Rose had just finished her shower and was rubbing a towel through her hair when she noticed that the TARDIS' hum had changed. She'd been more attuned to it since returning to this universe and even more so since becoming Bad Wolf again.

This sound filled her with apprehension, and she didn't stop to think, instead wrapping the towel around her and stepping out into the corridor. The TARDIS was leading her somewhere she'd never been before, but she scarcely spared a thought for her unfamiliar surroundings.

There was a single door at the end of the hall and Rose opened it without hesitation, driven by the sense of urgency she could feel from the TARDIS, halting only when she saw the room on the other side. It was the same room the Doctor had taken her to sleep in - had it only been the night before? It felt like it years - and she could hear the shower running in the en suite.

She hesitated again- surely the Doctor had to be all right if he was in the shower - but the TARDIS only pushed more urgently in response and it overrode Rose's reluctance. She pushed open the door to the bathroom without even bothering to knock, in a move that would have felt uncomfortably bold were it not for her worry for the Doctor.

"Doctor?" she called, over the sound of water. The room was filled with steam - he'd clearly been in there for a while - and she could barely see. "Doctor, are you all right? I'm sorry, it's just, the TARDIS…"

Her voice caught in her throat as she found the Doctor, standing motionless under the stream of water, elbows braced against the wall and both hands fisted in his hair, hunched over as though the weight of the spray was too much to bear. She froze - she'd never seen the Doctor looking so vulnerable, or so human. She ignored his state of nakedness - she could sense distress radiating from him and she bit her lip at the realisation that he'd just been pretending, in the console room.

He really wasn't all right.

How could he be? Her inner voice was scathing. His mind was invaded by an evil entity and then he nearly watched you die in front of him right after getting you back and then he thought you were going to burn. Of course he's not all right.

Listing it all out like that made it blatantly obvious that the Doctor had been through hell these past forty-eight hours. That knowledge had her moving before she was consciously aware of it, reaching out a tentative hand for the Doctor's shoulder.

"Doctor?"

The instant their skin touched, the Doctor jumped as though an electrical current had shot through his body, and his eyes snapped to hers, flat and dark and more than a little mad. She couldn't stop herself from falling back a tiny step - the expression held nothing human at all, even worse than when he'd nearly lost her to the Dalek.

"Rose?" the Doctor rasped.

Rose smiled, but the Doctor was already shaking his head.

"No, how can you be here? You can't be here, you're in the parallel world…"

Rose's heart sank. This reaction was more along the lines of what she'd been expecting when she first jumped back into this universe, for their encounter in the galley, and it threw her for a moment. Before she could think of how to respond, the Doctor continued.

"If you think you're going to get to me by impersonating her, you are very much mistaken. Rose Tyler keeps me strong, keeps me fighting. I will always believe in her."

Rose's eyes stung with tears, and she swallowed to speak past the lump in her throat. "Doctor, it's me. I promise it's me. We've been through this once already." She hesitated before reaching out again, taking his hands. He shuddered deeply at her touch, but it was not a pleasurable reaction.

The TARDIS surged in her head, and she knew what she had to do - what she should have done, long before. Rose lifted the Doctor's hands to her temples. "Can I… Will you let me show you?" She held her breath.

Simple astonishment flashed across his features as he drew in a ragged breath, and it was that more than anything else that led him to accept, Rose was sure. She wondered, briefly, how long it had been since anyone had asked him to initiate telepathic contact.

She was grateful for his consent, but he was not gentle, and Rose winced as their surroundings fell away and he entered her mind.

How much of an idiot do you think I am? The Doctor's voice boomed and cracked in her head. Rose, the real Rose, can't do this, and more than that, she hates telepathy, so you are going to tell me, right now… Oh. His voice trailed off as he registered where he was and the love and welcome Rose was at pains to project. Rose.

The sudden, tentative hope she could sense from him galvanised her and she did her best to wrap the Doctor's presence in all the comfort she could muster.

Doctor, you've blocked yourself off from the TARDIS somehow, Rose said, striving for calm. She can't reach you and she doesn't know why, so she came and got me. That's why I'm here. Please trust me, my Doctor. I found you, I came back to you two days ago, and we saved the universe today. I was just showering in my room, and then we were going to snog in front of bad telly all night until I fell asleep.

