Title: Love Is A Battlefield
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Tenth Doctor/Jack Harkness
Fandom: Doctor Who/Torchwood
Rating: PG-13
Table: 4, 10_hurt_comfort
Prompt: 10, Fight
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 Jack Harkness. Please do not sue.

***

The Doctor's fists clenched in the pockets of his voluminous coat as he looked across the room at Jack, who was talking to one of the "guides" and smiling. That patented Jack Harkness smile, the one that could make anyone throw away their inhibitions.

Jack had promised him that he wouldn't use that gleaming, enticing smile. Not here. Not now. And not ever. That smile was supposed to be for him and him alone -- not for some stranger that Jack might find attractive.

He tried to calm his rushing thoughts, tried to keep himself from crossing the room and pulling the immortal away from the young man who was looking at him so longingly as they talked. He didn't have the right to feel like this. Not after Jack's promise.

But was his lover living up to that promise? The Time Lord wasn't sure; in fact, his first instinctive answer to that question would be an emphatic no. Jack wasn't living up to his promise of no flirting, no sexual innuendoes. Not at all.

It wouldn't do any good to remind Jack of his promises. The immortal would only laugh and say that he wasn't breaking any of them -- and in some ways, he would be right. After all, he wasn't touching this young man, or even leaning close to him.

What annoyed the Doctor was that smile, the smile that had been meant only for him, the smile that teased and promied and couldn't be resisted. The smile that Jack had sworn wasn't meant for anyone but the man he loved.

He could understand that Jack was trying to charm anyone who could be of use to them in their quest -- but did he have to be so outwardly flirtatious when he was doing it? He had to know how his actions were making the Doctor feel.

The Time Lord stole another glance at Jack, relieved to see that the guide had turned away and that his lover was making his way back across the somewhat crowded floor towards him. He didn't look at the other man as Jack approached, wanting to make his disapproval plain.

"I wasn't flirting with him." The Doctor's scowl intensified at Jack's words; he shouldn't be surprised that the first words out of the immortal's mouth were a denial of what he'd obviously been doing, what he'd seen with his own eyes.

The Doctor said nothing in response; he only turned and headed for the front doors of the museum lobby, not dignifying Jack's denial with words. If he said anything now, it would simply degenerate into a fight, and he didn't want to draw attention to the two of them.

Jack waited until they were outside, moving down the steps of the museum, before he laid a hand on the Doctor's arm and stopped the Time Lord in his tracks. "Honest, Doc. I wasn't trying to flirt with him. I know what it looked like. But don't judge me by what you see."

"I know what I saw," the Doctor snarled, jerking his arm from Jack's grasp and continuing down the stairs. He stalked off along the pavement, not caring if his lover was following him or not, his clenched fists still hidden in his coat pockets.

Would it always be like this between them? Would Jack always forget his promises when he saw a new face that attracted him? It was beginning to feel like their relationship was always a battle -- and he knew which of them would eventually come out on the losing end.

The Doctor gasped as he felt a hand on his shoulder; Jack spun him around, then pulled him close, his lips so close to the immortal's that he could feel the other man's breath on his skin. "This doesn't have to turn into a fight, Doctor," Jack whispered, his voice soft and breathy.

A moment later, Jack's lips were on his; the Doctor's senses reeled, his breath hitching in his throat. Of all the things he'd thought Jack might do, this hadn't crossed his mind. He'd had no idea that his lover would take matters into his own hands.

When Jack finally raised his head, the Doctor gulped in air, his dark eyes wide and questioning. What in the world had possessed Jack to do this? "What was that for?" he managed to ask, not realizing that he was clinging to the lapels of Jack's coat.

"To show you that loving me doesn't always have to be a battle between what you think is right and what I feel like I have to do for information," Jack said softly, raising one hand to stroke the Doctor's cheek. "I hope that got the message through."

"Loving you feels more like a battlefield than anything else, Jack," the Doctor burst out, almost wanting his lover to let him go and step back, but knowing that Jack wouldn't do that. "I can't help wondering if a bomb is going to explode in my face at any second."

"Love is a battlefield sometimes, Doc," Jack told him with a soft sigh. "But some people think that's part of the fun of a relationship. And you know --" The immortal paused for a moment, his next words accompanied by a wicked grin -- "the fights can make for great make-up sex."

The Doctor couldn't help but laugh along with his lover; Jack had a way of defusing situations like this, but he still couldn't completely squelch that fear that lingered in the back of his mind, the feeling that Jack had been somewhat interested in that young man.

Jack stepped back slightly, studying the Doctor's face before he shook his head. "No, I didn't want him, Doc," he said softly. "There was nothing special about him. I just figured it would be easier to get him to talk if I turned on the charm."

"How did you --" The Doctor snapped his mouth shut abruptly before the words came out. Jack seemed to have a way of reading his mind that was disconcerting; he knew that the other man didn't have that ability, but it was still a bit disturbing.

"Oh, I knew," Jack chuckled, linking his arm through the Doctor's and moving down the street, back to where they'd left the Tardis. "There was nothing special about him. He was just somebody I needed to get information from. Nothing else. I promise."

The Doctor couldn't keep himself from letting out a sound of relief; he was ashamed to have been so suspicious of the man he loved, but given Jack's behavior in the past, his reaction wasn't uncalled for. He just had to remember that Jack wasn't like that any more.

"Besides," Jack went on, a hint of laughter in his tone, "why would I want plain old fast-food hamburger when I could have gourmet filet mignon steak?" He leaned closer to the Doctor, whispering into his ear. "And I intend to make that a reality when we get back to the Tardis."

The Doctor looked over at Jack, trying to maintain an innocent expression. "Oh, I'm sure that the Tardis can whip you up a steak dinner in no time," he said quietly, hoping that no one around them was picking up the tone of this conversation.

Jack raised an eyebrow at him, smiling that crooked smile that went straight to the Doctor's hearts -- and to other parts of his anatomy as well. "Steak isn't what I was thinking of, y'know," he whispered, his arm tightening around the Time Lord's waist.

The Doctor couldn't help laughing, his hearts starting to speed up in his chest at Jack's words. If this was where having a fight was going to lead them, maybe it wasn't so bad for the two of them to square off on a battlefield once in a while.

***