Though John was told the developments of the case as soon as school ended last Friday, he regrets asking. In reality, there have been no developments. Sherlock has been spotted nowhere, not since he was lifted from outside NSY weeks ago.
Spending time with his friends was fun, it took his mind off of things for a few hours. Honestly, he wishes he could hang out with them anytime he was feeling down, but that's usually at night and they all have their own lives. He feels guilty bothering them. He even feels guilty the few times he's texted Brady just to chat, and Brady's been his best friend almost as long as Sherlock has.
Still, John wishes there was more he could do. He can't help Lestrade, he wouldn't even know where to start. He doesn't want to go help Clement around the house; Mycroft has been even colder to him as of late. He feels completely useless, like he's just taking up space everywhere, even in his own bedroom.
Since his mother is at work and Harry left him alone for the evening, John decides to take a walk. After automatically turning towards Sherlock's house and thinking better of it, he turns around and walks away from Sherlock's house. In minutes he's on a busy street with restaurants and shops, and even though the sun is already down, many people are out walking.
John's always felt safe in the city. He and Sherlock have always been trusted to walk to each other's houses and school, when they started at their current school a few years ago. But the city has betrayed him. The city he loves so much has let Sherlock go missing; where he's felt safest has left him feeling in danger with every step.
But honestly, John can't bring himself to care. If he's kidnapped too or hurt in any way…let it happen.
Frowning at the thought, John stuffs his hands in his pockets and stomps harder down the sidewalk. He passes a couple laughing to each other, and his heart just about breaks. He's never felt so broken in his life.
John walks for a while and without noticing, he's in front of Paris's building. Paris has been working at the Holmes house since Mycroft quit, but John knows he's usually home by now. He fears it's rude just dropping in like this, but he really doesn't want to be alone anymore. He goes up the steps and rings the buzzer.
There's no answer for a minute, so John turns back to leave. But as he's at the last step, Paris's voice comes through the little speaker.
"Hello?"
John hops back up the steps. "Hey mate, it's John."
"John! Hey, come on up."
Paris buzzes him up and John runs up the three flights of stairs to Paris's flat.
The door's open when he gets up there, so he walks right in. Taylor is on the sofa and Paris wanders back into the room.
"Ah geez," John mutters. "Are you guys, like…on a date? Because I can just—" John points at the door.
"No, no, don't be absurd," Paris says. "Come in, please. We were just about to order a pizza, you hungry?"
Taylor pats the sofa next to her. "John, sit, you look famished. Have you eaten today?"
John goes over to the sofa and sits. He chooses not to answer her question; honestly, he can't remember the last time he ate.
"Pizza it is," Paris says, then disappears into the kitchen to order.
"We're going to watch a movie," Taylor says. "Lane and Olive were supposed to come over, but I guess Olive's not feeling very well tonight. Poor girl, she looks just as sick as you do."
"I look sick?" John asks.
Taylor strokes his cheek. "You need a bit more color. You're so pale lately, it's frightening. Do you want to talk about it?"
John shrugs. "I don't know, I just…I miss him, you know?"
Taylor nods. "Of course. But he'll be alright, right?"
"I hope so."
Paris returns right after that. "Pizza ordered. What movie should we watch?"
From Paris's very small movie collection that he had his mother send him from his large collection at home, they choose Ferris Bueller's Day Off. John and Taylor both say they've never seen it, and Paris claims it's his favorite movie. He puts it in without letting the other two argue.
"You have to see this movie," Paris repeats over and over until the credits start.
John likes the movie a lot, and by the look on her face, he can tell Taylor does, too. He's glad he stopped by Paris's flat, it's taken his mind off of things completely.
The movie shows scenery of Chicago, and John thinks it's a lovely city.
"I'd quite like to go there one day," Taylor says at the exact same moment that John is thinking it.
"Chicago?" Paris asks.
"Yeah. Have you been?"
Paris laughs. "Uh, no."
"Why not? Can't you, like, just drive there from where you're from?"
Paris and John both laugh.
"If I'd driven to Chicago," Paris explains. "That's like you driving from here all the way to Milan, Italy. If I flew to Chicago, it's like you flying from here to Athens, Greece."
John grins, knowing that he's bursting Taylor's vision of America bubble.
"How do you know that?" she asks Paris.
Paris shrugs. "I don't know."
Taylor shakes her head in disbelief, then leans over and kisses his cheek.
"It is a lovely city though," John says a few minutes later after another shot of the buildings.
"You know," Taylor says, "I think Danny went to Chicago once. Well, a few times."
"Really?" John asks. "For what?"
"For work."
Paris laughs. "Wasn't he a bank teller?"
"Now that I think about it, that is very odd, isn't it? Going out of the country for work when he didn't have a job that required travel. Oh well, I'll never find out what his mystery trips to Chicago were for."
