Title: The Gift of Time
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Ianto Jones/Tenth Doctor
Fandom: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Rating: R
Table: 11
Prompt: 22, Gift
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own Ianto Jones or the Tenth Doctor. Please do not sue.

***

The Doctor leaned his head back against Ianto's chest with a happy, satiated sigh. He always felt like this after they made love -- completely sated, as though all was right with the world. No one else had ever affected him like this.

But then, he'd never been in love with anyone the way he was with Ianto. The two of them were more than just lovers; they were soul mates, their bond so deep and unbreakable that he was sure there was no way they could ever be pulled apart.

He wasn't going to test that theory, either, the Doctor thought to himself, suppressing a shudder. He'd done that once, and he'd discovered all too quickly what a mistake it had been. He was just lucky that Ianto, Jack and Owen had been able to find him and rescue him from his own folly.

That was time of their lives that he didn't want to think about. It was over and done; they'd passed through it, not completely unscathed, but with their bond unbroken.

And since then, things had been better for them. There was no more of the loneliness that had always seemed to envelop him when he was in the Tardis; that had been banished forever, now that he always had someone there with him.

Of course, his companions had helped to ease that loneliness in the past, but that had been vastly different from what he had now. His companions had been friends, people who he cared for -- but his hearts hadn't been theirs.

With Ianto, it was a completely different situation. Ianto was much more than companion -- his soul mate, his lover, the man he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Well, the rest of Ianto's life. As long as they had to be together, at any rate.

Yet another thing that he didn't want to think about, not now. Not when they had just made love and were curled up in bed together, enjoying having an afternoon in Cardiff when Ianto wasn't called to Torchwood and they could revel in each other.

This time together was a gift, the Doctor reflected. A gift that he'd never had before. It seemed to be significant that he was sharing it with Ianto, and that it hadn't been given to him with anyone else, not even Jack when they'd been together.

"What are you thinking, beloved?" Ianto's soft voice broke into his thoughts, the other man's hand moving down to stroke over his bare hip and pull him closer.

"Only that this time we're having together now is a gift -- and that it's something I've never been granted with anyone else," the Doctor murmured, a slight flush coloring his cheeks. Why in the world would such an admission make him blush? It was only a thought, after all.

Ianto laughed softly, turning onto his side and propping his head on one hand, his other hand still resting on the Doctor's hip. "The fates have decided to give us something special, then. Just more proof that we belong together, isn't it?"

"I hadn't thought of it that way," the Doctor admitted. "Well, I know it's something special, but I hadn't thought of it as proof that we're mated. That, my dear, is something that needs no proof. I've known that ever since the first time you kissed me."

"Only since then?" Ianto teased, pushing out his lower lip in a mock-pout. "I've known ever since the first time I saw you that you'd be someone special in my life. Maybe not that we were soul mates -- but I couldn't get you out of my mind."

"Oh, I felt the same way," the Doctor laughed, leaning forward to brush his lips against Ianto's. "I couldn't keep you out of my thoughts, either. Though I have to admit, you completely fooled me with the love notes and roses. I had no idea it was you sending them."

"I must have been sneakier with that than I thought," Ianto said, grinning as he spoke. "I was sure you'd catch me before you did. Or that you would just somehow know."

"You were very sneaky indeed!" The Doctor couldn't help laughing, turning over onto his back and looking over at his young lover sprawled beside him. "But you know -- that's another gift. I've never had anyone do something so sweet and romantic for me before."

"Never?" Ianto looked surprised at that. "Not in all the years you've been alive, in all the different bodies you've had? No one has ever been romantic with you? Surely you've had some romance in your life in other ways."

The Doctor shrugged, unwilling to admit that he'd never been the kind of man who'd invited romance into his life -- at least not until he'd met Ianto. "Not really. There were a few instances that could have been called romantic -- but never on that level."

Ianto looked sad for a moment, then he leaned forward to press his lips to the Time Lord's mouth. "Then this is a promise -- that I'll always find romantic things to do for you. You deserve to have that in your life, Doctor. More than anyone else I know."

"And that's yet another gift," the Doctor whispered, lifting a hand to trace his fingertips across Ianto's jaw. "You're too good to me, you know. There are times when I feel that I don't deserve to have someone like you."

Ianto shook his head, catching the Doctor's hands in his own and holding them against his chest. "No, love. You're a gift. One that I never thought I could have, and one that I'm thankful for every day of my life."

The Doctor couldn't answer that; he could only lay there silently, gazing at Ianto, blinking back the tears that rose to his eyes.

"Shhh, love, don't cry," Ianto murmured, bending his head to brush soft kisses against the Doctor's forehead, his eyelids, the softness of his cheek. "That wasn't supposed to make you sad -- I want to see you happy. You deserve that."

"I .... I don't have words to describe how what you just said makes me feel," the Doctor finally said, the words coming out slowly and a little hesitantly. "I've never been good with words, Ianto. The only time I can speak well is when I'm trying to talk myself out of some sort of trouble."

"Well, you're definitely not in trouble now," the young man told him, laughing softly as he gave the Time Lord's hands a gentle squeeze. "Far from it. So you don't have to worry about searching for words. Just say what's in those beautiful hearts."

"I don't think I have words," the Doctor murmured, feeling a little embarrassed. Surely it shouldn't be hard for him to pour out his emotions to Ianto -- this was the man he loved, the man he wanted to spend all of his life with. Words should come easily with him.

But they didn't. Everything he felt was there inside him, but the emotions were so jumbled up that they refused to straighten themselves into orderly thoughts that he could put into words. The feelings were there -- he just didn't know how to express them.

After what seemed like a long time, he sighed and shook his head. "Ianto .... you know how I feel about you. How I feel about us. The words are there -- they just won't come out in any way that makes sense to anyone but myself."

Ianto smiled, one hand moving to cup the Doctor's cheek and stroke back a few errant strands of tawny hair. "Actions will speak just as well, you know."

"Then actions it is," the Doctor said, moving closer to Ianto and sliding his arms around the young man's waist. As if that was a signal, Ianto's arms moved around his waist, pulling hm close; those warm lips sought his own, cutting off any chance for him to speak.

Yes, this time with Ianto was a gift. Just having Ianto in his life at all, having the kind of love that he shared with this man, was something special. One that he would never stop being grateful for every day of his life -- and judging from Ianto's actions, his lover felt exactly the same.

***