Work Text:
Title: Bruises and Heartache
Authors: ally_p_x and nhj28
Characters: Jack/Ianto, Owen
Rating: PG
Spoliers: Combat
Beta: The shiny star that is crowson75
A/N: Thanks to likestowrite for the title.
Jack stormed out of Owen's hospital room without so much as a backward glance at the doctor. Owen's words kept spinning round his head. How had the young doctor reached a place that facing off against a Weevil gave him peace? As for the idea that he hadn't wanted saving...
Jack pushed through a pair of doors, almost upending a cleaner mopping the corridor floor. He barely registered the old man's presence as he strode towards the hospital exit, coat billowing behind him, his expression unreadable. The cleaner stared at Jack's retreating figure before resuming his duties, splashing water on the floor and mopping vigorously, muttering darkly about young people and their lack of respect.
Jack stepped out into the car park of the hospital, the grey sky and gathering clouds doing nothing to improve his mood. He stood motionless, fists clenched, the breeze ruffling his coat around him. The exchange with Owen kept playing in his mind.
"Do you always know best, Jack? Is that what you believe?"
Jack had wanted to plead his case and tell Owen "No...That's not what I think, but it's what you all expect of me, all the time. There are things I can't put right, however much I want to. It's me who has to make the decisions that no-one else wants to make.' His thoughts remained unspoken.
Seeing Owen like that had both disturbed and upset Jack. The young doctor had sounded so desolate, so desperate to escape the pain he felt at Diane's leaving.
With a muttered curse, Jack turned in the direction of the SUV. Before he had time to think about what he was doing, he found himself pulling his arm back and punching the wall full pelt. The force made him recoil slightly and instantly, pain coursed across his knuckles. He let out a sigh, shook his head at his own stupidity and crossed the car park rapidly.
Jack reached the SUV still flexing his hand. He winced as he turned the key in the ignition, but that pain was minor compared with the headache Owen's words dancing through his brain were starting to trigger. He floored the accelerator, tearing out of the car park and just narrowly missing a pedestrian. The hospital was the last place he wanted to be right now.
x x x x x x x x x x
Ianto was sorting through box files in the back room of the Tourist Office, when the tracker in the SUV sent an alert message to his PDA signaling that Jack's return was imminent. Ianto reached for his jacket and put it back on before sweeping aside the beaded curtain, which separated his domain from the rest of the Tourist Office, and making his way to the other side of the counter.
The door to the fake office was propped open, and Ianto groaned inwardly as he met three tourists on the threshold.
"Hey, you're still open, right?" asked a middle aged woman.
"Yes," Ianto lied. "How can I help you?" He fished in his pocket for the name badge he kept there and attached it to his lapel. It was a small detail, but Ianto felt it reinforced the illusion that he did indeed work for the Cardiff Tourist Board.
Twenty minutes later; after he had helped them to book "a hotel better than that dump last night", sung the praises of Cardiff Castle, and gone through the Millennium Centre's whole programme of events for the next month, Ianto was ready to push them out of the door. Usually he enjoyed this relatively normal part of his duties, but Jack must surely be back by now and Ianto was anxious to see if he had calmed down while he had been at the hospital.
The elder of the two women was still muttering about the size of the hotel room from the previous night. The man, who was obviously her husband, looked apologetically at Ianto. He smiled back, sympathetically.
"Well" she said eventually, "You've been real helpful..." she peered at his name badge and mispronounced his name horribly.
"Ianto. Ianto Jones," he supplied helpfully.
"I knew a Welsh guy called Jones, what was his other name?" She turned to her husband.
"David? Sounded like David, anyhow."
"No, it was Daffyd."
Ianto winced at the pronunciation.
"Is he a relative of yours?"
It took another five minutes of patiently explaining that Jones was a rather common Welsh surname, before Ianto was able to usher them out into the rain and close the door behind them. He let out a deep breath and locked the door with slightly more enthusiasm than was strictly necessary. Then, he straightened his tie and made his way over to the counter to activate the door release into the Hub.
As the cog door opened, Ianto began scanning the Hub looking for Jack. After a glance at all of the obvious places, he felt his heartbeat start to increase. He took a deep breath and swallowed down the panic he was starting to feel. Something in his peripheral vision made him turn in the direction of the battered old sofa and, sure enough, there sat Jack, slumped with his head in his hands.
