Summer 2006

"Hi, Ianto. Long day?"

"Oh. Hi, Lisa. Um… yeah, pretty much always."

"You've got to be like the hardest working person in this place. You really ought to have a rise."

"You wanna ask Hartman about that?" Ianto said with a smirk.

"Uh, yeah… maybe another time," Lisa laughed. "Hey, Ianto? What do you do to unwind?"

"Unwind? Not sure I'm familiar with the concept. Is that something new?"

"Around here, it may be."

"Really, though, I don't do a whole lot, I guess. Go home, decide between pizza and a Chinese, sleep. I read a bit, watch old films."

"You don't care for going out?"

"Nothing against it. Don't really fancy going out on my own though."

"Oh."

"Yeah. It's a lot easier for girls," Ianto smirked. "What about you? You go out?"

"Well, not every night," Lisa smiled. "I'm going for dancing tonight though. Do you dance?"

"I like dancing. Not sure if I 'dance,' as such. I mean, I think the last time I danced was at my sister's wedding. I was still at uni then. Where do you dance?"

"A few different places. Tonight it's a salsa club in Hammersmith."

"Oh, salsa dancing?"

Lisa nodded.

"I kinda figured you meant just… you know, whatever it is people do at clubs."

"I don't mind that either, but I've really gotten into salsa in the last year. Gets my mind off all the… crazy things we see here that I can't tell anybody else about."

Ianto nodded. "I can imagine."

"You think you'd ever like to give it go?"

"Me?" Ianto was about to shake his head but then realized Lisa was actually asking him. Either that was a first or it was just the first time he recognized it. "Um… well, yeah, I would, actually. Sounds like fun."

Lisa smiled. "I guess it's kinda last minute, but if you don't have plans for tonight you're welcome to come along with me. Otherwise, we could always go another evening."

Ianto could hardly believe it, but he insisted to himself that she was just being friendly, not asking him out. Still, it was a lot closer to actually being asked out than he'd ever had before, and he wasn't about to knock it back, especially not from somebody as gorgeous and smart as Lisa Hallett. "I've got nothing on tonight. Well… that is, except a video of GoldenEye, but videos are brilliant at waiting."

"Good! I can meet you at the club," Lisa said, rummaging through her bag for a flyer. "This is the place. Just come any time you like, I'll be there all night."

"Right. Brilliant," Ianto said, noting the club opened at 9 and telling himself to go for cool and not go in till 10.

"Ok. See you later, Ianto," Lisa said, giving him a big smile and a wave as she headed off to her underground station.

That night, as soon as he got home, Ianto showered and shaved and had a minor panic attack over what he could wear that would look smart but not like he was trying too hard. Ianto knew he wasn't very good at the flirting game and usually just came up in a blush when girls smiled and blinked like they had a facial tick. Lisa was different, though. Lisa was practical and clever as well as outgoing and laidback. When Ianto thought about it, he began to think maybe attraction wasn't so much about what someone looked like (though Lisa was one of the most beautiful people he'd ever met) but more about their personality and making a connection.

After seeing Lisa dance that night, Ianto decided he definitely needed to do classes if he planned to keep up, and he definitely wanted to keep up. Over the next few weeks, he and Lisa chatted more when they crossed paths around the office and met at the salsa club twice a week. It was a month before Ianto got brave enough to actually ask Lisa on a real date.

He'd been wondering just what he'd gotten himself into since joining the Torchwood Institute and finding out exactly how real all that alien stuff was… but now Ianto knew it was the best thing that ever happened to him. For the first time since his taid's illness and death, Ianto didn't feel so lost in the world anymore.