This is ridiculously sweet, please monitor your sugar levels as you read. Enjoy.
Set after KKBB but before Meat because Jack hasn't reverted back to being a twit yet.
(Who am I kidding, it's probably OOC, but it's fun anyway, at least I hope so)

Tosh poked her head out from beneath the latest discarded shirt. "You might consider watching your aim," she reproved. "And start passing me hangers so I can put these back when you're finished."

Ianto stopped frowning at the mirror long enough to cast an apologetic smile over his shoulder.

"I just can't decide what to wear," he explained.

Tosh tried not to laugh, but the temptation was too great. "I kind of noticed that," she spluttered.

Ianto threw the next shirt quite deliberately so that it covered her head entirely. "You're supposed to be moral support," he grumbled.

Tosh lay the shirt aside and moved from lounging on the bed to offering a hug. "This any better?"

Ianto rested his head on her shoulder. His sigh ruffled her hair.

"I know I'm being ridiculous," he mumbled.

"First date jitters," Tosh said with understanding. "Mind you, it's been so long since I've had a first date to jitter about that I have to say I'm a bit envious."

Ianto retracted his head with an audible snap of vertebrae. "Jealous that Jack asked me out?" he said incredulously. "I didn't think you….you and Jack?"

Tosh patted his back. "Of course not, silly boy." Tosh was the only person, apart from his sister, perhaps, who could get away with calling Ianto any variation of 'boy' without getting the killer eyebrows and week of decaf, at the very least.

"No," Tosh continued. "It'd just be nice to have someone to get first-date jitters about, is all." She gave him a final tight hug and pulled away.

"If Jack finds us like this you know he's going to start talking about threesomes," Tosh warned. "And that really isn't first-date material, so let's get you dressed."

Ianto turned back to his wardrobe with a sigh. "I knew I should've bought a new one," he grumbled. "He's seen me in all of these."

Tosh managed to hold the laughter back, that time. She didn't even point out that Jack had probably helped Ianto out of all his shirts, as well. That wouldn't help in the least.

That was before, anyway. In the time when whatever was growing between Jack and Ianto was shrouded beneath layers of deception. But Jack was back, and Jack was different now. And during the months Jack was away Tosh had watched Ianto grow from the broken shell Lisa left behind into this strong, confident, amazing young man she was proud to call her best friend. Only tonight the confidence seemed to have taken a bit of a holiday. It was kind of cute.

They were starting over, her best friend and her savior. Not many people got the chance for a fresh start, and Tosh was determined that nothing was going to ruin this for them. Especially not a shirt.

Tosh moved towards the wardrobe and rummaged. She emerged triumphantly, brandishing a hangerful of dark red silk. "What about this one? You know he likes you in red."

Ianto held the shirt up against himself and smiled at the feel of the thick silk against his skin. "It's nice," he agreed. "But I dunno, if I wore red wouldn't that look like I'm trying too hard?"

Tosh waved her arms. "But you are!"

Ianto slumped onto the bed. "Yeah, but he doesn't need to know that, does he?"

Tosh removed the shirt from Ianto's lap and draped it carefully across the rail at the end of the bed before dropping down beside him.

"Ianto?" she said softly.

Ianto looked up at the change of tone. "What?" he asked, almost warily.

"Not that I'm anything like a sage in the mysteries of dating," Tosh said. "But, well it seems to me that everything between you two so far has been pretty much fake. You hiding Lisa and Jack hiding, well, everything I suppose. And it didn't turn out that well. So why not give honesty a try, huh?"

Ianto stared into the dark eyes that looked back at him steadily. "Why not?" he agreed.

He lifted the red shirt and slid his arms into the sleeves, appraising himself carefully in the mirror as he fastened the buttons. "Yeah, this one then. Fly the flag. The worst that can happen is I look needy and make a fool of myself. That's nothing new for me, is it?"

And on that less than auspicious note, the doorbell rang.

Ianto let out a shriek that he would later refuse to admit was girlish. "He's early, damn him."

Tosh leaped for the door. "The striped tie," she ordered. "I'll keep him busy until you're ready."

Jack was leaning on the doorbell for the second time in under a minute when the door opened.

"Oh, Toshiko. Hi." He should've realized she'd be here. Tosh would've made a great mother. Of the bear variety. Possibly tiger. Something wth claws, anyway.

"He'll be out soon," Toshiko announced. "Come in, have seat."

Jack settled on the sofa and fiddled with his tie, his cufflinks, the magazine on the table.

He was nervous. How cute. Tosh was at severe risk of choking. It'd been a long time since she'd gotten this much practice at holding in laughter. She'd never seen Jack so carefully groomed. His hair was so firmly gelled it reflected the light, and she highly suspected he was wearing a new shirt. Jack often wore blue, but Tosh was sure she hadn't seen him in that particular shade before. Darker than he usually wore. It brought out his eyes, as if they needed it.

"You look nice, Jack," Tosh said, trying valiantly for a soothing tone.

Jack inspected himself, sighed deeply, and returned to tugging at the tie that seemed intent on strangling him.

"Would you like some water?" Tosh asked. A tiny snuffle of laughter escaped against her will. "Or a sedative, perhaps?"

Jack dropped his hands into his lap, looking a beautifully turned-out picture of dejection.

"I've overdone it, haven't I?" he said mournfully. "He's going to think I'm desperate."

"Well, aren't you?" Tosh asked. Pointedly. Now she had déjà vu to deal with as well as the ache in her chest from holding back the constant threat of giggles. Hadn't she just had this conversation moments ago? They really were as bad as each other.

"That's not the point," Jack said, with a distinct note of huffiness. "I've got a reputation to maintain."

"And how's that working for you?" Tosh demanded. Dr Phil would've been proud.

Jack obviously didn't watch much daytime television. He appeared to be having one of those light-bulb moments. "Not so great," he admitted.

There was a faint creak as a door opened in the hallway and Ianto emerged. Looking stunning, Tosh thought, not that she was objective. But it appeared Jack thought so, too. Tosh's eyes flickered between the two men and she smiled softly at the way their Adam's apples jerked in concert as each drank in the sight of the other. It was terribly sweet, especially given the way neither of them was looking at the other's clothes.

Owen would be retching at the sight.

Tosh crept out through the door Jack had forgotten to close behind him. She didn't bother with goodbyes. They wouldn't hear her. Wouldn't see her leave, either, lost in each other's eyes as they were.

They were going to be just fine.

For any of you that happen to be reading BMH, you might like to know that this was planned as the first chapter of the sequel, which I'll likely never get around to writing...oh well, you never know.