Author Note: Takes place during Utopia and after End of Days. Written for day three of redismycolour.
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Jack ran after the TARDIS as if his life depended on it. It had been a long time since he had felt such need and desperation, and it almost hurt his chest. He had waited so long. A century had turned twice, but still Jack had had to wait. He couldn't join up with the Doctor when his old, mortal self was travelling with him. When he had been in training to become a Time Agent, he had learned all about paradoxes, and he knew better than to create one. But he knew for a fact that he had never been with the Doctor in 2007, and so when his "Doctor-Detector" started going off, Jack knew it was time to take off. He felt kind of bad leaving his team, but he knew that the Doctor could always bring him back to when he left, more or less, so he didn't worry too much.
"DOCTOOOOOOOOOR!" Jack yelled as he ran toward the blue box. He knew that the Time Lord could tell he was coming, and it hurt him that the TARDIS started disappearing right before him. It reminded him far too much of the last time he had seen the Doctor. He wasn't going to let him get away this time. He launched himself at the TARDIS and gripped the side. What was the worst it could do to him? Kill him?
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The Doctor did feel bad about leaving Jack. Really, he did. But he couldn't help it. As he would later tell the man himself, it was instinct. As a Time Lord, his body felt an involuntary urge to run away from Jack. He was just wrong. Nothing was meant to last forever. Everything grew old and died. Even Time Lords had a limited number of regenerations. But Jack was never ending. Ubiquitous. And with the Doctor's ability to see, think, and feel time, being near something that didn't shift constantly like the rest of the universe made his stomach clench and his mind reel. He tried to find another, better word for it, but the only thing that ever came to mind was wrong.
But once he saw that unlike the last time he had seen the captain, he would not be able to get rid of Jack, the Doctor began to really pay attention to him instead of trying to ignore and avoid him. And once he did, he saw how much his leaving had really hurt Jack. That hadn't been his intention. He just couldn't help it. His urge to run had been overwhelming. But he saw what his absence, in addition to Jack's inordinately long life, had done to the impossible man. The Jack that the Doctor had met a lifetime ago had been playful and rash. The new Jack still possessed these qualities, but they were hindered by an element of melancholy and wisdom that the Doctor had never seen before. He had seen these qualities in fellow Time Lords, back when he had had some, and he knew that he had them as well. It was the mark of someone who had lived too long and seen too much.
When he learned from Jack how long he had been waiting, he felt sorry. He didn't want to cause Jack pain. He still liked the man. Loved him in a way, even, he supposed. His absence from Jack had been like a long winter to the undying man. And given the Doctor's frosty disposition toward him, he supposed that the metaphorical spring was still chilly.
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Ianto sat in the Hub, in Jack's office. No one was in yet, it was still early. Ever since Jack had disappeared, he had started coming in early, hoping that if Jack had come back during the night, he'd be the first to greet him. He missed his captain. Jack and Ianto hadn't been a couple. They'd slept together a few times, mainly for comfort and fun. But Ianto also couldn't deny that he'd started to develop feelings for his boss. Without the man in his life, everything felt just a little bit dimmer. A little bit more empty. Things felt bare. So even though Gwen took over and Owen scoffed behind his back, Ianto would wait for his captain.