XxTypoMasterxX: Yeah, sorry about the note thing. It was to alert everyone, coz some people read one story and not another. Uni would be good if I can get in and thanks! My proof copy of my book arrived today, it's bigger than I thought it would be. It had that fresh paper smell to it (even though I asked for the proof copy 3 wks ago), yes I sniffed my book. I have no shame.

EmKen: You don't have to if you don't want to. But there's a link for it on my main profile page. If you do bear in mind I wrote that one a long time ago, in my teens and it's very innocent even though it's slashy at the same time. If that makes any sense.

: Glad you like it!

Janto-addict: I think I take it out on parents a little too much. I just automatically expect them to be anti-LGBT... I think that might be coz my mom's suddenly turned slightly homophobe. She bashed Torchwood and RTD because of 'all those gay men running around'. It's like the world's gone mad, she's not normally like that. Either that or coz I came out last year? Eh.

Poisoned-Thorns: Glad you likey! There's going to be mommy insight about Jack and Gray's relationships. Though I've written too much about Jack, I did want the focus to be Ianto... sort of like a character study.

hotflower901: You're right. It is a very difficult thing, I planned on telling my sister first that I was Bi but chickened out. What was funny was at the very same time I was trying to tell her she was trying to tell me. She had more guts than I did so after she told me, I laughed and told her. My mom was a little harder... it really was quite terrorfying (sp? my mind went dead). I felt this heavy weight in my stomach and in the end just blurted it out. She made a joke about bi one get one free. Ianto is uncomfortable about it but that's going to add to the boiling pot for later on. It's okay to meet Jack's mom because she's a stranger, there's not that emotional/personal connection to her. It's different with his own family though.

katwinchester: I didn't dwell too much on the meeting. I think I did an okay job for that part of this update. I wanted the insight of Jack and Gray's mother and Ianto introducing himself as Jack's BF. It's the first time he does it, I hope I did okay on the amount of comfort levels and public displays between Jack and Ianto.

socalrose: It will be. Very, very pivotal in developing their characters. You're welcome! :]

Authors/Note: I'M BACK!! Howdy all, hope you've had a nice christmas and new year! I had a crackin xmas and ny (apart from internet withdrawals). I got to see Blue Gillespie in Preston and got a very nice picture of Gareth David-Lloyd on his knees! But enough of that, on with the show! This is going to be slow building, this chapter and the next few chapters are going to be leading up to stuff. It's all going into the pot and bubbling for a big explosion. I'm afraid it's getting serious and I can't really keep it all that light hearted... I'll keep injecting my strange humour into it whenever I can but I'm a dark writer... always have been. Blame my fingers, I just put them near a keyboard and let them loose, my fingers have a really mean sadistic streak. To make up for the lack of com to this rom, I've wrote a mildly slashy phone call. Tosh and John go to see Gwen and Rhys for dinner and it doesn't go all that well... I'm not Tosh bashing. I like her, I really do! A lot more than Gwen so I don't know how that part happened. Toshiko isn't being insensitive and if she is then she doesn't mean it. As always read and review! Let me know what you think! Thanks!

Chapter Eight

Ianto eagerly got in from work and dived into the shower for a quick clean off, he was treating himself to a take out. He hadn't had junk food in months, oh and that one strip of chicken when he was watching the game at Jack's but that didn't count.

It was his pre-game treat. Obviously he was having it well before the game but he couldn't do this tomorrow because he was at Jack's press thing.

He sank down in his comfy leather computer chair and powered up his computer loading EmEsEn up to see if Jack was around. Okay, so he was more than casually checking but what was wrong with that? According to Rhi he was 'smitten'.

"Hey, saw you come on" Jack's window appeared and the text blinked at him"Thought I'd say hello"

"Hello back, cariad. How was your day?" he typed quickly before picking up the carton with the Mu Shiu Pork

"Strange and long. Almost demonic"

"Why? What happened?" Ianto waited for a reply but it didn't come. While he was sat there waiting the phone rang, he jumped up and grabbed it up "Hello?"

