Author's Note: Each chapter of this story is written about or after an episode from seasons 1 and 2 of Doctor Who. This first chapter takes place after Father's Day. I have all of the chapters written and ready to post, so I will be posting them depending on the response that I get. So let me know what you think! And who's excited for a new episode tomorrow!? EEEP!

Chapter 1

The first time Rose had a bad dream onboard the TARDIS, she woke up crying.

In her dream she had been too late. She had run with all her might, but she seemed to be moving through jelly because no matter how hard she pushed herself forward, she couldn't get to him. Her dad had died on that street alone, again, with no one to hold his hand.

It wasn't the first time a bad dream had brought her to tears in her sleep, but it was the first time that she couldn't stop crying even after she realized it had been a dream. Because it wasn't just a dream. It was true, it had happened. And the actual turn of events was almost worse than the dream alternative. She had held her dad in her arms while he died. She had watched him die, in her arms. And suddenly, she felt so alone.

She choked on a sob and rolled over onto her pillow to muffle the sounds she could no longer hold back. Her loneliness seeped out of her along with her tears and closed in on her under the sheets. She didn't hear the knock on her door, or the creak it made when the Doctor came in.

As he eased himself into the room he called her name softly.

"Rose?" When his eyes fell on her he felt his hearts melt. He had heard her soft sobs through the walls of the console room, he suspected thanks to the TARDIS, and made his way to her room to make sure she was all right. Obviously, his fears had been right. She looked so defeated, and he moved forward on instinct to comfort her.

At the sound of his voice, she had stilled slightly but her face was still buried in her pillows. He walked over to the edge of her bed and laid a gentle hand on her shaking shoulders. At his touch Rose forced herself to swallow the tears and rolled over and sat up slowly. His hand never left her arm as she tried to take deep breaths and look in his eyes. He didn't say anything, just held her arm and gazed down at her with comfort and understanding in his eyes.

She took in a deep shuddering breath and tried to let it out slowly, but it came out in a sob that made her shoulders crumple for a moment. She tried again, with the same result, and a third time. But this time, when her breath refused to exit her body in anything but a sob, she gave out. She crumpled into the Doctor's waiting arms and cried.

As soon as she let go, there was no going back. Her cries made ugly noises that she didn't care about and snot dripped out of her nose that she didn't notice. Her whole upper body shook and twisted with the ebbing and flowing of her breaths and emotions. And he held her. His arms tightened around her and chased away the loneliness, but they couldn't change what had happened. But still, Rose felt a comfort from them that rivaled even her mother's arms after a bad day. Because he understood. The Doctor knew what she had just gone through, and somehow she was sure that he knew exactly how she felt. So even as she cried she felt the weight of her grief and pain being eased from off of her shoulders by his strong embrace.

The Doctor sat on the edge of her bed and held her in his arms while she cried. Sometimes he would rock her slightly and move his hand to her head to hold her still. Most of the time he would rub her back lightly and every now and then he would tighten his hold on her when a particularly violent seizure shook her frame. But most importantly, he was there and he stayed.

Eventually, she cried herself into exhaustion and though the tears still fell, albeit more slowly, her body no longer had the energy to do anything other than shake from the built up tension in her muscles. And still he held her. She was curled up into his body with her arms against his chest and her head lying limply under his chin. His embrace wrapped around her back where one arm braced and cradled her shoulders and the other steadied her by her waist.

Rose breathed slowly, though her breath still caught every few seconds with those uncontrollable gasps and sighs that follow in the wake of a genuine cry. The Doctor's body gave off a warmth that soothed her by simply confirming the fact that he was there. She very slowly began to release the iron grip that held her body. She had a headache from squinting her eyes and scrunching her face and her shoulders ached from her sobs. But the Doctor's embrace was warm and steadying and soon her aching heart was dulled and her sore body relaxed. He never wavered or pulled away in the slightest and Rose finally melted completely into the comfort and support of his embrace. Her mind stopped racing with guilt and sadness and instead her thoughts rested only on his presence. She listened to the beat of his hearts against her head, and counted each breath that he let out on her hair. Her shaking subsided and her breathing slowly but steadily evened out. And she fell back asleep.