She replayed each scene as she spoke; their reunion, and waking up together, walking among the planets at the Shadow Proclamation and him dipping her to the grating after they saved the Earth, right up to her mental image of her plan for the evening: of the two of them entwined on the couch, program completely forgotten. This is what telepathy was meant to be used for, and she could feel him watching her intently as the pictures flicked by.

Once she'd finished, it was like a wall crumbled to dust in the blink of an eye. He was suddenly with her, surrounding her, but his emotions were all over the place and she couldn't get a read on them. She tried to direct his focus to the positive but his thoughts were too chaotic for her to keep up.

How are you doing this, Rose? They were suddenly standing on a barren heath, their bodies obscured by fog. Her heart ached that this was location his mind had conjured. She was fairly certain that he was fully dressed with his coat on, and she spared a thought to hope he'd afforded her the same courtesy.

I told you about Bad Wolf, didn't I? Merging with the TARDIS gave me telepathic abilities and now that they've been reawakened I can actually use them. Rose was surprised - she hadn't actually known any of that beforehand and realised the TARDIS had to be feeding her information. But never mind that just now: look, Doctor. Look in my mind, I'll prove to you that everything's all right. Better than all right. Whatever you need.

He came towards her slowly and put his fingers up to her temples, which surprised her since they were already in his mind.

Your perception of what I'm doing in your head, the Doctor explained absently. Rose tried to open her mind to him as fully as possible, but he pulled back almost immediately, awe and something like fear crossing his face.

Rose? He sounded just slightly more like himself, and Rose was glad of that, even if she hadn't succeeded in fully reassuring him yet. There aren't any doors.

I trust you, my Doctor, Rose said simply.

She felt his tremour in her mind rather than in his fingers, and he deepened their connection. Rose forced down the thrill she felt at being connected so deeply with the Doctor. Instead, she replayed another memory, this time of the conversation she'd had with the TARDIS, making sure to skip ahead to the part when Bad Wolf was made dormant again.

She got no warning. Every last ounce of tension left the Doctor in a rush of overwhelming relief that forced them both out of the connection. Before she could catch up with what was happening he'd hauled her bodily against him.

They were both naked, but Rose couldn't have cared less about that as she focussed on comforting her Doctor. She ran her hands through his wet mop of hair, following the rivulets of water down his neck and over his shoulders as he trembled against her. She could tell almost no time had passed since they'd started their telepathic exchange, but the heat was still starting to get to her.

"I'm so sorry, Doctor," she said softly. "I should have thought of this before, when we were alone in the console room, but telepathy doesn't come naturally to me, I guess." She kissed his forehead, and he buried his face into the crook of her neck. "We'll just have to work on that, yeah?"

The Doctor huffed a laugh, moving to press his ear to her chest, presumably to listen to her heart, and Rose held him to her. Despite their current state of undress, Rose found that sex was the furthest thing from her mind in the face of the Doctor's distress.

After a time, she chafed the Doctor's shoulders gently.

"C'mon, Doctor, let's get out of the shower and into bed, yeah?" The TARDIS had obligingly turned the water temperature down but Rose knew she must look like a prune by now. "More comfortable there. Come with me?"

He nodded, but then, adorably, averted his eyes as if there was anything he could avoid seeing. She chuckled and rose to her feet, finding it surprisingly easy not to feign modesty after everything they'd been through. The Doctor squeaked, and she looked down just in time to see his face, fire truck red, whipping to the side.

"Oh come now, Doctor," she said airily as she stepped out of the tub, "it's not like there's anything there you haven't seen before." She found the TARDIS had provided her a robe, which she gratefully wrapped herself in. "Remember our trip to Vega Prime?"

They'd gotten arrested, which was very much business as usual, and then stripped for interrogation, which decidedly wasn't. It was intended to put them in a place of vulnerability, but Rose suspected it had worked better on the Doctor than on her, which was why she rarely brought it up. From time to time they'd had adventures that resulted in varying stages of nakedness but on that particular occasion they'd both gotten an eyeful.

Or she thought they had.

"I didn't look," the Doctor mumbled, still facing away from her.

"Oh." Rose didn't know what else to say. She certainly had - it had been nearly unavoidable - and she wondered how the Doctor had managed it. She felt a brief flash of anger that he should make her feel like such a voyeur retroactively, especially considering how those glimpses had fuelled many a fantasy. "Well, I'm not looking now."

No need to make him feel worse than he already did - she was, in fact, capable of some self control, and now was hardly the time.

