Ianto had spent the better part of the day in the archives. Sections looked as if they hadn't been touched since the Victorian age and the perfectionist in him couldn't stand it. So with determination, his shirt sleeves rolled up and waistcoat undone, he sorted through the boxes of the dead and forgotten of Torchwood. On a normal day Ianto would have dwelt on the idea that he would one day become one of the forgotten but today he couldn't bring himself to care that he would be lost to anyone that had known him. Life was finally taking the right path and his own morbid tendencies were not going to ruin to happiness and excitement he felt each day when he looked around him. Day's like these were too rare, too precious to waste.

Jack had kept his promise of it only being Ianto as well. The day after the confrontation between them Jack had simply disappeared and Ianto had felt a ball of ice settle in his stomach when he suspected Jack had gone back to the person who was apparently taking his place in Jack's life. But he had turned up again that night with a dark look in his blue eyes and the slight lines around his eyes seemed to deepen. Yet he seemed happy. Happy to be there in the flat with him. They had been together every night since and Jack had never been more attentive to Ianto. Normally Jack would push his luck in the hub, lacing every word with innuendo, now he simply smiled at him and thanked him with a look in his eyes that said far more than he ever had before. He came home with Ianto most nights. On the nights when Jack stayed at the hub he always invited Ianto to stay. If he declined he would eat dinner with Jack before he left.

Things were becoming something Ianto could be proud of.

The strange smell had started to dissipate and the mark on Jack's neck disappeared as did the problems between them. Jack was keeping his word and Ianto couldn't ask for more than that. For the first time in so many years Ianto was happy.

When it was nearly noontime Ianto made his way up to the main hub. Jack had been in an exceptionally good mood that morning, greeting Ianto when he came in with a deep kiss and the promise that he would come home with him that night and show him just how much he had been missed. Tosh was tapping away on her computer, intently entering the data from the recent rift spike. She smiled at him as he went past and a warm looked passed over her features before her head was down once again. He really did adore the bright young woman. Gwen was on the phone, the gap in her teeth becoming more pronounced as her smile grew. She caught Ianto's eye and mimed drinking from a mug before giving him a little nod. Well at least she acknowledged he was there, even if it was only for coffee. Cow. Owen was at his desk entering information on the now sliced up alien which he hypothesized might help speed up the healing process for them, with the exception of Jack. Screw Jack, Owen had spat, he didn't need any more help. He threw Ianto two words as he passed 'Coffee. Now'. Hmm, one word more than he normally got. Must be a good day for the petulant Doctor.

He flicked his gaze up to Jack's office hoping to catch a glimpse of the man but the blinds were closed and the lights were blazing. Jack was either having a 'private moment' as he was known to do when he knew Ianto would be up. He would often walk in to find Jack in various stages of self-pleasure, waiting till just the right moment to tip himself over the edge just to watch Iantos face. Or he really was doing work. Ianto highly doubted the latter, not after the mood Jack was in the past few weeks. Walking to his work area just below the staircase Ianto couldn't help but hum a tune to himself from sheer happiness and he was even content enough to defy fate and think 'What could possibly go wrong?'. He honestly couldn't think of anything.

He handed out the coffees, extracting various kinds of gratitude from each member of the team. Tosh- 'Thank you Ianto, just what I needed', Gwen- 'Thanks love', Owen- 'hmm'. Nothing new there then. Obviously it was too much to hope that Owen would join the rest of them in human behaviour.

Practically bounding up the stairs to Jack's office, Ianto would have breezed right in in order to give Jack a right good kissing but he was stopped by Jack's hissed voice drifting through the office door. His hand pulled back from the doorknob and his head turned to hear more clearly. Ianto would never normally engage in such ungentlemanly behaviour but it was the topic of Jack's discussion that caught him.

'I told you no! Is that too difficult to understand?….I don't care what you want, I promised him I wouldn't anymore!…he found out thanks to you, you used to be more careful about where you left your marks'

Jack. Jack was talking to someone and that someone was whoever he was having an affair with. On the other end of that phone was the one other person on the planet, besides Ianto's himself, who could hold Jack's attention. Someone who was just as attentive, just as opening minded, just as willing to please the Captain as he was. Someone that could match Ianto in every skill he had, including bed manners apparently. He wondered if they should meet up and compare notes. Leaning closer to the door Ianto pressed himself fully against it in order to hear more of the hushed conversation.

