Owen hates Valentine's Day. Really, he thinks it's just a day for people in happy relationships to torture everyone else. Even at Torchwood, which should be a bit of a respite from the atmosphere of ground-level Cardiff, he is surrounded by Happy Couples. Or at least, it feels like it.
Gwen has taken the day off to spend with Rhys. Personally, Owen has no idea how Gwen managed to finagle a day off, but he suspects it's part of Jack's determination that Gwen Cooper Will Live A Normal Life. All the spaces where Gwen is usually, counseling victims and being rational, are blaringly empty.
He doesn't have coffee. Or a boss. Well, he would have coffee, and he does have a boss, it's just that Jack and Ianto are curled up on the sofa. Owen doesn't want to disturb them. Actually, he's a bit afraid of what they might be, or, more to the point, might not be wearing under the electric blanket that's covering them. Also, Tosh refuses to let him wake them. She says it's cute.
Clearly, something has gone horribly wrong in Tosh's head. One's boss, sleeping with the tea-boy, is not cute. Owen knows that. It means he has no morning coffee, and Tosh, who's never needed a caffeine fix in her life, apparently, wouldn't understand what it's like when there's no coffee. Honestly, Owen doesn't care if Ianto's shagging the boss, except—he hasn't any coffee.
Last year, this wasn't a problem. Ianto made tea on time, and he knew what he was going to do after work. He'd gone to the nearest bar, gotten as drunk as he could and still walk, then he'd gone back to Torchwood to spend the night on the couch. He'd bumped into Suzie, and, well, two lonely people on a night when everyone else is a Happy Couple only have two options. And he'd already gotten drunk.
He doesn't remember much of the details, but he remembers it was in Torchwood. Maybe it was on the couch, he always got a funny feeling of deja-vu when Suzie had sat on the couch. Maybe it was on her desk, maybe the dissection table. One of his favorite theories was right it the back entrance, with her back against the doorframe, where anyone could see. Not that he was an exhibitionist, but a doorway had always seemed interesting.
He looks up and around the hub, realizing that this year, he'll be more alone, since there won't be anyone to be alone with. Unless…
Tosh smiles.