She held out a towel, and the Doctor stepped into it, Rose taking the opportunity to wrap her arms around him as she wrapped him in it. Their embrace still felt strange with only two layers between them, but not wrong. Never wrong. He returned it woodenly, and Rose's heart broke at the thought that there was still more troubling him. She squeezed, ignoring his lack of enthusiasm.

"I'm just gonna put something on, I'll wait for you, okay?" She moved toward the door. "Don't be long." She looked back once and found him staring after her as she left.

Rose dried herself again, pulled on a sleep vest and shorts and got into bed, sighing in relief as she relaxed back against the pillows. They were just as soft as she remembered, and it had been a very long day. She scissored her legs together for a bit, savouring the sensation of the comforter and also the tingly feeling between her legs - just because nothing was going to happen didn't mean it wasn't going to affect her, after all. It was a feeling she was very familiar with, made all the more potent by the thought that something was going to change soon. Not now. Someday.

The Doctor entered a moment later, wearing a Henley and pinstriped pyjama bottoms. He looked at her lying in the bed, and she expected his gaze to skitter away, but he didn't break eye contact until he laid down next to her, flat on his back staring at the ceiling. Rose didn't know how to bring up the subject - he was fully dressed and yet somehow seemed more exposed than he'd been in the shower.

"Doctor-" she began.

The Doctor breathed deeply, closing his eyes, and Rose knew he was processing everything that had happened.

"You're safe," he said at last, without opening his eyes. "You're here, and you're safe. No side effects from the dimension cannon, you're not going to burn from Bad Wolf."

Contrary to his words, he didn't sound glad… almost resigned. Rose bit her lip as she considered her response.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you," she said, though gently. "That's what the TARDIS has been trying to tell you." When he didn't respond, she propped herself up on her elbow, looking down at him. "Doctor? Why did you block yourself off from the TARDIS?" she asked carefully.

For a minute, it seemed like he wasn't going to answer. Rose waited, before tentatively placing her hand on the Doctor's chest, in between his hearts. His breath hitched, and it was like a switch had been flipped; he grasped her hand tightly in his own and rolled onto his side, holding it in between them.

"Oh, Rose," he breathed, and Rose quickly flopped back down, welcoming the increased contact between them.

"I was scared, today," the Doctor admitted. His face twisted. "Scratch that - I was bloody terrified." The frank honesty in his voice shook Rose. He met her eyes, and that seemed to give him the strength he needed to continue. "I don't know what I would have done, if I'd lost you today," he said quietly. "I really don't." A mad light overtook his face suddenly and Rose fought the impulse to move away.

"Do you think they'd have stopped, Rose?" His voice was a little frightening, bearing echoes of a pain she couldn't begin to comprehend. He was, effectively, immortal. Would they ever have stopped? "The visions. If you'd-" He shut his mouth audibly to keep the words from coming out and Rose freed her hands to cup his face.

"Now, you stop that," she said fiercely. "Stop doing this to yourself, Doctor. You didn't lose anyone today. I'm here and alive and well and I'm staying with you. I am never leaving you."

Rose pulled the Doctor to her to keep him from seeing the cynical thought cross her face. Even when she hadn't been physically present, she hadn't truly left him, had she?

It was a uniquely poignant brand of guilt she bore - of course, she'd had no actual hand in the hallucinations but it was clear her image had tormented the Doctor almost to the point of madness. Was it any wonder he was having trouble coping?

"And that's just the thing, isn't it?" the Doctor burst out, pulling away from her slightly. Given that he'd been actively seeking maximal contact since they'd been reunited the movement surprised her enough that she let him go, sitting up a little straighter to mirror his posture. "You have to stay here, you can't go home! The walls of the universes are closed, you'll never be able to see your family again!"

Rose waited until the Doctor seemed to be finished, then placed a gentle kiss on his lips to prevent him from working himself up again. "Doctor, listen to me very carefully. I'm going to keep saying this as many times as necessary, but I really wish I didn't have to." She kept her voice gentle, mindful of the Doctor's fragile emotional state. She was willing to repeat her promise of forever as long as it took but she was running out of words to use.

"I am home, right now," she asserted, holding his eyes with hers. "Here, with you, on the TARDIS - this is home. Never the other universe. Yes, my family is there, and yes, I will miss them terribly, but I've been preparing for this day for three years. We all have. They understand. I thought, when you didn't put up a fight in the console room, that you understood, too - that's why I thanked you. I made my choice. It's a choice I'd rather I didn't have to make, of course, but my decision is never going to change. I choose you, Doctor. And I always will."