'Yeah well you do that then!. No! I've hurt him enough, I can't do that to him again, it will destroy him..What?!?..How…' There was a sigh of defeat within the office and the squeak of Jack's chair sounded as though he was leaning heavily in it.

'I know you need me..He can't find out again do you hear me? We do this and we keep it quiet right?….Fine I'll meet you at the usual place, normal time.'

Ianto heard the phone slam down. His heart beat in his chest and he just stood there trying to control his breathing as he heard Jack shuffle around his office. Jack was going to leave. He was going to meet whomever it was and he was going to…Ianto shut his eyes hoping that his own thoughts would also be shut out. His whole existence stopped as he stood outside Jack's office, waiting for something, anything to break. The silence that surrounded him, his sanity, his heart. Anything at all. It was the sound of Jack's boots on the floor that did it.

The noise kick started Ianto. Not knowing what else to do he turned and walked quickly back the way he came, still holding Jack's cooling cup of coffee. He avoided looking at any of the others. He didn't even know how to answer any of the questions they might have. Sure, he had easily hidden his emotions when it came to hiding his cyber girlfriend in the basement, that was about survival, about desperation. This was about something else, something Ianto wasn't sure he understood. He didn't know how to lie about this because he didn't know what this was. When he reached the kitchen he threw the coffee down the sink and got a twisted sense of satisfaction watching Jack's perfectly prepared coffee go down the drain without the other man ever having tasted a drop.

From somewhere within the hub he heard Jack call out to the others that he was going out to check up on some leads and that they should all leave at a reasonable time if he didn't get back before ten that evening. He heard the proximity alarms go off and then there was silence expect for the whirring of the machinery and the beeping of the equipment In the medical bay.

Two options were open to him. He could sit at the hub contemplating what he had overheard. He could suffer the mental images of Jack's betrayal. He could be completely spineless and sit around waiting for Jack to come back to offer him the unravelling tapestry that constituted their relationship. OR he could follow Jack. Find out where and who he was going to. Confront both him and this new opponent, be it man or woman who was taking Jack from him. To take satisfaction in shaming his Captain. He wasn't going to be played for the fool. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Ianto turned from the kitchen and walked through the hub. He ignored the questions that Tosh called to him, asking him if everything was alright, if he needed her to do anything for him for the archives. He shook his head and carried on walking, throwing over his shoulder that he was just running a very important errand for Jack. He spied Gwen's curious look out the corner of his eye but she didn't say anything. Owen didn't even bother to look in his direction. The next moment he was out the cog door and was gone.

**************************************************************************

Jack Harkness stormed towards the planned meeting spot. Typical meeting place for what he was about to do. Dirty and seedy. Perfect. He really didn't want to do this again, didn't want to go back to that place but what choice did he have? He got the call and he had to go. He couldn't deny or escape it. Did he want to escape everything he had started? Did he deserve to leave all this and give himself completely to the one man who never asked for more than he was willing to give? Or would he continue in this lie and do nothing but cause pain, blundering his way through the lives of those around him? But then wasn't the truth so much worse? People always said they wanted to know but did they really? After all Jack Harkness knew better than most that it is more from carelessness about truth than from intentionally lying that there is so much falsehood in the world.

He spotted her waiting for him near an empty container, standing there completely dauntless as if she was there simply to observe the place around her rather than help tear Ianto's world apart. But she didn't care, what reason would she have to? She got what she wanted. Walking up to her Jack simply gave her a look, no words were needed. They were too busy have a staring match to notice the other set of eyes watching them.

Ianto had followed Jack. Anger had boiled in his belly as he watched the man stalk his way through the streets of Cardiff. He hadn't been able to take the SUV in case the team needed it. Ianto had considered taking his own car to follow Jack. That way when he caught Jack meeting his other lover he would be fully prepared to run them both over and then reverse and run Jack over again and again and again. Then he had thought about loosing Jacks trail if he took the tiny roads through the Cardiff backstreets and promptly dropped his keys back in his pocket. Jack wasn't stupid, he knew Ianto's car. Knew the noise of it, after all he had taken the time to choose it himself ,as an apology, after the incident with John that Christmas. Besides an Aston Martin V12 vantage went no where without drawing an insane amount of attention.

