This was consciousness. Sherlock knew that for sure because of the hurt. Because while hurting seeped into delicious unconsciousness, it wasn't like this.

He knew he was in a new place. There was the ground (John), the ambulance (John), unconsciousness (John...) and now this, likely a hospital. (John?) The last John had shooed him away. What does that mean?

Right. Hospital. Yes?

Listing pain.

Head. Awful, but better than before.

What else hurt before?

Breathing. Yes, he recalls how awfully that hurt. But now...

It hurt substantially less, but was different. He couldn't quite tell how. Maybe later he would be able to put his finger on it.

Fingers, yes they're fine. One was heavy, pulse ox.

He wiggled them. Yes. They worked.

Hands. Only one is hurting much, IV site.

Arms. Not heavier than to be expected given this level of exhaustion. Not broken.

Toes. He wiggled them. Yes, not paralyzed.

Looking promising.

Leg... Right leg fine. Heavy, tired, but not overly painful. Bruises at most.

But left... it was different from usual. Heavy, sore, immobile. Broken. Casted? Yes. Full leg broken tib/fib, likely had surgery, probably be in a large cast for a month, short cast another month. Damn.

Back to the rest. Hips fine, abdomen... seemingly intact, no internal bleeding then. Also promising.

Chest. He knew he saved it for last (besides his head, not even going to bother with that now), as it was aching, and was not as promising as his limbs. Broken ribs likely, probably a collapsed lung, which would explain why it had hurt so much (yesterday? Earlier today? A week ago? How much time has elapsed?) before. Now the pain was coming from the chest tube yes left lung between the fifth and sixth ribs and the breathing – Oh there it was. It made him almost giddy to have solved the puzzle. That's what he couldn't figure out about the breathing before. Endotracheal tube, mechanical ventilation, no wonder the air feels...stale? Can you taste when it bypasses your mouth? Put it on the list of experiments.

He's embarrassed it took him this long though. What would John say?

John. John at the... outside, ambulance, unconsciousness (in which he sent him away), and now?

No sense of smell when you don't get to control breathing. He could fix that pull it out it hurts anyway tape on his face, doesn't like not being in control of everything but John wouldn't like that if he was here.

He could try opening his eyes, maybe see if John was there but it seemed so... boring. No, something clever. Right. Got it. Finger wiggling worked, not too much, so it would work.

He tapped. John knows morse code. If he was there, he would understand.

d. d. d. d.

Perhaps he was wrong. John sent me away, it wasn't real, but it seemed so real, no, no, only my mind. But why would he come up with that if it had no basis in fact? Maybe John is angry, did he nearly die again? John seems to not like that...

"Sherlock?"

If he could have sighed he would have. Thank you John. Thank you for being so damn observant and probably never leaving his side and knowing morse code and putting his head on his lap when he was hurt. Thank you.

And the thought of John definitely being there was enough to open his eyes.

Blurry as he was, Sherlock was able to confirm his brain was working. Not shaved for three days, baggy sweater, same one he was wearing... when whatever happened, not been home to change then, likely not left his side, obviously not shaved, has he even been eating or drinking, looking paler than usual, mucous membranes dry, almost dehydrated, if he hasn't been drinking enough it's not likely he's been eating, especially knowing how dreadful the hospital food is.

Yes, Sherlock thought. Brain still working.

But oh this dreadful tube, controlling his breathing, not allowing him to sigh with happiness or relief or to smell John. He missed John's smell. It has been three days. Roughly.

It made him so angry. He needed the smell of John to keep him tethered to the world, to sigh, because John understood all his sighs, all 74 of them, each one meaning something different and John understood them all. And now? He had morse code, which was nothing, boring, so much work and he was tired. He was angry.

His light hand the left hand no pulse ox or IV no tubes to hold him down found his mouth much more difficult than he expected, but overly difficult should have been expected and pulled, gagging oh dear John don't be mad, but you're the only one who understands all 74 sighs and without that I have nothing and John grapples with his hands but he really should have seen this coming, Sherlock was nothing if not predictable when it came to hospitals.

"Sherlock! You bloody idiot, stop that."

But Sherlock was winning, while coughing and gagging maybe he should have made John do it he did seem to be a bit better with the whole doctor thing but it was out and he will soon be able to sigh, to tell John 74 different things with only a single breath each.

But he opened his eyes and smiled at John before coughing, which felt like death again. And John was glaring but Sherlock could see the relief, right there on his face and Sherlock doesn't even realize it but he's actually pointing to John's face, who was still muttering obscene things at Sherlock, who was much too busy being happy to pay any attention to the words themselves beyond their general meaning.

And John was scrambling, looking at monitors and checking his pulse and grabbing an oxygen mask and shoving it on his face, while Sherlock knows he was still madly grinning and pointing to the little lines on John's face that mean he is happy.

Not happy because Sherlock was an idiot and started pulling out tubes without any regard for John's sanity, but happy because that was such a Sherlock thing to do, which meant he wasn't irreparably broken. Sherlock knew John found this a huge relief, as did he, because honestly, without his brain, Sherlock knew he was worthless.

And Sherlock realized he was suddenly exhausted, smiling is such hard work, so he lay back in the bed and let John fuss over him. And he sighed, sigh number 43 out of 74, the one that said 'thank you because I know I'm an idiot and yet you put up with me anyway'.

And that's all he needed to say.