Bending Time: Ch. 1/?
Title: Bending Time 1/?
Author: jiji_bean
Characters: Ten/Rose, mentioning of Nine/Rose
Rating: T
Summary: After a visit from a an old "friend," the Doctor is having a rough time following through. Rose tries to come to terms with what she knows she can't have from the Doctor.
Timeline: After GitF
A/N: This is a sequel to my previous story, Borrowed Time. To better understand this story, you may want to read that one first. Borrowed Time can also be read as a standalone. After seeing how much some people wanted a sequel...well, I was only happy to oblige.
Bending Time
Rose could feel her body trying to wake her. She was conscious of her muscles urging her to get up. Muscles were stiff and her eyes begged to be rubbed. Ever the stubborn girl, she fought against it, wanting to sleep just a little longer. The left side of her body had begun to feel numb since she had probably been in the same position the entire night. Rose was about to flip to her right side when she realized she couldn’t.
Instantly more awake than she had been two seconds ago, she struggled to keep her eyes closed. With her senses more alert, she felt there was something on her bed putting more weight on the edge next to her. Rose also noticed that whatever it was also had a pretty good hold on her left wrist which she semi-fallen asleep on. No wonder the left side felt numb, she thought. Still, she ignored the familiarity in the touch because it was simply not normal in feeling it there, on her bed as she slept. Trying not to panic, for panicking was never useful during these situations, she attempted to keep her breathing stable and decided to chance a look at whatever it was that had invaded her space. Opening her eyes to a slit, she instantly let out a soft rush of air. Rose’s mouth, which had been set in a frown relaxed into a smile. The rest of her couldn’t help but also loosen up at the sight before her.
The Doctor had half his weight on the bed, his upper torso lying near her stomach and, although she couldn’t see, she knew he had to be kneeling on the floor. Still, as she thought of it, she couldn’t comprehend what he was doing there. Even more surprising was the fact that he was asleep. The large grin on her face softened as she realized that this was one state she had never seen him in. He was lying on his left side, facing her and she could see that he had the most peaceful look on his face. He almost looked happy. There was an upturn to his mouth, set in a secret smile. It warmed her heart to see it. His hair, always a gorgeous mess, was sticking up and everywhere. He was exquisite and beautiful. There was never a time where he would just stand still so it was impossible to simply…admire him. Of course, Rose always admired him…but this was different…wasn’t it?
His eyelids fluttered and she knew that he was dreaming. It made her chest hurt suddenly to wonder who he was dreaming about. Pushing the thought aside, she shifted so that the arm he wasn’t holding onto could become free. She lifted her hand and gingerly touched the side of his face with her fingertips. It was a ghost of a touch. She let her fingers travel to his hair, smoothing a strand behind his ear. Suddenly, his eyes fluttered open which would have startled her if she wasn’t already expecting it. So Rose simply took her hand away and continued to smile at him.
“Hello,” she whispered. In the back of her mind she continued to wonder what he was doing there, but as always the fact that he was there was more important to her at the moment.
“’ello,” he replied, lifting his head off her bed and running the hand that wasn’t gripping her through his ruffled hair.
Rose continued watching him, waiting for him to explain why he was not only in her room, but kneeling and asleep next to her bed. The explanation didn’t happen. The Doctor’s explanations never happened and Rose couldn’t understand why she would still wait for them.
After awhile, he stopped tugging at his hair and finally looked at her. His eyes looked worried and tired, but his lips were set in a smile.
“Sleep well?” he asked. The question was simple, but Rose could sense at least ten questions behind it.
Suddenly, images from her dream flowed through to her consciousness and before she could think of the implications of it, she blurted, “Oh! I had a dream about you!” Instantly her cheeks felt hot and her eyes darted to any point in the room that wasn’t him.
“Oh? What about?”
It was his tone that got her looking at him again. The words dripped with sadness. Did he already know what she was going to say? What could possibly be going through that thick, but genius head of his? Should she lie and say it was this him or tell the truth? Rose didn’t like to lie, especially to him.
“I dreamt about…the old you.”
Instead of seeing that look he would usually give her when she would talk about his past regeneration, the one clouded with hurt and what she suspected to be jealousy, she saw a slight, sad smile blossom on his lips. She felt his grip on her hand soften and soon his fingers trailed upon her fingers.
