Sherlock suddenly became aware of a text alert coming through.
Well, how is it? MH
He looked at his watch. It was 8pm. He'd been working for more than 9 hours without a break. He looked around the room. Mrs Hudson had obviously been up as there was a cold cup of tea and a sandwich sitting next to him.
Good. Thank you for your help. SH
Glad to hear it. Now take a break from that microscope and give your eyes a rest. You can over do it if you're not careful. You are still adjusting. MH
Let me guess, Mrs Hudson? SH
Of course, who else! Now take a break! MH
Sherlock stood up. His back was aching as he'd been hunched over his microscope for so long but he had enjoyed himself. It had been such a long time since he had been able to do it. He picked up the sandwich that Mrs Hudson had made him and headed over to his favourite chair. He sat down and took his glasses off. He hadn't realised how tired he would feel. He guessed it was his body just getting used to it. As he looked around he began to appreciate just how blurry everything was without them. For the first time he cursed his own stubbornness for not sorting things sooner, but it was who he was.
He reflected on things. Molly, as always, was a constant in his life. She was there when he needed her most. She had helped save his life on more than one occasion, and now she was helping sort out his life again. Where he refused to admit failure or defeat, she was first on the scene to sort it. And now she had persuaded him to take her out for the day. What it meant he didn't really know but he did know that he was looking forward to it.
He ate his sandwich, popped his glasses on and text John. He'd not used his bike for quite some time, and so it would need checking over, servicing and MOT-ing before he could use it.
Need my motorbike next Sunday. OK to collect it Thursday to get it checked over? SH
Of course. Going anywhere nice? Not had a text from you for a while! Thought you were ignoring me. Fancy a beer? JW
Sherlock chose to ignore the first part of John's reply. This was not the time or the place to tell John where he was going or who he was taking out.
Beer sounds good. Usual place? 20 mins? SH
See you there. JW
Sherlock got up, put his dirty plate on the side, grabbed his coat and scarf and headed out. Mrs Hudson was in the hallway, cleaning the stairs.
"Just off out for a beer with John"
"Give him my love."
"I will". He gave Mrs Hudson a peck on the cheek and headed out into the cold evening.
It was a 15 minute walk for each of them to the pub they were meeting at, half way between the two of them. John was walking up the street in the opposite direction to Sherlock and Sherlock could make out John was doing a double take. He realised he was wearing his glasses and John was bound to make some kind of comment.
"Going for the intelligent look now?"
"Yes, thank you very much. Beer?"
"Oh god, yes. Usual?"
"Please"
"Guess it will be my shout then?"
"Of course!"
Sherlock sat down in their usual corner as John headed for the bar. He returned back with two pints of lager. Sherlock and John both took a large drink and put their glasses down on the table simultaneously which made them both smile. Even though they had not seen each other much, they still had a connection. 'Best friend' John had called him when he asked him to be his best man. To this day Sherlock still felt shocked that such a phrase had been used in connection to him. He, someone's best friend. He couldn't believe it, but he did like the sound of it.
John was watching Sherlock quite closely, taking in his new look. Sherlock could tell John was dying to ask him about it. "So, a new look then" John eventually came out with.
"It would appear so. Molly been talking to you?"
"Yes, OK, she has. Why didn't you say something before about headaches and your eye sight before?"
"No reason to"
"When and where?"
"Not worth talking about to be honest."
"Seriously Sherlock, a blow to the head and now eye sight damage. I know how good your eye sight was before you left. Now you have a prescription at the level you have, and you're a full time glasses wearer. It must have been some impact."
"It was. Now stop being all doctor like on me."
"Yes Sherlock, I am being all doctor like on you because I have cause to suspect you had a major trauma which has caused you significant optical and possibly cranial damage. It is my job to make sure you don't have any long term after effects as blows to the head can cause all sorts of problems, such as eyesight issues which you are experiencing. But other things can lie dormant too. So when and where did it happen.
"About 6 months ago in Saudi Arabia." Sherlock picked up his beer and had another drink.
"And, any more detail you'd like to share with me?
"There's not much else to share. I was cornered, I got beaten up, blow to the head, several broken ribs and some quite severe bruising to my back and legs. I got myself out, lay low for a while and then I moved on."
"Seriously Sherlock. Did you see a doctor? Did you have a CT scan? Did you get checked out? We know of optical nerve damage, but what else?"
"Like I said, I lay low for a while, and I moved on."
"Ok, so no doctor or hospital then. Was your sight suddenly worse, or has it progressively got worse?"
Sherlock sighed and didn't answer.
"Sherlock, I need to know. You need to tell me. This could have some massive long term implications for you. Please."
"It was immediately worse. Then it's hard to tell but I think it's been slowly deteriorating since then."
John let out a massive sigh and shook his head. "Whether you like it or not, you are coming to my surgery tomorrow morning, and I'm sorting an emergency CT scan for you."
"Thank you John but I don't think that will be necessary."
"Ok, we'll see. Well you can at least fill me in on why you need your bike on Sunday"
"I'm going out for the day."
"You've not had your bike out since before you ... well, before the fall. Why now? Going anywhere nice? And with anyone or on your own"
"I'll pick it up Thursday around 7pm. How are the wedding plans coming on?"
John knew that was the end of the conversation about his sight and why he needed his bike, and that there was no chance of revisiting it. They spent the rest of the night talking about Mary, the wedding, Sherlock's recent cases and various other things. As Sherlock was preparing to leave, he excused himself to go to the bathroom and John immediately text Molly.
He refused to be checked out as we thought. JW
Don't worry, I'll have him at your surgery within the next 48 hours. MH
Good luck. JW
As he saw Sherlock returning John pretended to be on the phone to Mary. He wasn't sure if his ploy to pretend to talk had worked but Sherlock didn't question him further. John and Sherlock bade each other a cheerful 'goodnight' and Sherlock headed home into the cold night air, via the chip shop as he was peckish.