"Thought I'd talk to you in person. Is that okay? This was kind of a shock for me..."

"Jack, what's wrong? What happened? Please tell me" he demanded gently, Ianto was beginning to get a little scared

"Ten years ago when I was eighteen my father and brother attacked me for coming out and my family threw me out. I had no where to go and didn't know what to do, my family had disowned me for being gay" explained Jack in a low voice "Today I found out that Owen has been talking to my brother behind my back"

"Oh, oh. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine it's just... my brother, well he's getting married. That's why he's been trying to get in touch with me through Owen"

"Does he want you to come to the wedding?"

"He does, yeah, he asked me to be the one to give him away" Jack stated, he still wasn't sure exactly how he felt about it even though it was a very good responsibility

"That's great! Isn't it? He wants you to be apart of his life, are you going to do it"

"I want to. But that isn't the biggest thing here. Ten years ago when Gray was only fifteen he helped daddy beat me up and throw me out for liking men. I found out today that he's gay too. He's staying with his boyfriend and mommy's been trying to get him to come back home. We're going to see mommy tomorrow for lunch and... would you come with me? I can't see her without you. I know this is a big thing to put upon you and it's going to be an even more traumatic 'meet the parents' situation and if you don't want to do it then I completely understand..."

"Jack! Jack! I'll do it. Of course I'll come with you, baby" Ianto announced, the little term of affection surprised them both

"Thank you" Jack whispered almost breathlessly making the Welshman feel warm inside

"I can't wait to spend tomorrow with you. You still want me to come to the press release and the party?"

"Of course I do. I'm still coming to yours for dinner after your game right?"

"Yes, that's if you still want to. We could come back to mine after..." Ianto had to swallow hard as he gathered up the courage to do this, to ask "After the party and you could, well... um you could stay over if you want. At mine, that is..." when he was met with silence he closed his eyes feeling his face heat up for a completely different reason "Forget it. Forget I ever mentioned it"

"Ianto?"

"Yeah?"

"I'd love to stay at yours. I can't wait to see you tomorrow. We're meeting at the Plass for lunch"

"Okay" he nodded as he glanced back at his computer before reaching down to scratch his crotch through his shorts. He couldn't help the satisfied grunt he got from scratching the itch "So it's your mam, your brother and his boyfriend?"

"Ianto?" whispered Jack completely ignoring the question his boyfriend had just asked "Are you touching yourself?"

Ianto stopped mid scratch and looked down at his hand and his now semi-hard cock, Jack's voice had been extremely husky. He bit his lip, closing his eyes as he wrapped his hand around his thickening erection the best he could over the clothe "Ianto?"

"Yes, Jack!" he growled out, the words blurring under his accent making Jack gasp "I'm touching myself as I'm listening to you, to your voice. It makes me hard" Ianto paused as he thought about what he'd just said. He'd never spoken like that before to any girlfriend or girl he'd been with and it just made every thing feel better, he was ashamed but he couldn't care

"What are you doing? Where are you touching?"

"I'm wanking through my boxers" he bit out as his wrist twisted and his fingers moved faster

"Take them off" Jack ordered him, his voice was rough and needy "Take them off and save them for me"

Ianto moved back to his computer chair, slipped his shorts off and sat down. It felt wrong, his mind was screaming at him that this wasn't right that he shouldn't be doing it but it felt good; hearing Jack's voice low and thick at his ear and his rough right hand still stroking was incredible. But it was more than that, more than he ever imagined and he briefly remembered what Jack said about becoming free.

"What are you doing Jack?" he asked slowly, carefully like the wrong word would end it all. He'd never had phone sex with anyone before, never saw the point, now he was wondering why the hell not.

"I'm thinking of you. Thinking of you doing what was interrupted the other day" Ianto licked his lips hungrily that seemed so far away and while it made him harder than ever before he didn't want to think about it. He wasn't ready for that just yet.

When Jack heard nothing but silence after he told Ianto he wanted that he got a little worried, he waited nervously all of a sudden "Ianto?"

