Got some OTP inspiration, but I wrote this rather quickly and late at night, so please forgive any mistakes. Happy Valentine's Day!
Valentine's Day
Molly Hooper sat in front of her laptop, a steaming cup of tea sitting beside it on the table. A chat box opened up as soon as she logged on:
Good morning beautiful.
Molly allowed herself a smile. Craig had figured out what time she woke up every day, and made a point to see her off before work. It was rather sweet.
Molly had never imagined that she would be communicating so extensively with a man over the internet. She'd always been a meet a guy in a pub sort of girl, but Craig was so kind and attentive that she just couldn't help herself from continuing the relationship. And his profile picture was tall, dark, and handsome. Cliché perhaps, but definitely attractive.
Good morning, she replied. How are you?
She took a sip of the tea while Craig typed.
Doing well, about to head off to work. What's your day looking like?
Craig worked for a law firm on the other side of town. As if his face wasn't enough of an asset, he had a prestigious job too.
Just another day at the lab, then coming home to watch telly for a bit.
Molly Hooper! Craig exclaimed. Do you mean to tell me that a lovely lady such as yourself doesn't have a date for Valentine's Day?
Molly giggled. I suppose so…
Well we shall have to amend that! What do you say, dinner at 7?
Molly paused before replying, stories of internet stalkers running through her mind. But then again if she met him in the restaurant, it would be a public enough place that nothing could happen.
I would love that, what kind of food do you like?
I'm quite partial to Angelo's myself.
I'll meet you there at 7 then. It's a date!
#
Molly didn't get much done at work that day. She was really quite looking forward to meeting Craig, he was such a gentleman. Finally, it was time to go home and get ready. Molly stood in front of her closet, trying to decide on an outfit. She tried on several before settling on a silk black dress with a white sash. After spraying a few squirts of perfume onto her neck, she headed down to the street and hailed a cab.
The cab pulled up to Angelo's a few minutes later, and Molly stepped out. She didn't see Craig in the foyer, but she looked down at her phone and saw she was a little early.
Molly straightened and took a deep breath when she saw a tall, dark shadow approaching the door. She smiled, almost certain it was Craig…
But instead of her date, none other than Sherlock Holmes stepped through the door. His eyes met hers and widened in surprise; apparently he hadn't been expecting to see her here of all places.
"Molly," he breathed her name, surprise leaking into his tone. He looked down at her dress; unfortunately only deducing why she was here and who she was meeting and not checking her out.
"Sherlock, what are you doing here?" Molly asked, noticing that he'd entered alone. Which meant he was probably on a case. She could deduce too.
"Just…working on something," Sherlock muttered, obviously uninterested in divulging any additional details. His eyes moved back up to her face, and he smiled. But it was obvious that he was a bit strained. "Would you excuse me?" he asked, moving towards the back.
"Of course," Molly replied. Sherlock left just as another man entered the door. This time, it was Craig and he came in displaying a ravishing smile.
"Molly! You're even more beautiful in person!"
Molly blushed a little. "Thank you, Craig. You look very handsome tonight," she added, noticing his black suit.
"Shall we?" he asked, extending a hand. Molly took it and they were seated at a table near the corner of the establishment. As they were seated, Molly looked around but Sherlock was nowhere to be seen.
But that didn't matter. She had a Valentines date with a nice, respectable man and she was going to enjoy it without any thoughts of Sherlock. She looked over at Craig, who was staring at her with a slight smile playing around his lips. She smiled back, and picked up the menu before her.
"Would you like to start off with some wine?" their waiter asked. Craig turned to her questioningly.
"I'd love some," Molly replied and they agreed on some Fontodi Chianti Classico. The waiter brought the ruby red wine back in tall glasses and left them to decide on an appetizer.
Craig really was a charming man, Molly realized as they perused the menu. He had so much more class than most of the guys she knew. She found herself laughing at his jokes and he really listened whenever she told him a story. It had been a while since someone actually looked into her eyes and paid explicit attention to what she had to say. It was rather nice.