He watched Jack talk to a woman dressed in a suit. A bloody suit! What was she? The female version of himself? Maybe Jack liked his personality but not his sex?…No, no this was Jack, he didn't care man, woman or alien. The woman in question was pretty no doubt, with slanted green eyes and chocolate brown hair that looked like she should be in a L'Oreal shampoo advert, but there was nothing about her that said she was something special. Unless she's really really REALLY good in the sack, and it wasn't like Ianto was anything too shabby, Jack certainly never complained.

Standing behind one of the many containers in the yard, Ianto really didn't see how this was an ideal place to have an illicit meeting. He had always took Jack to be the type to wine and dine his conquests, although Ianto himself had never been on the receiving end of such a gesture. He didn't take his eyes off the two figures. Jack was rather good at disappearing at a moments notice and he didn't want to risk loosing the man and his…companion.

The longer Ianto watched them the more fury he felt towards Jack. It boiled and it raged in his veins, pumping him full of hatred and betrayal. 'You evil..'

His thoughts cut off when Jack suddenly grabbed the woman by the wrists and pushed her against one of the metal containers, pressing the length of his body against her own. Her laugher rang out around the storage yard, as Jack whispered to her. He could see Jack's knee press between the women's legs spreading them while pinning her hands above her head. He could hear her light giggle across the yard and it drilled into his skull. 'You bastard! You nasty nasty bastard Jack Harkness.'Jack had promised him, he could still hear Jack pressing the words 'only you' into his skin with his mouth over and over again. Jack had made him feel like he was the only one that mattered. The only one that Jack needed. It had been going so well and then Jack had to act like a bastard digwilydd and ruin it!!

Jack and the woman were walking away, now at a distance from each other. He didn't have to wonder where they were going, or what they were going to do. 'He's going to give to her what he promised was mine alone' Ianto resided to himself. When they disappeared around the corner Ianto slid down the wall, his legs splayed out in front of him. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back, trying to stop one breath after another from hurting. It was like someone had taken a shard of glass and driven it into his heart, leaving the wound to fester and become putrid, allowing his insides to rot away.'Why couldn't it have been someone ugly??'He could have dealt with someone a little more unattractive than himself, it would have at least made him feel better! But oh no, Jack couldn't even be considerate in even that could he? Shaking his head Ianto got to his feet. There really was only one thing to do in this situation…

**************************************************************************

It was hours later when Jack returned to the hub. The rest of the team had already left for the night and everything was powered down. The trickle of the water down the tower and the usual noise of the hub on standby were the only sounds echoing around the cavernous room. Myfanwy was silent in her nest except for the rustle of her occasional movements. Looking around at the place that he called home Jack moved through the hub silently, all too ready to take a shower, sending the activities of the day spiralling down the drain and far away from him. He was oh so ready to spend the night in Ianto's bed, simply feeling the skin of the other man pressed against him, his breath on Jack's neck as he slept.

Climbing the stairs to his office Jack noticed that the lights in his office were on. Not unusual considering Ianto often stayed behind to say goodnight to him. It was the mummer that he could hear drifting through the crack in the door that was unusual.

Jack gently pushed the door open to observe the scene before him. His eyes were immediately met with the sight of Ianto Jones sitting at his desk with a decanter of brandy and a full glass coming up to his lips, which were moving in a constant mumble.

Stepping into his office Jack watched as Ianto emptied the whole glass in one go. What the hell was going on?

'Ianto? Ianto what are the hell are you doing?'

The younger man didn't even look up from pouring himself another drink. Jack tried again.

'Ianto?'

Still no response was forth-coming, he simply went on pouring and drinking, never breaking the pattern he had set. Ianto was nothing If not consistent, even in getting drunk. Jack walked over to the desk, reaching down to take the glass from the other mans hand on its ascent to his lips but Ianto drew back with a sharp angry yell.

'No! Don't you touch me!', came the slurred command. Jack retreated immediately, looking at the younger man in confusion.

