Just Another Ordinary Day (Secret Santa for MoonDuck -Doctor Who, 10)

[Guest]

Sorry this took until literally the last minute, @MoonDuck! I started it kinda late and it ended up a lot longer than I'd expected, but it's finally done. I really hope it's okay, this isn't my best work by any means, plus it's been a while since I've watched anything with 10 and Rose, so the characterization might not be perfect either... ^^; I really tried my best. Anyways, enough of my rambling though. I really hope you enjoy it despite the flaws it might have, MoonDuck!

---

“Well, that's a bit different, isn't it?” Rose stared down at the two pairs of ice skates between her and the timelord.

“How so?”

“Well, it just seems a little plain for your taste,” she teased with a grin. “No crazy planets, or monsters…-”

“Heh, that’s what I'm hoping for, anyway.” The Doctor rolled his eyes with a grin, remembering all the times that he and Rose had their plans interrupted by trouble usually involving other life forms. As much as he did enjoy helping others, it was nice to have a day off.

Rose blinked with a skeptical expression. “Right, so...just average ice skating? In our present time period?” she added.

“You got it. If that's alright with you, anyways…” he furrowed his brow at her. He felt that he still had yet to disappoint her, despite all the trouble they'd been caught in during their travels, and he hoped that today wouldn't be the day that he did.

Rose, however, wasn't about to disappoint him either. “Alright with me? Of course it is! Sure, it's unexpected of you, but…” She stepped closer to him, grabbing one of his hands in her own and meeting his gaze. “...I've always liked that about being with you, Doctor. All these unexpected things are a thrill, and even the most ordinary things we do are, well...not so ordinary.”

The Doctor met her brown eyes with his own in a sentimental way. “I'm glad to hear that, Rose,” he said. His eyes then suddenly grew unfocused, his train of thought lost to him, and Rose couldn't help but notice how tired he looked. He'd seemed a little off all morning, in fact, but Rose blew it off as nothing; it was just another unordinary thing, right? Nothing to worry about.

“Well, shall we get going?” The Doctor regained his focus and broke their contact. Rose nodded and grabbed a pair of skates, and he the other. Together they left the TARDIS, walking side by side.

They walked the streets of Rose’s home town quietly, yet peacefully. Eventually their free hands found each other again, taking hold of each other. Still, they stayed quiet, enjoying each others’ company with unspoken words, until The Doctor suddenly stopped.

“Doctor?” Rose turned to look at him, her hand still in his. His eyes were half-closed, she saw, and he blinked several times with a distant stare.

“H-hang on, Rose. I j-justihh…” His eyes had fluttered closed now, his head tilted back slightly and chest heaving with hitching breaths. Then, his hand left hers, and his eyebrows lifted in a desperate expression that Rose only saw when he was about to-

“hhH-!...hH-TishH’uhh-!” Another sharp gasp of air lifted his chest before he whipped away from Rose, his shoulders tensing hard as he sneezed.

He held this pose for a second or two before he straightened his posture back to normal, shaking his head. “Heh, sorry about that,” he said, sniffling, his cheeks flushed slightly.

“Bless you,” Rose responded, giggling a little at the display. It was amusing to see him do things like that; it allowed her to see him in a different light, one that made him appear more human. Rose’s hand then returned to his, and they continued on again in that same, oddly comforting silence.

That is, until the couple was halted by another interruption, one that was much the same as before.

The Doctor stopped suddenly again, but he had no time to warn Rose of the impending explosion this time. His head tilted back just as quickly as it snapped forward. “hihH-G’shhuhH-!! Nhh-...” It didn’t stop there either, as much as he tried to stop it. His arm hovered in front of his face as his breath hitched, nostrils flaring as he valiantly tried to fight it off. “hihH-...h-hiH, hHH-!” The timelord lost his battle however, and he was forced to take one more sharp inhale before releasing a harsh, “hH’IshH’uhH-!!...Ugh…”

The Doctor couldn’t suppress the tired moan that escaped his lips as he lifted his face away from his elbow, and it only made Rose look at him with heavier concern. “Bless you…” she said hesitantly. The Doctor nodded his thanks before rubbing his nose into his sleeve, which was starting to take on an irritated shade of pink, Rose noticed. “Doctor, are you feeling alright?” she asked, brow knitted with concern.

He blinked at that and suddenly perked up from his tired-looking state. “Huh? I’m fine. No need to worry.” Rose eyed him skeptically as he punctuated his words with a congested-sounding sniffle, but she didn’t question him further.

