13. Tequila
"This is shit." Owen threw down whatever he'd been attempting to pick up or repair, hands on his hips as he kicked it away and swore. "I'm leaving. Who's with me?"
"Owen, we can't just leave—" Tosh started, but he cut her off.
"If Jack can, so can we. And unlike Jack, we'll be back tomorrow, because we're not gutless bastards. So I say we go home, get pissed, get laid, whatever. But I'm not staying here."
Tosh, Gwen, and Ianto were all silent, avoiding one another's eyes. Owen huffed again. "Look, it's not like we're quitting. But Jack's fucked off to god knows where so I think we've earned a night off. Gwen, remember that boyfriend you were so gutted about a few days ago? Go see him."
Gwen's head snapped up, her eyes blazing. "Fuck you, Owen. I'll leave when I'm damn well ready."
"He's right, Gwen," Ianto said quietly. "You should go. You should all go. There's nothing else we can do tonight that we can't do tomorrow."
"You're not staying, are you?" asked Tosh, and Ianto shrugged without answering.
"He's coming with me," Owen said. "And we are going to get well and truly pissed so that we don't even remember the name Jack Harkness. Sound good?"
"Owen, someone should stay here, in case…" He trailed off at the look on Owen's face.
"In case of what? In case he shows up and shoves his tongue down your throat again?"
Ianto stepped forward, but Tosh and Gwen both grabbed an arm and held him back. "You're a real arsehole, you know that?"
"That's why you shot me, isn't it?" Owen asked. "So are you coming or not?"
"Why should I go anywhere with you?" Ianto asked, shaking off the girls.
"Because I won't ask questions. They will."
"Bullshit," he snapped. "You'll hurl names and insults instead."
"Only I was right, wasn't I?" Owen replied. "Because maybe he'd still be here if—"
He didn't get to finish as Ianto's fist smashed into his jaw and sent him reeling backwards. "Fuck off."
The girls looked confused, but Owen grinned as he rubbed his jaw. "Fine, I won't say anything. Let me know when you figure it out, though."
"Figure what out?" demanded Gwen. Ianto glared at her but did not reply, so Owen answered for him.
"Whether I was right or wrong."
"Doesn't matter," said Ianto, hands tucked into his pockets as if he were trying not to hit Owen again. "He's gone. It's just us now, so we should probably try to avoid killing each other."
"You couldn't kill me even if you—" started Owen. Tosh stopped him.
"He could and you know it, so shut up, Owen." She turned her back on him and smiled at Ianto. "Are you all right? Do you need ice?"
"Yes," grumbled Owen behind her, but everyone ignored him. Ianto smiled at Tosh and pulled her into an embrace.
"I'm fine," he murmured. "Go home, get some rest. We've a lot of work to do tomorrow."
"You do the same," she said. "Don't stay here, Ianto," she added under her breath. "Get away, go home. It's not worth it to stay."
He nodded and stepped back. To his surprise, Gwen moved forward and hugged him as well. He felt her trembling and frowned. "You okay?" he asked, and she glanced up at him, eyes wide.
"He's really gone this time, isn't he?" she whispered. He nodded; there was no reason to deny what they all knew was true.
"Go home to Rhys, Gwen," he said, turning her toward Tosh and the door. "Go home and remember why he's alive."
"You're leaving too?" she asked.
"We'll be right behind you," he told her. She glared at Owen before walking out with Tosh. Ianto watched them leave before turning back to the doctor.
"Fuckwit."
"Twat."
"You're buying."
Owen grinned. "All night. Can you keep up?"
Ianto rolled his eyes in reply, then walked over to a computer and began to shut down the Hub. He glanced once toward Jack's office before turning back to Owen. "I'm Welsh, I can drink you under the table. What'll it be then?"
"Whatever they have," Owen answered. Ianto let his head fall as he laughed through his nose.
"You really are a bloody pillock, you know. You're the last person I should be drinking with."
"And you're an uptight prick. We should be able to put down a lot between us."
Ianto led the way toward the cog door. "No questions," he warned. "Or I might end up shooting you again."
"Trust me, I don't want to know," Owen muttered. Ianto snorted. Owen elbowed him as the door wheeled open.
"Was it worth it, though?"
Ianto smirked. "Oh yeah."
"Ready to forget it ever happened?"
"Definitely," Ianto replied. Owen slung an arm around his shoulder as they entered the lift.
"Then I propose a round of tequila to start," he said, and continued planning the rest of their rounds as they left the Hub behind. Jack was gone, and it was time to move on.
Author's Note:
And here ends series 1! I hope you enjoyed those, I really enjoyed writing in the shorter format. I'm going to take a short break before series 2 and work on some other stories. If they don't cooperate, then I'll start on series 2 since it's all planned out. But I've started several other things I'd like to work on now, so look for more alcoholic drabbles in a few weeks! Thank you!