m_findlow

Title: Life's a beach
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Ianto, Jack
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 500 words
Content notes: none
Author notes: Written for Challenge 467 - Beach at slashthedrabble
Summary: Some dates are just not meant to be

'It's not beach weather, Jack,' Ianto protested, as Jack continued packing towels and other items into a large picnic basket. About the only thing missing was actual picnic food itself.

Jack paused what he was doing for a moment and considered his lover. 'Ianto, this is Wales. It's never beach weather.'

'Precisely my point.'

'Then why does Wales have beaches if not to enjoy them?'

'Look, I can't help it if God thought it was funny to put beaches in places where there's no sunshine and warm summer days.'

'Or,' Jack said, 'he put them there because sunshine and warm summer days are not an essential component of going to the beach.'

'Of course,' Ianto replied. 'How silly of me to make such a ridiculous presumption on the creation of the universe.'

Jack slapped the picnic basket shut. 'We've got today all to ourselves. Would you rather be boring and stay at home all day or get out there and enjoy nature in all its glory?'

He'd contemplated enjoying something in all its glory, but nature wasn't it. 'You're missing the food component,' he stated, conceding that arguing with Jack was a wasted effort.

'Figured we'd stop past that little Italian deli on the way and pick up some baguettes and almond cake. You fix us some coffee to take and we'll be ready to go.'

By the time Ianto had brewed a thermos full of coffee, Jack had the basket packed in the back of the car. Ianto added their coats, two more blankets, umbrellas, rain slickers and a spare towel. Just because Jack wasn't prepared for the Welsh outdoors...

'Looks like it's going to rain,' Ianto said, leaning his head towards the passenger window as Jack powered down the motorway, heading for the coast.

'You always say that.'

'Nine times out of ten, I'm right. Who goes to the beach when it's going to rain?'

'Exactly,' Jack replied. 'We'll have the whole beach to ourselves.'

'In the rain. How romantic.'

'Don't be such a grump, Ianto. You never know. This might be the one day you're wrong.'

As it happened, they managed to get everything set up on an isolated patch of beach, laying out their picnic blanket, setting out plates and cups, pouring the coffee and unwrapping the freshly made baguettes.

Ianto was just about to comment on how beautifully rugged the shoreline was, and how the slightly grey sky added to the gravity of the view when the first raindrop caught him by surprise, hitting him square on the nose. After that, they came thick and fast, quickly soaking the pair of them as they scrambled to pack everything away, tipping out perfectly good coffee from their mugs into the now wet sand and running back to the shelter of the SUV.

'Didn't I tell you it looked like rain?' Ianto said, patting himself down with the towel he'd cleverly thought to pack.

'You just have to be right all the time, don't you?' Jack replied.