A/N: Well I said it might be the early hours of the morning... and it's quarter to one! Never mind eh? Hope you enjoy this one and remeber folks in a weeks time 'Girl Put Your Records On' will be gone" Hannah xxx
Jack Harkness sat, waiting with hope and anticipation as the chunky green tinted beer bottle span in the middle of their cross-legged circle on the floor of Tosh and Ianto's living room, turning at an impossibly slow speed until the neck of the bottle eventually settled upon himself. He smiled; an opportunity like this is precisely what he had been waiting all evening for. Admittedly, he didn't ever imagine that such a chance would be found through the somewhat childish medium of spin the bottle, but as soon as Gwen had suggested the game he saw that the harmless game would be an easy method to help answer some of his resounding questions regarding a certain Welshman.
Over the past month or so in which he had hoped to get to know the recent fascination of his mind and senses, one Ianto Jones, the American had been disappointed with their lack of contact and the Welshman's almost ignorance of him. It had been his hope that, even if a romantic relationship was out of the question at this moment in time (a factor which he hoped to change as their friendship progressed) then he had hoped that they would at least make good on his toast to 'bromance' that was made back in the little café. But there had been nothing, and he'd been absolutely ready to give up and accept the fact that he had just pushed the young man too far out of his comfort zone, that he'd lost this one and it was a shame, but now he could just forget about it all.
But then he received that telephone call… asking him over to his and Toshiko's apartment for a little social gathering and though, in fairness, it was actually Tosh inviting him over and not Ianto himself, the mere fact that it was Ianto who had made the call and not Tosh restored his hope and his faith in his abilities to 'woo' members of the same gender. And his initial 'reunion' with the man after he burst through the door to the party, their exchange of awkward – on his part at least – complements and lists of excuses for their lack of contact had only reaffirmed this hope further.
However the rather pressing issue still remained that Ianto Jones, in his own professional opinion, thought of himself as straight for all intents and purposes and though he had admitted (sort of) that he found the American attractive and on the few occasions that they had met up it was undeniable that the pair had found entertaining each other effortless… Ianto still seemed to hold a great sense of confusion and uncertainty which Jack was struggling to see past, which led to the formation of three critical questions:
1) Did the Welshman actually 'fancy' him or was it merely admiration?
2) Was he, or would he ever be, interested in him romantically or were his confused interests merely curiosity?
And 3) had he actually enjoyed that surprise kiss that they had shared at his costume party, or did he regret it entirely?
Jack's smile widened as he observed the entire room glancing between Ianto, himself and the bottle, no doubt waiting for him to attack the younger man's mouth with a frenzy, passion fuelled, show stopping kiss as the two of their mouths moved ever closer together. And, as much as Jack wanted nothing more than to kiss the Welshman senseless and leave him practically begging for a repeat and more… and as much as he was confident enough that he was capable of delivering such a kiss… in the climax of the moment he remembered an earlier conversation with Toshiko:
"Jack if I'm honest with you I don't really know for certain how he feels about it all, but I think that he likes you even if he's not so sure of it himself just yet. But, one thing I know for certain is that nothing will ever happen if you push him. Ianto doesn't respond well to over-dominance, people telling him what to do and forcing him to come to decisions… he likes to mull it all over privately and make up his own mind and settle on the decision that is right for him – so just don't push it ok?"
He knew that kissing Ianto to the point of near oblivion right there in front of everyone was most certainly not the way to progress, and not kissing him at all wasn't an option as the Welshman's response to this kiss would provide him with almost all the information that he require to proceed in one of two directions: to pursue the younger man further, or leave well alone. And so it was that a rather cunning plan formed inside his mind, that if he gave him simply the briefest and most insufficient of kisses then he could form a judgement – if the Welshman seemed disappointed then he would go with plan A, and if he seemed relieved he would follow through with plan B – simple!
After their two sets of lips had connected for just a second, Jack reluctantly pulled back from the far too short kiss, heeding Tosh's words wisely and hoping that he could now answer at least two out of the three of his questions. Once he had withdrawn his face far enough away from the ever so inviting, close proximity he was suitably pleased with the sight that greeted him. The Welshman was sat in a state of high confusion, a broad frown spread across his delicate brow and a sense of disappointment emulating off him (and their audience for that matter) at the length of the kiss.
