Hello all! I had a bit of a writer's surge and lots of time to spare so I present to you chapter 37! Now to give all of you lovelies a shoutout!
JG- It does actually! Its a magician's trick and a popular theory amongst Sherlockians. They say that he used the tiny bouncy ball that he was playing with when he talked to John in the morgue. Aww thank you so much! I'm so glad you like it! ;D
Zora Arian- Haha I know right! The evil stopped yes (...?!) Actually I'm not sure where that aspect of the story is headed... Haha I am planning on having Irene do something to stir the pot in the stew that is Sherlolly! Thanks for the review dearie!
Empress of Verace-Yes that would have been disastrous! I know right, my poor bby Molly! Thanks for the constant love from you, hon! 3
JNG- Hello there! Actually it was the part where it said, "Catch you later, Sherlock." "No you won't." like at the end of the pool scene but I switched the roles and added Sherlock at the end. That was a good guess but I did sat conversation! You were actually the only one who attempted a guess in the history of this fic so yes of course you get a cookie have the whole plate! :)
AHighlyFunctioningSociopath- Thanks so much for the review! Your username is perfection. *jealous*
Aviatress-Haha why is it sad that Moran died? He killed people! Well I guess adding the love between Moriarty and Moran was a sad part. I actually do ship MorMor:'(
AdaYuki- Ahh no! You didn't do it in all caps! The WORLD will implode jeez! Haha just kidding thanks for the review darling! Glad that you are LOVING it ;D
WhoNeedsTheLimelight- Thanks dear! I haven't but I took your advice and listened to it... it was boss to say the least! Thanks for the review and I hope to see more from you *innocent smile*
Rocking the Redhead- Haha I hope that's a group of fanfiction you know like kid!lock but this would be baddass!Molly! Happy that you're happy sweetie! ;)
lollipop-chan- YES and... awesome people are the best kind of people and you ma'am are one of them! Thanks for the review! I hope to see more from you :)
crooney83- Glad you like it! Looks like you didn't have to wait that long! Enjoy.
Guest- AWWW thank you bby here have a hug from me! *HUGS INTENSELY* That is so sweet of you to say! I hope to see more reviews from you, you sweetheart:D
STORY TIME PEEPS!
Molly's POV
"I was standing at the reception desk waiting for an administrator to allow us to visit Irene. I looked behind my shoulder at Sherlock. His knees bounced up and down uncontrollably with the odd habit of boredom he could never shake. He was sitting in the waiting room, eyes roaming furiously over people, reading them. God only knows what secrets he's uncovered in a matter of minutes. It must have been a lot; we have been here for over an hour.
"Can I help you?"
I turned back around, faced with a small ginger woman who seemed to like her job too much, as she sat in her desk chair looking up at me with a broad smile.
"Hello…ugh…Cassandra," I said looking at her nametag, "My name is Molly Hooper. I was wondering if I could be able to visit my friend."
"What's the name of the patient?"
"Irene Adler."
The receptionist held up her finger politely for a moment and typed away at her computer. She read through something quickly. I knew how it worked. They would list what caused the hospitalization of the patient on file and if it wasn't an accident, they would hesitate to let visitors in.
"Are you a relative or a loved one of Miss Adler?"
"No but-"
"I am," chimed Sherlock who had come out of nowhere behind me. He put his arm around my waist and continued talking to the woman.
"This is my wife and I'm the brother of Irene," he gleamed with an all too chipper smile plastered across his face.
"Alright, then. She's in room 142. Down this corridor here," she added pointing to our left.
"Thank you so very much, Miss Cassandra," Sherlock smiled once again politely causing the young receptionist to blush as he walked onwards towards Irene's room, his arm still around my waist.
"You're quite the actor," I said looking up at him quizzically.
"I can also cry on cue," he added as an afterthought.
"Am I supposed to be impressed?"
"Maybe," Sherlock looked down at me with a flirtatious look in his eyes.
The room wasn't that far away but we walked slowly in an intimate quiet, feeling somewhat lazy and at loss for words. Neither of us seemed to know what to say about what had transpired. I could still feel the outline of the gun on the palm of my hand. My index finger with which I pulled the trigger with, felt oddly foreign to me. Sherlock noticed my uneasiness and pulled his arm away from my waist and held my hand lightly, somewhat reassuringly.
I entered the room first and our hands broke away. Going to see people in the hospital was always awkward. Especially when you don't have a gift and don't know them that well to give them a hug or a chaste peck on the cheek.
"H-hello, Irene," I said, waving awkwardly, "How are you feeling?" I questioned lightly as I sat in the wooden chair next to her bed.
Before she could put a word in, Sherlock answered for her as he speed-read her chart that was on the end of the bed, "Besides the cuts to her forehead and lip, the only other injury would be the gash in her leg. It says here you lost a lot of blood and you almost…died on the paramedics," Sherlock whispered and bowed his head. If she would have died, he wouldn't have been able to live with himself. I had heard what he said to Moriarty and Moran. I heard the guilt in his voice as he professed the truth in that horrific moment.
Irene lay on the bed, motionless and quiet. Her eyes were still screaming at me, at everything. She wanted to cry, she was going to cry, and she did. I sat gingerly on the bed next to her. I had no idea how to comfort her. I took her hand in mine in a comforting way and to my relief, she placed her other hand on the top and her crying slowly started to subside. I looked over at Sherlock to be greeted with his back. He hated when people cried. I looked back at Irene with a friendly smile.
"How about I get you something to drink?"
"I doubt this hospital has vodka," she joked, becoming Irene once again as the tears dried on her cheeks.
"Tea would be lovely," she added finally.
