, we do need to talk about these things. This is our reality now. I can spend the rest of my life with you, but you can't spend the rest of your life with me."

Tears continued to roll down Rose's cheeks. The Doctor wiped them away.

"Then, let's have the best go we can at it." She said as smiled painfully at him.

He put his hands on both sides of her face. "That's my plan. I love you."

He kissed her quickly on the lips. They broke apart and he pulled her into an embrace and held her close.

"It's a lot to take in, huh? That's why I never explained it to you before. Plus, I don't think it really matters. It is just a number. A very unknown number in my case."

Rose looked up in his eyes. " I'm sortof glad I asked now."

"You don't see me any different do you?" She could feel his worry.

"I might love you more." she told him as she turned to face him.

"Really?" he asked with a high pitched voice as he smiled.

"Yeah, you tell me that you love me all through time. Knowing how much of time you have really seen makes that mean so much more."

"And I do, my Nehyta." he told her as he cupped her face with his hands and pulled her in for a kiss.

Their tongues danced together as he lay back down on the couch. Rose lay down on top of him. He ran his hands back up shirt to unfasten her bra. He then brought his hands around to massage her breasts.

'I'm so glad I'm done with that cast.' he told her in her head.

'I'm enjoying it, too.' she told him.

He smiled under her kisses.

'I think I like the idea of you having a beard.' she told him.

'It will be interesting.'

They enjoyed a perfectly wonderful snog as they lay on the couch. It was beginning to reach the point of clothing being removed when there was a knock at the door.

Rose and the Doctor broke apart. The Doctor said something in a language Rose didn't catch. She did identify it as a complaint. His lips were swollen and hair looked crazy because Rose had been running her hands through it just moments earlier.

"Oh, shit. This better be damn important." the Doctor continued to complained under his breath. He stood up and ran his hands through his hair and tuck his shirt back in. Rose laughed at how disheveled she had made him in such a short period of time.

Rose buttoned back up her shirt and went to the bathroom.

Shakes was at the door. The Doctor stepped out into the hallway and closed the door. "Hey Shakes. Everything alright?"

"Jake has called to tell you that there was an incident of a shooting on a cruise ship of a female matching Rose's description an hour ago."

The Doctor ran his hand through his hair. "Well, they bought our cover story. At least we know that is working still. That's good news."

"Do you still want to take Miss Tyler to see the Empire State Building tonight?" Shakes asked him.

"Yes. If you think it will be alright." the Doctor inquired.

"There's no reason to think it won't be. It will be cold. Have her wear something to cover her hair. I believe it will be safe. We'll be ready to go in three hours."

The Doctor patted Shakes on the back. "Thanks Shakes."

The Doctor returned back into the penthouse. "Rose..." he called out.

"I'm in here." she called from the bedroom.

He smiled as he headed to the bedroom. "Reminds me of old times when you would wander off, woman. What are you doing?"

He came into the bedroom to find her laying on the bed wearing some of the lingerie she had purchased before they left London. "I seem to have neglected giving you a show that I had promised you, my Doctor."

He shut the door behind him. He ran his hand through his hair and said something in an language Rose didn't understand as he stood there and ran his eyes down the scene in front of him. He couldn't help that his brain had completely shorted out. He couldn't even move from where he stood.

Rose got off of the bed and walked over to him. She smiled at him with her tongue in her teeth. "Surprised, old man?"

He answered her in a language she couldn't understand.

She laughed at him as she pulled him in for a racy kiss. Her tongue danced with his. He started to come back to his senses and put his arms around her waist. He picked her up, causing her to let out a little squeak. He took her over to the bed and lay down on top of her. They continued their sensual kissing.

'So, do you like this one?' she asked him in his head.

'Oh yes. I like what's in it better.'

'Do you want to see another one?'

He pulled his head back from her and looked shocked.

She reminded him, "Remember, you said you wanted to pick your favorite. I have several."

He didn't say anything. He couldn't think. His brain was completely blank.

"Ugh." was all he could manage.

"Stay here. I'll be back." she told him as she got up off the bed and went back into the bathroom and closed the door. He was certain she was laughing at him.

He lay back on the bed, propped up on his elbows. "You know, this is America. They have this thing here called a Constitution. This is a violation of the eight amendment. I'm sure this could be deemed, 'cruel and unusual punishment.'

She laughed at him from behind the door. "Well, there's a problem with that."

"What's that?" he smiled.

"You're not an American." She told him as she came out of the bathroom with another piece of lingerie that was possibility more revealing that the first one she had on. Granted, he still couldn't see anything. It was like she was teasing him with her body. She was doing an excellent job at it, too. He couldn't think again. He smiled and said something "matter of factly" to her in a language she couldn't understand.

She laughed at him. "You are hysterical right now. I should have done this long ago."

"Why?" he smiled as she climbed on top of him on the bed.

"You should hear yourself." she chuckled.

"You should see yourself!" he exclaimed. "Damn. I...ugh."

She laughed at him and she lay down and started to kiss him again. The familiar touch helped his brain start to think again. He ran his hands down her back and under her top. He went down to her where her knickers usually would be and found a very thin thong.

He moaned under her.

'Do you want me to try on another one, sweetheart?' she asked him in his head.

'No. This one is about to end up on the floor.' he told her.

She raised up and unbuttoned his shirt and he unbuttoned his jeans and tossed them onto the floor. He was only in his t-shirt and pants now. He rolled her over and continued kissing her as he ran his hands down her body.

She took off his shirt and threw it across the room. She palmed him through his pants.

'Oh god, I need you so badly right now.' she moaned in his head.

'This lingerie stuff is amazing.'

He broke apart and asked her, "How many more pieces of this stuff do you have?"

'I think about eight more.' she told him in his head.

He started kissing her again as he moaned. 'I don't think I could have made it through one more moment. I can't even think seeing you wearing that.'

She smiled under his kisses as she pulled his pants down to expose him. She grabbed and put him inside of her. He thrust up inside of her.

'Did you even take any of that off?' he asked her in her head.

'No, I just slid it over. It's is alright?'

'I don't even notice it. I love this stuff.'

She could feel his lust stronger than anything else at the moment. He stroked slowly inside of her as he found that he could move the fabric of the top easily to get to the nipples of her breasts to suck them. It only made him harder.

She moaned loudly.

'You are hitting all of the right spots. Keep going.' she encouraged him.

He moaned her name and said words in some strange language.

'I know something that will make this even better.' she told him.

'It couldn't get better, sweetheart. This is the best.' he assured her.

Then, as if someone had turned on a radio in his head, he heard the song by Gary Jules, 'I Want You to Want Me' began playing in his head.

'Okay, yeah...that's better.' he agreed as he chuckled as he returned to kissing her mouth.

As the song ended, the Doctor finished up inside of Rose. He raised up, kissed her on the end of the nose and said, "I do want you. Always, and forever."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx