"Zeppelins. Why did it have to be zeppelins?" The Doctor asked, leaning out the window.
"You only got one life now, Alien Boy. You better not lose that and break my daughter's heart," Jackie said, pulling him in.
"All right. No need for grabbing," the Doctor complained, rubbing his arm. "Blimey, your mother can yank."
Rose smirked.
"You're telling me."
She picked up his arm, and brushed her lips over it.
"Better?" she asked innocently.
His eyes went wide. He was easier to read than he had been as a Time Lord.
"Much," his voice came out as a squeak. He cleared his throat. "Much better, thank you. Rose Tyler, where did you learn to be a tease?"
Rose smiled mysteriously.
"Wouldn't you like to know."
The Doctor shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Rose could tell that all this sitting still was driving him mad. He was used to running around and causing trouble. She knew a certain amount of restlessness was to be expected. But he had to get used to human limitations now.
An idea came to her and she stood up.
"You wanna walk around with me, Doctor?"
The Doctor jumped up, seeming relieved.
"Yeah sure. Let's go!"
"Well don't get into trouble, yeah?" Jackie said sternly.
The Doctor rolled his eyes.
"Jackie. I am nearly a thousand years old. I think I can handle things."
"You're not any more, Mister. Besides, trouble follows you everywhere, and I don't want Rose disappearing into alternate universes or anything like that."
"Oy! She did that on her own!" the Doctor argued.
"Wherever you go, trouble comes too," Jackie snapped back.
"Can't argue with that," Rose said, cutting in between the two of them. She pulled at the Doctor's arm.
They linked arms, and strolled away down the car.
"It's just like being in an airplane," the Doctor said, sounding interested. "I've been wondering what makes these zeppelins go, since it can't be hydrogen. Waaaaay to explosive, hydrogen. Could go up in flames any time like the Hindenburg. Mind you, the Hindenburg was not my fault. I was trying to prevent the Scoosh from taking over the earth, and fwoom! Up the whole thing went. Now there's a question. Why does everyone want to take over the Earth? Tiny little planet in the middle of nowhere…"
"Oy! You live there now!" Rose interrupted, laughing. "You are like that Donna girl," she grumbled. "You don't know when to shut up."
--
"London. Thank God!" Jackie exclaimed. Personally, Rose thought the same. Being stuck in a Zeppelin with a hyperactive half Time Lord was not fun.
The Doctor was leaning out the window again.
"It's beautiful from up here!" he exclaimed. Rose raised her eyebrow.
"Haven't you seen London a thousand times from the air?" she asked.
He shook his head, not taking his eyes from the scene below.
"Never had the time. And besides, the TARDIS just sort of materializes from one place to another. It really does very little actual flying."
He paused, and looked down at Rose, who had tucked herself under his arm.
"Time. It's funny. When I was the lord of time I never had enough of it. And now I only have one life. And I feel like I have all the time in the world. And I could do anything with it!"
"Let me guess, you want to become a pilot, so you can fly over London all the time…?" Rose teased.
The Doctor wrinkled his nose.
"Not exactly. I was thinking more along the lines of doing things I've never done."
"Are there things you've never done?" Rose asked, curious.
"Sure there are! Weeeeell… I've done most things. But maybe they'll be different in your universe. And maybe this universe doesn't need saving all the time. So we could just relax, and you know… do things together. I've done most things, but never done them with you."
Rose beamed. That was the nicest thing he could have said.
"I can't wait," she told him.
--
Rose tried going to sleep in a dozen different positions. Every time, something kept her awake. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was happening to the Doctor, if he wasn't right in front of her. Rationally, she knew he was in the next room, but she was still fighting the urge to run into his room and check on him.
"He's human now. He needs sleep," she lectured herself, turning over. But the feeling grew and grew. Suddenly, she knew she had to see him right away. What if he wasn't there? What if something had happened to him and he had vanished? What if it had all been some sort of dream?
Pushing the blankets off of her, she forced herself to walk calmly out of her room. The light from the hallway nearly blinded her, and she stumbled into something solid.
"Rose?" asked a voice.
She squinted in the light.
"Doctor? What're you doing right outside my door?"
