Just a short character introspection on Jack Harkness and his relationship with Ianto.
Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.
It's hard to hold water in your bare hands.
No matter how hard you try, some of it always leaks through your fingers. It drains out until there's nothing left. Sometimes, it's possible to retain a little bit, but only a tiny amount. That normally drains too, and you're left with nothing.
That was what romantic love from Captain Jack Harkness was like.
No matter how hard you tried to hold on, the love would slip away. The sex was excellent, but the emotional connection... Well, the phrase "out of sight, out of mind" could work. Jack would retain affection through the immediate relationship, but after a while, after he left, it would slowly disappear. The memory would remain, and maybe some lingering lust or longing, but the affection would never be the way it had been.
Some people would retain a bit. The Doctor, for example, or Rose Tyler. Jack still loved them. He always would. But not as much as he had, not as romantically as he had. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, yes, but the affection changed. The passion of the romance would slowly fade for Jack, leaving an affection that was fraternal or even paternal, not romantic. They could only cup a little bit of water.
Somehow, Ianto Jones managed to hold an entire ocean in his hands.
And he didn't spill a single drop.