wanda1969

Title: "Come Fly With Me"
Rating: PG- I don't think there's anything dodgy in here- at least not yet.

Spoilers/Disclaimers : Torchwood, belongs to the BBC and RTD, I’m just borrowing the characters- I own nothing here, nor do I make any money! So please don't prosecute!
Summary: Torchwood characters in a story set in the glamorous world of international travel! Fluffy, romantic and cheesy in the extreme, I suspect!

A/N: A big thank you to everyone who’s been reading.

Chapter 1- dw: http://wanda1969.dreamwidth.org/284.html

Chapter 2- dw: http://wanda1969.dreamwidth.org/764.html

Chapter 3- dw: http://wanda1969.dreamwidth.org/808.html

“Come Fly With Me” Chapter 4

***

“So, Toshiko, how was your night out in Bangkok?” Ianto said as he placed the ground coffee into the galley’s industrial coffee machine. The other crew were serving up the first meal of the flight.

“You, know... ‘one night in Bangkok and the tough girls tumble- not much between despair and ecstasy- I could feel the devil walking next to me’”

“That was truly terrible, Tosh- and I think you got the lyrics slightly wrong there.”

She laughed. Ianto hadn’t seen Toshiko during their stay in the City. “Same old- too many drinks and I got to watch Owen ogling anything that showed an interest. Which, in this case, appeared to be Gwen.”

The young man raised his eyebrows. For some unfathomable reason Tosh had what could only be described as a crush on the co-pilot. “Gwen? Interesting. What about the fiancé- Rhys? Have they split up?”

“Not as far as I know, but she’s been going on about him getting a bit peeved about her being away from home so much.”

“The usual story...”

“Oh, yeah. Keep your eyes peeled... it won’t be too long before something happens there. I’ll put money on it,” she said conspiratorially. “Anyway, how about you? Did you get an early night?”

“Not as early as I thought. I went out with Jack for some of the best food I’ve ever had-and that includes when I went backpacking in my gap year. You should have tasted the Tofu...”

Toshiko looked interested. “Tofu? One day I’ll take you to a restaurant in Osaka if you want to eat the best Tofu...”

“I’ll hold you to it”

“I’ll look at the flight schedules!” she said. “So you two had a quiet meal, eh?”

“And then we ended up having a couple of drinks back at the hotel.” The machine behind him bubbled loudly, signalling that the coffee was ready. Ianto turned to pour out the drinks for the flight deck. “Yeah. You, know I’m beginning to think that Harkness is nothing like I thought he’d be. He seemed much quieter, and kind of lonely.”

“I know what you mean. I also think that our Captain’s got quite the soft spot for you.” Toshiko smiled to herself.

Ianto looked over at her with a grin as he picked up the tray. “It’s the coffee,” he said obliviously as he walked out of the galley.

***

The next few months went by quickly, as Ianto settled into the almost repetitive routine of nights in anonymous hotels and ‘days’ serving a seemingly endless stream of drinks and meals. They never had got to Jakarta to taste the Rendang curry, but there’d been the usual crew drinks and nights out after a long flight.

There’d even been the odd occasion where just Ianto and Jack had sat talking in the hotel bar when the rest of the team were too tired to join them, or (especially in Owen’s case) had decided that they fancied a night out on the town- whatever town it was they found themselves in.

Tonight, though, they’d arrived in Kuala Lumpur once more, and everyone had been persuaded to have an hour or two to unwind, with drinks and some bar snacks paid for through Owen and Jack’s more generous overnight expenses.

Jack was the usual centre of attention, as Beth, Suzie, and particularly Diane, listened to some of his flying exploits. Gwen, Martha and Emma had been part of the adoring circle, until Owen, with a bored roll of his eyes had persuaded them to play a doubles game of pool.

Ianto sat slightly to one side with Toshiko discussing the merits of the iPad versus a laptop.

“...there’s no point whatsoever to something that doesn’t even have a USB port. It’s just a gadget, Ianto.”

“But a shiny, desirable gadget nevertheless.”

“That may well be the case. But I stand by my opinion- ultimately useless. You might as well get a smart ‘phone.” She said looking over to the pool table. “Did we ever have any money on Gwen getting off with Owen?”

“No. Were we supposed to have?”

“Look.” She nodded over to the game of pool.

Ianto turned to see that Owen had managed to pair himself with Gwen, as Beth and Emma played against them. Emma failed to make her shot, and Beth groaned. Gwen laughed as her partner whispered to her as she put down her drink and walked around the table looking for the best shot. Owen’s eyes were firmly fixed on her arse, clad in black, tight jeans, as she made her choice and leaned over the table. She was either lucky or skilful, and the chosen ball slowly rolled across the table and into the corner pocket.

“Well done!” Owen shouted. His hand touched her waist briefly as he went over to congratulate her.

“I told you to keep an eye on those two!” Tosh laughed.

“OK, OK! So you may be right...Thank God we didn’t have money on it after all. It’ll all end in tears, you mark my words!” he said dramatically.