“Well, alright. Let’s get going, then.” Flakes of snow lazily drifted from the sky to join the snow which already coated the ground in generous amounts. It only set the winter scene further, with lots of people already occupying the ice rink, the air filled with joyous exclamations. Rose and The Doctor prepared to join this group as they laced up their skates at the edge of the rink upon arriving there. Rose finished just before The Doctor did, and the cough he stifled into his shoulder didn’t go unnoticed. If she wasn’t suspicious before, she sure was now, especially when she saw how flushed his face was when he turned to face her.

“Shall we?” She shook off her concern again as he held out his arm for her to link her own with. Rose’s experience with ice skating wasn’t nearly enough for her to be considered professional by any means, but it seemed The Doctor wasn’t a professional at it either as they both skidded awkwardly when their skates came in contact with the ice. He pulled Rose closer to him into a more secure position. “You good?”

“Yeah, just need to get used to it. It’s been a while.” She grinned brightly at The Doctor. “Thanks for taking me here. This should be fun.”

 

“Of course, Rose. I thought you’d enjoy it.” He smiled at her in return.

The couple completed a few rounds of the rink to warm up- it had been a while since The Doctor had done this too- before picking up the pace a tad. The Doctor took the lead, gripping Rose’s hand tightly and gently pulling her behind him. He glanced at her every so often, and she gave him that genuine grin that he loved to see on her face so much. Never mind that though. Was he feeling...dizzy, all of a sudden?

“Here, Rose.” He pulled her off to the side, right to the edge of the ice rink. She looked up at him, smiling still.

“What's up?”

“Just taking a breather,” he lied, and though he could definitely use a moment to catch his breath, he was waiting for his head to stop spinning in reality. Rose’s hand reached up to cup his cheek, which looked oddly flushed.

“This is really fun,” she told him, more focused on his eyes as they locked with her own. Then, without thinking, her hands made their way to The Doctor’s shoulders, wrapping her arms around his neck. She closed the space between them, pulling him closer, and then the space between their lips disappeared too. His lips were warm against hers, and hers soft to his.

And then, just like that, they pulled apart, but Rose held The Doctor close and the two relished in moment. “Thank you, Doctor. This was really nice of you to do.”

The Doctor parted his lips to reply when his nose twitched and his gaze on her grew unfocused. He struggled away from her, breath hitching. “S-sorry, Rose, I -hihh...hHhave to- hihH, hHH-!!” He shook his head, reddened nostrils twitching with one last gasp before snapping forward with a harsh, “huhH’RrshHuh-!!”

He straightened, but his eyes still fluttered as the tickle persisted. “Hih...hihH, hHH-!...ngh…” He struggled with the unrelenting itch, breath hitching and hitching uncontrollably to no avail. Finally, he reached a hand up to rub at his nose, and whether it was to relieve it or push it over the edge, it caused the latter. “hhH, hih-hHH-!! HaHH’iSSHhoo-!! HihH’rRSHhoo-!!” The two sneezes left him doubled over, and they were harsh enough to leave him coughing in the aftermath. He straightened again, the show over for real this time. He sniffled and wiped at his nose before Rose reached into her jacket and handed him a handkerchief. “Thanks,” he said in a hoarse voice. When that was over with, he turned back to Rose. “Jeez, sorry about that. Don't know where that came from.” The Doctor gave her as sheepish smile, but Rose could tell it was forced, and she narrowed her eyes as she picked up on the note of congestion his voice held.

“Bess you,” and instead of questioning the obvious for the second time, she said, plain and simple, “ You're sick, Doctor.”

He nonetheless insisted on denying her with a, “What? Rose, I'm fine,” but his appearance said otherwise. His face was still flushed, especially his nose which looked highly sensitive, and his hair was even starting to look worse for wear now. No, tired didn't even begin to describe the expression he tried so hard to hide from Rose, and she wasn't dropping it this time.

“Doctor, you can't tell me you're fine when you look and sound like this. I know you never sneeze this much either,” she added, brow furrowed at him. When he didn't reply, Rose took his hand again. “C’mon. You need rest.” She tugged his hand gently, but he pulled away from her grip, his face growing suddenly panicked.

“No, Rose, wait! We don't have to go. I-I swear, I'm fihh...I'm f-fineehh...heh…” As if his timing could've been worse. The Doctor turned away from her,bringing a hand to his face and pressing a finger under his nose. He held that pose for a moment, his chest heaving and his nostrils flaring with need before his shoulders relaxed, a shuddering breath of relief escaping his lips. When he turned to Rose again, however, it was obvious that he hadn't really found relief. His eyes were still glazed over, distant, and his nose was still twitching, but he held his denial. Well, he tried to anyways. “S-see, Rose? I'm fine, really. My n-nose doesn't even...d-doesn't even tihh...tickle, hehH...Oh God, hiH, HeHH, hHH-!!” His eyes closed and his lips curled back into a snarl. The Doctor pressed his face into the crook of his arm just in time, for even trying to hold back was a thing of the past; these were too strong to restrain any longer. “hHH’RrishoO!! HihH’ehHshoO-!!...uhn…” He let out a quiet moan of obvious displeasure as he lifted his head, wincing.

