Jack

[london_spy]

(from here)

That uncomfortable flutter of nerves hit Danny again, and he was surprised by how hard it was to shake them off before nodding and following after Jack. He'd done this so many times, why was this any different? Perhaps because it had been so long, that was all he could think as he brushed the feelings away and found a smile.

Comments

[just_hex]

"Not like that, Danny," he said quietly. "I just mean...when I'm not near him, when I can think clearly, I don't want him. I don't want any of that. I want you. But I'm such a twat...I say that and the next time I see him I'm sure I'll be a cunt and risk everything we have."

[london_spy]

"It's not a risk, I told you, it's- It's alright. It's- We can make this work, Hex. I know it," Danny said softly.

[just_hex]

Hex sighed softly and toyed with a bit of fuzz on the arm of the chair.

"You might not want me at all when you hear what I've done," he said.

[london_spy]

"Try me," Danny said softly.

[just_hex]

Hex looked up at him, leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, and held one hand in the other.

"A few years ago now, I met a man. There was an incident at St. Bart's. These...these things were all over, killing patients and staff. Then the Doctor turned up and he and I and this brilliant woman, Ace, we stopped it.

He explained to me...they were aliens. Proper aliens. And then I left with him. He's an alien, too. The Doctor. I got in his ship. A time ship. For years I traveled with him. Helping people. Saving people. I've been so many places, Danny. All over the universe. But we had a bit of a falling out so I had him bring me home, right when I'd left with him in the first place so it was like I was never gone.

And Jack...he traveled with him, too, I think. I can't remember...but I do know Torchwood. They're secret. Keeping aliens from taking over the Earth."

[london_spy]

Danny was silent a long moment, then wet his lips.

"He said that. I mean, not all of that, obviously, but- Aliens. He said he worked on finding them. I thought he meant- You know."

[just_hex]

"Like immigrants, " he nodded. Hex swallowed hard but his mouth was bone dry.

"That's what I've not told you. That's it. That's all. I...im Not mad. I swear I'm not," he pleaded.

[london_spy]

It was mad. The whole idea of it was mental. Time travel, little green men... But what were the chances that two men in London had mad stories that aligned quite neatly with one another? And Jack... Jack had been frightening. Not in an 'I want to wear your skin' sort of way, but more an 'I know how to make people vanish, and do it for a living' sort of way. He'd given off a spook sort of vibe- Something Danny was far too familiar with these days.

More important than all that, however, was the fact that Hex's words didn't feel like a lie. He supposed that could boil down to the fact that Hex believed it, so obviously it would feel true, but- No, mad as it sounded, Danny bought it. Maybe that made him a fool, but if Hex swore it was so, Danny believed him.

"Alright," he said finally. "I suppose what I need to know next is obvious then. ...Are you in danger?"

[just_hex]

In every single scenario he'd run through in his head, not one had considered Danny would simply believe him. If's Hex had been hearing the tale for the first time he would never believe it. It was mad, wasn't it? And there was no way to prove it.

But there was Danny, watching him across the distance, and his only concern was if Hex was safe. It was hard to let go of his anxiety, but bit by bit it began to fade when he realized Danny wasn't going to immediately call for an ambulance.

"I...I don't think so. Not in any sort of immediate way. I understand there are always risks when people travel with the Doctor. Sort of paints a target on me back, yeah? Something about chronotrons and being affected by the realities of time travel. But as far as I know, no one's out to get me."

And even as he said it, he didn't sound certain. What about this Jack fellow? If he'd shaken Danny so much maybe Hex had a reason to be afraid of him, too.

[london_spy]

"Just Jack to worry about then," Danny said softly. "One man, we can handle one man."

[just_hex]

Hex was quiet for a long moment as relief filled him. Cautious hope. He sat back a bit and toyed with the fuzz on the chair's arm again.

"Danny...do you believe me?" he asked. "It's alright if you don't. I know it's mad. I know how it sounds."

