Chapter Text
Lullaby
In the darkness of 221B John Watson lay in bed. The sound of raindrops tapping at his window, sheets up to his chin, eyes open. He lay in bed with a disturbed and troubled mind. It was daunting heavily over him so much that it was keeping him awake. Now, the good doctor had been told some harsh words, given where he had come from, but it wasn’t the words that tormented him. It was the fact that they came from a certain mouth. He turned to lay on his side, the digital clock read 1:24 A.M., and he sighed.
“You’re slowing me down…go.”
John sighed and closed his eyes with the hope that he would drift off into sleep. The rain died out a bit. Only soft plips against the window could be heard. He yawned and began to give in to the sleep that slowly tugged at his eyes.
---
He awoke to rain hitting his windows harder than they had been the night before. John slowly opened his eyes which took no more than five minutes to open wider when he looked at the clock he fell asleep looking at; 9:12 A.M. and took no more than a second to sprint out of bed. He was late to the office.
“Shit, shit, shit…” he whispered to himself as he quickly buttoned up a shirt over his night shirt, quickly sticking his legs into a pair of slacks that were in the laundry basket, slipping into a comfortable pair of loafers, and making a quick run to the restroom. He brushed his teeth quickly and did what he quickly could to make his hair look decent. The clock read 9:21 A.M. and John grabbed his coat, made his way through the flat, went quickly down the steps, and was out the door in the rain. He hailed a cab and was on his way. He sighed and watched the rain through the window. A vibration began in John’s coat pocket and he quickly answered it already knowing who it was. “I know, I know, I’m on my way—I’m so sorry! I’m almost there!” He hung up and rubbed his eyes in an attempt to make himself look a bit more alive.
He arrived five minutes later and rushed inside his office he grabbed the files that were placed on his desk to see what kind of patient he was going to be dealing with first.
“Mary! You can send the first one in!” He called. It was a young woman with a toddler who was red in the face and pulling at his ear. Obviously here for an ear infection. She was carrying him and the expression she had on her face stated that she was not one to mess around with considering the amount of time she had to wait just to see the doctor. “Hello, Doctor Watson, please forgive me, I missed my alarm and—“
“I don’t want to hear it! I’m too stressed out right now to hear any of this horseshit! I came in at 7:45 this morning and you weren’t here! My son has been crying his head off because of the—“
“Ear infection, I know. Again, I’m really sorry and I’ll prescribe your son some ear drops that you’ll have to apply yourself every three hours for two weeks. Is there anything else I can do for you, ma’am?” He did a routine check-up just to be sure the child’s ear wasn’t the only thing that was bothering him. John did his best to smile at the irritated woman whose son was still pulling at his ear. “Here, take this to the front desk and you’ll be told where to go from there to receive your medication.” He handed her a form he filled out with the prescribed ear drops for her son and she was off in a huff. “This is going to be a…very…long day.” He thought and rubbed his face with his hands, waiting for the next patient to walk in.
---
By 1:00 in the afternoon he was able to catch a break. He was looking through patient files for upcoming appointments when a cup of coffee and a sandwich were set in front of him.
“It was a rough one this morning, wasn’t it?” Mary smiled and sat in the chair in front of his desk. John sighed and picked up the cup of coffee, taking a long drink. “What happened, John? Perhaps a certain someone kept you up past your bedtime?” She asked, leaning into her chair with a smirk.
“I missed the alarm! I don’t know how that happened.” He almost choked on the coffee and looked at her, giving her a smile that let her know that it wasn’t anything like that before taking another drink of coffee.
“You were having trouble getting to sleep last night. You don’t look like yourself today. I mean look at you! You’ve buttoned your shirt wrong!” She pointed to show John that she wasn’t joking. Indeed, the shirt buttons were off by one.
“Well that’s just bloody embarrassing!” John began fixing the buttons so that they lined up evenly, he even checked that he had zipped his slacks up properly, and tucked his shirt in correctly once he was through with that. “Is that day over yet?” He asked as he placed his head in his hands, elbows resting on his desk.
“Only three more hours, Dr. Watson.” She smiled and stood up from the chair to return to her own desk in the front.
---
“He was late…the blankets weren’t pushed aside they were thrown…he slept on his side which is how he saw the clock, you can tell by the indent on the pillow, he wore the same shirt as yesterday, there’s no sign that the drawers or closet have been opened. Definitely in a rush, he didn’t even place his tooth brush back in its proper place. Didn’t have breakfast, no dishes in the sink, the pot is clean, chairs pushed in…took a cab, his wallet is gone…” The detective said this aloud as he made his way slowly through the flat that he and the doctor shared. “When will he be back? Well…we’ll just have to wait and see.” Sherlock murmured to the skull he picked up from the mantel piece and placed it back.
Sherlock grabbed the phone that finally made a noise in his pocket, his spirits uplifted but then came back down at the message he read on the screen: “He’s very upset. Fix it. –MH”
“Sod off. –SH”
“I suggest giving him what you’ve been hiding in your coat pocket for quite a while now? –MH”
“I said SOD OFF, Mycroft. –SH” He shoved the hand held device back into his pocket and also remembered the object that was resting in the other pocket of his gown. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, letting himself fall onto the couch that was behind him and wrapped his gown around himself.
