torchwoodteaboy | [RL WITH SULU]

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[RL WITH SULU]

It'd been a week. A week since that first day that he'd come back from the hospital, and Sulu had had to help him around his flat. A week, most of which he'd spent in a sort of semi-conscious, fatigued and weary state, shuffling about trying to get the necessary things done, but only just succeeding. As Ianto sat on the edge of his bed, just having gotten up from what had been his second nap of the day, and not feeling any better after having taken it, the world spinning around him from having sat up too fast, even though he'd paced himself and been extra careful not to, Ianto had the sinking feeling that in that whole week, he hadn't gotten better at all. Sulu had stuck around until his leave had been up, like he said he would, and then once he'd left, Jack had popped in a few times during the day to help out with chores (he was surprisingly good at doing the dishes and the laundry) and then at night to lie with him (even if Jack didn't sleep and Ianto felt like he was wasting the other man's time). And yet. In that whole week, nothing had changed. Nothing had gotten better. And Ianto was getting sick and tired of being sick and tired, and Jack was great to have around, but. He didn't really understand what it was like to be ill, and sometimes that wore on Ianto even more than not having him around at all.

And now, as the sun was setting, and Jack was off on a sudden call to London, Gwen doing god knows what with Rhys, Ianto wasn't about to disturb their peace, it was all starting to get at Ianto. The darkness was creeping in, and he was beginning to think that maybe he wasn't getting better at all. That maybe he'd never get better. Maybe this was how things would be, from now on. Maybe the darkness really would come for him, because it didn't seem like it would ever really let him go again, and Ianto swallowed against the swell of panic rising in his stomach. He... He couldn't do this. He knew that he didn't want to bother Sulu. That he had specifically refrained from calling him out of the blue for anything since he'd left to go back to his ship, instead waiting for Sulu himself to make the first contact, but. He. He really needed someone there with him. Someone real. Someone who understood and could chase the demons away like he promised he would. And so Ianto did the only thing that he could think of to help, and pulled out his phone to dial the number to Sulu's comm.

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Sulu grinned as Ianto sunk down into the water, unable to resist finding the whole thing sort of adorable. Plus, mood or no mood, it didn't exactly hurt to have a more unhindered view of Ianto lying against him in the tub. He did, however, recognize the slight risk of Ianto going under, should he happen to fall asleep, and so he took a moment to shift a little lower himself, one arm slipping under one of Ianto's and hooking lightly around his stomach. If he happened to start drifting off, at the very least Sulu would be able to hold him up a bit better.

Once he was sure he was comfortable enough - as comfortable as he could be, given the situation - Sulu let his other arm out of the water, draping it along the edge of the tub. "I really hope it makes you feel better," he said, "Because I'm definitely not against us doing this again. It's surprisingly comfortable."

Ianto slowly removed his hands from the sides of the tub, moving both of them to rest on top of the arm that Sulu had across his stomach. He recognized what Sulu was doing, there, and he could really appreciate the thought. He'd rather not end up drowning in the bathtub, if he had a choice in the matter.

"Is it?" Ianto asked. "Comfortable that is? I mean. I certainly am, but. If you need me to move in any way, I will. There isn't any reason why we can't both be comfortable here, yeah?" He smiled, leaning his head back against Sulu's chest, letting his eyes fall shut as an overwhelming sense of relief swept over him. He couldn't help but take note of the fact that even with the two of the squeezed into one bathtub, he was probably the most comfortable he'd been at all since he'd been brought back in that moment.

"Mmm," he murmured, contentedly. "No, I really wouldn't be against making a habit of this. Not at all..."

"Very comfortable," Sulu said easily, tilting his head back against the rim of the tub behind him. "I haven't actually had a bath, alone or otherwise, in years, so this is sort of refreshing." And it really was; he wasn't quite used to the feeling of being completely submersed in water like this, but it was a good feeling. And Ianto was a comfortable weight against him, finally feeling truly familiar now that he was warm again.

He knew that was probably terrible of him, but it was the truth. He hadn't felt like Ianto was the same man he'd known before, not completely, not like before. He'd been cold and tired all the time, and there always seemed to be something he was holding back - but right now, in the bath with Sulu, Ianto felt and sounded like the man he knew. He smiled to himself and said, "It'd be good for stress relief, that's for sure."

Ianto nodded slightly, his hands moving to idly trace a pattern over Sulu's arm underneath them. "Yeah, I know what you mean. Don't really get to take baths all too often myself, either. They take too long, usually, and well. Usually I don't have the time. I... I have to say, I haven't spent so much time in my flat in a long while, and it's... It's definitely making me regret that fact now. There's just really not a lot for me to do around here, as it is, especially not at the moment."

