Thanks to my awesome Beta, eeelneekey, without whom this story would have been even worse than it actually is. Never written a story in 3rd person before so I hope it's okay for everyone. Let me know what you think (review and whatnot) and if you have any requests tell me. Thanks for reading though.
Gracie xx
Molly Hooper was a pathologist; she'd wanted to be one ever since she was a little girl. But sometimes, just sometimes, being a pathologist took her away from what was important. Not Sherlock, handsome and intelligent as he was; not even her beloved kittens. Sometimes being a pathologist took her away from Greg Lestrade – the one man she had ever truly loved.
It was through work that Molly first met Greg. It was a mysterious case concerning a murdered man in his mid-30's. At least, Molly had found it mysterious; Sherlock had cracked it as soon as he came through the door. Apparently, the man had just returned from a 4 month business trip to Dubai, where he had a summer fling, and had had to leave in a hurry. He'd returned home to find his cat dead and his tyres slashed. Two days later, he'd been hit over the back of the head by a blunt object, probably a stick, whilst gardening. The murderer was a dog, probably a Great Dane/Bulldog crossbreed – according to Sherlock anyway. Greg's face had been a picture; he looked so shocked, utterly bewildered that anyone could have come up with a result so fast, that Molly felt an instant attraction to him. It was the same look she knew had been on her face the first time she'd heard Sherlock do a deduction.
"Ask him how he did it." Molly exclaimed, "It's amazing. You won't believe it."
"Isn't it obvious?" Molly giggled nervously at the bemused expression on Sherlock's face. "The man was well tanned; therefore he'd been in a hot climate for a number of months. The logo on his tie pin comes from Hudgon's and Dervill's – a law firm, whose only abroad outlet was set up in Dubai 4 months ago, a Dubai outlet which was set up with the prospect of a 6 month trip for a few briefs and high ranking officials. He has a wedding ring on, but his tan covers his entire finger. A happily married man facing the prospect of months away from his wife wouldn't remove his wedding ring for a tan - showing he's unhappily married. A high ranking business official in an unhappy marriage wouldn't return 2 months early from a trip abroad, except to save his reputation. How do we know he's high ranking and not a brief? Nails like his, obviously not a hard-grafter; his perfect manicure and neat haircut, combined with the tie pin, mean he's high up in the business. Could be an owner, probably not, so a manager's more likely. So why did he leave in a hurry? One of two reasons; he's done something to damage his reputation or he's heard about a new business opportunity back home. He's got a six-figure salary already, so unlikely to be a business opportunity. What damage could a married businessman do to his reputation? An affair is most likely. He returned early when she became too clingy; therefore no real love, just a summer fling. He's got old scratch marks on his wrists, healed, so the creature that gave them has been gone from a while. They've been healing for around four months so the creature stopped scratching before he went to Dubai. The scratches are so small they could only have been caused by a small animal - a cat or rabbit - but he's an official businessman, so a cat's more likely. There are no more recent scratches so either the animal's dead or been given away. His wife's trapped in an unhappy marriage; she wouldn't get rid of her pet, so death's more likely. He's a large man, evidently drives a lot, but the muscles on the back of his legs have been strained; he's done more walking recently, so his car's unavailable. How do we know it's not just broken down? He's on a six-figure salary; he could easily pay for his car to be mended. We've already established he's a proud man; he'd be too embarrassed to show his tyres have been slashed, probably by his wife in an argument. Now, for the murder. The injury on the back of his head straight on, but not from a sudden force, from a constant force. A force like that could only be created close to the ground; therefore he was kneeling, probably gardening. The wound has flecks of wood in it, likely to be from a stick. In the garden, muddy paw prints were observed on the patio. The couple did not own a dog, therefore the dog ran into the garden, wanting to play, and accidently hit the man. The dog is the murderer. Case closed."
Greg choked on his coffee. Molly gently hit him on the back, unable to stop a soft smile forming across her face as she imagined what he must be thinking. It couldn't be much different from what she herself thought her first time; a mixture of awe and disbelief. Despite all of Sherlock's bravado, Molly couldn't take her eyes of Greg; his innocent expression reminded Molly of her youngest kitten.
"How did you do that?" Greg asked, wondrously.
"I observed" Sherlock replied, sweeping out of the lab as he did so.
Greg followed him, still looking like a little lost puppy. Molly sighed; she always seemed to fall for the ones who didn't notice her. First Sherlock, now Greg; what was with her and boys? For the rest of the day, she was looking out the window waiting for Greg to come back. The next few times he turned up, it was always in the same circumstance – dead bodies and Sherlock deductions. Not the best way to bond but it seemed suited to them. Molly was an oddity in herself, but throw Greg into the mix? They were an incredibly sweet, incredibly strange couple. They weren't a couple in a romantic sense, but Molly always felt like they have a special connection, a more personal connection. But that was probably her trying to convince herself.
Deep down Molly knew from the first few meetings that she and Greg were never meant to be. He was married and had been for years; Greg never looked at Molly in a way that would suggest a romance. But to her, to Molly, those stolen looks were worth a million kisses. Whenever Greg walked in her heart would skip a beat, but Molly would never do anything to upset him. She never even told him how she felt. She saw the way he looked at Sherlock, in awe; the way he looked at some of the other women, leering at them, but not in a bad way. Molly could never see flaws in Greg; he was the real love of her life. And she saw him every day. They worked together, but their relationship was purely professional. She spent every minute she was at work desperate to see Greg,but in return Molly Hooper sacrificed the chance of a proper relationship with him.
Greg knew; it was obvious from the look in his face, and it wasn't as if he hadn't thought the same way about her. Greg wasn't happily married, but he didn't want to upset his wife, she was still one of his best friends. Molly was the only woman he'd even considered starting a relationship with, but he soon put that thought out of his head. It wasn't fair. Not on her - Molly would only be his woman on the side; not on him - he'd seen the way she looked at Sherlock, full of adoration and loyalty. But Greg Lestrade also knew that if he'd met Molly Hooper as an unmarried man he would have done everything in his power to start a romantic relationship with her. She was honest, kind, hardworking and friendly. Molly Hooper was the true love of his life.
Molly would never give up her job. But she would grow to hate it. Her job, which had filled her days with joy, which became "Gregtime" in her mind, was what tore her apart. But Molly was strong, and she wouldn't give into her love for Greg. She mingled; found other men, eventually she would marry, start a family, but she could never forget Greg Lestrade. She never forgot the life they could have had. And she could never forgive Sherlock Holmes for introducing them.