Chapter Three
"Remember when I was telling you about the symptoms he was experiencing from the start?"
"Yes….what of it?"
"There's one I just remembered. I don't know if it changes anything. And I only remembered because I saw an article which had something in there to trigger the memory - otherwise I'd probably have forgotten completely. Some of the days when he is sick, it gets quite severe, and he can't do much more than lay in bed. Other days, he'll be fine, as if nothing was wrong."
"..."
"Yan?"
"Just thinking, Jack. Trying to figure out what this could indicate. I'm drawing a blank - this is something we need to add to our research. I'm sorry I can't tell you more," he said with an expression of true regret.
"Hey," Jack lifted Ianto's face to meet his own eyes. "I'll be having none of that. You don't need to apologize just because you don't know something!" He leaned forward and gently kissed Ianto. "Yan, do you have anything strong to drink? You'll probably need some for what I'm going to tell you about myself. Although it's not related to what's going on with my father, I still think you should know."
"Of course I have something strong! I'm Welsh," he muttered. "It's in the side cabinet of the buffet - I'll get it. I have Macallan, Glenlivet, and Yellow Spot. Which would you like?"
"Any is fine."
"Macallan it is then - it's aged 18 years - bit of an expensive bottle, but it was a gift."
"Perfect. When you bring it, sit down."
After Ianto brings their drinks, Jack begins to tell Ianto something that sounds entirely made-up. As he will soon learn, however, it is the absolute truth.
"For what I'm about to tell you, you are going to have to suspend your belief in what you know to be true. I am not Nicholas' real son - he adopted me when I was twelve. I come from a parallel universe to this one, where we have a smaller population due to the fact that if any one of us were to come down with an incurable virus or disease, there is something that has to happen to us. We have a central hub on each continent, and inside it is the heart of time. When one of us does get sick like that (which is a rare occurrence), we must get as close to the vortex as possible without touching it. A part of the vortex will then enter you, and be with you for eternity. It gives us faster healing capabilities, and if we die, we don't stay dead - we're able to come back to life. However, it's forever. If we die - we always come back."
"You got sick?"
"Yep - imagine scarlet fever but times ten. That's how bad it was."
"How old were you?"
"Four."
"I'm sorry Jack," Ianto pulled him into a tight embrace.
"That's not the worst of it. My parents had it too, although when I was eleven, and it affected them so badly to the point where it was too late to get them to the vortex, and they died. Permanently. I was put into foster care for a year, and at the end of the year, my best friend….he- he killed himself," Jack said with a choked sob. Jack broke down and all Ianto could do was hold him tight. "It was because I was shot, and I died. Since it was the first time, my revival took a long time. My friend didn't know I couldn't die, because we can't talk about it - otherwise people would be reckless and dangerous - and it tore him apart. He shot himself in the temple the day after I died. I revived several hours later to find that out. I killed myself a week later, but of course I came back. I kept doing it until officials decided enough was enough and sent me to be adopted by Nicholas. Because he needed a son to carry the tradition of Christmas, and Marie (Nicholas' wife) is barren. So they adopted me when I was almost thirteen. I've died a couple of times since then, but I try not to. Because reviving feels like hell - like being dragged over broken glass, and I don't remember where I am for a few moments."
Listening to all of that, Ianto had tears streaming down his cheeks.
