A/N: Oh man, I'm a horrible fic author. I'm sorry it's been months since I updated, I really am. For September and October there was really no excuse. November is a different story. For the last year and a half, I've been living and working in Georgia but in November I found out that I got a job back home in Michigan! So November was a flurry of quitting my old job, packing, moving to Michigan, and unpacking, all with Thanksgiving thrown in the mix. Now I'm mostly settled, and I am going to try my very best to make sure I don't go months without updating an in-progress fic again.

As an apology for my lack of updates, you'll get two chapters today! I'll post chapter ten a bit later on. Hopefully you enjoy! And as always, please leave reviews if you do (or if you don't, I'm not picky).

Fair WARNING: there's light smut in this chapter.

Chapter 9 – Rose and Ten

Rose leans her head against the Doctor's shoulder as they walk hand in hand to their room. The adrenaline that's been coursing through her since she was detained by the commandos is fading fast now that they aren't running for their lives, and it's all she can do to stay upright.

"Tired?" the Doctor asks, pressing a kiss to her hair. She nods into his shoulder.

"You?" Though he doesn't sleep much, Rose knows it's been days since he slept and the stress of his torture and their escape must be wearing on him.

"I could sleep," he says, trying to keep his tone light. She snorts.

The TARDIS moves their room closer so they don't have as far to walk and they stumble inside. Rose takes a moment to put on sweatpants and a soft, worn tank top while the Doctor shucks his layers until he's in pants and a vest. It still gives Rose a thrill to see him without the armor of all his layers.

Together they turn down the bed and slip beneath the covers, lying on their sides facing each other, so close their noses are nearly touching. Between them, the Doctor threads his fingers through Rose's.

"I almost lost you today," Rose whispers, sliding her feet between the Doctor's so they're tangled together.

"I almost lost you, too. Don't do that again." The Doctor lifts his chin, closing the scant millimeters between them to press his lips to hers. It's a ghost of a kiss, just a whisper of his lips across hers, but Rose feels it in her soul.

"Not planning on it, ta," Rose teases gently. It's her turn to kiss him, though she adds a little more pressure when their lips touch. Rose feels a spark jump between them, one that raises gooseflesh on her skin.

Their kisses begin to linger as they shift closer together. Rose presses her body against the Doctor's, eager for the reminder that he is still with her, still whole and safe. The Doctor's arm snakes around her waist, holding her tightly to him, and their kisses shift from tired reassurance to desperate hunger. Rose's tongue sweeps into the Doctor's mouth, exploring every crevice even though she's mapped them a hundred times.

The Doctor levers himself over her, settling into the cradle of her thighs, pressing into her as he kisses her so deeply Rose can't tell where he ends and she begins.

"Doctor," Rose gasps as he nips at her neck. His hands are everywhere; struggling with the clasp of her bra, tickling her rib cage, lightly tracing the waistband of her sweats, and then his fingers are dipping inside her pants, focusing on the one spot that will unravel her completely.

The Doctor is pressed against the length of her body, not a breath of space between them, but with the barrier of clothing he's still too far away. Rose scrambles to remove his vest, yanking it over his head inelegantly, and it becomes a race to see who can unclothe the other first. In his haste, the Doctor rips the strap of Rose's top.

"Don't care," she mutters as her lips crash to his once more. She nearly sobs now that they are skin to skin.

"Love you," the Doctor growls, sucking hard on her collar bone. Rose's nails rake down his back, leaving ten angry red streaks, marking him as he's marking her.

Rose wraps her legs around the Doctor's hips, arching into him, relishing the evidence of his desire for her. He's hot and hard against her stomach and she wants nothing more than for him to fill her, to drive her over the edge.

"Rose, I can't…I can't wait," the Doctor pants, shifting to align their bodies. Rose shudders violently as he tests her with his fingers and she clutches his shoulders.

"Then don't," she manages to gasp.

The Doctor buries his face in her neck as he slides home, stretching and filling her. For a moment, they're still, just soaking in the feeling of being physically joined. After a few heartbeats, Rose lifts her hips, changing the angle and a low groan from the Doctor that vibrates against her chest.

"Doctor, please," she whispers, nipping at his earlobe. The Doctor groans again and pulls out slightly, only to push home and still again. Rose huffs in frustration, wiggling beneath him. The Doctor catches her hip and presses her to the mattress, his fingertips digging into the soft flesh.