---
“I’ll be on my way now, Mary. See you tomorrow.” John said as he closed his office door behind him. Mary smiled and waved at him. John walked out and realized that the rain hadn’t stopped when he stepped outside. He quickly hailed the first cab that he saw and ran right into it. “Baker Street, please.” He said and the cab driver, with a quick nod, took off to their destination. John looked out the window when he realized that he would be going back to the flat that he and Sherlock shared. After all, the detective had given no thought to what he had said to him yesterday. He knew Sherlock said rude things from time to time but he hadn’t the slightest clue as to why this offended him as much as it did. It had been on his mind since he had gotten to the office.
The cab pulled up to Baker Street, John paid the man, and he stepped out of the cab. He slowly opened the door and made his way up the stairs to the flat. He found that Sherlock wasn’t in the den or kitchen. He walked down the small hallway to his bedroom which he found was locked.
“Damn thing is jammed again.” He thought. But, no, it was locked from the inside. He knew this had Sherlock written all over it.
“John.” The all too familiar voice said from behind. The blonde man didn’t release the doorknob but froze at the sound of this man saying his name. He turned to face Sherlock who was carrying a blank expression on his face. “Come, I wanted to talk to you.” Sherlock turned for the den and sat in his armchair, waiting for John to do the same. He heard a sigh from the hallway and then appeared John to sit opposite of him. There was a silence between them, the rain hitting against the roof and windows of 221B. “You haven’t said a word to me since you left the scene yesterday. It was what I said, wasn’t it?” John stared at him with his brows slightly furrowed in concentration.
“You remembered…I’m actually surprised considering the fact that you don’t tend to consider how you hurt others at times. But now that you’ve figured that out, let’s talk about you for a second. You’ve been on edge for a while now. Why is that? You’re snarkier than usual and a lot more irritable. Is there something you want to tell me?” John crossed his leg over his knee and rested his folded hands on his leg. He was being serious; he didn’t even break eye contact with Sherlock.
“What are you going on about? This is how I always am and you know it.” Sherlock shot back, turning away to look at the skull he confided in.
“That.” John pointed at Sherlock, addressing the fact he turned away from him. “That right there shows me that there is something that you’re not telling me, Sherlock Holmes. I’ve lived with you for three years and three years is enough for me to tell that there is something bothering you and if it’s something that I’ve done I would damn well like to know.” He sat and waited for Sherlock to respond. The detective just stared at John with a raised eyebrow. The ebony haired man sighed and leaned his head back in his armchair.
“I promise I’m fine John. I’m only ever completely honest with you…and…I’m sorry about what I said yesterday. You know how it is when Anderson tries to ruin perfect evidence that I gather. After all, who would Sherlock Holmes be without his blogger?” He gave him a small smile which the doctor scoffed and chuckled about.
“I forgive you. Now…will you unlock my bedroom door?” John stood up and walked towards his bedroom door. Sherlock slowly walked over and pulled the key out of his gown pocket. He approached John and wrapped his arms around his waist, bringing his lips to that head of dusty blonde hair. John’s arms wrapped around Sherlock and he rested his head on that chest.
“You know I love you.” Sherlock murmured as their bodies began to sway. They stayed this way and John soon found his back was against the wall. Sherlock caressed John’s face and as he leaned in to connect their lips his phone began to vibrate from inside his pocket. He quickly pulled away and reached into his pocket, answering the phone. “What is it, Lestrade? Ah, I figured. We’ll be down in a few.” He shoved the phone into his pocket and turned his attention back to John. He quickly grabbed that man’s face and pressed his lips against his. “We’ve got a case.” He smiled, which almost seductive, and turned to dress himself, tossing the key over his shoulder which John caught.
“Well…that was quick.” John mumbled and stuck the key into the doorknob. He turned it and entered the room to change into something more comfortable.
The both descended down the stairs and stepped out into the rain. Sherlock got them a cab and they set off to their destination.
“This rain isn’t going to give up is it?” John asked and turned to Sherlock who was deep in thought. “Sherlock?” John nudged his partner who turned quickly to look at John.
“No, I suppose not.” He replied and placed a hand over John’s. He was usually against any sort of PDA but John had no problem with it. He let Sherlock’s fingers slip through his and they held hands throughout the rest of their ride.
As they got closer to their destination is occurred to John that he never asked what he wanted to ask while they were talking inside their flat. He leaned his head on Sherlock’s shoulder which got his attention.
“Sherlock…I know we discussed everything already but…do I really slow you down?” John rubbed a thumb over Sherlock’s.
“Of course not, John. You know I’d leave you behind if you were hindering me in any way, which you’re not. Don’t ask such things. You know they’re not true. I said that out of irritation as I stated before.” He brought the rougher hand he held in his up to his lips and kissed it. “Besides, I can’t think straight if you’re not there.”
“Alright, I believe you, love.” John looked out the window, a smile on his face. He loved this man too much.