Title: All the time we have
Author: zazajb
Beta: The absolutely wonderful: ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
badly_knitted
Artwork by: the amazing penny_sieve
Rating: NC-17, adult concepts, occasional language, M/M
Warnings: mentions of character death end s2 and day 4 CoE
Pairings/Characters: Jack/Ianto, team
Spoilers – possible all s1-3 TW, plus radio 4 play The Dead Line: set between TW s2 & s3, directly after Radio 4 play The Dead Line
Summary: Following Ianto’s speech to Jack in The Dead Line, Jack tries to show Ianto he’ll never be just a blip in time
Word count: 23100
Written for TW Big Bang Round 2
A/N Not done anything quite like this before and I have to say I loved every minute! I have to say a huge thank you to my wonderful beta badly_knitted who shared the highs and sent me cookies and hugs when I was doubting my sanity [that’s a lorry-load of cookies and even more hugs!] Thank you *hugs close* Also special thanks to the amazingly talented penny_sieve who took my words and gave them life with her awesome artwork – thank you so much *raises a glass to you*
A/N 2 Hope you enjoy...xxx
All the time we have 8/8 + epilogue
Chapter 8
When Ianto woke two hours later it was with a huge smile on his face. He lay still, listening to Jack’s rhythmic breathing as it tickled the side of his neck, the heavy weight of the older man’s arm draped around his waist was warm and comforting. I love him...I want to stay with him for ever...here, in this bed...he closed his eyes again, comfortably drowsy... Somewhere, out of sight, his phone beeped a text message alert. His eyes opened and he frowned, wondering...he didn’t get many messages apart from those from Jack...
His curiosity piqued and he slid carefully out of bed, smiling down fondly at the sleeping man as he stirred and his arms closed around the pillow Ianto had moved in place of his own body. Satisfied that Jack was still sleeping, Ianto followed the trail of clothes in search of his trousers, which he found at the top of the ladder.
His message was from Rhi, reminding him of Mica’s birthday party to which he, plus one, was cordially invited...the sarcastic “it would be good to see you before next Christmas!” drawing a grunt and a roll of his eyes. He tapped out a reply, “...do my best – depends on work. Hope all well. I x” and pressed send, knowing the response that would prompt when it was received at the other end. He sighed, Rhi and he were just totally different people...and she’d ask way too many probing questions that he’d find impossible to answer...
His mind drifted and he imagined himself arriving with Jack, introducing him as his boyfriend... He bit his lip...was that what they were now? Were they a couple? Jack never really said anything like that...they just were...whatever it was, they were... He shrugged and slid quietly back down the ladder before going to the bathroom. After splashing his face and cleaning his teeth, he surveyed his reflection in the mirror. His hair was mussed, lips pink and swollen from all Jack’s delicious kisses, his neck was peppered with purple bruises and he had that ‘thoroughly well-shagged’ look that shone out of his eyes...I love him so much...
Remembering Mica’s card, he climbed back up the ladder. Jack was still asleep, a smile on his lips as he cuddled into the pillow... Ianto found his jacket by the invisible lift and pulled out the bag with the cards in it, heading to the kitchen where he planned to put some coffee on and record his message for Jack.
The coffee was soon brewing. He wrote in Mica’s card and put it in the envelope which he left unsealed so he could put some money in it. Then he studied the card for Jack. He’d chosen one that just said ‘A message for you...’ on the front with a picture of a puppy and an envelope. Following the printed instructions carefully, he recorded his message and then opened the card to check it. “Jack Harkness – I love you today, tomorrow and for all eternity...” played out clearly, his Welsh accent very evident, the whispered, “...I love you...” after a minute pause brought tears to his eyes as he remembered Jack would be listening to the message after Ianto had died. I don’t want to die...don’t want to leave him...
He shuddered and blinked back the tears. With any luck they could dig the capsule up in ten years time and update it...much better idea..! He picked up the pen and considered what to write, tapping the end of the pen thoughtfully against his lips... Something simple would be best... Jack, Yours...always... Ianto xxx He closed the card quickly and put it in the envelope, sliding the flap closed without sealing it.
