Trey tapped the papers on his desk. He had just finished grading the test.
Sherlock had an IQ 171. High Genius level, of course, but some how not as high as Trey had expected. Sherlock had done much better on word problems, on the problems with context.
Sherlock was now taking an EQ test, and was nearly finished.
It was only a moment before Trey had that stack in his hands as well.
The results were... confusing. He had done extremely well on the recognition portion, almost super humanly so. His ability to identify the smallest details on a person's facial expression was uncanny. However, on the other portion of the test, the portion in which he was supposed to determine the correct response to different emotionally charged situations, he flunked. None of his answers were even remotely right. It wasn't that he wasn't trying, no, he spent several minutes on each question, trying to determine the answer.
Trey sorted through all the answers Sherlock had given and wrote up a score, though he didn't think that it would be an accurate representation of Sherlock's abilities.
"So," John asked, peering over Trey's shoulder. "How'd he do?"
Trey frowned. "I'm not sure. I don't know how to classify it."
"What do you mean?" John asked.
"He did amazingly well at recognizing emotions on people's faces, but couldn't describe them or find a cause for them." Trey said. He shuffled through the papers then handed one to John. "He's more than aware of peoples emotions John, but... he's got no clue what they mean or how to react to them."
John's eyebrows twitched towards each other a fraction of an inch as he read through Sherlock's responses.
"His answers to the questions in which he's supposed to react to another person's anger, most of them anyway," Trey said, "involve him shutting his mouth and not getting his opinion heard in order to avoid further angering of the other person involved. The answers that aren't like that, he becomes aggressive, very defensive. I can't figure out what makes the difference though, between his... hiding, basically, and his fighting back. It seems almost random."
John shook his head. "It's not. It never is with him." John said. "There's a difference there, and we've got to find it."
"This is Lilly, she's a nurse." Trey said, "She's just going to give you a basic check up, blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, temperature, things like that. In order to test your reaction to different scenarios, we need to know what's considered normal for you first."
To John's surprise, Sherlock nodded and let the nurse do her work with no complaint. He was entirely compliant. Trey watched with interest at the heart monitor, the first thing the nurse attached to Sherlock. It fluctuated significantly depending on the nurse's proximity to him. After testing his theory, Trey came to the conclusion that Sherlock had a version of Aphephobia, meaning he was was adverse to physical contact, and was uncomfortable even when someone was standing near him.
On the sheet it goes.
Trey continued to watch Sherlock closely throughout the check up. He tested his theory a few more times, making sure that his findings were not just coincidence. Then Sherlock realized what he was doing. Abruptly, almost instantly, the monitor leveled out and started at a more normal pace.
How-
Trey quickly inspected Sherlock, but still kept his distance. His respiratory rate was leveling off too, becoming more regular. Sherlock's blinks were longer, and his eyes less focused than before.
Interesting... But how, I wonder?