Author's Note: Sorry this chapter is so short, but I thought it would make more sense to write the story in scenes, and this is a short but kind of important scene. The rest will be longer. Chapter 3 will be out tomorrow or Thursday, depending on how may reviews this gets.

2/6

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Jack returned to the Hub that morning after spending the rest of the night standing on a rooftop. He dreaded seeing Ianto again, sure that the other man would have something to say about the vicious words Jack had thrown at him the night before. He peeked in his bunker, somewhat relieved to find Ianto gone, though he hadn't expected the younger man to still be there.

Jack tidied his room and his office, more for lack of anything to do than an actual quest for cleanliness. He worked through some of the reports on his desk, forcing himself to concentrate through the remaining hours before his Welshman would return to work. Part of him acknowledged that he was doing reports Ianto had wanted him to do recently, and that Ianto had planned to clean his office and basement-like room later that day, but he was too busy adamantly not thinking about Ianto to give it any thought.

When seven thirty rolled around, Jack was so intent on his paperwork he didn't even turn his head. If his monitor happened to be turned to the CCTV camera that covered the entrance to the Hub, it was a coincidence. Ianto didn't look toward Jack's office before he headed to the kitchen area to start the morning's coffee. When he finally heard the footsteps coming toward his office, Jack's straight-backed pose stiffened even more.

The usual three raps sounded on the door, despite the fact that it was open and Jack was very obviously not paying any attention whatsoever to his work. Ianto came in and set the mug on Jack's desk, then began to leave.

"Ianto?" Jack said quietly. The younger man turned back and answered with an expression as blank and polite as his voice. "Yes sir?"

Jack closed his eyes tightly for a moment, recognizing the empty smile Ianto hid behind as the same used before Lisa and given to pedantic UNIT bureaucrats and Gwen at her most annoying. "I'm sorry," he said earnestly, willing Ianto to see the strength of his regret in his eyes.

Ianto didn't move for a long moment. "Was there anything else, sir?"

Jack stood up, moving toward his lover. "Ianto, I really am sorry. I don't know why I said those things last night. You know I-" He stopped suddenly, choked on his own words, frantically casting his mind around. "I care about you, and I would never purposefully do anything to hurt you."

There was a tense moment where Ianto's expression didn't move an inch, and Jack really didn't want to think about what sort of pleading face he was making. Then the sound of the cogwheel and its accompanying alarm broke the silence. There eyes remained locked for a beat, before Ianto turned and walked casually out of the office.

Ianto greeted Gwen amicably and continued toward the coffeemaker. Jack stood in the doorway watching his lover walk away and felt a horrible clenching in his stomach.