Pouring the coffee, he picked up the mugs and the cards and headed back to the office. He propped Mica’s card up on the inkstand on Jack’s desk and slid the message card under the photos in the tin box, closing the lid quietly before climbing back down the ladder with their coffee, which he landed on the bedside cabinet. Jack was stirring, his sleepy eyes fluttering open to meet the radiant crystal blue gaze of his Welshman’s.
“Hey...sleep well?”
“Yeah...guess you wore me out!”
Ianto perched on the edge of the small bed and leant down to kiss his Captain lightly, tiny kisses that brushed lovingly against soft and sensual lips... Jack’s arms snaked around Ianto’s neck and pulled him closer as the kiss deepened and he opened his mouth to let Jack’s tongue in, where it explored the familiar territory possessively. Ianto let out a soft moan and moved his body to stretch out along the bed as their hands ran over each other’s warm flesh...
Ianto floated on the stars as Jack made love to him, tenderly, reverently...worshipping his body like it was the first time all over again until he was engulfed in wave after wave of glorious pleasure and he was powerless to stop the tears that spilled down his cheeks from the intensity of the emotions that coursed through him. Cupping his young lover’s cheeks, Jack brushed the tears away with his thumbs, pressing feather light kisses to his skin before holding him tightly as they buried their faces in each other’s hair...no words...just pure feelings...
They showered, washing each other tenderly, before dressing. Ianto pulled his Blue Gillespie t-shirt back on, stroking it gently over his torso as he tucked it into his jeans. It was strangely comforting to know that Jack would be able to hold this after he was gone...a little bit of him that would linger on...
They spent the next couple of hours printing out the pictures they’d taken, including an older one taken at Little Goat Farm in the hay loft, and some stills from the ‘Ianto files’ as Jack liked to call them... There were so many files – Ianto sat on Jack’s lap and they clicked on them at random...some were funny, some were downright hot and steamy and others were just him...doing what he did...handing out coffee, feeding Myfanwy, working on his computer...reassuring every day images...
“What’s this one?” Ianto pointed to a file called ‘Double Dare Bare”.
“Let’s have a look?” Jack chuckled, this was one of his favourites, showing a fun and carefree Ianto after a long and stressful day... He clicked ‘play’.
The recording jumped straight into a steamy clinch in Jack’s office with Jack’s hands clenched tightly by his sides... As they watched those hands suddenly moved to frame Ianto’s face as he was kissed passionately. When they pulled apart Ianto was grinning as he checked the stopwatch in his hand, Jack shaking his head before stripping his clothes off and heading to the invisible lift.
Once topside he stood and shivered as people walked past, oblivious to the naked man until a rather attractive brunette approached and Jack stepped off the slab, said “Good evening, you’re looking very lovely tonight!” and hopped back onto the slab to descend once more into the hub, where he was greeted with his clothes and a very amused Welshman. The brunette had giggled and then looked around bemused as the naked man had vanished. She’d glanced around her self-consciously before walking on...
Back in the hub, Jack had dressed and they’d sunk straight back into hot, wet kisses, only this time it was Ianto’s hands clenched by his sides, his slender fingers curling and uncurling as he resisted the urge to touch or respond while his Captain plundered his soft mouth...
Jack chuckled as the Ianto on his lap clenched his hands along with his screen self... ”...you know I’m going to win, don’t you..?” he purred seductively into his ear, pressing light kisses down the side of the young man’s neck as the on-screen Ianto folded and gave in to temptation, grabbing at his Jack and raking his hands wildly over his body and through his hair...
Ianto grinned ruefully, “...you know I can’t resist when you do that thing with your tongue...”
