A/N: Hi all! Another update, hopefully to your liking! Thought that you needed a break from the hurt/comfort, so here is some lighthearted fluff, which is of course a mixture of romance, humour and angst. Spoilers for 2x01 "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang", 2x02 "Sleeper", 2x05 "Adam", 2x09 "Something Borrowed" and 2x11 "Adrift".
Also, thought I might mention here: for those of you who are familiar with my other fic, "Need You Now", you might be interested in watching a fanvid made by the wonderfully talented Angelustatt to accompany it! You can view it here: http: / /www .youtube. com/ watch? v= 4bthhEPrSWE (just remove the spaces!) It is absolutely brilliant, you won't regret it! :)
Now, on with the story! Hope you enjoy it! :)
Five Times That Ianto Jones Withheld Sex From Jack Harkness And One Time He Didn't
I. Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang
Truthfully, Ianto didn't expect Jack to make it up to the team, for leaving them with no explanation. No goodbyes. Jack didn't really do apologies, especially if he thought he was right. But if the five-star hotel was anything to go by, Jack was actually trying.
After the rift reverted time, they had to avoid themselves. Ianto almost suggested that he could go back to his flat – because he was never there – but he held his tongue at the last moment. Somehow, it seemed like admitting defeat, if he told Jack that he'd slept at the hub every single night while he was gone. Admitting that he cared.
And he was doing his utmost to not care. Of course, that had all gone down the drain when Jack asked Ianto out to dinner, a movie... a date.
Jack didn't do dates either.
Ianto was sitting on the edge of the hotel bed, the others having retired to their respective rooms a while ago. He could hear the ticking of a clock. See the sliver of moonlight creeping through a gap in the curtains. The lights were off.
And – a quiet knock on the door. Ianto frowned. It couldn't be...
Another knock. Just as quiet as the one before.
Ianto unfolded himself and walked to the door, and after a quick moment of hesitation, pulled the door open.
Bloody hell, it was.
Jack was standing there, trademark coat hanging from his body. Nobody else would notice, but Ianto knew it was hiding a slight slump of his shoulders.
"May I come in, please?"
His tone was almost timid – foreign in Jack's voice, and it took Ianto a few seconds to react. He swallowed, not helping his dry throat, and inclined his head, moved back to let Jack brush past him into the dark room. Jack didn't comment on the lack of lights, nor did he turn them on. He just removed his coat, and held it limply in his hands.
It made Ianto think of a little boy who had lost his parents.
Ianto took the coat from Jack without speaking, and laid it on the hotel desk. Held the familiar fabric for a moment too long. Together, they took up Ianto's previous seat on the edge of the bed, with an inch of air between them. An inch too much.
"I don't expect anything," Jack said softly. The quiet twisted his words, and made them almost harsh – or maybe that was just Ianto's ears. He sunk his teeth firmly into his bottom lip, to stop it trembling. "I just wanted to say... that I'm sorry for leaving you."
Ianto couldn't do anything but nod. He chanced a sideways look at Jack – he looked like he desperately wanted to reach out to Ianto, but was unsure whether he should – or perhaps he was unsure how to.
"I..." Ianto's voice cracked into a whisper, and he bowed his head. God, this whole thing, with Jack... he should be mad at Jack. But all he could feel was pure relief that he'd come back. And disbelief – he needed to know this was real.
"I..." Ianto tried again. "I'd like for you to stay, tonight, if... if you want. I just..." I just want to know that you're really here. "Not to do anything, not... not sex," Ianto bit the word out. "Just... sleep."
Not sex. Too soon.
Jack nodded now, surprisingly silent. They undressed without speaking, like some kind of sacred ritual. Ianto felt an inappropriate bubble of laughter inside of him, and pushed it down.
They crawled under the covers together, and Ianto could feel the heat from Jack's body, wanting so badly to lean into it, but at the same time, too stubborn and hurt to do so.
Perhaps it was a miracle that Jack suddenly pressed himself so close to Ianto that he couldn't tell where his own body ended and where Jack's began – with Jack's arms wound so tightly around Ianto that it was difficult to breathe.
Ianto firmly closed his eyes, and tried to pretend that he was sleeping.
Tried to pretend that tears weren't soaking through the pillow.
