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"A test flight?!" You raged over the sound of the TARDIS sparking away in the time vortex.
"Yes!" The Doctor shouted back, grimacing as he used all his weight to pull down a lever.
"Testing what?!" You slipped, sliding forwards as you gripped tightly to the control panel, not daring to reach the railings behind you.
"Tweaks."
"What?!"
"I've been tweaking her. Needed to see if I could make her safer to fly." He growled as he tried to reach a button too far away to reach, his foot keeping another button pressed on the other side of the control panel. You reached the button for him, giving him a 'fly-this-thing-properly' glare before moving a bit away again.
"Tweaking her how?" You wondered less-than-quietly.
"Oh, you know. Fine tuning..." He trailed off when he saw you laugh.
"I'm sorry." You gasped as you stifled your laughter. "Ignore me."
"No, what are you laughing at?" He dropped his foot to the ground as he tried to look imposing whilst trying to stay standing.
"This is barely fine tuning." You pointed out.
"You just haven't had a chance to appreciate my brilliant fine tuning yet." He went to tweak his bow tie, letting go of the controls and sliding backwards to the railing. You rolled your eyes as he hung off the railing, his feet off the edge of the floor.
"Can you pull that lever there?" He tried to pull himself up as he nodded to a large lever.
"This one?" You pointed.
"That one. Pull it." He lay flat on the ground as he shook his arms out.
"Is this to land?" You asked as you pulled it down.
"It's not that simple, but ye-" His voice was cut off-

Wait...no.

Your hearing - and all of your senses - were cut off momentarily by an extremely strong force throwing you backwards, knocking you out of consciousness as you were thrown against the support railings.
You slumped to the ground, unaware of the pain exploding through your spine as you lay flat on the ground.

~~~

The TARDIS had landed when you'd pulled the lever, just like the Doctor had anticipated.
However, the airbags that he'd installed had been a bit over-the-top and mistimed, and he hadn't expected them to activate with such force.
They had done their job though, protecting the control panel from damage. They just hadn't protected the controller too.
"(Y/n)?" The Doctor lay on his front on the floor, lifting his head and seeing your limp form collapsed on the floor too. He'd watched the event happen, seeing the moment your eyes had become dim when you were pushed backwards.
He crawled over to you quickly, rolling you over to your back as he held your head, tentatively lifting your eyelids in search of life.
"Such a stupid Doctor..." He muttered to himself as he kissed your forehead. "Come on, it's only whiplash. Spine fracture...maybe..." He didn't know whether to move you or not. "You humans and your expendable bodies." He sighed, brushing the hair out of your face before going to lift you up.
"Agh!" You gasped, taking a deep breath as you suddenly became aware of a sharp pain in your neck and spine.
The Doctor placed you back down instantly, pulling his hands back as he realised that your collision with the railings must have damaged you more than he'd thought.
"Sorry!" His eyebrows arched as his eyes widened, unsure of what to do when you began to cry. The fact that you weren't moving showed him that your spine either hurt too much, or that you were partially paralysed.
"What happened?!" You sobbed, completely unsure of what had pushed you back.
"Um..." He bit his lip as he took hold of your hand, careful not to move your arm as he squeezed it gently. "I installed airbags in the TARDIS."
"Can you just pretend I'm clapping right now?" You managed a smile. "A sarcastic clapping, by the way."
He smirked.
"Where does it hurt?" He asked with concern.
"My back. My back really hurts." You shut your eyes.
"Can you move?"
"Yes." You hissed. "But it hurts too much so I won't." You squeezed his hand.
"That's good. Really good."
"It is?"
"It means you're not paralysed. But that doesn't mean your spine isn't damaged. I'm going to take you to the TARDIS's medical bay, okay?" He asked gently.
"Is it going to hurt?" You whined.
"Yes, but I promise I'll be quick at taking you there." He gingerly began to lift you, and you growled in an effort not to scream as he held you in his arms. You did your best not to move as he carried you.

~~~

Two X-ray's, three painkiller injections and countless numbers of encouraging words from the Doctor later, you were starting to feel very high from one of the painkillers as the Doctor confirmed to you - with a very heavy heart - that you had a fractured spine, and that it was sure to take several weeks on Earth to recover.
However, you were not on Earth anymore, and the TARDIS always had a well-stocked medical cupboard.
He'd said how "There is a way to heal you within a day, but I can't promise that it won't be painful, and I want you to be prepared."
Taking hold of your hand as he knelt next to your bed, he kissed it and lay it flat against his cheek.
"What do you mean?" You asked as you wiped a tear from the corner of his eye with your thumb.
"I have something that will make it okay. But it will hurt. A lot. But only for a day." He pressed his hand against yours as he affectionately pressed his head into your palm.
"How badly will it hurt?"
He sighed.
"If I could, I'd let you be unconscious for the entirety of the day that the injection was working, but it works best when you're awake."
"That bad?" You said, clearly saddened. He nodded with his eyes shut.
"That bad." He barely whispered.

You paused to think, realising that he was asking for your permission so that he didn't feel responsible for the pain you'd feel. But you knew he'd always feel some sort of responsibility for the pain as he'd be the one giving you the injection.

"Do it." You said instantly, causing the Doctor to lift his previously lowered head.
"But...you have to understand, there will be nothing I can do for the pain." He stressed.
"I know." You stared ahead at the ceiling. "But you'll be there. Won't you?"
"Yes, of course-"
"Then do it." You said before you could change your mind.
"Are you s-"
"Do it!" You ignored the tears at the corners of your eyes.
He stood up, holding your hand as he kissed your cheek.
"You don't know how brave you are." He whispered into your ear, squeezing your hand again before walking off to prepare the injection.

And that final comment was the one that sent shivers down your spine, because now, you were really scared.

He came back with two injections ready, his jacket gone, and you frowned.
"Two?" You asked.
"I'm going to have to sedate you first. It's for your own safety, and you won't be able to move."
"I don't care. Just do whatever you have to." You shut your eyes, bracing yourself for the first pinpoint in your skin.
"Deep breath." He said simply, and you did, gasping at the small sudden pain. You tried to appear as if not in pain, but the false message didn't come across very well.
'One down' you thought to yourself.
"This one won't hurt as much." He smiled, and you relaxed a little. "Deep breath." He said again.
You growled as the fire-like substance in your veins made its way through your body.
"Lier!" You shouted as he massaged the injection site with his thumbs to stop the substance from pooling.
"Sorry." He kissed your arm before walking off to dispose of the needles.

You felt yourself gradually loose control over your limbs, the sedative making you feel woozy and giving you something to distract you from the increasing pain in you spine.
You could barely tell that the Doctor had come back to sit next to the bed, holding your hand like he promised as he gently stroked your hair.
"You'll be okay. I promise." He wiped the tears from your eyes, telling himself that it was for your own good in an attempt to keep control over himself.

And this was the longest day you'd ever lived.