Rose reapproached him and rubbed his back sympathetically, brow knitted with concern. “Bless you…C’mon Doctor, you can't even get through a sentence now.”

He cut her off before she had a chance to say more, finally giving in. “You’re right, Rose. I'm really not fine. I just...didn't want to ruin everything…” he mumbled, looking down at the ice.

“Oh, Doctor! You haven't ruined anything. Yeah, this was really nice, and I hate to cut it short, but I'm not allowing you to suffer for it,” Rose explained. “C’mon, you need to rest. Let’s go back to the TARDIS.”

“Okay,” The Doctor sighed. Rose walked him off  the ice, and the two changed back into their original shoes.

They set back onto the sidewalk. It was a sight much like before, holding each other’s hand with their skates held in the other, except the timelord’s energy had all but disappeared. Now that he'd stopped hiding how he felt, he only looked more miserable as time passed. The sneezing and coughing didn't let up either, and by the time they reached the TARDIS, he was short of breath again.

“God, my throat hurts...and my head is practically throbbing,” he complained. If Rose thought she was concerned before, now she knew what it meant to be concerned. The complaints were bad enough; just the fact that he was complaining showed how miserable he was, for Rose knew he wasn't one to do that. The Doctor’s appearance was even worse though. His face was flushed as before, and a sheen of sweat had gathered at his forehead, but he shivered against her. “Hold still,” Rose warned him. She touched the back of her hand to his forehead and gasped as her suspicions were confirmed. “Doctor, you're burning up!” she exclaimed.

He shivered and leaned against the TARDIS, his eyes glazed over and unfocused in a feverish haze. “But it’s...so cold…” he murmured. “And everything is spinning...”

Alarm bells went off in Rose’s head. “Doctor?” She grabbed him by the arm. The time Lord shook his head, swaying, before his eyes rolled back and he collapsed, much to Rose’s horror. “Doctor!” she cried. She caught him before he hit the ground, and laid him down carefully instead, unable to support his weight herself.

Rose glanced around. The Doctor had landed the TARDIS somewhere more secluded; there was no one nearby, so Rose was forced to take matters into her own hands. She squeezed his shoulder, saying his name over and over and lightly shaking him until he came to.

When his eyes finally opened, it took him a few seconds to focus. “Rose?” he choked out, causing him to break into a coughing fit. “What happened?” he asked once the fit subsided.

“You passed out,” Rose told him in a still shaky voice. She gave him a moment to lie still and get his bearings. “How are you feeling?”

“Awful,” he said, giving a bittersweet smile. “Good enough to stand up, though.”

“If you say so. Take it easy now.” Rose helped him rise to his feet before she brushed the snow and gravel off of his back. She stopped, however, when she felt his shoulders tense and his breathing grow more urgent. “HihH, hHH-!! HihH’gishHoO-!!” He sighed in annoyance as he straightened from ducking down into his hands. “Could really do without that now…” he muttered with a sniffle, his voice laced with congestion and hoarseness that Rose knew would only get worse.

“You could really do with some rest, though. C’mon.” Rose held her arm around his waist and guided him into the TARDIS. She was amazed at how easy it had been to convince him to go back; she’d expected him to argue more, or at least be more restless what with his energetic personality. Obviously he was really feeling poorly in that case.

“Here. Change into something more comfortable. I’ll wait right out here in case something happens,” Rose told him, leaving the timelord alone in his room. Luckily, he didn’t collapse again, but she could hear him cough and sneeze on several occasions behind the door. When he came back out, he was wearing a pair of sweats and a t-shirt, an outfit that made him look much more comfortable. “Good. Now lie down for a bit while I get you some medicine for your fever and such...Uh, medicine will work on you, right?” she suddenly added. It had only occurred to her now that dealing an alien’s illness could be quite different from dealing with a human’s, but he shook his head.

“They’ll work fine, Rose.” He grinned. “You’re right to ask, but this does seem to be just, well...a normal human cold.” Rose had to blink in disbelief when he looked disappointed.

“You’re mad because it’s normal…? God, Doctor, you’re so ridiculous sometimes. Only you would say that,” she laughed. He wasn’t all gone, it seemed; that ridiculousness was normal for him, and it was just another thing that Rose loved about him. She found multiple symptom cold medicine in the bathroom cabinet, perfect for everything he was suffering from. She got a glass of water and a wet wash cloth while she was at it, and when she came back to The Doctor’s room, she was surprised to see him laying in bed, just like she asked him to. In normal circumstances, she would’ve expected him to be more stubborn.

