Wednesday, 12:35 pm
"So," Sherlock started, "What exactly is the point of your- wait. Um, what are your hobbies, John?"
John laughed. "You're not so good at small talk you know. Let's not even try."
"Then what?"
"Talk normally." The waitress came over with two sandwiches and two cups of mint tea with cream and sugar, just like the kind John had brought over the day before. John smiled at Sherlock once she left. "Mint tea is becoming our thing, isn't it?" He teased. Sherlock wrinkled his nose at the idea. "We're not teenage girls with inside jokes." John glanced across at another table, where, in fact, there were two teenage girls glaring rather fiercely at Sherlock. John laughed to himself.
"So," Sherlock said hesitantly, "You're a lot more interesting than I thought."
"Because I saved your life while you stood in front of a cab like a useless lump?"
"That's a bit harsh, don't you think?" Sherlock bit into his sandwich and immediately set it down, visibly recoiling.
"Don't like it?" John inquired.
"No, I do, it's just I don't eat a lot. It upsets my mind."
"Your mind must be delicate."
"Of course it is," Sherlock said. "I'm a genius."
"I wish you would stop saying that." John said, rolling his eyes and taking another bite of his sandwich. "It's a bit off-putting."
"I'll make a note." Sherlock took another hesitant bite of food. John noted with satisfaction that he was drinking the tea. Mint was John's favourite.
The rest of lunch was spent mostly in silence. It was nice for both Sherlock and John, to find someone else who was alone. Someone to be alone with so that neither of them really were.
11:30 pm
The stars are out tonight…
11:31 pm
What are you texting me for, John? I'm in the middle of something!
11:31 pm
My sister is mad at me so she yelled and forced me out onto the roof… She locked the window.
11:32 pm
Well.
11:32 pm
I hate texting… What about your brother?
11:32 pm
I have a brother.
11:33 pm
I know. What about him?
11:33 pm
He's high and mighty. Government. Annoying.
11:34 pm
Oh. Is he like you?
11:34 pm
I guess so. He taught me everything. My DEAR brother. :(
11:35 pm
… Did you just use an emoji?
Did SHERLOCK HOLMES just use an emoji? :D
You don't strike me as the emoji type…
11:36 pm
I'm not. Emojis are immature. I don't know why I wrote one...
I'm not myself right now :P
NO. -SH
11:37 pm
This is great :D
What's with the -SH ?
11:38 pm
It's my attempt to come back to myself away from smiley faces. -SH
11:39 pm
Okay… -JW
Look at the stars! -JW
11:45 pm
I did.
11:50 pm
Aww no more -SH ?
Lunch tomorrow? Or walk? Tea?
11:55 pm
Mint tea. I know a nice place. Meet me at 5:30 if your classes are out by then. See you tomorrow John. Don't sleep on the roof.
11:56 pm
Are you taking me on a date? 5:30 is fine. See you there ;)
11:57 pm
John, I'll leave you and your common sense to puzzle that out. I'm a sociopath. Goodnight.
12:00 am
Goodnight Sherlock. -JW
John fumbled his phone sleepily into his pocket and stared out over to Saint Georges. Maybe he was just desperate enough to move back into the dorms there. Maybe. He stretched out on the roof of the flat. The air was cool but not cold and his jumper was warm. He curled around a strange box and fell asleep with the stars watching over him.
…
Thursday
Mycroft stopped by the Holmes house to check on his brother and parents from time to time. It was an irksome process, but at least he got to help keep Sherlock off the drugs for a while longer. He twirled his umbrella as he walked up the steps to his old home.
Sherlock opened the door before Mycroft got the satisfaction of knocking. "Brother mine." He growled at the figure in the doorway. "How is it in the world of running everything?"
"Lovely, actually. Oh do try to be pleasant. I heard you have a friend now."
"John's not really my friend. I don't make friends. I don't like people."
Mycroft smiled in that infuriating and knowing way of his. "Now, Sherlock, you don't have to keep your feeling s from me. We can't all be born sociopaths. Some have to be made. You just have to make a sociopath."
"And what if I don't want to? I'd like to be friends with John. In fact, I think we already are. Allow me my one friend, brother dearest."
Mycroft smirked. "One day, Sherlock, you'll be valuable. You've already solved a murder and several thefts, not to mention the drug lord. Of course, that was just because you got drugs from him."
"Get out."
"I'm afraid not. Lose the little friend."
"No!" Sherlock's voice was rising fast and Mycroft was just standing there, infuriatingly calm and collected. "Why should I?" Mycroft twirled his umbrella again and propped it against the wall. Taking two steps towards Sherlock he whispered "We can't have you getting distracted." Sherlock closed his eyes and kept his temper in check. "I like John Watson." Mycroft smiled. "No boyfriends."
"He's not my boyfriend. He's the only friend I've got and I'm sorry if I'm not a sociopath like you. I could have had friends, Mycroft. I could have had a life and been a genius." Mycroft waved his hand as if to dismiss Sherlock. "You're too valuable, brother dear." Sherlock scowled at Mycroft as he picked up his umbrella and walked out the door, shooting Sherlock a twisted backwards smile. Sometimes Sherlock wasn't sure that Mycroft was a sociopath. Despite all of this. Sometimes he thought he saw care in his brother's eyes.
…
That morning, John had woken up on the roof, his best jacket blown off him and Harry snapping pictures and stifling laughter. Now, he was struggling to stay awake during a particularly boring English lecture. He could almost hear his grad dropping as he drifted in and out of sleep. "…The function, of course, being the author's own…" Sleeeeeeeeeeeeep… "…Which accounts for most of the reason why it's such a popular literary…" …sleeeeeeeppp joooohhhhnnn sleeeeep… John was just giving in when he heard a beep on his phone. He checked it, embarrassed. Everyone was looking at him.
5:00 pm
Meet me outside my house in 5 minutes if convenient. -SH
If inconvenient come anyway. -SH
John scowled but texted back. Sherlock sounded as urgent as he ever could. Besides, he needed to leave this class before he fell asleep.
5:00 pm
Okay. See you.
John got up and picked up his bag. "Gotta go," he said. Ignoring the professor's mumbled protests John ran out the door and onto the green outside. It took four minutes to run all the way to Sherlocks and by the time he reached the street Sherlock lived on he was panting like a dog. Sherlock was standing on the curb, calm with his coat collar turned up and his blue scarf blowing in the breeze. John rushed up to him, asking "What is it?" breathlessly. Sherlock smiled. "Come along John."
"Where?"
"Change of plan. A case came up. I could use a medical student. We're going on an adventure."
"What?"
Sherlock smirked. "At least you'll finally have something interesting happen to you for that tumblr blog of yours."
With that Sherlock walked off purposefully down the street to hail a cab, and despite John's intentions, he couldn't help but follow.