Without a murmur, Ianto turned and made his way to the coffee machine. He quickly set the beans of Jack's special blend grinding, before moving them to brew. Whilst the coffee steeped, Ianto glanced quickly over his shoulder to make sure Jack hadn't moved, and then carefully retrieved the well-hidden bottle of scotch that he kept for times like these. He added a good slug to each mug and then, taking a deep breath, headed in the direction of his seemingly broken lover.
"Did Owen not like the grapes, Sir?" he asked, handing Jack the mug of coffee. Jack didn't reply. He sat upright on the sofa, nodded his thanks for the coffee and drank a mouthful. His eyes widened as he tasted the alcohol and he looked at Ianto.
"Spiking the bosses coffee again, Ianto?"
"You looked like you needed it," Ianto replied. He perched on the arm of the settee, Jack's shoulder digging into his waist. Ianto sat quietly, sipping his coffee, waiting for Jack to speak. He had learnt that pushing Jack for explanations was likely to, at best, result in him clamming up completely or worse, in Ianto's opinion, result in Jack putting on a dazzling smile and pretending nothing was wrong at all.
"I won't apologise for saving him, Ianto." Jack said abruptly, accusingly, as if he expected Ianto to contradict him.
"Sir?" Ianto frowned, confused by Jack's tone.
"Owen told me that he didn't want saving... that he felt at peace in that cage." Jack's voice was rising in anger. "How has he got into that state of mind again?"
"His behaviour has been somewhat erratic since Miss Holmes' departure, Sir." Ianto offered by way of some tangible explanation. Again, he wondered what had Jack meant by that?
Jack leaned back against the back of the settee, hand raking through his hair, and let out a huge sigh. He turned his head to look at Ianto.
"I swore I wouldn't let this happen again, not after last time, not after..." Jack stopped suddenly. It was as if he was checking his words, not wanting to give too much away.'
"After Lisa, you mean?" Ianto said softly, his eyes downcast.
"No, that's not what I meant," Jack said reassuringly, presumably realising he needed to give Ianto some sort of explanation. "When I first met Owen... when I recruited him to Torchwood... he was,well, let's just say he needed my help." Ianto looked at him patiently, waiting for him to continue. "I'm just not sure I can help him this time, I want to but..." Ianto put a hand on Jack's shoulder.
"Shove up," he said. Jack moved across the settee as Ianto slid off the arm into the space he had vacated. "You'll find a way, Jack, " Ianto said confidently. "You...we...we will find a way." Ianto's arm went around him, pulling him in closely, feeling Jack relax into his embrace.
"Sometimes, I don't know how I ever managed without you" Jack laid a hand on Ianto's thigh, palm upwards in invitation.
"I'm sure I don't either." Ianto gave a small smile and threaded his fingers through Jack's, squeezing his hand. Jack winced and hissed in pain. Ianto slowly turned their joined hands over and took in the sight of Jack's cut and bleeding knuckles. He looked quizzically at Jack, eyebrows raised.
"I err...think I might have bled on your suit."
"Don't worry about that now. You alright?" Ianto asked. Jack nodded and he kissed him on top of the head. "Let's get that hand seen to then." Ianto led Jack down to the medbay
"Sit there," he directed, gently pushing Jack towards the table whilst turning towards the storage drawers. "Now. where will Owen have shoved the first aid kit?"
After a couple of false starts, he finally opened the right cupboard door and found the sizeable green box that contained the supplies Owen kept for minor injuries picked up out in the field. Ianto carried it over and put it down next to Jack. He pulled out a pack containing sterile gloves, followed by a pack of cotton wool, then the small bowl Owen used for water.
"Ianto, I swear that if a bottle of TCP is the next thing that comes out of that box, I won't be responsible for my actions"
"It's a perfectly good antiseptic, Sir"
"I'm sure it is but does it have to smell so bad?"
"My mother always said that the worse things smelt or tasted, the better they did you. Sadly Owen seems to subscribe to your anti-TCP views, so we'll have to do with these antiseptic wipes. Now, let me just get some water." Ianto filled the bowl with lukewarm water. He settled himself on a rolling stool in front of Jack, and reached out. "Hand?"
"This isn't going to hurt is it?" Jack asked, as he tentatively put his hand into the younger man's.
