A/N: A continuation. ^_^ Set a few days later. Just cute, fluffy OctoJohn. As usual, you can find me at my tumblr (same username) for previews/updates/rambles/track my progress!
Sherlock sighed as he opened the door and slunk into his small dorm room. The day had been as boring as he had feared, and even the sight of the eager little half-octopus bobbing in an aquarium did little to make him smile. He flopped onto the sofa, sprawling his lanky body over the battered furniture. It wasn't long before he heard the top of the tank slip off and the wet squelch of John's tentacles as he slid over the floor and climbed up the sofa.
Still damp, he crawled up onto Sherlock's chest, forming a large wet patch on his stomach. Sherlock cracked open an eye to see the little blond-haired half-octopus staring fiercely at him, arms crossed over his bare chest and a scowl on his face. "Sherlock," John said sternly.
"Mm?" Sherlock hummed noncommittally, attempting to come across as innocent. Ignoring John never did put him in the best mood, and he had been gone all day. He opened his eyes fully, a twinge of guilt in his chest coming completely alive and threatening to consume him. It wasn't John's fault that Sherlock had been gone all day, that he had had to deal with insipid professors and even stupider students. How they lived, he had no idea.
Gently he scooped up John with one broad hand, bringing him up to his face and lifting his head so that he could press a gentle kiss to the blond hair. "I'm sorry."
"How was class?" John asked eagerly, taking the excuse to snuggle up in the crook of Sherlock's neck, He kept his arms on Sherlock's cheeks, and was so close that Sherlock went cross-eyed when he attempted to look at him.
"Boring," Sherlock retorted. "I don't know how they make it through the day, as imbecilic as they are."
"Sherlock," John said with a slight frown. He withdrew slightly and Sherlock winced. "Not everyone is as smart as you." A small finger tapped Sherlock's noise pointedly. "When you call the rest of the world stupid, you're calling me stupid, too."
"You're not as stupid as the rest of them," Sherlock said, not helpfully. A wet, slimy tentacle slid into his ear and Sherlock yelped. "John, you do know you're different."
"Still, Sherlock," John murmured, his voice so small Sherlock could barely hear. He seemed conflicted, emotions fighting for dominance on his tiny little face. "How will you make any friends if you're so antagonistic?"
Sherlock pulled back slightly, a hand coming up to rub the wetness out of his ear now that the tentacle had withdrawn. Suddenly it made sense - and the guilt intensified. Sherlock had dawdled on the way home, bored and aggravated after too many hours of listening to pointless people drone on about pointless things. And John had been worried that Sherlock had met someone else and would not be coming back. "I don't need any friends," he told John. "I have you."
Something seemed to clear in the little half-octopus's expression, and a wide smile lit his expressive face. "Can I take a bath?" he asked eagerly. Although Sherlock's dorm room was small, he had insisted that Mycroft splurge and allow Sherlock a single with a bathroom solely for him. Not only was the bathroom solely for his use, but it had a bathtub big enough for John to return to his full size. Sherlock would never say it (not without risking a tentacle in his ear), but there was an advantage to John being smaller than him - John could stretch out and bask in the bathtub by himself and still not fill it up.
"Of course," Sherlock said with a smile.
"Will you come with?" John looked at him, allowing his lower lip to puff out in a pout. Sherlock lifted an eyebrow. Since John was an octopus, and therefore didn't wear clothes, it wasn't like there would be something Sherlock had never seen before (although that would also apply if John was human, since Sherlock was also male).
"As long as you don't distract me," he said finally. A few droplets of water landed on his nose, and he narrowed his eyes at the playful little creature as he quickly skittered down the couch and headed towards the bathtub.
"Sherlock!" John shouted, just loud enough for Sherlock to hear.