II. Sleeper
Ianto's fist clenched around the CB aerial, the duct tape hanging limply from where he'd ripped it from the SUV.
From the SUV's wing mirror.
Narrowing his eyes as he marched up the spiral staircase, Ianto was met by Tosh leaving Jack's office, no doubt speaking to him about preparing Beth. Jack was grinning casually – as if he hadn't just created hours of work for Ianto. Jack glanced up then, and froze for a split second at the sight of Ianto.
Oh yes. He knew what he'd done alright. Jack swiftly rounded back into his office, but Ianto was not letting him get away that easily. Practicing his best death glare, Ianto strode into the office after Jack.
Jack had taken refuge behind his desk, behind his chair even – hands hesitantly holding the back of it. He opened his mouth as soon as Ianto entered, but Ianto wasn't having any of it.
"What on earth possessed you to wind duct tape around the SUV's wing mirror?"
Ianto felt a small spark of satisfaction at the almost-invisible flinch that jerked Jack's body.
"If I hadn't done it, we wouldn't all be alive right now!"
Ianto had to admit, Jack's logic was hard to defeat. The SUV's wing mirror, or the whole earth's population.
Still.
Ianto began slowly circling Jack's desk, the aerial still thrust out in front of him, and Jack straightened from his defensive stance.
"Do you have any idea how difficult it is to properly remove duct tape?"
"Uh..." Jack's eyes were locked on Ianto's, a slight gleam glossing over them. "A bit of warm, soapy water would do the trick, right?"
The aerial was dangerously close to snapping in Ianto's death grip.
"No." Ianto stepped right up to Jack, so that their bodies were standing flush against each other, Ianto's flame of anger radiating through Jack. Ianto's glare pierced Jack's blue eyes – but far from invoking fear, Jack's eyes were clouded with something entirely different...
Ianto suddenly found himself being flung around against the wall behind Jack's desk – aerial knocked cleanly from his hands – and his lips being captured in a searing hot kiss. Ianto moaned quietly into Jack, hands automatically smoothing over Jack's chest – handily enough, his braces were already hanging loose – but suddenly, his brain caught up, and Ianto immediately pulled away, hands firmly on Jack's shoulders.
"I am not falling for that, Jack. You have made the wing mirror disconcertingly sticky, not to mention the paint –"
"I know what else I can make disconcertingly sticky," Jack practically purred, eyes dark with pure lust. A shot of identical lust hit Ianto's own groin, but he fixed his face firmly to conceal this. He trailed one hand down Jack's chest, and let it rest lightly on the blood staining Jack's shirt – where he'd been stabbed by the Sleeper Agent. Caressed it, ever so softly.
"I don't think you're quite up for that," Ianto smiled sweetly, and abruptly side-stepped out of Jack's hold. Jack's face fell comically, grasping in vain at the thin air that Ianto had vacated.
"I am always up for that," Jack smirked, and Ianto almost stepped closer again to wipe that smirk off his face – and more. Almost.
But no.
Jack would pay for messing up the usually perfect SUV.
"Well... as soon as I'm done cleaning the SUV," Ianto shrugged, deliberately nonchalant. Jack smiled and nodded, content – but, Ianto thought evilly, he really did have no idea how long it would take to get the wing mirror back to its normal spotless state...
III. Adam
Ohfuckohfuckohfuck.
Now, Ianto wasn't usually one to swear, but... for the first time in his life, Ianto had misplaced his diary somewhere.
Being his typical meticulous self, Ianto always kept it in the same place, somewhere that not even Jack would think to look. But.
It. Wasn't. There.
He was pretty certain that such a disaster gave him permission to swear.
As if losing two days wasn't bad enough – Ianto had to go and lose his diary too.
He had combed the whole main area of the Hub once the others had left – except Jack of course, who was in his office doing God-knows-what. But amongst the usual food wrappings and screwed up paper balls – unusually concentrated around Tosh's desk, had she gotten messier in the missing two days? – there was no diary to be found.
Bloody brilliant.
Gritting his teeth, he braced himself for the walk up to Jack's office. It was also unusual that Jack had not come to find Ianto – what if he was reading Ianto's diary? No... surely he wouldn't go that far...