They watched as Ianto carefully removed his clothing and took the ‘Guide to Cardiff’ leaflet that Jack held out before ascending on the lift to take his turn shivering on the slab, finally stepping off to wish a middle aged couple a “very pleasant evening and how might I direct you tonight?” as he handed them the flyer and stepped back out of sight, his face pink, but grinning as he watched his Jack rolling around on the floor helpless with laughter as the lift brought him back down into the hub.
The clip ended with a very naked Welshman being thoroughly kissed and led off to the cubbyhole under the office.
Ianto buried his face in Jack’s chest, laughing. “I can’t believe I actually did that..! We must’ve had one hell of a day!”
“We have way too many of them sometimes...” agreed Jack, tipping Ianto’s chin up so he could kiss him. “Now, you hungry? We can get takeout and then put the rest of the capsule together while we wait for it..?”
They chose Chinese, Ianto ordered it and they added the pictures, a bag of favourite coffee beans, a model of a pteranodon that Jack had bought him some time previously and some leaflets from the Tourist Information to the tin. Jack rummaged in his office drawer and brought out a sheaf of post-it notes covered with Ianto’s neat writing, flicking through them fondly as the Welshman gazed at him. “You kept all my notes?” he asked, rather pointlessly, as that was pretty obvious, “...why?”
Jack shrugged, “...dunno really...I guess they’re part of you and I wanted to keep all of you around for as long as I could... I...” his words were cut off as Ianto’s mouth claimed his and he was kissed passionately and enjoyably for long minutes, breaking off briefly to draw breath before sinking back into more sweet and endless kisses. They pulled apart finally when the Tourist Information bell rang. Dinner had arrived. Ianto detached himself regretfully and headed upstairs.
Jack had a flick through the items in the tin whilst Ianto was gone, committing each to his memory... He stopped at the envelope with the card in...this was new... He hesitated, obviously it was something Ianto had put in without telling him, intending him to find it after he’d...after he’d died... The realisation of what this time capsule actually meant shot a bolt through his heart, his head immediately retreated... I can’t lose him...I need him...I love him...
He’d opened the envelope and pulled the card out before his brain had registered what his hands had done – after that it was pointless to resist... He opened it, those wonderful Welsh vowels filling his ears... “Jack Harkness – I love you today, tomorrow and for all eternity...” the whispered, “...I love you...” after a minute pause brought the sob that had stuck in his throat bursting out and he crumpled, clutching the card to him as tears flowed down his face.
Ianto came in balancing plates, two bottles of beer and the bag of Chinese food. Seeing his Captain sat on the floor sobbing, he dropped everything on the desk and sank down beside him, gathering the shaking man into his arms as he rocked them both gently. He threaded his fingers softly through Jack’s hair, dropping light kisses on his head as he whispered words of love and nonsense...
Gradually Jack’s sobs stopped and he clung on tightly, not wanting to let go for fear he’d wake up and Ianto would be gone... “Jack...” Ianto carefully peeled Jack’s fingers away from his arm and tipped his Captain’s head up from where it was buried in his chest, the t-shirt now wet with the older man’s tears...it will certainly smell of us both now... the random thought whizzing through his head.
“Jack...it’s ok...I’m here...”
Slowly Jack met the young man’s gaze, his eyes still shining with tears, his cheeks wet and lips trembling. Ianto pressed a tender kiss to those trembling lips as his hand brushed the tears away. He hugged his Captain tightly before gently removing the card from his hand and placing it back in the envelope. He dropped it back in the box.
“I guess we both know what this box really means...” he whispered as he tightened his hold once more, “ ...but I thought maybe we could plan to dig it up, together, in ten years time...to update it...”
“I’d like that...” Jack mumbled into Ianto’s chest, his breathing slowing as he regained control of his emotions. “I can handle that...better than...than...” I can’t lose him...
“Yeah, I know...” I don’t want to die...don’t want to leave him...
They held each other in silence, each absorbing the meaning of the capsule and vowing to make the absolute most of all the time they had...
