Slashthedrabble Challenge 479 - Quite a fright

[m_findlow]

Title: Quite a fright
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Ianto/Jack
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 500 words
Content notes: none
Author notes: Written for Challenge 479 - Frightened at slashthedrabble
Summary: Even the mundane can provide its share of scares.

'Hey, watch it!' Jack said, grabbing Ianto hard by the arm as he'd only just finished crossing the road, Jack jogging fast behind him to catch up. He'd assumed Jack was right behind him.

'What?' Ianto asked.

'Cutting it a bit fine, weren't you? That soccer mom nearly clipped you in her SUV.'

'She was nowhere near me,' Ianto argued. 'I can cross the road all by myself, you know.'

'Would you please be more careful?'

'I was being careful.'

'No, you weren't.'

Ianto wanted to huff but he saw the look on Jack's face that told him when was annoyed with him for some reason, which may or may not have anything at all to do with him not being careful.

'Fine,' he said, pulling his arm out of Jack's grip. 'I'll be more careful in future.'

'Thank you.'

As they walked down the street, Ianto was absently watching the ends of Jack's coat flapping around his long strides before he moved his eyes upwards to take in the silent expression held tightly on his face.

'You look like you've seen a ghost, Jack. Don't tell me you were frightened?'

'You were inches away from being cleaned up by a car. Of course I was frightened.'

Ianto scoffed a laugh. 'I didn't think you were frightened of anything.'

He was frightened about a lot of things, but losing Ianto was right up there. He knew there were a hundred things he could do that would drive Ianto away, a careless word here, a presumption there, but he most certainly didn't want to lose him over something so stupid as an error in judgement. A job with all the dangers in the world and he could be gone in the blink of an eye from something as simple as a harried mother trying to beat the school run.

One second Ianto had been right there beside him. He'd turned his head to read a billboard plastered across the side of a bus as it skeltered past and then Ianto was gone. A moment later and the flash of a bright red SUV caught his eye, just a foot from where Ianto had been stood on the road, screaming past. Without thinking, Jack bolted across the road, expected to find him crumpled in the gutters. Instead he practically slammed into Ianto himself, having just stepped up onto the pavement, hidden by the blur of red paintwork. If Ianto hadn't known the car was there, or coming at him that fast, he certainly didn't show it.

Jack kept walking, not wanting to make eye contact. This time it was Ianto who grabbed his arm.

Jack, stop.'

'Why? You didn't. Maybe I should just step back out onto the road and pray to God I don't get hit.'

'Now you're just being silly. I looked both ways, twice, crossed the road, and nobody died. If you're going to make a fuss over that, I'll never be allowed out of the house ever again.'

Comments

[jo02]

Jack probably, seriously considers this every second day of the year.

Such a shame it was on one of those not-confined-to-home days when CoE happened.

[m-findlow.livejournal.com]

I'm fairly certain no amount of pleading from Jack would keep Ianto homebound when there's work to do.

[bk_forever]

Have to admit I'm on Jack's side. It's unfair of Ianto to belittle Jack's concern for him, too many drivers are careless and no matter how careful you are crossing a road, it's not always enough.