Ianto swept into Jack's office, already convinced that he would storm in to find Jack smirking, nose buried deep into the pages – the pages of Ianto's heart. In fact, Ianto had already started to ask, "Did you..." but was cut short – was shocked into temporarily speechlessness.
Jack appeared to be working – examining some kind of artefact.
"Oh..." was all Ianto would come up with, and simply stared at Jack.
This surprise – and premature relief – was unfortunately short-lived.
"Found your diary."
The smirk on his face was even worse than Ianto had pictured. His heart jumped into his throat, almost made him choke on it, and he lurched forwards.
"Yep, been looking for that."
Ianto inched his hand out to take it – but the bastard held onto it, taunting him with the space between them. He swallowed nervously and grabbed it from Jack's hand. His eyes flicked up to Jack, down to his diary...
Had Jack read it?
Time to escape, as quickly but with as much dignity as he could.
Ianto should have known that Jack would never allow him to live this down.
"And for the record?"
That damned smirk oozed into Jack's tone, and Ianto froze into a halt, clutching the diary protectively to his chest. A pause, most likely to satisfy Jack's theatrics, set his heart into overdrive.
"Measuring tapes never lie."
Ianto did the only thing he could do. For the second time that night, Ianto swore.
Fuck.
Jack fucking Harkness.
Of course he had read it.
So, Jack wouldn't let him live it down. So, what? Ianto was just as skilled at punishment, and he knew just which of Jack's buttons to push...
Less than an hour later, just as Ianto knew he would, Jack came looking for Ianto in the archives. Sauntered up to him, that same smirk painted onto his face, standing behind him so closely that Ianto could feel Jack's breath on the back of his neck.
"So... I think someone needs to be taught how to convert inches into centimetres..." Jack murmured softly, fingertips ghosting down Ianto's waist to sit just above his waistband. Ianto cleverly held his breath, so as not to breathe in any of Jack's pheromones – that would be the beginning of the end of his resolve. Instead, he merely waited, knowing Jack would continue.
"I just so happen to be very skilled in that particular department..."
Turning in Jack's half-embrace, Ianto forced his face into a neutral expression, inwardly marvelling at the slight uncertainty creeping into Jack's eyes.
"I'm afraid I won't be requiring any lessons of the sort for at least a week."
His voice was so smooth that Jack didn't immediately understand his meaning. Ianto remained there long enough to enjoy the widening of Jack's eyes, and a faint tinge of horror start to spread, before deftly picking up an armful of files to put away. Conveniently, they belonged in the bottom drawer of a cabinet, giving Ianto an excuse to bend over gracefully in Jack's eye-line.
This was going to be a long week for Captain Jack Harkness.
IV. Something Borrowed
Ianto knew he probably shouldn't have drunk any alcohol, because they were technically working. But the sight of Jack and Gwen, pressed against each other in a dance, their gazes locked intently – as if they were in a world of their own...
Well, the burn of vodka made it hurt a little less to watch.
By the time they had put all the guests to bed, and cleaned the building to perfection, it was so late that it was early. Owen took Tosh home to collapse into her own bed, and Owen went home to do – whatever he did now that he didn't sleep.
So it was just Ianto and Jack.
On the drive back to the hub, Ianto persuaded Jack to drop him off at a nearby convenience store to pick up some coffee supplies – not that they were running low, but Jack wasn't to know that. Ianto just... needed to be alone for a while.
Ianto walked to the hub as slowly as he dared. The hum of alcohol within him had ebbed away to leave a quiet ache in his heart. As he arrived at the tourist office entrance, the sun was beginning to peek from the horizon, but Ianto was strangely not tired – he was overtired, past it.
He almost didn't see the petals scattered on the floor, leading into the hub from the cogwheel door. A prick stung at his eyes as he bent down and picked up a few.
Jack.
No doubt trying to be romantic – but Ianto was so far from the mood that it caused a sick churning in his stomach. Perhaps the alcohol was still having an effect after all.
Ianto put the shopping bag in the kitchenette, and decided not to delay the inevitable any longer. He climbed the spiral staircase to Jack's office, where Jack was sitting at his desk, with what looked like a rusty tin box, and some papers. Jack turned around when he heard Ianto, and dropped the papers into the box.
