Okay, so, I'm just a terrible liar. Never believe me when I say I'm going to update soon. It's all a lie. However, I've kind of lost focus with this story. Probably only one more chapter after this one. I have too many new ideas I want to start.

Chapter 6
Out of Order

"Did you see the look on his face!?"

Rose collapsed to the couch in a fit of giggles as Jack followed her into the living room of their flat. As he plopped down next to her, he continued his rant.

"I mean, don't get me wrong, I understand that 21st century Barcelona is not quite as accepting as the universe as a whole was in the 51st century, but honestly, I don't think I've ever seen such a homophobic man in this universe outside of planet Earth's early years."

"Jack," she gasped through her laughter, "if a stranger walked up to me, and made the lewd comment that you made, I would probably be a bit upset to, eh?"

"Well it's a good thing I'm no stranger to you then," he interrupted with a wink.

"Honestly, I think he was just upset because you were staring at his dog," Rose said pointedly.

"But it doesn't have a nose!" Jack exclaimed. "That was one of the strangest things I've ever seen."

Suddenly subdued, Rose gave him a small smile. "Apparently they're famous for that." Jack, seeming to have notice the change in her attitude, started to ask her something, but she stood up before he got the chance. "I'm not feeling to well. I think I need some fresh air."

"No company?" Jack tried, even though he knew what her answer would be.

"I'll be fine," she assured him, pulling her jacket back on. "Be back in a while."

As the door clicked shut behind her, Jack found himself once more silently cursing both the Time Lord for breaking her heart, and her for being too stubborn for doing anything about it.

…

After round three or four, Rose started feeling better. It was getting late, but the alcohol warmed her enough that she could barely feel the chill in the air up on the rooftop of Juno Lounge. Three miles might be a bit of a walk just to get a drink, but she figured if she got a decent bit away from the Plass, Jack would be less likely to find her. Not to mention she was starting to become a fan of whatever band it was she could hear coming from The Globe just down the street.

"You know he's going to find you eventually," she heard a man with a Scottish accent say from behind her.

"Oh, you're not even looking for me yet," she replied, not even needing to turn around to know who it was. "Plus, it's not as though I'm hiding from him. I'm left Demon's Run with Jack. I'm in Cardiff."

"You don't want him to find you." He set another drink down in front of her, a Scotch almost as old as-

"Your new companion," she finished her thought out loud, looking up to find a young brunette standing next to the older Doctor. "I don't believe we've had the pleasure yet." She glanced up at him. "And stop saying 'him'. It's you. You're him."

Amusingly enough, the Doctor almost seemed nervous, looking between Rose and Clara. Who is this girl? But Rose wasn't stupid. She could tell by the way she stood next to the Doctor, the way she looked up at him when Rose looked at her. This girl had no idea who she was, and although she may not want to admit it, part of her was a bit in love with the Doctor.

"Not exactly new," said the defiant child. No, Rose chastised herself. Don't go being horrible to her before you've had the chance to really meet her. She could be lovely.

"Last I saw him, he had a different face and a ginger girlfriend," Rose replied, locking eyes with the girl. "I'm Rose, by the way."

"I'm Clara," she replied, both of them ignoring the Doctor's protest of "She wasn't my girlfriend! She was married!" "Who are you, then? I mean, you're Rose. But who are you to the Doctor?"

Rose shifted her eyes to glance at the Doctor questioningly. However, instead of responding to Clara, he asked Rose a different question.

"You knew who I was by my voice. You knew who I was without looking at me. When are you? I thought you wouldn't recognize me."

"Is that why you brought your new girlfriend?" Rose asked, laughing. "Hoping for a night on the town without the, what was it Mikey said, the ex-missus finding out?"

As Clara opened her mouth with another question, the Doctor interrupted. "You're not my ex-missus."

"I'm not you're ex anything," Rose clarified. "To say that would imply there was something there to begin with."

"Dear lord, I'd almost forgotten how bitter you were when you were this young," the Doctor replied, sounding somewhat condescending. Something in Rose snapped, and neither she nor the Doctor seemed to notice as the world froze around them. However, the Doctor looked down as he felt Clara pull on his sleeve and point around the room. "Is that really necessary?" he asked Rose, raising his eyebrows in disbelief.

"It wasn't exactly intentional," Rose huffed. "Happens when I feel a threat. Someone is up to something."

Just then her cell phone rang, knocking her out of focus, and time moved as normal again. "Yeah Jack?"

As Rose moved away to speak to Jack, Clara pulled the Doctor aside. "What is she?" she questioned.

"Human," he responded immediately. "Er, well, mostly, anyway. A bit of Tardis mixed up in there too, I suspect."

"And are you actually going to tell me who she is?" Clara asked irritably, hands on her hips.

"She's my wife," the Doctor whispered. "Well, eventually we're getting married," he clarified, grinning at Clara's look of disbelief. "But at this point in our lives, she can't really stand to be around me. We're way out of order here, honestly. I'm in awe the she actually knew who I was."

They stopped whispering to each other as Rose snapped her phone shut and walked over to them. "Can you give me a lift back to Torchwood? Apparently it just blew up."

…

A week later, the Doctor sat next to Rose on the sofa in her flat, while Clara was out on the balcony, laughing at whatever it was Jack had just told her.

"Does it ever get any easier?" she asked him, staring blankly at the wall ahead of her. "Losing the people you love, I mean – does it get any easier?"

The Doctor was silent for a moment, trying to figure out how to answer. "Not necessarily easier," he told her. "The pain dulls over time, but it doesn't make it any easier each time it happens. Every loved one hurts. It just gets easier to deal with when you can barely remember what color their eyes were."

"Is that what happened to us?" she replied after a long pause. "Was it just so long for you that you'd forgotten what I looked like? Did you not want to see me again? Is that why you were so upset?"

He shook his head, but didn't elaborate much. Before she could push him further, he stopped her. "I'm not the one you should be hearing this from. You're hurting right now. You've lost two people you've grown close to. As much as I hate to admit it, you have Jack right now. You and I aren't matching up right now, and to be honest, this conversation is a bit too difficult for me to have to have it twice.

"The other me," he added at her confused look. "The one with floppy hair. He'll find you. And he'll grovel at your feet. And you'll forgive him. And then we'll live happily ever after."

"Obviously we're not together in the future," Rose pointed out. "Clara has clearly been around for a while, and she has no idea who I am."

"It's… complicated. My version of you is actually off visiting a… friend right now. For the beginning of our friendship, Clara's timelines were a bit weird, and it hurt for you to be around her – kind of like me and Jack, actually. We're slowly working on introducing you to her, but only if it doesn't give you a headache.

"Just don't give up on your Doctor yet, Rose Tyler," he whispered, holding her hand in his as he stood. He pressed his lips to her hand once, twice, and once more before releasing her. "He's sorting through his stupidity, but he'll come begging you to listen to him soon enough. Just be willing to."

By the way, in case you didn't catch on, this chapter lines up with pretty much the end of season two of Torchwood.

Pepperfishh