Title: Much More Than This
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Ianto Jones/Tenth Doctor
Fandom: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Rating: PG-13
Table: 2, 10_hurt_comfort
Prompt: 4, Crushed
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.

***

The Doctor stood by the window of Ianto's flat, curling his long, tapering fingers into a fist. This wasn't going to be easy for his lover to get through, and he had to be here to make sure that he was all right and comfort him when he needed it.

He still couldn't quite believe that Ianto had been turned away from Torchwood. Yes, the two of them spent a great deal of time away -- but no more than was necessary. What did Jack expect? That he would leave his lover behind all the time?

That was too much to ask. He'd found the man who he was bonded to -- the other half of his soul, the man he was meant to be with for the rest of his life and beyond. He couldn't be expected to spend a lot of time away from him.

But apparently, that was what Jack expected. The Doctor's other hand tightened on the curtain, gripping it until his knuckles were white.

It was ridiculous for Jack to see things in this way. Ianto had been wonderful for Torchwood; the immortal had said himself on more than one occasion that the young man was indispensable to the team. Doing this was petty, vengeful, and malicious.

It seemed as though Jack felt the need to punish Ianto for falling in love with the Doctor, for daring to be happy with him. The Time Lord couldn't have said what the main driving emotion was, but he knew that it wasn't an attractive one.

Could it be envy? After all, he and Jack had been involved before he'd met Ianto -- and Ianto had been involved with Jack for a while. He was an ex-lover for both of them, and he could be feeling neglected and unhappy with their current relationship.

He had no right to feel that way, the Doctor thought angrily, a frown settling onto his features. He'd had his chance with both of them -- and had thrown it away.

Losing them both was his own fault. If he could have seen what he was giving up .... But he didn't want to think about that. It was over and done, in the past -- and he had something better than his relationship with Jack had ever been.

Maybe that was part of what made the immortal so angry and vengeful towards them that he had to hurt Ianto. He could never be happy in a loving, committed relationship himself, so he had to lash out at people who were.

The Doctor sighed, closing his eyes and leaning his forehead against the window. That was Jack's problem, not his. The other man chose to flirt, to be unfaithful to his lovers, to break the trust they had in him. It was the way he wanted to live.

Ianto couldn't be happy in that sort of a relationship -- and neither could he. But that didn't matter now. They had each other.

No one could ever touch what they had together. Not Jack, not anyone. And nothing could tear them apart -- which was why the immortal was so set on freeing Ianto from his obligations here on Earth. He knew that the young man wouldn't leave the Doctor.

He himself had left easily enough -- but Ianto wasn't him. The young Welshman had a much more highly developed sense of commitment to the person he loved; he wasn't going to walk away from a relationship in search of more exciting pastimes.

Where was he? The Doctor's dark eyes anxiously scanned the street below; he'd expected Ianto to be back home by now. Maybe Jack had changed his mind, or Ianto had managed to talk him into letting him stay with Torchwood.

Of course if he had, that could mean .... the Doctor shook his head, squeezing his eyes closed .No. Ianto wouldn't give him up to stay with the team. He wouldn't.

Ah, there he was. His steps were slow, his shoulders slumped; the sight made the Doctor's hearts clench in his chest. He'd known that Ianto would be depressed and unahppy about being forced to leav Torchwood, but he hated to see his young lover like this.

Ianto would be in the flat in just a few moments; it didn't take long to come up from the lobby. He moved away from the window, going to sit on the couch; he didn't want his boyfriend to think he had been looking so anxiously for him.

When his lover entered their flat, he was sitting on the couch with a book in his hands, idly leafing through it and trying to look as though he'd been sitting here for a while -- but he didn't think that Ianto was fooled.

"How did it go?" he asked softly, putting down the book and holding out his arms to the young man. Ianto looked pale, exhausted, worn out.

Ianto shook his head as he sat down beside the Time Lord, letting out a heavy sigh. "I'm out," he murmured, leaning back against the soft cushions of the couch. "Jack doesn't think I can be an asset to the team because of the time I spend away from Torchwood."

The Doctor nodded, feeling his hearts turn over in his chest. Poor Ianto looked so crushed, so unhappy. He hadn't realized just how hard it was going to be to see the man he loved like this; he couldn't deal with Ianto being miserable.

"Ianto .... if you .... want to spend more time here on Earth and stay with Torchwood .... I'm not going to force you to come with me," he murmured, his words soft and hesitant. "I wouldn't want you to give up something you love."

The young man raised his head, eyes wide, looking at the Doctor with an expression akin to horror in those blue-grey eyes.

"No," he whispered, his voice hoarse. "I want to be with you, Doctor. Every moment I spend away from you feels like an eternity. I'm not happy unless you're by my side -- and I couldn't be happy not knowing where you were and if you were all right."

His hearts clenched in his chest again; he hadn't expected to hear those words eo emphatically stated. He knew that Ianto loved him; he'd never doubted that, not for an instant. But to hear those words coming from his love .... they made his throat tighten and his eyes water.

"I'd be unhappy if you weren't with me," he said softly, reaching for Ianto's hand and twining their fingers together. "But I don't want you to feel that you have to leave behind everything you know and love for me, Ianto. I want you to be happy."

"I am happy," Ianto told him, moving closer to the Doctor and pulling the Time Lord close. "I couldn't be happy without you. I had to make this choice."

"Or rather, have Jack make it for you," the Doctor sighed, shaking his head regretfully. "He could have found a better way to go about this than just unceremoniously telling you that you weren't needed at Torchwood any longer."

"But he's right," Ianto said softly, his arm tightening around the Doctor's slim waist. "My priorities aren't there any more. I felt crushed at first, but now .... I feel like it's the best thing for me. For us. Yes, I'll miss it -- but I would miss you more. And my life is with you."

The Doctor could almost feel his hearts leaping up into the vicinity of his throat at Ianto's words. "So .... you're not horribly upset about having to leave Torchwood?" he asked softly, not daring to believe the words he'd just heard until Ianto confirmed them.

The young man shook his head, smiling ruefully. "Of course I'm upset. But I'm not crushed. I'm not devastated. After all, I have so much more in my life than Torchwood now."

"Your life is with me, Ianto," the Doctor murmured, resting his head against his lover's shoulder. "More so than it could ever be with Torchwood. I was just .... a bit worried that you might feel differently and that you'd feel your place is here."

"My place is with you," Ianto told him, brushing a kiss against his forehead. "It always will be, Doctor. I couldn't imagine being anywhere else -- or wanting to be anywhere else. It would take much more than this to make me leave you. I never could."

"You may have just made me the happiest man in the world," the Doctor told him, smiling and feeling a wave of relief wash over him. "I needed to hear that more than I've ever needed to hear anything, Ianto. I needed to know that I'm .... first."

"And you always will be," Ianto replied softly, his lips brushing the Time Lord's ear. "And now .... shouldn't you be doing something to help me get over my disappointment?"

"Oh, I think I could manage that," the Doctor answered, laughing as Ianto pulled him to his feet. He followed the young man as they headed towards their bedroom, his hearts quickening along with his footsteps.

Oh yes, he was certainly going to do everything he could to help Ianto get over this. And he could think of quite a few ingenious ways to do just that. He couldn't wait to start putting those ideas into practice.

***