"Except taking a bath," he concluded, not really sure where this train of thought was going, but running with it anyway, because he was comfortable and warm and safe and really very tired, come to think of it. Now that he was finally relaxed the whole way, he couldn't seem to keep his eyes open, having shut them almost instantly upon feeling better. "I'm pretty sure that it's impossible to do this all day, but. God. It's so much better... I honestly would if I could..."

"Yeah, not exactly possible," Sulu admitted with a small laugh, "Unless you develop gills or something like that." He could easily see how much more relaxed Ianto was, now that he was in the tub, and he could feel the warm water heating up his skin. It was nice, and since they'd only been in for a few minutes, there was no way they would feel waterlogged yet.

"We'll have to find something else to do here," he said, "Since Torchwood is sort of down for the count at the moment." He made it as clear as he could through his tone and his words that he wasn't implying that they would be stuck inside all the time like they were now, though. "Maybe you should... get a video game console, or something." He grinned at the very idea. "I mean so the only thing interesting here isn't your bathroom."

It didn't escape Ianto, the fact that Sulu was using the pronoun 'we'. It really wasn't even that big of a thing--logically, Sulu was going to help him out in any way that he could, so of course he'd be using 'we'. And yet. The fact that he had, it made Ianto smile softly, made him feel even warmer and happier than the water ever could, because for all that Sulu hadn't been there earlier, he'd wanted to be, he was planning ahead for what the two of them could do together here at this flat, in this time zone. Here in the bathtub, lying against Sulu's chest, lulled into a state of ultimate relaxation because he was finally warm again, Ianto let himself have a moment of contented optimism.

He chuckled. "I'm...really not the video game type. Unless it's puzzles, I suppose. 've always liked puzzles. Like...crosswords and the likes." His head lolled to the side a little, eyes still closed, but it was his half-hearted attempt to look at Sulu nonetheless. "Does that make me boring, then?"

"A little," Sulu admitted with a laugh, moving his free hand to stroke Ianto's hair, "But it's okay, you're exciting in plenty of other ways." After all, Sulu didn't know anyone else who dealt with things like Torchwood and managed to not become too full of themselves over it. He wasn't above admitting that Starfleet tended to give its members a bit of an ego; he knew full well that he showed it off from time to time. But Ianto...

"I want you to know," he said after a small breath of silence, "That I think you're one of the most amazing people I know." If not the most amazing. He moved his hand back to the rim of the tub, ducking a bit to kiss the back of Ianto's head. "And I really am sorry that I wasn't able to come down when you needed me. Promise not to use that as fuel for later guilt-trips, okay?"

Ianto sighed contentedly as Sulu ran a hand through his hair, relaxing further against the other man. He wasn't surprised that Sulu agreed with him, there. It was a bit boring. He was a bit boring. Wasn't much for video games, or ice cream, or going out at night. He didn't really know how to function without his job, not really. He'd become a different person since working for Torchwood, and now that there wasn't a Torchwood, that new person had never had to deal with the prospect of free time. Save for that one month after Lisa, but. He hadn't really been in the right mindset there. He'd spent it mostly cleaning and watching horrible telly and wondering where to go from there.

At Sulu's request, he shook his head, tightening his grip on Sulu's arm. "I know that it wasn't your fault. It wouldn't be fair of me to use it against you when you didn't have any choice in the matter." He shifted a little, so that his head wouldn't be lolling at quite as awkward an angle, before continuing. "Don't see how I'm all that amazing, though. Don't really feel amazing, especially now." With being cold and sick and tired all the time. Although this moment in time, propped up against Sulu in the water, finally warm. It was fabulous, as far as Ianto was concerned.

Sulu hesitated for a moment. He wanted nothing more than to tell Ianto everything he thought about him, how much he meant to him, but the words wouldn't come exactly right and he didn't want to say it all in person, when he could mess it up. So instead, he'd have to hold some of it back. Not all of it, though; not when Ianto was feeling as bad as he was. Sulu didn't want to let his self-esteem make him feel worse than he did already.

"You are amazing, though. I don't tell just anyone that, so I'm not just saying it. You sell yourself short without realizing how wrong you are." He pressed his cheek into Ianto's hair, trying to find some of the things he wanted to say in that moment. "You're brave," he said finally, "Incredibly brave, even when things are terrifying and going wrong. And you're smart, and don't pretend you don't know that." He laughed quietly and added, "I think I've already mentioned how attractive you are a couple of times now. So as much as you don't see how amazing you are, you should know that I do. Every day."