"I can't believe a time travelling war hero can be such a wuss. Now, shush and let me sort this mess out." Ianto dipped the first piece of cotton wool into the bowl, and gently started to wipe it across the bruised and bloodied knuckles. Jack tried his hardest to stifle a wince. Ianto ignored him and continued to clean each knuckle in turn. When he had finished washing the last of them, he sat back and looked up at the older man.
"Okay?"
Jack nodded, "I guess it's not hurting too much."
"Just the antiseptic now. Who knows what bugs and things were crawling on the hospital wall? What made you think that punching it was going to solve anything?"
"How did you...?"
"Well, this isn't the first time you've had to have your knuckles cleaned up is it? You'd think you'd have learnt by now. Okay, hold still." Ianto took the antiseptic wipe out of its packaging, and worked his way slowly and carefully across each knuckle. When he'd finished, he put the wipe to one side and then gently bowed his head and pressed a soft kiss to each knuckle.
"There, I think that should do it."
Jack smiled and got to his feet. He flexed his injured hand experimentally. "Thank you, starting to feel better already."
Ianto busied himself tidying the equipment away and returning the First Aid box back to the cupboard. As he tidied, he replayed the conversation they had been having when he'd discovered Jack's wounds.
"What did you mean...?"
"I'll be in my office." The older man cut across him, "Come and find me when you're done."
Ianto sighed. The trust and communication between them was so much better now than it had been a few months ago, but the speed at which Jack put his barriers up still frustrated him at times. He took one last look around the med bay and, satisfied that Owen would never know they'd been in there, headed back up the stairs as instructed.
Ianto crossed Jack's office, walked around the desk and leaned against it. Jack looked up at him and pushed his paperwork to one side.
"I should suspend him, really. Owen." Jack sighed deeply. "I'm not sure if it's the way to go, but...I don't really know what else to do."
"Do you have to decide now?" Ianto asked carefully. "You could sleep on it...talk to him properly tomorrow."
Jack nodded. "Probably best." He placed his hand on Ianto's leg, rubbing his thumb over the material of the trousers. "Will you stay?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
Ianto covered the hand with his own.
"Of course."
x x x x x x x x x x
When Owen arrived the next morning, Ianto was readying the reception office for opening. Jack had only mentioned the doctor once since the previous night, merely asking Ianto to send Owen to his office as soon as he arrived.
Ianto took in the drawn expression and livid bruises still visible on Owen's face.
"Owen," Ianto greeted him. "Good to have you back. How are you fee....?" Owen dismissed the enquiry with a curt nod, which Ianto chose to ignore before continuing. "Jack wants to see you in his office. Right away he said."
Owen nodded again and Ianto leaned across the counter to operate the door release, allowing Owen to enter the Hub. Still clutching his leaflets, Ianto watched him leave with a concerned expression on his face.
Having prepared his domain to his satisfaction, Ianto returned to the Hub. His eyes were immediately drawn in the direction of Jack's office. Jack was sitting behind his desk and, to Ianto's relief, appeared calm enough. Owen, in contrast, was pacing the office and looked angry. He sat down heavily in the chair opposite Jack, arms crossed against his chest, his body language defensive.
Ianto continued to watch, nerves frayed, ready to intervene if the confrontation escalated. Jack got to his feet, walked around the desk and laid a hand on Owen's shoulder. The younger man slumped visibly in the seat. He looked up at Jack, nodded, and smiled briefly before making his way out of the office, leaving the door open. Ianto caught Jack's eye and raised his eyebrows, mouthing 'Everything alright?'. Jack smiled gently at him and nodded. He motioned with his hand for Ianto to follow the doctor, who was heading for the entrance to the lower levels of the Hub. Ianto hurried to catch up with Owen, wracking his brain for something suitable to say. Everything he could think of sounded either incredibly trite or false.
They reached the cells and, to Ianto's surprise, Owen headed straight towards Janet. Considering the damage the caged Weevil had caused him, the young man had assumed she'd be the last thing Owen would want to see right now.
"Owen, what are we doing down here?"
The doctor turned and looked at Ianto, seeming a little surprised to see him. He didn't say anything but turned back towards the row of cells.
"You sure you'll be all right?"
Owen turned again and held his hand up, clearly not wanting Ianto watching over him
"Give us a moment alone, yeah?"
Ianto did as he asked, walking back out to the corridor outside the cells. He wasn't going to begin to try and work out Owen's state of mind, though he was sure the impact of the last few days would be felt for a while yet.