'Ianto, coffee?' came Jack's pleading yell from up in the main hub. Ianto took a deep breath.

'One sec – hic!'

Jack appeared in the kitchen area, looking amused. 'You still have hiccups?'

Ianto scowled at him, the effect rather spoilt by another hiccup escaping his tightly clenched lips. God, these were the kind of hiccups that hurt. It was like imploding and exploding at the same time.

'I'll get your coffee, sir.' Ianto managed to grind out without a single hiccup. Jack grinned at him, an evil twinkle in his eye, walking away.

He made the coffee, jumping a couple of inches of the ground every few seconds, every time a suppressed hiccup tore through his body. Carrying them up into the hub was tricky, but he managed to balance his tray with all the ease of a professional butler.

Once he made it up into the hub, he was confronted by Jack and the other three members of the team watching with barely suppressed grins on their faces. Ianto scowled, navigating the hub and setting down the coffees on the computer desks and tables. Job done, he turned to flee back to the kitchen, but was stopped in his escape by the biggest hiccup yet.

'Hic!'

The Hub burst into guffaws behind him, and he whipped round, to find Owen rolling on the sofa clutching his stomach as he laughed. Tosh was still staring resolutely at her computers, bless her, but god dammit, there was a smile even on her face. Gwen was trying not to laugh, but now she was, possibly more at Owen's fit than at Ianto.

Ianto slumped in defeat, and Toshiko patted his arm sympathetically, her lips twitching as she tried not to laugh at him.

'Have you tried a glass of water?' Gwen asked between bouts of laughter. Owen had slid completely off the sofa, and was sprawled on the floor, in hysterics.

This off course set everyone else off with his or her own hiccup cures, everything from a shock, to eating the spiciest food you could find, to holding your breath until you were ready to pass out.

Jack was worryingly quiet throughout the whole thing, his head tilted to one side, and his eyes twinkling, a speculative smile curving his lips.

'I'll just wait and let them pass, I think.' Ianto said firmly after a particularly alarming suggestion from a still hysterical Owen.

Ianto turned to escape to the tourist office, only for a heavy hand to land firmly on his shoulder.

Jack span Ianto round, pinning him against the wall and pressing their lips together. The kiss lasted at least a minute, and Ianto was fairly sure Jack's hands were wandering a little too far for public decency, but hell, he was in no fit state to complain.

Jack pulled away, his hands on Ianto's waist, grinned at him, and said to the Hub at large.

'Kisses are the best cure for hiccups.'

He winked, and strode away, leaving Owen howling on the floor, red in the face, Gwen and Tosh with almost identical expressions of amazement, and poor, poor, Ianto Jones still standing against the wall, frozen in shock, his tea tray clutched in front of him like the worlds most ineffective shield.

He didn't hiccup again though. Kisses really were the best cure for hiccups.

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