'What the hell is going on? It must be something bad if your drinking the good stuff.' Jack tried to joke. Ianto certainly didn't look amused. He sat completely still in Jack's chair, just staring at him with blurred double vision head tilted. A chuckle rose uncontrollably from his throat.

'I saw you, you know?'

'Saw what? Ianto what the hell….!'

'You 'n' her. That' woman' in suit' Ianto slumped forward in the chair, resting one arm on the desk and using his other unsteady hand to point at Jack. His face had drained of colour at Ianto's words.

'You lied to me Jack! What? You thought I wouldn't find out?? HUH?' Ianto waved his arm madly in Jack's direction.

'You thought good old Ianto Jones would just BE THERE when ever? He stood on unsteady feet, trying to make his way over to where Jack appeared to be rooted to the spot.

'Why do you keep doing this?' Ianto's voice was suddenly clear, 'You're breaking my heart and you don't even care. You promised me…'

All Jack could do was clench and unclench his hands at his sides. He couldn't deny it could he? He was trapped.

'Ianto, its not like that. What you saw was..believe me its not what you'rethinking..' Jack started but he didn't get the chance to finish when Ianto interrupted him.

'Stop it! Just stop it! I can't listen to the same old shit from you anymore Jack. I know what I saw just as well as you do, you lying bastard!!' Ianto's face was turning red with rage as he bellowed at Jack.

His mind was so fuzzy but he could still feel a little of that anger, a little of the hurt that Jack had planted in him. He wanted to beat his fists against the other man and make him feel a fraction of the sentiment running though him.

Jack on the other hand made no move to help Ianto as he stumbled his way across the room. Made no attempt to stop Ianto clumsily grabbing hold of his coat to pull Jack to him, yelling in a broken way that Jack hadn't heard since he ordered Ianto to kill the one thing that had meant anything to him. His mind had simply shut down the moment he understood that Ianto had seen him. He knew that it had been a bad fucking idea! But since when did he listen to common sense? His arms reached up to clutch Ianto to his chest instinctively. He didn't know what else to do.

He was an idiot for thinking he could keep up the lie. He didn't know how Ianto had seen him but he wasn't surprised. Ianto was the man who knew everything, of course he would know. This was the reason he always ran from the ones who meant to the most to him. The Doctor had taught him not to run away from his responsibilities but that didn't mean he had to apply that idea to his personal life. And He didn't. He hurt and he destroyed and blundered and then he ran away before he had to face the consequences. Only this time it was different, this time he had to stay and watch the man he cared about crumble into nothing. This was the man who didn't want him to be anything other than what he was. Didn't expect him to settle down, to conform to living in a time that wasn't his. To prove he was 'bigger on the inside'. Ianto accepted him flaws and all, that's what being with someone was really about. He couldn't leave because there was no where else he would rather be than in the presence of this young man.

He couldn't imagine never coming back into the hub, never waking up next to Ianto, making love to him at every opportunity. Never tasting Ianto's coffee. The younger man had given him so much, healing him more than anyone had been able to, made him feel like he wasn't wrong, that he didn't have to apologize to the world for who he was. And this was how he repaid him? He was the worst kind of bastard.

As Ianto had realized earlier, Jack also knew there was only one thing to do.

Loosing his hold on the now slack man, he pulled back and simply observed the young face in front of him. There was just so much pain there.

'Let me get you some water hmm? Sober you up a bit and then we can talk about this, I promise.' he pulled Ianto back over to the desk who was either too lost in his own pain or too drunk to protest. Bringing two glasses back over to the desk he placed one in front of Ianto before draining the other himself. Ianto, to his credit, knew he shouldn't stay, didn't want to stay, knew he was far too drunk and he would have a killer hang over in the morning. But he was to far gone to convey all to Jack and so he settled on simply letting out a loud groan and resting his head on his arms on the desk. He soon felt a hand running up and down the back of his neck, encouraging him to look up.

'Ianto, drink it please. It'll all be better in the morning if you just drink it.'

The promise of any of this getting better, that impossible task, was the only thing that prompted Ianto to reach of the glass and drain it

**************************************************************************

When Ianto woke the next morning in Jack's bed, he had little to no memory of the night before. He simply put it down to the many, many things Jack had been teaching him to do with a stopwatch.