"This will be over before it starts if you don't give me a mo'," the Doctor says. He speaks more like her when they're together like this, when the psychic barrier between them is weak. Rose sifts her fingers through his hair and then ghosts her fingertips over his temple and nudges at his mind with her own.

"Please." His control snaps the moment the barrier falls, his mind rushing forward to meet hers as he thrusts hard, striving to claim her.

Pleasure builds in Rose like the tide coming in, slowly and then all at once until she's shaking with the effort to hold on. She wants them to let go together, to find release as one, and judging by the tension in his shoulders, the Doctor is just about there.

"Let go," she pants in his ear. "I love you."

The Doctor drives into her one last time, holding himself tightly inside her as his body quakes and Rose spasms around him. Her scream is loud enough to shatter the windows, but he can't hear it over the blood pounding in his ears.

Exhausted, the Doctor collapses on top of her. Rose tangles her legs with his and wraps her arms around his waist, firmly attaching herself to him. When he moves to roll off of her and let her breathe, Rose whimpers, so he turns them together until she's sprawled over his chest. He draws up the covers, enclosing them in their own little cocoon.

"Oh Rose," he sighs, smoothing his hands down her back. "I love you."

Rose can hear in his voice that he finds those three simple words inadequate to truly convey his feelings. He's told her how he feels in his native language, trying to illustrate the difference, but to her it's enough. She doesn't need him to explain exactly how he feels; he shows her every moment of every day.

One of his hands stays splayed across her back while the other moves to her hair, stroking the golden strands softly. The pleasant tingling in her scalp makes her want to purr.

They lay in silence for a long time, both lost in their own thoughts. So much silence from Rose is unusual, and he can feel her unease through their bond. He shifts a bit to look at her face, checking to see if she's fallen asleep, but her eyes are open.

"You all right?" The Doctor asks, pressing a kiss to her head.

"I'm afraid," Rose says, her voice very quiet in the stillness of their room.

"Of?" he asks, though he knows exactly what she's going to say.

"I saw our future today, or your future anyway, and it scares me. I'm not with you anymore."

"We always knew that would happen someday, Rose," the Doctor reminds her. His voice is tightly controlled, his body tense, both signs that he's not feeling as unaffected as his words would suggest. "I'll outlive you by millennia."

"I know. And I know we don't have all the details, but something about the way the other you looked at me…Doctor, I think whatever separates us is bad and I think it's soon. It scares me." Rose presses a kiss to his chest, right over his hearts.

The Doctor takes a deep breath and wraps his arms around her, holding her tight.

"It scares me too, more than you could ever know. I can't imagine losing you, Rose, not in a year, not in sixty years. And I don't understand how he's still here, still functioning, because right now…right now I go where you go. I'd follow you into the Void. I'd follow you into death, Rose. I don't think I can bear the pain of losing you."

A shiver runs through Rose at the sincerity in his words. They fall silent for a long stretch. The Doctor returns to stroking Rose's hair and she's nearly asleep when he speaks again.

"We could ask him."

"What?" Rose props her chin on his chest so she can look at him. He doesn't meet her gaze.

"We could ask him what happens, so we know. So we're prepared. He might tell us."

Rose studies the Doctor for a moment. His brown eyes, usually so full of fire and love, are glassy with fear. Fear of the unknown, of being alone, for her, maybe all of that, Rose isn't sure. She is sure that the only other time she saw such fear in his eyes was in and underground bunker in Utah, with the Doctor and a gun in front of her, and a Dalek behind her.

"I don't think I want him to," Rose finally admits, slowly, testing his reaction.

"No?"

"No. Doctor, I'm afraid of what's coming, but I'm even more afraid that if we know when or what it is, we'll try to stop it. Or avoid it, or make sure it never happens at all. We'll be too careful, and I love this life too much to do that. I love saving planets and people and running for our lives, and I don't want that to change. I think…we have to let it go and say whatever happens, happens. I wouldn't change a thing about our life, no matter how it ends."

The Doctor nods, smiling down at her. He urges her up for a kiss and cuddles her close.

"You are fantastic, Rose Tyler."

And twined together, the finally drift into sleep.