A/N: I always felt like the subject of the Doctor's telepathic abilities is a greatly untapped topic on the show. In this story I wanted to explore that subject more and find out what he could do telepathically especially with others. This series will show how that form of communication would affect and benefit his relationship with Rose. This story takes place immediately following episode "The Girl in the Fireplace."

Rose stared at the closed door to the Doctor's bedroom. She had never been here before. Nervousness gathered in her stomach as the events of the day replayed in her mind and she thought about what she had to say to the Doctor. She bit her lip as she reached up and knocked on the door.

After everything that had happened that day with Reinette and the clockwork droids, the Doctor had been visibly upset. He said he was fine but no one believed it. All Rose had wanted to do was talk to the Doctor and find out exactly what had happened today but Mickey had pulled her away. He thought the Doctor wanted to be alone. But she knew that the Doctor might want to be alone but that was not what he needed.

It had taken a while but she had finally been able to shake herself free of Mickey. The Doctor had told him all about the TARDIS's pool, and racquetball courts and enormous library and Mickey had insisted on seeing it all before Rose could finally make an excuse and leave. But instead of going to bed like she had told Mickey she had gone straight to the Doctor's room to sort it all out.

Rose wasn't really sure what to think. Part of her wanted to be mad. On the surface it looked like the Doctor had just had a fling with the beautiful, smart and prestigious mistress of King Louis himself and had left her and Mickey on an abandoned spaceship in the 51st century to fend for themselves. If she simplified the events of today to simply being straightforward then that would make the Doctor no better than any ordinary ol' bloke. That's how it looked at first glance but she knew better than that; there was something else going on here. She really did know that, even if her heart was having a hard time believing it.

She was trying her best not to assign old hurts to her current situation because that would only help her jump to the obvious conclusion. But things were never ordinary with the Doctor; he was complex and so were the events that surrounded him. But despite all that she couldn't shake the feeling of abandonment that she felt and she had to know why the Doctor had done what he had today. She needed to know because she knew something was troubling him and because she was not feeling very secure in where she stood with him.

She thought she knew how things stood between her and the Doctor but lately events were making her wonder. It was only last week that they had run into Sarah Jane, a former companion of the Doctor's, and Rose had learned that the Doctor had left her on Earth and never came back. Rose confronted him on that and he said he wouldn't do the same to her. She believed him but the incident had really shaken her. She was trying to move past that but today was just another piece of fuel for the fire of her doubts.

She never pressed the Doctor on matters like this but she needed answers. She had always put her full trust in him and today was the first time that she felt like he didn't have her back. She had asked him if he planned on leaving her like he had left Sarah Jane and he said no. But today he had done just that.

She heard a quiet "Come in" from the other side of the Doctor's door. She took a deep breath and walked inside.

When Rose opened the door she found the Doctor sitting at a desk more casually dressed than she had ever seen him. He had taken his jacket and button down off and was wearing a grey t-shirt on that he had been wearing under the two. He still was wearing his suit trousers but he had taken off his trainers and just had socks on. He had some papers and books in front of him but all were untouched. Although he had his glasses on like he had been studying them it was clear his mind had been elsewhere.

Rose only paused for a minute before she could pull her focus back to why she was here; she did not need to get distracted by looking at the Doctor's room or being surprised by his casual appearance. If she did she might lose her nerve.

The Doctor took off his glasses and looked at Rose. "What is it Rose?" he asked, clear surprise on his face that she was there but mostly he just looked tired. Even with the kind of life they lived it was not often that she saw the Doctor look tired. When she did it was not physical exhaustion that he displayed but emotional fatigue. She knew that this time was no different.

But even though his tired and sad face tugged at her heart she pressed on with what she had to say. "Are you alright? You seemed upset before and I just wanted to check on you."

"I'm fine," he said but it wasn't even remotely convincing. "I'm just tired," he said looking down at the desk and rubbing his head. He looked as if it was throbbing and she wondered, did the Doctor get headaches?

"I know you're not. I know you're upset."

"Rose. I'm fine," he said tightly and it sounded a lot like he was closing the discussion.

Like he always did.

I'm not she wanted to say.

It wasn't easy to care for someone like the Doctor, someone who was always closed off, who refused to take help even when it was being offered to them. It was difficult to watch them be in pain and want to help but be kept from doing so.

Rose turned to walk back out, not saying anything else, feeling defeated. But she hesitated with her hand on the doorframe her back towards him. He may not want to take help for whatever was troubling him but she did. She was struggling and she knew that her problems wouldn't get better by ignoring them. She knew they needed to be dealt with before they consumed her.