“Doctor? Here, take this.” She handed him a couple pills and the glass of water. He’d only just set the glass down on his bedside table before his reddened nose twitched as he breathing grew more urgent. “hh-hiHh-...hHH-!!” Rose pressed a handkerchief into his hand just fast enough for him to press it to his nose. “hiH’g’shH’uhH-!! HuhH’Rrsh’uhH-!! Ngh…” He let out a quiet moan and massaged the bridge of nose, wincing.

Rose touched his arm. “You alright?”

The Doctor brought his hand down from his nose. “I think so. Just hurts after a while.” He laid his head against the headboard of the bed and sighed. “I’m sorry, Rose,” he suddenly said, his voice sounding overworked. “I really wanted to give you a fun day, but…”

“Doctor!” Rose exclaimed. “You can’t help that you’re sick. And, I mean, if we really want to try again another day when you’re better, we have all the time in the world to go, right?” she added more gently, winking at him with a grin.

He softly smiled in return. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right…” He closed his eyes again, sighing in exhaustion. Rose brought her hand to his forehead again, and he made a noise of relief at the coolness of her hand.

“Lay your head down. Your fever should go down soon, but you need to sleep.”

The Doctor hummed in agreement before doing as he was asked, and Rose laid the wet washcloth on his forehead. “That’ll take some of the heat off.” He opened his eyes and looked at his companion to show that he’d understood, and his hand reached out to meet hers. She ran her other hand through his hair before bringing it down to touch his cheek.

“Thank you, Rose,” he murmured.

“Of course, Doctor. It’s the least I can do.” She leaned down to plant a kiss on his cheek. “Now, get some sleep. I’ll check on you in a little bit.” The Doctor nodded with a smile before releasing her hand and pushing deeper into the covers, closing his eyes. Rose glanced at him one last time before leaving his room.

Well, it had been another day that was meant to be ordinary that turned out quite the opposite. That was okay, Rose decided. Her life had never been the same since she started traveling with The Doctor, and she wouldn’t want it any other way; she’d live every day unexpected before she would go back to her ordinary life. She just loved it too much, even on the days where Rose took care of him instead.

[MoonDuck]

I'M SO EXCITED THAT YOU WROTE TEN/ROSE FOR ME i love them so much hehe.

Okay so when i first began reading it thEY WERE IN ICE SKATES and ahhh this is like my favorite fluff scenario to start you have no idea how much I pestered some of my friends about this  so way to go there. 

His sneezes are really cute and I can picture them sounding like that like I see it in my head really well. The fits are beautifully described, every single sneeze. IT'S SO WARM AND FLUFFY. 

I can't pick out specific things I like because the entire story is all too good. 

I love all of the thought you put into this and the detail about their characters. AND SHE TAKES CARE OF HIM SO WELL IN THE END it's soooooo sweeet.

^That was sort of all my thoughts as I read through this masterpiece. I like can't thank you enough for all the work you put into this fic and all the little parts and the overall story and it's so perfect.

[AngelEyes]

This is adorable!

[Guest]

On 1/9/2017 at 2:40 AM, MoonDuck said:

I'M SO EXCITED THAT YOU WROTE TEN/ROSE FOR ME i love them so much hehe.

Okay so when i first began reading it thEY WERE IN ICE SKATES and ahhh this is like my favorite fluff scenario to start you have no idea how much I pestered some of my friends about this  so way to go there. 

His sneezes are really cute and I can picture them sounding like that like I see it in my head really well. The fits are beautifully described, every single sneeze. IT'S SO WARM AND FLUFFY. 

I can't pick out specific things I like because the entire story is all too good. 

I love all of the thought you put into this and the detail about their characters. AND SHE TAKES CARE OF HIM SO WELL IN THE END it's soooooo sweeet.

^That was sort of all my thoughts as I read through this masterpiece. I like can't thank you enough for all the work you put into this fic and all the little parts and the overall story and it's so perfect.

Omg I'm so glad you enjoyed it! I was actually kinda worried about it because I didn't feel like it was my best work, but your comment just brought a huge grin to my face, it made my day haha!  "This masterpiece"...awh, you're too sweet!  Seriously, thank you for such a nice comment, it means a lot!!! ;;

Also, I completely forgot how much I loved Ten/Rose until I wrote this. It's been a while since I watched those seasons but omg they were my otp for the longest time hahaha!

22 hours ago, AngelEyes said:

This is adorable!

Aw, thank you so much! 

 

[frolicking periwinkle]

This is great! And it prompted my very first Dr. Who fic. Cool!

[Guest]

On 1/11/2017 at 7:39 AM, frenchposie said:

This is great! And it prompted my very first Dr. Who fic. Cool!

(Sorry I didn't reply this until now!)

Thank you! Aww, that's super cool, have fun writing!