Guardian Chapter 15

The doctor's demeanour was so intimidating that Mycroft found himself gathering the words together to form an explanation right away.

"I… You…"

John gave him a look that told him to spit it out.

"You weren't at home." The tall red haired man finally managed to say.

"What does that matt-" John started to say. He quickly changed his question. "How did you know? I took down all the cameras in my flat."

The corner of Mycroft's mouth curled into a small smile.

"You took down my decoy cameras, yes."

John shook his head in disbelief and returned to his initial question.

"Why does 'me going out' matter? I've gone out before. I'm a grown man, Mycroft. I am allowed to do these things."

Mycroft looked slightly embarrassed. His mug was still in hand and he swirled the remaining liquid around the bottom of the cup.

"I didn't know where you were. I called Lestrade, he hadn't heard from you. I checked the security footage from outside your flat. You'd left in reasonably high spirits, but then again, you did last time."

"What do you mean, last time?" interrupted John.

"There were a few security cameras down at the end of your road and I lost you. I couldn't trace you after that."

John was looking confused from the chair by the desk.

"Eventually, I checked the CCTV footage from St. Bart's hospital."

John began to understand why Mycroft had called.

"When I couldn't find you, I called you."

John nodded his head, but he couldn't quite understand why Mycroft was as worried as he was. The two men sat in silence for a while.

After a few minutes had passed, Mycroft drained his hot chocolate and got out of bed. He walked to his wardrobe and pulled out a silk dressing gown which matched the green of his pyjamas. The man, tall as he was, looked a lot smaller and much more vulnerable when he wasn't wearing a suit. John noticed it was strange seeing Mycroft in casual clothes, like seeing a teacher out of school.

It was Mycroft who broke the silence.

"Well it looks like I'm not getting to sleep any time soon. Would you like a cup of tea, John?"

The sandy-haired man absently shook his head.

"All right then" said Mycroft "I'll be back in a minute."

But before he could leave the room John had thought of the right question to ask.

"Why were you so worried? I've been out before. The cameras at the end of my street haven't been fixed for the whole time I've been living there."

Mycroft looked slightly sad, but after a couple of moments he let out a chuckle.

"You don't realise do you? I thought you would have remembered, not that it matters now anyway."

"Realise what?" questioned John. "What doesn't matter?"

Mycroft managed a false smile onto his face.

"I thought you of all people would remember, John."

John gave him another questioning look.

"It's three years today since he jumped."

The doctor felt like a fistful of realisation had just hit him in the gut. How could he forget something like that? Waves of guilt washed over him. He felt like he had not only forgotten the date, but he had forgotten Sherlock. How was it possible that he had forgotten the date that had changed his life? The date that had ended the life of his friend, and had nearly resulted in the ending of his own?

Mary.

John had been so looking forward to meeting her at the pub. It was his first date since the fall.

In the moments that followed Mycroft's words, John's thoughts ticked away at incredible speeds.

'It was all Mary's fault. How could she make him forget?'

'No! Making him forget was a great thing! You can't dwell on the past forever!'

'It wasn't Mary's fault, it was all his own!'

It was Mycroft that finally made his thoughts clear.

"Are you sure you don't want that tea?"

This time John accepted.

They sat at a table in the kitchen and sipped at the warm drink. John was still feeling terrible at forgetting the anniversary of his best friend's death. Mycroft seemed to be finding it almost amusing.

"So where were you then?" asked Mycroft, cutting through the silence.

John was so lost in thought that it took him a few moments to answer.

"I was at the pub. I… I was with a girl."

Mycroft raised an eyebrow. "No wonder you forgot then! I found it difficult to remember things when I was in a relationship. That couldn't be allowed with my job of course. I had to end it. I sometimes wonder if I made the right choice. He was the nicest man I had ever met."

For a moment, John thought he saw a hint of sadness in the man's eyes, but it could have just been the dim light from the kitchen bulbs. The sandy-haired man didn't know Mycroft was gay. He had had his suspicions of course, but the Government 'Official' was a very private person. Somehow, it didn't seem to matter.

"We're not in a relationship." said John after a while. "It was our first date. I only met her three days ago."

Mycroft smiled.

"Forgive me. You always do seem to move quickly in a romantic relationship. Look at you and Sherlock for instance."

John laughed at this. It had been years since anyone had suggested that the two men had been in a relationship.

There was another long pause as both men thought about the past and drank their tea.

"Go back to her." said Mycroft eventually.

John thought about it.

"She'll be gone now. She was out of my league anyway. Gorgeous… and funny."

Mycroft shook his head.

"Call her. Apologise. Apologise from me. Make up some god awful excuse. Do whatever; just don't let her get away. You need someone John. If she's as lovely as you make out, then don't let her go. Call her."

John made up his mind very quickly. He finished his tea and stood up.

"See you later Mycroft." He said as he walked towards the door.

Mycroft nodded farewell.

As John pulled the door closed, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and searched for the letter 'M' in his contacts.

AN: Thanks for all your lovely reviews. Sorry again that I didn't post a chapter last week. I wasn't very well.

Please keep letting me know what you think. Thanks for reading! :)