Chapter Ten

Ianto was pacing. Still dressed only in a towel from his shower, he paced in circles around the living room, talking to himself under his breath.

It was driving Lisa around the bend.

"Ianto, you're making me dizzy," she said eventually. "Please, calm down. Or if you can't calm down, at least sit down."

When she'd finally managed to weasel the details out of him several days previously, he'd admitted that the actual details of what would be his first date with Jack had rather eluded him. Looking back on it, he'd said, he was even more amazed that Jack had agreed, given the vagueness of his request.

Luckily for Ianto, she'd had plenty of suggestions. Places they could go eat that were nice, but not so nice that they were unaffordable, places that were appropriate and easy to get a reservation at – and nowhere with a dress code that required a tie; she didn't want to put Ianto in the situation of trying to persuade Jack to wear one. Exhibitions that were on around the city. Movies coming out soon that she thought they would both enjoy.

She hadn't openly admitted that she'd anticipated the situation; anticipated that Ianto would be too busy worrying about whether Jack would want to go with him or not to worry about the specifics, and spent a little time on the Internet researching possibilities. She suspected that Ianto knew anyway, considering the look he'd given her when she'd started spouting possibilities.

With a little prodding, he'd narrowed her suggestions down to a shortlist before the evening was through, insisting that Jack should be consulted before any final decisions were made.

He'd come through the door the following evening with, frankly, a slightly shell-shocked expression. There was happiness underneath it, but he had clearly been a little astounded at the turn his life had suddenly taken.

Jack had cornered him in the Tourist Office that afternoon, he'd told her in a dazed voice, during the few hours he generally tried to open it each day to maintain the illusion that it was what it looked like. Cornered him and then turned uncharacteristically shy, asking Ianto tentatively if his date invitation the previous day had been serious, if he hadn't changed his mind.

Several equally shy assurances from Ianto and a short discussion later, they had fixed upon that night – Rift allowing.

The Rift, for once, had co-operated, and Jack had shooed everyone out of the Hub early. That had left Ianto more than enough time to get ready, which meant he had plenty time left over to fret.

When her words didn't have the intended effect, Lisa stood up and gripped him by the shoulders as he passed the sofa, pressing gently down to physically urge him to sit. His mutterings silenced as he dutifully perched on the edge of the sofa, but his leg was still jiggling restlessly.

She sat down next to him, putting a firm hand on his towel-covered knee, and waited.

"What if it all just goes… wrong?" he finally asked several long minutes later.

Lisa just smiled indulgently and shook her head softly. "It's not going to go wrong, Ianto. Trust me. How long have you been friends with him now? How many dinners have you shared? Just because it's a date this time doesn't mean that suddenly everything has to be different."

"But things are different," Ianto rejoined. "It's a date. I don't even know what to wear. And I always know what to wear." He threw his hands up in frustration.

"Now that one is easy," Lisa told him. "Dress trousers, and that soft purple shirt you've had hanging in your wardrobe for over a year and never worn." She grinned. "If I know what Jack likes, and I think I do, he won't be able to pick his jaw up from the floor when he sees you in that."

Ianto looked at her doubtfully, nibbling his bottom lip. "You think so?"

"I know so," she nodded. "So just relax and go get dressed. You know Jack; it's all going to be fine."

Ianto quirked a smile at her. "I knew you too, before our first date. Didn't stop me going out of my mind with nerves. Don't think I've been as nervous since, actually. Until tonight."

Lisa stood up and offered him a hand up. "And, just like that night, tonight is going to turn out fantastically. Now go, get dressed, and stop worrying."

Ianto let her tug him up and gave her a cheeky mock-salute. "Yes, ma'am."