Ianto...wasn't sure that he'd ever been paid a compliment quite like the one Sulu had just given him. As Sulu leaned his cheek against Ianto's hair, Ianto opened his eyes to listen to the other man's words, staring across at the opposite wall because trying to look at the other man would've been useless anyway. And as Sulu finished, he...didn't know what to say. Was that really how he felt? ...of course it had to be. Like Sulu said, he wasn't the type to just go about telling people they were amazing. Sure, he probably went around thinking very highly of people, but. That Sulu thought of him like that.

Blaming the extra moisture in his eyes on the steam coming off the water, Ianto shut them again, shifting one of his hands to stroke the back of Sulu's arm that was secured around his waist. He wasn't sure what to say in response to that. What could he say? Sulu was one of the most important people in his life, especially now, and to know that he thought things like that... As much as Sulu wasn't one to pay people compliments, Ianto was worse, and in that moment, he could only hope that the other man understood how much Sulu meant to him as well. "...I'm all the better for having met you, you know," he said, quietly.

Sulu took a breath, feeling himself really relax against the tub when Ianto responded. He'd admittedly felt kind of stupid, rambling like that, but he had meant every word of it. Compliments weren't necessarily hard for him to give, but they weren't exactly the easiest thing to come up with in a way that didn't sound ridiculous or stupid. He sighed into Ianto's hair and then leaned his head back, smiling at nothing. This was what he had really missed, he thought.

"And you've been nothing but the best influence on me," he responded, moving his free hand once more to rub Ianto's shoulder. "I didn't even realize I could be the way I am now with anybody." He had never thought he could be as open or as, well, head over heels with someone, but it seemed like Ianto had caught him by surprise. "Good thing we're both good for each other, yeah?"

Ianto chuckled a little, relaxing back further against Sulu's chest as Sulu relaxed back against the tub, being lulled even more into a state of relaxation by Sulu's hand on his shoulder. "'s a good thing we are," Ianto agreed. "Don't think I'd be able to let you go, even if we weren't." And it was the truth. He couldn't imagine having to let go of Sulu, especially not now, when he was one of the only thing tethering Ianto to the ground rather than sinking into the abyss of all of the other problems he had going on right then.

He realized that the conversation was getting just a little too deep for him to be half asleep for, though. He wanted to be properly awake for something like this, so that he'd actually be saying all that he needed to say and not the first thing that popped through his mind at the time. So he continued, lightly, "For one thing, you're way too comfortable to lie with for me to ever give up. And you're capable of having a nice, innocent soak with me, which I definitely appreciate. Probably the only person I'd trust in this sort of situation," he said, with a slight smile.

"I'm too tired to try and instigate anything more complicated than this," Sulu responded, grateful for the change in tone. As much as he did enjoy having these kinds of conversations with Ianto, he was happy enough leaving that train for something a little less deep. "You wouldn't expect it, but sitting for four hours monitoring open space is exhausting. I would have preferred something more action-packed, if only for the adrenaline."

It hadn't helped, either, that he had been mentally berating himself for acting like an ass to Ianto, and for not being able to go to him when he needed him most. He was slowly letting himself be forgiven, though, now that they were soaking in the tub together and honestly feeling good again. Sulu figured Ianto deserved this, to be able to relax.

"You and me both," Ianto murmured, at Sulu's admittance that he was tired. "And I understand about the sitting being exhausting. Not just given the present situation, but. I mean, I've been on stakeouts. Or left behind to monitor the satellite feed and he likes in the Hub. It's hard, to be on your guard and not actually really doing anything for that long. Or...researching something. It's kind of the same there, as well." He chuckled, softly. "Why d'you think I started with coffee in the first place?" Besides the fact that Lisa liked it... "It gives you enough of a kick to get through that sort of thing."

Ianto could feel himself starting to drift again. His momentary deep conversation with Sulu had snapped him out of it a little, but now that he didn't really need to pay attention to what he was saying or what was being said to him, he let himself start to drift a little. "You should try having some on a shift, sometime. If they let you, that is." Ianto had no idea what it was like, piloting a spaceship. Or even being in the bridge. The one time he'd seen the place, the ship had been grounded, as it were.

Sulu imagined that it wouldn't be too hard to get some coffee while on shift, really. There was a replicator on the bridge, for the times when it might be needed, but he couldn't imagine how bad the coffee would be compared to Ianto's brew. He smiled. "With any luck, I won't need it to get through the day shift. And then I won't have to worry about suffering through bad coffee, if I can come down and have some of yours."

