Ch. 2
John gathered himself together into a heap and tried hard to keep the strict façade he had used so many times before as an army doctor. His feet, however, refused to move him forward. They were stuck there as if shackled to the stone sitting still in front of them. The confirmed bachelor could tell that this was going to be a long night, and quite a lonely one at that.
"Looks like I'll be spending the night here, Sherlock. Not like I can return to the flat, anyways."
So John sank to the ground and tried in a futile effort to stop the shaking in his arms and legs. He wrapped his arms around his legs, holding them tight to his chest, and laid down on his side. Slowly, he closed his eyes and fell into the clutches of a reoccurring nightmare.
Suddenly images flew out of the black in John's mind and toyed with his subconscious:
There he was again, staring up to the top of the building, trying to keep the man at the top of the phone.
"It was all a lie, John. Everything. I'm a fraud. A fraud. A fake. A lie. Everything I've ever spoken to you was untrue."
"NO! I refuse to believe that, Sherlock! Stop this, don't jump, get down from here, PLEASE!" but his words were drowned out and soon all he could see were flames at the foot of the building that were consuming the darkness and crawling up the walls. Sherlock was yelling and lashing about atop the roof but John couldn't make out what he was saying. And with a gust if smoke tainted wind, the consulting detective fell…..his body was engulfed in flames and burnt to ash. John could see his mouth moving as if screaming but everything was eerily silent. The only words he could make out by the movement of Sherlock's lips were 'Goodbye, John. Don't let me find you in hell, you're too innocent."
John awoke with a start and as his senses came back to him he felt something warm around his waist. Looking down, he realized an arm wrapped around him. Quickly, he turned to face whoever might be touching him and his eyes immediately widened once he realized who it was.
"Sherlock?"
