A/n: Sorry for the wait on this next chapter. I'll just say having two jobs doesn't help get writing out faster, and apologize again. But here it finally is. Thanks again for the reviews and everything else. You guys are the best. Thanks to my beta reader as always. And here's the next chapter.


When Molly woke up, she was surprised to see two shapes at the side of her bed. Blinking her eyes to adjust to the bright fluorescents of the hospital she smiled when she saw it was Sherlock and Jim, one of them on either side of her. Sherlock was awake, scribbling something in a notebook, and Jim was passed out, curled into one of the small hospital chairs. She made a small noise to clear her throat and both men turned to her, Jim rubbing his eyes frantically.

"Oh my god." Jim scooted in closer to her, his eyes wide. "I can't believe you're awake." She could hear the strain and worry in his voice and wished she could comfort him. But the pain coursing through her was a steady reminder not to move too much.

"I can't believe you're both here." Her voice was hoarse as she spoke, glancing between the two men. "I thought I had dreamed up you two rescuing me."

"No dream, we're here." Sherlock's baritone drew her attention back over to him. "And we're very glad you're awake. We were beginning to get worried."

Molly's brows knit in confusion, "Wait… how long have I been out?" Surely it can't have been for more than a few hours. Then, studying the bags under the two men's eyes she realized it had to be. Jim and Sherlock shared a glance and Jim sighed before speaking up. "It's been three days love."

"Three days?" She closed her eyes for a second and then forced a smile, "Well, thank goodness. The way you two were acting I thought you were going to tell me it had been months."

Sherlock shook his head at her, but a small smile played on his lips. Jim, for his part, just continued looking nervous. Reaching over he took her hand in his, giving it a small squeeze. "I'm going to go get a nurse, they need to know you're awake. I'll be right back though." Molly nodded and Jim stood up, straightening his outfit so he looked more presentable.

"How are you feeling Molly?" Sherlock turned his chair to better face her. "They'll need to know if you need more medicine."

"Oh, um, definitely more painkillers. My side feels like someone went at it with a tire iron." Sherlock stifled a laugh and shook his head at her. "You always did have an odd sense of humor." He smirked, "I'm glad to see you've still got it even now."

"Oh, well I don't think that's ever going to change unfortunately. Thank you for helping me Sherlock, I know it must have been difficult having to find out I was with Jim. I didn't want to hide it from you guys I just…"

Sherlock held up a hand to stop her. "I would never let who you were dating stop me from helping you. You should know that."

"I'd hug you right now if I didn't think it might put me back into a coma." Both of them turned to the door as Jim followed a nurse into the room. Molly recognized her immediately, "Hello Patti." She greeted with a smile.

"Molly, thank goodness, how are you doing?" Patti checked Molly's vitals before focusing on Molly herself.

"I could definitely use more painkillers." Molly replied, "My side is killing me."

"I'm not surprised, you have two broken ribs. Unfortunately that's going to hurt for a while. They're going to take anywhere from three to six weeks to heal. I'll get you some more medicine right away." Patti checked her charts and made sure Molly's IV was still in well. "Can I get you anything else for right now?"

"No, thank you." Molly shook her head, "Actually, maybe some food whenever it's time for dinner."

"I'll get you some applesauce and a soda until then." Patti smiled down at Molly, "Everyone is going to be so glad to hear you're up and doing well considering what happened. Especially Cordelia, she's been a wreck."

"I'm just glad I was brought here, I wouldn't want to be anywhere else." Molly replied. Glancing at Jim she cast him an angry look and smiled back at Patti, "I think I just want to talk to these two until I get that applesauce, if that's okay."

"No problem sweetie, I'll check in on you and make sure you got everything in a bit." Patti smiled at the two men and excused herself from the room.

"What did I do?" Jim asked as soon as the nurse had left and Molly resumed her angry stare.

"You didn't even bother to make sure Cordelia was alright? She's probably been terrified about how I'm doing, and you didn't even think to tell her I'd be okay?"

"Molly, we didn't know you were going to be okay." Jim spoke softly, "You were in a coma for three days. She works here, it would have been pointless to lie to her."

"You still could have comforted her, did you let her see me?"

