A/N: My first ficlet for Fictober 2021. This is an AU for the "What do you need/you" scene from TRF. Rated K.


"I need you."

She wants to believe him, she really does, but how can she? So she takes a step back. Shakes her head in denial. Clutches her shoulder bag more closely. "You don't, you don't need me, you don't need anyone," she tells him. Reminding him of his own words, flung so cruelly into her face when she'd told him he looked sad when John wasn't looking.

His eyes drop; she automatically follows his gaze down to his tightly clasped hands. They're shaking, she realizes in wonder. Perhaps...perhaps he really does mean it? She steps forward. Reaches out. Tentatively rests her hands atop his. His fingers uncurl and clasp hers in a desperate grip. "I was wrong," he says hoarsely. "I was overconfident, and I was unkind because I couldn't bear the thought of you seeing through me like that. I'm sorry."

The words are almost a whisper. Still holding Sherlock's hands, Molly says softly, "What do you need?"

This time, when he says "You"...she believes him.