bk_forever | Ficlet: Promises To Keep (Reply)

Title: Promises To Keep

Characters: Jack, Ianto.

Rating: PG

Spoilers: Nada.

Summary: Despite his best efforts, Jack’s having trouble keeping a promise to Ianto, a fact that’s making the Welshman less than happy.

Word Count: 384

Written For: My own prompt ‘Torchwood, Jack, Ianto, "Jack's nuts roasting on an open fire...",’ at fic_promptly.

Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters. They belong to the BBC.

After a particularly nasty death when he’d accidentally been chopped in half and the two parts had taken several hours to rejoin, Jack had promised Ianto not to get himself killed as often. And he was trying, honestly he was, it was just that a recent spate of Rift activity was making it rather difficult to keep his promise.

In the last three days, he’d been electrocuted, hit by a runaway bus, crushed by a stray dinosaur, shot by an alien laser, strangled by his own braces, and had fallen downstairs breaking his neck. Needless to say, Ianto was becoming somewhat miffed with him. Every death brought forth another disapproving glare; Jack was starting to feel like he was walking on eggshells around his lover, especially when Ianto had to repair the coat, or worse, get bloodstains out of it.

Matters weren’t being helped by the fact that Christmas was fast approaching. Decorations were up all over the city; everywhere they went carols were being sung, but Ianto was in a far from festive mood. Indeed, things were becoming so bad that after his last death, Jack had revived to the strains of Ianto singing “Jack’s nuts roasting on an open fire, Weevils nipping off his nose…”

Once he was clean and presentable again, Jack made his way to the archives, where Ianto had retreated as soon as they’d returned to the Hub, approaching the irate Welshman cautiously.

“Ianto? I’m sorry; I’m not getting myself killed on purpose. I’m trying to avoid dying, but everything seems to be conspiring against me.”

Turning away from his filing, Ianto looked at Jack and sighed heavily. “I know, Jack, it’s just no fun waiting for you to revive and wondering if this will be the time you don’t.”

“I understand, and I’d do anything to keep from putting you through that. I don’t suppose we have a suit of armour in the archives, do we?”

Ianto smiled wryly. “If we did, with the way your luck’s going at the moment, you’d put it on and get attacked by a giant can opener.”

“So, am I forgiven?”

“Yes. No sense blaming you for something that’s not your fault. Just promise you’ll always come back to me?”

“I promise.”

“I suppose that will just have to be good enough.”

The End