Here it is, the final chapter. It's going to be emotionally charged. Still, it's hard to believe that I'm done with this story. It's been a real labor of love. I've struggled through writer's block and fought for ideas, but I know how I want to end it. Read on, my dear readers. Read on to the end.

ooooooooooooooo

Chapter 13: All Good Things

Chapter 36

It had been a week since Clara had told the Doctor that she had loved him and nothing seemed to change between them. In some ways, that was a relief. In other ways, it hurt that he did not seem to reciprocate. It was complicated, to be in love. He hadn't told her that he had loved her back. She didn't know if he even loved her back. After what happened last week, she didn't know if she could bear to pretend that she didn't love the Doctor. Sometimes, she wished that she could get into the Doctor's head to know how he was feeling, what he was thinking. She wanted to know how he felt about her. Perhaps he valued her friendship so much that he wouldn't let a little thing like one-sided romantic feelings get in the way. Maybe he was pretending that her confession hadn't happened. It hurt. She wanted him to love her back. Clara sighed and returned to the ham sandwich that she was eating. She just didn't know what to do about the situation between herself and the Doctor. Should she ask him how he felt about her or would it be best not to? She heard someone walking in. Clara looked and saw that it was Jack Harkness walking into the kitchen. He fixed himself a sandwich and sat down at the table with Clara. He glanced at her and said, "Something on your mind?"

"Nothing, really." Clara lied.

Jack raised a brow, not believing her at all. "Clara, right now, I can read you like a book." he said. "You're stewing."

Clara closed her eyes. When she opened them, she blurted, "I love him."

Jack grinned and fist-pumped. "I knew it!" he said gleefully before asking, "Did you tell him?"

"Yes." Clara replied, lowering her eyes.

"How did he react?" Jack asked. "Did he tell you that he loved you back?"

"He barely reacted at all." Clara said sadly.

Jack frowned and said, "He's completely head over heels for you and he won't tell you?"

"I don't know how he feels." Clara said. "He won't tell me. Maybe he doesn't feel anything for me."

Jack resisted the urge to bash his head against the table. Why couldn't these two just confess and get together? The Doctor and Clara belonged together. That was the simple truth of things. It would probably take a lot to get the Doctor to confess, though. That was the unfortunate truth. The Doctor and Clara deserved to be happy. It was as clear as day that Clara's feelings for the Doctor were not one-sided. "He's an idiot." Jack said, still frowning. "I'll get him to tell you one way or another."

"Don't bother, Jack." Clara said with a frown. "There's a physical attraction, but he doesn't love me."

Jack resisted the urge to facepalm. These two were idiots! He needed a plan. Somehow, one way or another, he would get these two together.

ooooooooooooooooooooo

The Doctor was currently doing some repairs to some pipes in the corridors. He set down his spanner and paused a bit. He heard someone approaching. It was Jack. "What do you want, Harkness?" the Doctor asked.

"Clara's been a bit upset lately." Jack commented.

"Oh?" the Doctor questioned.

"Yeah." Jack said. "She thinks that you don't care for her."

The Doctor paused before saying, "Of course I care. She's my friend."

"When are you going to tell her that you love her?" Jack asked bluntly.

"I don't love her." the Doctor said quietly.

"Are you telling me that," Jack asked, "or are you telling yourself?"

With that, Jack walked away, leaving the Doctor alone with his thoughts.

oooooooooooooooooooooo

Week 37

Amelia could tell that Clara was upset, though she didn't know why. She figured that it had something to do with the Doctor. He had upset her before. She wouldn't be surprised if he had upset her again. Right now, she was picking Clara up from work. When Clara got into Amelia's car, she paused before saying, "I need to get something from my flat."

"Got it, Chickie." Amelia replied. "Want me to go in with you?"

"Sure." Clara said.

"It might be safer anyway." Amelia said, making a logical point. "Just in case the creep is nearby."

