Title: Promise Me
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Tenth Doctor/Ten.5
Fandom: Doctor Who
Rating: PG-13
Table: lover100
Prompt: 34, Cuddle
Author's Note: The human version of the Doctor is being referred to as John Smith in this fic, since it's the Doctor's human alias and his clone needed a name.
Author's Note: Spoilers for Journey's End, somewhat. This is an completely alternate take on the ending of Season Four.
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the Tenth Doctor, or his human clone. Please do not sue.

***

Jamie yawned and leaned his head against the Doctor's shoulder, sliding an arm around the Time Lord. He reached for the remote, pressing a button and watching as the television screen went blank; he'd enjoyed the movie, but his mind was already on the rest of the evening.

The Doctor's long, slender fingers combed through his hair; Jamie closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of closeness between them. This was one of the things he loved most about being with the Doctor, simply sitting quietly with his lover and enjoying each other's company.

Instinctively, he cuddled against the Doctor, sighing softly as the other man's arms slid around his waist to draw him closer. "I love cuddling with you like this," he whispered, raising his head to look into his lover's deep, fathomless dark eyes.

"We don't do this often enough, do we?" the Doctor answered with a soft smile. '"I love just being close to you, Jamie. Just knowing that you're in my arms, in my hearts, in my life .... that means more to me than I could ever begin to put into words."

"It's hard to believe that there have been times when I didn't feel this close to you," Jamie murmured, wishing that he hadn't said the words the moment they were out of his mouth. The last thing he wanted to do was make the Doctor feel regretful about the past.

But the Time Lord didn't turn his thoughts in that direction; instead, he pulled Jamie closer, holding onto him more tightly. "I'm sorry about that, love. I want you to feel close to me all the time -- because you are. You're a part of me, Jamie. In every possible way."

"That would bother a lot of people," Jamie said, his tone musing. "I wonder why we don't think anything of it? So many would look at it as being disgusting, the two of us being lovers. But it only feels right to me. It couldn't feel any other way."

The Doctor nodded, in complete agreement with his lover. "I knew when I first saw you that there was an attraction between us, even though you're literally a part of me," he said thoughtfully, his brow furrowing slightly. "And really, I don't care what anyone else thinks."

The Time Lord had proven that when he'd refused to let that spoilt brat carry him off to some alternate universe where they would never see each other again, Jamie thought, cuddling comfortably against the other man's body. They belonged together; they'd always known it.

There had never been any doubt in his mind that this was where he belonged, from the first moment he'd come into being. He had belonged here, in the Tardis, with the man he loved. And after the first time they had made love, that feeling had only grown stronger.

"Do you remember the first time we made love?" he asked, his voice sounding small and uncertain to his own ears. He didn't know if the Doctor could remember that first sharing of their bodies, the realization that this was what they wanted, from that moment until time immemorial.

"Yes, love, I do," the Doctor whispered, his voice husky with emotion. "I remember every second of that day. I remember your hands, your tongue .... everything about your body. I remember exactly how it felt when you were inside me."

"So do I," Jamie breathed, his gaze somewhat unfocused, his breath coming slightly faster. His body obviously remembered that day, too; he was growing hard as the memories coalesced in his mind, the remembrance as clear as though he was watching images on film.

"And I remember that I made love to you, as well," the Doctor told him, his voice soft and husky. He bent his head to press gentle kisses along the column of Jamie's throat; the other man tilted his head back, closing his eyes and moaning in pleasure.

"I remember everything about that, too," Jamie answered, breathless with the memory. "I remember how you felt inside me .... how you looked stretched out under me ..... how much I wanted to be with you, not just that one time, but forever."

"I'm so sorry that I ever made you feel we couldn't be together, sweetheart," the Doctor murmured, those words breaking the spell of memory that held Jamie enthralled. With a shake of his head, he came back to the present, turning his head to gaze into the Doctor's dark eyes.

