Slight warning with this one, it's 'stuff' not 'fluff'. Angst, mostly. Totally inspired by the song by Roxy Music, as you'll see if you care to look up the lyrics.

Jack was bored.

After a hectic week where there'd scarcely been time between alerts for the team to re-stock, let alone re-lax, there was a lull. A welcome lull, to begin with. It was great to have time to catch their breath. To begin with. Now it was boring.

After breaking up the third bickering match of the day, Jack decided he'd had enough. They all deserved some time off, anyway.

The mere thought brought a smile to Jack's lips. He hadn't had any quality Ianto-time for quite a while. The smile broadened as he considered the many ways he could take advantage of this unexpected time off.

"Early mark," Jack yelled, just in time to prevent the launch of Owen's next paper aeroplane squadron. "Everyone go home."

The sound of computers logging off was reminiscent of crickets on a summer evening, and the whoosh as the team rushed for the door provided the memory of summer breezes. Nice. It put Jack in mind of snug bathing suits and rubbing sunscreen into pale skin – from which his mind leapt onto working out how he could crank the Hub's heating up enough to turn this particular fantasy into reality. As long as Ianto was agreeable, of course, and why wouldn't he be?

Jack returned to his office to await the arrival the last coffee of the day – and the Welshman bearing it – with this mind elaborating on every detail. Yeah, this was going to be nice.

The knock on his door brought Jack out of his daydream. He looked up, and his automatic smile of greeting spread, became genuine. Jack stretched lazily, releasing tension, accepting that the work day was over. "Hello Ianto."

Ianto placed Jack's coffee mug gently on the desk. But he hadn't brought his own mug, and he remained standing, and the threads of his daydream spun away as Jack's senses went on alert.

"Is there anything you need before I leave, Sir?" Ianto enquired politely.

Jack leaned back in his chair, swinging his feet up to rest on his desk. Playing hard to get, was he? Oh well, Ianto was worth a bit of extra effort.

"We agreed on Jack, after hours," he chided gently.

There was the patented Jones eye-roll. "Is there anything you need before I leave, Jack?"

"I could think of a few things," Jack answered, eyes blatantly roaming the suited figure before him, deciding which pair of swimming trunks would look best. No contest, really. It had to be the red ones.

Ianto arched an eyebrow, which somehow killed the anticipation coursing through Jack's veins. His feet hit the floor with a thud and his smile faded. "You're really leaving, huh?"

"You said 'everyone go home'. I assume that included me," Ianto said coolly, wishing Jack didn't do the kicked-puppy impression quite so well. "I've got a long drive ahead of me and I'd like to get an early start, if that's OK."

In a different scenario, Jack's expression would have been funny. "I just thought…" he stammered.

"You assumed," Ianto corrected. "If you'd thought, you'd have remembered me telling you it's my sister's birthday today."

If Jack hadn't taught himself not to blush, he would have. "Sorry," he mumbled, searching his memory, and remembering Ianto asking him to note something in his diary.

Ianto sighed. He didn't really have the right to be irritated. As Jack had taken pains to point out several times in the past, they weren't a couple.

"It doesn't matter, Jack. I'll be off then, OK?"

Jack didn't answer. He was busy perusing his diary. Yep, there it was.

"I did note it down," Jack said triumphantly. "I just had the diary on the wrong page. Planning for next week," he added, somewhat virtuously.

"Sure, Jack," Ianto answered, failing to be impressed. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Ianto?"

Ianto turned wearily at the door. He'd missed family events for Rift alerts, and he'd never complained. But he was damned if he'd miss out on Rhiannon's birthday party just because Jack wanted a shag and couldn't be stuffed trawling the bars. And he was equally damned if he'd let himself consider how it would feel if Jack wanted him to stay for a more significant reason than convenient sex. Ianto had promised himself, when this thing with Jack began, that he wouldn't ruin it for himself by hoping for more than what was on offer.

It was what it was, Ianto reminded himself, and he'd agreed to it, and if he wanted more then he'd have to find someone willing to give it. And he'd be triply damned, if there was such a thing, if Ianto let himself listen to the whisper inside his head that told him he was in too deep to find the idea of anyone else appealing.

"It's her thirtieth, Jack," Ianto said firmly. "It's important."

If Ianto hadn't known better, he'd have sworn Jack looked guilty. "I don't expect you to stay," Jack said, attempting a smile. He was still trying to work out why Ianto asked him to note this in his diary, and the only answer Jack could come up with did strange things to his stomach. Especially given that he'd forgotten. "Just…..um…I wasn't supposed to be coming with you, or something. Was I?" And Jack's gut went from uneasy to clenched at the sudden realization that he wouldn't mind if Ianto said Yes.

"Of course not." Ianto actually sounded scandalized.

Jack pouted. Ianto didn't need to be that horrified by the notion.

"You thought I'd asked you to meet my family?" Ianto asked. A chuckle started somewhere in his chest, and forced itself out before he could stop it. "And you thought you'd agreed?"

"It's just, well, you asked me to put it in my diary," Jack blustered.

Ianto chuckled again. "That was so you wouldn't try to make me stay back," he said. "Which failed miserably. And honestly, Jack, if I had asked, which I wouldn't, and you'd agreed, which you wouldn't – hell, I'd have known you weren't paying attention."

The laughter faded away as Ianto left the Hub, leaving Jack alone, and disturbed, and not sure why.

Or perhaps not wanting to admit why.

Even to himself.

The cog rattled closed behind Ianto, and he wondered whether his laughter had sounded as forced to Jack's ears as it did to his own. He wasn't sure whether he was trying to convince Jack the misunderstanding was amusing, or if perhaps he was just trying to fool himself.

Ianto shook his head and pushed it all to the corner of his mind where he stored all of his impossible hopes. The place where any half-formed wishes for something 'more' with Jack belonged.

Along with all his broken dreams of a normal life with Lisa.

Silly boys. There is a fluffy/angsty sequel in progress.