The Doctor stared at her, and the look of incredulous hope in his dark eyes was one that she was becoming familiar with, though it still hit her like a gut punch. She wondered how much longer it would take for her words to really get through to him.

It seemed the third time would be the charm, however, as the Doctor pressed his lips to hers as though it was the only thing keeping him alive. Rose melted beneath the bruising kiss - it had been far too long since the console room - but there was still an element of desperation to it that she didn't like. He was far gone enough that she had to struggle a little bit to get enough space to breathe, and Rose frowned, about to reiterate her question about the TARDIS, when the Doctor spoke instead.

"I love you," he said, and the words shot through Rose like it was the first time. That had been about things left unfinished, but this… this was a claim. A beginning. This was the Doctor's 'never ever.'

Rose lost her breath. He usually only looked at her like this when she was Bad Wolf - seeing it when she was fully herself felt different, and she couldn't decide how she felt about it.

"I love you, too." The words came out in a rush.

His eyes grew impossibly darker, molten pools that she swore she could feel warming her skin like the heat of the sun. How could such a simple exchange affect her so deeply? She must have said the words hundreds of times before. Yet they were heavy on her tongue as though they were the only words she'd ever spoken, they touched her ears like they were the first words she'd ever heard.

The Doctor lowered his forehead to hers. "I spent so long today thinking I knew what the universe would do… what it always does. I've never known it to be kind."

Rose made a low sound and linked her hands around the back of his neck, holding him against her.

"Getting you back, keeping you safe, saving the day… I was always waiting for the switch, after all that bait." His hands caressed her sides, snaking around her hips, and she shivered against him. "It seemed inevitable. And when I was finally alone…" He tilted his head slightly, looking at some indeterminate point on the ceiling. "Expectation became reality."

Rose squeezed her eyes shut and bit her lip, too easily able to fill in the blanks. "So that's why you blocked the TARDIS," she breathed.

It was easier than voicing what had really happened. He'd thought he was still back on the planet, Midnight, with the entity. That he'd been imagining his escape, their reunion, all the rest of it. She wished there was a way to hold him closer.

"No telling what the entity would have done with a sentient space and time ship," the Doctor confirmed, mirroring her position.

Rose shook her head helplessly and kissed him again. She had her own fears and doubts about coming back, but mostly just ecstatic satisfaction at having completed her goal after so long. Her first Doctor had been wounded, yes, fresh from the War and raw like an exposed nerve, but never like this, a man for whom joy was a lie.

The Doctor kissed her back, the corner of his mouth turning up ruefully against her lips.

"And that's the second time I've completely ruined our reunion, isn't it?" The self-depreciation wasn't like him at all, but this, at least, Rose had some idea of how to fix.

"Oh, I dunno." At his incredulous look, she quirked her lips, noting with pleasure how he instinctively followed the motion . "We're here together in bed, we saved the universe again like we always do - though with less running than I was expecting - and we've been snogging ever since I came back which is very much a welcome development." Her smile grew, but though his expression eased, he didn't return it. Rose sighed, taking the Doctor's hands.

"Doctor, I love you," she repeated. "I spent three years in the parallel world missing you every day. Sometimes the only thing that would get me through wasn't the wild fantasies of what I wanted to happen, it was the memory of what I wanted to get back to. Just us, like this. Holding hands."

She squeezed for emphasis and he squeezed back, his eyes never leaving hers, wide and fervent, and she knew he felt the same.

"So making it back like this? Being with you? Being able to love you and hold you and comfort you?" She kissed his cheek and felt a jolt of warmth spark from the contact. "It's everything I could have wished for. Of course, I'm not happy that you're hurting, but it's you. The real you. And that makes it perfect."

The Doctor let out a long, shuddering breath, closing his eyes and blindly pressing his lips to hers in a much gentler kiss, filled with so much adoration and gratitude that it left her even more breathless than their desperate snog earlier. Rose sighed into his lips, and they parted at the suggestion. She sank her hands into his hair at the same time as her tongue swept into his mouth and they both let out identical moans of relief.

The Doctor's mouth was cool against hers, and he tasted like absolutely nothing Rose had ever experienced, except that it was intoxicating and she couldn't get enough. What she'd said before was true - they'd been kissing almost from the moment she'd gotten back, but most of those kisses had been tinged with desperation and danger. It was glorious and she wondered how they would ever be able to stop.

