A/N: Continues directly after chapter 9. Rose and the Doctor have their dance, and the the Doctor makes a new acquaintance.
Due to a technical error, I'm not quite sure if this is the betaed version of the chapter. So if you find mistakes, they are most definitely mine
Rose sighed and looked around the room. Now that she was all on her own she felt a little out of place. Sure, she looked like she fitted in, and she could play the part perfectly. But when it came down to it, she was still just a girl who grew up at a council estate, where most of these people would probably never even consider setting foot, she had no education, and for years she had barely been able to support herself and Jack. And the Doctor… He was so infuriating. One moment he would be all charming and flirty, but the next he would be closed off and almost shy. When she had been talking to him about Jenny, she had really thought he was going to kiss her. She wasn't actually sure how she would have reacted if he had. She would have liked it, she thought. She was beginning to realise that her developing feelings for him couldn't be stopped. But, she just didn't have the time or the opportunity to be with him right now. Jack had to be her first priority, and she was sure that the Doctor felt the same way about Jenny. And most of all, Rose still was, and probably always would be, in love with John. She wondered how it was possible for her to feel this way about two completely different men.
She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't even notice that Jack had come back, until his hand slipped into hers.
"Ready to go?" Rose asked him, lifting him up again.
He nodded. "And I washed my hands and everything. All on my own."
Rose smiled at him "That was very good, Jack. I want you to know that I have noticed how well you've been behaving tonight, and I want you to know that I'm very proud of you," she told him. He smiled and nodded, happy that she had noticed. He was still a little out of it from getting yelled at by the woman they had bumped into, but it helped that Rose was hugging him to make it better, and that he was having ice cream now.
When they returned the dessert had already been served, and the Doctor and Donna were deep in conversation about how much of a success the fundraiser was this year.
The Doctor looked up, smiling at Rose "The first numbers just came in," he informed her, smiling. "They've raised just over a thousand pounds so far."
"That's great!" Rose said. She said down, and tried to put Jack back in his seat and he reluctantly let go of her, still holding onto her hand. She could sense that he was still a little shaken from being yelled at by the stranger. However, as soon as his ice cream got there he sat down in his chair again, smiling around at everyone around the table.
After dessert some of the tables were cleared away, and a band started playing. Rose looked down at Jack.
"Do you still want to have that dance?" she asked him. He nodded happily, taking her hand and pulling her with him. She lifted him up and let him stand on her feet, much to his glee. What they did wasn't dancing, more walking in circles, but they were both having fun so it didn't matter to them.
"Look at you," Rose said. "Such a good dancer. You know, in a few years I bet you will be so good at it that everyone will want to dance with you, and you won't have time to dance with me anymore."
He smiled up at her. "Don't worry mummy, even when I'm better than you I will still dance with you."
Rose saw the Doctor looking over at her out of the corner of her eye. "Then how about this, I can go and practice my dancing with the Doctor, while you show Jenny how good you are getting? And later, I can dance with you again so you can see if I've improved."
He nodded, happy to get to help her. "Alright, see you, mummy," he said, running over to Jenny.
She looked up at the Doctor who was still looking at her. "What's wrong?" she frowned, looking down to see if she had spilled something.
The Doctor shook his head, taking her hand. "Oh, nothing is wrong. Don't worry. I was just… Well, I was just trying to see something," he said lamely.
Rose laughed. "Careful Doctor, a girl might get ideas," she teased him.
"I wouldn't mind that," he blurted out, but realised his mistake. "Erh… drinks? I'll go and get us some drinks, yes. It's important to stay hydrated, especially in summer. Always remember that Rose," he rambled starting to back away.
Rose tried to stop giggling. "I will. I'll be waiting here."
The Doctor tried to calm down a little while he was getting drinks for them. Had he just told her that he was interested in her? He knew that she didn't want that with him. She might flirt with him, but she was obviously still in love with her late husband. Yet he had indirectly just told her about his feelings. "Stupid, stupid, stupid," he mumbled to himself as he took two flutes of champagne from the buffet table.
"I'm sorry?" someone asked next to him.
He looked up at the blonde woman standing next to him. "Oh no, sorry. I was just talking to myself," he said.
She laughed. "Oh, I have known many men to do so when they have something on their mind. I'm Reinette," she said, extending a hand.
He put the champagne down to shake her hand. "I'm John. John Noble."
"Oh, you are the one who arranged for this fundraiser!" she exclaimed, but covered her mouth. "I'm so sorry, mister Noble. That was terribly rude of me."
He shook his head. "No worries. Considering that I just called you stupid, I think we're even."
She laughed. "Of course. I am just very excited to meet you. I am a great admirer of yours."
He smiled "Listen, I'm really sorry but I have to get back to someone. I left her standing in the middle of the dance floor, and I don't think she would b very happy if I got caught up in a conversation. But I would love to talk to you later. What table are you sitting at?"
She tried to remember. "I can't recall the number. What's yours, I can find you?"
"Mine's easy. I'm at table One."
"I'll find you later. Maybe even have a dance?"
"That could be arranged. It was lovely meeting you, Reinette." He said, going back to find Rose.
He found her at the edge of the dance floor, laughing with Jack and Jenny. "Be careful not to step on each other's toes," she said.
He walked up next to her, handing her the champagne. "I am still to see your dance moves," he said, "Should I be prepared to have my toes stepped on?"
"Oh definitely not. I'm a great dancer, I'll have you know. What about me?" she asked, standing a little closer to him.
"Erh," he said, rubbing the back of his neck.
She laughed, nudging his shoulder with her own. "Don't worry. John was a terrible dancer too, so all my gala shoes are steel toed."
