The dinner party at Ianto's house is a success. Everybody enjoys the prom, but the unexpected guest has an encounter in the restroom that could change a few things. John gets a surprise.

Songs in this chapter

Get this party started - Pink - M/L: Linda Perry

When I need you - Leo Sayer - M/L: Albert Hammond and Carole Bayer Sager

"I got lot of style, check my gold diamond rings

I can go for miles if you know what I mean

I'm comin' up so you better get this party started…"

As they were waiting, Dean's Impala came slowly towards where they were standing. It stopped in the middle of the road, and Dean jumped out before he waved at the driver. It wasn't easy to see the, but they assumed it was his brother.

"Boulevard is freakin' as I'm comin' up fast

I'll be burnin' rubber, you'll be kissin' my ass

Pull up to the bumper, get out of the car…"

Dean practically skipped over. "Hey, are you ready for a party?" He stopped short for a second. "Is this music coming from there?" He pointed at the house they were going to enter shortly. "I was hoping that Ianto would get to pick."

"I'm comin' up so you better get this party started

I'm comin' up so you better get this party started

Get this party started."

He laughed a little and grabbed Madison's arm as she came up next to him. "No problem. Come on, let's do this."

They didn't get a chance to press the bell before the door opened. "Welcome." A firm lady in her fifties greeted them. "I'm so sorry, but we have a little bit of a delay, but please step inside."

A couple of kids were running around in there and the woman that they all knew as Ianto's sister was trying to get them to calm down. "Sorry." She repeated her mother's word. "We should have been out of here by now, but you know…"

Jack didn't know. He didn't care much either. He knew that a lot of people lived in this house, but he hadn't given much thought to the logistics that Ianto's family had to deal with to make this happen. "No worries. We are grateful to be invited." Jack decided to speak for them all. He was the first one through the door, so he took it upon himself.

One of the kids stopped and stared at them for a moment. "We are going to a reserant, and I will be propretif…" He turned to look at his mother. "What?" Rhiannon was struggling to put shoes on the little one. "Yes. You will behave properly."

At that very moment, Ianto came down the stair, and Jack got suddenly a little distracted. Knowing that the guy was not going to prom was kind of sad, especially since he was dressed for it.

Jack had made all the arrangements necessary to be able to take him - the ticket he had in his pocket had Ianto's name on it, but Jack couldn't do it. He flipped around and grabbed Madison's hand. "Please, do me a favor."

The girl got a little thrown. "I. What? Not now. We have…" Jack lifted his hands. It will only take a second. Please."

Madison sighed, but stayed put in the hall as she let Dean and Mason pass her. "What?" She sounded annoyed, but Jack didn't let it get to him. "Can you take Ianto to the prom. I have his ticket, but I can't ask him myself."

Madison looked at him with a curious stare. "Uh? It's too late. If he wasn't invited… uh? You have his ticket? Why? If nobody invited him, how come he has a ticket?"

Jack drew his breath heavily. "I wanted to invite him, but a friend advised me not to. I agree with him, but Ianto is the only one in here that doesn't get to go, and I feel bad for him."

It wasn't hard to understand that Madison had heard the same rumors as everybody else in the choir. She cocked her head. "That's it then. I'm going to take him there as my date, and you're gonna keep your paws off him. Is that right?" She threw a peek over Jack's shoulder and the way she reacted told him that they were running out of time. "You know that I like him, but I can't take him because I don't want him to get the wrong idea."

Jack knew that he only had seconds left to explain himself. "I'm leaving soon, and I don't want him to think I'll be waiting for him. I just want him to come, and I will keep my paws off." He practically growled. He needed an answer fast.

"Okay. I'll do it. And you don't want him to know that you bought the ticket. Right?" She ripped the piece of paper out of Jack's hand. "But you need therapy. I don't know what's wrong with you, but if you love him, you should reevaluate your plans for the future."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The kids and their parents had left; Ianto's dad had withdrawn to the basement, while Ianto's mother was tending to the food and the guests. The living room furniture had been shifted around a little to make room for the big dining table. "Didn't want you to have to eat in the kitchen." The woman smiled as she pushed a recliner further away to make make more room.

Dean wouldn't have cared, but he could see the point. He he took a sip out of the glass with sparkling wine he'd been handed when he came in. So maybe this wasn't the most classy dinner he could think of, but they had made a real effort. Dean definitely didn't need classy anyway. He hadn't been in this house a lot, but he'd always liked it here. It was a home, a real home, and he envied Ianto a little bit.

Castiel wasn't there yet, and Dean was a little disappointed. Gwen was still upstairs, and Ianto whispered something about her wanting to make an entrance as soon as everybody was settled. It was technically her party, so they all understood.