"Jack" rasped Ianto still stroking him erection "Oh Jack"

"Are you enjoying yourself?" chuckled Jack

"Wish this was you" he groaned out as pleasure shot through him "Feels good"

"I wish I was there too. You have no idea how much I want you" confessed Jack "How much I want to kiss you and touch you and make you feel good"

"Jack" he whimpered "I'm... oh, uh, uh"

Ianto lost his grip on the phone and it tumbled to the floor as he came. The endless litany of 'fuck, fuck, fuck' spilt from his mouth as Jack wondered what the clattering was and started asking if Ianto was still there

"Ianto? Are you there?" he called, Ianto picked up the phone pressing it back against his ear

"Yeah, fuck, yeah I'm here. Sorry"

"Don't be. You sounded like you enjoyed it... so I'll see you tomorrow yeah? You, me, my brother and my mommy... that whole thing?"

"Jack... I'll be there but don't you think it's a little early to meet family?"

"Yes, it is and I'm sorry. It's just... I... I need your support, I need you... I don't think I could do it without you"

"Really?" Ianto couldn't help but feel even better; like him mattering to Jack was better than him coming.

"Yeah" he stated, smiling on the other end of the phone "You make me feel good and proud. Of all the relationships I've been in, it's never been something as big as this. I've never done the boyfriend thing before and I well... I like you"

"I-I like you too, Jack... I-" mumbled Ianto but he stopped before he said something that would have sounded silly; he wasn't ready to make such a fool of himself "I told my sister about you"

"You did?" he could practically hear Jack smiling over the phone "What did she say?"

"She said that she's going to call my mam so they can gang up on me. I know what that's going to be like; they're both going to complain I didn't find a nice welsh boy"

"They know?" Jack gasped, he was surprised that Ianto had come out to his family so quickly "That you're dating a boy?"

"Oh... Jack" he sighed feeling guilty and nervous all at once "I told Rhi, when she asked what your name is, I told her your name was Jack and she just assumed that it was short for Jacqueline or Jackie"

"And you didn't correct her" concluded Jack bitterly

"Jack, baby, don't be like that. I'm trying okay... this is all new to me... you know what family's can be like"

"Yeah, yeah I know. I should go, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Noon on the plass. I'll be there and I'll try and make it up to you"

"You don't have to do that"

"I know" he agreed finally as a smirk graced his features "Goodnight, Jack"

"Night, Ianto" and then Jack was gone. By the time Ianto got back to his computer he'd found that Jack had logged off.

***

Imogen Anne Harkness sat on the little bevelled section of pavement near the water tower and waited for her children to get there. Her two both very gay sons and their boyfriends. It felt like too much to take, what had she done wrong? Why were they doing this? She'd always thought she'd been good to them and wondered why they hated her so much. She knew why her husband was against this, Franklin just despised it because it was wrong and unnatural and he felt like a failure for letting both his boys become like that.

She spotted Gray, he'd always been a tall kid and now he towered over her; she briefly wondered how Franklin had managed to get the upper hand on him and mentally scowled at herself for thinking such things. That Adam boy was with him and they were holding hands, it wasn't difficult to see that Adam was making him happy and giving him support. Gray had always been her favourite son, she knew that it was wrong to have favourites, but he was; he'd always gone out of his way to please her and Franklin and maybe that should have been the big warning sign.

Jackson was different, he always had been. It was pretty clear that he'd been homosexual, even as a little boy, and she did her best to make sure he knew that it was wrong. That incident when he was eighteen surprised them all it was the first time she realised she'd done something wrong. Franklin didn't find out until a few weeks after she caught Jack kissing that Tommy boy from down the street; poor Jack had told him to stay away but Tommy didn't listen and he came to the house. Imogen closed her eyes as she remembered the moment Franklin found out that his eldest son was a faggot; she'd never seen him so angry. Sadness welled up in her, Jackson had tried so hard to be good, tried to prove that he wasn't wrong but it was apart of him. Maybe, she thought, maybe I was the one who was in the wrong?