Before he could ask if she was serious, she had pulled him unto the dance floor. He handed his glass to a waiter, and put his arms around her, all in one fluid motion.
"My my," he teased her. "You do know how to dance. I'm impressed."
"Of course I know how to dance. I can waltz and everything," she said proudly.
He dipped her down and she squealed with a combination of surprise and laughter. She hid her face in his shoulder when he pulled her back up, and she noticed that everyone around them was looking.
"Doctor," she laughed. "Now everyone is looking," she whispered.
"Let them look. They are just jealous of me."
The song ended and another, much slower, one started. She stepped closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder. It was a little warm to be so close, but the comfort it brought was worth it.
"Are you enjoying the evening so far?" the Doctor asked after a while.
"I am, yeah," she said, a smile forming on her face. "As far as apologies goes, this is one of the best I've ever had."
"I'm still sorry I yelled at you like that. The things I said were terrible. You didn't deserve that. No one ever could.
She looked up at him. "You know I've forgiven you, right? She asked him. She stopped moving.
He looked down at the floor next to her. "I know. I also know I don't deserve it. I had been up all night two days in a row and I was irate. I took it out on you, and I had no right to. I said horrible things about you, Jack, and your husband. I honestly don't understand why you want to be near after that."
She stepped back so she could cup his cheek. "Doctor. I forgave you for that long ago. I want to be near you because I like you. You said some things that weren't okay, but you apologised, and you've been nice to me ever since. Maybe it wasn't right, but you made up for it every day since.
"I still feel guilty. I said those things about your husband. I degraded you only based on your economic standing and your accent. You shouldn't have to out up with that. You should have done much more than slap me for it," he said, stepping back from her.
Rose bit her lip. "I still feel bad about that too. Slapping you, I mean. I know I said I wouldn't, but I do. But I think… We should make a deal. And this time we will stick to it. We've already forgiven each other, yeah? But we haven't forgiven ourselves. We should do that. If you forgive yourself for saying those things, I'll forgive myself for hitting you."
He considered it, then nodded. "I can't say it will happen immediately, but I'll try," he promised.
She smiled at him. "So will I."
"We should sit down again," he said. "I have to go soon…"
"You're leaving?" she asked surprised.
He shook his head, looking around the dance floor for Jack and Jenny. "It's supposed to be a surprise… But let me just say, you might want to have your wallet ready during the auction," he said.
She stifled a giggle, "You're going to auction off a night with yourself or something?" she asked.
He frowned.
"You are, aren't you?" she giggled. "I'll consider it."
He smiled at her. "Ah, there they are," he said, nodding towards Jack and Jenny who were talking to one of the catering staff. He waved them over, and they quickly told their new friend goodbye, before running back.
"Who were you talking to?" Rose asked them.
Jenny smiled, reaching for the Doctor to pick her up. "We met a nice woman, who said he would bring us extra ice cream to our table. Jack knows her."
"She's the woman from our building, mummy. The one with the cat" He said, as Rose lifted him up too. She could see that he was tired by now.
"She has a cat?" Jenny gasped. "Me and Daddy don't like cats," she informed them.
Rose frowned, and the Doctor leaned closer to whisper in her ear. "Jenny's allergic. It helps her to know that neither of us like them anyway."
When they returned to their table, they moved their chairs together. Jack had fallen asleep in Rose's arms and the Doctor had to leave, so Jenny was leaning on Rose and trying to stay awake. By the time Donna returned and picked her up, Jenny was sound asleep, and the auction was about to start. The first few items were mostly art, or different collector's items. Rose was happy to see that they were making money for the charity, but she was also impatient because she wanted the Doctor to come on stage as soon as possible. Finally he walked on stage and claimed the microphone.
"Hello there. My name is John Noble, but most of you probably know that. Not only do we, at Gallifrey Enterprise, care a lot about the cause of A Charitable Earth, I personally care about it. Which is why, I've made a decision. We haven't done this any of the previous years, but I'm going to auction off a night in my company, paid by myself. We can go anywhere within the Greater London area, and I will pay for everything," he explained. Several people cheered, and he handed the microphone back to the auctioneer.
"Starting at £50," he called. Rose was the first to bid, but within the first minute the bids were at over £800 and there was no way she could afford that. She still had years of debt to pay off, after all.
"I don't get why you would bid, anyway," Donna said. "He would take you anywhere in the world for free, if you just ask him."
Rose rolled her eyes "He wouldn't. And I couldn't accept a gift like that, even if he did."
Donna shook her head. "You two really are blind. I meant as a date. He's head over heels for you. Trust me, I know my twin brother."
Rose shook her head and said nothing, and Donna sensed that she wasn't comfortable talking about that. "Is Jack coming down with something? he seemed a bit off, tonight," she said, trying to steer the conversation away.
Rose shook her head, feeling angry again. She looked down at Jack who was fast asleep. "A stranger yelled at him, for almost spilling her drink. He was so shocked her started crying."
"No? Who did that?" she asked.
"I didn't know her name. I've seen her in the tabs, though. She was a little older than me, I guess, and blonde," Rose started explaining. the auction was coming to an end now, as far as she could hear. "Erh, she wore a silver dress. She was sort of elegant. She looked nice enough, but obviously she wasn't. Oh, and, she she speaks with a French accent."
"French…" Donna repeated, thinking. "Hold on, I know who that is! I've met her! Her name is Jeanne Antoinette, or otherwise know as…"
"...Reinette Poisson!" the auctioneer announced, to see the Doctor hugging the woman who had been yelling at Jack.