"Alex?" The Doctor called almost hesitantly, knocking on the door. He looked over the gold cursive of her name as he waited.

"Come in" She called softly, followed by a laugh. He stepped in, closing the door behind him as he took in the appearance of the room. The stars shone brightly on her ceiling but some seemed to darken for a moment, as if something was blocking them, before they returned. It took him a moment to realise that was exactly the case. Alex was lying on her back looking up but turned over to watch as Amity climbed down the wall and stopped on the bed in front of her.

"How can I help you?" She asked with a grin, stroking the metal of Amity's head.

"I need to talk to you about something" He said slowly. Alex frowned at his serious tone, sitting up.

"Sleep Amity" She ordered, looking down at the creature. He promptly scurried back onto her desk, climbing into the metal semi-sphere there and it closed behind him. She turned her attention back to the Doctor, moving to sit against the bedhead as she patted the covers beside her. He moved to sit but sat in the middle of the bed instead of where she had gestured, facing her.

"The other day, I mean, you said, but, oh I'm not sure how to say this" He stumbled, looking lost. Alex sat forward with a concerned frown.

"Just say it" She urged. "Go ahead" He took a deep breath before reaching into his pocket, pulling out the pocket watch from her box. Alex looked down at it and back up at him.

"I told you, it's-"

"Just a prop, so you said" The Doctor interrupted, speaking quickly. "But you also said five sonic screwdrivers, sonic blaster, tell me, where are those?"

"Well, they're…" She trailed off, realising she hadn't seen any of her collection in weeks.

"Exactly" He nodded. "See, they were props, so they didn't belong in this world, they're not here"

"So if it's not a prop…" Alex realised, her eyes widening. The Doctor nodded enthusiastically. "Well is there someone in there? I mean, wouldn't you be able to feel it?"

"Yes" He said simply.

"Yes to which one?"

"Yes"

She looked back down at the watch in shock and he moved to pass it to her. Alex quickly scrambled off the bed, backing away.

"How do you know it's mine?" She asked, her excitement gone. He frowned at her.

"It was found with your things" He said simply.

"Maybe someone lost it, maybe it just got caught up with my stuff, I don't know" She tried, speaking louder and louder.

"Alex, whoever this belonged to would never let it go, they'd know, somewhere in their subconscious that it was important to never lose it" He explained gently, standing from the bed. He held it out to her again. "If you'd just hold it-

"No!" She cut him off, moving so the bed was between them.

"Alex, what's wrong?" He asked, looking between her and the object in his hand.

"If that's mine, then that means… that means I don't exist" She told him quietly. His eyes widened in realisation. "It means I'm not real. But I can't be" He didn't respond. "I'm real!" She insisted loudly.

"Okay" He told her, holding his hands up in surrender. "You don't have to open it if you don't want to, I certainly won't force you" She nodded slowly, watching him for another moment before she decided she trusted him enough to slide back onto the bed. She sat against the bedhead like she had before, her arms wrapped around her legs with her knees under her chin as she stared blankly at the wall. The Doctor frowned in concern, sitting on the edge of the bed but keeping his distance.

"Alex, it's okay" He assured her. "I don't think you're not real. You still matter" She looked at him.

"Do you know who it is?" She asked quietly. He looked down at the watch.

"No idea" He admitted. "Whoever it is, they're hiding from me. Obviously they know who I am, but that doesn't narrow it down at all" Alex simply nodded, going back to staring at the wall. A minute of silence passed between the two before she broke it again.

"If I hold it, it might be able to talk to me, yeah?" She asked. He looked over at her.

"Yeah" He responded just as quietly.

"And when I put it down I'll still be me?"

"Yeah" He nodded, hopeful. Alex gave a small nod, holding out her hand silently. The Doctor watched her closely, looking for any sign she wanted to back out. Seeing nothing, he slowly placed the watch in her hands. She stared at the object intensely.

"I don't thi-" She cut herself off with a gasp, jumping away from him and ending up on the floor. He moved to see she was alright but stopped himself from calling her name. She looked around with wide eyes, backing up against the wall.

"Hey, hey it's okay" He said softly, slipping off the bed slowly to crouch in front of her. "It's okay, the war is over. You're safe" Her eyes locked on his and it almost looked as if she'd stopped breathing.

"Theta?"

He froze and in that moment she gasped and the watch fell from her grip. Alex was sitting in front of him again, breathing quickly and looking down at the watch. It took him a moment to react, helping her up and over to the bed as she calmed her breathing. He looked down at the gold watch before picking it up and turning it over to trace the Gallifreyan symbols engraved in it.

"She knew you" Alex said softly. Making him turn. She was staring at him. "She was scared, last thing she had seen was the war, fighting" The Doctor watched her with wide eyes. "Who was she?" She asked hesitantly. He looked down at the watch again. "Doctor?" He moved slowly, placing the watch on the far side of her bedside table before climbing onto the bed to hug her tightly. She was shaking, he noticed.

"I don't know" He admitted, looking over her shoulder at the offending object. "And I really don't like not knowing"