With how long the last case took and how much it drained Sherlock, John was ready for a few days to relax between cases. That wouldn't happen though as John's blog was becoming popular and more people were seeking him out for help. They had woken up late and John had taken charge as Sherlock wandered sleepily around the house still dressed in his pajamas. He was following closely behind John, still not awake enough to make his own decisions and putting his full trust in John. He didn't fight as John put a cup of tea in one of his hands and a piece of toast in the other.
Sherlock ate the toast without hesitation and drank his tea. He held the empty cup in his hand until John took it putting it in the sink to wash. As he did, he wondered what people would think if they could see this side of the detective. The one that didn't know how to take care of himself to the point that John worried about Sherlock accidentally starving himself to death while he was at a conference. Still, the man had somehow managed to survive over thirty years on his own but John attributed a lot of that to Mycroft interfering. As much as he thought the man should mind his own business sometimes, John was positive that it was only by his hand and the hand of others, that Sherlock lived long enough to get to this point.
"Woo, hoo," Mrs. Hudson called out as she entered their apartment interrupting John's thoughts. "Can't you hear the doorbell, it has been ringing all morning."
"I haven't heard it," John stated looking toward Sherlock.
"I took the batteries out," Sherlock answered.
"Why did you take the batteries out?" John wondered.
"It wouldn't stop going off," Sherlock replied simply. John sighed.
"It's supposed to do that," Mrs. Hudson stated.
"I'll replace the batteries," John reassured her. "Where did you put the box, Sherlock?" Sherlock waved his hand in the general direction of his desk. John sent Sherlock to their room to dress before heading over to Sherlock's desk. It was clear that it wasn't on the top and so he started looking in the drawers and under the desk. He still didn't see it and was about to give up when he decided to look behind the desk. He found the little box wedged between the desk and the wall. Retrieving it, he replaced the batteries and put the box back on the wall where it belonged. He had just finished the task when Sherlock appeared fully dressed and seemingly more awake. The doorbell rang and John went to welcome their first client.
The next few days rang together as their home was bombarded with clients, most of whom bored Sherlock to no end. He answered their questions before they could even finish asking them and told one woman under no uncertain terms that her husband was having the suspected affair. John was slightly annoyed as he even turned down a large sum of money to find business files claiming the case was boring. There were also people asking about lost loved ones who seemingly disappeared and a case involving a comic book that came to life that caught Sherlock's attention briefly. It was quickly solved as it turned out to be one of the writers of the comic who was reenacting the scenes in order to draw attention and revenue.
John typed up the story making sure to give it a catchy title. His blog was quickly gaining popularity and bringing them even more clients. Sherlock, complained slightly about John's blog wondering if people actually read the thing but even with all of his complaints, he was always the first one to read the newest entry after John posted it. He would make faces and tell John that he romanticized their adventures but that didn't stop him from curling up in John's arms every night after slow kissing or exploration. John could tell that Sherlock was still struggling but that didn't stop Sherlock from trying to jump ahead in their relationship as they had a momentary lull in clients.
"I'm ready for the next step," Sherlock announced as John sat reading his book. John finished his page before lowering his book to look at Sherlock who was laying on the couch staring at him. He had once again explored John's body the night before and while he was getting better at hiding his reactions when John became erect during the exploration, John could still clearly see that he was uncomfortable with it. He was also well aware of Sherlock's overall aversion to being touched, especially if the touch was unexpected it. He was working on it with John and while he obviously enjoyed being held at night they rarely touched during the day unless Sherlock initiated it. John wasn't upset by the fact they rarely touched knowing it was a sensory issue and while he would normally be pleased that Sherlock was willing to push himself out of his comfort zone, he wasn't going to let this become something Sherlock tolerated for his sake.
"No, Sherlock, you're not," John told him calmly. Sherlock narrowed his eyes as he turned to sit up. "And before you even think of arguing with me I want you to take a second to imagine me running my hands over your body touching you as I please."
"I am correct on the fact that I would be fully clothed," Sherlock stated and John nodded. "Then I believe I could handle it."
"The fact that you had to specify that you are fully clothed and can handle it alone should tell you that you're not ready. The point of what we are doing is to make you feel safe and enjoy what happens to you while we are in bed. Not so that you just tolerate it while you lay back and think of England," John informed him.
"Why does it matter what I think about and whether or not I can tolerate it? No one has ever cared before," Sherlock stated. He wished he had kept his mouth shut when he saw the pity in John's eyes at the statement. "Not good?"
"No, Sherlock. What those men did to you is not good. The fact that you learned to just lay back and let it happen is very not good and I won't let that happen with us. I care about you too much to hurt you the way those men did. I told you in the beginning that I don't care if we ever actually end up having sex and I meant it. I just need you to trust me," John told him.
"I do trust you," Sherlock answered immediately.
"Then give yourself time, Sherlock. We have years to figure this out," John told him. Sherlock wished he could tell him that he didn't know if that was true. That even as they spoke Mycroft was working on a plan to try to stop Moriarty that was putting Sherlock in the center of his web. Neither one of them knew what the end result would be and Mycroft was already planning for several scenarios. One of which would result in his death and two others that would cause him to go into hiding for years without John by his side. Neither one of them knew when it would happen but Sherlock did know that he didn't want to leave without knowing what it was like to have sex with John first. Only he couldn't tell him that their time was limited.
He was saved from having to talk about it as a text came in from Lestrade. A body had been found in a trunk only the man was supposed to have been on a plane that had crashed the day before due to a terrorist attack. John had been annoyed with him when he had declared the news boring before turning over to bury his face in John's stomach but terrorist attacks were Mycroft's domain. Still, a body that didn't belong was intriguing. Promising Lestrade they would be there soon, Sherlock rushed to get ready, thankful for the reprieve in the conversation. John followed him and just like that things were back to normal between them.