“Told you so!” she said in a sing-song voice. The drinks were obviously getting to her, as they were Ianto.

“We will see, Miss Sato, we will see... you’ll need evidence though.”

***

One by one, the ‘girls’ left until only Toshiko, Jack and Ianto were left watching Gwen and Owen try their best to complete a last game of pool.

Eventually, Owen offered to escort the Welshwoman to her room and Jack and Tosh ‘shared a look’.

“I think, Toshiko, that Gwen may be letting her real life ‘drift’...” Jack said seriously as they got ready to leave.

***

When Ianto finally arrived in the dining room for breakfast he found all of the cabin crew sat around a large table, with the exception of Gwen. Owen and Jack were nowhere to be seen.

Apart from Tosh, who was happily tucking into a mohinga-style noodle dish, it turned out they were all setting out for a day’s sightseeing, which basically meant touring the city’s shopping centres and street markets.

Emma was visibly excited. “I’m hoping to get some lengths of silk- I’ve got a few ideas I’d like to try out when I get home.” If Emma found the right fabrics, Ianto knew that as soon as she got back to England, she’d be spending her days off creating a new suit, or dress. She’d also agreed to make an outfit for Beth to wear at her sister’s wedding, and had been looking for material of just the right colour and quality.

“You should come, Ianto. It’s not all girly shopping- there’s tailors, too. They can make up a three piece suit in 24 hours...” Martha wheedled.

“You can’t convince me, Martha. I’m going to have a bit of a walk... I may even get to a couple of museums. I’m not sure I can face all the hassle of a market.”

Suzie looked over at him. “Help me!” she mouthed. But he couldn’t- she’d already committed herself to a day of ‘girly shopping’. As it was, he was surprised that Martha, Emma and Beth had managed to persuade Diane to join the trip, too.

“Gwen not joining you, Martha?” he asked.

“I sent her a text an hour or so ago, but it looks like she’s having a lie in.”

Toshiko delicately slurped up one of the fine noodles. “And I’m installing a programme on my laptop-and after that, I intend to have a day watching satellite TV, and I may well see if I can get on Skype. This place has great wi-fi.”

Diane just shook her head. “Is there anywhere you don’t take that bloody computer?”

Tosh was about to answer that, yes, there were places she didn’t take it- wet places, places with sand, because that would just be silly, when Captain Harkness ‘swept’ into the room. Ianto looked at his watch and realised that there were a mere three minutes left before the official close of the buffet.

Jack quickly gathered bread, toast, cheese and a bowl of cereal, muttered a quick order to the rather peeved omelette chef who’d already started to clear away his equipment, and was just about to turn off the gas on his hotplate, and then made his way over to the table. A pot of coffee and a pot of tea were placed on the table by an equally peeved waiter- last minute ‘guests’ at breakfast were the bane of the breakfast staff at any hotel. Not that the untutored eye might notice. Far Eastern hospitality was famously without equal and it was only the slight sag of the shoulders on both men that gave the game away.

“Good Morning!” he said cheerily. His eyes scanned the table, and he noticed the casual but tidy clothing they were all wearing. “Do I detect a crew trip?”

“We thought we’d go out, see the markets, before it gets too hot.”

“Count me out, Beth,” he replied and poured himself a coffee. “I’ve done the markets here, and I don’t think I can hack the hustle and bustle these days.” He took a drink from his cup, and spluttered slightly. “You didn’t drink any of this coffee did you, Ianto?”

“I’m afraid so, Captain.”

Jack shook his head. “What on Earth is it made from? I think you’ve spoilt me...”

The shopping party quickly finished their breakfast and drinks and left, berating Tosh, Jack and Ianto for being far too boring.

“So you two aren’t joining them?”

“No- just going to have a nice quiet day round the hotel.” Tosh looked at her watch. “Is that the time? See you guys later- that programme should have finished running and I’ll have to restart the PC.”

She waved as she grabbed her bag and all but ran out of the room.

“I take it that means you’re not going on this shopping trip, either, then?”

“God, no! I thought I’d do bit of sightseeing...”

“Sightseeing? How’d you like a trip up the Petronas Towers?” Jack said staring over at Ianto.

“You have to have a ticket booked for that, and looking at the time I think our chances of getting a spare ticket or two are pretty slim.”

“Aha! But I’ve got an old friend who works there, said I’d give him a call next time I was in town. Maybe do lunch, if he’s free.”

“I’m sure the last thing you need is me tagging along, Jack.”

“On the contrary! And I’m not taking no for an answer.”

Ianto found himself feeling ever so slightly uncomfortable, as Jack continued to smile over at him. More and more, despite their friendliness, the Welshman sometimes felt embarrassed, slightly flustered perhaps, when he was in the Captain’s company; even so, he still looked forward seeing him or the times that the two men ended up having drinks. Some time ago, he’d quickly decided that this was exactly what happened when you were friendly with ‘the most popular boy in school’- which was, in effect, just what Jack was.

***

To Be Continued...