"Well, I certainly hope there is a Yeldian merchant out there somewhere Rose, or my hair may never be the same again!" complained the Doctor after forty five minutes. He had washed his hair five times, trying every single gel and mousse only to be met with mediocre results. Wet towel draped across his shoulders, he leaned against the ensuite's entryway looking utterly defeated.
Sitting on the edge of the counter, Rose sighed dramatically. "Me too… I'm just not sure I can do this if your hair isn't absolutely perfect." She put on her most serious face.
After a momentary panic, the Doctor noticed the corner of Rose's mouth twitch. Throwing the towel at her, he laughed. "Rose Tyler, don't get cheeky with me!"
Tongue peeking through, Rose grinned. She hopped off the counter and hung up the towel. Turning back to him, she picked up one of the many gels he had tried and said, "It looks fine Doctor, really. But if it helps, I think this one works the best."
Taking the tub from her hands, he opened it up, scooped out a small amount and went to work again, trying his hardest to achieve that signature messy look she so loved. Rose wondered if he had always been this high maintenance before or if this was some of Donna peeking through. Not that she ever witnessed his dressing or grooming habits aboard the TARDIS, he just always looked perfect and was ready to go when she would stumble out of bed each day.
"I'm going to ring mum and let her know we'll be on our way shortly. "
The Doctor nodded absentmindedly as he continued to struggle with his messy mop. Rose rolled her eyes and left him muttering to himself.
A short while later, as they were driving to the Tyler residence, she decided to tackle a conversation she knew they had to have but wasn't quite sure how he would react to.
"Just so you know, Doctor, Pete might want to sit down with you tonight to get some documents taken care of… You need to decide on a name and a few other things."
Looking confused and a little bit affronted, he turned to Rose and replied, "A name? But I've got one, Rose. It's worked just fine for me for over nine hundred years, why do I need a new one now?"
"You'll be in the public eye, Doctor. 'Rose Tyler's mysterious new beau' and all that. It was a mess when mum and I got here, the press had a heyday! It was easier to come up with a story for mum's reappearance, but as there had never been a Rose Tyler in this universe, I was a little trickier to sort out. I'm still the target of the rumor mill from time to time, so by extension you will be too."
Mulling this over for a moment, the Doctor then shrugged. "Alright then, guess I wouldn't mind going by John Smith again."
Rose groaned. "Doctor, that sounds much too like an alias. You'll need something a bit more credible."
"But it is an alias, Rose! You're not actually going to start calling me something else, are you? " He looked outraged… then unsure… then a bit hurt.
Rose laughed. "No, I'm not! You'll still be the Doctor. To me and everyone else that knows you, I'm sure. This is just for the press… and Torchwood, should you decide to join us. Well, they know who you are of course, but to keep things official and all…"
An uncomfortable silence hung between them. He was not yet ready to make any promises on that subject.
"Noble then. John Noble. Is that convincing enough for you?"
Rose smiled and decided to let the Torchwood thing go for now. They had had enough awkwardness today. "It's perfect. Now, how about a birth date? Nine hundred years old won't cut it, I'm afraid!"
Things were getting tedious again. He sighed. "You pick, Rose. How old do I look then?"
"Hmmm… mid-thirties?"
The Doctor shrugged. "Fine by me… you think the press will mind the age gap?"
Rose snorted. "You mean as opposed to eight hundred some odd years? Uh no, I think it'll be fine."
By the time they pulled up to the Tyler Estate, the Doctor was quite grumpy. They had picked his place of birth, parent's background, childhood education, and the circumstances that had brought him to London ultimately leading up to how they had met.
"Blimey Rose, can't I just flash everyone my psychic paper and be done with it?"
"In person sure Doctor, but the tabloids and reporters will go digging for dirt on you anywhere they can… your psychic paper won't be of any use there, you know that. Pete will have our lawyers at Torchwood draft up the necessary paper trail to keep everyone happy and that will be that. I'm sorry, but this really is necessary."
