Rose took a deep breath. "I need your help."
"Come in, it looks like you're about to keel over," John said, using his grip on her shoulder to urge her forward. He shepherded her towards his sofa with a hand on the small of her back.
Rose felt about two inches tall. Here he was being the supportive friend he always was and she was about to drop a bomb that had the potential to destroy their friendship.
"Do want some water? Tea?"
"John, I'm fine, I promise."
He snorted. "You don't look fine."
"Oi!"
He continued like he didn't hear her interruption. "And fine people don't normally show up at my door pale as a sheet and asking for help. So, tea?"
Rose flopped back, sinking into the sofa. "Fine. Tea. We're both going to need it by the end of this conversation."
"That sounds encouraging," John said as he headed towards the kitchen.
Rose just groaned in response.
John came back with the tea, Rose's already fixed just the way she liked it.
"Thanks, John," she said before taking a sip and then setting it on the coffee table.
"Of course. Now what's going on and how can I help?"
"You're probably going to hate me for this," she warned.
"Impossible."
"You say that now…"
"And I mean it. What's going on?"
"So my mum called me a few minutes ago and she's on her way up here for a surprise visit," Rose explained.
"And that necessitates my help how?"
Rose bit her lip and then tried on a sheepish smile. "Because she sorta thinks the two of us are dating."
John's face froze for a split second, mouth opening and closing a few times before he managed to actually emit sound. "Ah."
"Yeah."
"And she got that idea from where?" His voice had hiked up a few pitches.
"Well, she kept nagging me about my lack of a love life and threatening to find someone to set me up with and one of the nights you were coming over for dinner I just told her that I was seeing you so she'd stop pestering me. I didn't think anyone would ever know! I thought she'd warn me ahead of time before planning a visit so I could tell her we broke up or something."
"But now she's coming to visit and is expecting to meet me."
Rose nodded. "Got it in one."
"And we can't break up now, I take it."
"Well, we could, but you'd probably get slapped by my mother."
John winced. "Okay, not the best plan then. What exactly is the best plan?"
"I was hoping you'd agree to be my fake boyfriend for a few days while my mum's here."
"Doesn't sound too hard. I'm game," John said.
"Really? Just like that, you're in?"
"Of course. Come on, Rose Tyler, you should know by now that I almost never say no to you." He grinned brightly at her. "Besides, why I would turn down an opportunity to potentially embarrass you in front of your mother?"
"Oh, I'm going to regret this," Rose sighed before smiling back at him.
"Probably," he agreed. His worry about her had given away to the manic energy he always had when faced with a new problem to work through. "So, what have our alternate selves been up to and when did we start dating?"
Rose made a face. "About three and a half months ago."
"You don't even remember our anniversary exactly, I'm offended, Rose. Hurt and offended," John declared dramatically.
Rose pushed at his shoulder. "Wanker. It was a casual thing at first so neither of us can agree what the first date was or when we were technically together."
"Casual?" John sounded like he was choking. "Did you really tell your mother that you were using me for sex instead of dating me?"
"No!" Rose knew her cheeks had to be bright red. "I meant that we kinda went on a few dates without either of us officially calling them dates."
"Ah, okay. Makes sense. That makes it easier since our stories don't have to match."
"Glad that my lies are convenient in this instance," Rose said. She picked up her rapidly cooling tea from the coffee table and took a sip. "I cannot believe that this is happening."
"Oh come on, Rose. It'll be a lark! I just charm your mum and maybe she won't ask a million questions."
Rose took one look at John's earnest expression and burst into laughter, almost spilling her tea in the process.
"You really have no clue what you've agreed to. Jackie is going to give you the third degree and there's not much I can do to stop her."
"Then you better start teaching me what I need to know to pass as your boyfriend," John said. "You said she'll be here in a few hours?"
Rose nodded. "And she asked if you would be coming with me to the train station to pick her up."
He rubbed his hands together. "Then let's get started."
Rose launched into a brief summary of what she had told Jackie over the last few months with the disclaimer that it was basically their normal life but with kissing. When she was done, both of their mugs of tea were empty and John looked a little dazed.