Clara nodded and said, "You can definitely come in with me."

"Good decision, Chickie." Amelia said with a smile.

Amelia drove Clara to her block of flats before parking her car and exiting. The two women then headed up to Clara's flat. Clara unlocked the door with her new keys and walked in. The inside wasn't particularly nice, but at least there was no one there. Clara headed into her room to retrieve what she needed to get. While Clara was gone, the door opened. When Amelia saw who it was, she gasped, "You!"

Amelia was then struck in the head, knocking her out. Clara left her room, saying, "I just needed to get some files."

When Clara saw who had entered her apartment, she gasped, "Oh my god!"

The person grabbed Clara. Clara tried to struggle, but the assailent held a cloth over her mouth. Chloroform. Clara was out like a light. The assailent then lifted Clara and carried her out of her flat.

oooooooooooooooooooo

When Clara awoke, she was lying on her side on the ground. She opened her eyes and sat up. She heard a familiar male voice say, "Welcome back, darling."

Clara couldn't believe who it was. "Alex?" she gasped.

Alex stood over her menacingly. His pinkie finger was gone, probably cut off to fake his death. "Alex, what are you doing?" Clara asked.

"I came to see you, of course." Alex said with a smile. "You wouldn't respond to any of my emails. At least I finally got to go to your flat." Alex clucked his tongue and waved his finger as if scolding her. "You know, you're a real tease, Clara. Making me want you and not letting me have you."

"You were the one who was sending me those emails?" Clara questioned. Her blood turned to ice. She remembered the things that the emails had said.

Alex knelt down in front of Clara and smiled once more. "You didn't answer them." he said. "I did so want to talk to you."

"Alex, let me go." Clara said insistantly.

"I'm afraid that I can't do that." Alex said with a frown. "Like I said, you're a tease. You pretend to want me but you go to the old man instead? For shame. I'm afraid that I'm going to have to teach you a lesson."

Alex pulled out a knife and smiled. He grabbed Clara by the arm and swifly slashed it, leaving a painful cut. Clara cried out in pain. She tried to get away, but Alex grabbed her by both of her wrists and frowned. "It'd be best if you just let me discipline you." Alex said. "You need to learn to listen to me."

With that, Alex slashed across Clara's chest. Clara cried out in pain once more. She knew that, whatever Alex planned, she would be in for a living hell. Alex, seeing the pained look on Clara's face, brough this tongue down and laved it over the gash on Clara's chest. "Just accept your punishment, Clara." Alex said calmly. "When it's over, I'll make love to you."

He planned to rape her, Clara realized. She began to struggle even more. She had to get out of there! Once again, Alex brought his knife down to cut her arm. If she didn't get out of there, she would truly suffer.

ooooooooooooooooooo

The Doctor had landed the TARDIS in the usual pick-up spot, but Clara wasn't there. He waited for a while, but she still didn't come. After a while, he became concerned. He thought of the places she would most likely be located at. First, he headed to Cricket Bat Woman's flat. Her partner told him that, no, Clara was not there. She and Cricket Bat Woman had gone to Clara's flat to pick something up. The Doctor was filled with an unexplainable dread when he took the TARDIS to Clara's flat. When he got there, he stepped out and nearly tripped over Cricket Bat Woman. The American woman groaned and slowly sat up. "Where's Clara?" the Doctor demanded.

"He took her." the injured woman said.

"Who?" the Doctor asked.

"Alex Chang." she replied. "He faked his death and now he has her! I think it was him who broke into Clara's place and sent her those threatening emails."

Without a word, the Doctor headed back into the TARDIS and began to scan for Clara. It took him a minute or so, but he did find her. She was miles away, in a warehouse. He quickly began to press buttons and pull levers, sending the TARDIS into the vortex. He was fairly sure that his ship travelled a hell of a lot faster than normal as he took it to the warehouse. When the Doctor exited the TARDIS, he dashed in the direction of the warehouse. He opened the door and, inside, he saw a horrible sight. Clara lay there, covered with horrible wounds. A man was in the middle of cutting her dress off. "Clara!" the Doctor cried.

