Rose sat on her stool behind the counter, nervously biting her thumbnail. She looked up at the clock on the wall for the umpteenth time, and on seeing the time, began biting her nail all the more till she was nearly at the quick. It was midmorning and still nothing had happened—nothing at all. Of course, she'd had the normal early morning rush, but even that wasn't able to distract her relentless thoughts. Rose had a one track mind that morning. Business was at a lull, allowing silence to fuel her disappointment. The longer she sat and mulled, the more Rose began to fear she'd been incredibly stupid. She had made a split second decision in the lift, and it was one Rose had hoped would pay off in the end. But now…now, she was afraid she'd come out a loser on all counts—Ian wouldn't show and she might have permanently lost her mobile, all because of some ridiculous whim.

Rose continued to kick herself mentally. She really, really hadn't thought this one out. How was he even supposed to find her? He could always search through her mobile, though for some reason she doubted he would go that route. He might try Rendezvous, but if Ian did that, he'd more than likely run into Donna. Oh, Lord…what if that happened? She could just imagine Donna's reaction. And that was by no means an ideal scenario.

And then there was the fact that without her mobile, no one could readily contact her. She hadn't even thought about what would happen if any of her friends or family tried and failed to reach her. It wasn't till after she arrived at her flat, that Rose realized the complications she'd caused. After a few hours of being without her mobile, everyone began to bombard Martha, Rose's flatmate and one of her closest friends. Poor Martha—she was unbelievably stressed over exams, and every time she had attempted to hunker down and study, her mobile would ring. Half the time it was for her, and the other half it was for Rose. After Jackie rang for the fourth time in twenty minutes, Martha had finally given up and tossed Rose the mobile before locking herself in her room and refusing to come out for three hours. Rose still felt guilty that her spontaneity had caused Martha so much hassle.

To be perfectly honest, Rose just wanted to have a plausible excuse to see Ian again. Being trapped in that lift with him had been very…enlightening. After giving him verbal whiplash, she'd found herself feeling very awkward being confined in such a small space with him. As her anger began to dim, Rose was hit with almost an overload of other emotions; emotions so strong and so exhilarating, they nearly knocked her off her feet. Rose was certain that she'd never felt anything like it in her life. And to be perfectly honest once again, it was a little frightening. How could she feel so strongly about a virtual stranger? She knew nothing about him. Well, not exactly nothing—she knew two things. One, that he hated pears—not exactly the basis for a relationship of any kind. And two, he was a prosecutor—and he was "better than good." Remembering his smile and the playful tone in his answer, Rose found herself smiling widely. That smile had made her heart skip a beat. Ian was definitely handsome, more than a handsome really. He was gorgeous. He had amazing hair, dark chocolate eyes, and then there was the way he looked in those suits… Rose's eyes widened and she flushed bright red at her train of thought.

I really need to get ahold of myself…

Just then, Sally hurried in, effectively breaking Rose's musings. She looked up and gave the girl a smile.

"I'm so sorry I'm late, Rose. My piece of crap car decided to bite the dust on me. I had to ring up Kathy for a ride. Was it bad this morning?"

"Nah," Rose said as she shook her head. "Nothin' I couldn't handle." Rose tried to keep her mind focused on what needed to be done that morning, but she could feel thoughts of Ian trying to push their way to the forefront.

Sally could see that Rose's mind was preoccupied. "Watcha thinkin' about?" she asked curiously.

"Hmm? Oh, no one…I mean nothin'…," Rose fumbled pitifully.

Sally's eyebrows met her hairline and her eyes twinkled with excitement. "No one? Who's no one?"

Rose remained silent and turned her gaze away, feeling her cheeks burn.

"Rose Tyler…do you have a bloke?" Sally asked, practically squealing.

Rose jumped up from her stool and began busying herself with the displays. "No, I don't have a bloke."

Sally hurried behind the counter and dropped her bag and jacket to the ground before hurrying in front of Rose. Rose continued to avoid eye contact with her, instead allowing her hair to shield her face.

"Rose Marion Tyler, look me in the eye and tell me that there's no bloke."

Rose took a deep breath and tried to gain her composure. She raised her head and met Sally's eager and questioning gaze.

"Sally Noel Sparrow," she mimicked, "there is no bloke." Rose attempted to sound firm, but her efforts fell flat.

Sally quirked an eyebrow skeptically at Rose's response. Rose felt the corners of her mouth tug upward, threatening to break into a smile. She felt the flush begin to creep up her neck and she hurriedly turned around, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Aha!" Sally squealed, pointing a finger at her, "You do! Ya did that thing with your hair. Ya always do that when you get nervous."

