"Do you want to give the rest of the bread to the ducks?" Jack offered the bag to Ianto.
They had just finished eating the sandwiches that Ianto had made them for dinner and were still lounging on the blanket by the lake.
Ianto nodded enthusiastically and took the bag of bread from Jack. Ianto edged closer to the edge of the lake in order to throw pieces of bread for the ducks furthest away.
Jack watched him for a moment before he slowly and quietly stood up. Shuffling across the grass, Jack approached Ianto without being noticed. Once he was standing directly behind him, Jack positioned his hands behind Ianto's back. Pushing forward, Jack knocked Ianto off balance and instantly positioned his hands so when Ianto started to topple forward, he caught him and pulled him back.
Ianto's breath caught in his throat.
"Jack!" He gasped.
"Did I scare you?" Jack placed his chin on Ianto's shoulder and watched as Ianto continued throwing the remains of the bread for the ducks.
"Yes." Ianto said simply.
Jack laughed.
"I'll get you back." Ianto decided.
"Oh really?" Jack challenged.
"Yeah, I will. I'll get you back when you least expect it." Ianto turned in Jack's arms so they were face to face.
"Well I guess I'd better sleep with one eye open then, shall I?" Jack taunted.
Ianto wrapped his arms around Jack's neck and kissed him briefly. "If you really want to." Ianto glanced back at the ducks. "Can we go back to the cottage now?"
"Sure, why?" Jack took Ianto's hand and led him back to their blanket so they could pack everything away.
"I accidently threw a piece of bread off that duck's back and it's looking at me funny." Ianto pointed to one of the ducks.
"Ianto, how many times do I have to tell you, the duck's are not looking at you funny. They all look like that." Jack moaned.
"I don't like it." Ianto explained.
"I thought you liked animals?" Jack said as he picked up their bag and took Ianto's hand in his once again.
"I do." Ianto replied.
"What about that deer? And the ducks?" Jack raised an eyebrow.
"I like animals that I know are safe. The animals around here are wild. They could attack us for no reason." Ianto clarified.
"Not really..." Jack started.
"Yes really." Ianto interrupted.
"Okay." Jack laughed and let the matter lie. Ianto's fear of wild animals wasn't harming anyone so it didn't really matter why he had it.
"What are we going to do this afternoon?" Ianto asked as they walked back through the forest.
"We could go for a walk. There are some old farm shops not too far from our cottage." Jack suggested and turned his head to the side to see a deer. He tugged on Ianto's hand to signal for him to walk faster.
"That sounds good." Ianto agreed.
Jack looked glanced back subtly. "Let's walk a bit faster, I'm really cold."
Ianto looked at him. "Okay."
Jack stole another fleeting look back and was relieved to see that the deer was gone. He didn't really want Ianto seeing the deer and getting any more scared than he already was of wild animals.
"This holiday is so fun." Ianto stated.
"Of course it is." Jack laughed. "It's our first holiday together."
"You mean there's going to be more?" Ianto's face lit up.
"If you would care to accompany me." Jack smiled.
"Definitely!" Ianto exclaimed and squeezed Jack's hand. "We could come here every year." He mused.
"We don't always have to come here." Jack said.
"Where else would we go?" Ianto asked, genuinely puzzled.
"We could go anywhere." Jack grinned as they reached the opening of the trees and were standing at the back of their cottage.
"Like where?" Ianto asked. He wanted to listen to more tales of Jack's childhood holidays.
Jack thought for a moment as they walked around the cottage to the door. Jack held it open for Ianto and closed it again after they were both inside.
"We could go to London." Jack put forward.
"Ah! We could go to London!" Ianto repeated and beamed at Jack. "Could we go to Scotland?"
"Of course we could. We could go anywhere you wanted...as long as it was reasonable." Jack added on the end.
"How about...Paris?" Ianto tried.
"Oui, Monsieur." Jack replied.
Ianto's jaw dropped.
"You speak French?" Ianto gawped.
