To Begin Again

Jack woke with his usual gasp of air, momentarily confused by his surroundings. The first breath of a new life always burned like 180 proof liqueur sliding down your throat. His eyes darted around the unfamiliar room, the smell of blood hung the air like mouldy bread.

That is when Jack saw the figure, huddled in the corner like a scared animal. The gun dangled in the creature's hand as its sobs became more audible. It reminded Jack of a child who lost their way in the world, crying for it's mum. That was exactly what it was, barely twenty-three and already been through more pain and suffering than most could even imagine.

Jack rose from the floor, rubbing the spot between his eyes where the bullet had ripped through. Bullet wounds always itched after they healed.

"You watched me suffer and die. Are you happy now?" Jack disarmed Ianto, tossing the gun away. Jack knew this had to happen in order for him to atone for his role in Canary Wharf and to allow Ianto to begin the healing process.

Ianto looked up, his fact blotched red from crying. He did not believe what he was seeing. He had watched as Jack breathed his last breath and his eyes glaze over as life vanished from his body. Another life destroyed by Torchwood.

"What are you?" Ianto scrambled to get away, but there is no place a man backed into a corner could go.

"I forgive you," Jack gathered the distraught Welshman into his arms and rocked Ianto until his energy was spent. "I'm sorry," he whispered once the crying stopped.

Just like a phoenix rising from the ashes, death can bring new life.