“What happened?” he asked, almost seeming indifferent to the answer. Almost.
As soon as he did, however, she remembered exactly what had happened.
Rose’s eyes bulged and her heart felt as if it were stuck in her throat. Her dream came rushing back to her, the heat of the Doctor’s lips on hers, his fingers drowning in her hair and the rapid beating of her heart against his. It all felt so real. It only meant that her imaginative daydreaming had followed her into her actual dreams. Part of her couldn’t understand, however, when she had started dreaming about her previous Doctor again. All her dreams recently had starred this current, running-his-gob, gorgeous-haired Doctor.
It was probably because her current Doctor had also become the one with the tendency to leave her behind.
Choosing to side-step the question (that wasn’t really lying…was it?), Rose sat up, leveling with the Doctor and ended up being a bit too close to his face. Not that she minded, actually. She could count the freckles on his face and, if asked, could name the different shades of brown flecks in his eyes. Shaking her head and chuckling nervously, she said, “Doctor…before we start talking philosophical versus the scientific meanings of dreams…which I know this is gonna lead to…” Rose noted that her voice had dropped to a husky, almost intimate level.
She also noticed that the Doctor’s eyes had glazed over and…had his cheeks tinted crimson just now?
“Yeah?”
Rose smiled and gave him her best smile, “Well, a girl’s got needs Doctor…”
That really seemed to unravel something in him. His eyes melted into dark chocolate and he swallowed audibly.
There was a moment in which Rose felt that she could actually lean in to kiss him and that he would probably kiss her back. The thought disappeared as soon as it had materialized though. This was the Doctor and she was Rose and…that only happened in her dreams. And even then…he was always leaving her.
So, she did what she did best…she played it off with another soft chuckle and her tongue pressed between her teeth.
The Doctor swallowed harshly, his eyes more alert, and looked down at their entwined fingers. He laughed half-heartedly.
“You need to use the loo, don’t you?” he asked.
She reached up to ruffle his hair and rolled off the opposite side, detaching their hold in the process.
“Yeah, gonna take a shower too…I’ll see you in a bit Doctor.”
Rose bounced into her bathroom, promptly ignoring both the harsh beating of her heart and the confused, indescribable look on the Doctor’s face.
Chapter 2
Author: jiji_bean
Characters: Ten/Rose, mentioning of Nine/Rose
Rating: T
Summary: After a visit from a an old "friend," the Doctor is having a rough time following through. Rose tries to come to terms with what she knows she can't have from the Doctor.
Timeline: After GitF
A/N: This is a sequel to my previous story, Borrowed Time. To better understand this story, you may want to read that one first. Borrowed Time can also be read as a standalone. After seeing how much some people wanted a sequel...well, I was only happy to oblige.
Bending Time
Rose could feel her body trying to wake her. She was conscious of her muscles urging her to get up. Muscles were stiff and her eyes begged to be rubbed. Ever the stubborn girl, she fought against it, wanting to sleep just a little longer. The left side of her body had begun to feel numb since she had probably been in the same position the entire night. Rose was about to flip to her right side when she realized she couldn’t.
Instantly more awake than she had been two seconds ago, she struggled to keep her eyes closed. With her senses more alert, she felt there was something on her bed putting more weight on the edge next to her. Rose also noticed that whatever it was also had a pretty good hold on her left wrist which she semi-fallen asleep on. No wonder the left side felt numb, she thought. Still, she ignored the familiarity in the touch because it was simply not normal in feeling it there, on her bed as she slept. Trying not to panic, for panicking was never useful during these situations, she attempted to keep her breathing stable and decided to chance a look at whatever it was that had invaded her space. Opening her eyes to a slit, she instantly let out a soft rush of air. Rose’s mouth, which had been set in a frown relaxed into a smile. The rest of her couldn’t help but also loosen up at the sight before her.
The Doctor had half his weight on the bed, his upper torso lying near her stomach and, although she couldn’t see, she knew he had to be kneeling on the floor. Still, as she thought of it, she couldn’t comprehend what he was doing there. Even more surprising was the fact that he was asleep. The large grin on her face softened as she realized that this was one state she had never seen him in. He was lying on his left side, facing her and she could see that he had the most peaceful look on his face. He almost looked happy. There was an upturn to his mouth, set in a secret smile. It warmed her heart to see it. His hair, always a gorgeous mess, was sticking up and everywhere. He was exquisite and beautiful. There was never a time where he would just stand still so it was impossible to simply…admire him. Of course, Rose always admired him…but this was different…wasn’t it?