Gray and Adam had spotted her but they stood away from her, waiting, she saw who they were waiting for when they walked across the plass. Jack and his boyfriend. They weren't holding hands but there was a certain comfortable closeness to them. They looked like they were making a united front and it made her think she was something terrible, was she really that bad?

Imogen stood up when the four of them started to make their way over to her; Adam was giving Gray constant support and Jackson's boyfriend stood off to the side looking a little uncomfortable

"Hello" she mumbled, it wasn't difficult to be intimidated in front of these men.

"Hello mommy" Jack greeted her slowly, ten years had been a really long time and she could see that now he was happy but it had been hard for him. He was near tears and then his boyfriend reached out linking their fingers together, Jack looked at him and smiled. Oh, she thought, he's so happy. My baby is happy.

"Jack, Gray... I am so sorry" she apologised as she too felt tears well up. There was hugging, a lot of hugging and introductions

"Mommy, this is my boyfriend Ianto Jones" he told her once all the over emotional stuff had passed and there had been grins and the atmosphere had shifted

"Nice to meet you, Mrs Harkness" he shook her hand and she just nodded

"It's nice to meet you" she wasn't going to screw this up. She was gonna make things right.

*

After Ianto met Jack's mother they parted ways, he was going to spend the afternoon just pottering about while he got ready for Jack's press release and buy shopping for Saturday. He was very excited and thinking about it, it had been a very long time since he'd been this excited about something. While Ianto did like his job, he wasn't completely satisfied with it because of the stereotype it gave people, he wasn't sure what it was about Jack that made him feel good. Maybe it was because he was just so interested and sympathetic to all aspects of Ianto's life; he didn't belittle him for being a rugby player, he was impressed by it and Jack didn't mock his home life because for the past ten years Jack hadn't had much of a home life All Ianto wanted to do was open his arms to Jack and accept him completely into his life, for the rest of his life and that was the problem.

Ianto's desire to live and be with Jack, even despite only just started dating, was at war with his morals instilled by his family and society. It felt good to be around the boisterous American but his mind was telling him that it was wrong. Ignoring those insecurities he headed to the tailors to see if he could get a decent tie.

Since he wasn't with Toshiko and her computer obsessive nature he didn't have to spend any of his wages on strange parts just to placate and please her. So that meant the wages he'd received had pretty much gone untouched except for a few necessities, rationality told him he was giving Jack the same amount of adoration he had Toshiko but again this felt different. He felt like it wasn't one sided anymore, and he was getting it back. Ianto knew that Tosh hadn't meant to be so self-centred but it was just one of those things.

"Do you need help choosing a tie?" asked the store clerk who was dressed immaculately, which just made Ianto feel like a big lumbering idiot

"Um... yeah, I'm going to a press release and after party. It's all very formal... my..." he trailed off still feeling weird about what Jack was to him. It had been very hard meeting Jack's mother and greeting her as 'Jack's boyfriend' but he'd put up with it because Jack had been so happy that his mother was finally letting him back into her life. With that happy look on his lover's face, he had no right to be all fussy about semantics and titles

"Your..." the clerk continued. Ianto stuck out his jaw, rolling his eyes before finishing his sentence

"My boyfriend's book has just been released and this is very important to him. I want to look good for him" he explained then met the clerk's eyes expecting revulsion but there was a warm smirk and simple understanding

"I see. Don't worry, honey, we'll get you looking fabulous!" he announced with an eccentric flourish. Ianto thought the entire world had gone mad.

Ten minutes later he was sure that he was sick of the sight of ties, either that or he wanted to strangle the store clerk and his 'fabulous' way of describing every tie Ianto held up.

"So, who is this lucky guy you're going to all the trouble for?" asked Jeremy-but-please-call-me-Alice, the store clerk

"Jack. Jack Harkness" Ianto replied thinking that the guy wouldn't know him

"No!" gasped the clerk in disbelief "That queen doesn't do the boyfriend thing! My ex's cousin's best friend's hairdresser was madly in love with him but Ms Harkness wouldn't give him the time of day... well, that was after dropping trou. He's a hopeless man eater!" Ianto wanted to defend his lover but the words were going round his head making him feel sick

"I think I'll just stick with this tie" he mumbled picking up a hideous green coloured tie with yellow fish on it.

