Sherlock went to school the next day with fire in his eyes. He was good at being the quiet kid in the back that nobody paid attention to, so information gathering was quick and easy. His main suspect, Moriarty, always ate lunch in the far end of the cafeteria with his group of "followers". He spent his lunch there, instead of the chemistry lab, and watched. He knew Moriarty probably knew he was there, but didn't care. He sat hidden for the entirety of lunch until Moriarty and a sandy haired boy stood up and left. Sherlock didn't need to follow them to know that they'd be in the bathroom, probably snogging. It was obvious the two were together and happy as well. So… why would Jim have anything against Molly? He wouldn't. So… who could be hurting Molly?
He made his way slowly back to where John, Mary, and Molly were seated. He slid down in his seat and sulked. John raised an eyebrow at him. "What happened? Did Mrs. Worcher get tired of you sulking about in her lab?" Sherlock just glared at him.
"Don't be ridiculous, John. Of course not. I just felt it would be a little bit more… socially acceptable… if I spent lunch in the lunchroom. With my, um, my friends." Sherlock coughed over the last word, causing John, Mary, and Molly to all smile. John decided to test him a bit more.
"Since when did you care about socially acceptable?" He pried, poking the other boy in the ribs.
Sherlock flinched, slightly tickled. "Since never. Can I not sit here at lunch then?" He crossed his arms and stared at Molly, asking her for her permission to stay.
Molly giggled and shook her head a little. (Sherlock wouldn't admit it, but her smile made him feel almost euphoric.) "Yes, yes, you can sit here, Sherlock."
Mary interjected. "But why now of all times to choose?" She waggled an eyebrow at him and narrowed her eyes.
John wrapped an arm around Mary and Sherlock rolled his eyes. "Why not now?" He himself scooted closer to Molly, as clandestinely as he could.
Mary noticed and took note of it in her mind. She engaged in a conversation with Molly and John, and Sherlock took this as an opportunity to see Molly a little bit more up close. The bruise was gone, and he could tell that she'd covered it up with makeup. He averted his eyes quickly and busied himself in looking bored.
A/N: I am so so SOOOOO sorry for taking so long to update! To make up for this, I have a few more chapters for you tonight! Yay!
Thank you ALL OF YOU for your concern and support, and I'd like to assure you that… I'm okay. Not brilliant, but not as bad as before. And hopefully, it'll stay that way.
I love you all VERY much and I wish you all the best of days/nights/afternoons/whatever!
Love you loads. Thanks for reading.
xP