"Sherlock. Sherlock," John called, shaking his friend awake.
"Hmm. What- What is it?" Sherlock's senses slowly came to life and he opened his eyes when he became aware of John's tension held throughout his body. "John-" He stared at John. "Oh. I see," Sherlock said, gazing at John's naked figure. He then took a millisecond to scan his own equally naked form. "I knew there was a chance this would happen."
"You knew…?" His gaze was openly incredulous.
"Of course. For the past year you've been sneaking glances at me when you think I'm not paying attention. Our presence in a city where alcohol, sex, gambling, and overall recklessness are ingrained in the society was sure to lower your inhibitions in the matter. Therefore, I knew this," he gestured between them, "was likely to happen."
"Then why did you let this happen? Why didn't you do something to stop it?"
"Did I say I had opposed the idea? John, you're my closest friend, my only friend, and we're flatmates. We're also sexually attracted to one another, and share an emotional bond. I did not foresee any bad outcomes resulting from our change in relationship, unless it caused you to renege and foolishly think this has destroyed our friendship. I was open to this, but I knew you would not act on it until certain conditions were in place and your reservations were of little or no influence."
"You wanted this?"
"Did I not say that?"
"Sherlock-" John said, exasperated, and impulsively grabbed his friend's left hand. And frowned. His gaze switched from Sherlock's face to his fingers. John's eyes widened and his body stiffened again.
Sherlock glanced at his hand too. He was silent for a moment and then said, "I see."
"You see- You see?" John said, gripping Sherlock's ring finger.
"Yes, it looks to be a wedding ring. And yours appears to be on that table," he mused, gesturing. "Interesting. I didn't notice them at first because I was distracted by the more obvious."
John gaped at him.
Sherlock sighed in annoyance. "Yes, John, I'm admitting I'm not perfect. I sometimes do overlook little things, such as that Harry was your sister, not your brother."
John opened his mouth to say something but thought better of it. He opened his mouth again and asked, "We're married?"
"Yes, John, do keep up. That is what wedding rings imply. Unless we only bought the rings and didn't have a ceremony. Unless…" He scanned their hotel room once more. "Aha! There it is," he said, pointing at the chair by the desk. "That piece of paper you can glimpse there laying on the chair? That must be our marriage certificate."
John continued to stare at Sherlock, his eyes wide. After an interminable pause he managed to utter "How…?
"Do keep up, John. We're in Las Vegas, having just solved the case last night. You insisted we celebrate and indulge in alcoholic beverages. Obviously we must have considered it a good idea to get married at one of the many chapels in the city, and then consummate our marriage here."
"I- Is that all you're going to say about that then? The facts, and nothing else?"
Sherlock's lips hinted at a smile. "I was waiting for you to come to terms with our current situation before I imposed my opinion on the matter. But as I stated just minutes ago, I am not… opposed to the thought of us being romantically involved. Furthermore, the thought of us being married is… comforting. It ties us together legally, and is a more formal way of stating that we belong to one another as partners. I've said before, I would be lost without my blogger," he said, smiling fondly, "and we're now not only tied together in a permanent way, but in a way that most people will recognize. That is to say, the people who respect the sanctity of marriage.
"You're mine, John, and no one can say differently." He paused a moment and his eyebrows furrowed. "Unless, you disagree?" Sherlock's gaze became uneasy as it sought any kind of response from John.
"Stop, stop it," John said, and grabbed Sherlock's hand. "I never thought I'd be saying this to you, but stop jumping to conclusions. I'm still trying to decide how I feel about the matter, but I will say this. I like you. As my best friend, and as much more. I'll even go as far to say that I love you. And I definitely am attracted to you, have been for quite a while. I never plan on leaving you, whatever our relationship. You made me live again after the war. You give me a reason, and a person, to live for. I dislike spending time away from you, even though you are an insufferable git at times, and text me constantly, and forget to buy milk. And forget to keep your experiments away from our food. But the fact of the matter is that I really can't imagine life without you, and I don't want to. I lived through that once when I thought you were dead, and those years were the most painful time of my life, even compared to getting shot. You're my…" John's Adam's apple bobbed slightly as he swallowed, "everything."
"John," Sherlock said, placing a hand on John's cheek, caressing it lightly. "Surely you must know by now that I love you too. I once said I was married to my work, but without you everything would be worth nothing. You're my heart." His hand slipped down to John's chest to cover John's own heart.
John smiled, the expression breathtakingly beautiful and happy. "If those aren't marriage vows, I don't know what are. I don't remember what happened last night, and I don't know if I'll ever remember. However, I want to continue my life as your… husband," he smiled shyly, "and with everything that entails."
Sherlock stared, speechless, before framing John's face with his hands and crashing their lips together. John uttered a small gasp before participating whole-heartedly.
When they broke apart, resting their foreheads against each other and breathing raggedly, Sherlock said, "We're getting our marriage certificate framed. No arguments."
"I'd say something about you being so sentimental," John said, grinning, "but I want to do that as well."
"Although can you imagine Anderson's face at the next drug's bust?"
John burst out laughing. "And Mrs. Hudson will be absolutely delighted."
Sherlock smiled even wider. "As sappy as it sounds, I can't imagine being any happier than I am right now."
"Neither can I, but just remember we have the rest of our lives together."
"We always did, John."
A/N: So, right now this is only a one-shot. However, if enough people want more I may consider writing more. For example, peoples' reactions to the marriage.