Someone had turned down the music somewhat to make it possible to have a conversation. Katy Perry was 'roaring' softly in the background as they waited. "You are all so handsome in your best suits, I can't understand why you guys don't have a date for this." Ianto's mother was standing in the doorway to the kitchen smiling brightly, ready to pour more bubbly into the glasses if they were empty.

Dean just looked down. He didn't need a date. Knowing that Castiel would be there was more than enough for him. "We wanted to go together as a group, Glee club is still a little…" Mason didn't get to finish the sentence because Jack interrupted. "Mrs Jones, I'm sorry Mason. Ma'am. We would rather come here than to go out to a restaurant with some random girl. This is the people we want to spend time with. It's a pity that Ianto can't go as well."

Madison hadn't said much since they entered, but now she took a couple of steps forward, and patted Jack's arm. "But he can." She looked over at Ianto before she took a breath and walked over to him. "Do you want to come as my date?" Before Ianto got a chance to say anything she continued. "It was a last minute decision, but I have a ticket for you."

Dean couldn't hear his answer, but he could see the smile on his face and the little nod he gave Madison. The rest of them got no time to react because something was happening upstairs. Dean's first thought was that Castiel hadn't arrived yet, and it would be sad if he wasn't there for Gwen's appearance. The next thought got stuck somewhat when Cas came down the stairs. His black - or was it blue - tux looked great on him.

Seconds later, Gwen emerged at the top of the stairs in the most fabulous dress. It was dark, dark blue with a little bit of sparkle on the straps. Her usually fair skin had a nice tan that could not have been acquired by laying in the sun, but Dean didn't ponder on that much. Her corsage was in different shades of blue; the ribbon and a couple of small rosebuds had the exact same color as her dress.

When she came all the way down, she grabbed Castiel's arm and leaned her head on his shoulder. The two of them was so perfectly color-coordinated that it was uncanny. The suit was blue, it was easy to see in the light down there. It was a few shades darker than Gwen's dress, and his blue shirt was a little lighter, It could look like his tie was made of the exact same material as the dress, and his boutonniere - it was a word Dean had never thought he'd find the use for - consisted of two small blue rosebuds with a ribbon of the same color.

"I got a spray tan." Gwen twirled around making a few of them choke on their drinks. Dean held his breath for a second. He really liked the dress, but the cut… Jack looked like he had swallowed a hot potato, and Madison's eyes seemed to be about to pop out of her head. She was the first one to say something though. "Er, that's not gonna fly. That dress, I mean it's gorgeous, but...it's illegal."

Gwen huffed. "Yeah, I kind of know that, so I'm going to have to cover up somewhat. I have a nice little jacket, but I just wanted you guys to see it as it is."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Apart from a few mentions of John's secret party and a small argument about the dress code at the prom, the conversation around the table had mainly focused on the upcoming competition. Ianto was supposed to help his mother in the kitchen, but when he suddenly got invited to the prom, she demanded that he should sit with the others. Without any assistance, she managed to cook the food and serve them all by herself.

It was perfectly normal for her to cook for a crowd, but she usually never had to go any further than to put the pots on the table and let everybody serve themselves. For this meal, she made every plate, and she made them all look like a piece of art.

The dessert was just consumed when the doorbell rang. Ianto jumped out of his seat, but he wasn't fast enough. His mother was already at the door greeting John. "They are almost ready. Do you want to come inside?"

John shook his head. "No thanks Ma'am, My date is waiting in the car." Turned to Ianto, he continued. "Just take your time, we're early."

The dinner guests got up from their chairs, and a couple of them started to clear the table before the lady of the house stopped them. "No. Get ready, I have the whole evening to do this." She practically pushed Madison and Castiel away. Gwen had already been upstairs to get her jacket. It was a short sleeved bolero tailcoat in the same fabric as the dress. it was obviously not meant to be buttoned, so her corsage was still visible, but it covered up her back nicely.

John looked a bit surprised when Ianto came out as well. "Did he, erm, did… are you Jack's date?" Ianto knew why his friend was concerned. "No, I'm Madison's date. I know it is a 'pity-date' but I'm fine with that. She just didn't want me to be the only one at the house that couldn't go."

As they stood in line to enter the stretched limo, Madison tugged on Ianto's sleeve. "Hey, I, I can be your date, no problem, but Jack bought this ticket. He didn't want me to tell you, but..." She was whispering, and nobody else could hear what she said. "What?" Ianto almost tripped as he flipped around to look at the girl.

"He bought it and entered your name, and then he asked me to take you. Nobody else is supposed to know, and you weren't supposed to know either." She stepped into the car without uttering another word.

Ianto had still not managed to digest the information as he walked through the door of the ballroom - technically, the gym - with Madison on his arm. The drive had been short, and nobody seemed to have noticed that he didn't partake in the conversation in the limo.

