Author's Note: This chapter gets every thing back on track-ish. Fair bit of Mystrade here though, sorry, couldn't be helped.
His thoughts were so scattered between the events of the day, Sherlock back home, and that poor kid from earlier, that he didn't here his phone ringing until he was almost nose to nose with the detective inspector calling him.
"There you are! I've been calling you for the past hour! What took you so long?"
John looked up, guilt and embarrassment scrawled over his features.
"Sorry, I didn't get off until 7."
Lestrade raised an eyebrow.
"And then decided to walk, without checking your phone?"
John hung his head with a huff.
"It's been an extremely long day."
He looked up and hooked a thumb at the pub door.
"Can we go in, or are you going to stand there and nag at me like I'm a delinquent teenager?"
Lestrade rolled his eyes, trudging into the public with John in tow.
They settled into a corner booth, ordering pint a piece.
"Alright then, spit it out. What did he do that could have turned your day fro a fantastic shopping trip to trudging to the bar."
John sighed, rubbing his face with his hands.
"I was not trudging."
The DI rolled his eyes.
"Look mate, I saw you. You had the gate of a man condemned."
The doctor sighed.
"Do you want the full story, or the abridged version."
Lestrade shrugged, smiling kindly at the girl who brought their beers and taking a sip.
"Summarize it, please leave out any of the graphic details. I want to be able to respect you in the morning."
That drew a laugh from the doctor.
" Alright fine,but you asked for it."
John took along swig to fortify himself.
"It allstarted last night-"
He saw the ear inthe DI's eyes, andraiseda hand tocalm him.
"Hush, let me talk. Last night was our frst kiss, yea? You saw the aftermath of that one."
The DInodded.
"You must be one hellof alover to get that reation from a kiss."
The doctor blushed and glanced up.
"Not helping Greg."
"Sorry,sorry. Continue."
"Anyway we went home, things...happened, which brings us to my day from hell."
Lestrade nodded, folding his hands on the table in front of him.
"The morning was great, more than great really."
The doctor took a moment to appreciate the memory of his shower.
"But then Mrs. Hudson caught us at breakfast."
Lestrade grinned.
"No not like that, well, a little like that. Lets just say i was dressed, but she did get a ice eyeful of Sherlock."
The DI guffawed into his drink.
"Poor woman. Did she have a heart attack?"
John smiled.
"Anyway, she chatted with us about it, and then proceeded to go gossip about it to anyone who will listen. I wanted to get to Molly before the news did, you know how much she fawned over Sherlock. I wanted to let her know straight from the source. Let her down easy."
John took another sip of his drink.
"I called her on a payphone so we could meet for lunch. No sooner had I ended the call, the phone rang again."
"Myc."
"Yea. At first I thought it was Molly calling me back to cancel because Sherlock wasn't going to be there, instead it was your boyfriend calling me to give me the big brother speech You know the one, Break his heart and you will disappear from any and all records. There would be no such thing as the Watson family tree, that sort of thing."
"Sounds like him."
The doctor raised an inquisitive eyebrow..
"Harsh?"
Lestrade shrugged.
"He's a tough love sort of guy."
The doctor ran a curious glance over the now blushing DI.
"Do I want to-"
"Please god no."
"Alright then. So, He gave me that whole speech, told me he thinks that I should marry Sherlock,gives me a new phone, a blood case with rings and a marriage licence application, and has his assistant take me to lunch with Molly."
Lestrade held up his hands.
"Wait. Myc wants you too to get hitched? You've only been in a relationship for a day."
John slammed is glass down.
"I know! I'm not opposed to the idea, mind. Just not so fucking soon."
"Tell me about it. We've been doing this thing, whatever you want to call it, for almost three years. The flirting bit, ever sense he pointed out that my ex was cheating on me-the first time. Mind we stopped, things, when she and I tried it make it work, but we both know how that turned out."
The doctor tilted his head sympathetically.
"Yet we still don't call ourselves anything. Am I just a shag? Are we a thing? I haven't a clue."
John sighed once more.
"Two extremes. Sorry to hear that though. You obviously seem fond of him."
"I am, heaven help me. Anyway, I interrupted you."
"It's alright. Okay, I'm eating lunch with Molly, yea? and she notices the huge bruise on the side of my neck."
He stretched out his collar for emphasis.
"And she goes on about the lucky girl, I had to correct her."
He grimaced into his drink.
"Then there is this tangent about who he is or how he is, it went on and on. I feel so bad about saying that."
The DI waved his hand in dismissal.
"No worries. I understand."
"So I just blurted out that it was Sherlock. I have to admit she took it better than I thought. She said it was ok, got up, and left."
Lestrade sighed.
