m_findlow

Title: A fresh start
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters/Pairings: Tosh, Jack
Word Count: 500 words
Rating: PG
Notes: Written for Challenge 132 - Beginning at anythingdrabble
Summary: Tosh's life is about to begin anew in a way she could never imagine.

Tosh couldn't sleep. It wasn't for a lack of a warm bed and luxuriously comfy bedsheets, both of which she'd been provided with. It wasn't even a feeling of being unsafe in the lovely victorian terrace she'd been given rent free. In fact, all of it was free, right down to the pantry full of goods that had arrived shortly after she had. She pulled back the duvet and checked out the digital display on the radio clock by her bedside. Four am. Still far too early to do anything, really, though it didn't stop her getting up anyway.

She stood in the shower for at least half an hour, just letting the hot water stream down her body and inhaling the herbal scent of the shampoo. There'd been nothing like this when she'd been made to shower daily at that UNIT prison. Lukewarm water and soap that reeked of carbolic which didn't foam no matter how she scrubbed. She vowed never to take proper soap for granted ever again.

When she stepped out, she reached for one of the fluffy towels hanging on the rack. That was something else she reveled in, sitting on the edge of the bath just staring at her reflection in the mirror opposite. She needed to get her hair cut, assuming that was allowed. She cast her eyes down at her pink toes, entertaining the idea of painting them bright red just for fun. Nail polish probably wasn't in the bathroom cabinet though, she realised. Her new boss had bought a lot of stuff to fill the fridge and get the place ready for someone to live in it, but expecting a man to think of nail polish as an essential item was a stretch too far.

There wasn't much in the way of clothes for her. A pair of jeans that were a little too long in the legs which she turned in, a loosed knitted sweater and a pair of sneakers that were surprisingly a good fit. Jack had promised she could go out and get more clothes. One thing at a time, he'd said.

She couldn't find an appetite for food, even though she might have been able to whip up a full English with her provisions. She'd never really done much more than toast and tea. She settled for tea, hoping it would calm the butterflies waking up in her stomach.

Flipping on the TV felt strange. She thought she'd have missed it, but after flicking channels for a few minutes, she turned it back off.

A knock on the door made her yelp in surprise. She opened it slowly and found Jack standing there, oblivious to the hour. Only now did she notice how strikingly handsome he was. Yesterday had been too much of a jumble of emotions to really take in anything.

'Morning,' Jack beamed. 'I brought bacon rolls.'

Tosh wasn't sure what to say. Freedom and the chance to begin her life over again never felt stranger.