"I feel the same way," the Doctor whispered when Rose surfaced reluctantly for air. "This is perfect. You are perfect." He rested his head in what Rose was quickly learning was his favourite place - in the crook between her neck and shoulder where, presumably, he could hear her strong, steady pulse. She nuzzled his hair, breathing in his scent. It seemed she'd succeeded in pulling him back from the edge, at least for the moment.

There were many more things they needed to talk about, simmering beneath the surface: Jack, for one, and how he'd kept that story from her, as well as his careless attitude towards his regenerations, not to mention the events of their separate ordeals and how they'd been affected by them, up to and including when they'd been parted in the course of the day. But all that would take time. Time that they now had, Rose thought fiercely, squeezing him tighter; whether she had anything to say about it or not, the universe was going to find her intractable on this point.

She coaxed him to lie back with his head in her lap, and set about trying to massage the stress lines from his face. She ran her thumbs over his eyebrows and down his sideburns. It suddenly struck her that she was finally here, in the same universe as her Doctor, able to touch him how she liked, the way she'd fantasised about for so long. Her fingers trembled a little, and she disguised the motion by sinking them into his hair again. The Doctor gave a little hum.

"This okay?" she asked in a low voice. Their intimacy was so new she felt the need to check. He was still lying stiffly against her, and she hated the thought that he'd been struggling alone all this time, but she was also exhausted, and hoped that she'd be able to overcome his stubbornness soon enough to allow them to sleep.

"Yeah," the Doctor breathed, as she started lightly scratching his scalp. She cast about for a topic that would move them past this horrible day.

"So, I do want to find out if any of the planets I landed on don't exist in this dimension," she said at last. It was a calculated gamble, but she really was curious and it was a safe enough topic. The Doctor sucked in a breath, but he didn't protest. "Of course, I don't know the names of any of them," she continued, "but I thought I could describe them to you and you could tell me if they sound familiar."

The Doctor made another low sound, this time of agreement, and so Rose sought for some safe planets to mention: no need to bring up any of her more painful memories just yet.

"Hmm… Okay. Well, one that really stands out is this planet with crystal geysers," she said, excitement pulsing in her voice. She hadn't really wanted to leave that planet, it had been so beautiful. "Now I'm not just talking about geysers coming out of crystal or anything like that, I mean actual crystals shooting out of the ground like water. There must've been some sort of crystal particles in the soil because all the trees were shimmering too, like they'd absorbed some along with their nutrients."

"Ooh, very good, Rose," the Doctor said proudly, and Rose noted with satisfaction that the bleak edge had blunted in his voice. "That's exactly what happens on Kira IV; the entire ecosystem is built on those mineral deposits and the way they react with the chemical composition of the second sun."

"You mean there was a planet like that here all along and we've never visited?" Rose exclaimed in mock outrage, and the corner of the Doctor's mouth turned up.

"The universe is a big place, Rose," he said lightly. "I'll put it at the top of the list."

Rose tried again. "What about an entire forest of giant mushrooms?"

"Sounds like Quozaar," the Doctor replied at once. "We'll have to go there so you can check, but you need to bring rebreathers: the stench is something truly awful."

"Really?" Rose asked, surprised. "The one I went to had this musty potpourri smell. Took me ages to get it out of anything but it wasn't that unpleasant."

She'd piqued the Doctor's interest, which had been her intention, and everything else faded away as they traded descriptions and names back and forth, rapid-style. Though she would have given it all up just to be with him again, Rose had to admit it was kind of cool, having seen bits of the universe without the Doctor and being able to talk from her own experience rather than just being led around by him everywhere.

Rose was thrilled when, after a few minutes of steady going, her initial description did not meet with an automatic answer from the Doctor. She'd stopped actually massaging him and was letting her fingers drift aimlessly over his features, which were more at rest than she'd ever seen them, maybe since before the Olympics, or even earlier. He twisted his lips as he considered, and she watched the gears whirring in his big Time Lord brain.

"I can honestly say that doesn't ring any bells, Rose," he said at last, and she couldn't contain her squeak of delight. "It was all underground, you say?"

"Yup! Just like Moria or something, it was amazing! All these geometric columns," Rose enthused. She couldn't believe her luck. Not only had she managed to find a planet of which the Doctor was unaware, but she'd had an adventure there that had actually ended happily. "My hopper normally landed me on the surface of planets so I was a little confused at first, but get this, Doctor: there were elves living there! Actual tiny elves with pointy ears! 'Course I was expecting dwarves, but they were perfectly friendly to strangers…"

She told the story, keeping her eyes on the Doctor the whole time, whose eyes were closed, listening to her voice. She'd dreamed for so long about being able to tell him in person like this, the moment took on a dreamlike quality as she wove her tale.