"No, she said she didn't want to until you woke up. Her and Sebastian didn't want to have to see you like that."

"Sebastian hasn't seen me either?"

"Well, to be fair I think he hasn't wanted to see me. But he's been really worried about you. He calls every few hours to check up on you."

"If you hurt Sebastian I'll kill you." Molly met Jim's eyes and held his eye contact until he sighed and nodded.

"I wasn't planning on hurting Sebastian." Jim whined, his tone reminding her of a child who didn't get it's way. "I was just going to pretend I was going to hurt him."

"No. He probably feels bad enough, and he's my friend. Just let it go."

"I will." Jim promised with a roll of his eyes. "Sometimes you're no fun Hooper."

Both Molly and Jim turned to face Sherlock when he cleared his throat. Molly noticed Sherlock and Jim locked eyes and after a moment's pause Jim sighed and gave a slight nod to the detective. "Sherlock wants to talk to you, so I'm going to give you two some time. I'll just be down the hall." Jim lifted Molly's hand to his lips, kissing it softly. A sadness crept back into his eyes she'd seen before and she resisted the urge to call for him to stay in the room.

Once he left Sherlock moved his chair so he was closer to Molly and met her eyes with a deep breath. "Look, Molly, I know you care for Jim." He started, his voice trailing off. "But I just don't think it's the best thing for you to be with him. Not because he's my enemy. Just… judging by what happened he's clearly not the best choice for your own safety."

Molly raised her eyebrows and stared at Sherlock, unable to decide on what to say in response. "I know I'm not the easiest person to deal with and I've been awful to you on some occasions. But my feelings for you deepened after the whole Reichenbach problem. You were there for me, and you always have been, I just never saw it."

"Sherlock…" Molly started, her train of thought trailing off.

"Jim and I have agreed that he might not be the best person for you to be with. And I… care about you." Molly wasn't surprised Sherlock had as much trouble admitting his feelings as Jim did. What she was surprised by was the fact that Jim agreed they shouldn't be together. And that he was okay with her being with Sherlock instead.

As if she was just something to be traded back and forth between them, as if she had no say in the matter herself. Clenching her fist Molly stared at Sherlock in a quiet shock. When she finally did answer she narrowed her eyes at him, "Jim agreed to this? That I should just go be with you now?"

Sherlock nodded, "Well, agreed, might not be the correct term. But he agreed that if after this was over, if you were okay, that he'd walk away from this if you decided you didn't want to be with him anymore. We both agreed that we wanted what's best for you. And I think it's quite apparent being with Jim is not what's best."

"Sherlock, do you realize what I would have given to hear you say those words a few years ago?" Molly shook her head, "I thought I was in love with you. And you treated me terribly. And I understood to an extent that relationships weren't your thing so I always forgave you. But I don't have those feelings for you anymore." She felt a pang of guilt as she saw his expression darken with sadness. "And even if I did, I wouldn't want to play second fiddle to John. I'm not stupid, I know on some level your feelings for him aren't strictly platonic."

Sherlock looked completely caught off guard and she held up her hands. "If I'm wrong, that's fine. But any woman is going to play second fiddle to your friendship regardless. But more than that, I love Jim. I've never cared about anyone the way I care about him. And maybe he is the worst thing to ever happen to me, but he's also the best. So after I strangle him for thinking he can just pawn me off that easily, he's the one I want to be with. I'm sorry."

Sherlock nodded and gave her a failed attempt at a smile. "I'll always be here for you Molly."

"I'll always be here for you too. We're a family you know." Molly smiled at the thought of the 221B family. "Me, you, John, Mrs. Hudson, Lestrade, and Mary. I know you guys will all always be there for me."

"Can I let them know you're awake so they can come visit you? They're all quite upset and worried."

Molly made a face, "I don't think I'm ready for that many visitors today. How about you tell them I'm awake and that they can come see me in a day or two."

"I'll do that." Sherlock agreed, his hand ghosting over Molly's shoulder as if unsure what to do to say goodbye. "Feel better Molly, I'll see you soon."

"See you soon. Thanks again for being my hero. I know Jim wouldn't have found me if you hadn't worked with him, so I appreciate you putting your differences aside for my sake."

