Chapter Text
It was a perfect autumn day… A nice day for a long ride. If we can leave that damn place before midnight, mutters Sherlock. He was waiting in the car for ten minutes now, waiting for John Watson to stop snogging a woman. Get on with it! We have 750 kilometres to do! I know I should have left alone… A common friend of theirs, Mike, set them up for the ride when he realized that both men were planning to go to the same conference even if a national railway workers strike was going on. Sherlock looks through the window again and rolls his eyes as the ‘snogfest' was still going on! How dumb and ordinary, the man is not even interesting enough for a full deduction... Finally, the door opens and John jumps in the car while waving to the young woman.
"Sorry about that mate, you know how it is!” He smiles then shakes his head at Sherlock's impatient indifference. Okay… Maybe not!
Sherlock wasn't one for chitchat... “If you want we can split the drive, it’s 7 hour 45 minute with one stop… we can split it roughly in the middle? Or do you prefer if we separate the drive by kilometres?” The tall man was already leaving the University of Edinburgh campus where the conference was. “I sent you the GPS coordinates and a map to your mobile yesterday.”
“Yeah, I received them… Are you all right for me to be here? You seem pretty tense.” And just pretty also, John though smugly looking at the abundance of chocolate curls.
“No, it’s ok… It’s just that I am not use to being confined with someone for so long and… Anyway! You can sleep or do whatever you want, I’ll stop at a convenient spot in approximatively 3 hours and 50 minutes.”
“I’m not tired right now, we may talk if you want.” He reaches for his bag to get snacks. “Do you want grapes? Or crackers?” John offers.
“No, I don’t like to eat when I’m thinking… ehhhh… driving,” a focused Sherlock replies.
“You must think a lot, seeing how thin you are!” John smiles but with a hedge of concern, I am a doctor after all! “We’ve got all the time in the world, why don’t you tell me the story of your life?” The doctor was relaxed, fishing in his bag for more food. God I am so hungry!
“My life? Why do you want to learn about my life?” He was frowning, having difficulty to comprehend why a stranger was interested in his life. Anyway an edited and cleaned version of my life won’t be enough to get us out of the city!
“We’ve got eight hours before London…” John smiles, but seeing that Sherlock wasn’t a sharing type he tries a different approach “Let’s start with something easy: Where did you met Mike?”
“I often go to Bart’s, where he works as you know...” he explains.
From the tip of his luscious lips John thought but that's a start… “What are you doing, then. You’re not a doctor or if it’s the case you're one of the less flashy one that I know as you don’t put a ‘doctor’ in front of your name.” He smiles “Medical specialist of some sort?”
After a sigh and a quick change of lane to reach the busy highway, Sherlock replies “Nope.” Making an enticing pop at the end of the word. At John's inquisitive gaze, he reluctantly adds “I work more specifically in the pathology lab…” Seeing that the obnoxious doctor was still waiting expectantly, he continues, “I’m a consultant detective.”
“Consultant detective, never heard of it! What do you do exactly?” John was annoyingly fussing with his bag of grapes.
Sherlock was once more angry at himself! I should I’ve said no! Why do I always tried to be like everyone else… Like a 'normal' person... And if Mike thinks that I didn’t see through his matchmaking attempt… Okay, he’s… cute but… Not wanting to think any more about the sexy doctor (WHERE did that come from?) he pushes his thoughts away with a “Could you please stop making so much noise and stay silent, I’m trying to think!”
“Okay… Mister big detective” John mocks, a little bit put off. Too bad the man is a jerk! Taking out his phone, he quickly puts headphones and closed his eyes as he was listening to music. The image of the extremely annoying beautiful man still passing in front of his eyes. And Mike that thought we could at least be friends, nah!
John was lost in a dream full of an arrogant bastard with luxurious curls when someone shakes his shoulder. “Hummmm, whaaaat?”
“It’s been four fours, I'm stopping for a coffee and to use the facilities. Do as you wish.” He quickly jumps out of the car, walking to the little restaurant.
“What the hell…” John grumbles as he places all his things back in his bag then gets out of the car, to run after Sherlock. Long legs... of courses!… How is it possible for someone so damn attractive to be so damn annoying!! “Sherlock! Wait!”
“Why?” He looks at John, frowning. “What do you want?”
“We can stop for a coffee and something to eat? No need to go back in the car right away… It’s not a run.” He summons his more dazzling smiles. “And I will drive for the next… 3 hours and 45 minutes.”
“As you wish, but I really don’t see why we must stop for real.” Then he walks inside the cute little restaurant. John follows him with a smirk, happy that he wins this one. Once they were sitting in a booth, he looks at the menu with great attention… Hum, great food, maybe we can go for a full meal. I’m starving!
“What would it be love?” The waitress was looking at Sherlock with little stars in her eyes.
“A coffee.” The git replied curtly, glaring out the window.