Each table was supposed to seat eight people, so with one extra, it got a little cramped. It didn't matter. During the whole evening, there were only a couple of occasion where they were all seated anyway. The first time was during Mr Schuester's welcoming speech, and after that they danced and mingled with other students. Ianto was pretty much the only one who stayed put for the most part. He was no dancer, and he also felt a little bit like he had crashed the party.

Just before the main event - the crowning of the king and queen - he left the table to use the restroom.

Who else but Jack was in there at the time? Ianto wasn't sure if he should withdraw, but he really needed to pee.

Not confident enough to use the urinals with Jack in there, he entered one of the stalls. Jack had not left when he came out, but Ianto tried to act normal as he went over to wash his hands.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Gwen and Castiel had practically been dancing all evening, They were both pretty good, and when they didn't dance with each other, somebody else swept them up. Every so often they had taken a short break to get a drink or to use the restroom. Dean had barely had a chance to talk to any of them, but he wasn't bothered by it.

For a while, he'd hung out with some of the guys from the athletics team. They were still teasing him, but it was in a friendly way. If they had really known what was going on in his mind they would probably get quite shocked, and the bantering could have taken a different turn. Dean wasn't bothered by that either. Not that he was ready to reveal anything; he wasn't sure if he was ready to embrace it himself, but the school year was almost over, and he didn't have to deal with them anymore.

As they announced the crowning would take place shortly, Gwen slumped down on the seat next to him. "My god. I'm exhausted, but it's fun." She kicked her shoes off and wiggled her toes. "That was divine."

Dean looked at the shoes and could perfectly well understand. He couldn't have walked a step in shoes like that, and Gwen had more or less been dancing for almost two hours. "You're a trooper, Gwen. I don't know how you girls can do it."

Gwen shrugged. "Long and hard training." She giggled a little. "Oh, oh. Did Ianto tell you?" She waved her hands before she grabbed Dean's sleeve. He had no idea what she was talking about. "Er, no, I don't know. What?"

She leaned over a little. "If Sam wants to stay in Lima, he can have my room. My aunt and uncle said it was okay. Ianto tried to explain to me what it was all about, but I was too busy to pay attention. What is it all about?"

Dean didn't want to talk about it at this point. It would be too difficult to explain with all the commotion around. "Sam wants to graduate at McKinley, but he can't stay in the apartment we have now. He's a minor, and, well, you know...I can explain later."

That did obviously not work for Gwen. "But you're not a minor. Can't he live with you? You have taken care of him for a year, why can't you do it for two more?" She threw her hands out. "Are you going to leave Lima?"

Dean felt really uncomfortable. He didn't want to go into that right now. "No, I don't know. I have no money, so I will probably have to work with my dad, but can we talk about this some other time?" He looked at Gwen and it was perfectly clear that she was not ready to let this go. As she was about to open her mouth, Castiel came up behind her. "Here. Your drink." He handed her a water bottle before he sat down next to her.

"Oh, you're a dear. Thank you. Let us switch seats, I'm sure you want to sit with Dean." She leaned down to get her shoes before she practically pushed Cas away and sat down on his chair. "Come on sweetie. Sit here. She patted the chair between her and Dean as the stage got prepared to reveal the king and queen.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Jack was in a pickle. He was trying to heed John's words, but he couldn't help himself. For the first time in a long time, he was alone with Ianto, but he didn't know how long it would last. He could vaguely hear the leader of the crowning committee, and he knew that most of the student's were getting seated for the crowning.

When Ianto was done washing his hands, he headed straight for the door, but Jack blocked his escape. "Sorry, I just, er, can we talk for a minute?" He put his hand on Ianto's forearm, and when the guy didn't pull away, Jack squeezed it gently.

Ianto didn't look at him; his eyes seemed to focus on Jack's hand instead. "What about? Erm, thank you for the ticket. Madison told me that it was…" When Jack lifted his other hand and let it fingers brush gently over Ianto's cheek, Ianto stopped talking. "I wish thing were different. I would have wanted to get to know you. I'm sorry I've been such a jerk." Jack meant it wholeheartedly.

Finally Ianto eyes met his. He shook his head. "You haven't. You've just been, er, you." He sighed. "Everybody loves you, Jack. That you can be a little annoying at times, doesn't change that." Ianto emitted a little chuckle. "They want to be with you. They want to be... you. I'm sure you will make it. I'm sure you'll be famous. You have it, the it."

Jack barely managed to comprehend what Ianto was saying. The only thing he wanted to do at the moment was to kiss the guy. Even if it would be the only kiss he'd get he contemplated on taking the chance.

And there it was. How and why and what happened could not be explained, but suddenly the two of them were in a tight embrace, kissing each other violently. Hands were all over, and their bodies rubbed together. Ianto was a little clumsy, but it didn't matter. He was possibly a virgin.

