The Party

(Ianto's Point of View)

I guess you could say it started last October. I was in my second year of high school, which would have made me a sophomore. My friend Toshiko had recently acquired a new boyfriend, and he just so happened to host a famous yearly Halloween party. I'm serious; this party was legendary. Our high school was full of myths and tales about this party. It was hosted by a college student, a graduate from our very own school, who was also Tosh's new boy-toy (she was a senior, and after all, she needed to get acquainted with the college pickings).

"I don't know, Tosh, I have a lot of homework." I said.

"Please, Ianto? I don't want to show up alone." Tosh asked. "We can leave after an hour if you want."

After a moment, I agreed. "Okay, I'll go with you. Who knows what could happen, right?"

"Exactly!" Tosh exclaimed. "Who knows? You might even meet a boy you like. Wink wink!"

Later that night, Tosh picked me up in her mom's sleek convertible. She used the argument of wanting to show up in fashion to the party, and it was all I could do to go along. She parked behind the house in the only available parking spot for blocks, upset that no one would notice her fashionable entrance. We walked to the door of the house that held the party, already passing a few partygoers who decided to bring the party outside. Nearly as soon as we entered the house, a man came up to great us.

"Owen!" Tosh exclaimed when she saw him.

"Babycakes! I'm so glad you're here." Owen embraced Tosh, ending the hug with a quick but meaningful kiss. She was smiling, a wide, ear-to-ear kind of smile. I think Owen really made her happy.

Tosh turned to face me. "Ianto, this is Owen. Owen this is Ianto." We greeted each other and shook hands.

After a moment Owen said, "I'm going to get us a drink. Do you want something Ianto?" Not wanting to be rude, I nodded my head and watched him as he walked away to get the drinks. After a few minutes of listening to Tosh go on about how excited she was to meet all his friends, Owen came back, somehow managing to carry three drinks. One he handed to me, I said thanks, and one he handed to Tosh.

"Do you think you'll be okay on your own for a while?" Tosh asked.

"Yeah, yeah I'll be okay. You go have fun." I told her. To this, Owen directed her toward a group of guys and a few girls, probably his group of friends. I wasn't sure what to do, so I took a sip of the drink Owen had gotten me. It was sort of a punch concoction, and I think it had been spiked with some hard liquor. I looked around. Everyone had a drink of some sort, so I figured I might as well and drank some more.

I stood in the middle of the room for a few moments before deciding it would be better to move over to the wall. When my drink was about half empty, I noticed a man striding past me. Striding with so much confidence, I have to admit, it was kinda sexy. I must have been staring at him because be stopped, turned towards me, and smiled right at me. He had short, ragged brown hair and sparkling blue eyes. He was wearing a blue button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and dark gray jeans that looked gorgeous on his fit body. He had to be in college; no one in high school looks that hot. After a second, he closed the already short gap between us.

"Hello." He spoke softly, but with just as much confidence as he appeared to have. He looked around and then tilted his head ever so slightly. "Are you here all alone?"

"Yeah. Uh, no. I'm here with my friend, Tosh, but she's…somewhere." I found it difficult to keep my thoughts straight, which was unusual for me. I was generally pretty composed.

"And she left you by yourself?" He asked.

"…Oh, um, she's with Owen. I, uh, don't know where they went." I managed to answer.

"Tosh, she's Owen's girlfriend, right?" He seemed to already know the answer so I didn't know why he was asking.

"Yeah, yes, she is. Do you know Owen? I just met him. He seems like a nice guy, like I said, I just met him, so I don't, um…" I took a gulp of my drink, ignoring the slight burn it caused in my throat.

"Mmm, yes. I've been friends with him since freshmen year. He was going through some hard stuff at the time and needed someone to talk to. He's a nice guy." He told me.

"Good, Tosh really likes him." I said. I wasn't sure what else to say, so I took another sip of my drink. A few moments of neither of us talking followed.

"I'm Jack." He finally broke the silence. He didn't extend his hand to me, but rather decided to place it against the wall so that he was leaning towards me. I didn't respond, I guess I was too stunned by the whole thing, so he spoke. "And you are?"

"Jones. I mean, Ianto. Ianto Jones." I was baffled as to why my mouth wouldn't put the words together exactly how I meant them.

"Well, Jones, Ianto Jones, it is very nice to meet you." He spoke slowly, in very seductive fashion. "I must apologize for leaving so soon after making your acquaintance, but there is something I must do that simply cannot wait." He grinned and took his hand off the wall. Still grinning, he turned and walked to a girl who was already talking to a group of people. He tapped her on the shoulder, grabbing her attention. He couldn't have said more than a few sentences, but the girl looked shocked and astonished at his words. Without saying goodbye to her friends, she put her drink down on a nearby table and walked outside. Jack didn't follow her out, but instead turned to face me, winked, and then took off in the opposite direction, leaving me on my own.