"You can't!" cried Jeremy/Alice before holding up a navy tie with dark blue pin stripes "That's a crime against nature. Here, get this!"

Ianto bought it and left feeling a sense of uneasiness and with Jeremy-but-please-call-me-Alice's business card in case he suffered any fashion faux pas or Jack turned out to be messing him around.

***

Rhys opened the door to find Toshiko and her current boyfriend standing there; he couldn't help but scowl at the man. He was skinny and had blonde hair; maybe he was biased coz Ianto had been such a cool guy or maybe it was because this guy had snatched her away?

"We brought wine" she held up the bottle "And baby toys"

"Come in" he held the door open and they came in with Tosh leading the way up to Gwen's flat.

Gwen was sat curled sleepily on the couch with Gethin in her arms, the sun was shining in through the windows maybe little dust motes sparkle

"Awww" cooed Tosh as she hurried over and knelt down next to her friend "He's beautiful"

"Yeah" she agreed, the grin spreading wide across her face showing the gap between her teeth "Isn't he"

John looked down at his girlfriend cooing over the baby and felt a panic but it passed. Rhys roughly shoved a beer into his hands before moving to sit down next to his wife

"So tell me everything! What happened?" demanded Tosh, John nervously made his way to sit down in the armchair and he put his hand on Tosh's shoulder. Rhys grinned, he'd been reamed out for missing the birth of his son but he still loved telling the story

"Jack delivered Gethin" he announced "Right here on this very couch"

"Jack? The gay guy?" Tosh inquired, Rhys scowled

"Yeah, the gay guy" he spat, Jack was his friend and he didn't need some cheating woman describing him as 'the gay guy'. He wondered if she was bitter because Ianto was now dating Jack? He had to put up with all the gossip and squealing that had happened earlier that morning when Jack had called Gwen to tell her everything. At first he was wary of Jack, the guy had been the last man his wife had dated, but in the end they'd all become really good friends and he loved Jack like they were brothers.

"So you gave birth here at home? It must have been tough" said John

"I think that's an understatement" smirked Gwen "So when are you and John having a baby?"

"Oh it's way too soon for us" Tosh said trying to backtrack "I mean we've only just gotten together"

"Yeah, but your clock is ticking... I'm amazed you aren't thinking about kids right now"

"Well I'm focusing on work for the time being. I'd like kids but it's just too soon" she glanced at John who was smiling

"I thought you were getting to that stage with..." Rhys trailed off when Gwen nudged him with her foot "Sorry"

"Don't be" John rubbed her shoulders before she leaned back against him

"Have you heard much from Ianto? How is he?" she asked as she held John's arm. She missed her ex boyfriend but she was really head over heels for John

"Busy with training, him and Jack are now the best of friends" Gwen told her, Rhys's scowl deepened

"Gwen" he warned her. Toshiko started laughing drawing curious looks from the other three in the room

"Aww" she wiped the tears away once she finished laughing "I'm sorry, I just I pictured Jack trying to seduce Ianto. It's so funny! I mean he has no chance!"

"Tosh..." began Rhys but Gwen interrupted him

"You're right. But they are friends, just because Jack's gay doesn't automatically mean that he'll sleep with Ianto" she pointed out. Rhys looked at his wife, meeting her eyes, she offered a shrug gesturing for him to let it go. If Jack and Ianto got it together then that was their business, if they wanted Toshiko to know then they'd tell her.

"Hm, yeah you're right. I don't think Ianto would even be aware of Jack's interest, if he was interested, Ianto never was the brightest crayon in the box" she commented thoughtfully. Rhys's scowl deepened and he turned his attention to John

"So John... what do you do?"

"I'm in the army. Computers and logistics, that's actually how I met Toshiko. We went to the same college and became friends then went to the same university. I had the biggest crush on her, but I was just her geeky best friend"

"I had no idea" she chuckled "And you weren't that geeky. I thought you were cute" John leaned down to kiss her and Rhys decided he didn't like either of them.

TBC...