Shrugging his shoulders, Jack blushed slightly. "Not really." He quickly crossed the room to sit on the sofa.
Ianto followed his and sat next to him.
"Why are you blushing then?" He teased.
"I'm not blushing. It's just warm in here." Jack retorted.
"You're blushing, Jack." Ianto informed him.
"Okay, I'm blushing." Jack admitted.
"How do you say 'I love you' in French?" Ianto asked.
Jack paused for a moment before answering. "Je t'aime mon chérie."
"That means 'I love you'?" Ianto checked.
"If you translate it exactly, it means 'I love you my darling.'" Jack confirmed.
"Alright then. Jack, Je t'aime mon chérie." Ianto smiled.
"How do you say 'I love you' in Welsh?" Jack asked.
Ianto replied instantly. "Dwi'n dy garu di Cariad."
"Ianto, Dwi'n dy garu di Cariad." Jack looked directly into Ianto's eyes as he said this.
Ianto leaned forward and pressed a sweet, tender kiss to Jack's lips and slowly pulled away. "I want everything to stay like this."
"What do you mean?" Jack shook his head slightly and Ianto placed a hand on the back his neck to keep him close.
"I want everything to be like this even when we go back home." Ianto explained a bit more.
"I still don't understand." Jack shook his head again.
Ianto sighed. "I mean us. I want us to be like how it is now. When we go back home, I don't want us to be paranoid and worried that your mother will turn up and ruin everything. I want us to enjoy everything. I don't even know what I'm trying to say...It's just that ever since we got here, it's been...different. We've been able to relax." Ianto watched as Jack raised an eyebrow. "It was as if there was a huge weight on our...relationship...and it was stopping us from going anywhere."
"I think I understand now." Jack nodded. "With the threat of my mother gone, we can grow as a couple."
"Yeah." Ianto smiled. "What do you think?"
"I think you've said everything." Jack cupped Ianto's head in his hand and leaned forward again. "Dwi'n dy garu di forever Cariad." Jack whispered before kissing Ianto full on the mouth.
Ianto melted into the kiss. It felt familiar and new at the same time. It was reassuring, loving and said about a million things all at once.
********
Jack sat with Ianto's head in his lap. They had been back at the cottage for about two hours and were taking it easy for a bit and resting before they went out to the farm shops.
Ianto was snoring lightly and Jack was stroking his hair. The atmosphere was warm and cosy; it reminded Jack of a fairytale that Cassandra used to read to him when he was little, although he couldn't remember which one.
All of a sudden, Ianto stirred and startled Jack.
"Are you okay?" Jack asked as Ianto blinked a few times.
"Yeah, what time is it?" Ianto rubbed sleep from his eyes and slowly sat up.
"It's half past two." Jack replied.
Ianto chuckled. "Did you fall asleep too?"
Jack shook his head. "I was too busy watching you sleep."
"That is so cheesy, Jack." Ianto laughed.
"You love it really." Jack stood up and stretched.
"Yeah..." Ianto replied. He watched Jack as he stretched. As he raised his arms above his head, the shirt he was wearing rose up to reveal Jack's perfectly toned stomach. Ianto felt no shame in staring. Jack was his love; the same as he was Jack's.
Jack looked down at Ianto and grinned when he realised what he was staring at.
"Come on then, Ianto. Let's go to the farm shops." Jack walked over to the door and deliberately bent down so his behind was in the air when he was picking up his shoes.
Jack stood up in surprise when he felt a soft tap on his ass.
"Stop fooling around, Mr. Harkness. You have some sights to show me." Ianto gathered his own shoes.
"I was showing you one." Jack smirked.
"I didn't mean it like that." Ianto groaned. "Jack! I meant the farm shop."
Jack laughed. "I'm sorry, let's go to the farm shops."
Ianto smiled and began putting on his shoes. Even though he acted as though Jack's teasing was annoying, he actually quite enjoyed it. He was one of the few people who truly knew Jack and he loved him for who he is, not what he wanted him to be. And Jack felt the same way. Ianto was sure of this.
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