A/N: In which Rose and the Doctor get to know each other further.
There is a brief mention of abortions and unplanned pregnancies in this chapter.

The week came and went faster than Rose would have thought possible. It was lovely having a little time to herself, although she did spend one day home with Jack so they could talk about what taking the new job would mean. He had been a little unhappy with the idea at first, but as soon as Rose told him that she no longer had to work in the weekend he warmed up to it. Rose had also promised him that if it came to a point where she had to choose between him and her job, she would always chose him and would just find another job.

Jack had talked about his class' trip to the museum the entire week, going on about everything that he had seen (he was particularly impressed by a stegosaurus skeleton, asking her several times if they could go there together so he could show her.)

Rose hadn't really known what to do with all the extra time at first, but by coincidence she stumbled upon some old photo albums, and spent an entire day looking through them. After that she had gone searching for other old memories, and she found most of her old school books, and the books that she and John had read together boxed up, and spend her nights looking through them.

On the following Monday, Rose was standing outside the Gallifrey Enterprise building, nervously running her hands through her hair to try and smooth it out a bit. Her palms felt sweaty as she stepped inside. The foyer was spacious and the skylights made it feel even bigger. It took a few moments for her eyes to get used to the lights. It was more than twenty degrees Celsius outside, and the cool air of the air conditioning enveloped her as soon as the doors had closed, making her a little more comfortable. She looked around at the people making their way to work, chattering lightly with their friends and colleagues. She quickly noticed that none of them looked overly nervous or stressed, which was a comfort to her. She had called Donna on Thursday, telling her that she had talked to her family about it and that she did want the job. They had agreed to meet up so Rose could find out what her duties would be. She asked the receptionist for directions to Donna's office, and was asked if she was Rose Tyler-Smith. After showing identification, she was handed a letter containing directions, a coffee order, and some money.

She went to a nearby Starbucks, getting the coffee from the list. She was careful not to spill it, as she wanted to make a good impression on her new co-workers. However, on the way back she couldn't get the list of directions out of her pocket with her hands as full as they were. Most of the drinks were lukewarm by the time she finally found the right office.

"I take it you didn't understand the directions?" Donna asked when she saw her. Rose had feared that she might be angry, but she seemed happy. Everyone helped themselves to their drinks, going back to work after introducing themselves to her. She tried to remember all of them, but only a few names stuck. She remembered Tosh and Gwen, who had been the first to greet her, and Adam who had seemed a little too interested in her.

"I should have found someone to ask for the way. Sorry," she apologised to Donna after everyone had gone back to work.

"Oh, don't mind that. We did want to send someone down to get you, but we were all busy. Something came up overnight and we had to deal with it," she explained as they walked into her office. She pointed to a free desk across from her. "That's yours."

Rose nodded, putting her bag down next to the desk. There was almost nothing on it, except for a laptop. upon opening the drawers Rose found other things such as pens and paper, but apart from that there was nothing else. It looked brand new to her, making Rose wonder if she was the first PA Donna had ever had. Surely she couldn't be. She looked up when Donna's cell phone started ringing.

"I'll just go out and answer this," she said, leaving the room. Rose didn't want to just stand there, so she started setting up the computer whilst Donna was gone. She had never actually worked in an office before, so she had no idea what it was going to be like.

Donna stepped back in, putting her phone back in her pocket as she did so. "I've arranged for someone to show you around and take you for lunch. He should be outside by the lifts. After that, you can go home. I'll email you some files to read for tomorrow, okay?"

Rose smiled and nodded "Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure. Now go, or he'll get impatient and break something by accident," she laughed.

Rose picked up her back and stepped outside. She told the rest of her co-workers goodbye and that it was lovely to meet them before navigating back to the lifts. She was surprised by who was waiting for her. She had most definitely not expected to see the Doctor… He was probably here to talk to Donna.

Except, he was smiling at her. "Hello, Rose. I am here to be your guide around this fine establishment," he said.