"I was starting to wonder if you'd fallen asleep on the sidewalk," Jack lightly scolded him, but stood up and stepped over to Ianto, arms outstretched. Ianto stood stiffly in his embrace, tears prickling at his eyes still. "I thought that if you weren't too dead on your feet, I could send you to sleep in style." Jack's voice was silky in his ear, his distinctive pheromones pulsing around Ianto, but this time, the dizziness that they caused was not related to sex.
God he felt sick.
Jack seemed to realise something wasn't completely right, and moved back slightly to look at him.
"Are... are you okay?"
Ianto blinked and noticed for the first time that Jack wasn't looking his usual bubbly self either. He appeared to be trying to hide it, but Ianto was far too good for that – there was a slash of pain in Jack's blue eyes, some kind of ancient sadness that only someone who had lived as long as Jack could truly understand.
Perhaps Jack's longing stares at Gwen hadn't been 100% about Gwen at all.
Ianto touched Jack's lips gently with his own, more tender – and though he wouldn't admit it, but more loving – than passionate, and smoothed a thumb over Jack's cheek.
"I'm fine. Just tired."
And with that, he tugged Jack down to bed – to sleep.
V. Adrift
Ianto supposed it was always going to happen sooner or later – but it didn't make the situation he was now in any easier. Seriously – could it ever be totally fine for a fellow colleague to interrupt... that?
Once Gwen had gone back downstairs – no doubt about to find the package Ianto had left on her desk – Ianto escaped back into Jack's office. Before he even had the chance to say anything, Jack's lips were back on his neck, fingers twirling his shirt buttons.
"Don't know why you bothered with these," Jack murmured between kissing a trail along Ianto's jaw-line.
"Jack..." Ianto half-heartedly pushed at Jack's chest, but couldn't resist rolling Jack's nipple through his fingers.
"I mean, really..." Jack continued, opening the top button. "It's just more work for me..."
"Jack!" Ianto said more firmly this time, and braced his hands on Jack's shoulders. "Gwen just caught us."
"You think I wasn't paying attention?" Jack cocked his head to one side, a corner of his mouth lifting, hands for now just burning holes through Ianto's shirt. Ianto took a deep breath, ignoring Jack's scent, and went on.
"Can you imagine how awkward it will be now? Every time she looks at me, she's just going to be seeing me with my hand down your –"
"So what?"
Jack's eyes were innocently wide, and Ianto sighed through an eye-roll.
"I just... would prefer it if we didn't through our sexual activities in our colleagues faces."
Jack huffed impatiently.
"Noted. And as there is nobody around now..."
"I'm going to make coffee," Ianto shook his head, and smiled slightly at the reluctant acceptance in Jack's eyes – that was the only thing to have a chance at rivalling sex in Jack's books.
"Fine, but if you take too long I'm going to get bored – and you know what happens when I get bored. Consider yourself warned..."
Later on, when both Jack and Gwen had returned from Flat Holm, Ianto found himself making more coffee. He figured that Jack would need it. He'd only seen Jack briefly since, but it was long enough to see the dark shadow cast across his face.
Ianto found Jack in his office, of course, sitting at his desk. Pretending to do paperwork, or something. Ianto set the coffee carefully down, and moved around to lean against the desk, so that his knee was touching Jack.
"Jack," Ianto said softly, when Jack still didn't acknowledge him. Jack's head snapped up, and his eyes – they were haunted, an echo of the horrors on Flat Holm. He suddenly stood up, coffee forgotten, and began hopelessly ripping at Ianto's buttons, lips desperately finding Ianto's. Ianto reached up to cup Jack's face, and gently pushed it away.
"Hey," he murmured, feeling Jack's forehead fall against his own, Jack's shuddering breath vibrating through them both. Jack's hands faltered on Ianto's chest, and found a twisting grip in the fabric of his shirt. "It's okay, you're here with me now."
"I just need to feel something other than that... that scream," Jack whispered so quietly, it was like he hadn't even spoken. But Ianto knew, anyway.
He knew.
Ianto led Jack down to his bed, where they curled up against the headboard. He gathered Jack up in his arms, and they held on tightly to each other, losing track of time – of anything else.
All that mattered was that Ianto could piece Jack back together.
And One Time He Didn't, After A Weevil Hunt...