"...And of course all the rest of them were standing about yelling 'demon!' Or at least I thought they were, no handy translation circuit after all. But Orta just stepped up and put her hand on the giant rock monster and it could speak through her. I guess it told them what Orta and I'd known all along, that it wasn't causing the earthquakes, it was trying to stop them, because everyone calmed down and started trying to help. I hopped back once I was sure they'd stopped."

Her voice trailed away as the story ended and she looked down at the Doctor, who was breathing peacefully, expression relaxed. To an outside observer it would look like he'd fallen asleep but Rose knew better. She shimmied down until she was lying next to the Doctor, and he wrapped his arms around her as the TARDIS dimmed the lights.

"I am so proud of you, Rose," he said fervently next to her ear, and Rose had to blink back tears. When she'd told him about jumping his first reaction had been blind panic, and she hadn't realised how much that had affected her. She snuggled into his chest and his grip tightened around her, and she was home. In the course of telling the story her mind had gone back to the time when she was without the Doctor, and she took comfort in the firm solidity of his body next to hers.

Rose was exhausted, already hovering on the edge of sleep, but there was one more thing she wanted to say, remembering the Doctor's words that had started all this. "Doctor, I could have had a good life in the parallel world, maybe even a great one." She worked one arm around his waist, pulling him closer still. "But there's no such thing as a fantastic life without you."

She opened her eyes to find the Doctor's face, an inch from hers, staring at her like she was made of stars and wonder. He opened his mouth, but when nothing came out, he gave up and kissed her, his agreement ringing out with every movement of his lips against hers.

~oOo~

Rose knew that she must have fallen asleep at some point, because she awoke with the Doctor still curled into her side, but she didn't remember when they'd stopped kissing. It set the tone for next week or so (she lost track) that they spent floating in the Vortex, learning to be themselves again. They did catch up on By the Light of the Asteroid, despite being thoroughly distracted by intense snogging sessions which meant they had to go back and watch through it all over again to actually follow the story.

The Doctor never brought up the med bay, even though Rose had been expecting him to since breakfast on the first day. She was surprised, but didn't bring it up herself, knowing he couldn't have forgotten, instead appreciating the respite. She guessed he'd gotten enough reassurance from her and the TARDIS that first night and was trying to do something nice for her.

They also explored telepathy, in fits and starts, 'dipping their toes' as the Doctor put it. Through their brief connections, Rose understood that the Doctor didn't feel that his mind was a good place for her to be right then, and she accepted this, not being entirely comfortable with everything in her mind yet either until she'd had a chance to work through it herself.

Mostly, though, they rested; read together in the library, or stargazed out the doors of the TARDIS, or took picnic lunches to one of the TARDIS' garden rooms. Anything that would allow them to stay as close as physically possible.

They spent a lot of time in bed together, though they had yet to actually take the step into further physical intimacy. Rose found she didn't mind. Though her frustration in the weeks leading up to their separation had been thick enough to cut with a knife, she'd changed now, and so had the Doctor. They still hadn't addressed most of what lurked beneath the surface of their quiet time together. Neither of them were ready. The difference was, this Rose knew it was only a matter of time, and let herself enjoy the kissing and increased intimacy, even though it never escalated.

Rose stayed in bed because she'd rarely allowed herself to do so in Pete's World, and because cuddling the Doctor in his bed was quickly becoming her favourite activity. The Doctor stayed because she was there, but Rose thought he could use the break as well. They'd both pushed themselves to the limit during their three years apart and they took the necessary time to pull themselves back from that brink.

The Doctor wasn't sure when he stopped watching Rose like a miracle who could disappear at any moment, but the change came gradually, helped along by Rose's endless patience with him. He did want to run tests, but now that he had a moment to think, thanks to Rose and the TARDIS' telepathic reassurance, he realised that being in the med bay brought up uncomfortable memories for Rose because of her time at Torchwood. This was supposed to be a healing time for both of them, so he refrained.