“Come on, hon’, a beautiful morsel like you must need more than just…” The woman didn’t have time to finish her sorry seduction attempt.
“Only a coffee and no flirting.” He cuts her. The woman become as stiff as a pole then turn towards John.
“And you. Sir?”
“A coffee and a piece of apple pie à la mode.” He replies with his most sincere apologetic smile, trying to avoid anything unsavoury addition in his food. With tight lips, she turns to go back to the kitchen.
“Not good Sherlock…” John starts.
“What?” A confuse detective was looking at him. “Oh… that girl?” He rises his shoulders nonchalantly, obviously not caring.
“It's her job to be nice… you didn’t have to be rude, you know.”
“But I’m not interested so what’s the point?” His non-verbal signals screamed how annoyed he was with the conversation.
God gave me patience… Let’s try to shift the conversation on a more generic topic. “You are not interested because you already have a girlfriend?”
“I don’t believe she was thinking about a long-time relationship…” He sneers then adds, “anyway, girlfriends are not my area.”
Oh… Ooooh… “Any… boyfriend then.” John rapidly asks, with a falsely disinterested look. “Which is ok, you know…”
“I know it’s ok… but I don’t do relationships. I’m kind of married to my work you know…” John's heart unexpectedly sinks a little, which is weird as he wasn't attracted what so ever to the pompous git, but the waitress returns so he didn’t say anything. He was mesmerized as Sherlock put a big show of saying ‘thank you and sorry I was stressed by whatever nonsense’ all that with blue and green puppy eyes… The waitress rapidly took back his coffee to bring another one (without spit in it probably!). John was looking at the man in front of him… The turn of personality was so perfect that even if he personally had to deals with the man for the last hours he totally falls for the act. Once the dazzled woman leaves them to serve other clients, Sherlock drops the act as soon as her back is turned. “And I know that women are definitely your area… They seem to like you.”
“What?” John was trying to remember what they were talking about before… before the mad man in front of him decided to ooze sexiness for the kick of it. Right. Boyfriend and girlfriend. “Oh… yes…” He smiles thinking of what-ever the name of the woman he was kissing in Edinburgh. He allowed himself a little smugness as he add “It was just a conference thing for both of us, it was fun that’s all. I am free then, like you…, and yes I think I am very well liked by… everyone.” I am bi, I am bi, I am bi…
With a curious tone, Sherlock asks out the blue, “Do you have any female friends?”
“What?” God! I must stop saying ‘what’ at everything!
“You look like a man who has friends, you socialize, yes? Do you have many friends that happen to be women?" Sherlock's tone was curious.
“No… I don’t really. Or at least not with women that I find attractive…” Oh, now *I* sound like a jerk!
“Why?” He looks genuinely curious, his brows frown in perplexity.
John, after a few minutes, simply replies, “Don’t you think it... complicates everything?”
“Meaning?”
“Come on… how can you talk to… someone that you are attracted too about everything that happens in your life? Talking about her relationship with another guy, or yours with another woman… When the only thing you can think about is how to get in her pants!” It’s not rocket science, work with me, man!
Sherlock tucked his hands under his chin, eyes closed. “So… you can be friends with a woman but only if you have no desire for her what so ever… Like a sister or a cousin.” The detective was trying to process the new data. "But if she doesn't want to have sex with you, that she has a boyfriend or kids or whatever?"
"It's too complicated anyway, the sex is just... there. A reminder of 'what if'." This is universal knowledge, I can believe I've got to explain that to a man in his mid-thirties!
"But this is silly, you can't block half of humanity like that! And what if someone is bi, he can have no friends at all... Incredible, and we are in 2015!" He puts down his now empty coffee cup, "There's a woman that I'm friends with... I am not attracted to her even though she's definitively attracted to me. Should I stop being friendly towards her?"
"For her sake, yes!" Who's that woman? And what about men... Did he find any man attractive? This! This is the perfect example, you CAN'T be friends with someone that you fancy!!
"Too bad then," Sherlock smiles sadly, "it looks that we will never be friends." He rises, calling the waitress and went to the front to pay the bill, leaving a troubled doctor at the table.
Did he means that... he found ME attractive. Or that he founds out that I am attracted to him! Oh My God!!!
15 minutes later, John sits on the driver’s side. It was better but he was still under the shock of what the man beside him said in the restaurant. “Sherlock… About what I said...”
“We are late, please drive in silence. I need to work.” Then he opens his laptop on his knees and starts typing…
The rest of the ride was silent.
4 hours later, after leaving the car at the rent-a-car office, Sherlock quickly thanks the doctor for the ride, calls a cab and disappears amongst 9 millions Londoners.
Shit. Was the only thought that came into John’s mind before he walks to the nearest Tube station with the feeling that it was a missed opportunity. And what the hell is a consultant detective?