"At that point, it seemed like being together might be an impossibility -- at least to most people," Jamie said, trying to keep his voice even, not wanting to admit that the thought of not being with the Doctor made him want to cry. "But we found a way around that."

"Yes, we certainly did!" the Doctor agreed with a soft laugh, his arm tightening around Jamie's waist and pulling the other man closer. "I simply .... took off. Left everyone else there, on that beach -- and took you away with me. I didn't care what they thought."

"The first time we went back there, I was so afraid," Jamie whispered, shuddering and cuddling closer into the Doctor's warm embrace. "I thought she would be there, waiting to snatch me away from you. I was so sure that I'd have to go with her, that I'd never see you again."

"I'd never have let that happen," the Doctor declared, shaking his head vehemently. "I know you felt a little uncomfortable when we went there again, but we both needed to put the bad memories of that place behind us. We need to make our own magic there."

"You'll never let me go, will you?" Jamie whispered, raising a hand to stroke gentle fingertips over the strong line of the Doctor's jaw. "You'll always keep me with you, until the day I die, no matter what happens, won't you? Promise me."

"I promise, sweet love," the Doctor answered, turning his head slightly to kiss Jamie's fingertips. "You'll always be with me. No one will ever take you away. I'll never leave you, Jamie -- and my love for you will never die, never fade, and never change."

With those words, he pulled Jamie into his lap; the other man's eyes widened in surprise for a moment before he wrapped his arms around the Doctor's waist and leaned against him, his body relaxing in the Time Lord's embrace, as though they were melting together.

"I love holding you like this," the Doctor whispered against Jamie's hair, closing his eyes and nuzzling his cheek against the other man's. "I love being this close to you, knowing that you're in my arms and that you belong to me in every way."

"I love being held," Jamie answered, his voice soft and breathy. He raised his head slightly, nibbling gently along the slender column of his lover's throat, then pressing kisses against the soft skin of his cheek before turning the Time Lord's face towards his own.

When their lips met, both of them seemed to forget where they were and what they'd been talking about; the only thing that existed for them was each other. The rest of the world fell away; they inhabited a magical place where only the two of them had any substance.

Jamie didn't want to break away from the kiss, but they had to come up for breath sometime. When they did, he rested his forehead against the Doctor's pressing one hand to the Time Lord's chest to feel the reassuring beat of the other man's dual hearts.

He was discovering that he liked feeling those heartbeats; he might not have them himself, though he so desperately wanted to, but at least his lover did, and he could feel their reassuring strength any time he pressed his palm to the Doctor's chest.

"I love feeling your hearts beat," he whispered, regret flashing through him yet again that he didn't possess those double heartbeats himself. But to his surprise, a moment later the Doctor placed his palm flat on Jamie's chest, directly over his heart.

"And I love your heartbeat," the Time Lord whispered, his voice full of emotion. "It may only be one heart, sweet love -- but it's the most loyal, loving heart that anyone could ever have, and I'm proud and honored to be the man who you've chosen to give that heart to."

A few tears streaked down Jamie's cheeks at his words; the Doctor raised a hand to wipe them away with gentle fingers, looking contrite. "I didn't mean to make you cry, sweetheart. I'm sorry. I just wanted to tell you how much I love you -- and always will."

"They're happy tears," Jamie protested, managing a smile. "Just knowing that you love me so much makes life worth living, Doctor." He took the Time Lord's face between his hands, looking into the other man's eyes, their gazes locking and holding.

"Know this, Doctor," Jamie whispered, his voice soft, but strong and firm. "I love you. I always will. In this life, and any other to come. I'll always be yours -- heart, body and soul. And whenever you need me, I'll always be here. In body, or in spirit. Always. I promise you."

Now it was the Time Lord's turn to cry; he buried his face against Jamie's shoulder, the tears flowing freely. But they, too, were happy tears; and when Jamie raised the Doctor's face to his for another kiss, all either of them could think of was their love for each other, and the promises they had made.

***