Chapter Text
Rose tried to suppress a grin at the Doctor's gobsmacked expression, then realized no one could see her and let it out. Bless Jack, he'd avoided the impending second night of jealousy and guaranteed her time alone to talk with the Doctor at the same time.
Meanwhile the man was looking at Jack oddly, and then at the Doctor with what looked a lot like nervousness. Probably regretting that 'besotted' comment. "Is that right?" he asked in a surprised tone he probably wouldn't have used were he less sloshed. "She's your wife?"
The Doctor hesitated for a moment, and Rose's heart sank. Was he going to say no? He had to know the consequences of that, didn't he? He'd never knowingly put her in that position, but if somehow he didn't know? If he were determined to be stubborn to the end about not talking to either of them—
He shook himself after a moment and muttered, "Of course. My wife. Yes." And gestured her into the tent ahead of him. But not before she saw him give Jack a distinctly unpleasant look.
"Well, Ney." She could hear Jack's voice from outside the tent. "It looks like I'll be bunking with you then."
She heard them move off, but was distracted by the sight of the Doctor stepping into the tent after her. When he paused, almost on the threshold, bent nearly double, she huffed and pushed past him to make sure the flap was secure. "Sit before you fall over," she instructed, loving the chance to say whatever came into her head for the first time in days. Without further preamble she struggled her way out of her sack, thinking that the only advantage the dingy piece of crap had was that it would probably never show dirt.
Flopping down to sit opposite the Doctor, she let herself indulge in a little stretching — not unaware of her audience. "God that feels good to get out of!" When she looked back up, the Doctor was clearly trying to pretend he was looking anywhere but at her. She hid her grin. "It's no use, you know, you're going to have to talk to me now."
He looked at her, a mutinous gleam in his eye, and said nothing.
"All right," she amended, "You're going to at least have to listen to me then." She paused for a moment and frowned slightly, not quite sure anymore how to begin what she wanted to say. "Jack had to say I was his wife or they would have spent all night passing me around to the troops. You have to have realized that. So why wouldn't you let us explain?"
He scowled at her. "Doesn't seem like there's much that needs explaining there."
Trust him to dodge the whole point. "Then why were you so upset with Jack?"
"He's a con artist and a thief. I don't trust him."
"Which is why you handed over a big pile of money to him without a second thought and fully expected him to return to you with a crystal instead of just taking off for parts unknown."
The Doctor looked startled for just a moment. This whole situation must have him seriously off his game, because she'd be willing to lay odds now that he hadn't even thought of that. But it was gone in a flash. "Well, he was hardly going to leave you."
She had to laugh at that. "And just how many cons do you think he's pulled off by pretending to romance some girl? It's not like he's in love with me." Although she rather suspected he might be getting there.
"I've seen the way he looks at you."
She took a breath — she might not have trusted her own instincts, but she trusted Jack's, and she trusted that she knew a fit of raging jealousy when she saw it — and jumped in. "So what? It's not like you ever wanted me."
And again. How could one man manage so many variations on 'inscrutable'? She could tell that she'd struck a nerve though, because of the anger? frustration? embarrassment? fear? she could see buried behind those eyes.
"I don't like Jack trading you back and forth between us like it's some kind of game. Like you're some kind of game."
Which, of course, made no sense before five minutes ago, but Rose decided that she'd take what she could get. "Jack's not the one treating me like a game. You are."
There. Shocked was good. Better than inscrutable anyway.
"I would never—"
"You do all the time! Have since almost the first day we met. First you're telling me I'm beautiful, then you're calling me a stupid ape. You practically set me up on a date with Adam, and then you're growling like a mad dog at Jack. I can't tell what you want from one minute to the next and it's driving me mad!"
"Rose, I didn't mean—"
"But you did!" Rose had had more than enough of silence and she had plenty of words saved up for him. "You're still doing it! I know what I want but I still can't tell with you. You're always hiding behind that cool expression, behind 'I'm the so impressive alien and you're the stupid little ape who can't possibly understand'—"
"You're not—"
"What?" She demanded. "A stupid ape? In love with a nine-hundred year old Time Lord who spends half the time pretending he can barely be bothered to have me around? Sounds pretty daft to me!"
