Chapter Fifteen

Slowly, a smile blossomed over Rose's full lips. "Yeah," she replied hesitantly. "It's me."

For a moment, they were the only two people in the universe. As if in a dream, Rose hesitantly approached the bed, half afraid he would fade away as he had nearly two years ago on the shores of Bad Wolf Bay. Silently, Jen slipped off of the edge of the bed to give Rose some space and her own reunion with the Doctor, but neither one of them noticed her sudden absence. They would have had to take their eyes from one another long enough to notice.

As Rose lowered herself onto the edge of the bed, the Doctor found his voice again. "How?" he asked, stunned. "You were in another dimension. And stuck. I couldn't get to you. How--?" He cut himself off and shifted an accusatory glance at Jen. "You didn't go punching a hole in the universe did you?"

Arms crossed over her chest and leaning against the wall, Jen looked mildly offended by the very idea. "Of course not!" she replied. "I wouldn't be that daft. I just found a way 'round it," she added, grinning proudly.

"Around it?" he asked. His mind seemed to process that for a moment. "Oh, right," he replied. A slow grin spread over his lips. "That's brilliant. You'll have to tell me how." Abruptly he turned his attention back to Rose. "But your mum!" he cried. "What about your mum? And your dad? And Mickey? And your baby… baby…" he paused. Suddenly it occurred to him that he had no idea if Rose had a baby sister or baby brother.

"Sister," Rose filled in, laughing. "Lilly. She's beautiful."

"Rose and Lilly," the Doctor mused, turning that over in his mind. Chuckling, he shook his head. "Your mother…" he began, and then stopped. "You'll never see her again! Rose, how could you leave her behind? And your dad! You've only just gotten him back!" He paused and turned a dark scowl toward Jen. "And you!" he went on. "You of all people should know not to take someone away from their family like that!"

Jen's hands flew to her hips. "Well what was I supposed to do? She wanted to come, and made a very good case for me taking her along." She frowned at him. "Ingrate. She travels through time and space, risking life, limb, and Jack's corny come-ons to be with you, and all you can do is complain."

"But—" the Doctor started to protest, but Rose gently silenced him by placing a finger over his lips.

"I made my choice a long time ago, and that didn't change. Circumstances changed, but my choice didn't." she began. "I've been with Mum, Dad, Mickey, and Lilly for all this time… but I wasn't really with them. I was only half there, because I left an important part here. With you."

"But you'll probably never see them again," he murmured, hesitantly bringing a hand up to rest on her cheek. Rose smiled. She could see his resolve crumbling.

"And they'll know I'm happy," she replied, reaching up to smooth back his hair.

He groaned softly and rested his forehead against hers. "You're impossible, I hope you know that." A smile began to turn up the corners of his lips. "But I am glad to see you."

Her smile broadened. "And I'm glad to be seen," she replied with a laugh.

"And on that note," Jen interrupted, chuckling, "I think I hear Jack coming back in, so I think I'll go see what he's turned up."

The Doctor chuckled and looked up at her. "Aw, don't want a good reunion with your ol' dad?" he asked.

She paused in the doorway and smiled gently at him. "We've got time," she replied, winking. "Now snog the girl and get it over with," she added, and slipped through the doorway.

"Did anyone ever tell you that you're impertinent?" he called after her, a blush creeping into his cheeks.

"Yes," she called back. "And it was usually followed up with 'You are soooo much like your father!'"

The Doctor couldn't help but laugh, but finally turned his gaze back to Rose. "I may not like that you're separated from your family," he said. "But I am glad to have you back." An odd light entered his eyes. "And… impertinent as she might be…" He hesitated, bringing both hands up to frame her face. "Jen does have some good ideas…"

Rose stopped him, resting her fingertips over his lips. "Wait," she said, suddenly. Her eyes locked onto his. "Finish saying it."

His brow furrowed in confusion. "Finish what?" he asked, his speech slightly muffled behind her fingers.

