Jack couldn't recall the last time he had felt so rested. He woke up slowly, enjoying the sensation of being warm and comfortable. He slitted his eyes open and smiled as he saw that the Doctor and Rose were still asleep. He blinked slowly, thinking of how many times he had wished a reunion like this was possible.

Rose was still snuggled up against the Doctor, sleeping peacefully for a change. The Doctor was flat out with his head tilted back, snoring softly. Jack felt his smile grow; it was rare to see the Doctor sleep like that.

For his own part, he had obviously tried to get closer to the Doctor in his sleep. He was facing towards him, with one arm and one leg slung over him.

Unfortunately, it was not to last.

"WHAT ARE YOU LOT DOING!" Jackie screeched.

Rose and the Doctor were startled awake.

"Jackie, nothing happened," Jack said calmly. "Only sleeping. I promise."

Rose squeaked and doubled over giggling.

Within the next few days, Jack had gone to Cardiff and back to check in with Torchwood. The Doctor had Rose doing high-tech physical therapy to get her mobility back to normal. He was also doing meditations with her to repair her memory. Though it was far faster than normal rehab, Rose still grew frustrated easily.

The Doctor suggested they take a break and led her to the kitchen for tea.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled as he bustled about the kitchen. "I just … I had this idea in my head that as soon as you came back, I could get out of here. I guess I'm still trying to adjust to being … trapped."

"Rose, you're not trapped. Once you're better, believe me, I will find the best technology to help you function on your own. You'll be able to walk down the street, work a computer, hold a job, you will be as normal as possible. You won't be trapped. Just because I can't get you new eyes doesn't mean I can't cheat and get you the best tech to help you."

She giggled a bit at that as she sipped the cup of tea he had placed in her hands. "That should be fun to explain. 'Blimey, that's fancy! Where'd you get that?' 'Tokyo a thousand years from now!'"

The Doctor laughed. "I'm sure you'll think of something." He set down a plate of sandwiches in front of her. He took her hand and guided it to the pile.

Rose selected a sandwich and nibbled on it thoughtfully.

The Doctor cleared his throat nervously. "You know … we could … cheat."

Rose drew her brows together and swallowed. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you don't have to be trapped. We could go … elsewhere while you finish recovering. We could come right back; your mum will hardly know we were gone! I know some places that are completely safe and absolutely – Rose?"

She placed her sandwich back down and held her face in her hands, crying.

He stood and bent down to hug her tightly. "What's wrong?"

"You'd do that? Take me on a trip?"

"Of course. I'm not much of one for lying around a resort, but I've heard it does wonders for recovery. A change of scenery will help."

Rose turned and hugged him back, nodding.

He kissed her hair. "Where do you want to go? Seaside? Space spa? Mountain hideaway? Intergalactic cruise?"

"Can Jack come? He needs a rest, too."

"You're right. He does. We can ask him."

"Ask me what?" Jack frowned at the scene. "What's wrong?"

Rose smiled in what she hoped was his direction. "Nothing. The Doctor just offered to take me somewhere to finish recovering. Will you come with us?"

Jack's eyes widened slightly as he looked at the Doctor. "Really?"

The Doctor stood up, letting Rose keep hold of his hand. "Yup. We're planning to come right back, so Jackie will hardly know we've gone. Same thing goes for Torchwood."

"And you need a break, Jack," Rose added.

Jack rubbed the back of his neck. "I dunno … I don't want to be a third wheel."

The Doctor blushed slightly.

"You wouldn't be," Rose replied. "It won't be like that. Please?"

A grin pulled at the corner's of Jack's mouth. "All right. But I'm going to have feed some story to your mother; she's going to hear the TARDIS engines. You go pack while I distract her."

"Brilliant!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Allons-y!"

Rose sighed happily as she lay on the soft bed, letting the Doctor guide her leg through her exercises. She could hear and smell the ocean through the open balcony doors.

"You were right, Doctor. This is just what I needed."

