A/N – This chapter is for Solsbury Girl who sent me a rather lovely PM. I couldn't find a way to reply through your profile, so consider this your thank you. x
Thank you to everyone who keeps reading, and to everyone who has reviewed. I say again, this story is all your fault, so I'm glad you're all enjoying it! xGhostfishx
Loss Of Sensation
Chapter Six -
Soaked
Owen was stumped.
Jack had all but leapt on the rather hungover medic as soon as he'd walked in, demanding Owen's immediate attention and hauling Ianto in his wake. Ianto wasn't sure if he'd ever seen Jack quite this manic before, eyes wild, never staying in one place for very long. This new hyperactivity was rather a contrast to the still figure Ianto had found in the Hub earlier that morning, causing Ianto to wonder just how Jack was coping with this new development.
After staring at Jack as if he were mad, then laughing like a hyena as Ianto quite blatantly removed all permanent drawing implements from the area, Owen finally gave in to the pressure and ordered Jack to sit on the infirmary bed while he performed all the relevant tests he could think of. This proved a little difficult as his patient was so fidgety, causing Owen to threaten said patient with the restraints that were so conveniently provided as standard on the mortuary pit bed.
Owen continued his tests on a more sedate version of his boss, and was obviously a little insulted that Jack insisted on Ianto staying with him to protect against all practical jokes.
'Honestly, don't you trust me Jack?' Owen snapped at the Captain when he refused to let Ianto leave. 'I'm a bloody professional, you know!'
'It's not your professional ability that I doubt, Harper, it's your bedside manner that makes me nervous,' Jack shot back, refusing a cotton swab to put pressure on a syringe puncture. Ianto swallowed heavily as he watched the tiny mark on Jack's arm disappear before his eyes, the skin completely clear in seconds.
'My bedside manner is perfect, thank you,' the medic grumbled, labelling three vials of dark blood and turning away to file them for later use. Jack raised an eyebrow at Ianto in amusement, an expression that was returned with a small smile. Owen turned back just in time to miss the exchange and regarded Jack with a dark expression, thinking.
'Right, full body scan then, God help me.'
Jack grinned. 'I thought you'd never ask.'
The rest of the standard tests were administered throughout the rest of the morning, and for once it was a good thing that all was quiet on the Rift front. Owen behaved himself well enough for Ianto to leave for five minutes, now desperate for something, anything with caffeine in it. However, when Ianto returned with two mugs of chronically strong coffee and a glass of water for Jack (keep him hydrated at least, Owen had said), he was just in time to catch Owen who, with a look of complete fascination on his face, was standing behind Jack and about to poke an unnecessarily large needle into Jack's shoulder.
'Jack! Attacker at one o'clock!' Ianto shouted.
Jack reacted immediately, spinning round on the bed and slapping the doctor upside the head. Too slow to get out of the way, Owen yelped and dropped the needle.
'I was just...'
'I know what you were just. And now you're just cleaning out Weevils for a month,' Jack sniped, accepting a glass of water from Ianto, who himself was grinning at Owen, unable to help himself.
Sensing his defeat, Owen glared at the easier target. Unfortunately for him, a simple 'Piss off, Jones,' was all he could come up with as he rubbed the reddening side of his face. With that out of his system, he returned to his tests.
Eventually, when Owen had done everything he could think of, he still came up with a blank, pending the results of Jack's bloods. Gwen and Tosh had looked mystified, immediately applying themselves to any relevant research but coming up just as empty-handed as Owen had done.
It was early afternoon and Jack was now lounging back on the sofa in the communal area, arms folded across his broad chest, a glare etched on his face. He'd spent the time between tests and research pacing around the Hub, cursing every so often as he lost his footing or failed to co-ordinate a hand in order to hold something. His mood was rather dark compared to his usual self, and his temper had been growing thinner all day as solid results, or even just a hint of a clue, failed to appear.
Ianto knew Jack well enough to see that the man was having to force himself not to snap at the rest of the team as they each delivered their findings, or non-findings as was the case.
'Okay, so let's start again from the beginning,' Gwen said slowly, leaning forward in her chair opposite the sofa, elbows on her knees. Jack had refused to come into the conference room, not for any particular reason but nobody had wanted to argue with him when he wouldn't budge from the battered sofa. 'You woke up this morning and...'
'And I couldn't feel anything,' Jack reiterated, looking at Gwen as if she were thick. 'For the hundredth time, I don't know what happened. I wasn't drunk, I wasn't drugged that I know of, I didn't mess with anything that's come through the rift. I didn't sleep with anyone unusual, mores the pity. I didn't leave the Hub at all, and nobody got in either. You've all checked the CCTV. Nothing. Happened.'
Gwen blew out her cheeks in a sigh. 'Well, I'm out of ideas.'
Jack threw up his hands in mock celebration. 'Great! Wonderful! Owen, stop it.
Owen blinked. 'What? I wasn't doing anything!'
'You keep looking at me like that.'
'What? Like what?'
'Like you want to dissect me and put bits of me in labelled jars,' Jack said, his voice taking on a distinctly dangerous tone. Owen looked appropriately guilty.
'Sorry, I can't help it. You're just so weird...'
Ianto stepped forward. He'd been listening to the various conversations all morning, moving from place to place, trying to get some kind of overview. He was no clearer on what had happened than the others were, but he had the feeling that they should keep an eye on Jack considering his darkening mood. For someone as naturally tactile and hands-on as Jack usually was, this must be killing him. Ianto was concerned not just for the state of the Captain's body, but for that of his mind too.
'Look, we'll keep trying,' he said out loud causing everyone to look up at him. It wasn't a spotlight Ianto felt particularly comfortable in, but one he was becoming more used to as he spoke up more. 'Tosh, can you check again for any Rift activity at all? Absolutely anything, no matter how minute. I know you've tried already but can you look again?'