I stood and left the room to retrieve coffee for her. I saw myself in the same bed, with bruises on my face, broken nose, a swollen eye, and a broken arm. I wished for someone to comfort me at the time and Sherlock had unexpectedly done so. I felt obligated to bring Irene back. Back to earth with us where she could joke and laugh and live safely. Maybe she was stronger than I was. Maybe she won't have nightmares like I did. Maybe she'll walk back into her life like I have never gotten the chance to. I couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy.
Sherlock's POV
I sat in the chair next to Irene's hospital bed. I welcomed the familiar feeling of guilt that came after my actions affecting others. She stared up at the ceiling, a boring white.
"You can be released today," I said casually, "and we'll take you to a hospital back in London."
"What if I don't want to leave?" she asked to the ceiling.
"What do you mean?" I questioned bewilderingly.
She didn't respond and I did understand what she was saying.
"I know. I'm like a time bomb. That's why I keep people at arm's length. This never should have happened."
"You don't do that to all people," she said looking at me now.
"I should though. I should leave people alone. It's for their own good."
"Not in all cases."
She sighed and continued, "I don't want to live in London anymore. I need to go away somewhere. At least for a while. I'm starting to feel like a third wheel," she laughed.
"I understand," I said simply.
"I don't think Molly will," she looked back up to the ceiling again, "I think we've become friends," she said with question in her voice, "She won't be very happy. To be perfectly honest, she's one of the few friends I have."
"I know how that feels," I whispered.
"No you don't, Mr. Holmes. You have plenty of friends. You just don't realize it."
I thought her a fool but then I let the words sink in and I felt a kind of warmth that I hadn't felt before. It was an odd feeling that radiated quickly, sending chills down my spine and raising the hairs on my neck. It was exciting and reminded me of how I would feel after a big case or an injection of heroine.
"When will I be able to walk properly?" Irene asked in the silence.
"A month. Maybe more, maybe less. You did lose a lot of blood and it was quite deep."
She huffed into the air indignantly, "Will you miss me, Sherlock?" she asked somewhat playfully.
I smirked and sat back into the chair, "Of course, Irene," I joked.
She rolled her eyes and looked away which made me wonder. Did Irene have genuine feelings for me at some point? Does she know? I felt slightly guilt-ridden. It wasn't my doing that sprung up the feelings she had/has for me but I couldn't help myself. It was a good that she was moving away. She needed to start a life somewhere else and figure out what she wants to do and who she wants to do it with. No pun intended, I thought, even though I smiled briefly.
After a minute had passed, I stood up to check on Molly.
"Sherlock, raise my bed for me, will you?"
"Of course," I said making my way around and leaning down to adjust her bed.
In an instant, her lips pressed against mine passionately. I didn't kiss her back and stood looking at her in shock when she broke her lips away from mine.
"Wh-What was-"
"You owe it to me, don't you think?" she asked flirtatiously.
"Irene, I-"
"Oh don't get your knickers in a twist. It was just a one-time thing. I couldn't have left London without first experiencing that."
"That's an odd way of thinking," I thought out loud casually. I could feel my cheeks burn with a blush. I went to raise her bed again and she didn't try anything to my relief. As I left the room, I wiped my lips on my coat even though she wasn't wearing any lipstick. I heard a soft giggle behind me.
Molly's POV
I carried the medium sized ceramic cup of tea in my hand as I made my way back to Irene's hospital room. Sherlock emerged, looking uneasy and awkward. He saw me and met me half way.
"I'll be waiting outside," he said curtly and continued walking towards the front of the hospital.
"What?" I asked turning around to face him, "Why are we leaving so early?"
"Just talk to Irene," he added over his shoulder and put his hands in his pockets.
I shrugged to myself and turned back around, entering Irene's hospital room. I handed her the tea and sat on the edge of the bed once again. She sipped it greedily even though the tea hurt the split in her lip. Irene set it down on the side table next to her and looked at me, serious.
"What's wrong?" I asked confused.
"I'm moving somewhere else. I don't know where but I just need to get out of London."
I didn't understand but strangely I knew exactly why. As the next few minutes passed, we talked about possible places and what she wanted to do with her life. Irene changed the subject.
"What about you and Sherlock? Where are you headed in the future with him?" she asked genuinely interested.
"I'm not sure. All I know is that we're happy with each other's company and we both love each other."
"Do you want to marry him, Molly? Or have children?"
"Of course I do, Irene. I want that more than anything. I just don't think there's ever a right time to bring up that subject with Sherlock or if he'd even consider it."
"It's hard to figure him out," I added finally.
She nodded understandably. She let me do her makeup, my idea, as a final gesture of what we had become to each other. She was a friend and I wanted to do one last thing for her. I finisher her mascara and I cried a single tear. I hugged her for a few seconds and I left without a word because I hate goodbyes. I wiped the tear off my cheek and I saw Sherlock standing in front of me. He had a sneaky grin on his face, a grin that meant he knew something that I didn't. He didn't mention that he became bored outside and came back in when he was getting too cold and he didn't mention that he heard our entire conversation.
BOOM CHICKY BOOM CHICKY BOOM BOOM BOOM POW! Hey look over there, its all of my new reviewers running away in terror because they realized I'm SUPER insane! But seriously I got 12 reviews after I posted that chapter and it just warmed my heart! I CRIED GUYS! I can't believe I cried! My mom saw me she's omfg what the hell what's wrong bby and when I told her she rolled her eyes and left me with my tears lol! Feeling the love mom *pouts* I hope that you guys review again and I hope some of you shy people out there does too! Lot's of love to all of you! 3
~Mel