A/N: Who knew that rewatching Sherlock would be so inspiring :P This is set before the series starts and is my answer for why Sherlock gave up cigarettes - particularly since he doesn't seem to care in regards to his own health. Anyways, hope you enjoy :)
Cigarettes
Molly gave a small cough as she walked into the lab, she frowned as she caught sight of Sherlock hunched in a chair, smoking.
"Sherlock, you can't smoke in here," she informed him, unsure whether to be impressed or appalled at his audacity.
"It's a full pack problem," he replied, completely unfazed as he lit another cigarette. Molly's frown deepened as she decided on appalled.
"This is a hospital," she reminded him, coughing again.
Sherlock shrugged, "And?"
"Firstly, it's illegal," Molly began, ticking off her points on her fingers as she struggled to repress another cough, "and secondly-"
"And secondly it's not good for my health," Sherlock interrupted, completely unconcerned as he took another drag on his cigarette.
"It's not good for mine either," Molly commented, with a small hitch in her breathing.
Sherlock turned to face her, raising an eyebrow in question.
"My asthma," Molly explained, now with a distinct wheeze, "smoke…" she broke off with a cough. "Smoke triggers it," she finished, now struggling slightly to breathe.
Her strained breathing turned to wheezing as she made an unsuccessful attempt to locate her puffer in her lab coat pockets, Sherlock stood up in alarm.
"Molly-" he began, taking a step towards her.
"No," she ordered, backing away towards the door. Sherlock cursed as he realised he still had a cigarette in his hand and hastily stubbed it out.
Molly continued to make her way to the door, "Please…" she rasped, waving him away as he attempted to help her again, "you're not…I'll…be fine," she continued, "I…just…need…to…go…"
Sherlock watched in barely suppressed concern as she stumbled from the room, gasping for breath. He moved to the door and watched through the window as some of the other hospital staff rushed to her aid, satisfied that she was out of danger he moved back to his station.
He frowned down at the ashtray, before emptying the contents into a bag and throwing it away. Still frowning, he turned on the fume-hood and – a trifle guiltily – reassembled the smoke alarm.
Molly didn't return to the lab, but Sherlock made sure that all traces of smoke were gone from the room before he left.
A little over a week later, Sherlock was back in the lab. This time with a distinct lack of cigarettes or even the faint trace of smoke that often hung around him.
Armed with his new knowledge of Molly's health issues, he noted that she unconsciously stood closer to him as they worked and that she breathed a little easier now that he no longer even smelt of smoke.
He mentally berated himself for not noticing before and that he'd found her occasional coughs in the past so irritating.
Absently he rolled up his shirt sleeves as he settled down behind the microscope.
Molly blinked in surprise, "Is that-?" she broke off, embarrassed.
Sherlock followed her gaze to the patch on his forearm, "Nicotine patch," he confirmed easily, "smoking's a bad habit – so expensive and, apparently, it's bad for you," he added, as he turned back to the microscope.
Molly's lips twitched as she fought off a smile, despite missing the slight emphasis he'd placed on 'you.'
"So you're giving them up?" she asked after a moment.
"Obviously," Sherlock replied absently, making a note on the pad beside him.
He turned back to the microscope, pretending not to notice that Molly was regarding him thoughtfully.
"Thank you," she said softly after a long moment.
The small flick of a smile at the corner of his mouth was the only acknowledgement he made of her comment as he pretended to be engrossed in the slide he was examining.
...
A/N: The depiction of Molly's asthma attack is based on how mine usually manifest, which may not be the same for everyone. Also, in case it didn't come across properly, yes, I was trying very hard to get Sherlock to hint that it's because it's bad for her health that he's quitting. Given his comments in the series, I doubt that any problems in regards to his own health would cause him to make the change. Anyways, enough rambling - thanks for reading! x
