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“Rose? Are you in here?”
Rose could hear the worry in the Doctor’s voice as she made her way back into consciousness. “Yeah.” Her voice came out rough and she cleared her throat to try again. “Yeah, I’m in the green sitting area,” she called, pushing herself up to a sitting position.
The Doctor poked their head around the shelves, eyes lighting up when they caught sight of Rose. “Couldn’t figure out where you’d gotten to,” they said, inching closer to the couch.
Rose smiled at the sound of the Doctor’s new and yet familiar Northern accent. “Came in here while you were trying to figure out where the TARDIS put our room and fell asleep.”
The Doctor picked at the edges of their nails, stealing glances at Rose instead of looking at her directly. “I thought you might’ve needed some space but I wanted to make sure that you - that we - were okay. I know this hasn’t exactly been a typical regeneration.”
Rose snorted. “Are any of your regenerations typical? Because I haven’t been around for any of those.”
The Doctor rolled their eyes but a smile played around their lips as they tucked a stray strand of blonde hair behind an ear. “You know what I meant.”
“Yeah, but really, everything’s fine,” Rose said.
“Yeah?” The Doctor stepped closer again, meeting Rose’s eyes.
“It’s us, Doctor, no matter what.” Rose put all of her love into her smile, let it shine out of her face and hoped the Doctor could read every bit of it.
Their face lit up in a brilliant grin that Rose already adored.
“Come sit with me?” Rose asked.
The Doctor sat next to Rose on the sofa and Rose immediately cuddled into them, tucking her head into the hollow of their shoulder. “How are you feeling about the regeneration?”
The Doctor let out a stream of air. “It’s different and I’m still figuring things out, probably will be for a few weeks, but…”
“But?”
“I really like it. I feel all new in a way I haven’t in centuries.”
Rose looked up at them, smiling. “That’s brilliant!”
“It really is.”
“And changing into a woman? You’re okay with it?”
The Doctor froze for a split second. “Are you?”
“Of course, you’re still the Doctor, still my Doctor, and I will love you no matter what.” Rose cupped the Doctor’s cheek, looking them straight in the eye.
“That was the only thing I was worried about,” the Doctor admitted. “Gender was a bit more of a complex thing for Time Lords for just this reason. I knew it could happen at some point and I don’t really feel any different than after any other regeneration.”
“Okay, I just wanted to make sure that you were okay,” Rose said. “Look at us worrying about each other.”
“Nothing’s changed then,” the Doctor said with a smile.
“Nothing’s changed.” Rose leaned up and pressed a quick kiss to the Doctor’s lips.
They kissed slowly for a few moments, learning how they best fit together this time around, before Rose pulled away.
“I do have one question, Doctor,” she said, breathless.
“If this is a sex question I’m not answering. I already know you have more experience in this particular area than I do.”
Rose giggled. “Not a sex question. And don’t worry, you already have all the experience in the universe regarding having sex with me. We’ll figure all that out later.”
“How much later?” They asked, moving to kiss a line up her jawline.
“That answer depends on if you found our room already.”
“I did.”
“Then not much later at all, Doctor.”
Rose barely finished her sentence before the Doctor cut her off with another kiss. She laughed into the kiss and managed to pull back even though she wanted to drown in the Doctor’s familiar new kisses. “Question. I have one,” she reminded them.
“Right. Question.”
“Do I call you my wife now or something else?”
“I like the idea of being your wife,” the Doctor said, crooked grin lighting up their face. “We can figure out the whole terminology as we go along. I’m pretty easy.”
Rose raised an eyebrow. “Oh, I know.”
“Rude.”
They were both laughing as Rose leaned in for another kiss.