"I do not," Rose insisted. It was just then that she realized her hand was again tucking her hair back. She jerked her hand down and moved away from Sally.

Undeterred, Sally followed after her. "Sooo…what's his name? How'd ya meet him? Tell me, tell me!"

"I already told ya there's no bloke."

"You're such a liar! Ya might as well spill because I'm not givin' up."

Fortunately for Rose, the bakery phone rang. Rose let out an audible sigh of relief and quickly grabbed the phone. Sally grinned conspiratorially. "We're not done here," she said before picking up her jacket and bag to properly put them away.

Rose rolled her eyes as Sally walked off, and turned her attention back to the call. "Bad Wolf Bakery, this is Rose."

"When are ya gonna get your bleedin' mobile back? Do y'know how difficult it's been tryin' to get ahold of ya?"

"Hello to you, too, Mum."

"Sorry, love. Didn't mean to snap."

There was an unusually long silence from her mum.

"Mum? Everythin' alright?"

"Everythin's fine. What about you, sweetheart? What are you doing?"

There was something about Jackie's tone that was off. It was almost as if she wasn't completely present for their conversation.

"Uh, well, rang the bakery so…that would mean I'm workin'."

"That's nice… so, what are ya doing?"

"Okay, Mum, what's goin' on? You're being weird."

Jackie sighed into the phone. "Rose, I have somethin' to tell ya. It's…well, it's big."

"How big?" Rose asked hesitantly, unsure whether to be worried or excited.

"Oh…pretty big. It's good, just…big. And very…unexpected," Jackie said with a smile in her voice.

"You're not pregnant, are ya?" Rose joked, laughing into the phone.

There was silence on the other end.

Rose gripped the phone tightly. "Are you having a laugh?"

"No, Rose. I'm having a baby. You're dad and me are at the doctor's now. They just confirmed it."

Rose opened and closed her mouth several times before finally finding her voice. "Oh, my God, Mum! That's… that's great!"

"You're really okay with this, Rose?"

"'Course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well…You're not gonna be an only child anymore. And I thought… well, honestly, I'm not sure what I thought. It's just important to your dad and me that you're okay with this. Y'know no matter what, you'll always be our lil' girl. Nothin's ever gonna change that, love."

"I know that, Mum," Rose assured her. "And I'm a big girl now; I think I can handle not being the only one anymore."

Rose could practically hear the relief and smile in her mum's voice as she spoke. "All right, sweetheart. I've got to go. The doctor's back. I'll talk to you later. Love you."

"Love you, too, Mum."

With the line now dead, Rose turned off the phone, staring at it afterwards. Her mum was pregnant. Pregnant! How did that happen? Well, obviously she knew how it happened, but it just seemed so surreal. There would be twenty-one years separating her and her brother or sister. Twenty-one years. The idea of it stunned Rose into silence.

Sally came back into the room, grinning madly and clearly eager to resume their previous conversation. However, upon seeing Rose's dazed expression, Sally immediately became concerned.

"Y'okay, Rose? Everythin' all right with your mum?"

Rose nodded. "Yeah…she's fine. More than fine."

"What do ya mean?" Sally asked, wrinkling her brow.

Taking a deep, clearing breath, Rose walked out from behind the counter. "Um, I'm gonna go out for a mo'. Isobel should be in soon. Think ya can manage for a bit?"

"Yeah, sure. No problem," Sally assured her though still worried about her friend. "Sure you're okay?"

Rose smiled softly. "Yeah," she reiterated, quickly turning on her heels and exiting the bakery. She turned left and began to walk. She had no destination in mind, simply functioning on autopilot. She hadn't traveled very far before she accidently knocked into a passerby's side. Realizing what she'd done, Rose hurriedly turned to look at the stranger to apologize. On seeing who it was, the words died on her lips. Standing in front of her was the man she'd been waiting all morning for—Ian.

Ian seemed as equally stunned to see her. They stood there for what seemed like eternity, just staring at each other, neither saying a word. Rose was not only shocked into silence by his sudden appearance, but also by the intensity of his gaze. Oh God, those eyes… Rose could lose herself in them without even trying.

Finally breaking the silence, Ian said, "Hello."

"Hello," she replied, a smile emerging on hearing his voice.