She savored the wide-eyed expression on his face for a moment. Then she took matters into her own hands, literally, leaned forward, and kissed him. He only stayed frozen for a heart-stopping moment before he was kissing her back, desperately, hands tangling in her hair. She smiled then, around the kiss, and managed to twist her way a little closer to him, feeling his pulse racing under her hands.
And then he stopped and pushed her away, but he wouldn't look her in the eye. "We can't do this, Rose." His voice was back to sad, and probably heading towards broody.
Not if she could help it.
"Why the bloody hell not?"
He looked up then, startled.
"You can't tell me you don't fancy me, not after that kiss!" She could have sworn he was about to blush. She gestured vaguely at his lap. "What, are Time Lords not properly equipped?"
"Oi!"
"If it's the different species bit, well I don't mind and it's not like you have much of a choice at this point unless you plan to live like a monk forever." That wasn't the best of subjects, so she hurried on. "Or maybe you're married and forgot to tell me? Pining desperately after someone else? Again, you're not getting away with 'gay', not after that kiss. So is it the age gap? Because I've always had a thing for older blokes."
He was shaking his head, half smiling as he faced her onslaught. But his voice was deadly serious. "Nine hundred years is more than 'an age gap', Rose."
"Eight hundred and eighty-one," she corrected primly.
That got an eye roll. "I've been rounding for centuries, and you're completely avoiding the point."
"Which is?"
"That you're barely considered an adult even in your own species—"
"While you're really knocking on a bit, even for a Time Lord?"
"Am not!" He sighed. "Rose, I'm serious. I'm not just a nice bloke you met down at the corner pub. I've lived for centuries; probably live for centuries more, me."
"Not the way you go on." She smirked. "I've already saved your arse more than once, Mr. High And Mighty I'm-Going-To-Live-Forever."
But he wouldn't let her brush it off. "Rose, I've seen things — done things — I hope you never even comprehend. I don't want to drag you down into that."
"So don't," she said just as seriously. "You haven't dragged me into any black holes of despair yet. We're good together; You know we are." She paused a moment to stare him down over that one. "And I may only be nineteen, but I am an adult and I know what I want.
"I want you."
He wasn't agreeing, but he'd stopped arguing. And she thought she could see some spark of buried hope in those eyes.
"Besides," she said with her cheekiest grin, "You must have thought I was something special if you asked me to come with you. Twice."
"Rose...." He was clearly trying not to smile, and the way he trailed off sounded enough like an admission of defeat for her. So she responded by crawling into his lap, much like she'd done with Jack only the night before.
His arms came around her loosely, but it was as if he had read her mind. "What about Jack?"
She wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his chest, listening to his heart— hearts?—beat. Distracted, and busy trying to use her ear as a stethoscope, she echoed him back absently. "What about Jack?"
"Binary vascular system." When she looked up in confusion, he clarified. "Two hearts. Very handy. And as for Jack, you were married to him this morning, you know."
"Yeah, he told me." She smiled. "But if I'm understanding the general rules here, I think he just divorced me and you and I are married now."
"Rose...."
"Jack is a gorgeous, charming bloke and I defy anyone who meets him to not want to be seduced by him." She looked pointedly at the Doctor.
"What?" His 'innocent' look could definitely use some work. Rose mentally filed that one away for later consideration.
"But he can also be a perfect gentleman, as he demonstrated to me last night." She decided one searing kiss didn't really count, especially as he'd immediately thrown her back at the Doctor anyway. "He told me you were in love with me, and then he put me to bed."
The Doctor looked dubious. "You saw me leaving the tent, I know. But if you'd been thrown about a TARDIS all morning and then had to walk for miles instead of riding a fancy horse like some people, you'd be pretty damn sore in the morning too."
He at least had the grace to look ashamed at that. Which, of course, meant she couldn't resist. "Besides, if you don't think he can control himself, shouldn't someone be out there rescuing poor Ney right about now?"