"Occasionally, I have been known to have a good idea from time to time," he said, smiling down at her.

"Can you see Jack out there?"

The Doctor peered down at the beach. He chuckled. "He's trying to relax, but he's nearly being mobbed by some lovely young ladies."

Rose giggled. "You should go rescue him."

The Doctor snorted. "I think Jack can handle it."

"Well, yeah, but he might actually like to relax for a change, instead of being mobbed. He's changed since you last saw him, Doctor. I'm glad he … never mind."

The Doctor paused. "What?"

"He was bitter, Doctor. Most times, he managed not to let it show, but he was angry and bitter, and now I know why. It's nice to see it start to melt a bit." She cleared her throat. "Anyway, I still say you should rescue him."

The Doctor let go of her leg. "All right, what do you want me to do?"

Jack had to admit that there were plenty of times in his life when he didn't mind being surrounded by a group of scantily-clad women. It's just that this wasn't one of them. He wanted to come to the sixth moon of Dalenpen to relax. It wasn't an easy thing for him to do, and he hadn't had a chance in years. But the moment he set foot on the beach, he was swamped.

Then he heard a familiar voice calling down to him. "Jack!"

He looked up and felt his jaw go slack at the site of the Doctor leaning on the railing wearing only a towel. Words completely failed him.

"Jack, if you don't leave those lovely ladies alone, I'm going to have to personally come down there and teach you a lesson, is that clear?" His tone was commanding, but he was grinning.

"Oh my God, is that your boyfriend?" one of the younger girls cooed.

"He's gorgeous!"

"You haven't been telling people you're single again, have you?" the Doctor called down.

Jack grinned back as the girls started to disperse, pointing and giggling. "Of course not, sweetie!" he called back. "Do you need me to come upstairs and rub your back?"

Though most people had stopped staring, the Doctor blushed, and shouted back, "Later!" before disappearing back into the room.

Finally alone, Jack laughed softly to himself as he stretched out on the sand and soaked up the sun.

"How was that?" the Doctor asked Rose.

Rose was giggling uncontrollably. "That was brilliant! I wish I could have seen his face!"

"I think I managed to throw him off guard for a second there," the Doctor said, pulling his clothes back on. He sat down on the bed and tickled her, eliciting more giggling. "I must love you," he murmured, kissing her hair. "I'd do anything to make you smile."

Rose sighed contentedly, wrapped up in his arms. She allowed herself to forget everything that had happened, if only for a few moments.

She felt the Doctor slump and then twitch.

And then it hit her that he was the one that needed rest more than any of them.

"Doctor? I've got the idea now. I can do these exercises on my own. Why don't you get a bit of kip?"

"Me? Take a nap? I slept last night!"

"But you're exhausted. You nodded off a second ago."

"I – er."

"Right, come on you, under the covers." Using only touch, she managed to get him under the covers and spread them over him. "I promise I'll finish my exercises while you get some rest."

"And no wandering off?"

"Of course. No wandering off."

The Doctor was still sleeping when Jack returned to the room an hour later. Rose had finished her physical therapy and was working her way slowly through a simple book in Braille. The Doctor's return had prompted her to start learning it in earnest.

Rose pressed a finger to her lips and pointed in the direction of the bedroom.

"He asleep?" Jack whispered.

Rose nodded. "Yeah. He's exhausted."

"I hear that." He kissed the top of her head. "I'm gonna take a shower. I saw in the hotel guide that they have a really nice restaurant here. We should go tonight."

Rose self-consciously touched her messy hair. "I don't know, Jack."

He placed a hand on top of hers. "You won't be alone. We'll be right there with you. It's time you started living again, Rose. And you know it."

"I just … I don't know if I'm ready."

"How about this. We'll go down to the bar for drinks, and if you're not feeling it, we can come back up here and order room service."

She grasped his hand. "I'm scared, Jack. In so many ways. I'm afraid something will happen, and I'm just … I shut everything down, because it hurt too much. I'm scared to go back out there."

