Contrasting Tranquility |COMPLETE|

Chapter Thirteen

"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."

- Aristotle

Two years ago, on a Universe far away

"You lied to me." Rose struggled out of the restraints. Her lip was busted, her leg broken and beads of sweat ran down her forehead. Anthony seized her leg and squeezed the knee area forcefully; she cried in pain.

"Do you actually believe..." he began. "That you're worthy of forgiveness? You're incredibly stupid, aren't you? All that yapping, on and on about time travel and parallel worlds." he laughed. "But you're the stupidest of them all. No wonder that Doctor of yours got sick of you."

Rose glared at him, a tinge of insecurity feathering her mind.

"The truth is, Miss Tyler, your inferior presence just bored him to death." Anthony tilted his head and stared. "And you know who else is getting bored? Me. So let's start the party, shall we?"

He moved over to a medical tray and picked up a syringe.

"What are you doing? What is that?" Rose breathed heavily.

"A sample I was working on at Torchwood. This.." he grinned. "Will trigger the brain's response to the nervous system whenever it's under attack, amplifying the signal by 100."

"No." she fought the leather around her wrists and ankles. "You can't! Anthony, you can't!"

"Oh, I most certainly can. And will."

"I beg of you." she cried. "Anything but that. Please."

"Anything?" he raised a brow and neared her. Anthony then gently ran his index finger from her cheek to her lips, down to the jaw and chest. He popped one button open and gazed down. He grimaced. "Your skin is so soft and creamy. How about we fix that?"

Anthony injected her and got to work. When Rose's screams filled the room, he rolled his eyes. "Play us track 46, please." he commanded a man that stood nearby.

Upon request, the man complied, activating the speakers and intertwining the music with Rose's desperate pleas for help.

-

As the artificial morning light gently filtered through the curtains, the soft chime of an alarm on Rose's nightstand roused her from a peaceful seven-hour slumber. Peaceful? Was it truly peaceful? She couldn't remember. With a sleepy yawn, she tenderly rubbed her eyes, savouring those fleeting moments between dreams and reality. Soon, she made her way to the bathroom, looking forward to the refreshing embrace of a revitalising shower.

Stepping in, she let the water wash away her worries, relaxing her muscles in the process.

Rose Tyler was going on a date today.

She smiled, rubbing shampoo in her hair. She then exfoliated her skin, shaved and stepped out. Brushed her teeth, put on makeup, dried her hair and moved to the closet. She wanted today to be perfect. No. Not wanted. Needed.

She glanced over the covers of her bed and found a note. The Doctor must have left it while she was in the shower.

'Wear something fancy x'

Her eyebrows shot up.

"Something fancy." she murmured as she opened the door to her wardrobe. The only fancy thing she could find was a royal blue dress, and Rose wondered if this was the TARDIS' doing.