âOwen. Gwen! How are you today?â
âGood morning, Aamir,â the young woman answers cheerily, offering him a polite smile that dimples her cheeks as they approach the counter. Aamir sets aside the supplies he was organizing to rest steady hands on either side of the register, dark eyes flickering over the pair. Theyâre an interesting couple -- and that is what they are, he believes, a couple -- in that theyâre clearly something, but they never touch. Well -- rarely. He hasnât missed the moments where Owenâs hand brushes Gwenâs back as they find a seat in the cafe, or the way sheâll lean into his shoulder at times. He hasnât been able to pin them down, but perhaps itâs the fact that they work together. Whatever it is, heâs never mentioned it to either of them or the other Torchwood members who walk through his door.
âWhat can I get for you both?â Itâs a customary question - heâs already punching in the orders he knows for them both. Cinnamon latte with skim milk and whipped cream for Gwen, black with two sugars for Owen.
âThe usual,â Owen answers, pulling out his card to pay before Gwen has a chance. Itâs another reason theyâre coupled in his mind; they only do this when itâs the two of them. If the others are around, it changes.
âIâll have it right up.â The cafĂŠ is generally empty for the moment, and they linger near the counter, talking in low voices as he makes their drinks.
âI keep thinking about her, yâknow?â Gwenâs voice is low and tight, her hands shoved into the back pockets of her jeans. âCanât get her out of my head. Keep waking up, thinkinâ Iâm goinâ to find that Iâm beinâ shot all over again--â
âWe killed her,â Owen responds quietly, and thereâs something about his tone that strikes Aamir as different to his usual inflection - softer. âFor good this time. Sheâs not coming back.â
A slight frown touches Aamirâs expression for a moment, before it clears. He hears them say such odd things sometimes, things that he canât place or make fit with the puzzle that is Torchwood in his mind. The oddity of the unknown that sits at the periphery of his life takes up much of his thoughts at work, but outside of it -- well, the world is strange and wide. Heâs not really the sort of person to question why it is the way it is.
This is actually a deleted scene from Non-Playable Character. Before I opted to have Ianto and Tosh talk about Suzie in chapter one, it was Owen and Gwen. In the end, Ianto was needed to fill a prompt, and his dynamic with Tosh is one I love. But I absolutely loved exploring Owen and Gwenâs weird dynamic beyond just the physicality of them hooking up, especially with how soft Owen was with her at the end of TKKS !
