Ianto and Jack share an evening together ....

He fastened his seat belt and I was again reminded that this was illegal. At the very least he should have been in the back seat. Oh well, I closed my eyes (metaphorically) and ignored it. I drove off, taking the back streets I knew so well. At this time of night, we had a good run and I was parking (in a very convenient spot for once) less than 20 minutes later. I moved his bag from the back seat and locked it in the boot.

"Do your coat up, Jack, you'll get cold." I shivered just looking at him. It was a clear night and I expected frost before the morning.

"What are you, my mother?" he muttered but did fasten his jacket. He even put the gloves on.

We walked briskly down a couple of side streets and were at the restaurant. As it was a Tuesday I hadn't expected it to be busy and I was right. We were ushered to a table for two in the window. Lucia, the waitress, was attentive as always and made a fuss of Jack. I had to improvise on the spot to explain who he was; I said he was a friend's son that I was looking after. She seemed to accept this, left some menus and took our drink orders: a beer for me and water for Jack.

"What do you fancy?" I asked, looking up from the menu. Jack was eying Lucia, a well-endowed brunette who usually flirted shamelessly with him. "Food, Jack, not her."

He grinned and opened his menu. Everything on the menu was good and I had difficulty deciding but finally went for spaghetti with clams. Jack chose lasagna which always made us laugh; it was one of the few things Rhys could cook and according to Gwen they lived on it. We gave the order and sipped our drinks. Jack was quiet and I was content to enjoy the silence. There were few other diners and we would not be overheard if he wanted to talk later.

"You haven't asked me," he said suddenly, after several minutes.

"Asked what?"

"What I did this afternoon." He put his head on one side and looked at me speculatively. "The others did but you didn't."

"I figured you'd tell me if you wanted to. Besides, I was just glad you came back."

"Were you worried about me?" he asked, seeming delighted with the thought. He grinned broadly and I saw again the Jack I knew and loved.

"I always worry about you, Jack." It came out a little more seriously than I had intended but I meant it. He reached across and I put my hand in his little warm one. I liked the physical contact but recognised it was unwise to hold hands in a public place. I knew he was over 100 years old but the other people in the restaurant didn't. I released his hand, patting it.

"I went to the cinema," he announced, leaning back in his chair. "It was about the only place a kid can go and not be questioned."

He was probably right. "They must have thought you were playing truant, it is a school day." I took a sip of the cool beer. "What did you see?"

"Spiderman, one of the sequels I think. I didn't really watch it, I just needed to get out of the Hub and the cinema was warm and dark and I could think."

Our food arrived and Jack tucked the napkin into his collar and grinned at me mischievously. It always embarrassed me when the adult Jack did that with his napkin, now I thought it was good idea; he was a messy eater and didn't have that many spare clothes. The food was excellent and we tucked in.

"What were you thinking about? At the cinema."

"Colin, mostly. He was an ordinary kid before he was changed and just because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time his life was ruined. And his family's. They thought he'd just disappeared, of course." He took a mouthful of food and chewed thoughtfully. "I came across his father a few years later. He'd lost his job, was living on the street. The mother was an alcoholic and their other two kids were in care. Hell of a waste."

He was right. So many lives were touched by aliens and changed for the worst, never for the better it seemed. I thought about the people at Flat Holm. I'd seen the records of the first returnees and could visualise how awful their existences must have been before Jack had set up the current facility. It wasn't luxurious but at least there was some comfort for them and medical care, not that it could help much.

"Is it because of Colin and his family that you set up Flat Holm?" I asked. I had never been clear what had prompted him to do it. It had been a hell of a project to undertake when he was the sole survivor of Torchwood 3 and had more than enough to keep him busy.

"Partly. Him and all the others I saw pass through the cells." He frowned, "This is depressing stuff. Let's talk about something fun."

"Okay," I smiled. "What do you have in mind?"

"Oh, lots of things but you keep telling me not to say them to you." He looked wide eyed and innocent again and I had to laugh.