"Sorry again," Rose said. Her eyes tracked her finger tracing the rim of the empty mug in her lap. "I know that this is a lot to remember and a lot for me to ask of you. You can still back out if you want."
He was being such a good sport about all of this and Rose felt terrible that he even had to put up with any of it.
"The remembering shouldn't be a problem. Like you said, it pretty much mirrors our friendship just with more kissing and all of that's easy to remember," John said. "And like I said before, I don't mind helping you out. I'm off work for the next few days because another department is running an experiment that they need our lab for. Really, you're saving me from getting extremely bored and doing something our landlord would disapprove of."
Rose rolled her eyes. "He still hasn't forgiven you for setting off the smoke detectors last month."
"Better than the time he evacuated the building because someone thought they smelled gas when it was just my experiment," John mused.
"I assume this was before I moved in? Because I haven't heard about this one."
"About a month before you moved in," John grinned with all his manic glory. "He was livid."
"Oh, I bet!"
He reached over and plucked her mug out of her lap before unfolding himself and heading towards the kitchen to deposit the dirty dishes in the sink. "So, for your mum's visit, how affectionate is she going to expect us to be?"
He wasn't looking at her when he asked the question so Rose couldn't gauge his expression, couldn't guess how he was really feeling about this whole situation.
"Very. I'm a tactile person," Rose said apologetically.
"Noticed that, actually," he said. He still hadn't turned around from where he was rinsing out the mugs but he sounded cheerful. "I'm the same so it shouldn't be too difficult."
Rose pulled her phone out to check the time and cursed under her breath. "John, I've got to go clean up my flat. My mum's not staying with me but she's going to want to come see it first thing, despite the multiple video call tours I've given her."
"Need any help?" he asked, dish towel still in hand as he turned to face her.
"You're already helping plenty," Rose said. "I can handle my flat."
"Let me walk you back then."
Rose laughed. "It's just down the hall, you idiot."
"I'm practicing being a good boyfriend," he said with an outrageous wink.
"FIne, whatever." Nothing could mask the big smile growing on her face.
He followed her out to the hallway and the grabbed her hand, lacing their fingers together and swinging their joined hands a bit as they walked. Rose valiantly tried to ignore the warmth the contact was sending shooting through her veins.
They were at her door far too soon but he didn't let go of her hand.
"Practice was probably a good idea," she admitted. Jackie was never going to buy any of this if Rose went around looking like a smitten schoolgirl all weekend - and that was exactly how she felt right now, holding John's hand in the hallway.
"I thought so," he said. "And if Jackie's going to expect us to be affectionate, there's something else we might want to practice before she gets here."
"Oh? And what would that be?" Rose really hoped she didn't sound as breathless as she felt.
John shuffled forward half a step. "Can I kiss you, Rose?"
His eyes looked darker than normal but Rose was pretty sure she was just projecting. She nodded, not trusting her voice.
John cupped her cheek with his free hand and leaned down to press his lips to hers. He kissed her slowly, exploring how she responded to different angles and pressures with the same thoroughness that she assumed he showed in his scientific work. His lips were soft against hers and Rose barely resisted the temptation to nibble on that pouty bottom lip of his like she'd wanted to for ages.
He broke the kiss and rested his forehead against hers instead of pulling back all the way. She was glad for the extra couple of seconds to compose her face. She pulled her bottom lip into her mouth and the taste of him bloomed in her mouth. It was all she could do to not pull him into another kiss. She didn't think she'd ever been kissed so thoroughly and he hadn't even slipped her any tongue.
John squeezed her hand and then straightened, putting a bit more distance between them. He looked a little flushed but then again, she knew she was too.
"Right, I'll let you get to your cleaning," he said, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"Yeah, good plan. I'll let you know when it's about time to leave for the train station."
He nodded sharply and turned to head back to his own flat. Rose opened the door to hers and closed it with her back once she was inside. She stayed there for a moment, leaning against the door with a hand pressed to her mouth, heart still pounding.
She was in so much more trouble than she'd anticipated. How was she going to make it through this without John realizing that she wanted to be so much more than just friends with him?
