prompted by mychakk: #58, "I've been in love with you my entire life. Ever since the day I first met you." pre-ASiP. AU.
"This pathologist had better be competent, Stamford," Sherlock remarked.
"For my sake, I hope so too," Mike muttered under his breath. They entered the morgue to find the new pathologist preparing for an autopsy.
"Oh, Mike, hey, who's this?" she asked. Sherlock blinked rapidly, his mind racing. Same chestnut hair, same sweet smile and those big brown eyes.
"You remember I mentioned Consulting Detective Sherlock Holmes," Mike replied. "I'll leave you two to be acquainted."
"Molly. Molly Hooper," Sherlock stated when Mike left.
"Y-you know me?" Molly questioned.
"Yes; don't you remember me?" his tone portrayed a sliver of heartache.
"I've never known anyone named Sherlock; I'm sorry but I've no idea who you are," she told him with a sympathetic smile.
"We met at the park every Saturday when we were kids. You defended me from anyone who made fun of me for being different. I've been in love with you my entire life. Ever since the day I first met you. I never thought I'd see you again," Sherlock rambled on.
"William," Molly realized. "Oh my-wait, you're in love with me?"
"Yes, Molly, I am. Very much so," he confirmed, his voice soft. Sherlock reached inside of his Belstaff and pulled out an old polaroid photo. It was a candid his mother had taken of him and Molly in the sitting room of his house playing Cluedo. They were older in that photo; Molly was twelve and Sherlock, fourteen.
"I loved you so much," she mused. Sherlock winced at her use of the past tense, his heart aching. Molly noticed his change in demeanor. "And I never stopped."
"What are the odds?" he smiled.
"No idea; but the odds are definitely in our favour," Molly answered, rising up on her toes to press her lips to his.