Leave bits and pieces he had. Dozens of them, though Rose didn't quite know it just then. Things were beginning to come together in her mind, but she couldn't quite grasp it. And she never would have picked up the almost-obvious from the tiny fragments Dr. John Smith had scattered all around her.
"Not an awful lot else to do here, is there?" she reminded him, a slightly playful look on her face. "Besides, someone needs to get there in time to stop the Doctor from trying to put together a sonic...I don't know, picture frame. Silly nut."
But she loved that silly nut. She loved him for a lot of the same reasons she already trusted the man at her side so much. There was a childlike appeal to him, despite the advanced age. He was protective of her, taking care of her without her ever having to ask. They butted heads, but at the end of the day, she knew he still cared. The worst fight they'd ever had still had him coming back to her. He was wonderful, and it explained the instant pull to the coat-wearing man beside her. Any similarities to the man who'd shown her the galaxy pretty much guaranteed him a spot in her heart.