Sherlock smiled and gave her one nod before excusing himself, shutting the door behind him with a muffled thud. Shortly after a nurse came and changed her IV, but Jim still didn't come back. Staring down at her hands Molly found herself toying with her IV. She had always hated how itchy those stupid things got.

Molly glanced up from her hand as Jim finally entered the room and made his way back to his post beside her bed. He met her eyes, his mouth a grim line and his eyes dull. He brought her hand to his lips for another soft kiss and sighed. His eyes were slightly pink, and she was sure he'd been crying.

She couldn't think of any time Jim had cried in front of her before this experience. He hadn't even cried when he told her about how his parents used to abuse him. But here he was, already resigned to the fact that he was going to lose her, about to split at the seams at any moment. "So is this goodbye then?"

She knew that Jim was under the impression he was losing her to Sherlock, but did he really think she cared that little for him? Sighing, she spoke softly, using what little strength she had to tug on his hand. "Come here." The only thing she wanted right now was for Jim to come lie beside her and hold her.

"You know I can't do that. I don't want to hurt you." He replied, giving her a look like she'd lost her mind.

"Jim please." She pleaded with him, "I just need you next to me." She heard the panic in her own voice and tried to take a deep breath to calm back down. She knew she was safe now, but she just needed Jim beside her to prove it to her. He was like her safety net, he had to understand that.

Jim got up and she moved over slightly, motioning for him to join her on her good side. Moving slowly, he climbed onto the hospital bed next to her, lying on his side so he wouldn't take up too much space. He allowed Molly to guide his arm around her to where it wouldn't hurt her and laced his fingers with hers.

"It's okay now." His voice wavered and he lowered his forehead so it was resting against her shoulder as he repeated those words to her. She wasn't sure if the words were meant for her or whether he was saying them to reassure himself but it worked either way. After a while she felt the tremble of his body and knew he was crying. Reaching over she ran her fingers through his hair to comfort him.

"I thought I was going to lose you." He spoke so quietly she almost missed the words and she felt her own hot tears streak down her face.

"I thought you were going to lose me too." She admitted, "All I could think about was how badly I wished I could see you one last time. Just to tell you how much I loved you." Molly began to cry harder as she relived those memories and Jim removed his hand from her own to wipe away her tears.

"I'm so sorry Molly. I should have stayed away from you. You would have been safe if I had. That was my worst nightmare. That I would lose you simply because I was stupid enough to love you." His voice trailed off and he sighed, "And now look what happened."

"The best thing that ever happened to me was you coming back." Molly admitted, "I don't want you to blame yourself for this. And don't you dare use this as an excuse to pull away from me. That man was sick, he wan't sane."

"He was sick because of me. Because I killed his mom. I drove him to that."

Molly knew she couldn't argue that without being a liar. "But he's no better than you Jim. He used me to exact his revenge. You killed his mother. There's no excusing that. But he's more sick than you are. At least you didn't kidnap his mother and make him watch as you killed her. In my book, that makes him more of a monster than you are."

Jim kissed the side of her neck before nuzzling his head into her. "I don't ever want to lose you again."

"I don't want to lose you either." Molly answered immediately, "And you're lucky I don't punch you for trying to pass me off to Sherlock as soon as I woke up."

"I promised him if that's what you wanted I'd leave you alone… that I'd do what's best for you."

"What's best for me is being with you. I couldn't bear losing you."

"I know love, I'm sorry." Jim whispered against her neck, "I couldn't bear it either."

"Can Sebastian come visit me tomorrow morning?"

"I can ask him. I'm sure he'll agree. He's really anxious to see you. We were really worried about you, I've never seen him flustered before. But he was barely holding himself together while we were searching for you." Jim paused to gather his thoughts, "I was a mess too obviously. But in the end Sebastian was the one who brought me back to reality and got me to focus."

"I can't believe I used to hate him." Molly actually smiled at the memory. She couldn't believe how much had changed since then. She considered Sebastian one of her closest friends now. Besides Cordelia she was closer to Sebastian than she was with Sherlock or any of her other friends. "I'd see him today, but I just want to be with you today. I just don't think I can handle any visitors right away."

"Of course not love, he understands that better than anyone. Cordelia does too. I let them know you were awake. They just want to see you when you're ready."