She lowered her fingers and looked him intently in the eye. "What you started to say before we were cut off on Bad Wolf Bay," she replied, firmly.

The Doctor closed his eyes and groaned. "Oh, Rose…" he started.

"Come on," she coaxed. "It wasn't your last chance to say it," she pointed out. "You have another. And I want to hear it," she added, pleadingly.

Moaning under the stiffness of his ribs and shoulder, the Doctor pushed himself to his feet. Being upright made him a little lightheaded, so he paused for a moment to allow the world to slow its rapid spinning. When all was right again, he turned to look at Rose. "But you know what I was going to say," he replied, reasonably.

"After all this, you still can't say it," she replied, a smile tugging at her lips.

"But you know!" he replied. "Didn't I face the Daleks to save your life? Do you remember our first date? When I held your hand at the end of the world? And how about the time that I rescued you from Satan himself, the Tardis and me pulling you out of that black hole? Huh? And have you forgotten how I absorbed the time vortex out of your body, nearly killing myself in the process? I even put up with your mother, and that's saying quite a bit."

"Rose," he went on, taking her by the hand. "Haven't I shown you in ten thousand different ways how I feel?"

"You still can't say it…" she observed, chuckling softly and touching his cheek. "You can face down the Daleks and Satan himself, but you can't say this. Why is this so hard for you to say?"

"Because everyone I have ever said it to before – everyone – is gone now," he replied, softly. "And it's much easier to face down a million Daleks and Satan himself than to face losing someone else that—" he broke off.

"Jen almost didn't bring me for that very reason," Rose replied, softly. "She was afraid that… one day when I…"

"Jen's got a very large heart and a good head on her shoulders," he replied. "And I can understand her hesitation."

Rose remained silent for several moments. Finally, she reached up and once again pushed the hair back off of his forehead. "Just because you don't say it doesn't make it any less true," she said, softly. "You just said that you've shown me in hundreds of different ways, so I know that it's true just as much as you do, deep down." She smiled, softly. "And I can go on forever knowing that it's true. But once – just once – I want to hear it. So that I know I didn't come all this way for nothing."

Silence hung between them for several heartbeats. The Doctor, by this time, had leaned against the wall behind him for support, Rose only a breath away from him. She was asking the most difficult thing in the world of him, and at the same time the simplest thing in the world. Finally, he ran his tongue over his lips, cupped her face in his hands, and looked intently into her eyes. "Rose Tyler," he said, his voice as rough and emotional as it had been on Bad Wolf Bay. "I love you."

Her face lit up as bright as if she'd experienced ten Christmases. Without hesitation, she leaned forward and captured his lips with hers. The Doctor was momentarily startled by the sudden nature of it, but finally sighed with pleasure and gave into the kiss, allowing his fingers to slide back and tangle in the sunny, blonde hair that he'd missed so much.

She'd kissed him before – in a manner of speaking. The first time he'd kissed her to save her life when he'd absorbed the time vortex from her. The second time had been when Cassandra had gained control of her body. But this was different. This was real. This was her, and him, and nothing between them but the beating of their hearts – all three of them – against one another.

When they finally pulled apart, the Doctor smiled tenderly into her eyes. "Welcome home, Rose Tyler," he murmured.

Outside the room, Jen and Jack leaned against the wall next to the door, both intently listening to the goings on inside. "Think they'll be alright?" Jack whispered, grinning at Jen.

She chuckled under her breath. "Oh, yeah, they'll be fine," she whispered back. "They just need a good kick in the right direction every once in a while, I expect."

"Good thing they have us around to kick 'em then," Jack replied, grinning. He took a quick peek into the room and grinned. "I think they're doing alright for now," he said, chuckling.

"Then let's give them some real privacy," Jen suggested. She looped her hand through his arm. "Come on, Captain Harkness," she said, airily. "Let's have a cup of tea, and you can share with me what you've found."