Title: Stay the Night
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Tenth Doctor/Arthur Eddington
Fandom: Doctor Who/Einstein and Eddington
Rating: PG-13
Table: 1, prompt_palooza
Prompt: 39, Stay
Author's Note: Continuation of This Is How I Disappear.
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 Arthur Eddington. Please do not sue.

***


The Doctor paced to the window of his room, looking out at the front lawn that was illuminated by the moonlight shining into his window. He sighed softly, closing his eyes for a moment and then opening them again, as though the action would relieve his mind.

He couldn't think of anything but the fact that Arthur was right across the hall from him, sleeping in the next room, so close and yet so far away. He wanted nothing more than to go to the other man's room and climb into bed beside him, move his hands over that slim body ....

But no, he couldn't do that. Arthur might have admitted that he wanted a relationship to grow between them, but he was still in love with John Smith. And the Doctor had no idea of how to break it to Arthur that he was technically the man he loved.

Arthur had a scientific mind. There would be many things that he could accept, but the idea that the Doctor and John were indeed one and the same person wasn't one of them. He would think that the Doctor was mad, and want to send him off to a lunatic asylum.

That definitely wasn't the direction that he wanted their relationship to go in. But how could he reveal to Arthur that even though he wasn't John as he had been when Arthur had known him, he was John in all the ways that mattered?

John Smith still lived on in him. He might not remember all the deep feelings that John and Arthur had for each other, but they were still there, buried somewhere inside him. Those emotions were a part of who he was -- and there was something else to consider, as well.

He was developing feelings of his own for Arthur, quite aside from whatever he may have felt during his time as John Smith that was still a part of his psyche. He cared about Arthur as himself, not as another man who would never come into being again.

He'd promised Arthur that he wasn't going to leave with no warning, and he meant to keep that promise. But how could he stay without telling Arthur the truth? This deception was becoming more trouble than it was worth; he wanted the truth to be out in the open.

Well, out in the open between himself and Arthur, at any rate. It wasn't as though he could tell anyone else the truth, not even Winnie; doubtless Arthur would want to confide in her, but that Time Lord wasn't sure that was a good idea.

Winnie would doubtless disapprove of any physical relationship they might have; she'd obviously been able to accept Arthur's love for John, but if there was any way for her to discourage an involvement between the two of them, the Doctor was sure that she would.

He didn't dislike her, but she was, after all, a woman who was led by religion, and given the times that they were living in, she wouldn't approve of the two of them being together. Perhaps she only seemed to be so approving of John because he was gone now.

Besides, he didn't intend to let Arthur stay here. He wanted to take this man away with him, out into the stars; that was something that Arthur would love, he was sure of it. He would want to see the galaxy, to be part of a world he had only hitherto dreamed could exist.

The Time Lord moved away from the window, starting to pace the room again. He paused in his pacing by the door, reaching out a hand involuntarily; Arthur was just through that door, just across the hall. He was so close; only a few steps and two closed doors separated them.

So close, but at the same time, further away than the stars were when he was here on Earth. Arthur was a dream that he desperately wanted to come true, but one that he was almost afraid to reach out towards, for fear that his dream wouldn't be shared.

What would he do if Arthur didn't want to be with him as anything more than a friend? He would have no choice but to go back out into the stars, alone, and take his leave of this man he was coming to love with all of his hopes unfulfilled. But if Arthur did feel the same ....

As if in a dream, he found himself pushing open the door and walking across the hallway to stand in front of Arthur's door; all he had to do was reach for the doorknob and turn it to walk into Arthur's room. It would only take one movement, and a few swift steps.

He shouldn't do this, the Doctor told himself, his conscience warring with his desire. What would Arthur think, to have his guest walk uninvited into his bedroom? It wasn't the kind of thing that was done in this time. He shouldn't even be thinking of it.

But he couldn't stay away. Not any longer. He'd promised Arthur that he would stay; he could feel the barriers between them starting to crumble when they'd been close enough for a kiss. He wanted those barriers gone; there should be no walls between them.

His hand was trembling as he reached for the doorknob, but he couldn't stop himself from turning it and pushing the door open, walking into Arthur's room and closing the door behind him. He turned towards the bed, hoping that the man lying there wouldn't be too shocked by his presence.

"J-John?" Arthur stammered, his voice sounding loud in the silence of the room. "Wh-what are you doing here?" He sat up in bed, reaching to turn on the light, making the Doctor blink in the sudden brightness that seemed to flood the space around him.

"I wanted to see you," he said softly, standing where he was, spreading his hands out in front of him in a gesture of helplessness. "I'll leave if you want me to, but I .... I felt that I needed to be with you after .... what nearly happened between us this afternoon."

Arthur looked down, silent for a few moments before he nodded and looked up again, his gaze locking with the Doctor's. "I don't want you to leave," he said softly, holding out a hand and moving over on the bed. "I-I'm glad you came."

The Doctor approached the bed, sitting down gingerly. He didn't want to startle Arthur any more than he already had, but it was hard to keep himself from reaching for the other man; the close proximity of their bodies had made his hearts begin to race in his chest.

He cleared his throat, unsure of what to say. He had to give Arthur a better reason for being here; but at the moment, he couldn't think of a single thing to say. Any words he had in his mind seemed to be stuck in his throat, unable to come out.

To his surprise, Arthur leaned forward, his dark gaze still fixed on the Doctor's face. Raising his hands, he took the Doctor's face between his palms, still staring into his eyes as he leaned closer .... and closer .... until his parted lips brushed against the Time Lord's mouth.

The Doctor's pulse leaped; all he could think of was that at long last, Arthur was kissing him. All semblance of coherent thought fled from his mind; he moaned softly, his arms encircling Arthur's waist and pulling the other man against his body.

This was what he'd wanted for so long, ever since he'd first looked into this man's eyes; Arthur in his arms, his body warm and pliant, those arms wrapping around him, the other man's mouth on his, their bodies and souls finally connecting.

All he could concentrate on was the fact that Arthur was kissing him, holding him, touching him; he had no idea just where this was going, but he knew what he wanted to happen. And it seemed that his wishes might actually come true.

"Stay," Arthur whispered into the Doctor's ear, his voice breathless, barely above a whipser. "Stay with me. Please. I don't want to spend another night alone, torturing myself by thinking of you just across the hall and wanting to go to you."

"That's exactly what I've been doing," the Doctor murmured, absurdly pleased to find that Arthur's thoughts had been moving along the same lines as his own. "I've wanted to come to you every night that I've been here -- but I didn't think you were ready."

"I've been ready," Arthur told him, pulling away slightly and raising a hand to brush the Doctor's hair back from his face. "I just didn't think you were. And I didn't want to see as though I was rushing you. I was afraid that I might frighten you away."

The Doctor couldn't stop a smile from spreading over his face. "We've already wasted too much time, haven't we?" he asked, his voice soft and husky. "At least now we both know what we want. And I don't think we'll lose sight of it again."

"I know we won't," Arthur assured him, leaning back against the pillows and pulling the Doctor down beside him. "Stay with me tonight," he whispered, his eyes not leaving the Time Lord's face. "I don't want to be alone. Not tonight, or any other night."

"I plan to stay the night with you," the Doctor said, pulling the covers up around them and snuggling into Arthur's arms. "And every other night as well," he added, closing his eyes as their lips met again and losing himself in the sweetness of Arthur's kiss.

***