Ian quietly sighed. He was so relieved to see Rose again. To see the glow of life around her. To hear her voice, a calming caress to his frazzled nerves. On seeing her smile, Ian found himself mirroring her action. He couldn't help it; it just felt natural when seeing her. Suddenly remembering his excuse for seeing her, Ian reached into his coat pocket and pulled out her "forgotten" mobile.

"Um, I found this in the lift yesterday. You must've dropped it," he said handing it to her.

"Oh, thanks."

As she reached her hand out to take it from him, their fingers grazed each other. Though it was a small action, it sent shivers through both of them.

Rose nervously cleared her throat. "Now everyone will settle down. Drove 'em all a bit barmy when they couldn't reach me," she finished smiling shyly at him.

"Yeah," Ian grinned. "It rang…a lot."

Rose chuckled at his emphasis.

"Don't worry. I didn't go snooping."

"I'm not worried. I trust you," she said sincerely, her smile widening.

They settled back into staring wordlessly at each other, something both of them appeared quite content with doing. Yet the longer they continued, the more they each began to feel a heated blush threatening to take over their faces.

Rose was the first to break her gaze away, turning it downward. "So…um…"

"Yes, well," Ian said, grinding one of his trainers into the pavement. "I guess I should go. You probably have things to do." He was reluctant to part from her. In truth, it was the last thing he wanted. Ian was still plagued with images of Rose collapsing. Her lying in a hospital bed, unconscious and pale. Ian didn't want to be left alone with those painful memories. As it was, he already had too many of those kinds of memories.

"No," Rose said quickly, not ready to part from him just yet. "I mean, no, I don't have much to do. 'Sides, Sally's watching the shop for me. I actually just stepped out to get some air."

Ian felt hopeful at Rose's reaction; however, he wasn't sure what response to give next. He didn't have to worry long because Rose spoke up again.

"Would you want to come with? Unless you're busy. Or don't want to…," she trailed off, fretful that he'd turn down her offer.

He smiled at her nervous invitation. "Air sounds good. Been needing a lot of air lately."

Though she was confused by his last statement, Rose smiled brightly at his acceptance. As she began to walk again, Ian fell into step with her. They only walked a short distance before Ian boldly took the initiative to start a conversation.

"So was there a particular reason you needed air?"

Rose pushed back her hair. "Well…just found out my mum is pregnant. Sorta found it necessary to get as much air as possible after that bombshell."

Ian's eyes widened at that revelation. He hadn't met any sibling of Rose's. He hoped that was purely a matter of circumstances not allowing it, and not something else.

"I take it you're not happy about it?"

Rose shook her head. "No, it's not that at all. It's… It's just strange, s'all. Twenty-one years is one heck of an age gap. I'm old enough to be its mother. Me havin' a baby? Can ya imagine that?" she asked more rhetorically than anything else.

At that statement, Ian grinned. He didn't have to imagine that. He'd seen it firsthand, and it wasn't an unpleasant sight.

Realizing what she'd just said, Rose began to backpedal. "I didn't mean that… Well, I did; but I wasn't really asking you, or expectin' an answer. It's just weird and I'm spiraling a lil' and… and I think I'm gonna stop talkin' before I make more of an idiot outta myself."

Ian couldn't help but laugh as she hopelessly floundered. It was rather…endearing. Rose looked up at him upon hearing his laughter. She loved the sound of it. Seeing the life it brought to his features, she broke into a brilliant smile, her tongue peeking through her teeth. As they did in the lift, Ian's eyes flitted to her mouth. He found that smile utterly captivating, and it stirred his soul when he saw it. Rose felt her cheeks blaze as he intensely gazed at her. She ducked her head and stared at the pavement, urging her body to control itself. She then noticed his footwear and broke into another broad grin.

"Trainers?" she asked as she looked back up at him.

"Sorry?"

"Your shoes. You're wearing trainers…with a suit."

He pulled on his ear sheepishly. "Yeah… I guess it's sorta peculiar."

Rose shrugged her shoulders. "I like it. 'S different. I just wouldn't 've pegged ya as the trainer type."

"Oh, yeah? And why's that?" Ian asked curiously. He had a fairly good guess, but he was interested in her perspective.

She quirked an eyebrow. "Honestly?"

"Please," he prodded with a nod of his head.

Rose stopped and looked at him squarely. "Well, to be honest, ya keep your guard up. Keep others at a distance. Trainers make you sort of… accessible. Shows a different side of ya."

He turned his gaze away from her, starting to feel uncomfortable with her estimation. He swallowed hard. "You got that from a pair of shoes?"

"The shoes… and a couple of other things," she said softly.