"Has Sebastian… was he tortured also?" Molly asked tentatively. She wasn't sure if it was an appropriate thing to ask about, but it seemed as if Jim was alluding to it.

"Yeah…" Jim answered, his voice serious again. "He was in a p.o.w. camp for about three months when he served in the military. Luckily he managed to escape, but they tortured him constantly for those three months." Molly began to cry again, but this time she was crying for her friend. She couldn't imagine dealing with being tortured and starved for three months. She'd barely lasted two days.

"Shh, don't cry love." Jim kissed her cheek and held her hand more tightly. "Seb came out of it stronger and you will too. You're my tough girl. You're a fighter Molly Hooper. I never would have found you if you hadn't thought of a way to sneak our code word in. I'm so proud of you."

"I changed my mind, can Seb just come by tonight? I just want to thank him."

"Thank him?" Jim sounded incredulous. "For what?"

"For being a friend. He didn't have to call you right away. He probably knew there was a good chance you'd kill him on the spot. But you said he called you right away to try and save me. Weaker men would have just fled and let you find out too late."

Jim sighed and Molly knew he didn't see it from that perspective but he nodded. "I guess you're right. If he had fled I would have found him and gutted him regardless. But I suppose you have a point. I'll call him."

When he went to move, Molly held him in place. "Just call from here, I want you to stay with me until he gets here. Cordelia can come by too if she's free. I owe her that at least." Jim made the call and within thirty minutes the distressed looking couple opened Molly's door poking their heads in slowly. Cordelia burst into tears immediately and Jim moved away from the bed so the two could speak in private.

Sebastian smiled grimly at Molly and waved before following Jim out the door, leaving the girls alone. "Oh my god Molly." Cordelia shook her head, her mouth hung open in shock. "How did this happen?"

"Some psycho grabbed me off the street." She knew her friend didn't need to know everything about the situation. She definitely didn't need to know about Jim and what his real profession happened to be. "Luckily Jim and Sebastian found me with the help of Sherlock."

"Did they find the bastard who did this to you?"

"Yeah, one of them shot her. I'm not sure which one of them." She had an idea which of them it had been, but again, Cordelia didn't need to know that.

"It was a girl?" Cordelia made a horrified face, "I just assumed it was a man."

"It was a girl." Molly replied with a nod. "She was insane. She'd been engaged to Tom I guess. I think she was upset that he had been talking to me before he was killed."

"I can't believe that. I'm so sorry." Cordy wiped at her eyes and Molly motioned for her to give her a small hug, warning her about her broken ribs. "I'm so glad you're okay. I haven't slept in days. Sebastian is probably ready to kill me, I've just been a crying, worried mess since I found out."

"I'm glad Sebastian was there for you at least."

That brought a smile to Cordelia's face and she nodded, "He's been really great. I don't think I would have held it together without him. I think we're both finally ready to get serious too. Not to change the subject, I'm so sorry. I'm an idiot."

"You're not an idiot, trust me, I'm glad for a different topic of conversation. Did you guys talk about it?"

Cordelia sat down where Sherlock had been and nodded. "I told him after this was over I couldn't just go back to being friends with benefits and he told me he was ready to give a real relationship a shot."

Molly grinned at her friend, a happy tear streaking down her face. "Aw, Cordy, I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks." Cordelia bit her lip, "I was expecting him to give me the boot to be honest."

"No way, I told you he had feelings for you."

"But to get back to you, you're going to be okay?"

"That's what the doctor says. My broken ribs are going to take a while to heal, and they gave me some blood transfusions already when I was in the coma, but they said I should make a full recovery."

"Thank god." Cordelia finally relaxed, "I'm going to let Sebastian see you because he's been just as worried as I have. But you know my number. If you need anything you call me and I'll be right here. I mean it, anything."

"I know, thanks Cordy, I love you."

"I love you too Molly." Her best friend blew her a kiss and hesitated like she didn't really want to leave before waving and sending Sebastian in. The sniper moved slowly over to Molly, unsure of what to say. The guilt of what had happened to her was still weighing heavily upon his shoulders and seeing her like this only added to that guilt.

"Molly…" He started before words failed him and he sighed, looking down at his feet.

"Sebastian, I wanted to thank you."