Rolling his eyes, he slammed the car door shut as he got out. Rose decided she needed to get Pete alone as soon as possible and warn him that Torchwood talks would probably not go well tonight. She had a feeling that living this often scripted public life was going to be a challenge for him. He was used to spontaneity and not having to worry about what people might think of him. The safety of his big blue getaway vehicle had always made that possible, nobody's rules to follow except his own. Living in the public eye as well as dealing with the rigidity of Torchwood was going to seriously test his resolve when it came to living this domestic life with her. Some things could not be helped, but the least she could do was hold Pete off for a while.
Slipping her hand into one of his, Rose gave it a squeeze as they approached the house. Before they could even open the door, they heard muffled running and squeals of delight.
"Mummy they're here! They're here!"
The door flew open and a little blonde torpedo came shooting out, attaching itself to Rose's legs. The Doctor's frown was wiped clean off his face as a little hand attached itself to where theirs were linked and began tugging.
"Come ON! Let's go to my room, I have something to show you!"
"Tony sweetheart, in a little bit yeah? I have to go talk to mum and dad. Why don't you show the Doctor, though, I'm sure he'll-"
But what Rose was about to promise on his behalf was forgotten as the Doctor grinned at the little boy and in an excited whisper said, "Race you?"
As they took off down the hall Jackie came around the corner. "Oi! No running in the house young man! You too, Doctor!"
Rose closed the door behind her, smiling at her little brother and his new best friend as they disappeared.
"Would you look at the pair of them, thick as thieves, they are! How are you love? Get all your shopping done?"
"Almost, still need to stop by the grocers on the way home. We got the worst out of the way though." Shaking her head, Rose laughed. "Honestly mum, he was a right nightmare in the shops! I thought I was going to kill him!"
Jackie just raised an eyebrow as she walked back towards the kitchen.
"You traveled with the man for how long and you're still surprised at how much of a nutter he can be? Of course he was a nightmare Rose, I don't think he has a cooperative bone in his body!"
"Oh mum, he's not all bad… just a bit higher maintenance than I remember. I think it might have something to do with him having inherited some of Donna's quirks. Or not… I'm not entirely sure, actually. We never had to do these kinds of things before."
Turning her back on Rose to reach into the fridge, Jackie smiled to herself. All she had to do was begin insulting the man for her daughter to step up. Some things never changed.
"Well, I remember how strange it was at first with Pete here. Still, you'll get used to one another again, I'm sure of it."
Rose sat on a stool by the counter. "Yeah, I'm sure we will… it's just a bit strange is all."
Jackie turned back around to face her daughter and watched her carefully. She didn't wish to pry but well, being Jackie, she did anyway.
"So… you two getting settled in alright? Sharing a flat going to work out and all?"
Rose rolled her eyes at her mother's expression. It was obvious what Jackie was hinting at.
"What? Oh Rose, honestly, after all this time it's only natural sweetheart! Your father and I-"
"MUM! Seriously, don't. How many times do I have to tell you though? The Doctor and I, we were never… like that. And now, things are… awkward. "
"Yeah, and? Rose, I'm tellin' ya, what you two need is a good sh-"
"Mum, I can't! He kissed me today and I… I just kind of went berserk on him! "
Jackie sighed.
"Why sweetheart? Why can't you allow things to just… happen? Let yourself to be happy with this man? It's what you've wanted for years, Rose!"
"If dad hadn't died… if you had just gotten stuck here and met Pete while dad was still out there somewhere, could you?"
Jackie reached out and took hold of her daughter's hand. "I see what you mean, love, and I can understand how hard that must be for you… but Rose, not allowing yourself to be happy with this Doctor will do nothing for the other one. On the contrary, what he sacrificed will have just gone in vain. Do you think he would want that for the two of you?"
Rose didn't answer.
Jackie pulled her in for a hug.
"Take your time, if that's what you need sweetheart. I remember Pete having similar reservations. The awkwardness will pass, you'll see."
"Thanks mum… I know it will, it's just frustrating… for both of us. He's been so patient with me but today has been a bit challenging for him as well. I think he's going to have a hard time doing this whole human thing… I need to speak with Pete, tell him to lay off the Torchwood talk for now. I just know he's going to ask."