"What're you doing leaving it in the middle of the night?" he asked.
Rose sighed.
"I was… I was going to check on you. To see if you were still there. I keep thinking maybe it was a dream, or something will happen to you."
The Doctor drew Rose into his arms, and held her securely. Rose buried her nose in the flannel of one of Pete's pajamas.
"I keep thinking the same thing. I don't want to let you out of my sight. Not ever."
Rose nodded.
"Stay with me?" she whispered. "I won't be able to sleep otherwise."
The Doctor nodded, and allowed himself to be drawn into her room. He lay down on the bed, and Rose curled into him, pulling the blankets over the both.
"Nice jam-jams," he whispered to Rose, smirking.
She grinned.
"Thanks. Dragons and castles are my favorite. You've gone some pretty spiffy PJs yourself."
"Yeeeeep. Pete's got taste, that's one thing I'll say for him."
The Doctor and Rose shared a smile. Suddenly, the Doctor let out an ear-splitting yawn.
"I don't think I've ever been so tired!" he exclaimed.
"That's cos you're human now. Your body needs rest every night. Like the rest of us," Rose explained, but the Doctor already had his eyes closed.
"It won't be so bad, if you're here to fall asleep with," he said sleepily.
Rose cuddled up to him, and put her head on his chest while his arms went around her. She closed her eyes and listened to his single heart beat until she fell fast asleep.
--
Rose was awakened by a sudden whack across the head.
"Oww!" she complained, opening her eyes and rubbing her forehead.
It was still dark. Beside her, the Doctor thrashed out again.
"Doctor! Doctor, wake up!" Rose said, shaking him.
He started, and his eyes flew open.
"Rose. You're here."
The relief in his eyes was evident. He pulled her to him.
"I was dreaming. I dreamed you were pulled away from me. That you were on the other side if the ghost chamber wall, and I couldn't get to you. I dreamed…" but here his voice failed him.
Rose stroked his tousled hair as she would a child.
"It's ok. It's all over now. Just a dream, nothing more. I'm right here."
The front of Rose's shirt grew damp as the Doctor buried his face there.
"I killed them, Rose. A whole race. Genocide."
Now Rose saw what he had been dreaming of.
"Look at me," Rose commanded.
The Doctor lifted his face, damp with tears and contorted by fear and anger.
"They were evil. They would have destroyed the whole universe. Thousands of universes. You saved everyone. That is nothing to be ashamed of."
"But I did it again," The Doctor said, his face crumpling. "I killed a whole race again."
Rose held him close.
"It's not your fault. You did the right thing," she repeated.
"Davros was right. I fashion weapons out of those I'm around. I'm not safe around anyone. Look what I did to Martha, to Sarah Jane, to you."
Rose shook her head emphatically.
"No. We chose to do those things because we care about you. I chose to come across the universes because I needed to be with you." She rubbed soothing circles on his back. "It was just a dream." Her lips found his and she kissed him gently. He held on to her as if his life depended on it.
"Don't ever leave me, Rose Tyler," he whispered. "Without you, I could not live."
"No chance of that," Rose whispered back. "Even when you do hit me."
"Did I hurt you?" he asked, suddenly all guilty concern. "Maybe I should go back to my own bed."
Rose caught his arm and pulled him back.
"When you have nightmares like that? No chance. You're staying here where I can keep an eye on you and make sure you're alright."
"But what if I hit you again?" he asked, sounding conscious-stricken at the thought.
"I've had a lot worse travelling with you," she reminded him. "Besides, you need your sleep."
"Who's the doctor now?" the Doctor asked.
Rose smiled, and felt his arms tighten around her.
"That depends on who you ask," she answered.
Author's Note: So, was I the only one who found that kiss on Youtube and watched it over and over again? (looks guilty) Yeah, totally fluffy. But it's going to be hard for the Doctor to adapt to living on Earth, living with Rose, and being broken all over again. He has so much more learning to do!
Thank you to everyone who reviewed the first chapter of this! I had 20 reviews, by far the most I have ever gotten for a single chapter. I was so surprised! I had no idea at people liking this so very much! It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy and want to write more of this story right away when I get reviews like that!