John hasn't forgotten that Danny was involved with 'Kai', of course. And he remembers that all of Danny's shifty behavior was because of Kai. He can't help but wonder if his mystery trips to Chicago were with Kai.
"Did he go to Chicago with anyone?" John nonchalantly asks.
"Uh, yeah…" Taylor says. "Some girl named Jade."
John looks at her. "Jade?"
"Yeah, he tried to tell me that Jade was a boy, but I'm not stupid."
"Do you know what they'd do in Chicago?"
"I don't know, probably fuck."
John frowns. "Did he go anywhere else? New York, Los Angeles?"
Taylor shakes her head. "No, just Chicago. About half a dozen times."
John's heart starts beating. Sherlock never gave John the list of Ben's aliases, but if Jade is one, and they only ever went to Chicago, then that could be his hiding spot.
John has to tell Lestrade. He quickly jumps from the sofa.
"You okay, dude?" Paris asks.
"I just…I just remembered something," he says. "I gotta go. Thank you, thank you so much."
In excitement, John leans over and kisses Taylor's forehead. And to not let him feel left out, he kisses Paris's forehead, too.
"I…" John furrows his eyebrows. "I'm sorry, that was weird, I have to go. I owe you one!"
Paris and Taylor laugh while John runs out the door.
John runs all the way to Sherlock's house. Confident that Lestrade is there, because he's always there, he doesn't stop running until he arrives.
He barges into the house without knocking. Nobody's in the front room, so he calls through the house.
"Lestrade!"
Mycroft's bedroom door opens upstairs and John can hear him running down the hall.
"John?" Mycroft calls down the stairs. "John, what's wrong?"
"Mycroft, where's Greg?"
"He went to…hmm, forgive me. I wasn't paying attention when he and my father left. Is there anything I can help you with?"
"Yeah, I suppose. Uhm, is the transcript of the statement Sherlock gave to Lestrade here?"
"Of course," Mycroft says, heading towards the dining room. "What is it you're looking for?"
"The list of aliases Ben-Kai-whatever told Sherlock."
Mycroft picks up a small file and flips through the papers. Finally he gets to what John is looking for and hands it over.
"What is it, John?"
John reads the list, pleased that there's a Jade.
"Fuck," John mutters. He's unable to stop the smile from spreading over his lips.
"What is it?"
"I was just with Taylor, who was going out with Danny, right? Well, Taylor told me that Danny used to take mystery trips to Chicago with someone called Jade. And here," John shows Mycroft the paper. "Jade Griffin."
Mycroft nods in understanding, life coming to his eyes in what John can assume is excitement for a new development.
"But…why would he tell Taylor he was going with Jade?" John asks, confused.
"Danny knew Taylor thought he was on drugs. Danny was suspicious with his friend Kai. He probably gave Taylor another name so that Taylor didn't think he was going on a drugs run every time they went to Chicago. Did she have proof that he actually went to Chicago? Plane tickets, passport, anything?"
"Well, no, we were watching a movie, I wasn't going to ask her for his passport."
"No worry, I can get it. Just let me make a call, excuse me."
John lets Mycroft go and decides not to ask where the heck he's going to get Danny's passport information.
Mycroft's gone for a few minutes, and by the time he returns, the front door opens.
"Honey, we're home!" Clement calls through the house.
"In here, Dad!" Mycroft calls. "Greg, get in here!"
Lestrade practically runs over. "What?"
John and Mycroft tell Lestrade what John's discovered. Mycroft says he's waiting for a call about Danny's passport, but a second later his phone rings.
"Yes?" he answers. "You're sure?—Alright.—Yes, thank you." He hangs up. "Danny was in Chicago. Half a dozen trips. Check his bank statements for hotel room or flat purchases. Car rentals, anything like that. Even restaurants in the same area. He had to have gone to wherever that bastard's got Sherlock."
With a nod, Lestrade pulls his phone out and starts making calls.
"John," Mycroft says, placing a hand on John's shoulder. "Thank you very much."
John snorts. "You're talking to me again?"
Mycroft looks genuinely confused. "I don't unders—"
"You've been treating me like a bum since you got here. I'm in the same boat, Mycroft. I love him as much as you do."
Mycroft looks down at his shoes. "Yes, well, forgive me for feeling territorial towards someone who is, or has been, mine."
"He's mine, too."
Mycroft sighs. "Yes, I understand. My apologies and again, thank you."
John looks at him and nods. "Of course."
Clement asks John to spend the night, especially after John explained that he was home alone. John agrees, so Clement makes his usual bed on the sofa.
"Thank you John," Clement says as he's practically tucking John in. "One step closer now."
"Yes," John says, swallowing down the fearful 'I hope so'. "One step closer."
Clement ruffles his hair, then leaves John there on the sofa.