It was possible the happiest day of his life when Jack discovered he was pregnant. It had taken him so long to get to the point where he and Ianto could be together, properly, and the thought of having a child made it perfect. Of course there were still all the dangers of working for Torchwood and the fact that their beginnings had been less than ideal, but they were still here and together and that was all that mattered.
Ianto was thrilled at the news too and took it all in his stride. He was the perfect partner even during the pregnancy when Jack was in a foul mood. The morning sickness, the increasing frustration at being kept in the Hub, and the ability not to be able to move around towards the end all made Jack miserable, but Ianto always had something to make him feel better.
When their son was born he was perfect in every way. Tufts of chocolate brown hair and bright blue eyes; they couldn't have asked for anything more. They took a long time going over names but in the end they settled for Gabriel. Their little angel.
Things were tough, but they coped. Gwen was more than a little suffocating, but Ianto managed to deter her from hovering round Jack and Gabe constantly. The late nights were made easier by the fact that Jack didn't need to sleep. All in all, things were quite happy.
Tosh offered herself to them as well, but was a little more tactful than Gwen, spotting the signs of exhaustion and giving them a wide berth when they needed it. Owen didn't coo, or offer to baby sit, or even acknowledge that the Hub appeared to have turned into a day care centre. But when they really needed it, like during the pregnancy, and when they had a question about diet, Owen would always help. No matter how small the worry he would reassure them without his usual sarkiness.
Ianto wandered about the Hub, with an eight month old Gabe in his arms, watching the team as they went about their daily tasks, writing up reports, examining various bits of alien machinery that had washed through the rift, the usual.
Gwen was hovering near her desk, not really working. Ianto could tell by the way she kept shifting in her seat and glancing up at him that she was itching to hold Gave. He knew there was no reason for it, but Ianto hated it when Gwen held Gabe. There was some part of him that just didn't like other people touching his child. Sometimes he even found himself wanting to take Gabe off Jack for a cuddle. Owen wandered past tutting at him.
"What?" Ianto asked, turning to follow him to the top of the autopsy bay.
"Well the way you're holding onto the sprog for dear life I'm never gonna get a cup of coffee!" Owen rolled his eyes, but eh was smiling to show he was only teasing.
"Well as soon as his Mummy returns I'll make a fresh batch," Ianto promised, rocking Gabriel and making him giggle.
No sooner had he said that than the cog wheel door opened and Jack Harkness bounded through, opening up some CCTV on Tosh's computer screens.
"We've got reports of a group of Weevils hanging about by a warehouse down in the bay," he said. "Reckon there's a nest down there."
"Nest? As in..?" Gwen was stood next to him now.
"Yeah, they've got little Weevils in there," Jack caught Ianto's eye and grinned. "Thought it might be best to bring the family in."
"I'll fetch the Weevil spray," Gwen hurried off to collect the 'Weevil kit'.
"Owen?" Jack called, heading over to the autopsy bay. "Where's Tosh?"
"Down in the archives packing away that alien translation thing we found the other week," Owen replied. "Why?"
"We're going Weevil hunting," Jack replied. "Could you go fetch her and prepare the SUV?"
"Yeah, sure," Owen nodded.
Jack wandered back towards Ianto, kissing him lightly.
"Won't be long," he promised. Then he kissed Gabe's head. "And then I'll get to finally cuddle you!"
He held his son's hand for a moment, pulling faces to make him laugh. Gwen reappeared and waited pointedly next to him.
"Right then," Jack straightened up. "Back in a bit!"
He led Gwen out of the Hub and towards the SUV, after Owen and Tosh who had disappeared out a few moments earlier.
Ianto was left alone in the silent Hub, holding his son. He sighed slightly. Well, maybe not everything was perfect. Sometimes it took several days of rushing about before they finally got some quality time together, the three of them.
"I think I should put you down for a nap," Ianto said quietly to Gabe who just gurgled in response.