Question 1: Check. Why would he feel disappointed by the lack of a real kiss if he didn't fancy him just a little?
Question 3: Check. Well, sort of check… but surely if he wanted to kiss Jack now, it was logical that he must have at least partially enjoyed their previous encounter.
Question two, and possibly the most crucial of the three, was still outstanding but the confident American was convinced that he would have an answer to that one as well by the end of the evening.
"My go now" Jack winked at the still baffled Ianto and began to set the green bottle spinning once more, secretly hoping that it might land on the man beside him so that he might make a repeat experiment, just to double check his findings… or that he might go in for the full blown kiss that he, and Ianto by the looks of things, fully craved. Unfortunately it landed on the lovely, but overly intoxicated by this stage, Welshwoman at the party – Miss Gwen Cooper – who leaned in for a much longer and… sloppier (?)… Kiss than the previous chaste one he had shared with Ianto. The American couldn't help but grin as he noticed the increasing look of frustration grow upon the Welshman's face in response to this kiss, and, was that a hint of jealously?
Gwen began to spin the bottle next and had the luck of landing upon Rhys for the second time that evening, giving the two men both a chance to breathe and to mull over what had just happened. Ianto was left feeling highly confused about where he stood with Jack; just as he had made up in his mind that he perhaps really did like Jack, and wanted to kiss him again and organised his thoughts enough to the point where he might even be persuaded to try out a date with the man, and then he goes and does that. Leaves him hanging in the air, practically gasping for more of a kiss that up until that evening he wasn't sure he would ever want, whilst Gwen received the full Harkness treatment? Had he lost interest in Ianto? Had he played him about with his uncertainties for too long? Or had the American simply found someone better Ianto mused, after all, he was working with Karen Gillan of all people and even she would be an easy target for 'Captain' Jack. Whereas Jack was just sat their grinning like the cat that'd got the cream, satisfied that his talents hadn't failed him that evening.
The game continued for just one more spin of the bottle as it slowly disintegrated; with Rhys's turn the bottle came to land on Gwen again and this time the pair just didn't stop once they had begun 'snogging' as Gwen preferred to refer to it as, and the rest of the party seemed more than happy to wander off and leave them to it, not wishing to seem voyeuristic but at the same time not wanting to interrupt.
Martha and Tom quickly paired off too, sinking in to the background to talk intimately and get to know each other a little better, and the only original couple Tosh and Owen quickly followed suit and headed off into the kitchen. This of course left Ianto and Jack together, positioned in the 'sort of' hallway area by the front door, neither of them speaking, both of them just intensely looking at the other, cogs whirring in brains, and each of them determined not to be the first one to break the silence.
After several timeless minutes it was Ianto who finally spoke up:
"If you don't mind my asking, what on Earth was that?" He asked, not sounding angry or cross or upset… merely curious and puzzled.
Jack laughed lightly and smiled his 150 watt grin that was in no doubt partially how he landed his modelling contact the Welshman mused, that or the jawline. "I don't know what you're talking about" He replied with faux innocence, much to the younger man's annoyance.
Ianto, predictably, groaned a little "I think you know what I'm referring to" He said, solidly refusing to fall for Jack's 'act'.
"No, sorry not a clue. Care to elaborate?" If it was possible, the smile widened with his reply.
The Welshman rolled his eyes, a gesture that Jack found pleased him surprisingly, "Oh for goodness sake… you know a few moments ago… in the game"
"What game would that be?"
"You know the one I mean!"
"Hmm sorry, care to refresh my memory please?" The American almost choked on his 'threatening to erupt' laughter here.
"The spin the bottle game!" Ianto shouted through a whisper in a most exasperated tone.
"Ah yes of course! Sorry, I must be getting forgetful" The Welshman rolled his eyes a second time at that. "What exactly was your problem with the way that I 'played' the game?"
"What do you think?" Ianto asked, a hint of a blush reddening to tips of his ears.
"Well I wouldn't like to be presumptuous…" Jack trailed off.
