I don't know why. I just really enjoy poking fun at poor John. Ella too.
It was quiet again in Ella's office. She was waiting for John to open up, which he never did. Despite herself she broke her patience.
"John?"
He said nothing. He only grunted.
"Where did you get that bruise on your face?" She leaned forward to touch his chin.
He stayed perfectly still and stared forward. "Got hit."
She frowned and wrote something down. "By who?"
Johns eyes widened. "What makes you think it was a person? I walked into a door."
"With your chin? Hard enough to leave a bruise?" She looked at him softly, clearly hoping for a confession. He said nothing, so she continued, "And your hand..whats happened to it."
He looked to the left, further avoiding her. He curled and uncurled his cut hand. "I...punched the door."
Ella shook her head in disbelief. "Oh you got into a fight didn't you? John you need to tell me what's happened."
" 'Scuse me." He said. "I need to-."
She stood up, setting her clipboard written side down. She didn't want him reading it.
"No."
He made a motion to stand and she put her hand on his shoulder. He flinched. "Not that one."
"Hmm?"
He pulled away from her. "Not that shoulder."
Realization struck her. She lifted her hand. "I'm sorry, but John, please. Tell me what happened."
He bit his lip.
She took this as a good sign. "Remember every word you say is confidential. And I'm only here to help you."
"It was part of an alibi. Sherlock wanted to look like he'd been mugged, only the twa- man didn't say that. He just told me to punch him in the face." Ella sat back down.
She wrote this down and hummed, "Mhh." for him to continue.
He clammed up imeadiatly.
"Did you have an alibi too? He punched you?" She didn't seem to believe what he was telling her, but he was talking for once, so she was keene to hear more.
"Well no. I was just supposed to be an onlooker/doctor who saw him get mugged."
She tried not to show her disbelief. "Then what about you?"
"What about me?"
"Your bruise and your hand. How did they happen?"
He looked over breifly and saw that she had written,
'Possible senorios'
-Fight with flat mate.
-Self harm.
-Mayb-
He couldn't read the last bullet. She'd noticed him peering over and had flipped her clipboard.
"John." She chided. "Just tell me how YOU got hurt."
"Sherlock...punched me in the face so that I would punch him in the face."
Ella gasped. "Did he trigger you?!"
"No." John said reclusively. "I was fine. Just didn't expect it."
"You don't seem fine. Were the two of you angry?"
"I am fine." He said forcibly.
"Did you have a..a domestic?" She asked as if she already knew.
John rolled his eyes at the familiar assertion. "No." He sighed crossing his arms. "It was an alibi."
"Then why are you upset?"
Johns watch beeped and he stood. He smiled a bit exasperatedly and said, "Looks like the sessions over."
She stood too for a moment she looked hurt. "You've timed your watch for the end of my sessions?"
He didn't respond and they stood there for a while.
"John..."
He seemed to snap out of the silence. "Yes, well I'll be off. See you next week."
Later~
John entered 221b and set his keys and coat down on a table. His keys clattered a bit drawing Sherlock in from another room.
"You're angry at Ella. She thinks we've had a 'domestic'." He said thoughtlessly.
John immediately went on the defensive. "Where in hell do you get that idea?"
"You're limping and rubbing your shoulder. Something you do after upsetting visits with her. She's a therapist, a bad one at that, but a therapist. She's trained to look for injuries. Your hand and face are blatant-."
"Okay. Stop, stop. I've heard enough." John sighed. "But could you give it a rest just on-."
"That and she called."
John eyed him weirdly. "You actually picked up?"
"No Ms. Hudson did."
With that the aforementioned woman walked shyly into the room. "Really John...you two got in a fist fight. I thought your relationship was so quaint."
John face palmed. "I'm not gay." (Stop lying John! You're hurting your partners feelings.)
Ms. Hudson raised her hands in surrender. "Alright! My mistake its just-."
"And it's something else. Something Ella didn't catch." Sherlock said now thinking.
"What on earth-." John began.
"You're angry at me, but why?"
Ms. Hudson looked back and forth between John and Sherlock seeming to have decided she no longer wanted to be in the middle. "Well," she said clapping her hands, "I best be getting along."
Sherlock cocked his head at John. John glared back saying nothing until the door shut behind Ms. Hudson.
"I am not." He defended.
"That's a lie. You're holding your right shoulder slightly higher. You're angry."
"You punched me in the face!"
"That's not it. Don't play dumb. Why are you angry? Jeanette? You're certainly over her." He thought for a moment. "The dead cat in the tub?"
"There's a-!"
"If not that then what!" Sherlock rages. "What do people get mad about besides stupidity, love, and messes?!"
John shakes his head in disbelief. "..." He opens his mouth and makes a cracking sound, but shuts it again.
"Wait. It is love."
Eyes widening John looks away. "What?" He asks bewildered and nervously scratchers his shoulder. "You're insane."
Sherlock seems to have pieced something quite spectacular together in his head. "It's not Jeanette, the blond one, no it's none of them."
John takes a step back. "What are you getting at?"
"It goes back much further than that." Sherlock stops staring into space and looks straight at John. "You've been dating these women as a show. Either to yourself or some third party. Who? Who are you trying to impress?!"
John chuckles darkly. "Yeah. You're absolutely insane."
"I'm not. This is all so transparent I can't believe I haven't seen it before!"
John walks towards him, still sarcastic. "You're so daft."
Sherlock crosses his arms and looks down at John. "I'm going to find out who it is. I'm making a case out of this."
John laughs. "Here's a hint." He leans forward and kisses Sherlocks cheek.
As John walks away Sherlock stares. "What hint?"
Go ahead. Tell me how Ooc Sherlock was in the ending. I've been positively dying of embarrassment over it since I posted it. But I can't seem to get around to changing it because my muse for this one is dead, so I'm keeping it because I like the deductions and the interaction with Ella, but the ending has me groaning. I seriously couldn't think of anything better to write?! So if you have any recommendations for a better ending I'll credit you. Plus I'll more than likely stalk-er veiw your profile and stories afterwards. Pweese?
