A/N: And Sherlock is back to normal. He was WAY too fluffy in that last chapter. Also what are your opinions on the scene from Pride and Prejudice they should do?

John was doing his chem. homework when Sherlock walked in to their room. He looked at the large file in his roommate's hand and then at his roommate's face. John moved to stand, to bring comfort to his friend. Sherlock stalled him with a single glance. A look that clearly said he didn't want to be touched. A look of pure torment.

Sherlock tossed the file on his desk like it didn't matter like it wasn't the reason he left their room to begin with. He then promptly threw himself on his bed and buried his face in the pillow.

"Well, you got the file, so something must have gone right, Sherlock." John said after he watched his friend for awhile. Sherlock rolled over to face him.

"I hate people, John. Why must they be so petty and cruel?"

"Not Victor, surely!" John blurted out before the realization that that couldn't be right hit him.

"No!" Sherlock confirmed. He jumped off the bed and start pace on his side of the room. "His father. And maybe his mother too. I don't know. I couldn't get a good read on her." Sherlock ran his fingers through his hair in frustration.

"Ah." John cocked his head to the side. "Let me guess, Mr. Trevor was nice to you but awful to Victor?" Sherlock stopped his pacing and whipped around to face John.

"How did you know?" he demanded of John.

"My father does it all the time with me and Harry. Nice to me but hard on her." John sighed. "I've always been naturally gifted when it came to certain things. Harry would work for weeks on a book report and barely scrap out an B." John rubbed the side of his face.

"And you would put in the minimum effort and get an A." Sherlock finished for him.

"Pretty much, or at least an A- or B+."

Sherlock stuck his hands in his pockets. "Does she resent you for it?" Sherlock asked, curious.

"She doesn't show it. But I don't doubt that on some level she must." Sherlock crossed over to the and gave John's shoulder a squeeze.

Sherlock smirked. "I thought you were suppose to be trying to make me feel better John, instead I seem to be trying to cheer you up." John chuckled weakly.

"I guess we're quite the pair, aren't we? Both damaged and yet…" John trailed off. And where do you think you are going with that thought, Johnny-boy? Hmm? John had no idea if he was honest with himself. This was Sherlock. Who had a boyfriend. Let's not forget he had a date on Friday with Mary. It wasn't as though the kiss was his first or particularly good. In fact it was a bit rubbish really. More like a quick peck than an actual kiss. So why the hell couldn't he let it go?

"Yes." Sherlock agreed, his warm baritone low. It sent a shiver down John's spine.

Stop it! He told his mind. He focused on the heart shaped blond face and drove out all thoughts of his dark haired roommate.

John decided to change the subject. "What are you going to about that?" He nodded to the large file on the other boy's desk.

"You want to help?" Sherlock asked.

"I'll do what I can I guess. You're far more clever than I am."

"As always you sell yourself short." Sherlock grabbed the file and brought it over John's bed.

Sherlock kicked off his trainers and crawled up on the bed and leaned against the headboard. John put his homework on his desk and leaned over Sherlock's shoulder as he opened the file.

It showed gruesome images of their teacher with his head bashed in laying in the grass face up. They looked at the foot and hoof prints. There was something strange about them but John couldn't quite place it. The next picture showed a strange glittering object the grass. The next was after they fished it out. John gasped.

"What is John?" Sherlock asked.

"What the hell was he doing with a gauge 4 scalpel?" John breathed. He'd seen his father use one when a patient stumbled into their house and his father had to do emergency surgery on the spot. Had John hold the man's head to keep him as calm as possible.

"What is used for, John?" Sherlock asked.

"Cutting large tissue. The calf, the thigh, places like that."

Sherlock brow furrowed. They continued to look over the file but soon it was late and they had class in the morning. They put the file down and they got ready for bed.

As John laid his head down his last thought before sleep was, Damn! I never did finish my chem. homework.

When he woke up the next morning Sherlock was propped up on his bed. The file in his hands. John was a little disappointed. He thought that they were going to look over it together. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. This Sherlock after all. Ever curious.

Sherlock looked up. "Oh good John, you're awake." John rubbed his eyes.

"Am I? It doesn't feel like it. How long have you been up?" John asked as he rifled through his drawers looking for clean shirts. He sighed as he knew he'd have to do laundry soon. Pulling out his last clean uniform shirt, he pulled it on.

As he stood there buttoning it up, he felt a pair of eyes on him. He was buttoning the top button when he looked up.

"Something up, Sherlock," he asked as he moved to the cuffs. He pulled out the tie and moved to the bathroom to tie it in the mirror. He came out and pulled on his trousers and buckled the belt. Still not a word from his roommate as threw on a sweater waistcoat and then his school jacket.

