"Sentimental idiot," she mutters, but her hand reaches out for the arm the Doctor isn't using to keep her from stepping back again, keep her close.

Even if she's shown her in thousands of little ways, it's so rare to hear the Doctor say the words. There's good reason she'd spent so many years believing she hadn't loved her at all. It's nice to hear them.

"I always knew it would end. I even had some idea of when. Somehow, I still thought," she sighs, shaking her head and closing her eyes. "I wanted to come back to you. I wanted more than 24 years, Doctor."