She also never showed any signs of restlessness in regards to their extended stay in the Vortex; though she never said so aloud, she'd missed the TARDIS, and vice versa. He likewise felt no prick of wanderlust, for once, and grasped the opportunity with both hands. He finally allowed himself to admit how difficult the past three years had been, what with losing Rose, the Master, and the entity, and was glad to be able to follow Rose's advice, to allow his psyche to rest instead of burying it in more sensory input. Of course, the fact that he was able to do so at all without feeling like clawing at the walls was due to Rose's presence. That wasn't to say that those problems went away - they both still had their own demons to fight. They were just getting themselves in better shape to do so.

As the Doctor watched Rose over breakfast one morning, just over a week in linear time since she'd returned to his universe, he knew that this time, blessed and essential as it had been, was drawing to a close, and that a new chapter in their lives was about to begin. She'd been shooting him covert glances for the last day or two, and though she was still perfectly content, he could sense the wind changing.

He knew it would still be a while before he would be able to fully accept that the universe had relented and allowed him to keep her, and though it was tempting to hide away in the hopes that they wouldn't be noticed, he would not squander this (second? Third? How many chances now had he been given with Rose Tyler?) time he'd been granted.

He'd told himself when she was lost that he would not waste a single moment, if he ever got another with her. Not that this had been wasted time, but there was a growing impetus behind Rose's kisses and something would have to give - soon. More than that: he wanted it to. The thought both surprised him and felt like it had been a part of him since he'd been born into this body, this body made for the woman who was currently watching him from across the breakfast table.

"So what do you think about making planetfall today?" he asked brightly, and when he was rewarded with eager excitement sparking in her glorious eyes he knew he'd made the right decision.

"Do you have somewhere in mind?" Rose replied easily, and it was almost like nothing had changed. "Are we going to Kira IV?" she asked, and the Doctor shook his head, hoping his wince hadn't been obvious. He hadn't really registered it when she'd brought it up before but it bore far too much resemblance to a certain diamond planet for his liking. They'd make it there eventually, just not yet.

"Not yet," he said. "It's on the list, but an uninhabited crystal planet does not provide accommodations for the kind of activities in which I wish to partake with you."

He barely managed to add the last two words, his hearts racing in his chest like he'd just run back to back marathons, amazed in some part of him that he'd actually managed to say anything at all.

Rose didn't notice at first. "Oh, and what sorts of activities might those be?" Because he was watching her, he saw the exact moment when she decided to make it a sincere, rather than a teasing comment. Her voice trailed away when she saw the way he was looking at her. "Wait. You don't mean…"

He kept his eyes trained on her, fighting the impulse to look away, to deflect. She was gripping her utensils like she was afraid they'd try to run away. He was gripped by sudden anxiety. Was it too soon? Was she not ready? Had he completely misread everything?

"...If that's all right with you?" He made himself make it a question, telling himself he was lucky to have her back at all, that she wasn't going to leave him over this.

Her eyes were round as saucers as she searched his face for a long moment. This had been so long coming, he couldn't blame her for being cautious. "Oh, Doctor…"

The hope and joy in her voice galvanised him, and he reached across the table to touch her cheek, giving her time to pull away if his touch was unwelcome. She didn't.

"Go pack a bag for a tropical resort," he said gently, as she leaned into his caress, eyes never leaving his, though they sparked with lust and anticipation. "I'll meet you in the console room."

She leaped from her chair as though she was afraid he was going to change his mind (he cringed inwardly at how likely that would have been, for an earlier version of him) and seemed to struggle with herself for a moment before edging around the table to slip into his lap, capturing his lips in a passionate promise of things to come. He groaned against her mouth, his control over his bodily reactions tenuous now that he was anticipating losing them entirely, and her kiss heated in response.

He pulled back slightly with a soft pop, examining Rose's heavy-lidded eyes which concealed an ecstatic expression.

"Go on," he told her, startled to hear his voice an octave deeper than usual. "Pack. Or else we'll never get there."

She wriggled cheekily against him as she extricated herself from his lap, making his eyes roll in his head and pulling another low sound from him, before practically fleeing the room. The Doctor sat quietly for a moment, attempting to regulate his breathing, before making his way to the console room, in order to double- and triple-check the coordinates to make sure they arrived at the right time and place.

Give me a hand, old girl? He sent the silent plea to the TARDIS, and received a wave of almost giddy affirmation in response. It seemed she was in favour of his plans, and that was to the good, even if he wasn't sure how he felt about his sentient time ship knowing of them in the first place.

The mental equivalent of an impatient huff was sent his way, and he raised an eyebrow. Oh, and don't think you're getting out of a discussion of what the hell that was the other day. Your little stunt scared me half to death!