John went about finishing his homework from the night before, as he didn't think that his teachers would accept 'going over a police report' as an excuse for not doing it.

Still Sherlock hadn't said a word. John sighed as realized that he was looking at the same problem for the past five minutes without moving his pencil once. He turned to his roommate. As near as he could tell Sherlock hadn't moved the entire time.

"Alright Sherlock spill, what's up?"

"John." was the only word out his friend's mouth.

"Yes?" John inquired.

Sherlock turned away. "Nothing." He went back to the file and continued to read it.

"Sherlock?" but the dark haired boy continued to ignore him. "Is this about me knowing about the scalpel?" He asked. It was the only thing he could think of.

"I know your father is a doctor. So how did you know?" Sherlock snapped.

John shrugged. "Sometimes dad would bring patients at home. He'd have me help. He wants me to be a doctor like him."

Sherlock glared at him and then went back to his reading. Right. Rule number one with Sherlock. Never be cleverer than he is. John sighed. He finished up his homework though he was sure he got three and seven wrong but he didn't want to try and figure out where he went wrong. It was almost time for class anyway.

"You swapped the variables on three and seven is copper not iron." said the warm voice next to his ear.

John jumped. "Shite, Sherlock! How long have you been standing there?"

"About five minutes."

John looked at the two problems and knew Sherlock was right of course. Chemistry was something Sherlock excelled at after all.

Chemistry is more than formulas and equations, it also implies emotions and interactions between two people. And there is a lot of chemistry in this room. No matter how John would want to deny it. Sherlock and he had chemistry. That didn't mean that it was sexual or romantic. It just meant they worked well together. And so that what he'd been feeling yesterday was chemistry.

He fixed his mistakes with a shuddering sigh as it released the tension in his chest. "Thanks Sherlock." He said as he began putting his stuff into his bag.

"You're welcome."

John stood up. "Does this mean you aren't mad at me anymore?" Sherlock blushed.

"I'm just not use to people knowing something about a case that I don't. Yes, yes, this technically my first case but I had solved puzzles like this before. It's a game Mycroft and I use to play as children."

"I'm guessing you didn't play Mr. Crocodile or It, then?" John chuckled. Sherlock looked at him confused.

"What's that?"

"Figures." He didn't mean to hit the nail on the head like that. He had only been joking after all. "Games children play on the playground."

"Oh, right. Mummy didn't like us going to the playground. She was afraid that we'd get hurt and then after…" Sherlock swallowed the lump that formed in his throat. "Anyway we didn't play with other children much."

"Alright." John let it drop. He had clearly struck a nerve and didn't want to press further.

They handed in there homework and by the end of class it was handed back to them, John smiled fondly when he saw he got all of them right. Thanks to his roommate.

Then it was time for English. JC was already there. Usually he liked to make an entrance but he was writing on the white board with his back turned to the class. Once he was done he turned to them and flashed them a toothy grin.

"Welcome class."

"Hello, JC." the class chanted back.

"Alright it's time to hand out your final. I realize that's it's not even midterm yet but I wanted to give you all plenty of time to get it done. Over the past few weeks we had been discussing 'Pride and Prejudice'. So what I want you to do is to get together with a partner and pick your favorite scene and modernize it. Everything including the language."

There were some muttering and glances. As much as John wanted to be with Mary he knew that no one would want to be with Sherlock. He sighed resignedly. John spared a backward glance at Mary but she just giggled and went over to stand next to Molly. John let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding. He had been worried that another boy would be her partner but she had chosen to partner with Molly. He could live with that.

"Hello, John." Sherlock looked up at him. "You volunteering to be my partner then?" His eyes flashed with an indignant anger.

"Yes because you're my best friend and besides Mary's partnering with Molly." Sherlock's eyebrow went up skeptically. John ran his hand over his face and sighed.

"Do you not want to partner with me?" John asked.

"It's why you want to partner with me, John. I don't need your pity!" He spat out the last word with such venom that John stepped back.

"Oi! You git! I want to partner with you. I was worry that another boy would partner with Mary because was worried that she would be spending long hours with him. But because she's with Molly, I don't have to worry."

Sherlock looked confused. "Sentiment?"

"Yes." Sherlock sighed.

"Alright. What scene do you want to do?" Sherlock relented.

"My favorite is the exchange in Rosings between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth over the piano."

"Hmm… I'm not sure it's long enough." Sherlock observed.

"You know everyone else is going to do one of proposal scenes." John had spoken a little too loud and the whole class looked at him in shock. JC chuckled.

"Thanks for that Watson. Now I don't have to read a dozen variation of the same scene." Everyone around them scrambled to find a different scene.

"You're welcome, sir!" John called out smiling. JC chuckled again.