The sound of piano music filled the air, light and cheery and full of Christmas joy. Strings of lights were strung out all over the HUB, thanks to Gwen and Tosh, and there was a small decorated tree on one of the workstations. There were only a few decorations on it, but it still looked nice. 16 presents were wrapped and stacked into four different piles, all based on who they were going too.

Laughed floated through the HUB from the conference room, where four of the five Torchwood members were sitting. There was one who was obviously missing, but no-one really seemed to notice. After all, he had been gone for a while now. The smell of Chinese was strong in the air as Gwen laughed loudly at something Owen had said.

Ianto kept a small smile on his face as he ate, enjoying the company of his friends. Even though he was paying attention to what was being said, his gaze kept flickering over to Jack's chair, which had been empty for the last two months.

UNIT was forcing the Captain to attend a long series of meetings that he was not going to be able to get out of. If he tried, the HUB would lose funding from the Queen, so Ianto had to force the immortal to go. He didn't want to let him go alone, but he knew it would probably be for the best. Jack would actually have to focus on the meeting without someone there to distract him. But he did wish he would just return already. The immortal Captain wasn't scheduled to return for another month or so still, so Ianto was just going to have to wait. He knew he was just going to have to be patient, so he'd wait without any complaint.

He didn't want to spend the holidays alone. Sure, he was going to be going to Rhiannon's for dinner, but he wasn't going to be staying for long. Mica had come down with the flu and his sister didn't want to risk him getting sick by being around her for too long. He had assured her that he wouldn't mind if he did get sick, seeing as how he wanted to spend time with them and wanting to make sure that she was going to be okay. But she just wouldn't listen to his assurances and he knew she was going to more than likely usher him out the door as soon as he was done eating.

Ianto snapped out of his musings at the sound of Tosh's unusually loud laughter. It must have been something Owen was talking about. He was going to miss spending time with his best friend. She was going to be flying out to Japan once they all left for the night to spend time with her family. She really only gets to see them once a year, so he was going to be, and is, happy for her.

His attention drifted over to Gwen, who was sitting across from Tosh. She had a large smile on her face, the gap in her teeth on full display. It was such a sweet smile that always seemed to make anyone relax once they caught sight of it. She might not be the greatest of a friend to him, but she was always there when he needed someone to talk to and Tosh was unavailable. He wouldn't have minded spending some time with her over their break, but Gwen was going up to the Northern part of Wales to visit with some family with Rhys. She wasn't planning on returning until after the New Year. It was great for her that she was going to be spending so much uninterrupted time with her husband. The guy really did deserve it after everything put his and Gwen's relationship through.

Ianto's attention finally drifted over to Owen, who was sitting directly across from him. Despite how horrible they acted towards each other, there were actually great friends. The medic had invited him out for drinks tonight. He would have agreed, but Owen had a friend form college flying over from America and he was going to be picking him up from the airport tonight. He was actually going to be taking Tosh out as well so that she'd be able to catch her flight on time. Ianto hoped that this was a sign that the other man was finally taking interest in the quiet techie.

So it looked like he was going to be spending this evening alone. He honestly didn't mind. He figured he could finally have a nice, long, relaxing bath and pour himself a glass of wine. He could put some music on and finally take a well needed break.

-TW-

When everyone was done eating, Ianto cleaned up what few dishes there were. It wouldn't be smart to leave them there since none of them planned on returning until after the New Year. The Rift was actually going to be quiet this year, or at least, it was supposed to. If not, Owen and Ianto were both staying in town, just in case. They were all hoping for it to remain silent so that they can make the most of their time while they can.

They all said their goodbyes after all the computers were put into sleep mood, gathered their assigned gifts, and headed out. Ianto paused as he was locking up the Tourist Office. He was going to miss coming in every day, but he really did need the time off. Jack would have ordered him to stay away until the holidays were up… At least, he would if he was here.

A small smile formed on his face at the thought of his immortal lover. As he headed to his own car, he couldn't help but wonder at how aggravated UNIT must be by now. He knew that he was going to have to smooth things over with them once Jack returns, but he was used to it by now. It shouldn't take more than an hour to get everything settled. But now wasn't really the time to be worrying about it. All he wanted to do was going home and relax, so that was exactly what he was going to do.

Ianto listened to a random music station on the drive home. It wouldn't have really mattered which one he chose. Every station was playing happy and cheerful Christmas music, seeing as how it was Christmas Eve.

