Falling Into Place (4/32)

[riftintime]

Title: Falling Into Place
Author: riftintime
Summary: Jack Harkness accepts a job at an IT company in Cardiff, hoping to begin a new life. When he's teamed up with a brilliant but broken Welshman, their lives may change in ways they never could have imagined. Jack/Ianto AU.
Pairings: Jack/Ianto. Also Jack/Gwen (sorry – trust me!), past Ianto/Lisa, past Jack/John, Owen/Katie, Tosh/Tommy, Gwen/Rhys.
Rating: Adult / NC-17 (overall story)
Warnings: Adult themes and situations, some course language, romance, angst.
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters created and owned by the BBC. No profit is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Author's Notes: Special thanks to my beta prothrombintime

Chapter List: http://riftintime.dreamwidth.org/4513.html

Chapter 4

"Thanks," Jack said as he collected his change and gave the barista a wide smile.

He picked up the tray of coffee and food, and made his way out of the busy café. Veering to the right, he walked towards one of the tables on the perimeter of the outside area. It was mid-afternoon, and the Plass looked vibrant under the clear, still sky.

He sat down and passed one of the cups of coffee to Tosh. Grabbing one of the chocolate muffins from the plate for himself, he pushed the remaining muffin across the table along with a fork and napkin. "I couldn't resist," he said with an impish grin.

Tosh reached for her purse but Jack held up his hand. "Oh, no you don't. My treat."

"Thanks, Jack." She smiled at him warmly.

Toshiko had liked Jack from the moment she'd met him on the first day he'd started work at Torchwood. They'd quickly become friends. Jack was a shameless flirt, but he was harmless and very funny. If Tosh was honest with herself, she enjoyed it. She considered herself to be a pretty good judge of character, and she'd seen that beneath Jack's larger than life persona, there was a genuine and compassionate man.

Her eyes shifted to the small brown bag that Jack had also placed on the table. "I got one for Ianto too," Jack explained. He shrugged and added, "He doesn't eat enough."

Tosh shook her head with a look of exasperation. "Tell me about it. He's always skipping lunch. I bring food in for him sometimes, but I almost have to force feed him."

"I bet he rolls his eyes at you when you give him that," she added with a bemused grin.

Jack leaned closer. "Can I let you in on a secret?" he asked in a conspiratorial tone.

Tosh nodded eagerly as she took a sip of her coffee.

"I've made up a little game. It's a point based system." Jack started counting off on his fingers. "One point for when he does that adorable suspicious frown. Two points for when he narrows his eyes and glares. Three points for an eye roll. Four points for the raised eyebrow of death. And ten points for a flirtatious wink. The last one's a work in progress. I keep score for the whole week." Jack grinned at her as he started attacking his muffin.

"I got fifty-two points last week," he added proudly. "I'm aiming for sixty this week."

Tosh giggled. "You're terrible, Jack. If he finds out, he's going to kill you. And he'll do it very slowly."

Jack grinned unrepentantly. "Well what's the point of life if not for a little risk taking now and then?"

"You seem to enjoy working with him," Tosh observed as she studied her friend.

"Well, its early days, but yeah, I do," Jack said sincerely. "He really is brilliant. I think he's still trying to work out what to make of me, but I'm slowly wearing him down. He can only resist my not inconsiderable charms for so long."

Tosh smiled at Jack's complete lack of humility. She was relieved that her two colleagues seemed to be getting along. She hadn't been expecting miracles, but as long as they could work together professionally, that was as much as she'd been willing to hope for. But to her complete surprise, she had noticed slight hints of an unlikely but tentative friendship of sorts forming between the two men. Jack was friendly and outgoing, so it didn't surprise her that he would attempt to befriend Ianto and win him over, but the Welshman's taciturn acceptance of Jack's efforts was more unexpected.

Her expression turned serious. "He can be very reserved. He takes time to warm to people. Under that stoic exterior, I think he's actually quite insecure. You'd never know it to look at him though."

She gave Jack a reassuring smile. "So don't take it personally if he seems abrasive sometimes. But beneath all that, he's a good man, and he has a big heart."

Jack nodded. "How long have you known him?" he asked curiously.

"We started working at Torchwood on the same day actually. Almost five years ago now. That's when we met."