A slightly apologetic whistle was his response, and he bit back a chuckle, something he wouldn't have been capable of, even a week before. But then, a week ago, he hadn't been travelling with Rose, preparing to bring her to the planet where he'd always intended to make love to her, in the nebulous future of his fantasies that he was forever dismissing but was somehow now a reality. He almost didn't know who he was any more without the constant, gnawing grief. He couldn't wait to find out.

Rose arrived a minute later, wearing a sundress and an ardent expression, both of which were equally flattering. She set down a suitcase and sauntered towards him, until he was backed up against the console. He felt a little bit like prey, and was surprised to find it wasn't an entirely unpleasant sensation.

"So, where are we off to, Doctor?" she asked, drawing her fingers down his chest. He gulped, calling upon centuries of Time Lord restraint to keep from pinning her against the console, sod his plans. From the intent look in her eye, Rose knew it, too, pressing forward, though she was careful not to cut off his escape entirely. He shook his head inwardly - how could it be that this incredible woman wanted him?

"Oh, just a little place I've been wanting to take you for quite a while now." He said the words flippantly, which was a mistake. Rose pounced.

"Well in that case, I have a few suggestions," she purred. The Doctor only belatedly realised the double entendre in his words.

Oh, he was going to be very bad at this, wasn't he?

He could see the conflict playing out in Rose's expression: she was happy this was happening, enough to make her this bold, but she was also afraid of crossing some invisible line - a state of affairs for which the Doctor knew he once again had himself to blame. He allowed himself to relax, just a fraction, and Rose moved in closer, scenting victory. She pressed a kiss to the triangle of bared skin at his throat before slowly, torturously, skimming her nose along his jawline. The Doctor couldn't suppress a tiny shiver.

"As - hm - tempting as I'm sure those suggestions are, perhaps we could wait until we've arrived at our destination to - ah - play them out?" His carefully laid plans were becoming more distant and nebulous as she purposefully undid the buttons of his suit jacket.

"You're wearing too much," was her only reply, which made him splutter incredulously.

When he'd gotten dressed he'd simply thrown his pinstriped jacket over one of the red tees he'd worn with his blue suit (a mourning suit which he would never wear again, not for a very long while). It was the fewest layers he'd worn since the Olympics, and Rose had to know that.

"For a tropical resort? You must get so hot in that suit," she was saying, and he was, though not from the temperature. Never from the temperature. It took him a moment to be able to regulate his body heat like the Time Lord he was and not some randy adolescent human ready to pop off at the slightest touch of a woman, like he'd seen in all those awful films.

Gauging his reaction carefully, she moved her hands to his shoulders and slowly slid the jacket off them. He allowed it to happen, shrugging it off when it got caught on his elbows and tossing it to the jumpseat. Rose ran her hands down his bared arms and he shivered harder this time. Her hands were so warm. She hummed in approval.

"Much better."

Wanting to regain a modicum of control, he smoothed Rose's dress down her sides, where he knew she was sensitive. She jumped slightly, her eyes huge and darker than he'd ever seen them. He fought to conceal a smirk; as sensitive as he was to being touched, his naturally cool skin certainly granted him at least one advantage in this regard.

Slyly, he copied her sensuous caress, his hearts beating faster through his nervousness. He wasn't ever this forward, and he thought he'd better get some practice in considering what he had planned for the day. It certainly seemed just as effective on Rose, and he felt a glimmer of satisfaction as he prepared to make his point.

"Thank you so much for taking care of it," he murmured. "Now, where were we?"

Rose made a low sound, seeking his lips, and he sprung his trap.

"Oh!" he exclaimed, spinning away and leaving her dazed in his wake. He placed his hand on the dematerialisation lever, giving her a cheeky wink. "I think I remember."

She smiled fondly and took his hand, glancing up at him through her lashes, his third heart that made him whole. The Doctor and Rose Tyler in the TARDIS, as it should be. He threw the lever.

"Barcelona!"

And that's all, she wrote!

A very, very special thanks also to Chocolatequeen for being my first beta, my incredible support as I took my baby steps into the world of the fandom, and just generally the best friend anyone could ask for.

Eternal and undying gratitude to hellostarlight20, without whom none of this would be possible. You are my cheerleader, and your help has been absolutely invaluable. You made this story what it is, and I don't have words to express how grateful I am. You are amazing. Thank you so much!