OK, he knew he was in trouble. Ianto hadn't spoken for over three hours and other than a quick nod at Tosh when she asked if her PDA was in the overhead luggage he had ignored everyone else on the flight.
He had tried easy banter, soft cajoling and despite Owen's scoffing he even tried gentle pleading for forgiveness.
So, Ok this was technically Ianto's day off. Pencilled in for over four months and yeah, OK he had told Ianto only yesterday that everything was fine but really … what was up with this cold shoulder. He knew he would make it up to him, he always did. In fact if Ianto had bothered to double check his packing like he usually did then he would have seen what the airport security officer had blushed at as the bag went through the x-ray machine.
Gwen leaned between the seats and plucked at Jack's sleeve and whispered in her usual hiss that something was wrong with Ianto. The jerk of Ianto's elbow told him that not only had he heard her too, but it was only making him worse.
"Ianto is fine Gwen, please sit back in your seat and read the dossier yeah?" Jack smiled and decided to just bluff his way through the day. Yeah, fake it till you make it!
As the plane took a sharp dive and turbulence made itself known Ianto finally made a noise. It was a snort. OK, at least it's a start right?
Jack reached over and laced his fingers with Ianto's and squeezed softly. Ianto's answer was to snatch his hand back like Jack had scratched his arse with it and look at the palm with disgust.
"I'm not contaminated ya know" Jack growled as he started to lose his temper with the display.
"No, but your sweaty palms don't really need the heat of mine to egg them on sir!" Ianto spat before returning his attention to his dossier that Jack knew he had already looked at before they left.
Tosh made a hiccupping noise as they dipped again and Ianto looked across the aisle at her and frowned at Owen who was oblivious to his team-mate's distress. He reached between the seats and Tosh reached for his hand gratefully.
"Sorry Ianto, I'm just so …" she sighed as Ianto rubbed her knuckles with his thumb.
Tosh frowned as she remembered Ianto's day off and her eyes grew wide with horror.
"Oh my God, Ianto! It's the fourth today, isn't it …" she gasped.
"Yeah, yeah. It is Tosh. Nothing can be done about it. I'll just have to reschedule once I can get the bloody appointment book out of luggage." Ianto smiled wanly.
"But I thought it was ..." Tosh began but Ianto stopped her.
"What we think doesn't matter Tosh. What we want or need is secondary to the bloody job. We belong to Torchwood and should really have a bloody barcode on the back of our necks for easier inventory!" Ianto snarled before releasing her hand and settling back into his seat.
Jack sat there in shock at Ianto's outburst but Owen, ever the diplomat couldn't help himself.
"Bugger me, what coloured stick is up his arse now!" Owen grouched as he flicked a peanut over the seat at Martha up the front who looked up at the ceiling like someone looking to the sky for rain.
"Not that it's any of your business fuck-face but today is my day off. A day I had booked months ago and was promised again yesterday was still mine so now I have to wait until we land, struggle through my luggage for my appointment book to find another window then ring the fucking hospital to see if they are going to let me reschedule, listen to my doctor rant because this is the third time I've …" Ianto stopped and his eyes grew wide as his brain caught up to his mouth and he abruptly unbuckled his seatbelt and lurched into the aisle.
Jack caught him before he made the toilet and slammed him against to door. Owen was catching up fast so with his usual Captain Flair he spun them both around the door and locked it.
"Yan? Something doing?" Jack stared into Ianto's face.
"Leave me alone Jack, you win as always so just fucking bask in your superiority and bugger off!" Ianto shoved him but Jack bounced straight back.
"Don't lie to me Ianto, we agreed no more secrets!" Jack frowned.
"I have an appointment with my specialist today about my skin grafts OK? I need some relief with the burn on my shoulder and he was going to see if we could … well, doesn't matter now. I've been surviving with the tight skin pulling since the barrens split it at the collarbone and I've been rescheduling again and again so what's another few months eh?" Ianto shrugged and stared at a point above Jack's ear.
Jack stood in shock. His burns? Ianto never spoke about his scars from that day, or those added since and he hated Jack touching them. He didn't realise they were annoying Ianto as he always moved with such grace.
"Why didn't you say" Jack whispered.
"Not your business" Ianto shrugged, still examining the wall behind Jack's ear.
"Ianto … I'm … shit. I'm a big steaming turd yeah?" Jack wheedled.
Ianto sighed and finally focused on Jack before motioning at the door that was starting to buckle although the mental image of Owen repeatedly bouncing off it did bring a faint smile to his face.
Owen fell in as Jack opened the door and his hands scrabbled at Ianto for balance. With a grimace Ianto righted him and sighed as the shouting match began.
"OI!" he finally roared and even Martha turned in her seat as the whole private plane realised there was a problem down the back.
Ianto found himself stripped and felt up by not one but three doctors as Martha's companion turned out to be a trauma surgeon. He closed his eyes to shut out the humiliation as they touched where he never wanted to be touched and he shuddered each time fingers ran down his shoulder blade to rest in the small of his back.
Owen was silent for a change and Ianto thanks the Gods for small mercies there as Martha ran her fingertips over the edge of the burn again.
"God, this must have hurt. Here, see this spot? What is that? Looks like a button maybe?" she touched a spot against his chest and his breath hitched.
"Lisa's headgear was screwed on, that's where her head rested as I dragged her free from the flames" he said tonelessly.
"Lisa?" Martha frowned.
"My girlfriend, well fiancé really. Never did find the ring, never thought to pick her hands up off the floor as I …" Ianto cleared his throat and locked his gaze with Martha. "Canary Warf killed her but I didn't know that then, I thought I could save her. Save us. Without her I thought I was lost."
Martha made a small noise and gripped his forearm below the scar that sat there and squeezed encouragement.
"Adie was your cousin wasn't she. She talked about her cousin who was training to be a doctor. Lisa and her shared clothes sometimes. Both tall gazelles with skin that …" Ianto looked down.
"God Ianto, you wear those suits and move with such style I never thought about it … oh Ianto. You are so brave" Owen said quietly behind him.
Ianto stared at Owen. He knew about the scars. He saw them. Stitched some himself.
"Don't look at me like that. You never let me see all of them together. Just a hip or an arm. Shit, this one looks like it goes down your hip" Owen reached for Ianto's trousers and Jack finally spoke.
"Ianto is not a bloody specimen Owen. He's … well he's beautiful. Inside and out" Jack said as he took Ianto's hand. "He's mine. Mine and I could search a thousand years and not find another like him."
"Thousand years? You won't even remember me!" Ianto snorted.
"Not that old argument Yan!" Jack smiled at their old joke.
Everyone grew quiet as Ianto leaned into Jack's kiss and Jack's hands traced the scar on his lower back from a weevil attack.
"Remember this one? You fell off the bed when I touched you while it was still sore. I was so sorry that I leapt out to help you and stubbed my toe on my boots like you warned me I would?" Jack whispered.
"And this one?" Jack's hand moved up to the back of Ianto's neck. "That Hoix threw the broken bottle at you and I didn't pull you out of the way in time? You called him a right bottler."
"How about this one?" Jack's hand settled over Ianto's heart. "I broke that too, didn't I?"
Ianto smiled and sighed as he settles into Jack's embrace.
"Plonkers" Owen snorted as he waved his arms to empty the room.
With a last look over his shoulder in time to see Jack's had slide where his couldn't he couldn't help but smile at two people he loved most in the world … even if they were both bloody twats!