Jack nodded again as he sipped his coffee. "I've been wanting to ask you..." he began. "Did something happen to him? He seems… I don't know… he's in pain. It's in his eyes. Do you know what that's about?"

"Um, sort of. But I'm not sure if I should say anything." Tosh paused, looking conflicted. "He'd be furious if he knew I was talking about him."

"Please, Tosh," Jack beseeched. "It's not a secret is it? I'm only asking out of concern for him."

"Well, no, I suppose it's not," she replied cautiously.

She trusted Jack. There was something about him that engendered a sense of safety and honesty, and she didn't think Jack would talk about anything she told him to anyone else. "All right. But I don't know the full story… at least I don't think I do."

"I don't want you to betray his confidence," Jack assured her. "Just tell me what you can."

Tosh nodded and sipped at her coffee before speaking again.

"He had a girlfriend. Lisa her name was. Lisa Hallett. Ianto adored her. He worshipped her. If she was in the room, it was as if no one else existed. He wanted to marry her, start a family, everything. They'd even bought a house together."

Tosh paused and frowned with a look of confusion. "And then something happened and she left him. I don't know why. It seemed to happen very suddenly."

Jack nodded and indicated for her to continue.

She took a deep breath. "He was completely devastated, Jack. He didn't come to work for over three weeks. I went to check on him at home the day after it happened. I just thought he was ill. You know, a stomach bug or something… and I found him in a really bad way. I was worried he was going to do something. Hurt himself, I mean. I didn't know what to do. So I called Owen."

"Owen?" Jack asked.

"Owen Harper. He's a doctor who does consultation work for the company," Tosh explained. "He and Ianto are friends."

"Anyway, Owen took charge of things. I'm not sure what he did, I think he must have taken Ianto away somewhere to get help. Owen just told me not to worry and that Ianto was being cared for. The next time I saw Ianto was when he came back to work, but he never told me anything more or where he'd been."

Tosh paused and sighed. "That's really all I know. I've always thought there must be more to it. I don't know if anyone knows the full story, except for Ianto and Lisa of course."

"Maybe Owen does though," she added.

"He must have thought he couldn't live without her," Jack contemplated with a pained expression on his face.

Tosh nodded sadly. "It sounds horrible to say, but I think that Ianto loves too much. His heart is too big and he doesn't hold anything back. He lost himself. He was so in love with Lisa that when she left, it almost destroyed him. He's never been the same since." Tosh sighed again. "He hides it well, but sometimes I can see how unhappy he is. It breaks my heart."

"Tosh, how long ago was this?" Jack asked quietly.

"Um, it's been about a year and a half now." Tosh looked lost in thought as she continued to sip at her coffee.

After a long moment, she spoke again, hesitantly. "I don't think he had a good childhood either. I don't know anything specific, just a few things he's let slip that suggested it wasn't happy. I've wondered if the only happiness he's ever had was with Lisa."

They sat in silence for several minutes, and Jack tried to process what Tosh had told him.

Tosh looked at Jack thoughtfully. "Jack, I'm sure that Ianto likes you. Or at least he will once he gets to know you better. And he doesn't have many friends. So maybe you could…" she trailed off uncertainly.

"Keep an eye on him?" Jack suggested carefully.

Tosh smiled gratefully and nodded. "I try to do what I can, try to be his friend, but I have a feeling that given time, he might respond more to you than he does with me. Just try to give him a chance."

"I will, Tosh," Jack promised, giving her a small but reassuring smile. "Thanks for talking to me."

He decided that a change of subject was desperately needed. "So, how are things going with you and Tommy?" he asked.

Tosh's face lit up. "Good! We're not rushing anything, but I like him a lot. He's a true gentleman, an old soul. He makes me feel special."

"That's great, Tosh. It really is," Jack smiled at her warmly. "You deserve it."

Jack knew that Tosh hadn't had the best of luck with love, so he hoped it would be different for her this time. She deserved someone who adored her. Jack had met Tommy Brockless several times and the young Englishman was obviously smitten with the very lovely and kind-hearted Toshiko.

They finished off and started walking back to work. Jack extended his arm to Tosh and gave a little bow. "May I have the pleasure of escorting you back to your place of employment Miss Sato?"

Tosh laughed and looped her arm through Jack's. "Why yes, kind sir, indeed you may."

Chapter 5

Comments

[missthingsplace]

I so love Tosh, she is a wonderful friend to Ianto in this :)