Adrenaline pulsed through Ianto's body as he sprinted towards Jack – and the weevil. It was around ten o'clock at night, and they'd received an alert telling them of a weevil sighting in a public park. They had split up, to try and approach the weevil from either side – but, Jack had snapped a branch, or something equally as clumsy to draw the weevil's attention to him, and now was locked in a strong hold with the weevil.
Jack ducked as the weevil roared and tried to lunge at his neck, but in doing so, his grip on the weevil's arm slipped. The weevil flung his fist against Jack's face, connecting with a smack. Ianto was almost there though, and threw himself at the weevil.
The force of his sprint provided him with enough momentum to send the weevil, and himself, flying to the ground. He grappled with his pocket to get the tranquiliser out, but the weevil was making this a tad difficult; what, between the swipes at Ianto's head, and the baring of his teeth.
With a sudden surge of strength, the weevil took Ianto by surprise and rolled over on top of him. Ianto's face was pushed into the dirt, and he cried out as the weevil dug his hands into his shoulders. He tried to get up, but it was impossible – the bloody thing was immensely heavy.
Luckily, however, Jack seemed to have a sixth sense for heroic timing, and the weevil was abruptly shoved off of Ianto. Ianto scrambled to his feet to see Jack injecting the tranquiliser into the weevil, and shoving a dirty bag over its head – it was out cold.
"Did you have to be so clumsy?" Ianto asked pointedly, eyes darting over Jack's face and body to make sure the weevil hadn't hurt him too badly. Jack rose to his feet and raised an eyebrow.
"Did you have to jump on top of it and put yourself in danger?"
"It was about to sink its teeth into your neck!" Ianto argued. Jack came a few steps closer, so that they were only inches away, the moonlight dancing over his skin.
"And so, instead, you almost let the weevil sink its teeth into your neck." Jack shook his head, his voice slightly unsteady. His hand settled behind Ianto's neck, thumb caressing the skin tenderly. Ianto's breath hitched as he tasted Jack's scent in the air – god, those damned pheromones.
"Uh... yes?"
"Well I'm sorry, but I'm the only one allowed to do that," Jack murmured into Ianto's skin, sending a shiver through Ianto's body, before doing just that. Ianto let out a quiet moan – he couldn't help it – and was sure that the weevil wouldn't be so gentle, or so hot – wouldn't make Ianto hold his breath as he grabbed a fistful of Jack's shirt collar.
"Jack..." Ianto panted when Jack finally moved his lips back to brush against Ianto's own lips, allowing Ianto to let the breath out. "We're – we're in the middle of a park, in pitch black, next to a stinking weevil!"
"Your point?" Jack didn't let Ianto answer straight away, but instead kissed Ianto so deeply that Ianto really did stop breathing – at least, that must be why he wasn't getting enough oxygen to his brain, and why he felt so dizzy. In fact, somehow Jack had managed to push Ianto up against a tree trunk, the only reason that Ianto noticed being that a random piece of bark had stuck into his back. Their bodies were pressed flush together, and there was no ignoring the definite interest of Jack – and Ianto himself.
"Jack!" Ianto tried to sound stern, but it came out as more of a groan as Jack deftly worked Ianto's shirt buttons open, leaving his jacket on, and dipped his head down to lick a trail over Ianto's chest. "Fuck! Stop that right now!"
"Are you sure you really mean that?" Jack gave a throaty chuckle. A carefully placed roll of his hips made Ianto forget momentarily what he was supposed to be arguing about. Ianto now knew why he was dizzy – it was from lack of blood, not lack of oxygen, and he also knew exactly where that blood was now...
Oh god. In a public park. Pushed up against a tree. Next to a weevil!
But as Jack's fingers began creeping beneath his waistband, Ianto suddenly threw all logic out the window.
"Oh screw it," he muttered into Jack, his own hands stumbling over Jack's buttons.
"I like the way you think," Jack grinned, and captured Ianto's lips in a hot, sweet kiss.
Logic, Ianto mused, was so overrated.
-End. Hope you liked that, let me know! :) I have some other ideas for more fics, but unfortunately I won't have all that much time to write them... because I am participating in NaNoWriMo this November! But I will try and write as much as I can before that, so you have something to satisfy you during November :) Thanks!