And he couldn't stop thinking of Fin's reaction when he'd told the other man...

[london_spy]

"If I didn't believe you, I'd have told you so," Danny replied simply.

[just_hex]

He swallowed hard and closed his eyes.

"Thank you," he said softly. "I was so afraid you'd think I was just a lunatic. That this would be the thing that made you say enough..."

[london_spy]

"You believed me," Danny said softly. "When I told you I'd been careful, that someone had made me ill- You believed me. Not many would have."

[just_hex]

Hex got up then and slowly moved to sit by Danny. He took hold of his hand and gave it a squeeze.

"It really is us against the world, isn't it? No one else would believe us. I've tried to tell people. Mates I trust. They all think I'm sick, or that it's a delusion from drinking. But not you."

[london_spy]

"Maybe," Danny said softly, leaning into Hex and closing his eyes. "that's not so bad though, is it?"

[just_hex]

"Not at all. Not at all," he replied, slipping his arm around Danny. He turned his head enough to kiss the man's hair. "It seems right, doesn't it? Us, together. It seems so right. I love you so much."

[london_spy]

Danny wanted to argue there was nothing 'right' about anything in their lives, but despite his tendency towards the somewhat dramatic, he bit it back. Instead, he tilted closer to Hex, Closing his eyes and sighing softly.

"I love you too," he said softly.

[just_hex]

Hex kissed him again and remained there for a moment, breathing him in. Danny smelled clean and was so warm in his arms. For the moment Hex could let go of everything and just soak in joy of the simplicity of this moment.

Why couldn't everything be this easy? Why couldn't it always be just like this?

Because, he thought. Because of the bloody government and bloody HIV and bloody Fin and everything that conspired against them, from Hex's drinking to Alex's ghost. And now, it seemed, Jack. Jack who was a threat to them both. Jack who had...

"...Did he hurt you tonight, Danny?" he asked, just barely above a whisper.

[london_spy]

"No- No, it wasn't like that," Danny said quietly. "Things didn't take a turn until after you rang me, and even then, I just left."

He decided not to mention Jack's final words to him. There had been enough upset tonight.

"I'm really sorry, Hex. I'm really..." He trailed off, then sighed. He was a real twat, that's all there was to it.

[just_hex]

He moved a bit and face Danny as best he could, pulling the man into his arms.

"Don't be sorry, Danny. Really don't. Please," he said softly. Perhaps it was to soften the hurt of his own guilt he felt over Fin, but the knowledge that Danny had been with someone else didn't sting as much as it should. He wasn't jealous. Wasn't possessive. All he wanted, in the end, was for Danny to be safe.

[london_spy]

Danny moved easily, settling on Hex's lap, straddling him and resting against the other man's chest.

"He said- He said he was positive, like me," he confessed. "That we didn't have to be careful. ...As careful, anyway. I still was."

Mostly, anyway.

[just_hex]

Hearing that did twist his heart a bit. He longed to not be careful, to be spontaneous and adventurous in bed. But that simply couldn't happen. For that, Hex had regrets, but it was nothing that was ever going to change unless by some careless mishap he got sick too.

But in that moment he was painfully jealous that Jack could have Danny in a way he never could.

"I know. I mean, I know you would be. You're not foolish," he said. "And there's more out there than HIV. You don't need a second illness, yeah?"

He smoothed his hand over Danny's hair, then cradled his head and kept him close.

[london_spy]

"I know. I know, that's why I was still careful, yeah?" Danny assured him, ducking his head and nuzzling against Hex's neck.

"Are you alright?" he asked finally. "You sounded so upset over the phone, and then I dumped all this on you... Are you alright?"

[just_hex]

"Yeah. I'm alright...I'm better now that I'm home. With you," he replied, arms holding Danny securely. The tender affection against his neck made his whole body light up and he hummed softly when Danny found a tender spot.

Then he sighed.

"I'm so glad to be home with you."