We nattered on for a while, eating our meal. Jack tucked in to a huge bowl of ice cream with chocolate sauce for dessert and when he'd finished I couldn't help myself. I just had to lean across and wipe his mouth. He was grinning away and thoroughly enjoying being a child. I had the feeling that if he stayed one for much longer he would revert to childish behaviour entirely. I paid the bill and we left, walking quickly through the deserted streets. Jack put his hand in mine and I gripped it tightly. At the car I retrieved his bag and we climbed the stairs to the flat.

We hung our coats up and Jack sat on the floor and took off his trainers. That made me realise I hadn't bought him any slippers. He was quite happy I hadn't. Within minutes he was sliding up and down on the laminate floors, skating round the flat like it was an ice rink. He fell a couple of times and banged into doors but enjoyed himself immensely. Like I was thinking earlier, reverting. I went and changed into jeans and a sweater. Putting his bag on the bed I was about to unpack it when he slid into the room and banged into me. He grabbed hold round my waist to stop himself from falling.

"This is great fun!" he yelled, flushed and grinning hugely. "You have a go."

"No, thanks." I knew that if I tried I'd end up breaking something, probably an arm or a leg.

"Fuddy-duddy!" He was breathing heavily from his exertions and stood for a moment looking on as I starting unpacking his bag, putting the items on the bed. Then he started laughing, pointing at the toiletries. "I won't need that!" he spluttered, bending over double with his hilarity.

I looked where he was pointing and had to smile. From force of habit I'd packed his shaving kit, not something a 10 year old normally owned. "Okay, you've had your fun," I said, putting it back in the empty bag. "Make yourself useful and hang these up." I took the toiletries he would need into the bathroom while he, still chuckling to himself, put his clothes away.

"Now what?" he asked, looking up at me. We were in the living room and he stood, hands in his jeans pockets looking at me expectantly.

Oh Lord, he expects me to entertain him. Usually this would be no problem, we'd fall into bed or anywhere else his inventive mind took us and … dabble. That was out of the question. I thought about my nephew, eight years old now and into computer games. "There's the Playstation. I'm sure there's a game you'd like."

Jack shook his head. "No, I don't want to do something on my own. I want something we can do together." He grinned at my expression, "And I don't mean that. You have a one-track mind! Got any board games? Or a jigsaw puzzle? I'd love to do a puzzle!"

"There may be one, in that cupboard." He opened the one I was pointing to and started to rummage around. He was lying face down on the floor to see in properly, his feet waving in the air. I grabbed each foot in turn and pulled his socks back on properly; his skating had almost pulled them off.

He looked round, grinned and said, "Thanks, Mom."

"You'll get a good hiding in a minute. Found anything?"

"Yep." He sat crossed legged with three puzzle boxes on the floor beside him. "There's some cats, don't want that." He screwed his nose up. "Sailing boats? Nooo, too much blue. Ah, yes, this one."

He stood up and brought it over for me to see. It was a flower market in Holland, lots of stalls with brightly coloured flowers surrounded by tall narrow buildings. There were also shoppers and market holders. I remembered it. I had had flu shortly after Lisa and I had got together and she had bought it for me to do while I was recovering. I had started it once but not got very far; I didn't have the patience.

"Okay," I said reluctantly. At 1,000 pieces at least it would keep him occupied for a while. He went over to the dining table and pulled out a chair. I bent and put away all the stuff he'd dislodged in finding it. "Do you want a drink?"

"Please." He sounded preoccupied and I saw he had the box open and was picking through for the side pieces. He was kneeling on the chair so he could reach. He looked round suddenly, "Can I have a milkshake?"

"A milkshake?" Where in blazes had that come from?

"Yeah. You told me once you made them for your nephew. I really fancy one."

Reverting, he's definitely reverting. "I'll see if I've got any." I left him to his puzzle and went into the kitchen. Hiding at the back of a cupboard was a half empty bottle of syrup and so I made him his milkshake and a coffee for myself. Smiling, I added a couple of bendy straws to his drink. His face lit up when I presented it to him and he sucked hard on the straws.

"This is great." He smiled again and I realised he had been doing that a lot this evening. There may be something beneficial to this childish behaviour if it made him so happy. He handed me the puzzle box. "Look through there for pieces of the yellow and red tulips," he pointed to the picture so I could see what he meant, "I'm starting there."

Now they just have to get through the night ... Please review