The Doctor looked horrified, and started struggling to get up. "He can't. They'd have him killed. They don't—"
Rose pushed him firmly back into place. "Trust me, Jack knows what he's doing. He's good at picking up customs; He'd have to be, in his line of work. Besides, he's the one who realized the danger I was in and how to fix it. He's not going to go putting the moves on some bloke with a sword unless he's sure."
She swatted him on the chest, getting a surprised 'oof' in response. "And before you start going all guilty on me, it's all sorted, right? We make a good team. All three of us. So don't be thinking you have to go and throw him off the TARDIS when we get back either."
"I'll consider it," the Doctor said, without any real heat.
"Just remember, he's the one who got us together."
"About that—"
"Give it a bash. And if it just doesn't work, then what's the harm?"
"Two broken hearts."
"And this," she gestured vaguely outside, encompassing everything that happened in the last two days, "is so much better?"
She pulled him into a kiss before he could argue further.
And this time he didn't pull away.
When he finally did pull back to let her breathe, Rose was panting and lightheaded. But after a deep breath she dove right in again, exploring his mouth with her tongue. He didn't taste alien, she decided... just like himself. She felt his hair soft against the skin of her palms and trailed one thumb down until she found a spot behind his ear that made him shiver. One of his hands was still tangled in her hair, but the other was sliding lightly up and down her arm, as if determined to touch every single inch of her skin.
The thought made her temperature rise. She slid a hand down his neck, only to run into the edge of that damned jumper.
"You're over dressed," she whispered, pulling at the hem. He quickly stopped just long enough in his explorations to strip the offending clothing over his head and toss it to the side. As he resumed kissing his way down her neck, Rose admired the view. She ran her hands slowly up his chest, from waist to shoulders, enjoying the moan he made when her hands brushed across his nipples.
"Your turn," he murmured, stripping off her top. His hands slid around to find the back of her bra... and it took her a few moments to realize he was fumbling with it.
"Been awhile?" she said with a grin, reaching back to unfasten it herself.
"Well if you bloody humans didn't insist on designing such impractical clothing—" He broke off as she tossed the bra away, his eyes focused her chest. "But no, I haven't done this in— well, in a good long time," he admitted.
She leaned up close to his ear, pressing her bare breasts against his chest, and whispered, "I'll be gentle."
"Cheeky!" he laughed, rolling her onto the floor of the tent. Then he sobered a bit. "But it shouldn't be like this, in some tent in the middle of nowhere."
He actually looked distressed, so she caught his head in her hands again and looked up into his eyes. "In a tent. In the TARDIS. Out somewhere naked under the stars. I don't care. I want to 'dance' with you."
That earned her another kiss, this one tender and sweet and somehow cherishing. His lips then moved down over her chin, down her neck and right between her breasts. He carefully traced a line down just between them with his tongue all the way to her waist while his hands slid slowly up her sides, just barely brushing the edges. She was trembling in frustration, wanting him to touch her.
"Come on...."
"What?"
She groaned. "Bastard..."
"Oh," he responded off-handedly. "This?" And he swooped in, enclosing her nipple in his warm mouth. She whimpered and arched up to meet him, planning pay-back at some later date for the smug smile on his face. And then he was sucking, his tongue coming forward to tease and play with the nipple. She was moaning and shifting under him by the time he came up for air.
And then he promptly started on the other side. By the time he'd finished with that one she was twisting and pushing up to meet him, hands mindlessly running up and down his back. But she wasn't going to let him have all the fun here. Shifting around until she'd managed to flip him over, she pulled off his shoes, then ran her hands slowly up the legs of his trousers until she reached the fastening. Undoing them she pulled down, the Doctor obediently helping her to pull them off. She took him carefully in her hand and heard him moan.
She was turning it to one side and the other, trying to get a better view in the moonlight that made its way inside the tent when he frowned. "What?"
"I don't know," she mused, "You're always on about being so alien. I thought it might be green or have scales or something."
His laugh was slightly strangled as she ran her hand up its length. "Well, I hope you're not disappointed then."
"No, no. Very nice," she purred, giving it one more squeeze before she let go to move back up his body. "It makes sense, you looking so normal— human," she corrected before he could object, "otherwise." She kissed him, just a brush of lips. "I just want you to know, even if it was green and scaly I'd still want you."
