Title: Wouldn't Change A Thing
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Ianto Jones/Tenth Doctor
Fandom: Torchwood, post-1.04 Cyberwoman
Rating: PG-13
Table: 3
Prompt: 34, Months
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.

***

"It's hard to believe that we've been together for over six months now," Ianto told the Doctor, laying back against the pillows of their bed and running a gentle hand through the Time Lord's hair. "And even harder for me to believe that I forgot our six-month anniversary."

The Doctor shook his head, leaning back against Ianto's chest with a sigh. "I know that sort of thing is important to you, Ianto, but you have to remember -- it's only time. There's no need to measure it. We have to take it as it comes to us, and be grateful for what we have."

"I know, but ...." Ianto's sigh answered the Time Lord's. "It's hard for me to do that, Doctor. I keep thinking that we don't have as much time as most people do, because of the circumstances we're in. The fact that I'm human -- and you're not."

The Doctor was silent; Ianto looked down at him with a worried frown on his face, hoping that his words hadn't upset his lover.

But they were true, the young man told himself with another sigh, an inward one this time. Their circumstances were special, different from anyone else's. The Doctor was a Time Lord. He had centuries left to him -- if he decided to take them.

He only had one life, one body. He was human; he couldn't be with the Time Lord for the rest of the other man's life. They'd talked about it at length, but Ianto still had a hard time wrapping his mind around the facts of their situation -- and accepting it.

He hated to think that there would come a time when he wouldn't be with the Doctor, when his love would have to face life on his own again. He knew that the Doctor's greatest fear was being alone, and it made his heart ache to think that the Time Lord would have to face that again.

If only there was some way to cross fate, to give himself a longer life span, for him to be with the Doctor until they both drew their last breath -- until they could enter the next realm of being together, hand in hand, and never have to part.

But that wasn't possible, he told himself, sighing inwardly again. He was human, and there was no way to wave a magic wand and change that fact.

The thought that the Doctor deserved more than what he could give haunted him; the Time Lord needed someone who could be with him for the rest of his life, and Ianto knew all too well that he didn't fit that description.

He tried to push that thought of his mind, to ignore it as best he could. The Doctor had chosen him; he was the Gallifreyan's soul mate, his destiny, the man that he was meant to be with. That was an immutable fact; they couldn't change their destinies even if they'd wanted to.

If only things could be different, and he could give the Doctor all that he needed so badly and that he deserved to have, Ianto told himself, his arms tightening around his lover, wondering why the Doctor didn't say anything.

When the Time Lord finally spoke, his voice was soft, almost hesitant. "So much of the time, I wish that I wasn't what I am, Ianto. I wish that I could have a finite end, that I could be like you -- and that we could end our lives together instead of having to know that I'll inevitably lose you."

Ianto could feel his throat tighten at the Doctor's words; he wanted nothing more in that moment but to bury his face against the other man's hair, clutch that slender body against his own, and weep until he had no more tears to cry.

But that wouldn't solve anything; it would only serve to make the Doctor feel guilty that he'd spoken those words, and that was the last thing he wanted.

When he could speak, he was surprised to hear that his tone sounded even, measured, even reassuring. "Doctor, I wouldn't want you to be any different. I fell in love with you exactly as you are -- and I wouldn't change a thing."

He could almost feel the Time Lord's smile; by now, the two of them were so well attuned to each other's slightest mood that he didn't need to see that smile to know it was there. "All these months that you've known me, and you can still say that?"

"Of course." Ianto was almost surprised that the other man would say such a thing. "I knew what I was getting into when we began this adventure, Doctor. And I wouldn't want to take away a day that I've spent with you -- or all the ones that I'll spend with you in the future."

"Do you mean that?" The Time Lord's voice was choked again; it was amazing how quickly he could go from a smile to being near tears. Ianto had learned over the course of the last few months that his lover was a man of quicksilver emotions, changing like a chameleon.

Though one emotion that Ianto knew would never change was the Doctor's love for him. He could feel that as a constant in his life; that love surrounded him, enfolded him, strengthened him when he felt weak, protected him and sheltered him in every way.

"You know I do," he answered, his voice trembling a little. "Could you ever think that I'd want to change anything about our lives together?"

"No," the Doctor admitted, leaning back more heavily against Ianto's chest. The young man could almost feel the Time Lord relaxing in his arms; though he couldn't hear it, he was sure that his beloved had released a breath that he might have been holding in trepidation.

"In all the time we've known each other, we've had our problems -- but even those have made us grow closer," Ianto continued, his voice gaining strength with his words. "I wouldn't even change the bad moments -- they're part of what's made us as strong as we are now."

The Doctor nodded, lifting a hand to place it on Ianto's cheek. "You're right, love," he said softly, turning his head slightly so that he could look up at his young lover. "In all these months, we've had more good times than bad ones, haven't we?"

Ianto nodded, smiling and lowering his head to brush his lips against the softness of the Time Lord's mouth. "Yes, we have," he whispered against that beautiful mouth. "And we'll have more in the months to come. We've got a lot of time ahead of us, Doctor."

"Yes, we do," the other man agreed, closing his eyes and nuzzling his cheek against his lover's chest. "And I have a suggestion for starting off that time today. Here and now."

"What would that be?" Ianto asked, his brows raised, a smile lingering on his lips. He was fairly sure that he had at least a sneaking suspicion of what the Doctor was going to say, but he wanted to hear the words come from the Gallifreyan.

"You could make love to me," the Doctor told him, his dark eyes sparkling, any vestige of sadness completely wiped away from his features. Again, Ianto was reminded that his lover's emotions could change suddenly, at the drop of a hat, as it were.

Ianto laughed and pulled the Time Lord closer, tilting the other man's face up to his and meeting those beautiful lips with his own. As always, he felt a thrill of desire run through his body; the Doctor never failed to have this effect on him.

"I think that's a marvelous idea," he whispered, shifting his position so that the Doctor was lying beside him. He wrapped his arms around his lover, one hand trailing down the Time Lord's back as he lost himself in the private world that only the two of them shared.

***