Title: Tonight and the Rest of My Life
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Ianto Jones/Tenth Doctor
Fandom: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Rating: PG-13
Table: VRD challenge - Black, 5_prompts
Prompt: At the stroke of midnight
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.

***

Ianto stood looking up at the huge clock high above him, his eyes following each movement of the second hand as it ticked around the clock face. It had made a full circle before he felt the Doctor's hand slip into his own, their fingers twining together.

He'd always had a fascination with this clock, ever since the first time he'd seen it. There was something timeless about it, even though it was an arbiter of time. And now, he would always associate it with feeling so close to the Doctor.

They stood for what seemed like an interminable amount of time, simply watching the clock as it ticked on. Ianto was acutely aware of the passing of the seconds; he couldn't help but wonder if the Time Lord felt the same way, that time was passing too quickly.

How much longer would it take him to stop feeling this way? he asked himself, holding back a sigh. He was all too aware of the fact that he was human; he would age and die so soon, leaving the man he loved alone to wander through the universe on his own.

"Time passes so slowly, doesn't it?" the Doctor murmured. Ianto looked over at him, opening his mouth to deny those words; but his own words stuck in his throat, and he simply found himself shaking his head and searching for a way to express what he was feeling.

"I don't think so," he said softly, his gaze going back to the clock face. "For me, it passes far too quickly -- all I can think of when I look at something like this is that my time with you is limited, and that I'll age and leave you far too soon."

"That's inevitable, Ianto," the Doctor said, his voice quiet in the still of the night around them. "I knew that when I fell in love with you. I've always known that you can't be with me for the rest of my life. I have to be content to be with you for the rest of yours."

"Sometimes I feel that this is all just a Cinderella story turned on its head," Ianto said with a soft sigh. "I'm the princess who goes to the ball, and the Tardis is the coach that will turn back into a pumpkin at the stroke of midnight."

"And would that make me the handsome prince who swept you away on a magical journey?" the Doctor asked, his tone teasing. He was obviously trying to lighten the mood; Ianto was grateful for the attempt, even though he felt somewhat deflated at the moment.

"Of course you are," he murmured, turning to the Doctor. He could feel his heart leap in his chest when their eyes met; even though they'd been together for quite a while now, those beautiful dark eyes could still make his heart skip a beat.

The Doctor would always affect him in that way, Ianto told himself, raising a hand to stroke soft fingertips down his lover's cheek. There was nothing about this man that he didn't love; the Doctor was everything to him, the center of his very existence.

There had been something magical about the way they'd connected from the moment they'd first met; the Doctor had insisted that it was because they were destined for each other, and somewhere along the line, Ianto had begun to believe that with all of his heart.

And he would always believe it. There was nothing that could convince him in any way that the Doctor hadn't been made for him; the way their bodies fit together, just as their hearts and souls did, was proof of that. He'd never been this close to anyone.

His relationship with the Doctor was real, more so than anything else in his life had ever been. His past relationships didn't seem to matter; they all paled in comparison to the feelings he had for the Doctor. No one else had ever become a part of the very fabric of his being.

He'd loved Lisa, and he'd loved Jack. But those relationships had never come close to the intensity of his bond with the Doctor; even though he'd given them his heart, there had always been a part of himself that he'd held back, afraid to immerse himself completely.

This was no fairy tale, no ride in a pumpkin coach that would end at the stroke of midnight. This was no dream; this was reality. He didn't have to fear that his relationship with the Doctor would end, even when he was no longer existing in this realm of being.

What they felt for each other would transcend time and space; it would even transcend love. Their bond would exist forever; it would go on for as long as their spirits were connected. And it would only grow stronger with time.

"Time isn't finite, Ianto," the Doctor said softly, his dark, intense gaze not leaving Ianto's face. "It's always swirling all around us, with infinite possibilities. You should live every day as though it's the first day of the rest of your life -- because it is."

Ianto nodded, feeling tears rise behind his eyes. The Doctor was right. No matter how many problems might be facing them, every day was a new dawn -- with new possibilities. And every day that he spent with the man he loved was a gift.

"Then that's how I'll live my life," he whispered, sliding his arms around the Doctor's waist and pulling the other man close against the warmth of his body. "As though every day is only the beginning. And I intend to spend tonight and the rest of my life with you."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," the Doctor murmured, his arms winding around Ianto's neck to pull his young lover close for a kiss. As their lips met, the clock on the wall high above them began to chime the stroke of midnight.

Ianto couldn't hold back a smile. There was no puff of smoke that revealed all of this to be a dream, no disappearance of the world around him or the man in his arms. No, this was real. This was his life -- and it was a life that he meant to make the most of in every way possible.

***