"Really? But aren't you busy?" she asked, slinging her bag over her shoulder.

"Well… I stayed at home because a certain someone claimed that she was sick again, but as soon as I was looking away she was jumping around on the furniture. I left her with the nanny so I could come in and get something, and called Donna. She asked me if I could just give you a tour of the place, and I could hardly refuse, when the company would be so good, " he explained, offering his arm.

She smiled at him, biting her lip "All right then, Doctor, lead the way," She said, putting her hand in the crook of his arm.

He started by showing her around her floor, pointing out where to find the bathroom, the stairs, the coffee machine ("But you shouldn't drink that stuff. If you go to the Starbucks just down the road, Joan will give you an extra shot for free. She's there every day during the week.") until they had ended up back in front of the lift.

"Watch this," he whispered to her. The lift arrived a few seconds later, and as soon as they saw him they scrambled to get out. "You can stay," he said casually. Most of them got out anyway, but a few of them stayed. "See?" he whispered to Rose "We have proved your hypothesis. They are all scared of me."

She fought back a giggle until they were all alone in the lift. "Did you see their faces?"

He laughed too. "I know. See, I've worked here for 0 years, and I've never even considered that. I just thought most people preferred to take the stairs."

She covered her mouth as to not giggle again, but as soon as she looked up at him they both broke into another fit of laughter together.

"Where are we going, anyway?" she asked once she had sobered up and had caught her breath.

"Up…" he said, popping the P.

"I can see that… But what's up there?" she asked, nudging his shoulder.

"Oh, my office. Well, that and the roof. But I don't think you want to go there, it's awfully windy."

"Oh…"

"Well, we're here. Almost, anyway," he smiled, getting out.

A woman sitting behind a desk looked up. "Hello, Mr Noble ," she greeted him.

He sighed "Harriet, I have told you time and time again that you can call me Doctor. I know that my father preferred Mr Noble, but it's a bit pretentious, I think," he said. "Oh and, I'm having a meeting with Mrs Tyler-Smith here. She's Donna's new PA. We don't want to be disturbed. Unless of course the building is on fire or something, then some disturbance would be nice…" He led Rose into another lift.

"This is…" Rose started.

"Marvellous? Awesome? Impressive? " The Doctor suggested, grinning smugly.

She bit her lip to hide a smile "I was going to say posh. Can't say I've ever been in a private lift before."

He chuckled, "Oh, this is just for show. Mostly. I would love to sit downstairs with the other workers, but this has always been the CEO's office, so I couldn't really change it. So I sit up here, all alone, at the top of the building," he explained. Despite the differences he had shared with his father when he was alive, he liked to honour him and his wishes now that he was no longer alive.

She looked out one of the shaded panorama windows. "Wow," she breathed when she saw the view. She could see almost all of London from up here. It reminded her of the time her and John had been on the London eye together. The Gallifrey Enterprise building was located in the heart of London, and she could see all the major landmarks from up here. She was glad that she had never been afraid of heights, because this sight was truly remarkable. She unconsciously pressed a hand against the glass, enjoying the view and looking at the people walking below.

The Doctor smiled at her reaction. He wasn't sure about what to do yet, but he certainly wanted to learn more about Rose. And whilst doing that, he was trying to deny his growing attraction for her. He didn't have time to be in a relationship, what with being the CEO of one of the biggest companies in the world and with Jenny who was his first priority above all else. Besides, Rose was obviously still in love with her late husband. He had probably ruined all chances of that, anyway, with how he had acted the first time they met. He had been surprised that she had been willing to forgive him so quickly. Had it been anyone else, he would doubt that he would doubt that he actually was forgiven.

