TEETHING TROUBLES

"Jack, you can't leave it."

"Yes I can," Jack said. He rubbed his jaw and glared at Owen; resting his elbow on the desk he flinched as he jarred his tooth.

"No, you can't. Not with a tooth in that state. It needs seeing to."

"Is he still being awkward?" Gwen asked walking into Jack's office and pulling her coat off at the same time.

"I think we are way past awkward and well into bloody-minded."

"It will sort itself out," Jack said stubbornly.

"Only if the infection you are likely to get kills you. Nobody ever died of a cracked tooth Jack," Owen snapped. Jack glared at him.

"I don't like the dentist."

"If you go you'll get a lollipop," Owen said in his best humouring a child voice. Jack glared even harder. Ianto walked in behind Gwen, carrying a tray with a glass of water, some painkillers and a small brown bottle. He moved around Gwen and Owen and put the tray on Jack's desk just by his arm.

"See somebody cares about me," Jack said. Ianto raised his eyebrows slightly watching as Jack put the painkillers in his mouth and swallowed them, wincing as the water hit his sore tooth. Owen started to laugh.

"Well, you might starve to death first, before the infection sets in."

Jack ignored him and looked at the bottle on the tray, picking it up warily. "What's this?"

"Clove oil," Ianto said calmly. Jack glared at him suspiciously.

"It eases the pain if you rub it on the tooth and gum," Ianto added helpfully. He eyed Jack with the same amount of amusement everyone else was. Toshiko couldn't even manage to be in the same room with him without breaking into cackling laughter, so she was busy giggling into her computer outside.

Jack, still looking very sulky, opened the bottle and put a few drops of oil on his finger before applying them to his tooth. His narrowed eyes told everyone how painful the action was, but he managed to control any reaction beyond that. They all watched him intently.

"I'm not going!" he said, his voice muffled by the finger in his mouth. Ianto glanced at the others. They looked back, waiting expectantly. Jack suddenly had a horrified, sneaking suspicion they were all up to something.

"What have you done?" He pulled his finger out of his mouth, running his tongue over where he had rubbed the oil in. Picking the bottle up he sniffed at it, recoiling at the strong scent.

"Don't worry we haven't poisoned you," Owen said.

"I wouldn't put it past you," Jack said, sinking back in his chair.

"Well that's just charming isn't it?" Owen said. "And here we are trying to help you; quite frankly you can't spend another day charging about the office in a bad mood just because your tooth is hurting."

"It's not that bad," Jack said. He saw Gwen roll her eyes in frustration.

"Should I deal with this?" Ianto asked politely. Owen looked at his watch.

"Don't take too long, the appointment is in half an hour,"

Ianto looked at his own watch, "33 minutes actually."

"I don't deal in actually."

"I'd noticed."

Owen, this time, rolled his eyes.

"There is nothing you can do to persuade me to go," Jack said. A distinct challenge lay in his voice. Ianto moved closer, sitting back on the desk, inches away from Jack's chair. His folded his arms across his chest and looked down at his boss.

"If you go to this appointment, I'll come with you and hold your hand if you like," Ianto said. Jack scowled.

"Sarcasm isn't helping."

"That wasn't sarcasm," Ianto said. "But I'll do a deal with you."

"What sort of deal?" Jack asked suspiciously.

"I'll," Ianto paused, looking from Jack to the other two people in the room. With a sigh he leant down. Jack was ready to pull away but all Ianto did was cup his hand by Jack's ear and he started to whisper.

Gwen and Owen watched in fascination as Ianto talked and Jack reacted. First he raised his eyebrows; then he started to smile, and laugh; although that was cut off by a hiss of pain and him clutching his jaw again. Eventually his eyes widened so much that they almost popped out of his head. They rolled up in Ianto's direction as Ianto finished whatever he was saying and he sat back, folding his arm across his chest.

"So what… If I get this sorted…." He waved an idle finger at his jaw. "You'll…"

"Uh-huh," Ianto nodded. Jack's eyes moved as he debated with himself. He gave Ianto another suspicious glance. The first suggestion had been interesting, and the second and third sounded fun, the fourth one he hadn't tried in a while and the fifth…

"Is that last one physically possible?" Jack asked him. Ianto leant forward again so his face was inches away from Jack's.

"Yeah," he said with utter confidence.

"Do you reckon your kitchen table would stand up to the third?"

Ianto sat back again, raising his eyebrows as he thought. "I can't say I've ever tried it there, but I daresay it would."

"When did you say this appointment was?" Jack asked. Ianto looked at his watch again.

"In 26 minutes, and it will take us about 15 to get there."

Jack's eyes narrowed for a moment but then he abruptly stood up, looking at Gwen and Owen.

"We're taking the afternoon off and even if the world starts to end, don't call me! I'll get my coat." Jack moved past Ianto to grab it. Ianto's gaze followed him.

"You might not be in the mood after you've had that tooth done."

"We'll see," Jack said, shrugging the coat onto his shoulders. "The first and second I'll be fine with. What we don't do you can write me an IOU for."

Ianto smirked, he reached into the inside pocket of his suit and pulled out a folded piece of paper, he opened it up and held it out to Jack, who studied it.

"Shall I sign it as well?" Ianto asked brightly.

"Yes," Jack told him. Gwen and Owen glanced at each other as Ianto picked up Jack's pen and resting the paper on the desk signed it at the bottom in his large scrawl. Owen leant forward trying to read it.

"Shall we witness it?"

"No!" Jack and Ianto said at the same time.

Ianto dated the paper and whipped it off the desk before Owen could read anything. He folded it back up again and handed it to Jack, who pocketed it carefully.

"Well, come on then!" Jack snapped pushing Ianto out of the office ahead of him. Gwen and Owen watched them leave as Jack hurried Ianto across the hub and out of the door. The now baffled pair moved to the door of Jack's office, watching as the main door started to open with Jack determined to get Ianto out, wanting whatever had been promised.

"What happened?" Toshiko said, looking from the now closing door to the pair stood in the office doorway.

"Ianto's deal worked," Gwen said.

"What did he say?"

"No idea, but it has something to do with a kitchen table and something Jack has never done before," Gwen said.

Toshiko frowned. "That is just too much information." She went back to typing and messing with her computer.

"Do you have any idea what Ianto said?" Gwen asked Owen; who must have seen some of the paper.

"No idea," Owen said, because he hadn't. "Although?"

"What?" Gwen glanced at him as he paused and Owen leant a little closer to her.

"Do you think we could get Ianto to persuade Jack to give us a raise?"