They had expanded Jack's back room in the Hub and converted it into a nursery several months before Gabriel was born. It was almost like having a flat below the secret HQ. Still, at least they could be on call this way.
Ianto lay Gabriel down in his cot, whispering to him until he fell asleep, gently tucking the soft blue blanket around him. Ianto kissed Gabe's head, wandering out quietly, making sure he had the baby monitor with him.
If the team were going to be out collecting Weevils he might as well try and do a bit of cleaning. The Hub hadn't been done properly in a while. It was always so much harder to find the time now.
He still had his kit thought, and after a quick rummage through the draws and cupboards in the reception area, he had gloves, bleach and just about every cleaning product on the market.
Ianto took his time, making sure that he covered everything, from dusting and polishing, to hovering, all the time keeping the baby monitor within ear shot.
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Jack drove the team down to the docks and they quickly spread out. They were under orders not to try and tackle any female Weevils, though, as Owen unhelpfully pointed out, they didn't know how to distinguish between male and female from a distance. Jack had also told them under no circumstances were they to disturb the next or any baby Weevils they might come across.
In the end, it was a lot easier than they thought. Jack rounded up some of the bigger Weevils and once they were safely sedated and tucked into the back of the van, fetching the litter was a much easier task.
All in all Jack felt it was a very good team effort and they were back at the Hub less than three hours later. Unsurprisingly they found Ianto cleaning and after much negotiating had to put down newspaper before they led the Weevils in and down to the cells.
"You're so OCD," Jack rolled his eyes smiling.
"Uhh, excuse me!" Ianto nudged him. "I spent hours cleaning that floor! You're not dragging dirt through now!"
"Alright, sorry," Jack kissed him. "Where's Gabe?"
"I put him down for a nap," Ianto replied glancing at his watch. "Though, he'll need feeding soon."
Jack nodded.
"Maybe once the team have finished setting up the new Weevil nest and have filed their reports I could send them home early?" He raised his eyebrows at Ianto suggestively. "We haven't had much time together recently."
"Sounds tempting," Ianto replied. "I'll just go check on Gabe; if we're lucky he might sleep long enough for us to…"
He trailed off grinning at Jack.
"Ooh, Ianto Jones!" Jack laughed. "Go on, I'll get rid of the team."
Ianto chuckled heading down to the back room to check on their son.
Jack meanwhile wandered down to the cells and supervised the team with their Weevil nest. All the Weevils they'd caught seemed pretty happy to settle down once they were with the litter. It had taken a bit of rearranging, but they'd freed up a cell big enough to contain all of them.
"Right you lot," Jack said clapping his hands together once they'd finished. "You can type up reports tomorrow. I think you all deserve a rest. I will see you in the morning."
"Is that your subtle way of trying to get rid of us?" Owen asked as he packed up his med kit. One of the Weevils had taken a large chunk of flesh out of his hand.
"Yes it is," Jack nodded. "Anyone want to complain?"
The team quickly packed up and began heading back to the main part of the Hub. Jack followed them, watching as they sorted out any personal belongings they had with them.
"I've just got to put this away," Owen said, holding up his bag. "And then I'll be out of your hair."
"Ok," Jack nodded, heading towards his office and disappearing down into he back room. "Owen's just packing up."
Ianto nodded mutely.
"What's wrong?" Jack asked suddenly taking in the shivering form of his partner. Ianto's face was streaked with tears. "Ianto, you're scaring me."
Ianto was cradling Gabe in his arms. It didn't take Jack long to put two and two together, but his mind was refusing to believe it.
"Ianto," Jack rushed forward. Ianto shrank back slightly as though fearing Jack was going to hit him.
Jack stood in front of him, trying to control his suddenly hammering heart. He reached out, almost not daring to touch Gabe. The moment his fingers connected with his son's tiny body he knew. Jack knew that his son wasn't there anymore.
"He's…" Ianto looked at him desperately, unable to say it. "Where's he gone Jack?"