"With Gwen you… but with me you… you pulled away and…" He replied rather flustered and embarrassedly, a complete rosy tint spreading across his cheek bones now, a sight which Jack deemed most appealing.
"So you're saying that you aren't happy with the fact that the kiss ended to quickly?" Jack asked just to make sure that he was receiving the right signals.
"Yes" Ianto half whispered back.
"You're saying that, not only were you disappointed with the length of the kiss, but that you wanted to kiss to happen in the first place?" He grinned smugly.
"Yes! Yes okay."
"Well then…"The American said quite plainly and shrugged as if his next move should have been obvious to the suddenly startled Welshman who now found Jack's arms locked firmly around his waist, their lips about to make contact any moment now.
Time seemed to waste away around the two of them as they stood their lips connected, tongues exploring new surroundings and hands (mostly Jack's) roaming. Initially Jack had been gentle, still a little wary of how Ianto might respond and not wanting to shock him too greatly, but as soon as Ianto had realised precisely what was going on he responded fiercely, eager to finally engage in the lustful and passionate kiss that he had desired all evening. They only pulled apart when it became absolutely necessary to catch their breath, though both sets of arms remained firmly encasing the other man's sides.
"Will that about do?" Jack asked through breathless pants, with a wicked gleam dazzling in his near, if not wholly, perfectly blue eyes.
"I think it might" Ianto replied in an equally ragged voice.
"About? I'd better make my argument clearer" Jack replied, capturing the younger man's expectant lips once again.
Ianto was certain now, now that the two of them were stood there together as closely as humanly possible, sharing as much of their lips and tongues and breath with each other as possible and with him having more fun through such an act than he ever thought possible, that he was sure that he 'like' liked Jack… that he wanted to kiss him, wanted to perhaps try dating even, and that no matter how unlikely and foreign and unusual it was for him to be having such feelings for another man, there was no denying that those feelings were inherently there.
After once again only pulling apart when it became vitally necessary for oxygen uptake, Jack began to speak.
"So, what does this all mean then Jones, Ianto Jones? Have you had a change of heart?"
"If I'm honest no, because I'm not sure that I ever really felt that I only wanted us to be friends… let alone less than that… I think I just convinced myself of it. So no, not a change of heart, more an acceptance of something I already knew" He smiled, satisfied with his analysis of their situation.
Jack on the other hand wasn't so satisfied with his "clarification" of things, and whether that was down to the wine or the rush of their activities that had made his thoughts cloudy and his head just a little giddy he was unclear about, but he was sure that he needed a little help with understanding Ianto's speech. "Wait, let me get this straight a second, do you like me?"
"Yes."
"Do you think I am attractive?"
"Yes."
"Did you enjoy kissing me just now?"
"Yes. For goodness sakes Jack, I know we don't exactly know each other very well but I wouldn't have put you down as the insecure type" Ianto laughed jokily.
Jack gave him a slight, playful elbow dig in the ribs as a response, "I'm not being insecure you would have needed a 'Ianto' dictionary to decode that answer you gave me and I just wanted to make absolutely sure that we were on the same page" He smiled.
"Well we are, I think"
"So… this means that you would be interested in perhaps going out on a date with me some time… you know dinner, or a movie maybe?"
Ianto gulped a little nervously, this was what he wanted, this was what he had been expecting Jack to ask… but it didn't take away the fact that every second of time spent with Jack still terrified him a little bit, however it also gave him a thrill and a buzz and was just, for lack of a better word, fun. "Well… it would depend on whether I was washing my hair that day or not…" He said, determined to be brave and smile and go for it.
"Hmm…I think I might have to keep an eye on that sarcasm, and perhaps come up with a suitable punishment if it persists" He replied grinning devilishly.
"Perhaps you will… though for now dinner or a movie or whatever will suffice" Ianto smiled.
"Excellent". Jack replied back leaning in to kiss Ianto on the cheek before breaking away from their embrace to allow the younger man to replenish their drinks.
Question 2: Check. If that wasn't adequate clarification that Ianto was romantically interested in him then Jack couldn't think what would be, perhaps if he held up a banner with 'I think Jack Harkness is hot' on it, or such like, in very public place… that would certainly do the trick Jack grinned to himself.