m_findlow | Torchwood: Fanfic: Craving attention

Title: Craving attention
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Jack, Ianto
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 1,212 words
Content notes: none
Author notes: Written for badly_knitted's prompt "Torchwood, Jack/Ianto, My concern for you and peanut butter is the reason I am still awake" at fic_promptly
Summary: Love, in all its forms, will keep you awake at night

Jack was over the moon with excitement at the thought that in just a few weeks he and Ianto were going to be parents. It was something he'd always wanted, ever since the very first day he'd fallen head over heels for the attractive young man, but always something he'd thought they would never have. They worked for Torchwood, and that meant that there was every chance their time together would be fleeting. They were also in the kind of relationship that made it virtually impossible to have kids, even if he'd thought for a second Ianto might want them.

Instead, by some miracle of the gods, not only were they still together, they were married, immortal and impossibly happy at the thought of spending eternity together. And to top it all off, thanks to the magic of the universe, they were pregnant, or at least Ianto was.

It had been completely unexpected. If anything, Jack had been prepared to go through the ordeal, having accidentally been pregnant before, but the Gods had deigned that things should be different. He still couldn't believe the news when Owen had delivered it, and Ianto had been shocked, but excited. He loved Jack so much that it didn't matter to him which one of them was pregnant, or how; only that they were. They'd become even more deliriously happy when a few weeks later Owen had run their first official scan and revealed that they weren't just expecting; they were expecting times three.

Triplets! Jack had nearly fainted right then and there. He'd thought that Ianto looked big, but that explained why. There'd been plenty of tears that day from just about everyone, but all of them happy and filled with joy.

Since then, Jack had been on cloud nine, with every day bringing them a new experience, watching the life they'd created, growing before their very eyes.

Jack had been firm that ever since finding out the important news, that Ianto be restricted to light duties, which Ianto naturally protested against, complaining that Gwen had been allowed to work almost up to her due date. Jack was feisty in his resistance to any and all arguments, even Owen's which suggested he could work up to six months. Eventually Jack had to concede some ground knowing that coming home to a very annoyed husband would be tantamount to divorce proceedings. All he really wanted was for Ianto to be out of harm's way, should something bad happen. He might be immortal, but the tiny lives he carried inside him might not be.

He was rightly pleased when even Ianto began to confess that he was getting tired during the day, often found asleep on his desk or snoozing on the sofa. Jack found it adorable, even though Ianto was annoyed with himself every time he caught himself doing it. Finally at thirty four weeks, he'd given up altogether, accepting that lounging on the sofa at home was about as much as he could manage.

It hadn't taken Jack long to realise that as much as he'd wanted Ianto at home, the hub couldn't say the same. Within days, the manic nature of their jobs had the place in complete disarray, with no one dedicated to picking up after them, in amongst all those other little daily tasks that everyone took for granted. Whenever the question came up at home, Jack lied and told him that they'd all been making an extra effort to keep the place in ship shape condition. Then he'd cringe when he walked in the next morning, feeling a pang of guilt at the state of the place, and spending the first half hour trying to clear away the worst of it, praying that the next thing to fall through the rift might be some kind of magic cleaning pixies.

Jack had tried to be home as often and as regularly as possible, but it seemed that the rift had other ideas, spewing forth an obscene amount of aliens and intergalactic brick-a-brack, as if daring him to look the other way, just for a moment. And with a man down, it only made their jobs harder.

Some of their efforts made the news, being unable to contain the situation and to retcon all the witnesses before they were on their phones to the media. It was just one more of the things he'd come to rely upon Ianto for, and his uncanny ability to pick up the pieces of any alien disaster, tying up loose ends seamlessly. If he was honest, it was a right mess, and he'd have to think very seriously about engaging more people to help, especially if he was planning on taking off an extended period of time to spend with their new family.

He trudged into their house very late, almost tempted to crash on the couch before finally staggering tiredly up the stairs, finding the light in their bedroom still on.

He crawled onto the bed, curling up against Ianto who was propped up on several pillows. Jack reached over and began rubbing slow circles on his stomach which was now very large and round.

'Why are you still up? It's three am. You should be resting.'

Ianto smiled wearily, running his own hand through Jack's hair. It felt greasy and in need of a wash, but he wasn't about to send him off for a shower just yet, just glad he was finally home.

'I've been watching your exploits on the news,' he replied.

'Which ones? The stampede of Oliphants in Asda, or the Pyroceans that tried to burn down the castle?'

'The terrorist who tried to hold up the Millennium Centre. He looked like a Farkian bounty hunter to me.'

'Oh, that one,' Jack said, having lost track of the day's events.

'I was worried about you,' Ianto said, his hand pausing for a moment. 'They don't just turn up here for a holiday, you know.'

Jack continued his ministrations in earnest, trying to soothe Ianto's unease.

'He wasn't after me. Though he did admit that he'd heard some interesting stories about me from back in the day. Owen took him out before he could take a shot at anyone. His intended victim has been sent on a one way trip back to the Centauri cluster, with a strict request that he never come back here.'

'That's good,' Ianto said, sounding vague and distant.

Jack looked up at him, seeing the distracted look etched on his face.

'You could've called me if you were that worried. I don't want you up until all hours of the night. I'm fine. I'll always be fine.'

'That's okay. My concern for you and peanut butter is the reason I am still awake.'

'Peanut butter?' Jack queried, sitting up, looking confused, before spying the empty jar and spoon on the bedside table.

'Yeah, these damn cravings are a nightmare. Earlier it was fish fingers with capsicum dip, and this morning weetabix smothered in raspberry jam.'

Jack yawned and chuckled. 'Do we still have that jar of Nutella?'

'Yep. But not for long I'm guessing. Now that you've mentioned it, that sounds really good.'

Jack leaned down and kissed Ianto's belly. 'I'll go get it.'

'Bring two spoons.'

Torchwood: Fanfic: Craving attention

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