"Sounds like a downhill day."
"Oh it gets better."
"Yikes."
"Yea. So I pay for my food and leave, when Sherlock sends me his damned grocery list. I have to read it twice to make sure I wasn't mistaken."
"I could imagine."
"A few more texts on the topic and some bloke comes and bowls over me from behind, sending my phone flying."
"Oh no."
"Yea, and this woman, god Greg, she was gorgeous. She picks up me hone and can't help but read what's o the screen."
"Which was?"
The doctor thumbs open his phone and scrolls quickly through his messages, showing the DI the one in question.
Lestrade 's eyes widen and he buries his laughter in his drink.
"Exactly. I snatch my phone away, I'm dying by this point, I go into the nearest shop-"
"And run into me. I can see where that is going."
"Well after our little escapade I take the bus, Sherlock, well, he's impatient. And it doesn't help that I told him what you made me buy."
The DI chuckled.
"Like that did he?"
"Wouldn't know. Because by the time I've rushed home, we are this close to the bedroom, you text me."
Lestrade paled, his eyes widening in horror.
"Please tell me that I'm not-It wasn't my message that-Oh shit mate."
The doctor shrugs.
"Damage is done. No hard feelings, you didn't mean it. But yea. He read the message and stormed off in a jealous fit."
John finished his beer and waved for two more.
"I preached to his door for a bit until I figured that no one was listening. When I barged in, there was nothing to great me but an empty window."
The next round appeared, and both men took a well needed drink.
"I couldn't figure out where he had went. So then, to add to things, I get a message from Sarah, down at the surgery, that she needs me to finish another doctor's shift. I grab a clean shirt-"
He waved at the tight T-shirt he was now wearing.
"Got Sherlock's message about a case, texted him begging that he not do anything stupid, and went to work."
"Does it get worse?"
"Would you like, ex-girlfriend-now-boss announcing my coming out to the entire facility? The fact that my first patient of the day is the woman who picked up my phone? The case of flu? The elderly hypochondriac? Or he bloody seven year old Sherlock with the homophobic social worker?"
Lestrade shook his head once more, hanging it in sympathy.
"You have had one shitty day."
"Tell me about it."
SHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSH
Sherlock paced the flat restlessly.
He had told John not to wait up for him granted but then again he had expected the doctor to come home right after his shift at the surgery.
It was nearly 9 and there was no sign of his blogger.
Which was seriously putting a damper on his plans for the evening.
His fingers itched to text the doctor, or call him.
To convince him to come home and accept the detective's apology for jumping to conclusions.
No.
He would not beg the doctor to come home.
He would wait this out.
But damn it, where was he?
Didn't he know how hard it was to wait?
Sherlock stood from his perch on his chair and paced.
"If only i knew-"
The detective fired a quick message off to his brother, explaining the happenings of the day and his lack of knowledge of the whereabouts of his blogger.
He is at a pub chatting with Lestrade.
-MH
It appears that his day has really taken a toll on him.
-MH
Sherlock flopped back onto the couch, dejected. Of course John would go to Lestrade.
It made sense.
He still couldn't fight the hollow pit that formed in his stomach.
I'm on my way to sending him home.
-MH
You owe me a favor for this.
-MH
A surge of panic and anger and hope welled in the detective's chest, as he jumped up and resumed pacing once more.
SHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSH
Three hours and four pints later the two men were laughing at some stupid joke a guy at the table next to them had made.
"Right, so anyway, The doorman was giving me and Sherlock the eye, you know the one. So I just grabbed his hand, made some excuse about showing her the mister, and waltzed right in!"
"That's brilliant! You could teach a class down at the Yard over improv or something."
"I know right?"
"It would be a rio-"
The DI's word died in his throat just as the entire pub went silent around them.
"What?"
Mycroft homes entered the room, his umbrella tapping with each step. He finally came to a stop beside their table.
He waved at the bar and the music resumed again, all eyes quickly darting away from the figure.
"Doctor Watson."
He nodded at John.
"Detective Inspector."
His eyes lingered over the inebriated face of Lestrade.
"Doctor Watson, I regret to have to put an end to this evening, but your partner is at home right now, distressed that you are not there to accompany him."
John swallowed thickly, pulling himself from his seat.
The British Government's earlier threat was now pounding in his ears, and he had no desire to evoke it.
"Yea, of course. Is he alright?"
Mycroft shrugged.
"Physically, yes, I'm sure. emotionally, however-"
He let the sentence drop, and John nodded, stumbling in his haste to get out of the door.
To get back to Sherlock.
Mycroft settled into the booth across from Lestrade, and cupped his chin in his hands, all pretense of business forgotten.
"Gregory, why do you think that you're just a shag?"