He pulled into the parking garage to his apartment complex, being sure to lock the car behind him. There was no way he was going to risk someone stealing it. It wasn't that he thought someone was actually going to pick his car to steal, because there was always that possibility, but because he would rather be safe than sorry. He hasn't even had this car for very long. Jack wrecked the last one while going out on a Weevil hunt, and the one before that was ruined by John last Christmas. He just wanted this one to last for more than a year.

He started up the stairs, being sure to grab the gifts from the others. The stupid lift was busted again so it was times like this that he hated living on the 4th floor. Jack had tried to talk him into moving somewhere else, but Ianto honestly liked where he lived… Except for the lift. His apartment had a good view of the bay and was close enough to the HUB that he'd be able to talk to work on nice days. The neighbors were nice and none of them were too nosy. That was always a plus. Plus rent was a decent amount, so he couldn't find anything wrong with it.

He greeted random neighbors who were out in the hall chatting to one another. Why they were out this late, he had no idea, but he wasn't going to pry. What they do in their own time is their own business. He unlocked his door and slipped into the dark flat, kicking his shoes off without turning on the lights. He walked blindly to the kitchen, flipping the switch before setting the gifts down on the counter, along with his keys. He pulled out a kettle to boil some water for tea, filling it up and setting it on the stove. Normally he would be getting coffee, but he figured it was too late to be drinking any. If he did, he wouldn't be able to sleep for hours. He wasn't completely sure that he'd be able to anyways, but he didn't want to do anything to risk it.

While the water was boiling, Ianto went to change out of his suit. It really did start to get uncomfortable after working for 18 hours. He pulled on a pair of comfortable sweats and an old t-shirt before setting his cell on the bedside table. He gathered his dirty clothes and dumped them in the laundry basket. He hated leaving them on the floor. It drove him crazy when Jack did it, but thankfully the Captain finally seemed to be learning not to do that. Threatening him with decaf also helped.

He headed back into the kitchen at the sound of the kettle whistling. He poured the hot water into a mug before dropping a tea packet in. He went into the living room, eagerly taking a seat on the couch. His feet were starting to ache and he was more than relieved to rest them.

Just as he was settling against the couch, he could hear his phone going off in the other room, signaling that he had a text. He groaned, forcing himself to stand. A part of him wanted to ignore it, but it could be from Jack and he didn't want to ignore him. So he set his mug on the coffee table, heading to his room and flipping open his phone. Sure enough, there was a text from Jack. He couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at what it said.

Merry Christmas Ianto~

I have something coming for you by delivery. It should be getting there at midnight, so could you answer the door at the knock?

Jxx

Ianto sighed, sending by an affirmative and wishing Jack a merry Christmas as well. He glanced towards the clock and saw it was just about midnight, so he headed back into the main part of the house. He wondered if he should just sit back down, but decided against it. He went back into the living room, grabbed his mug of quickly cooling tea and drained it quickly. He headed back into the kitchen to wash it quickly.

Just as he was drying his hands, he heard the knock at the door. He sighed, running a hand through his hair as he went to go answer. What could Jack have gotten for him that had to be delivered so late? He hesitated just by the door, not sure he really wanted to know what it was. But he didn't see any harm in it, so he pulled the door open.

Before he could even blink, he felt soft lips pressing against his own and the feeling sent his heart-rate up some. Only one person has been able to make him feel like that. That person was Jack. Jack was back. A small smile formed on Ianto's face and he took a moment to return the kiss before taking a step back. An eyebrow raised in surprise though when he saw Jack.

The Captain was still dressed in his normal attire, blue shirt, braces, but the thing that caught Ianto's attention was that there was a ribbon wrapped around Jack's head, a bow tied at the temple. He blinked as the immortal ran a hand across his cheek in a gentle caress.

"You get it? I'm your present." Jack said, smiling lightly. "I snuck away from my hotel room so that I can spend the night with you. After all, this would be our first Christmas together as an official couple and I didn't like the thought of spending it away from you." He shifted nervously from foot to foot, relaxing immediately when he saw the smile on Ianto's face. The Captain grinned before a mischievous look cross his face. "So… Are you going to unwrap me?"

Ianto laughed, grabbing onto the front of Jack's shirt, pulling him into the apartment, sliding the lock closed behind them.

-TW-

There you go~ To celebrate the Christmas season, I wanted to write a cute little oneshot Janto. I really hope you all enjoyed it. If so, let me know. Even if you hate it, I want to know. Any critique in my writing, I would appreciate so that I'll be able to be a better writer.

For those of you who are waiting for my Jack story, I'm going to be getting started on it after Christmas break. I'm not going to have any time before then, so please be patient with me!

Merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates it and Happy Holidays to those who don't~ I hope you all have a wonderful season!