Ian looked at her again, trying to understand just who this woman was that she could see into him and perceive such things. As she met his stare, he quickly turned away and they began walking again. Familiar silence descended once again.

"I've worn them since I was young. I hated having to dress up. My brother loved it. Any excuse to show off. But I did anything I could to get out of it. Didn't mind the suits… but I hated those florsheims. Always slipping and sliding. Not ideal for making a clean getaway when you're a kid. But my father…," he started but trailed off.

Rose could hear the emotion in his voice, and desperately wanted to prod him further. But something in Rose admonished her to be patient, to let him speak at his own pace.

Finding his courage, Ian began again. "My father made a deal with me. Said if I wore the suit, then I could wear whatever shoes I wanted. So being a kid, I naturally went with the trainers. Just sort of stuck after that."

Though she couldn't explain why, Rose sensed that Ian revealing this anecdote was significant. She smiled warmly at him. "Well, I'm glad it did. I like 'em."

He gave her a small smile, but offered nothing further.

"So, are you and your dad close?" Rose asked, hoping to learn more about this man who endlessly intrigued her.

In that instant, Ian's entire body tensed and that guard rose again. "We were."

"Do ya have a big fam—"

"Shouldn't you be getting back to your shop?" Ian cut her off sharply.

Rose made an appraisal of him again. His body remained tense, his jaw stiff and his eyes hard and pained. She'd crossed into forbidden territory and had been immediately thrown out.

"Probably." Rose took a hard swallow at seeing the harshness return to him. "Walk back with me?" she asked softly.

Ian said nothing, merely nodded his head and followed her lead. Guilt began to eat at her as they walked back to the bakery. She hadn't meant to broach a sensitive subject so soon. She simply found herself hungering for information about this enigma beside her.

Not wanting to remain in awkward silence, Rose chose another subject; something far away from their previous topic. "How did ya find me, by the way?"

"I was out the other day and I walked by your window. I recognized the wolf from the box you gave me," he said, his voice softening just slightly. "Why'd you call it Bad Wolf Bakery?"

"My dad would tell me Little Red Riding Hood before bed. It became my favorite story."

Ian wrinkled his brow in confusion. "Wasn't the wolf the villain? Seems an odd choice."

She grinned. "Dad had a different version. He said the wolf protected Red, risked its life to make sure she was safe from the dangerous woods. Where she went, the wolf went with her."

"What was wrong with the story the way it was?"

Rose shrugged her shoulders. "Nothin' I guess. But I like his version better. Everyone needs someone lookin' out for them. Someone who sticks by 'em no matter how dark things get. Don't ya think?"

Ian halted his steps and looked at her directly. Who was this woman? Why was she constantly appearing in his life? Rose met his gaze with almost equal intensity, and Ian could swear she was staring into his soul, yet again.

He sniffed and motioned his head forwards. "I believe this is your stop."

Rose followed to where he was pointing and realized they'd arrived back at the bakery. Disappointment immediately set in. She didn't want to leave him yet. Some part deep within her didn't want to leave him ever. But she realized that, at this moment, she had to let him go. She had to have faith…faith in whatever it was that was constantly pulling them towards each other.

Rose spoke first. "Thanks for the walk."

"My pleasure."

"Maybe we should do it again, sometime," she offered.

The harshness of Ian's features softened somewhat. "Maybe we should."

A beat passed.

"Well, I guess I'll see ya round," Ian said, extending his hand to bid goodbye.

Rose put her hand within his, and was once again struck by how perfectly they fit together, how natural it was to have his hand wrapped around hers.

"Y'know where to find me." With that, she released his hand, albeit reluctantly, and entered the bakery.

Ian watched her for a moment before turning and walking away. As Rose entered the bakery, she immediately noticed Sally and Isobel staring intently at her. Both of them grinned at her.

She stopped midstride. "What?"

"'No bloke,' my round bottom," Sally snorted.

"Oh, shut it," Rose said as she rolled her eyes.

"And just who was that lovely specimen of manlihood?" Isobel teasingly inquired.

Rose shrugged her shoulders as she continued towards the kitchen. "Not exactly sure."

Both Sally and Isobel were clearly not buying into that. They continued to pelt her with questions, but Rose deflected them enough times to where the girls decided to put their questioning on hold. As Rose went about preparing various orders, she couldn't help but ponder over her encounter with Ian and the response she'd given to Sally and Isobel.

Rose hadn't lied when she said she wasn't sure who he was exactly. She didn't know who he was, yet. But one thing was for certain. She was going to find out.