As he rounded the corner, harpoon in hand, he failed to notice that someone was carrying boxes in front of him and he collided into them. He groaned slightly, as a head popped round the right side of the boxes, a naturally pretty woman, around 24 he guessed, with long brunette hair that fell over her eyes slightly.
'Sorry, I didn't see you' She Smiled, her vivid green eyes warm and friendly. He noticed a deep, pretty recent by the rawness of it, scar that began by her right ear that ended about 5cms away from the ear under her Jaw line. As if sensing him noticing she quickly placed the boxes down and pulled her hair so it covered her scar.
'I'm Eve, I've just moved into 221C, I'm guessing your Sherlock, my Gran had told me a lot about you' she smiled again, offering her hand but changing her mind when she noticed the blood he was covered in.
'You're Gran?' He asked, taking a moment to observe her. She had a slight tan, clearly from being away somewhere, and on her right hand, a band of white where the sun had missed, clearly from wearing a ring during her time away. Recently removed, but not a wedding or engagement ring. Maybe a family ring.
'Yer, Mrs Hudson? She told me about you and John, said your some sort of detectives? Though I have to admit, never seen a detective covered in blood and carrying a harpoon before' She replied, also observing him. He was a tall man, probably about 6 feet. The way he held himself said he was filled with self belief, maybe abit of arrogance too. 'Well, I best get on, nice to meet you' She picked up her boxes again, and walked slowly up the steps and round to the basement flat. Sherlock watched her go and then carried on up the stairs to his own flat.
About half an hour later, after finally getting all her boxes into her new flat, Eve took a moment to look around her new place. Sure it was no Paris, or Rome, but after the events that unfolded their, she was glad to finally be something normal, somewhere safe. The place was in a major need of a several licks of paint and probably some new flooring, but it was a nice place, quite roomy for just her and a good place for a fresh start. And with her Gran only seconds away, it felt good to be some familiar and safe, somewhere she could hopefully forget the past and move on with her life. She grabbed the brush her Gran had left in the corner, and become sweeping away the dust that settled like a heavy blanket around the room. Within Ten minutes, she had managed to brush away all the dust and opened the window to air the room out a bit more. Her furniture was due tomorrow, and she was getting her paint delivery was later that day, so she could get a start on reinventing this place and maybe herself in the process, she wanted as little to do with her old life as possible, she was going to make this the fresh start she so desperately needed. She walked into the bathroom, smearing the dust off the bathroom mirror.
As always the first thing she noticed was her scar, she shuddered at the repulsive sight of it, her mind playing flashbacks of how she'd gotten it over and over, making her nauseous. She shook the image away, turning her face away the mirror. It was an ugly remind of her past and the stupid mistakes she had made it in that would be there for the rest of her life, not matter how much she tried to forget what happened or him. His face loomed forward in her mind, taunting her. She swatted it away with her hand, testing the water in the bath. After a moment it came out hot and steamy, and a smile crept upon her lips, at least she would be able to relax in a bath tonight. There was a knock at her door and she turned to see her Gran standing in the door way.
'Hello Gran' Eve smiled, wrapping her arms around her Gran in a hug. 'You look nice, next door again?'
'Oh Evelyn, you never change do you' Mrs Hudson laughed, taking a long look at her granddaughter. 'Now, come on, come meet your Neighbours'
'Of Course, I've already met Sherlock, but I would like a second meeting with him, maybe one where he's not covered in blood' Eve Replied, following her Gran out of the flat and locking up.
'That's Sherlock for you my dear' Mrs Hudson laughed happily, leading Eve up the stairs to another flat and entering.
Sherlock was pacing the living room back and forth, clean now but still carrying his harpoon. A man, who Eve guessed was John, was sitting in a chair next to a fireplace, where oddly, sat a skull.
'Boys, this is my Granddaughter, Evelyn' Mrs Hudson announced, smiling at them. 'She's just returned from travelling around Europe.'
'Does She Smoke?' Sherlock asked, still pacing. His eyes meet hers and she held his stare until her turned back into his pace.
'No I don't' Eve smiled, taking in the room.
'Nice to meet you Evelyn' John Smiled, giving Sherlock at look which said be polite. 'Europe, sounds like a fun trip?'
'Please call me Eve, I prefer Eve. It was ok, glad to be home' She replied, a cold edge to her voice. Sherlock noticed this straight away, she could tell by the way his eyes fixed on her, as if trying to read her secrets. She looked away, the attention making her nervous, she hated when people looked at her like that.
'Mind if I make a cup of tea, I don't have a kettle till tomorrow and I'm dying for a decent cup of tea, they just can't get it right in Europe' She asked John, trying not to look at Sherlock. He looked at her like someone she longed to forget did, as if all her secrets were on display for them to read. She hated it and needed something to distract her.
'Yer sure, go ahead' John answered, smiling at her and Mrs Hudson. She smiled back, walking into their kitchen. She pushed the kettle on, looking around for a cup.
'Cupboard above the Sink' Sherlock called round the corner, as if reading her thoughts though the wall. She ignored this thought, opening the cupboard and pulling out a cup. She placed a tea bag in and her sugar, trying to shake the reminder of Him, she had hoped London would wipe all trances of him out of her life, but everything she did, he was there, in the back of her mind, waiting for the right moment to creep up and make her crumble. His laughing face filled her thoughts again and the manic look on his face the last time they had met. She sighed in frustration, shaking the image away again. The Kettle drowned out any noise from the living room and thankfully her sigh. Her Gran didn't know the particulars of the true reason she returned from her travels and she never wanted her to find out. She opened the fridge and laughed, there was a Random foot in the there next to some cans of beer, the strangest thing she'd ever seen but nothing new according to what her Gran had told her about Sherlock. She added some milk to her freshly poured tea and placed it back in the fridge, having a look to see if they were any other body parts lying around. She walked back into the Living room, to find just John and Sherlock.
'Where's my Gran gone' she asked, taking a sip from her drink. She sighed in relief, proper tea was a blessing she had missed whilst travelling.
'Sherlock was his usual self' John replied, shooting Sherlock another look. Which he ignored and turned to face Eve.
'So how was Europe, really?' He asked, his eyes fixed on hers again.
'Good, nothing special, not much I want to remember, especially the end' She answered as honestly as she could, not really wanting to go into details but sensing she didn't really have much choice in that matter. Her Gran had warned her about Sherlock's desire to know everything.
'Scar's pretty recent, no older than a few weeks. Looks like a knife wound' He stated, placing the Harpoon down, but still watching her with interest.
'Sherlock you can't ask that!' John quickly put in, trying to take the tension out of the room but failing.
'Yes, knife wound, bad situation. I suppose we all get into them at some point, but I'd prefer if you kept that between us, my Gran doesn't know and I don't plan to tell her' Eve replied, her voice on edge again, she wasn't keen on talking about the scar. 'Anyway, I better go make sure my Gran is okay, I know what you observed, but maybe next time, have a bit of kindness' And with that Eve turned around and walked out of the room and out of the flat.
'Fascinating' Sherlock mused, his mind racing. But before he could elaborate or John could ask a question, the door bell went and his focus was back in the present, but Eve remained permanently on his mind, her vivid green eyes dancing around his mind.