"Coming, coming," he said with an exasperated sigh. Last time John had attempted to turn on the taps had ended badly, and he didn't want any harm to come to his little friend. Although lately Sherlock was starting to wonder if John was more than a friend. The gentle affection, the warm tenderness that John regarded him with - if he had been human, Sherlock might have thought that John liked him. But he was bad enough with human emotions, and he could not even begin to speculate what the societal customs were like for John's species. If there was a species. John was the only one of his type that Sherlock had never met. Was it possible that John was as alone as he was?
The little octopus was standing at the edge of the tub, tapping a tentacle impatiently on the side of the tub as he crossed his arms and stared pointedly at Sherlock. Shaking his curls, the darker-haired teen walked over and flipped on the faucets, checking the temperature before stopping up the tub and allowing it to fill. With a delighted sigh John slipped into the water, growing in size until he reached his full height.
Sherlock grabbed the nearby stool and settled next to the tub, feeling a bit silly. John crossed his arms on the side of the tub, watching Sherlock with an eager, fond expression. "What are your classes like?"
"Boring," Sherlock retorted. "Tedious." His fingers were on his long knees, and the stool was short enough to make sitting awkward. He shifted so that his knees were pressed against the tub, equal with John's hands. He rubbed his thigh unconsciously, trying to come up with something that wouldn't make John's eyebrows shoot up into his sandy hair.
"You must have learned something important," John said, tilting his head to the side. His smile was boyish and adorable, and it made something in Sherlock's stomach flutter. "What about biology? Did you learn anything new? We could do an experiment!" His grin widened and Sherlock felt his cheeks start to heat.
Was this what normal people felt like when they liked someone? If so, Sherlock would indeed prefer that they took that back right now. As soon as physically possible. He snapped his mind back to the present and shifted slightly so that he was closer. "Er. There was this lecture on cell replication, but I don't have the proper equipment…"
"Could Mycroft get it for you?" John asked. "We could set up a mini laboratory in your bedroom!"
Sherlock grinned, caught up in John's happy demeanour. The small half-octopus was watching him intently, following his movements as Sherlock shifted again. "I could manipulate him into buying me a few things."
"If you must," John said with a mock-dramatic sigh. He shifted in the tub again, his tentacles making soft splashing noises as he moved slightly closer to Sherlock. The air was electric, and Sherlock was hypnotised by the ocean-blue eyes boring into his. There was something between them, something warm and charged and on the edge, ready to tip either way. "Sherlock," John whispered quietly, his eyes flickering between Sherlock's eyes and his lips.
Sherlock swallowed, his throat suddenly feeling dry at the way John said his name. It was wrong. Wasn't it? John wasn't - wasn't human. But did that matter? Was it more important that he - John cared for him, he cared for John. That was what mattered. Tentatively he leaned forward, bringing up a hand to card through John's hair, cupping the back of his head and drawing him closer.
The moment their lips touched, it was like an electric spark raced through Sherlock's body. His eyes fell shut and his lips moved against John's, the other boy slipping a hand into Sherlock's curls to tilt his head slightly. Sherlock gasped into John's mouth, his lips parting to allow John's tongue into his mouth. They kissed slowly and sweetly, mouths moving against each other's for a few short minutes.
Panting, Sherlock pulled back, his cheeks flushed and his eyes wide. John watched him with a shy smile, the faint pink on his cheeks barely able to be seen over his slightly darker skin. They maintained eye contact for a few moments, hands falling until they were twined together on Sherlock's thighs, smiles on both teen's faces. "So," Sherlock said, feeling completely lost for words.
John smiled and squeezed Sherlock's hand. "Yes," he said.
"Yes what?" Sherlock asked, dumbfounded.
"Yes I'll be your boyfriend." John's eyes were twinkling, and he leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to Sherlock's lips.
"Oh," the dark-haired teen said. "Oh."
John laughed, a smile on his face. "Yes."
Sherlock's lips quirked up in a smile in response, and he squeezed John's hand before letting go of it. "Hand me the shampoo," he said. "I'll wash your hair for you." The warmth on John's face warmed Sherlock's heart, and he knew then and there that he would do whatever it took to keep John with him, forever and ever.