The Doctor was just about to step back into his TARDIS behind Donna when he heard a soft voice behind him 'Doctor?' which made him stop and stiffen as knew the voice, surprise and slight shock in his eyes. Turning to the source of the voice he saw the one person he wanted so much to see yet the sight of her knotted his gut so much. Rose. Her stark brown eyes seemed to bore into him…that's what it felt like for the Doctor anyway having her eyes on him again after so long '…Rose' he said out loud yet silently in indication of his surprise and in acknowledgement of her 'hello Doctor' said Rose. They both stood in somewhat awkward silence for a couple of seconds looking at each other, the Doctor trying to think of something…anything to say so, how's things going with me?...Where abouts have you just come from then? Before all this that is…Some adventure we just had huh? With Rose probably pondering the same thing. 'Who's your new friend?' Rose asked breaking the silence, trying to keep her tone as casual and friendly as possible and not demanding in any way whatsoever to indicate any hint of jealousy…which she wasn't, not really…she WAS just interested to know…'Donna' the Doctor replied as he made sure to stay calm and not go red or blush from the feeling like he was trying to hide something from an "old ex". 'Ok' Rose said calmly which made the Doctor relax a bit and quietly let out a breath, both of which surprised him as he wasn't aware he had been holding his breath or that he had tensed in the last few seconds god's sake Doctor relax she's just asking out of interest, she's not going to get angry or upset unless you insult her the Doctor thought to himself as he then forced himself to focus and breath…normally.
Then came the question 'sorry I-…I just wanted to ask…how come I'm not traveling with you anymore? Did I…do something wrong? Or did…something happen to me?' Rose asked, the question surprised the Doctor in the sense that it was last question he expected to have to answer, and was reluctant to even do so. The Doctor's mind flashed back to the day in Torchwood Tower at Canary Wharf…in the control room with the rift open…Rose just barely hanging onto the lever by a few fingers.
The beats of both the Doctor's hearts quickened and he knew his face had turned to that of sadness and guilt '…Doctor?' Rose said again, her voice breaking through the mental stream of memories in the Doctor's mind. Taking a breath the Doctor responded 'something-…happens to you…we become separated' when Rose opened her mouth to say something he quickly continued 'that's all I can say, I'm sorry, I can't tell you anything more than that' he said god I WISH I could though, I REAALLLLY wish I could the Doctor thought as he felt the pain he was feeling inside begin to well up and start to overwhelm him which he fought and held back with every ounce of his will power and character. If weren't for the Laws of Time he might've done so.
'Do you…miss me at all?' Rose asked 'or do I just become "another human you travelled with"?' surprised, as well as a bit shocked, by her question the Doctor quickly responded 'no, no no no of course not, why would you think and ask that?' he said. Rose opened her mouth again to say something, but hesitated before she pushed herself to keep going 'I just…I don't…seem to be with you anymore, I thought I would be, I was just wondering if there was a reason for that' she said. The Doctor was now having a hard time containing his emotions and he took another breath to steady himself 'there's not a moment that goes by when I'm thinking of and about you' he said, letting a couple of seconds pass before he said 'of course I miss you Rose, the things we did, what we saw…all of it, I won't forget any of it'.
This brought about a small smile on Rose and she stepped forward and embraced the Doctor which surprised him, but after a few seconds he wrapped his arms tightly around her, but not too tight, and exhaled slowly as he relished every second of the hug. 'Are you alright?' Rose asked, the Doctor took another breath and exhaled again with a big smile 'yeah, I couldn't be better, this is how much I miss you' he replied, after a few seconds they separated and looked at each other 'so, quite a future I've got to look forward then' Rose said with a neutral look that was barely managing a smile 'oh you're in for some good times with me' the Doctor said as he briefly looked to the TARDIS that belonged to his former self.
At the Doctor's words Rose managed to smile a bit more as she briefly forgot about what he said about them becoming separated in her future 'I'm looking forward to it' she said before she looked back at the Ninth Doctor's TARDIS then back at Ten 'anyway, I should go, be safe Doctor' she said before she turned away and went back to the other TARDIS. The Doctor watched her go as he said 'you too' to Rose looked back at him and said with another smile 'of course I will be, I'm with you after all' before she got to the doors of the other TARDIS and disappeared through them, after which the TARDIS made the usual hollow *thunk* before it dematerialised and disappeared. The Doctor watched his TARDIS go before he went back into his own. Seconds later it too made the *thunk* sound before disappeared from the spot, as did the TARDIS's of the Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors.
The End