She and Craig had just finished their appetizers when Sherlock came stalking out of the kitchen, dressed as a waiter. She sighed inwardly, hoping that whatever mischief London's only consulting detective was getting into wouldn't interfere with her date.
Sherlock made his way to the couple at the table right beside Molly and Craig's and made a point of catching Molly's eye. After taking his customers drink orders, Sherlock began gesturing with his head towards the back of the room. What in heaven's name was he doing?
Craig must've noticed her confused expression. "Everything alright?" he asked.
"Oh, yes everything's fine," Molly replied, smiling at him. "I think I'm just going to freshen up a bit, I'll be right back."
Craig nodded and Molly headed towards the restrooms. Sherlock walked right up to her.
"Craig Scott, is that the name he goes by?" Sherlock asked.
Molly stared at him, a little taken aback. "Um, yes but what are you doing here? And why do you know about Craig?"
"Don't answer questions with more questions Molly, I haven't the time. George Smith, Phillip Cage, Timothy Edwards and more recently Craig Scott is wanted in three countries for tax fraud. He's been evading the authorities for years, but I finally caught up with him during his most recent stay here in London."
"You're kidding me, right?" Molly asked, not willing to accept that yet another date was a criminal.
Sherlock's intense dark eyes met hers. "Why would I be kidding?"
Molly sighed. Sherlock was on a case, and that case was her date. Of course.
"I need you to keep him here until Lestrade gets here, alright?"
"Um, sure."
"Thank you, it shouldn't take long."
Molly cleared her throat, took a deep breath, and returned to the table. She took a sip of wine and tried to make her smile look as natural as possible.
"So, Molly…tell me more about yourself. What do you enjoy doing on the weekends?"
"Well, I have a cat…"
"No, you don't look like a crazy cat lady to me…"
And you don't look like a criminal…
Molly laughed instead of voicing her thoughts. "I don't know how crazy I am, but I suppose I am a cat lady."
Craig laughed and Molly looked down at her plate rather than look into his sparkling eyes. Hurry up Greg.
The waiter returned before Molly could say anything else. She looked up and was surprised to see that their previous waiter had been replaced with Sherlock Holmes.
"Hey!" Craig exclaimed. "You're Sherlock Holmes!"
"I am Sherlock Holmes, and I'm here to tell you what's on the menu for tonight," Sherlock replied. Molly saw the door to Angelo's swing open and a familiar silver-haired figure accompanied by two officers come inside.
Craig stood up hastily, shaking the table and almost spilling the wine on the pure white tablecloth.
"What's on the menu," Sherlock continued, stepping in front of Craig. "Is arrest. More precisely, your arrest. Whatever your real name is."
A look of panic crossed Craig's face, and his soft gaze turned harsh. He began to make a mad dash for the exit, but Lestrade intercepted the attempted escape.
"Come with me Mr. Scott," Lestrade ordered, securing Craig in handcuffs. Molly didn't look as they took her former date outside.
"Thank you Molly that worked perfectly," Sherlock said. "I'd been following Craig all afternoon, and wouldn't have been able to keep him stalled here without your help."
"Not a problem," Molly assured although this Valentine's Day had turned out to be nothing but a problem. She gathered her jacket and stood to leave.
"Can I walk you home?" Sherlock asked.
Why not? Molly asked herself. Even Sherlock and his rather unpolished personality couldn't make tonight any worse. "Sure, I'd like that."
Sherlock left some cash on the table, and they walked out onto the street. London was still wide awake, and many couples roamed the streets. They were just passing the pub outside Molly's flat when Sherlock stopped and turned to her.
"I know tonight probably didn't go as planned. Can I buy you a drink to somewhat make up for everything?" he asked.
Molly grinned. She wasn't quite ready for the night to end. "I'd love that."
"In that case Molly Hooper, let's go inside and I can tell you the chemical formulas of each alcoholic beverage."
Molly laughed and took his arm. "Alright Sherlock, just as long as it isn't the tobacco ash this time…"