His eyelids fluttered and she knew that he was dreaming. It made her chest hurt suddenly to wonder who he was dreaming about. Pushing the thought aside, she shifted so that the arm he wasn’t holding onto could become free. She lifted her hand and gingerly touched the side of his face with her fingertips. It was a ghost of a touch. She let her fingers travel to his hair, smoothing a strand behind his ear. Suddenly, his eyes fluttered open which would have startled her if she wasn’t already expecting it. So Rose simply took her hand away and continued to smile at him.
“Hello,” she whispered. In the back of her mind she continued to wonder what he was doing there, but as always the fact that he was there was more important to her at the moment.
“’ello,” he replied, lifting his head off her bed and running the hand that wasn’t gripping her through his ruffled hair.
Rose continued watching him, waiting for him to explain why he was not only in her room, but kneeling and asleep next to her bed. The explanation didn’t happen. The Doctor’s explanations never happened and Rose couldn’t understand why she would still wait for them.
After awhile, he stopped tugging at his hair and finally looked at her. His eyes looked worried and tired, but his lips were set in a smile.
“Sleep well?” he asked. The question was simple, but Rose could sense at least ten questions behind it.
Suddenly, images from her dream flowed through to her consciousness and before she could think of the implications of it, she blurted, “Oh! I had a dream about you!” Instantly her cheeks felt hot and her eyes darted to any point in the room that wasn’t him.
“Oh? What about?”
It was his tone that got her looking at him again. The words dripped with sadness. Did he already know what she was going to say? What could possibly be going through that thick, but genius head of his? Should she lie and say it was this him or tell the truth? Rose didn’t like to lie, especially to him.
“I dreamt about…the old you.”
Instead of seeing that look he would usually give her when she would talk about his past regeneration, the one clouded with hurt and what she suspected to be jealousy, she saw a slight, sad smile blossom on his lips. She felt his grip on her hand soften and soon his fingers trailed upon her fingers.
“What happened?” he asked, almost seeming indifferent to the answer. Almost.
As soon as he did, however, she remembered exactly what had happened.
Rose’s eyes bulged and her heart felt as if it were stuck in her throat. Her dream came rushing back to her, the heat of the Doctor’s lips on hers, his fingers drowning in her hair and the rapid beating of her heart against his. It all felt so real. It only meant that her imaginative daydreaming had followed her into her actual dreams. Part of her couldn’t understand, however, when she had started dreaming about her previous Doctor again. All her dreams recently had starred this current, running-his-gob, gorgeous-haired Doctor.
It was probably because her current Doctor had also become the one with the tendency to leave her behind.
Choosing to side-step the question (that wasn’t really lying…was it?), Rose sat up, leveling with the Doctor and ended up being a bit too close to his face. Not that she minded, actually. She could count the freckles on his face and, if asked, could name the different shades of brown flecks in his eyes. Shaking her head and chuckling nervously, she said, “Doctor…before we start talking philosophical versus the scientific meanings of dreams…which I know this is gonna lead to…” Rose noted that her voice had dropped to a husky, almost intimate level.
She also noticed that the Doctor’s eyes had glazed over and…had his cheeks tinted crimson just now?
“Yeah?”
Rose smiled and gave him her best smile, “Well, a girl’s got needs Doctor…”
That really seemed to unravel something in him. His eyes melted into dark chocolate and he swallowed audibly.
There was a moment in which Rose felt that she could actually lean in to kiss him and that he would probably kiss her back. The thought disappeared as soon as it had materialized though. This was the Doctor and she was Rose and…that only happened in her dreams. And even then…he was always leaving her.
So, she did what she did best…she played it off with another soft chuckle and her tongue pressed between her teeth.
The Doctor swallowed harshly, his eyes more alert, and looked down at their entwined fingers. He laughed half-heartedly.
“You need to use the loo, don’t you?” he asked.
She reached up to ruffle his hair and rolled off the opposite side, detaching their hold in the process.
“Yeah, gonna take a shower too…I’ll see you in a bit Doctor.”
Rose bounced into her bathroom, promptly ignoring both the harsh beating of her heart and the confused, indescribable look on the Doctor’s face.
Chapter 2