My Hope (Doctor Who x reader)

3: The Uncomfortable Truth

"Open the door!"

"I know!"

Rose ran down the steps toward Y/n once the light covered more of the door. "Just stay out of the glare, alright Rose? You should be alright sitting down here for now, while the Doctor works on getting you out. Quickly, as well!" Y/n said, shouting toward the end. There was a loud bang outside.

"I'm working on it!"

"The lock's melted!"

"The whole thing's jammed. I can't open the doors." Rose panicked more at the Doctor's words. "Stay there!"

"Where are we going to go?" she shouted back, "Ipswich?" It was nice that she still had a sense of humour. Better to joke around than to cry, Y/n always believed. She wouldn't know how to calm Rose down if she was freaking out.

"Earth Death in five minutes."

Y/n rolled up her jacket into some sort of makeshift pillow and set it on the ground. "You can lay down, if you need," she said quietly, "And keep the water as long as you want. It won't run out." She didn't like not knowing what to do. She felt helpless. At this point her only peace of mind was making sure Rose was alright for as long as possible.

"How won't it run out?"

"Long story. Bigger on the inside. Stuffed an infinite river into the bottom, and a cloud from the Ice Planet in the middle. Constant ice water! Just, er, be careful to not spill it for too long. Once flooded a house because it toppled sideways without me seeing."

"The Ice Planet sounds nice right now," Rose laughed, drinking a bit more once she knew she could.

"Maybe we can go there, after this. Fantastic shaved ice, I'll have you know."

They sat there for a while, talking about various adventures Y/n's been on. All the places she's seen, the people she's met. Rose told a few stories as well. Mostly about her mother and her boyfriend, or about her bizarre coworkers. Apparently so bizarre, that when the mannequins came to life and tried to kill her, her first idea was that her coworkers organized it all as a big prank. That was how she met the Doctor, she told, and that was just in the morning.

"Can I ask you something?" Rose said, looking at Y/n.

"Of course."

She hesitated, but said her question nonetheless. "Why do you hate the Doctor so much? Should I be worried? About, y'know, me."

"It's... a difficult story," Y/n sighed, furrowing her brows. "Definitely not a very kind one. But I will relent that it doesn't really have anything to do with him directly. You're safe, Rose. Being around him will be dangerous, I'm sure, but not because of him. You heard him trying to get us out, yes? He's... a protector more than an enemy."

It was tough for her to say that, but it was observable fact. Y/n had never met the Doctor before, and she knew he was genuinely trying to save them. She knew he wouldn't just let Rose die. She was safe.

"Is what happened really so bad..?" Rose asked quieter than before, thinking about how distressed the other had looked around the Doctor.

"Rose," Y/n said calmly, "My whole life was taken away from me. I was 17. I hadn't even had a first kiss, if you can believe it. It was worse than bad. I had a dog with just the worst separation anxiety, you know."

It fell silent after that. Neither wanted to say another word after the conversation dampened so much. It was a difficult topic for Y/n, one she had bottled up for so long. Boe knew, of course, after she opened up to him all those years ago, but they didn't speak about it. The occasional glance as a check-in and hand on the shoulder was the extent of it, maybe even a hug on special occasions. She didn't plan to tell Rose much more than what she already said. She was worried she already said too much. A smart girl like Rose is bound to see two things and connect the dots sooner or later.