He could feel Ianto sinking just slightly against him and knew that the other was starting to get sleepy. In any other position, Sulu would be telling Ianto that maybe it was time to get out, but the water was still hot enough that it was only going to help, and he was holding Ianto so that he wouldn't sink under the water. So he just continued to rub Ianto's shoulder, figuring that letting him sleep for a few minutes wouldn't be too bad.

"Mmm," Ianto said, "'d be happy to make you coffee. Never deny a man a good cuppa," he murmured, trying to fight to stay conscious, but it really was a losing battle there, at the moment. Especially when it was so warm in the water, and he was finally feeling warm for the first time in weeks, and Sulu was there to make sure he didn't drown if he suddenly passed out on him, so. He figured if it weren't allowed, he'd just get woken up after a moment.

As he drifted, he started to muse on what sort of coffee a replicator would make, anyway. What determined the quality that replicators replicated food into, anyway? Was it that someone had taken what they considered to be a normal version of that food and programmed the chemical specifics into the machine, or...? Couldn't they have gotten someone to make a slightly better version of whatever it was before they had to go and finalize it? He wondered if you could influence the machine to make better versions of food or drinks, or whether it would be stuck as it was forever. He wouldn't mind it being stuck. He'd be a bit cross if a machine started pumping out coffee the same quality as he had it when he had to work for it and it just came naturally there.

"Could get you a thermos or somethin'," he mused.

Sulu laughed quietly and moved to pet Ianto's hair, completely unable to follow Ianto's train of thought but willing to jump it anyway. It was obvious that Ianto was getting close to passing out, and he figured he could give him maybe ten minutes before he should wake Ianto up and get them both out of the bath and into Ianto's bed.

"I'd like that," he said softly, combing his fingers through his hair, "It'd be nice to be able to have your coffee with me on bridge. I'm not sure if I can, but I could probably convince people it's all right." After all, he had no problem bending rules, whether it was for him or his crewmates. The Enterprise was all about bending the rules, after all.

Ianto hummed appreciatively under his breath, both at the idea of Sulu bringing some of his coffee with him onto the Enterprise, and also at the feeling of Sulu's fingers in his hair. Sulu should have known better than to start petting his hair, though, if he wanted Ianto to stay awake at all. Sure enough, not very long after Sulu had started the continuous, soothing motion of running his fingers through Ianto's hair, Ianto shifted his head to the side in a last minute attempt to keep his head from lolling at quite so awkward an angle, slowly letting himself fall asleep.

It wasn't just that Ianto was falling asleep, though. He'd slept a bunch of times before that day. But there in the bath, Ianto was finally warm after being so very cold for so long. He knew that he was safe, that for the time being Sulu would keep him safe and warm and keep his head above the water for that matter, and that was all he needed to absolutely conk out. He would have felt a little guilty about it, but there was such an overwhelming feeling of relief that washed over him that he couldn't really bring himself to care all that much before he was out completely.

Sulu could feel exactly when Ianto finally passed out, and he sighed a little in a mixture of relief and contentedness. After so much time with Ianto feeling as ill as he did, making only a little headway and then having a relapse like he did tonight, Sulu was grateful to get this time with Ianto where the man wasn't feeling exhausted, just sleepy; where he wasn't shivering or scared of some kind of intangible force that Sulu knew he could never defend Ianto from.

He continued to stroke Ianto's hair as he slept, closing his eyes himself and just taking in the warmth of the tub and, now, the warmth he could feel from Ianto. It was strange to feel this peaceful after so long; he'd been tense, lately, too tense, and even though he'd broken away from returning to his reclusive nature, there was a wall again between him and other people. He hadn't been feeling like himself, lately, which was a disorienting and uncomfortable situation for him. He didn't like feeling so hopeless all the time. He didn't like feeling out of control. But right now, thankfully, all of that seemed a million miles away. He knew this wouldn't last, and that Ianto was going to cool off again and maybe he'd never get better, but right then and there, Sulu knew they could handle it.

He hadn't even realized it, but he'd been dozing a little - not enough to actually count as sleep, but it was enough to make the cooling water suddenly noticeable. It must've been ten minutes, but Sulu knew that Ianto was going to have to get out of the tub soon - him too. They could take to the bed, after this, and hopefully the warmth wouldn't rush out of Ianto too quickly.

With a gentle shake of his shoulder, Sulu shifted up a bit more, holding Ianto up with him, and said, "Hey, Ianto, I think it's time to get out."