He stroked her hair. "It's okay. Isn't that what this whole trip is about? Recovering?"

"Yes," she whispered, feeling a tear run down her cheek. "But … I can't rush it, Jack."

He kissed her forehead. "Okay. We can wait 'til your ready."

"What was I thinking, Jack? I thought the Doctor would come back, and I'd be ready to run. I don't even want to go outside."

Jack knelt in front of the chair and hugged her. "I'm sorry, Rose. I know that this is hard. It's forcing you to realize how your life has changed."

"You mean what I let myself become," she said bitterly.

"I'm not blaming you. I wouldn't do that. Truthfully, I got frustrated with you at times, but you've got another chance now. Let's try to make the most of it, okay?"

She nodded, crying the last of her tears into his shoulder. He stroked her back soothingly. "I'm sorry, Jack."

"Hey, none of that. I told you, I don't blame you." When she was calm again, he released her, tucking her hair behind her ears. "All right?"

She took a deep breath and nodded.

"Okay. I'm gonna jump in the shower."

She nodded again. "Jack? I don't think I ever said thank you for everything you've done."

"Yeah, you did. Last night. When you stood up for me. That's all the thanks I needed."

When Jack went into the bedroom of the suite, he wasn't surprised to see the Doctor lying on the bed with his eyes wide open.

Jack closed the door. "Somehow I knew you wouldn't stay asleep through that."

"I didn't realize she was …"

"Scared?"

"Maybe this was all a mistake, Jack. We've taken her away from everything she knows."

"No, you were right. A change of scenery is a good idea. Her mood's already improved a bit. When we brought her home, it took a long time before she even let me take her out for a drive. She's come a ways since then, but you're going to have to be patient with her. She's not used to going out or interacting with other people yet. But this is as good a place as any to learn, right?"

The Doctor sat up, rubbing his hands over his face. "I suppose so."

"You know … although I have more than my fair share of them, I think now is not the time for secrets. Go out there and tell you overheard. Talk to her about it. I know it goes against your modus operandi, but give it a shot."

The Doctor smiled slightly. "I think you might be in danger of getting sensible in your old age, Captain."

Jack laughed lightly. "Maybe so. But not everything about me's changed." And with that, he let his swim trunks drop to the floor.

The Doctor emerged from the bedroom a few minutes later. He winced as he noticed how Rose straightened and tensed immediately.

"Jack?"

"No, it's me, love," he responded, sitting on the arm of the chair. "Jack is in the shower now that he's done causing trouble for the moment."

Rose giggled at the thought.

"How's the book going?"

"Not bad. It's nice to be able to relax a little and concentrate. I just … it was so much harder while I waiting for you."

"I know," he told her, bending to kiss the top of her head. "Rose … I overheard what you said to Jack when he came in."

Rose blushed darkly and closed the book. "I'm sorry. You must be disappointed."

"What? No! Never! Don't be ridiculous. Rose, it's completely understandable. I just want to help you. If you're going to live a normal life, you're going to have to be able to set a foot outside."

"I know," she replied, holding back her tears. "I just don't know where to start."

He took her hand. "I do. Come on."

She set her book down and let him lead her to the open balcony. She hesitated before going through the doorway. "Can anyone see us?"

"It's not impossible, but the beach is mostly empty. Trust me."

Rose stepped forward, feeling the warm sea breeze envelope her. "Doctor, I trust you with my life. It's other people I can't trust."

"You've got to try and remember the numbers. In the real world, most people are not out to do you any harm. When you're running with me, it's easy to forget that. You know what's strange, though? Even after all that jeopardy, you didn't become jaded about people. I know you were a bit more naïve then. You didn't know what … some people are capable of." He hugged her from behind, holding her tight. "But you have to try and put things back in perspective, Rose. Most people are not out to hurt you."

She nodded, letting the sea breeze ruffle her messy hair. "Thank you for bringing me here, Doctor. I just … Jack's right. I've got a long way to go."

The Doctor squeezed her affectionately. "We'll get you there together."

To be continued ...