Title: Jack and Ianto's Summer Vacation
Summary: Things don't always go as planned. Poor Jack. Poor Ianto.
Rating: PG
Warning: Slash implied (Jack/Ianto)
Author notes: Written for the "Torchwood Summer Vacation" contest at Torchwood 03 on y!gallery. Big thanks to kindar for cleaning up the grammar-- any mistakes remaining are entirely my own fault.
Disclaimer: Torchwood is the property of BBC Enterprises. This story was written for entertainment purposes only.

JACK AND IANTO'S SUMMER VACATION

MONDAY

"Can I have everyone's attention," Jack said as he stepped out of his office clapping his hands together. "I have an announcement to make!"

"Oh, this can't be good," Owen muttered as he leaned back in his chair to look at Jack, a frown on his face.

Gwen and Toshiko glanced up as Jack announced, "Out of the goodness of my heart, you're all getting a week's paid vacation-- starting… now."

There was stunned silence, making the ever-present click and whirl of the machinery scattered through the Hub, and the scrape of Myfanwy shifting around in her den, two stories up, sound unusually loud.

Finally, Owen broke the silence. "You're kidding."

Jack looked surprised. "What, you don't want a week off?"

Toshiko shook her head. "Well, yes," she said, "we do but…" She paused, a slight frown creasing her smooth features, before adding, "all of us at the same time?"

Jack smiled; which, Ianto was the first to admit, wasn't always a good sign. "World's not going to come to an end if we close shop for a week," Jack said.

"You sure about that?" Owen said dubiously.

"Pretty sure, yeah."

Gwen leaned back against a desk. "You just got back from wherever it is you disappeared to," she said, crossing her arms as she gave Jack a shrewd, questioning look. "What aren't you telling us?"

Ianto suddenly understood what the term "smoldering gaze" meant as Jack turned his attention to him. Ianto felt his pulse speeding up at the sight of that hungry look and said, without looking away from Jack, "That you may not want to hear what's going to be happening here this week?"

He could see, out of the corner of his eyes, Toshiko and Gwen looking back and forth between him and Jack, and then suddenly Toshiko was in motion, a slight blush on her face as she grabbed her laptop and her carryall.

"I'll be visiting family if you need me," she said quickly as she made her get-away.

Gwen was waving her hands in the air, refusing to make eye contact with anyone. "I'll be…" she sputtered as she grabbed her jacket and slipped past Ianto. "You'll know where I'll be."

Jack frowned and shifted his gaze to Owen, who was still leaning back in his chair, only now with a smug smirk on his face.

Jack crossed his arms over his chest. "Owen?" he growled.

The smirk grew a little wider as Owen raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Out."

They stared at each other then Owen rolled his eyes. "Fine," his said, grabbing his things, "I'll see you Monday."

Waiting until the door to the Hub slid shut behind Owen, Jack closed the distance separating the two of them, caught Ianto's head firmly between his hands, and pulled him in for a long, hard and thorough kiss.

When Jack paused a moment so that they could breathe, Ianto felt the need to ask, "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

Jack shrugged. "Hey, I haven't had a vacation in," he frowned, then continued, "well, actually I don't remember the last time I had a vacation. So, since I'm the boss, I say its vacation time." A smirk suddenly appeared. "That, and there are a few rooms in here I haven't done it in yet. Time I got around to fixing that little problem."

"Yes, I can see where you would view that as a problem," Ianto said.

TUESDAY

Beep

"Just ignore it."

Beep

"Jack…"

"Just…"

Beep beep beep beep beep beep beep…

"I don't think we can ignore that."

"Damn it!"

WEDNESDAY

Jack stormed into the Hub, muttering darkly to himself. He shed slime covered articles of clothing as he marched to the showers.

Ianto slowly followed in his wake, picking up the clothing as he waited for an offer from Jack to join him in the shower. The offer never came, Jack just kept muttering as he disappeared into the bathroom. Ianto decided his best course of action was to start a pot of coffee.

And maybe spike it with something from the liquor cabinet.

THURSDAY

"So, what was the real reason you let everyone have a bit of a summer vacation?" Ianto asked as he handed Jack a mug of coffee.

"They've been working hard. They deserved it." Jack took a sip of his coffee, staring out of the rain splattered window of the SUV, and then asked quietly, "Wishing you had taken yours somewhere else?"

"No. I would still be sitting here with you during my vacation."

Ianto caught, out of the corner of his eye, Jack smiling one of his rare, gentle smiles that left him looking surprisingly young and unguarded; and then Jack ducked his head and turned away to gaze out the driver's side window.

Ianto smiled.

FRIDAY

Ianto looked up from the brochures he was handing to the couple in front of him when the front door to the tourist information office flew open. Jack marched in, drenched from head to toes in what was apparently seawater, judging by the smell, and was holding by the neck what appeared to be a very pissed off miniature sea serpent.

Ianto opened his mouth to say something as he pressed the button to open the door to the Hub; but Jack's angry "Not a word" kept him from speaking.

Waiting until Jack was gone, Ianto turned back to the couple, who were staring open-mouthed at the now closed door, and said calmly, "You may wish to avoid the area around the Barrage today. Enjoy your stay in Cardiff."

SATURDAY

"That was probably not the wisest move to make," Ianto said as he carefully wiped away some blood and picked out the little shards of glass still sticking out of Jack's back.

"Well, how was I supposed to know something that looked like a kid's teddy bear was going to toss me out a second story window?" Jack groused.

"You were calling its mother names."

"Shut up Ianto."

"Yes, sir."

SUNDAY

Ianto made sure to forget everything that happened on Sunday.

MONDAY MORNING

"What happened to you two?" Gwen exclaimed as she, Owen, and Toshiko stepped into the Hub.

"Change of plans," Jack said as he gave up trying to rub the stains out of his second shirt of the day and tossed the towel at the table next to him.

Owen threw his hands up in exasperation. "Oh, don't tell me you two need another week?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," Jack snapped. "You're all staying here and we're leaving. Gwen, you get to man the front desk." Grabbing his jacket, Jack stormed past his team and shouted, "Ianto!"

As he hurried past the group, Ianto was not surprised by the look that passed between Gwen and Owen-- and by their sudden dive for one of the computers to pull up the internal CCTV recordings of the last week.

Ianto was glad he remembered to erase those Sunday.

MONDAY NIGHT

Beep

"Jack."

Beep.

"Ignore it."

Beep

"I don't think…"

"Ianto…"

Beep beep beep be…Crack!

"Sorry, my mistake."

"Good boy."