The Doctor's Reward

Part 2

The Doctor fell face first into the snow.

It was disgustingly wet. Bits of ice clung to his face, unwilling to let go. What an absolutely freezing night it was here!

His teeth were chattering with such force that he could feel them smash into each other. He was shaking so violently that he could only imagine it looked like something taken straight out of a cartoon.

The snow in their world had never been this thick. Not in London, at any rate. Had Rose gotten used to the thick snow here yet?

The Doctor yanked his foot out of the snow, and pulled his trench coat as close to him as possible. If only he had known what the winter here was like, he would have worn something far more suitable for the occasion.

Surrounding him was a white picket fence, complete with the branches of bushes and trees. All the leaves had fallen off, since it was the middle of winter, but the garden was still a beautiful sight.

And then he saw the house. It was absolutely breathtaking! Something that was at least three stories tall, with a massive balcony towering over him and a design that looked like it had walked out of the Victorian Era.

It looked like in the end, Rose did get the life she deserved.

Surrounding the Tyler's house were other houses, with equally fancy designs and flashy cars that screamed "RICH". But none of their Christmas decorations could compare to the Tylers.

A wreath hung over the door, a neat little ribbon tied to it. Red and green lined the walls, with bells and mistletoe and whatever else you could think of.

Decorative long lines of lights hung from the roof, with every color there was. It brought a certain glow to the house, as if it itself was alive.

As pretty and stunning the view from the garden was, it was ten times better from the front of the house.

And the whole world was alright for a few minutes.

The smell of gingerbread men and popcorn wafted through the walls of the house, and out into the unforgiving snows where the Doctor stood.

He took in deep breaths, deep as he could, in an effort to try to remember the smell. It smelled like home.

The window next to the door, dark brown like chocolate, was fogged up, the way it always was in the winter. A small potted plant stood on the window ledge, with small blankets of snow covering it. Through the blurred glass he could see the whole Tyler family, huddled up next to each other on a massive green couch.

Distorted sounds blasted through the walls of the house. Five pairs of eyes glued to the TV, hooked by whatever was being shown. He tilted his head to the right, trying to get a better view of the screen.

Wait... was that the Lion King?

Not important right now, he reminded himself.

Jackie, Mickey, Pete, his clone... They all faded away when he saw who was at the end of the couch.

Rose Tyler.

Dressed in a red jumper and a pair of black pants. A bowl of popcorn was in her lap, a pillow tucked underneath her arm.

The hands of his clone were wrapped around her waist as her head rested on his chest. She was laughing at something he had said, with the kind of smile usually reserved for him.

It was like a thousand knives in his back.

The freezing cold couldn't melt everything he was feeling in that moment. It was an uncomfortable lump in his throat, and the pause of his breath, and the stinging in his eyes. It was the feeling of the world weighing down on him and the pain of everything he had ever known.