"What is this Doctor?" she asked quietly her back still to him.

"What are you talking about?"

"What is this," she said turning around and gesturing in between the two of them. "Me and you; what is this?"

"Rose..." he said in a warning voice.

"No," she said shaking her head and walking slowly back to stand closer to him. "Don't tell me we're not going to talk about it. We never talk about it. And normally I wouldn't ask but I need to know. What are we? Define this for me."

After a tense moment he answered with a question. "Can it be defined?"

She paused a moment thinking before responding. "I think it can."

"Why do you need to know?"

"You know exactly why I need to know," she said looking straight into his eyes.

The Doctor averted his eyes, avoiding both her knowing stare and her words.

"I don't think it can be defined."

"O.K. Alright," she said. He was going to avoid the question then. Well, she did not intend of letting him off that easily. "Then tell me this: what was it between you and Reinette?"

"It wasn't anything."

"She knew things about you. More things than she should know about you for the short time you said you spent with her. It was like she understood the heart of you…how did she know so much about you?" then adding softly, sounding hurt. "More than I do."

"Rose," he said with a sigh, rubbing his face with his hands, "I don't really want to talk about this."

"Tough," she said and the Doctor's head snapped back towards her. She did not usually talk this way with him. "Because I'm angry," she said looking dead into his eyes, fire behind hers. "I'm so angry at you."

"I…I can explain," he said uncomfortably, tugging on his ear.

"Can you?" she said crossing her arms. "Alright, I'm listening." She focused on her anger and tried to project that; she could feel the sadness and tears coming and she didn't want to give into them.

"Rose, I promise…this is not what is seems. This wasn't just some superficial fling" he said looking seriously at her.

"No, I get that. I get that even though she was beautiful and rich and smart that you didn't just snog her because you're just some typical bloke," she said though her tone of voice suggested that there was some doubt in the truthfulness of what she was saying. "I gotta know that there is more to it than that because you're different than that; you're better than that," her voice now begged for him to confirm the truthfulness of the faith she was putting in him.

The Doctor looked guilty and he felt mortified, having to discuss this. "Rose…she kissed me, but that's all. Just the one time."

Rose clenched her teeth and her fists at her sides. "That's not even the thing that bothers me the most. That isn't why I am so angry," she said though she knew it hurt deeply. "You did something today that I never thought you would do. You left me," she said her voice wavering despite herself.

The Doctor's face crumpled in regret and he reached out to touch her but pulled his hand back. "Rose...I wouldn't leave you."

"You did it today!"

"I'm sorry. I did not mean for it to be permanent."

Rose pursed his lips and looked down, her eyes were heavy with tears and she was still trying to pretend that this whole thing didn't bother her much at all. "And it's not really even that you left me. You left the TARDIS, you left your whole life; you turned your back on time traveling and sailing through the stars. That is something that I never thought would happen. So, because I'm your companion and I'm along for the ride, I have to know…what else is going on here?"

"I have a reason," he said weakly and quietly.

"I hope so. Because I need to know what is going on because those are not the terms that I signed up for."

"And what exactly did you sign up for?" he asked a bit of pain starting to make its way through his tone of voice.

"I didn't sign up to be abandoned. I didn't expect to have to wonder what was going to happen because you voluntarily left. Yes, I knew I could lose you and that was bad enough. But I didn't think I'd lose you by your own choice. I thought you loved this life, traveling in the TARDIS, more than anything. I thought that was something I could say you would never give up. But you were willing to take that chance today."

There was only silence from the Doctor.

"It just made me realize something," she said continuing on in his silence. "I realized that I promised you my forever; to never leave you. But it occurred to me that you never promised me the same thing."

"Maybe I didn't with words. But I thought you understood me better than that," he said quietly, definite hurt in his voice now.

"I thought I did. I really thought I did understand you. But your actions lately have made me wonder. Tell me what's going on."

"Rose. Please, stop pushing me about this."

"Doctor…please stop pushing me away." Couldn't he see she was nearly begging him to help her? She only wanted to be closer to him but he was always pushing her away. "Why won't you tell me what's wrong?"

He didn't answer.

"What is going on with you Doctor?"

"I don't know. I don't know what I'm doing. O.K?"

"Come on. You said you had a reason; you must know what it is."

"I'm…" the Doctor started but didn't finish.

"What? Doctor, what is it?" she prodded.

She wasn't prepared for the words that the Doctor blurted out.

"I'm lonely."