When Jack brushed his hand over Ianto's crotch, the guy froze up and pulled away. Jack hurried to keep his hands to himself. "I'm sorry. I, we, I shouldn't have… I don't know what happened. This is crazy." He knew that they someone could walk in on them at any time. "Ianto, I'm leaving soon. This is pointless anyway."

Ianto closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "No. This is not pointless. I want this. I don't know how and when, but…" He faltered a little, and Jack could see that he was blushing. "I'm in love with you, and I know that you're leaving, but I want it anyway."

Jack got hit by the door as Unique came storming in. It was probably just luck that she didn't enter a minute ago. "What is taking so long? We missed you at the table, come on." The look on her face was not a happy one, and pretty much gave Jack the evil eye. He knew for sure that if anybody got wind of what happened in the restroom, he would be the scapegoat. He agreed. Whatever Ianto had said, it was still Jack who had behaved like a jerk.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Only one student from Glee club was nominated, and the whole choir had voted for him. John didn't expect to win anyway. He had pretty much abandoned the friends he'd made during the first three years of high school, so he didn't think he'd get many votes.

The most popular Cheerio, Lettie Humboldt, was probably a shoo in. She lived in John's neighborhood and was from an old Lima family. Quite rich, but a very nice and down to earth girl. John and her had been regarded as an item in middle school, but she didn't like that John was flirting with her cousin Jamie when he came visiting.

The two of them broke up, but stayed friends. However, for the last year they hadn't really been in touch much.

The quarterback from the football team was the best bet for that title as prom king. He did really well on the basketball team as well, and if the students wanted to elect someone with a good score, he would definitely be it. That the guy was born and bred in Lima, and that he was Lettie's current boyfriend, could probably help.

Jane and her date had come over to their table. They squeezed in nicely because a couple were missing. John looked around for Jack and Ianto, and got a little stressed when he couldn't see them. He leaned over to Unique and asked if she knew where they were.

Before she got a chance to say anything, Dean nodded towards the restrooms. "Ianto needed to go. Jack was dancing last time I saw him, but that was ages ago." Dean shrugged. "Maybe they are…" John didn't let Dean finish the sentence. "I'm going to get Ianto. If he went to the restroom before we got here, he'd been there an awfully long time."

Unique pushed him back in his seat. "I'm going. You are nominated. You stay put." She squeezed past him and took off.

Less than a minute later, Unique came back with Ianto in tow. Jack was walking behind them, and John knew from looking at them that something had happened. He wasn't able to read their expressions perfectly, but he was pretty sure that Jack had not heeded the agreement the two of them had made.

Jane moved to sit on her boyfriend's lap to make room for Jack, and Gwen got out of her seat so Ianto could sit before she sat down on his thigh.

"A Cheerio since freshman year. A lifelong Lima resident. The Prom Queen Lettie Humboldt." Scarlet, as John had know her as, ran up to the stage, and it wasn't hard to see that she was happy, but not particularly surprised. "Her king is also a long time Lima resident, and as far as we know, a former boyfriend. Let's hear it for John Hart."

The applause wasn't as loud as it had been for Lettie, but from his Glee club friends he got wild cheers. In his sophomore year, John did have a dream about this, but it had faded with the knowledge that his friends only liked him for his money. As he slowly walked towards the stage, he wondered if he was elected for his money or for his personality.

Lettie hugged him hard when he came up there. "I didn't expect... but this is good. Let's do this together."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Most of their speech was not something you'd put in a history book. John and the girl, Lettie, was giggling though most of it, but they managed to give thanks to those who had voted for them. That John hadn't prepared anything was not a surprise. He had not expected that he would have to.

At the end, Miss Humboldt managed to collect herself. "Sorry. I'm so sorry. I did prepare a speech, but this guy, this awesome guy, threw me off." She took John's hand. "We are humbled. Standing here with crowns on our heads, we are truly grateful for your support. The Cheerios and New Directions will cherish this. It's a team effort."

She gestured for her teammates to get up before she turned to the Glee-club table. "Come on, stand up. Let's hear it for the two best clubs at our school."

The descended the stage and prepared for their dance.

"When I need you

I just close my eyes and I'm with you

And all that I so want to give you

it's only a heartbeat away."

The two of them were using the whole floor dancing to the song, Everybody let them have an appropriate amount of time on their own before a few couples joined in.

"Miles and miles of empty space in between us

A telephone can't take the place of your smile

But you know I won't be traveling forever

It's cold out but hold out and do like I do."

Castiel raised from his seat and turned to Gwen. "May I have this dance?" He smiled widely as Gwen got up from Ianto's lap. She took his hand and they walked out on the dancefloor.

Cas wanted to dance with Dean, but he didn't dare to ask. He wasn't sure if Dean would have said yes anyway, Not only was he not a particularly good dancer, but most of his teammates were there, and Cas didn't want to embarrass him.

"When I need love

I hold out my hands and I touch love

I never knew there was so much love

keeping me warm night and day."