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Jake sat upright with his hands clasped tightly in front of him. He already started to feel the sweat form on his brow as he suffered the judging and piercing gaze of the tall and curly haired man seated across from him.
“Jacob Wesley.”
“Y-yes sir-“
“You will sit there quietly and I will uncover you piece by piece, is that clear?”
Jacob nodded silently with widened eyes, swallowing audibly.
“Good.” Sherlock shifted in his chair, leaning forward so that his feet were planted on the ground and his hands rested below his chin. “Currently you attend the same university as Rosie, The-“
“City.” Jake cut in, earning a glare of disapproval, “S-sorry….” he stuttered and bowed his head in embarrassment.
“Are you finished?” When there was no reply from the young man, Sherlock nodded and continued, “Third year, legal assistant, mother doesn't approve your choice of career, wanted you to be a chef…”
Jake’s eyes shot up with wonder.
“You wanted to prove your cleverness. Shame. Your GPA’s nothing to write home about, she was right.”
“Hey!” Jake raised his voice in complaint but Sherlock just continued, “-two sisters and one brother, he has a drug problem. Interesting….cocain? No…weed.”
“Charlie is working on it!” Jake protested, sitting up straighter in his seat and puffing out his chest, “How long is Rosie going to be?” He was already starting to get angry from the creepy, all-knowing bloke that dug too deep in his life. Rosie had insisted that he meet her parents now that they were officially dating and he found no complaint - willingly offering to pick her up before going out on their date night.
Sherlock flapped his hand in the direction of the stairs and tisked, “She’ll probably be another hour. Do not concern yourself with the goings on of my daughter and her routinely schedule.”
Jake took a deep breath to calm himself, trying desperately not to crack his knuckles in frustration.
“Of course, John will be here shortly so you will be able to meet him.”
“I'm looking forward to meeting with Mr. Watson.”
Just as Sherlock was opening his mouth to retort, the sound of footsteps hitting every single step of 17, cut through the sitting room. “Speak of the devil,” Sherlock grinned, shooting up from his seat to open up the door of the flat.
Outside, stood a short and stout man with greying hair and a kind smile plastered on his face. “Thanks, love” the man smiled appreciatively at his husband, maneuvering the paper bag in his hold before raising on his toes to plant a kiss on the taller man's lips. “Is he here?”
Sherlock stepped out of view to expose Jake, sitting on the sofa with a nervous grin.
“Ah, You must be Jake!” John called, dropping the paper bag in Sherlock's arms and walking over to the young man with an out-reached hand.
Jake got up right away and lessened the distance, shaking John’s hand firmly, “Such a pleasure to meet you Mr. Watson, Rosie talks of you non-stop.”
“Likewise,” John chuckled, “and its Dr. Watson, please.”
“M-my apologies, Dr. Watson…”
John nodded with a grin and turned to look at Sherlock who was still rooted at the threshold, paper bag in hand and scowl nestled on his mouth. “The kitchen would be a great place for those, love” John voiced, pointing to the groceries, “cup of tea would be nice too, ta.”
As Jake watched the taller, intimidating man saunter off to the kitchen, John took the seat across and rubbed his hands together before clearing his throat. “So about how long now?”
Jake snapped his attention back to John, “Eight months now, Mr. Watson…sir.”
“Doctor,” John corrected before continuing, “and about how many before my daughter?”
Jake’s eyes widened, “S-sorry?”
“How many other women before my daughter?”
Jake’s throat felt unnaturally dry and his mouth worked on what his mind tried to process, “T-two.”
John nodded, wringing his hands together and staring intently at the young man who was now seated across.
Jacob was hoping that Dr. Watson was the reasonable one based off all the stories Rosie would tell of him, but he was just as intimidating - even more so now that the ex-army soldier was watching him now.
“Have you two…..”
Jake felt himself blush instantly.
“Of course you two must have. I ask in regards to protection, Mr. Wesley.”
Jake opened his mouth but nothing came out.
“He's clean” a deep voice answered, carrying a tray of biscuits and three cups of tea, setting it on the table.
“Good” John beamed, reaching for a digest.
Jake was shocked and couldn't really believe what he was seeing when Sherlock handed John a folder of papers which earned him looks each time that they looked up from it. “W-what is that?” He asked, shifting closer in his seat.
“Background check and so-on-so-forth,” Sherlock responded flatly, “the usual.”
Jake laughed darkly, “Ah yea, the usual. Is that even legal?”
“You tell me, Jacob.” Sherlock said icily.
John snorted which earned a grin from his husband, “Now, now everyone calm down. We do this because we love our daughter and need to know who she's with. You could be a bloody serial killer for all we know.”
Jake nodded, “I understand Mr-“
John narrowed his eyes at him.
“-Dr. Watson…b-but this is clearly unethical.”
Sherlock brushed off the comment and went to his phone, tapping vigorously while John took a sip of tea.
“Have a child of your own and you’ll understand.”
Jake was a loss for words. These would be the men he would see at Christmas dinners and Sunday meals. The men who would call the house for chats or visit with bottles of wine in hand. The men who-
Just then the sound of rushed footsteps brought all of their attention to their door and Rosie stood with a bright smile and her clutch wrapped in her hands. “All done! You ready?”
Jake smiled lovingly at her nodding and getting up from the sofa to walk over and kiss her cheek, “You look lovely.”
Both of the other men made their presence in the room, clearing their throats and also getting up from their seats.
“Have fun tonight but be careful, yea?” John said.
“Of course” Rosie smiled at her father and turned to Sherlock who remained shockingly silent with a face that was un-readable. When John nudged him with his elbow, the man nodded in agreement.
She went to them both, kissing their cheeks and giving them hugs before returning to Jake and entwining their fingers together.
“It was a...” interesting “...pleasure to meet you both.”
“And you,” John replied.
Sherlock walked over to him for a shake and when Jake offered his hand, was pulled in until he heard the dark and ice cold voice whisper in his ear, “If you do anything - and I mean anything - foolish. I will know. Got it? I have eyes and ears everywhere.”
Jake felt numb all over when his hand was finally released and given a fake smile. The word everywhere stuck in his mind as he nodded in fear.
For Rosie, he told himself. He'll do this for Rosie.
“Have a good time!” John called out as the couple skipped down the steps and out into the cool London air.
“What's wrong, love?” Rosie asked, her eyes holding a worried gaze noticing the way that Jake now looked like a scared and lost puppy.
“Nothing, dear.” Jake tried to reply cooly and composed to the best of his ability, “Your parents seem uh…very nice. V-very nice indeed.”