It was some time before they moved, belatedly heating up their dinner which they ate sat on the raggedy sofa in the main hub, clinking their beer bottles in a toast “...to us...and long life...” both aware of the duel meaning of the words...
After clearing up the remains of their meal, they took their coffee outside, to the railings by the Tourist Information Office, Ianto leaning into Jack as his arm wrapped around the young man’s waist, keeping him close... Strains of music drifted down from Demiro’s Mediterranean Restaurant on the esplanade above them, the backdrop of happy evening chatter from the patrons floating on the early evening air. Ianto tilted his head, listening...as he recognised the sound of Ella Fitzgerald’s ‘Someone to Watch Over Me’. “Jack...dance with me...” adding a soft “...please...” as the older man hesitated. It’s like he’s saying goodbye...don’t...please don’t...
The expression on Jack’s face was unfathomable as he put their coffee mugs by the door and took Ianto into his arms and they swayed slowly to the heart-wrenchingly beautiful sound of Ms Fitzgerald. ‘Someone...’ was followed by ‘Ev’ry time We Say Goodbye’, ‘Black Coffee’ and by the time ‘Cry Me A River’ had finished they were locked together, kissing like it was the last time they would ever have...
Wordlessly, Jack pulled away and led Ianto back inside. He dumped their mugs on the counter and tugged the ties they’d bought earlier out of his pocket, selected one and shoved the others back. Gazing into the Welshman’s eyes, his unspoken question was answered by the blazing look of love and unconditional trust and the wrists that were offered. Reaching out, Jack slid Ianto’s jacket off his shoulders and folded it neatly on the counter next to the mugs before tying the young man’s hands together and leading him down into the hub, then down to his room.
As they landed from the climb down, Jack pressed Ianto’s arms over his head and tied them to the ladder before reclaiming his lips, his tongue diving into the welcoming mouth where it mapped every contour... He pulled away and attacked his neck, grazing the skin with his teeth before soothing it with his tongue, as he felt the shudders of desire running through the young man.
He continued across his throat and back up the other side of his neck, pausing at the juncture of neck and shoulder to suck the soft skin into his mouth, hard enough to leave a bruise and drawing a low moan of combined pain and pleasure from the pink, kiss-swollen lips of his captive Welshman. He returned to those wonderfully responsive lips and kissed them hard, pressing their bodies together as twin arousals strained against the woefully inadequate friction of their trousers. His hands slid down the young man’s body to tug his t-shirt out from his jeans, gathering the material in his fingers to push it up without removing it...
Ianto’s breath was coming in short gasps and pants as his Captain returned to the exploration of his body, trailing his tongue down through the soft, downy hair on his chest to circle a nipple, teasing the nub of flesh with his teeth before sliding across to give the other side equal attention. Ianto writhed and moaned and thrust against the warm mouth, his head thrown back, eyes closed and lips parted...
He gasped as Jack’s hands moved lower and undid his belt...then the button and finally inched his zip down, pressing against the swelling with the heel of his hand to tease a loud moan from those delicious lips... Jack’s hands explored the heated flesh just inside the waistband of the jeans, his fingers light and the touch sensual, before hooking his thumbs over the fabric on either side and pulling down trousers and boxers together...
Ianto’s groans increased in volume as Jack’s mouth followed his hands southwards and he was engulfed in the moist heat, tongue and teeth going to work on his sensitive flesh... Jack grinned to himself at the carnal sounds emanating from his quiet Welshman, reaching up to offer his fingers for sucking before dancing them back to press against the entrance to Ianto’s body... A mewl escaped the young man as one finger pushed in, followed by a second, brushing that magic spot to set him gasping with pleasure. Jack increased the pressure with his mouth, feeling the telltale signs, finally humming as Ianto exploded in his mouth, crying Jack’s name out as he shuddered through waves of blissful ecstasy...
