Hey, I'm back...just about... with a not too long fluffy, smutty fic for you. I'm going to be taking it a bit easier on myself and will be posting no more than two chapters a week. I seemed to have got into the routine of making it three and it was just too much work.

Anyway, in this one Sherlock has a kink that he didn't know about...enjoy!

Chapter 1

It was three months after Sherrinford when it happened. Sherlock's life had revolved around his family and the repercussions of everything that he had come to know; in supporting his parents as well as helping Mycroft to ensure that Eurus would never again wield the power that she had on that God forsaken island.

He had moved back into the newly renovated Baker St two weeks before and had just wrapped up his first case since he got back, working with John and Greg just like the old days. The days before Mary had died, before he'd gone off the rails again and before he had found out that his childhood best friend had been left for dead in a well by his younger sister. To say it had been a tumultuous time was an understatement.

He took a deep breath and tried to concentrate on the microscope in front of him. He'd come into Barts to check on some samples of skin that had been laced with cyanide, to see the effects as each month passed after death. Molly had been keeping an eye on them for him but he wanted to get back to his studies, to reclaim his old life. Plus, it was calm here in the lab at Barts; working in silence in the cool, clinical environment always helped to centre him. Molly had been completing some paperwork at the table off to the right and now she was clearing up some of the samples and tests from her latest autopsy.

He let his eyes slide sideways; his head still bent over the microscope, watching Molly as she worked and that was when he noticed that she was favouring her right side. He frowned and straightened up a little watching her more closely. Yes, she was definitely protecting her left side. He watched as she pulled her lab coat away from her left breast, wincing as she did. Strange.

As she turned towards him the material fell away and he found his eyes zeroing in on her breast looking for any clues as to why she had a problem. His mind was ticking through the possibilities, pre-menstrual breast pain, cancer, bruising, new bra…

As she reached up to get a file the thin material of her shirt stretched against the breast and what he saw made his mouth suddenly run dry.

He looked away blinking rapidly and frowning, his mind suddenly filled with images he wasn't prepared for. He closed his eyes and tried to still his mind by concentrating on his breathing but it seemed to make it worse. He could hear Molly wandering over and he just tried to ignore her.

'Hey, are you alright? You look flushed.'

As Molly put her hand on his forehead his eyes snapped open and he jerked away from her touch leaving her hand hovering in mid-air. He felt an immediate wash of guilt at the look of hurt on her face as she brought her hand back down to her side.

'What's wrong?'

He started to stand, noisily pushing the stool away. 'Nothing, nothing's wrong. I just need to get on that's all...see if John's found me a case yet.'

'Oh…OK. Well, have fun.' She turned to make her way back to her files.

He could have kicked himself at his response but it seemed to tumble out of his mouth without even going past his brain. 'Not as much fun as you seem to want.'

The room fell silent for a moment and then Molly slowly turned back to him. 'What?'

'Nothing…I…it's nothing.'

Her eyes narrowed and she took a step back towards him. 'No, it's not nothing. Why did you say that?'

He wafted his hand in the direction of her breast and then seemed to realise what he was doing. He fisted it and brought it back down to his side and tried to concentrate instead on picking up his jacket and putting it in. 'Well, I couldn't help but notice that you've indulged in a piercing.'

Molly's face immediately went beet red and her hand automatically came up to cover her breast. 'Oh God, you noticed that…how did you…no, I don't want to know.'

He couldn't help but ask her the next question. It was the one that had been gnawing at him ever since he'd realised that the telltale bump under her clothing was a nipple piercing. 'So why did you get it done?'

She swallowed and shook her head. 'Oh no, I am so not getting into this with you. It's private and anyway you don't have any interest in sex so why would you care.' As she said the last she winced again as she realised that maybe she'd said too much and he was amused to see her going even redder…he hadn't thought that would be possible.

SHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSH

He walked out of Barts with his head filled with Molly Hooper. He hadn't really given much thought to her over the last few weeks. To be perfectly honest he'd avoided her for the first few weeks after that phone call. He knew that John had spoken to her and explained the situation and why he had had to do what he did. John had told him that whilst she had been upset and hurt she had understood and didn't bear him any grudge.

The first time he had gone to Barts had been with Greg for the recent case and their interactions had initially been about as awkward as they had been when they had first met but his focus on the case and her natural desire to help had meant that they had quickly fallen back into that comfortable friendship that had existed before…and that was fine, it was just as he wanted it to be. He'd had too much change in his life and far too much loss… he couldn't lose Molly Hooper as well.

But his thoughts now were very unlike thoughts he'd allowed himself to have of her before. He hailed a cab and sat looking out at the passing world with his elbow perched on the edge of the window. His hand stroked his chin as he thought back to the moment he'd noticed the piercing.

