Chapter 2

Later that day, Gwen had picked herself up from the water fountain and had gone for a walk by the Bay, the wind had picked up and was pushing her dark hair around her. She looked out to the calm water, not hearing Jack and Ianto walk out of the Hub to follow her.

"One day… Just one say, this is all going to come to an end." she said when she felt one of them touch her shoulder. She turned and looked at them, seeing it was Jack who held her shoulder. "What do we do when that happens then?"

Jack heard her words and gently squeezed her shoulder. "We stay strong. We have each other. We're a team, we're Torchwood."

"We're down to three people. We've lost two of our best friends and team mates already." she stated. "What if… in the end being strong and sticking together isn't enough?"

"Where's all this come from?" Ianto asked in confusion. Gwen was the human part of this team, injecting that little spark of sanity and general human nature and life they so desperately needed every day. This wasn't her.

"I've… just been thinking… and it's been since the whole Earth losing orbit and being almost overrun by Daleks… and the things that followed after it… and losing Tosh and Owen… And I guess with Rhys leaving…" she said.

"Well we've cheated death long enough…" Ianto said, still confused about her mind even if she had just told him the basics. All he and Jack could do was reassure her.

"Just don't worry about it, okay?" Jack said looking at her.

"I can't help it, Jack… Because there is still a chance our luck will run out…" she sighed and turned back to the Bay.

"Not for a while yet." Ianto laughed a little, looking away from the pair, wrapping his fingers around the metal bar that surrounded the edge of the Bayy, looking out to where Gwen was looking. "Hopefully anyway." He looked back at her and Jack, who still had his hand on her leather-clad shoulder.

Gwen nodded eventually and sighed, leaning back against Jack and put her hand over Ianto's. "Yeah… sorry…" she whispered.

Jack just nodded and slowl removed his hand from her shoulder, the slight looks he was getting from Ianto without Gwen noticing told him he was getting jealous.

"So… Have we got anything to be getting on with?" Gwen asked.

Jack thought for a moment. "Nope not until something comes up. Unless you'd rather go through your paperwork you like to avoid."

"Speak for yourself, what about the mountain of work on your desk?" Ianto smirked.

"Something's better than nothing." Gwen laughed.

"Yeah you have a point." Ianto nodded, grinning.

"Well then let's got to it!" Gwen laughed, letting her hand drop to her side, pushing herself away from Jack and turned to walk back into the Hub, Jack and Ianto not far behind her. Unbeknownst to them they were being watched.

Gwen went to her desk, Ianto went to the solace of his coffee machine, and Jack went over to one of the computers, neither of them knowing what to do. Gwen looked over at him and flashed him a grin, which he cheekily returned and sat down, checking the rift activity.

All three found themselves wishing for something to happen.

"I think I should just… go home for a bit. You can always call me back if anything happens, can't you?"

She spoke after a few moments, shrugging, as though more was playing on her mind and she wasn't saying anything. Even as she said those words, she knew they'd know instantly something was wrong.

"Go home?" Jack looked over at her, his suspicions from earlier on re-surfacing and he got up from the chair and moving to stand in front of her desk, looking at her. "That doesn't sound like you."

"Doesn't it?" she didn't look at him for a few moments, then she looked at him when she was certain she'd masked her inner emotions and that her eyes weren't going to betray her like they always did.

He looked into her eyes knowing that they would be the key to seeing if she was telling the truth. "Tell me the truth Gwen." he said.

"About what?" she asked, pretending not to know what he was talking about.

"Don't give me that bullshit." he smirked still looking into her eyes. "Tell me the truth, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong." she told him, and she couldn't help but blink after staring into his eyes to match his gaze for as long as she had.

He crossed his arms over his chest and relaxed his gaze slightly, but still held it. "Sure there's nothing wrong. I trust you and I know you wouldn't lie to me because we have that kind of friendship."

Her eyes flickered. She looked up at him, not speaking, she couldn't trust herself to speak yet.

He looked as though he believed her, obviously not. "So are you going to say something?"

"What's there to say?" she asked once she could trust her voice, her hands going into her pockets where she slowly started to ease her wedding ring off her finger.

He watched her put her hands in her pockets, he sighed and stood straight, looking back at her. "Fine. " he said and walked back over to the computer, checking the CCTV once again.

"I'll… see you later then…?" she said softly, standing up, taking her hands out of her pockets again.

He looked back over at her. "Gwen are you sure you're okay?" he asked. He knew she wasn't. and it wasn't likely that she was going to tell him.

She took a deep breath, looking at the floor. "I've got to be okay…" she said after a bit, looking back up.

"I know. But… you just don't look right." he said.

"In what way?" she asked.

He shook his head. "I don't know… but it feels like you're lying to me Gwen."

She sighed. "I'm sorry…"

"So are you going to tell me?" he asked in one last attempt to get her talking.

"Rhys left. He told me on the phone when I was outside. What else is there to say?" she said looking away.

'Dumped by phone… Bloody hell…' he thought.

"What do you mean he's left? He's still there isn't he?" Ianto said, obviously not having a clue about what was going on and what Gwen had told Jack.

"He's left me. He told me to choose between him and here and I told him I couldn't choose, so he packed up some of his things last night and left." she diverted her gaze to the floor. 'Didn't count on him going straight for HER.' she thought.

Jack took note of this new information he was given. He walked over to her. "Gwen, you know I don't mind if you would rather be with him."

She shook her head. "I'd rather take my place here, all me and Rhys do is argue and the one place I cam be myself is here… with you…" she looked at him.

Jack's heart leapt., he nodded and smiled. "With me? Does that mean I'm special?" he grinned.

She smiled back a little. "Yeah you are." she nodded, laughing slightly.

He laughed with her.

"So is it alright if I go now?"

"But where are you going to go Gwen?" he asked

"I've got nowhere to go except the flat have I." she shrugged. "It's the only place I have."

"Okay then. Are you sure you'll-"

"Like I said. I'm gonna have to be." she said quietly.

Jack nodded as she gave him a small smile and she walked out. Only when she was out of sight and in her car away from the CCTV did she let the smile slip and the tears fall. She wiped them away and drove back to her flat. She pulled up outside but she didn't get out, she just let her head drop.