"Well, you better go find him then. He mentioned something earlier about asking him over dinner."
Rose groaned. She had a feeling this hadn't been solely for the purpose of a warm family gathering. Giving her mum one more hug, she set off.
Pete Tyler was reading a report when Rose walked into the study. Looking up, he observed the tension in her shoulders as she sat down across the desk from him.
"Welcome back, love. Everything alright? You look… tired, Rose."
"It's been a long day, Pete. But yeah, everything's fine… just getting the Doctor settled in. How's work?"
Shuffling his papers in order and putting them back in his briefcase, Pete shrugged. "Oh you know, fires to put out as always. The board wants you to come in right away for a full debriefing but I persuaded them to give you a few days to recover. I figured you would want some time?"
"Yeah, that would be lovely, thanks. I'm not really too keen to get back there just yet…"
"That's what I thought. Take a few days, you've certainly earned it Rose. Then you can bring the Doctor by, I'm sure he will be able to answer a lot of our questions too."
"About that, Pete… The Doctor doesn't trust Torchwood. They were different back home, did some awful things. I've told him it's not how we function here, but I think it will take him a while to let his guard down a bit."
Pete drummed his fingers on his desk. "I see… well then, perhaps I ought not to bring it up tonight? I was going to extend him an offer to join us, he would be an extremely valuable asset Rose."
"I know… and I think he might actually enjoy it there, but trust me, he needs to come to this decision on his own. I'm sure I can get him to come along with me in a few days, give him a tour and all that. Perhaps once he sees how different this Torchwood is and meets everyone he'll feel up to it, yeah? But for now, I'd appreciate it if you would just leave it alone."
Pete sighed. "Of course sweetheart, whatever you think is best. You know him better than anyone else. But he will need an identity, Torchwood or not. We can't help that."
Rose grabbed a sheet of paper and a pen and began writing. "Already took care of it, we discussed it on our drive here. He wasn't too keen but he understands why it's necessary." She handed over all the information they had agreed upon.
Looking it over, Pete nodded. "Right, everything looks good. I'll have all the documents ready for him in a day or two. Has he given thought to what else he might want to do if he doesn't work for Torchwood? We may need to get him more extensive credentials if that's the case."
"No, we hadn't really gotten that far. Things are a bit… complicated still." She looked away.
"Rose, I know you probably don't want to talk about this stuff with me… I'm sure your mum is much better at it anyway, but just so you know love, I'm here if you do. Jackie explained as best she could about what happened with the other Doctor, and I'm sorry… I'm so glad you're back with us Rose, but I am sorry that you're in this situation. I remember how hard it was when I lost my Jackie. I'm happier now than I ever imagined possible, but it was still hard."
Rose looked back at this man that had become her father and smiled. He, of all people, was probably the best equipped to understand what she was going through.
"Thanks Pete… I'm alright, I just… I think it's going to take me a while, you know?"
"Yes, I know, love. Truly, I do."
"Can I ask you something, though?"
"Anything, Rose."
"How did you…when mum and I got here, did you ever feel like you were being, I don't know… unfaithful to her memory? Your Jackie's?"
Pete smiled sadly. "I did, yes… at first. Lots of people remarry after losing a spouse, that wasn't the problem though. I imagine it's quite normal to feel like you are figuratively replacing one love with another. It's an entirely different and much harder thing, in my opinion, to feel like you are literally doing so… When this new person has the same face and voice, it's a lot trickier to sort it out in your head."
Rose's eyes began to sting. He did know, then. He knew precisely how she felt.
"So… how did you get past it? How were you able to move forward with mum?"
"Well, it was mostly just a matter of giving myself permission to do so. Jackie-my Jackie, and I didn't get on very well there at the end… but I know she would have wanted me to be happy. And your mum did that for me. It was awkward, and I'm sure you remember how much we fought at first, just trying to make sense of it all… but Rose, it finally just dawned on me one day."
"What did?"
Reaching across the desk, Pete squeezed Rose's hand. "That while our memories control our past, they don't necessarily have power over our future… unless of course we let them. I had to make that conscious decision, Rose… and you probably will too."