Tosh nodded at him and scurried off towards her bank of computers. Ianto turned to Owen. 'Is there really nothing else?'
Owen shrugged, looking lost. He was clearly annoyed with himself for not being able to come up with anything so far, Ianto could feel the disappointment in the air. 'Nothing that I can think of. There's still a couple of results I'm waiting on but I don't think anything will come of them. I'm sorry Jack, but I don't think it's medical.'
Jack just continued to glare.
Owen made his way back to his lab, mumbling something incoherent as he usually did when he couldn't find an answer.
Ianto turned to Gwen who was now standing, hands on hips. 'Can you try the files again?'
She nodded. 'There's a stack I haven't got to yet, you never know,' she said, almost apologetically before she walked off, leaving Jack sprawled on the couch and Ianto hovering uncertainly, feeling a bit lost as to what to do himself.
Jack looked up at him, a small smile appearing on his lips for the first time that afternoon. 'You're quite commanding when you want to be.'
Ianto shrugged awkwardly. 'I just want to help. You've spent so much time helping me...'
'That's different,' Jack cut him off. 'You've been through a lot. This is just some kind of accident, it's not life threatening.'
Ianto raised an eyebrow. 'That's not the point.'
Jack continued looking at him for a moment before getting up, walking towards the entrance to the Hub. Ianto watched him go silently, wishing he could tell what was going through Jack's head. With a sigh, he climbed the stairs slowly to the kitchen. He needed some strong coffee before heading down to search the archives for some kind of clue.
An hour later and Jack still hadn't reappeared. Ianto had re-emerged from the archives to find Gwen up to her nose in files, frowning and chewing on a pencil, Tosh tapping away furiously at her desk and Owen wandering round and round the mortuary pit talking to himself. Himself or the cactus, Ianto mused. As it was still an unfathomably quiet day, all attention was currently focused on the mystery of Jack. Unfortunately nobody had made any more progress than they had earlier. Having had no more luck than the others and still with no sign of Jack, Ianto decided it was time to find the Captain and bring him back. It couldn't be good for him to coop himself up in his office, he was already grumpy enough without the added joy of having nobody to take his mind off the situation.
The office was empty, though. Finding that the entire rest of the Hub was also empty of their boss, Ianto ventured outside onto the small docks that surrounded the Tourist Office. It was raining steady and strong, the surface of the water speckled under the assault of raindrops and the planking slippery. Drawing his coat tighter around himself against the onslaught, the Welshman searched the docks as quickly as he could, not wanting to get too wet if it wasn't necessary. Boats clunked dully against their moorings as Ianto moved swiftly over the wet surface of the wood, and it was at the end of one of a jetty that he caught sight of someone staring out across the bay. Taking in a deep breath of the salty air, Ianto joined the lone figure, his hands stuffed deep into the pockets of his steadily dampening jacket.
Ianto realized immediately that Jack was soaked through. His coat hung heavily on him, water dripping from the hem, and his dark hair was plastered to his pale face.
'It's raining, sir,' Ianto said quietly, unnecessarily.
Jack shrugged. 'I can't feel it though, can I? I'm not even cold.'
Ianto could see the Captain's breath as it escaped him, warm clouds in the chilly air. He seemed to be watching the few gulls brave enough to weather the stormy skies, eyes following them as they dipped and cried to each other above the choppy water.
'You'll catch a chill out here.'
'And at no point will I be able to feel the snot dribbling down my face.'
Ianto wrinkled his nose. 'Thank you for that image sir, that's lovely.'
Jack remained silent, eyes still following the gulls overhead. Despite the humour in his words he was obviously not happy at all. Ianto felt a little useless, not sure what to say.
'It'll be alright you know. We'll figure it out.'
Jack raised an eyebrow sceptically. 'What if there isn't anything to figure out?'
'What do you mean?' Ianto asked, frowning. He was starting to shiver as the water soaked through his clothing, withdrawing a hand from his pocket every so often to wipe away the rain threatening to drip into his eyes.
Jack turned to look at his companion, his eyes tired, betraying several hours of brooding. 'What if this is just another part of me? What if this comes with not dying?' He stared at Ianto for a moment before looking back out across the bay, as if he hadn't meant to say something that was quite so telling of his emotional state. The worry was clear as day on his wet face. 'I mean, I still age, don't I?' he continued, apparently deciding Ianto could be trusted with his fear. 'What if I lose everything along the way? Some people go blind or deaf when they get older. Some people can't even move for themselves. What if I lose it all? Every sense, gone. How can I live an eternity like that? I had trouble climbing the stairs to get out here because I can't feel my legs. What use am I if I can't even climb stairs?'
Ianto was struck dumb for a moment in the face of such a statement of vulnerability. Without thinking about it he reached across and took one of Jack's dangling hands in his, twining his fingers with the Captain's.
'You're freezing,' he said.
Jack frowned and looked down, a deja vu moment from that morning. 'Ianto...'
Ianto pulled the sodden American into a hug, trying to transfer some unfelt warmth into the other man who, by rights, should be shaking with cold.
'You'll be alright, Jack,' he murmured uselessly, not knowing what else to say. All he could think was that if it were him in this situation, he would want company.
Ianto's Bluetooth earpiece bleeped and he let go of Jack to switch it on. 'Yes?'
'Ianto, it's Tosh. I think I have something, are you with Jack?' came the reply.
'Yes. We're on our way.' Taking Jack's hand again, Ianto tugged him along the jetty behind him, desperate to get back into the warm. Jack complied silently, leaving Ianto nattering just to fill the silence. 'Tosh thinks she's found something, come on. And you need to dry off, you're soaked.'