She couldn't tell if the dazed look he gave her was shocked or touched. "You're barmy."
"No," she replied, tapping him reprovingly on the nose, "I'm just in love."
"Oh, come here," he said, clutching her to his chest and rolling back over on top of her. "My turn now." He grinned.
"About time!" she teased. He just huffed in return before sliding his fingers under the waistband of her shorts, finding the edge of her knickers, and pulling them both off together.
"Oh, Rose," he breathed, looking her up and down so intently she felt self conscious.
"What? It's nothing all that special."
"No. You're beautiful," he corrected her, one hand caressing on her hip.
"For a human?" she asked, a little overwhelmed by the awe in his tone.
"No, just beautiful. Like a goddess"
She blushed then, unable to help it. "Oi, you don't have to sweet talk me after you've already gotten in my pants, you know." She pulled him down for another kiss before he could respond, and made sure it lasted until they were both panting and out of breath. Then she watched as he moved down her body, tracing her flesh lightly with his hands as he went. Gently he pushed her legs apart, then reached down to expose her most intimate flesh. He just looked for a long moment, but before she could say anything he'd leaned down and tasted her.
The loud groan that escaped her might have been embarrassing if she weren't distracted by turning into a single mass of sensation. The tent was barely long enough for one person to lie down, so he curled to the side, his tongue flicking sideways over her clit in a way she'd never felt before. He rested one arm across her hips, holding her still, as he explored every sensitive part of her, tracing each line and fold, dipping inside with a suddenness that made her gasp, and ultimately returning to that odd side-to-side rub against her clit.
The cry that came with her first orgasm could probably be heard by the whole camp. But it barely registered in her ears as her body convulsed endlessly, as though it were trying to turn itself inside out. He lapped gently at her then, coaxing her through every wave, then with almost no warning he started up again, sliding one finger ever so slowly inside her and making her breathlessly come all over again.
Oh God. She'd always thought her sex life was pretty good, but she'd never felt anything like this. She was still trembling, and wasn't sure she'd ever stop, when she reached down to pull at his shoulder, "Please?"
He seemed to understand, which was good because even repeating that one word seemed too much for her right now. Moving up over her, he paused for a moment at the entrance, then slid smoothly inside her.
They both groaned at that, and his head fell forward until his forehead rested against hers. When his eyes opened, he was looking right into hers. He leaned down for another kiss. "I love you, Rose Tyler," he whispered, his face inches from her own.
She smiled fondly. "Well that's always nice to know."
He grinned, and then started to move leisurely within her and in an instant the teasing mood was gone. His movements were maddeningly slow as he pressed up, trying different angles and finding different spots of pleasure inside her. She was moaning almost continuously now, and as his tempo increased she felt the sweat sliding between their bodies. Impossibly she realized that she was almost there again, and when she felt his hand slide down between them, rubbing against her, she was lost, crying out again, feeling like this much pleasure might actually destroy her. At the edges of her mind she felt his rhythm speed up, then stutter. Heard the groan as he went still, his body limp against hers, his head hanging down, his arms barely managing to hold himself up enough not to crush her.
After their breathing had started to steady a bit, he rolled off, reaching out to pull her tight against his chest. Her head rested against his shoulder as if it had been made to fit there, and she traced her hand absently across his chest as she waited for her muscles to stop shaking.
When she'd gotten most of her breath back, she smiled up at him, biting her lip playfully. "I guess in nine centuries you do learn an awful lot about 'dancing'. I'm one lucky girl."
He laughed then, hugging her tighter for a moment, then reaching up to play with the tendrils of hair around her face. "I think I'm supposed to now say that I'm actually the lucky one, but honestly... I still don't even believe this is real."
The love in his eyes made her chest ache, and she wondered how she could ever have doubted how he felt about her.
"Well, we'll try again in the morning and see if you believe it then." She laid her hand flat on his chest as if swearing an oath. "I'm willing to give it as many goes as necessary to convince you."
They were both laughing as they settled down, curled around each other, and slowly drifted off to sleep.
fin