Slashthedrabble Challenge 522 - Visiting hours

[m_findlow]

Title: Visiting hours
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Ianto, Jack, OC
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 500 words
Content notes: none
Author notes: Written for Challenge 522 - Top Songs of 1983 - # 1 Dexy's Midnight Runners - "Come On Eileen"at slashthedrabble
Summary: Jack is wearing out his welcome at the hospital.

'Mister Harkness!' came the abrupt squawk as the curtains around the bed were drawn back like the cracking of a whip. Jack nearly tumbled out of the bed right there and then.

The nurse scowled at Jack with unbridled anger. 'Visiting hours are until eight. It's half past ten! I should have you struck off the ward permanently.'

Jack wanted to growl at her. Not only had she woken them, but probably half the hospital.

'Off the bed, now! I won't tell you again. Beds are for patients only.'

'Come on, Eileen. Give me a break.' He wanted to call her nurse ratchet, but even invoking her name with his usual charms had done nothing to endear him to her. 'We were watching TV and Ianto fell asleep. I didn't have the heart to get up and wake him. He's had little enough sleep for days as it is.'

She tapped her rubber-soled shoe impatiently. 'So you thought you'd just stay the night?'

'I didn't mean to fall asleep if that's what you're inferring.'

She stared him down, all five foot nothing of her in that navy blue uniform. He hadn't been able to put a foot right since Ianto had been admitted. He'd been told off for sitting on the edge of the bed, so lying on it with Ianto was a definite no-no. 'If you have to sit, then use the patient chair,' she'd told him, pointing to the large heavy thing beside the bed. 'If Ianto is using it, does that mean I get the bed?' he'd asked, expecting her to grin and shake her head at him. 'If he's using it, you get to stand,' she replied matter of factly. 'You're not unwell.' No matter how he lugged it up against the bedframe, it was only close enough that he could reach Ianto's hand.

Then of course he'd gotten in trouble for bringing in food. Several times. 'All the meals here are specifically tailored to be nutritional and calorie controlled,' she fumed, snatching away the packet of crisps they were sharing. 'And the coffee from the café downstairs is for visitors only,' she added, glaring at the two disposable cups on the tray. 'If Ianto wants coffee, he can include it on his meal order.'

'That's not coffee,' Jack replied, 'and this isn't much better,' he said, grabbing his own cup before she took that away as well. 'You're supposed to be curing people here, not reducing their reasons to keep living.'

Now he'd broken several rules in quick succession and only hoped she didn't find the chocolate bar that was now melting in its wrapper between their bodies where they'd fallen asleep.

'I'm going,' Jack announced, steeling his gaze at her, 'but I'll be back tomorrow at eleven,' he promised. He reached over and gave Ianto a long, lingering kiss. Just as he felt Ianto's hand reach up to finger his shirt button, and second hand grabbed him painfully by the ear.

'Goodnight, Mister Harkness!'

Comments

[bk_forever]

No hospital food I've ever had could be described as nutritionally balanced; it's all terrible here, so I applaud Jack's efforts at keeping Ianto's strength up. I feel bad for both of them, what a horrible nurse and what a miserable time she's giving them.