Author's Notes : Hellooo~! Hope you will like it. Also, be aware that this is an AU! Thank you ^^! Sheriarty for the win! Moreover, this won't be the only Sheriarty fanfic (I already have ''Truth or Lie'', which is not AU, if you're interested) I write. So, subscribe if you're interested! Thank you!

Disclaimer : I do not own anything of Sherlock BBC nor the copyrights to Sherlock Holmes, but I do own this idea for a fanfiction, this fanfiction, my perception of these characters, and my writing style! Thank you!

Fooling You

Chapter Up And Boring Life

It was a bleak day. It had rained earlier in the morning and dark gray clouds still hung low in the sky. Jim sighed and looked down the window to the door metallic handle and pushed it open, pulling his dirty clothes bag behind him with difficulty and restrained grunts – it wasn't as if he were physically strong. As he walked outside his apartment building, he took a sniff of the air and noticed it still smelled of rain. He stared up at the sky for a brief moment – everything was warning of another rain later in the day – before turning to the park. He froze on the spot and smiled, panting a bit. There he was, sitting on a park bench across the street with his black hair pasted on his forehead and temples – he was probably soaked due to the earlier rain, but he didn't seem to mind -. Jim had begun noticing the man a few days ago. Every time he had to leave his flat before noon, the man would be sitting there or walking down the narrow tracks to the park. Although they never said a word to each other, they always locked eyes at some point. It was as though in that moment Jim became oblivious to the world, staring at the man who stared back at him, seemingly experiencing the same effect of everything around him disappearing but the two of them. It only lasted a second, but it held so much… Jim couldn't even describe it… and it meant a bit of thrill and puzzle in his ordinarily boring to the death life. He bent to grab his bag again, and as he stood up, wistfully gazing at the certain park bench. Just when he did so, the dark-haired man turned his head towards him, and their eyes locked. The air between them seemed suspended in time and so did the people walking by on the pavement and on the tracks of the park. Jim's mouth twitched up into a pretty shy smile before breaking away from the man's intense staring. He grabbed his jeans' hem and tried to pull them higher but it did no good as his lime pants still showed above his waistline. Giving up on this task, he sighed and chuckled lightly as he pushed the door of the Laundry Store that stood right next to his apartment building. Jim stepped in and fought with the bag so as to carry it inside – every week it was a chore. A hard and tiredly energy-wasting chore.

He wiped the sweat off his forehead, muttering a ''Phew!'' then turned around and pulled the bag to the closest washing machine. He didn't as much as looked at those who frowned at him and his display of lack of strength. He opened the lid and began to put the clothes in. Usually, he was the smilingly happy-go-lucky gay guy who was always so polite and caring with everyone and about anything. Though, he was bored. So very bored he was numb inside… It was as if the world held no colour anymore for him to admire – all he could see was gray everywhere. The trees, the people, the streets, the sky… all gray. Everything looked dull, and when he ate, it tasted like plastic… Not that he had ever eaten plastic before, but it was mostly tasteless now. The only time when he could catch a glimpse of colour or taste food a bit was when he imagined some passionately fancy adventure in his mind… Otherwise, it was just plain boring. Staying alive, that is. He appeared all joyful because of his true personality, but mainly because he didn't want others to bear his burden or feel cold and numb inside just like him… He sighed. If only there was something worthwhile, something interesting… His life lacked thrill. It lacked sensations. Always the same big deal: staying alive. But he didn't just want to survive, he wanted to live. He needed fun… But mostly, he wished he had someone to share it with. He wanted to be passionate, to have someone to fight for in this world. He'd entertain that person to the best of his abilities, and then maybe, just maybe, life wouldn't be so boring anymore… Because he wouldn't be so alone.

Jim sighed then poured detergent into the washing machine before making cold water run. He closed the lid, readjusted his tight fitted gray t-shirt then gazed outside the big window. The sky was still dull-looking and the wind, as if preparing for another rain, rustled the leaves backwards… A sign of rain. But he wasn't even concentrating on that… No. He was looking for that curious black-haired man he saw every now and then. Sometimes, he even wondered what would happen if he dared go and talk to him. Seeing how they always locked eyes… It was silly, he knew, but it seemed as though they wanted to see each other, even needed to… Well, it wasn't so silly from Jim's side because he did want to see that man because that was the only thrill he had in his whole day. A mystery. Yes, that man was shrouded in mystery. He was compelled to talk to him, and several times he had had to refrain from going to that park bench and introducing himself. It was hard, but he was shy and almost certain that the man didn't want that… or did he? Whatever it was he was here for, Jim knew there was a certain bond between them. He was sure the other felt it too…But he wondered if the other man admitted it. It was strange.

''Oh no, I'm rambling again,'' he thought out loud with a giggle. He looked around with an apologetic smile and turned back to the window. Sadly, the man wasn't there anymore… Oh, what was he thinking?! He probably wasn't coming here to see Jim – it was too ordinary, wasn't it? So, he spun on his heel, grabbed his empty bag and headed out. He had about 40 minutes to kill before coming back for his clothes.

Ordinary. Jim seemed ordinary, but he wasn't… He never felt he belonged there with all the other people. No, he deserved an adventure. Someone he'd live this with or for. It didn't look like it but Jim Brook was a genius and the whole ordinarily dull world was slowly killing him… little by little from the inside. Every day, it hurt a little more. Each time he had to smile, he had to force himself a bit more so as his mask wouldn't break and crumble in front of people and that they'd see what lay beneath… What he tried to hide. What he desperately needed to make feel alive… And what he protected the others from. His burden. His personality. His dreams and fantasies. The darkness that was Jim Brook.

He gave a tiny sad smile toward the empty bench – it looked like it wouldn't be today the day he met the guy. Nor embark on a mystery ride… Today was not his salvation. But tomorrow… Yes, tomorrow he would go and talk to him! Yes, it was decided! A rush of happiness and renewed excitation shot through him – his pace accelerated. He loved when he dared to do bold stuff! It made him feel as if the real him was piercing through the surface… as if he could breath a bit again. He barely saw a darkly dressed man step in front of him.

''Hello.''

Jim startled, letting out a short-lived scream. His wide opened eyes were locked on the man's face and drank in every detail of his face. Wait… No way! It was the dark-haired man! ''You've got to be kidding me!'' he thought. His heartbeat increased greatly, his pupils dilated, and he stammered an incomprehensible reply… No, no! He had to appear great! He was about to embark on a real adventure with the man that crept up in his dreams at night and into his fantasies at day! He couldn't lose such an opportunity! So, he took a deep breath then held out his hand.

''Hello! Nice of you to come and see me… I'm Jim! Jim Brook!'' he said energetically. He could feel his own eyes glinting with dark amusement as excitation rose up within him. It looked like he hadn't been the only one with the other on his mind, trying to lock eyes as if it meant breathing again nor to wonder what would happen if they got any closer. Did it mean, somewhere, somehow, that Jim wasn't alone at all in this entire miserable world…? That he could belong with someone? Woh, woh! Maybe the other one wasn't gay! And, oh, what the heck! At least, perhaps, he could still relate with him in a way nobody else could… Platonically speaking. Maybe they needed each other to belong. Who knew? And if ever it turned out to be something more, well, Jim sure wouldn't be the one to refuse it…

''… The name's Sherlock Holmes,'' said the tall man after a moment of silence, as if he had been judging the worth of telling him his name, before shaking his hand. Oh, how Jim was liking this! It appeared like the tables were turning for him…

And maybe, it could even be fun.