Title: Sunshine of My Life
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Tenth Doctor/Mick St. John
Fandom: Doctor Who/Moonlight
Rating: PG-13
Table: 1, fanfic50
Prompt: 22, Sunshine
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Tenth Doctor or Mick St. John, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

The Doctor glanced over at Mick as they strolled along a London street, wondering why his lover looked so comfortable. Though he knew that Mick could survive in the sunlight, it still felt a little strange to see him obviously enjoying the day.

He had always ascribed to the old wives' tale of vampires not being able to stay in the sun; obviously, that wasn't true, as Mick had explained to him. Most of the assumptions he'd always made about vampires had fallen by the wayside since he'd met Mick.

Of course, until they had been together, he'd never believed that vampires existed, the Doctor thought wryly. It had seemed like some fairy tale, a scary story told to children after dark, or at Halloween parties. It had never felt as though the concept of vampires could possibly be real.

Yet not only were they very real, but he was involved with one. In all of his wildest dreams, he never would have believed that he would have a vampire for a lover -- or that he would have fallen so deeply head over heels in love.

Who would have thought that he would fall in love with someone who he would have discounted as nothing more than a creature from his dreams only a short while ago? It was funny how the world worked, the Doctor thought, smiling at nothing in particular.

"What are you smiling about?" Mick asked him, reaching for his hand and twining their fingers together. "Don't think I didn't see that," he added, smiling at the Doctor as he pulled the other man closer to his side. "I never miss a chance to see you smile."

"I was thinking about us," the Doctor admitted, with another smile, this time a slight sheepish one. "I was thinking about how odd it is that I should fall in love with someone who, only a short while ago, I would have sworn couldn't possibly exist."

"Don't you believe in vampires?" Mick asked with a laugh, shaking his head. "No, don't answer that," he added, holding up his free hand. "I know it's hard to believe in something that you've never seen before, or have always heard was just a fantasy."

"I would never have believed that vampires exist if I hadn't met you," the Doctor confessed, feeling a little guilty. "But that's as your community wants things, isn't it? If it was widely known that you exist, there would be horrible consequences."

Mick nodded slowly, inhaling deeply and then letting the breath out. "Yeah, there probably would be," he said, his voice carrying a hint of sadness. "You know what humans are like. They fear what they don't understand, and what they fear .... they destroy."

"Not only humans," the Doctor murmured, squeezing Mick's hand sympathetically. "Mick, there are so many species, all over the galaxy -- there are many of them who are far worse than humans when it comes to not accepting differences."

"Yeah, I know," Mick agreed. "You've shown me some of them. I've got to admit, some of those species make even the worst humans with the most hatred in them look like saints." He shuddered, shaking his head. "I'd prefer not to go back to those places again."

"We won't," the Doctor assured him, hoping fervently that they would never have to go back to any of those places. He didn't want them to be anywhere that Mick's life might be in danger simply because of what he was, no matter how badly he might be needed there.

So much in his life had changed since he'd met Mick, he thought, squinting up into the sky, shading his eyes against the bright sunlight. He had gotten rid of a lot of his misconceptions -- and he'd learned not to assume anything until it was proven.

"I wonder just how that fallacy about vampires not being able to walk in sunlight came about, anyway?" he asked, not really addressing the question to Mick, simply thinking aloud. "It doesn't seem as though it has any basis in reality."

Mick shrugged, furrowing his brow as he thought. "I guess it's probably because vampire have always been seen as some kind of evil creature, and people associate evil with darkness," he suggested, looking thoughtful. "That the only explanation I can come up with."

"It sounds like that could be correct," the Doctor murmured, nodding in agreement. "There's no telling why beliefs like come about, is there? I'm sure that if Time Lords were a species that humans knew about, they would have their own little set of misconceptions."

Mick laughed at that, squeezing the Doctor's hand again before letting go. "Human have a way of creating misconceptions about everybody," he said with a sigh. "I should know. I used to be one of them. And I spent a really long time wanting my humanity back."

"And now?" the Doctor asked, almost holding his breath. He thought that he already knew the answer to his question, but he wanted to hear it from Mick's lips, just to be reassured. "Would you ever want to be human again, or are you happy the way you are?"

"I'd be lying if I said that I didn't miss a lot of things about being human," Mick told him, turning to smile at him as they turned a corner. "But yes, I'm pretty happy just the way I am. If I wasn't what I am, then I'd never have met you. And I wouldn't be in love."

"If I hadn't met you, my life would be much emptier," the Doctor said, looking over at his lover. He wanted to take Mick's hand again, but something kept him from doing it. Was he afraid that the people on the street would look oddly at them? Not really, he told himself.

He shouldn't feel uncomfortable about holding his lover's hand. Not here, in twenty-first century London. He was sure that there were other same-sex couples all around them, and that some of them were even holding hands. He just hadn't bothered to look.

"I suppose I could say ...." He peered at his boyfriend, a mischievous smile curving his lips. ".... That you are the sunshine of my life." He resisted the urge to sing out the lyrics to the song; that would surely draw unwanted attention to them.

Mick burst out laughing, a happy sound that made the Doctor's heart swell. Had he ever been so happy with any of his former companions? he asked himself. He didn't think so. But then, none of the others who had been with him were like Mick St. John.

Mick was not only his sunshine, this man was his joy and his happiness. He was everything that the Doctor had ever wanted in a lover -- and in a companion. He was someone who truly cared, someone who would never leave. Someone who could share eternity with him.

He loved Mick with all of his hearts and soul. He wouldn't trade what the two of them had for anything in the universe, no matter what might be offered. The love he felt for Mick was priceless; he wouldn't give it up, not even on pain of death.

The Doctor might have had qualms about singing aloud on the street, but Mick didn't seem to. He burst into the chorus in a strong tenor voice, making people turn and look at him. "You are the sunshine of my life .... Forever you'll stay in my heart ...."

He didn't seem to mind that people were turning around to look at him, a few of them even laughing and applauding his singing. The Doctor almost expected him to take a bow, but he didn't. Instead, he simply looked around and acknowledged the applause with a smile.

That was one of the things he loved most about being with Mick, the Doctor told himself. His boyfriend was capable of so much joy, of spontaneously bursting into song as he'd just done. Mick could be dark and brooding, yes, but he had a whole other side to him.

He loved all of the facets of this man he had fallen for -- from his dark vampiric side to the lighter side that Mick was exhibiting now. Mick St. John was indeed the sunshine of his life -- and he wanted this man to stay in his hearts forever.

What would he do without Mick in his life? He didn't even want to contemplate that possibility. He wanted to believe that Mick would always be here, by his side, holding his hand and making him laugh, and watching his back whenever he was needed.

More than any other companion or lover that he'd ever had during his long lifetime, in all of the many bodies he had been in, Mick was a part of him. It didn't matter that the man he loved wasn't human; neither was he. They seemed to be a perfect fit.

"What are you thinking about now?" Mick asked again, reaching for the Doctor's hand. "You have a way of slipping off into your own little world," he teased, smiling at the Time Lord as they continued walking down the street, their fingers entwined. "I hope I can follow you there."

"There'll always be room for you in whatever world I'm in," the Doctor said softly, tightening his fingers on Mick's hand. It was true. This man would always be the sunshine of his life, always in his hearts. "Us," he said quietly, giving his lover a soft smile. "I'm thinking about us."

***