Sherlock walked into the lunch room the next day, fairly certain he'd found the reason for Molly's misfortune. He'd spent the entire night trying to figure this out, searching through his mind palace, analyzing everything he could. He couldn't get Molly's smile and laughter out of his head from the day before, and he wished she was just as happy today. He caught sight of her in the hallway, near her locker, and he approached her, a boyish smile on his face.
"Morn-" He stopped short. Molly had looked up at him and there was no life in her eyes. The mirth of the day before had left her face. Still, there was a forced smile on her face and she wrapped her arms around him. Surprised, Sherlock hugged her back. "Everything alright?" he asked her. Molly nodded. "Yes. I'm just really tired, you know? That chemistry assignment really killed me last night…" Sherlock nodded, vaguely believing her. Molly shifted her backpack onto her sore back. She winced a little and shook her head, ignoring it. She looked up at Sherlock and smiled, a little bit more genuinely and brightly. "Come on. John and Mary are probably waiting." Sherlock smiled back at her and nodded. "Yeah, let's go."
A/N: So, it's been a while. The last chapter sort of... sent me spiraling into an emotional downward state. And I kept telling myself I'd finally get the next chapter written but... it never actually happened. Sorry it's so sucky. :/ I'll try to update more frequently.
Thanks to all of you that have stuck by me so far. I can't express to you how much it means to me. Really.
Thank you. A million times over.
xP.