Ianto took in a long breath as he woke up, both at the shaking of his shoulder and at the shifting. Almost immediately, he did notice the change in the water temperature, and had to wonder how long Sulu had humored him and let him sleep there. He raised a hand to rub at his eyes, and judging by the state of his fingers and how they weren't completely pruning, it couldn't have been too long. The water was getting cooler, however, and they should probably get out before it started having the reverse effect on him than why they'd got in in the first place.

"...yeah," he said, his voice a bit rough, given the fact that he'd just woken up from a surprisingly deep sleep, really, given the situation and short amount of time it'd been. "Alright." He put his hands on the sides of the tub and carefully shifted until he was sitting up straight, needing a moment before he even thought of attempting to stand. "Sorry," he mumbled, apologizing for falling asleep, but more out of habit than really because he felt all that bad about having done so.

Sulu smiled as Ianto shifted forward, deciding that it would probably be better to give him as much time as possible to get ready to stand. If he needed Sulu to help him, he knew that Ianto would ask; or, at least, he hoped he'd ask. The last thing Sulu needed was to deal with Ianto getting a concussion.

"Don't worry," Sulu responded, waving a hand in dismissal. "It wasn't that long, and I figured you could use a little down time in the water. But since it's cooling off..." He trailed off, figuring it was pretty obvious where his thought process had gone. If he was being completely honest, though, he was getting pretty tired himself, and he knew they could both use a few hours sleep. "Did you take the blankets from your bed downstairs?" he asked, in case he needed to go get them.

Ianto blushed, nodding slightly. "Yeah, I..." he said, awkwardly. "I don't really own that many. Never really had to, since there's just me living here and all, so. I mean. I have some more in storage, but that's..." Too much effort really. He shrugged. "So yeah. Blankets are still downstairs, I guess." He sent Sulu an apologetic look over his shoulder, not really wanting to apologize aloud so soon after he'd just done so.

He raised an arm to rub across the back of his neck, and from that movement alone, was pretty much positive that he wasn't going to be getting up out of the tub without help. It was just too low and he was far too relaxed to even try to attempt it, not without tripping and knocking himself out on the edge of the sink or the tiles or god knows what else he could end up doing to himself. "I think, for the sake of both of us, I'm probably going to need you to help me up," he said, too tired to even be embarrassed about having to ask. "And, y'know..." he motioned idly to the side of the tub, "over, I suppose."

"Sure," Sulu said as Ianto asked for help. It took him a few moments to get himself standing, but then he climbed out of the tub. Pausing for a second, he turned and grabbed one of the towels, wrapping it around his waist before taking another one, holding it over his (mostly) dry arm. He wasn't about to make Ianto get out and stand shivering until one of them could grab him a towel after all; might as well get it out of the way first.

Moving back to the tub, he gently took Ianto's arms, waiting for him to get his footing before helping him up, his footing and posture firm enough to provide Ianto with support as he climbed over the edge of the tub himself. Stepping close, Sulu took the towel from his arm and looped it around Ianto's waist, kissing him gently at the same time as if to distract him from the fact that he was trying to make sure there was as little work as possible for Ianto. "I can go get the blankets, if you'd like."

Ianto recognized what Sulu was doing, both with putting wrapping the towel around his waist as well as the kissing him to try and distract him from it, perhaps, but a kiss was a kiss, and so Ianto didn't really care about Sulu doing that for him, not in that moment as he kissed Sulu back briefly. The air was cold, but he'd gotten a towel pretty quickly secured around him, and the warmth wasn't seeping out of him or anything ridiculous like that.

Ianto smiled at offer and nodded. "Yeah, I... I think you'd better." He stepped back, raising an eyebrow at Sulu, still smiling, but making a bit of a face. "I think I can handle making it to the bedroom by myself, if you'd like to go do that in the meanwhile. It is just right around the corner, and all..."

"I trust you to be able to do it," Sulu responded, returning the smile and running his hands up Ianto's sides briefly before stepping away himself. "I'll be right back with those, then," he said, before heading out of the bathroom. The air was a bit colder out here, the heat from the bath having made the bathroom pretty warm, and so Sulu hurried down the stairs, holding on to his towel as he went. The idea of maybe dressing again didn't even pass through his mind at this point; he was too tired and eager to curl up in bed with Ianto to think about putting on his uniform again. If Ianto asked him to put some clothes on, he could always jump back to his cabin and pick something up, but...

Finding the blankets where they'd left them, Sulu bundled them up in his arms and made his way back up the stairs, shifting the load in his arms around so he could once again grab his towel, and he made straight for the bedroom. "Here we go," he said as he entered, holding up the blankets.

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