Part 1) The Morning After
My alarm went off at the same time as always and I sat up in bed to turn it off. The sun was pouring in through a crack in the drapes announcing that the earth had kept turning it spite of all the awful things that happened in the last twenty four hours. It seemed cruel and inappropriate that I also had a pounding head ache. My breath stunk of alcohol and the end of the evening was a bit fuzzy but it wasn't a complete black out.
I was just about to flop down and go back to sleep when Jess came bursting into my bedroom. She closed the door and jumped into bed beside me waving her arms as if they were on fire, lips pursed in barely contained excitement.
"Is it serious?" she asked.
"Is what serious?" I asked.
"Tall, dark, and sexy! Is it serious can I have him?" she asked gripping my arm shaking it furiously.
"You are not making any sense," I moaned pulling the covers over my head. I felt her get out of the bed but then she ripped the covers away and jumped back in beside me bouncing up and down like an energizer bunny. She had her phone in hand and flipped through her pictures furiously trying to find something that would hopefully make her meaning more clear.
"I so hope you got his number! You look plastered and is that vinegar I smell? Is that from some kinky sex game? Don't tell me! If it's not serious I want to be surprised!" she squealed when she found what she was looking for and shoved the cell phone in my face. I blinked and held it back and then it made sense.
"Oh… you saw Jack."
I remembered Jack driving me home from the burning pile of ruble my place of work had become. We sat and we talked and cleaned out Jess's beer supply. I was in this picture she'd taken but I didn't remember seeing her. Jack must have left his coat in the car because you could hardly tell he'd died in an explosion just a few hours before. When Jack had told me to email Jess to get her out of the apartment I'd told her I was getting laid. It was the only thing I could think of. When we moved in together she made me sign a contract saying that if either of us ever got luck out of respect the other would vacate the apartment until the following morning. When I invited Jack in I hadn't remembered the email and clearly this respecting each other's space thing was a one way street.
"Jack's his name? Oh… I like that. Great hair. He looks like he might be ripped under those suspenders. Has he got a six pack!" she asked excitedly. I groaned and dragged myself out of bed.
"How am I supposed to know? I didn't sleep with him," I said walking out to the kitchen. There were beer bottle all over the counter. I hope most of those were Jack's or I was at serious risk of alcohol poisoning.
"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no! Please don't tell me he's gay! Please if there is a God he cannot be gay!" she shrieked following me as I started to make coffee.
"Sorry he's gay," I lied hoping to get her to shut up. It was a terrible plan. She started moaning and groaning about the unfairness of the universe and listing off gay celebrities she fancied. "Did you watch the news last night?" I asked interrupting her rant.
"Ew, no. It was lady's night at the little pub on Duke Street I was getting pissed why would I watch the news?"
"No reason," that explained a few more things. My face had been plastered against every news station and labeled as a terrorist for the entire world to shame. It was all the product of an alien's plot to destroy my credibility when Jack and I got too close for their comfort. I started stalking around the house picking up crap from the night before. I tried to focus on the details of Jack's visit rather than why he'd stayed so long or why I drank so much…
"What do you mean you are from the 51st century?" I asked as I opened the first round of beers.
"Another Q and A session? Alright, anything you want. What I mean is I am from the future. I was born on the Boeshane peninsula on a distant star and got myself signed up for the time agency and started travelling."
"Wow, so time travel is a real thing in the future? Not just stuff dropping through the rift but real, intentional, time travel?"
"Well time travel is real all the time. This," he said showing me his wrist strap. "Is a vortex manipulator and can be used to jump in time and space."
"Wow could you go somewhere right now if you wanted to?" I asked. I was pretty sure he was leading me on but it was fun to imagine.
"No its busted, unfortunately thanks to an old travelling companion of mine who thought that I was too irresponsible to be left alone with 'that sort of technology'," he said shaking his head and taking a swing of beer.
"You are lying. You have to be," I said laughing.
"No I'm not! I've been trying to fix it recently. The ability to jump from place to place can be really handy especially where bombs are concerned. I'll make you a promise right now when I get this thing working again I'll take you anywhere. Where would you like to go?"
"Any where?"
"Any when," he said grinning.
"How about Boeshane?" I said. "I'd like to see what sort of crazy alien planet might beget Jack Harkness. Are you human?" I asked. My concerned expression made him laugh really hard.
"Yes I'm human. What would you do if I wasn't?" he asked laughing.
"Offer you another pint and keep asking questions."
"Which is what you are going to do anyway," he said smiling up at me from where he was lounging on my couch. I walked over with another round and he sat up so I could sit next to him and we continued to talk.
I stepped out of the bathroom showered and dressed. I was finishing off my coffee when my mobile rang and I saw it was Jack Harkness.
"Not too hung over are you?" I answered.
"No, the price I pay for immortality doesn't include the morning glory of a hang over," he said.
"You don't know what you're missing old man. It's brilliant," I said popping an aspirin in my mouth to help with the head ache. "So to what do I owe this grand pleasure at seven am?"
"It's your first day at work I thought we'd start with something easy," he said.
"Wait so you were serious?"
"Do you not want to work for Torchwood anymore?" he asked there was confusion and disappointment in his voice.
"No, no I do it's just that I thought you didn't mean it I mean…" I groaned and rubbed my forehead. "Are you only offering me a job because of what happened with the raxcoro-whatevers?"
"Raxacoricofallapatorians and you did more than earn this job you've practically been doing it. You have fought weevils, investigated alien interference in human society, and told a police constable where to stuff it. You are qualified. Robyn and Marnie are on the way to pick you up right now for some basic training exercises."
"Why Robyn? She's a medic," I asked.
"Basic training reflects the job a little bit, she's just a precaution. You know what you are signing up for Anwen. Are you ready?" he asked. There was a dare in his tone which made me smirk.
"I was born ready Harkness. Give me two minutes," I said hanging up. As I grabbed my coat and bag and headed for the door. Jess came bursting out of her room cell in hand.
"Anwen we need to talk!"
"No comment," I said throwing open the door and booking it down the hall knowing there was no way Jess would follow me out in public if she had no makeup on.