Jack slid back up the young man’s body to crush their lips together, Ianto tasting himself on his Captain’s tongue. Pulling away, Jack swiftly undid his belt, button and zip, pushing his trousers and underwear down to pool around his ankles, turning his lover round to face the ladder as he groped in his coat pocket for the lube. He warmed it on his hand before coating himself and pushing in slowly, relishing the feel of the tight heat around him. He stilled for a moment, an impatient whimper falling from his Welshman’s lips, before he began moving...finding the familiar rhythm that had them both panting and thrusting together until Jack cried his release and slumped forward, his head resting on Ianto’s back.
As their breathing returned to normal, Jack reached up to release Ianto’s hands from the ladder and turned him back round, the young man immediately sliding his still-tied wrists over his Captain’s head as they kissed tenderly. Finally breaking apart many long minutes later, Jack untied Ianto’s hands and kissed his wrists softly. Then he tugged the t-shirt over his head and climbed up the ladder to place both the t-shirt and the tie into the box, laying the t-shirt at the bottom as a lining and replacing the pictures, toys, memory sticks, card, coffee beans, post-its and the tie on top. He leant down and inhaled the unique scent that was his Welshman, closing his eyes as he closed the lid and sealed the box, before turning to meet the young man’s tear-filled eyes as he watched from half way up the ladder. That’s me...in a box...memories for when I’m dead...
Neither spoke as Jack returned to his room and led them to the shower where they washed and dried each other gently before sliding under the covers to hold each other tightly until they were claimed by sleep.
They woke early the next morning, saying little, both content to hold and touch and kiss...this wasn’t about pleasure but it was about unspoken commitment...about promises...or as close to those things as they were able to go, given the unconventional nature of life...and death...at Torchwood...
At seven o’clock they got up and Ianto made a flask of coffee. He was wearing his favourite navy pinstripe, an aquamarine shirt and his new deep red tie. Somehow it was important for him to look his best today... They loaded the box into the SUV and set off, the radio playing the very appropriate Nat King Cole ‘Unforgettable’... Jack flicked a glance across at Ianto’s pale face, watching as the young man nibbled nervously at his bottom lip...
“We’ll be back...in ten years...” Jack’s voice was quiet...thoughtful...
“Ten years...yeah...” If I’m still alive...
“We’ll dig it up and go through everything and then we’ll add some more to it and bury it again...for another ten years...” I can’t lose him...I can’t live without him...
“Yeah...” The track ended, to be replaced with ‘We have all the time in the world”. Ianto couldn’t help but grin ruefully at the DJ’s choice of songs. He reached his hand over to rest it on Jack’s knee, his Captain covering it with his own and squeezing gently, understanding that for now this was enough...they’d keep doing what they did best – save the world, eat pizza...the usual...
The climb was punishing, the box cumbersome, although not heavy, and they were panting hard when they reached the top, leaning against the oak tree they’d sat under last time. Ianto took the pack off his back and pulled out the two collapsible shovels, unfolding and securing the handles before handing one to Jack. They dug in silence until the hole was big enough and about three feet deep before settling the box in its new resting place and covered it with the displaced earth, treading it down firmly.
When it was done, Jack pulled Ianto into his arms and kissed him tenderly. “We’ll be back in ten years...ok…?” Ianto nodded, unable to speak as he pressed himself against his Captain, the arms around him tightening instinctively as their lips met...softly...what they couldn’t put into words was shown in actions... It was long minutes until they broke apart...
Pouring the coffee, Ianto handed Jack a travel mug and picked up his own. They stood and gazed out over the city, sipping their drinks... Finally, cups emptied and shovels packed away, they headed slowly back down the hill hand in hand...
Nearing the bottom, Jack’s wrist strap beeped... He looked at Ianto who rolled his eyes and arched an eyebrow... Bloody Torchwood!
Jack grinned, “Hoix in the bus station...you good to go?”
Ianto grinned back, “...always..!” as he broke into a run following Jack’s billowing coat tails. This was their life and it would never change - no matter what personal stuff was going on, it would always be business as usual...
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A week later the children stopped...
Epilogue http://zazajb.livejournal.com/23436.html
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