"Thank me?" She wasn't sure it was possible but he seemed more shocked by that than Jim had been. "I completely failed you. It's a miracle Jim hasn't killed me yet."

"You didn't fail me Sebastian." Molly reached out for his hand and he hesitated like he wasn't sure what to do, but he gave her his hand. "You're probably the main reason I'm here and still alive. Most people would have probably panicked knowing what Jim might do to them and fled. But you called him right away. He told me that. And I appreciate it, you were there for me even knowing what could happen to you."

"I should have never let that happen to you in the first place."

"You were right next to me, you couldn't stop it any more than I was able to. We had no idea they were planning on that. We didn't even think anyone was following me anymore. You did the best you could do. And Jim knows that too." Molly lied, she knew Jim was still mad at Sebastian. But she also knew he was getting over it. Sebastian was his best friend, and she knew Jim couldn't stay mad at him now that she was okay.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that. I'm just glad you're alright Molly. I was terrified of what could happen to you. I didn't really care what happened to me, I just wanted you to be okay."

"You're a good person Sebastian. So thank you again, for being my friend. It's hard to believe we used to hate each other huh?"

Sebastian laughed and cracked the huge smile Molly was used to seeing now. "I could never hate you now that I know you." He sighed, "even if I wanted to when I first met you."

"Same." Molly smiled back. "Promise me you'll forgive yourself. You have nothing to feel bad about."

"I'll try." Sebastian frowned. Molly nodded, knowing that was the best she was going to get out of him. Sebastian could be even more stubborn than Jim when he set his mind to it.

"That's good enough for now. But you know I'll wear you down eventually." Molly teased, "Now I'll let you and Cordy go get some sleep, it sounds like you haven't had much for the past few days."

"That's an understatement." Sebastian smirked, "I'm glad I got to see you Molly. I'll send Jim back in."

"Thanks." Molly nodded, "And I'm glad I got to see you too. Get some sleep and relax."

"No promises." Sebastian replied, he nodded his head at Jim as he walked in before giving Molly a quick salute and closing the door behind him.

Jim went back to his chair, pulling it right up to the bed and holding Molly's hand. "Everything go okay then?" He raised an eyebrow as he waited for her answer.

"No, Sebastian told me I was a horrible person and he hopes we break up." Molly deadpanned and rolled her eyes. "Yes, it went okay." She laughed but then stopped as it only sent a sharp pain to her side again. "Why wouldn't it have gone well?"

"I don't know it's just a question. You know, you've become awfully sarcastic since you woke up." His tone was teasing and Molly bit her lip to contain a grin. She was glad that he was still treating her like he always did. She'd been worried he'd keep acting like he needed to walk on eggshells around her.

"You know, you're pretty fantastic for an awful jerk and a criminal."

Jim grinned at her and shook his head as if he disapproved. "And you're pretty great I guess. For a socially awkward pathologist."

"I love you."

"I love you too." Jim squeezed her hand and Molly relaxed, pushing herself more comfortably down into the hospital bed. "I'm going to go back to sleep, but do you promise to stay with me?" She asked him, her voice giving away how tired she was. Having to deal with everything between Sherlock and Jim and then seeing Seb and Cordy on top of it had been a bit more taxing than she thought it'd be.

"Yeah, I'll be here." He agreed, leaning backwards in his chair and closing his eyes. "You'd have to forcibly remove me."

"I don't think I could forcibly remove a fly right now. So I guess you're stuck with me."

"I could think of worse people to be stuck with."

"Like?"

"That Anderson friend of yours. I think he'd drive me insane if I was stuck with him for more than a few hours."

"Stop it." Molly slapped his hand lightly. "Anderson is a good person. He just… lost it a bit. Be nice."

"You're the one who wanted to know."

"I did. But if you don't stop talking I might have to attempt to forcibly remove you after all." Molly opened her eyes to peek over at Jim when he didn't answer and watched as he pretended to zip his lips. "I take it back. I hate you." She sighed, but couldn't keep the smile from playing across her lips as he blew her a kiss. For all his faults she really was crazy about him. She just couldn't wait until she could actually move more freely again so she could give him the tightest hug ever. She knew when she did she wouldn't want to let go.