But not when it was her. She was just so… Rose. There was nothing else that could explain it. She was beautiful, clever, ernest, and caring. He had never met someone so full of life and hope as her, and he admired her for spreading happiness like that when she had been through so much. He wasn't sure why she had decided to forgive him, but he certainly wasn't going to waste this second chance with her... But, no. There was so much that could go wrong, and even if for some reason she felt the same, they could both end up with a broken heart. He couldn't do that to her, or to Jack and Jenny. If they did give it a chance, and split up, who knew what it would do to the children and their friendship?

He was pulled out of his thoughts when he saw her lips moving. "Sorry, what?" he asked, blinking at her.

She chuckled "I was just asking you why we came up here."

"Oh," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, there's a reason for that. You see, every day I pick up Jenny and bring her here. The Nanny comes here too, and looks after her." He opened one of the doors leading away from the office.

"This is her play room. Right here with me. And I thought that maybe Jack would want to spend his afternoons here too, since they are friends. If not, there is another employee daycare too, but it's usually very crowded. Jenny went there a few times, but the other kids kept picking on her so now she is up here."

Rose nodded "I'm sure he would love that… If it's okay with her, that is. I can assure you that Jack won't pick on her."

"Oh, I know, she only speaks kindly of him. Well, except last week," he said, feeling embarrassed. "I'm still sorry about that, by the way. I was very rude to you. Plus, I ruined your shirt."

She looked down. "I'm the one who should be apologising. I got so angry that I hit you. I just lost my temper and didn't even think."

"I was being purposefully disrespectful, to try and provoke you," he admitted. "I don't blame you. Honestly, I'm a little glad you did it. I think it knocked some sense into that thick skull of mine." He tried joking to cheer her up, but it didn't seem to work.

"No, but I blame myself," she sighed. "John… He was very much against violence. He was in the army when he was young, and after that he would do anything to avoid violence. Only once in the entire time I knew him did I see him use the self-defence he knew, and even then, he only held the person trying to rob us down until the police arrived. He would be ashamed if he had seen that."

"I… I'm sure he wouldn't, Rose," he said softly, taking her hand. "Really. I was pushing all the right buttons to make you angry, and on purpose even."/p
p dir="ltr"She sighed, looking away.

"Hey there," he said, "how about we agree that we are both sorry, and that we forgive each other and ourselves?"

She nodded. "I think that is a good idea."

He smiled at her. "Alright, then, tell you what? I'll order us some lunch, and we can talk while we eat, yeah?"

A smile started forming on her face. "Yeah… No wait, I can't. I have to pick up Jack. My car broke down a few days ago, so I have to take the tube," she sighed.

He considered it. "I can drive you there, and back to your home," he offered.

"Really?" she asked, smiling.

"Of course."

She nodded. "Thank you, so much."

"Oh, you're welcome. I want all my employees happy. Now, what do you want for lunch?" he asked.

She considered it. "I know it's probably not something you usually have, but how about chips?" she suggested.

He smiled and nodded. "Oh, I love chips. Have them all the time. I'll ask Harriet to order some from my and Jenny's favourite place, and it will be here soon."

During their lunch they got to know each other better, talking and laughing.

"Can I ask you something?" Rose said.

He nodded. "Anything."

"What happened to Jenny's mother?"

He looked away, sighing.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have asked," Rose said immediately.

"No, no. It's fine," he said. "I'm just not comfortable talking about it, because I don't want Jenny to know yet... I don't want her to think that she wasn't wanted. One night I got exceptionally drunk and had a one night stand, well actually a shag in a bathroom of a pub, but that's hardly the point. A few months later the woman called me back and told me she was pregnant. She didn't want to keep Jenny, but she didn't want to get an abortion either," he explained.

"As soon as I heard her heartbeat the first ultrasound scan, I knew there was no way I could give her up… And yes, I know that sounds cliché," he chuckled.

"She nodded. "Yeah… I understand. I was the same."

He smiled "You know, I'm sure he would be proud of you. Your husband, I mean. I would be, if it had been me."

She blushed a little, but smiled up at him "I like to think so too. If he is somewhere out there and can see us… I hope that he would be proud of us."