He had to admit that whilst he'd seen nipple piercings before, in his youth, and more recently on the corpse of a murder victim, it wasn't something he'd ever thought Molly would have had done. After all she rarely even wore earrings even though her ears were pierced. Why…why would she have that done?

The only answer that came back to him was the one that she had mentioned herself. The one she had said he wouldn't understand….sex. Sex and Molly Hooper…

He closed his eyes and took a deep, shuddering breath. This shouldn't be affecting him as much as it was. He could feel lust uncurling in his stomach and blood starting to head south. He had the same image running through his mind as he'd had in those first few moments at Barts…Molly topless, looking up at him innocently and the metal of her piercing winking at him as it sat against her pink, erect nipple. And all he wanted to do was to take it into his mouth and feel her soft skin and the hard metal against his tongue. It was so visceral and real that it made his mouth water.

'Stop it!' He shouted out loud and shocked himself as well as the cab driver.

'Sorry mate, stop what?'

'Nothing, ignore me…and for god's sake get a move on I haven't got all day.'

The sad thing was though that he did have all day and it didn't seem to matter what he did to try to distract himself thoughts of Molly kept invading his mind.

SHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSH

By the time John came around the next morning Sherlock was feeling a bit of a mess. He hadn't slept at all well and when he had finally got to sleep he'd woken up two hours later to find he'd come in his sleep…something he hadn't done since he was a teenager. He'd sat up feeling sticky and sweaty, tearing off his pyjamas before trudging to the shower to clean himself up and trying not to remember the dream that had caused it. It felt wrong to imagine Molly in that way…didn't it?

'Jesus Sherlock, what happened to you? You look like shit.'

He just huffed as John made his way over to the kettle so he could make them both a coffee.

'Nothing happened to me…just a bad night's sleep that's all. Nothing a decent case won't fix. Have you found me one yet?'

John leant against the kitchen cupboards and crossed his arms over his chest. 'Strangely enough, seeing that I've just arrived and I haven't looked at your emails yet, no, I haven't. You know you could check your own inbox once in a fucking while and not just wait for me.'

Sherlock just closed his eyes in an effort to ignore his best friend but as soon as he did he remembered his dream from the night before and just how good it had felt to be fucking Molly against the cadaver drawers in the morgue and he snapped them back open. He knew his face must be flushed and in a bid for John not to see it he got up and made his way to the bathroom for another shower…maybe a cold one this time.

Thankfully for both of them there was a case waiting. It was only a five but under the circumstances it was good enough and it at least kept him occupied for almost three days before he fell into bed in exhaustion. This time he was so tired that his sleep was dreamless but it was Molly who was the first person in his thoughts when he woke back up and it was Molly who kept him company for most of the rest of the day.

He had been under the belief that the distraction of the case and not seeing her might erase this strange obsession he seemed to have but all it had done was put it on pause. Everything seemed to have started with and centred on the nipple piercing that she had had done and the more he thought about it the harder he got and the more desperate he became. Maybe if he saw it in real life he could stop thinking about it. Maybe the reality would be less that the image of it in his mind.

He knew in his heart of hearts that what he was about to suggest to Molly was wrong but he was finding himself backed into a corner with few choices. He couldn't go on as he was.

He still left it another couple of days though before he finally gave in and went to see her at Barts.

She greeted him fairly normally although he did notice a slight flush on her cheeks and the way she subconsciously turned slightly to the side so her piercing was away from his gaze.

He just nodded, his confidence disappearing in a split second, and he made his way over to his work bench before sliding into his normal seat.

He tried to concentrate on his studies, he really did, but his eyes kept making their way back over to Molly and he found himself noticing far more about her than he normally did…the way her hair was lit up by the sun coming through the windows and the colours of the individual strands, the softness of her eyes, how mobile her mouth was and how her face lit up when she smiled.

Once she'd got over her initial discomfort and forgotten his presence he noticed that she was moving much more comfortably…the initial pain must be dissipating…and every so often he could see the way her nipple was now more pronounced on that side and his desire to see it struck him all over again. He needed to get a grip on this and tackle it.

He stood and cleared his throat and saw Molly jump a little as she remembered he was there.

'Sorry, do you need something Sherlock?'

'Umm…yes, but it's a little unusual.'

She grinned. 'Don't worry, I've heard plenty of unusual things from you in the past, you can't shock me now. What is it?'

He took a breath and tried to give her a natural, unthreatening smile and he saw her quick frown.

'Molly, could I see your nipple piercing?'

So, what do you think? Will his request go well or not? And do you like the story so far? I've missed receiving your reviews so let me know if you're out there and reading and I'll be back in a few days with the next chapter.