The man, Alex Chang, smiled at the badly injured Clara and said, "I'll have to return to you later, sweetheart."

With that, Alex discarded the knife. He then reached down to his hip and drew a gun. He pointed it directly at the Doctor. Immediately, he pulled the trigger and hit the Time Lord in the shoulder. "Pity." Alex clucked. "I was aiming for your chest. This time, I won't miss."

"No!" Clara gasped.

She reached for the knife and somehow managed to find the strength to get to her feet. She charged at Alex and brought the knife into his back Alex cried out in pain before turning around. Clara grabbed at him and they struggled for the gun. Suddenly, a loud bang echoed through the warehouse. Time seemed to stand still as Clara fell to the ground. Alex looked horrified. He then bolted. "Clara!" the Doctor cried, rushing to his fallen companion.

When he saw the gunshot wound in her abdomen, his hearts fell. Clara seemed to realize it as well and began to sob. The Doctor's shoulders slumped. For all those months, he had imagined his and Clara's life together, imagined a little boy with brown hair and brown eyes growing up in front of them. Now, it was all gone. Clara was sobbing violently in the Doctor's arms. "Oh god, Doctor, I'm sorry!" She wept.

"It's not your fault." the Doctor said, holding her tightly.

Clara was losing blood and fading fast. The Doctor feared that he might lose her. "Doctor," Clara whimpered. "I'm sorry. I love you. Oh god, Doctor!"

"I love you, too." the Doctor confessed. Then he said firmly, "Clara, stay with me!"

As Clara faded into unconsciousness, she was aware of the sound of sirens in the background.

oooooooooooooooooooooooo

3 Months Later

The Doctor awoke alone in his bed. It had been three months since the incident in the warehouse and he still couldn't stop thinking about it. The police had arrived and arrested Alex and an ambulance took Clara to the hospital. When the physician gave the Doctor the news, he felt as if the ground had fallen out from under him. He very nearly collapsed. When he was able to visit Clara, he had to give her the news. When she heard what he had to say, she began to sob violently. All these months and it was over. The Doctor sighed and got out of bed to find Clara. He had a fairly good idea as to where she might be. He left his room and headed down the hall to the nursery. He quietly opened the door. It was mostly dark inside, with the exception of a lamp near the crib. Clara was standing there by the crib, her hand resting lightly on the railing. The Doctor walked over to Clara and set a hand on her shoulder. "Clara," he said, "Come back to bed."

Clara let out a soft sigh and said, "All those months of being pregnant. It's been three months and I still can't believe that it's over."

"It's been an adjustment." the Doctor admitted.

"Yeah." Clara said, looking down into the crib. A soft smile formed on her face as she said, "He's beautiful, isn't he?"

The Doctor looked down into the crib at the sleeping infant. He had a shock of brown hair on his head and, though they were closed now, beautiful brown eyes. "That he is." the Doctor said with a smile.

It was really a wonder that the baby had survived. The bullet hadn't hit anything vital. "Things will certainly be interesting as he grows up." the Doctor said.

"He really is unique." Clara said, smiling once more.

"John Smith Oswald." The Doctor mused. "Things are certainly going to be more interesting in the TARDIS."

"I don't know what will happen next," Clara admitted, "but I know that we can handle this together."

The Doctor squeezed Clara's shoulder and agreed, "Together."

Clara turned to face the Doctor and leaned into his chest. "I love you." Clara whispered.

"I love you, too." the Doctor said softly.

The Time Lord then cupped Clara's chin and tilted her head a little before bringing his mouth down to hers in a gentle kiss. As Clara and the Doctor embraced, they both became aware of the TARDIS playing Survivor's I Can't Hold Back. In that instant, everything was as it should be. It was perfect.

The End