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The boy on the bench looked sad as he sat alone, legs kicking at empty air absentmindedly. That was the first thing John noticed about him. John had been playing in the sandbox, building a kingdom with valleys and mountains, castles and small village houses, believing it could all be real if he only worked hard enough.
But once he looked up and saw the boy, sitting quietly, a piece of wood chip spinning between his fingers, John couldn’t imagine an entire kingdom being built by just one person any more. After all, every kingdom needed two rulers.
Careful to not kick over any of his work, he scrambled to his feet and made the daring quest across the playpark. He fisted his hands as he walked, willing himself to look bigger than he really was, attempting to ward off any big kids who may fancy picking on him. John wasn’t small for his age by any means, but he was one of the younger kids playing today, only seven years of age. He hoped the boy on the bench would also be the same age and agree to help rule the kingdom.
The quest ended up being less troublesome than the young ruler was expecting seeing as the only thing between the sandbox and the bench was a swing set with special blue seats for babies. As he drew nearer to the boy, John became nervous, fearful the boy wouldn’t like him or want to play with him. And what if they did become friends? After they left the park that day, would they never see each other again? He didn’t want that.
“Will you stop standing there?” The voice startled John. He looked quickly around himself, worried one of the big kids made their way towards him without his knowing. Seeing no one near but the boy, he decided it must have come from him.
“Um,” he began without knowing what exactly it was he wanted to say. “I built a kingdom in the sandbox. It's not finished yet, but it will be in a little bit.” He paused again as the boy appeared to not be listening to him. Deciding to push on, he moved a little closer. “Would you like to come rule it with me? You can be King, if you want.”
The little boy’s eyes flickered up briefly to meet John’s. John noticed the way the boy’s curly hair bounced on the top of his head. It reminded him of the yo-yo toy he received for his birthday. He also noted the color of the eyes watching him. They were blue, or grey. John couldn’t quite tell which, but it was one of those.
“Why would you want me to play with you? Are you going to kick the sand in my face?” He spoke quietly and appeared mad.
The question confused John. “Why would I want to kick sand in your face?”
A shrug was the only thing to accompany the quiet whisper. “Most kids do. I don’t think they like the things I say.”
“What kind of things do you say?” John asked, curiosity piqued.
Another shrug from the boy. “I say what I see.”
“What do you see?”
The boy’s careful eyes looked over John quickly. “I see that your daddy drinks a lot. Your eyes look tired. You probably stay awake at night because he is yelling. You have a big sister. She's nice to you and probably plays with you. Your mummy wears pink lipstick. It smudged a bit when she kissed you goodbye before you came here.” He pointed at John’s cheek. “Right there.”
John quickly rubbed his hand over his cheek to remove the evidence. “Wow, you’re really smart! That was cool? Can you do it again?” he asked, wanting to see what else the boy knew.
“You like it?” he questioned as John smiled at him. John nodded and the boy frowned. “Most people tell me to shut up and then push me down or send me to my room. And I can’t be smart because Mycroft is the smart one.”
“Who is Mycroft?” John asked.
“He’s my big brother.”
“Oh.” John felt sad for the boy. Deciding he wanted to be his friend, he pulled himself up to sit next to him on the bench. “Well, I wish I could do that. I think it’s awesome! My name is John and I’m seven. If you come to the sandbox and be King of my kingdom, I won’t be able to kick sand in your face because you could send me to the dungeon. And you can tell me more cool stuff.”
The boy kept a questioning look as he listened to John. “So, if I don’t come play with you, you will kick sand in my face?”
John giggled and shook his head. “No. I don’t want to kick sand in your face. It would make you dirty and your mummy may get mad.”
“My mummy won’t care,” he said as he turned the wood chip over in his hands again to study it, “She will just have my nanny wash me up before dinner.”
John frowned then. “What’s a nanny?”
“You don’t have one?” the boy asked, suddenly finding the conversation more interesting.
With a simple shake of his head, John answered the question. “No. What is it?”
“A nanny is a mean lady. Most of them are old, and they make you take baths and wash your hands and sends you to bed with no stories.” he informed John.
“Oh. I’m glad I don’t have one, then.” They sat in silence for a few minutes, both thinking about bad things like baths and bedtime. “No stories?” John asked, concerned.
“Nope. Never.” the boy answered.
“Well, then you can come live with me.” he stated with a smile, proud of the solution he came up with all on his own. “My mummy tells really good bedtime stories and she always remembers to send away the monsters.”
“What monsters?” the boy asked, halting the movement of the wood chip in his grasp.
“The ones in the closet and under the bed,” John told him. “Does your nanny not send them away?”
The boy shook his head, fear creeping its way into his eyes as he dropped the wood chip to the ground. “No. I didn’t know there were monsters.”
Seeing his distress, John reached over to hug the boy tightly. “Don’t worry. You will come live with me, where they can’t get you. And you can sleep in my bed with me so you won’t have to be alone. I know how to fight them now.”
He moved away but left one arm over the boy’s shoulder to comfort him. The boy gave John a small smile and nodded his head, feeling a bit safer now that he didn’t have to worry about being eaten at night.
“If we are going to be friends, I need to know your name.” John said.
“I’m Sherlock.” the boy answered. “I’m five last week.”
“Sherlock” John repeated, trying the words out, making sure he was saying it right. “I like that name. And happy birthday!”
Sherlock smiled, happy to have the approval of his new friend. “Thanks. If we go rule the kingdom, will the big kids kick the sand in our faces?”
John shook his head. “No. I will stop them. They won’t hurt you because you are King. I will be the knight in shining armor so I have to protect you.” He shimmied off the edge of the bench and stood quickly to puffed out his chest, showing he could be brave and strong.
“Ok,” Sherlock said, “We can go play then.”
“Ok!” John said with a bit more excitement. “We have to be home before dark for dinner though, so we can’t play for too long.” Seeing the sad look on Sherlock’s face, he quickly continued, “But we can come back tomorrow and play more!”
“Ok!” he said as he grabbed John’s hand. “Let’s go play in our kingdom!”
They made their way back to the sandbox quickly, watching for approaching big kids. Once they arrived at the kingdom, John quickly explained the layout of the land, telling Sherlock where he could find the shops and the bakery and how to get through the forest to a hidden lake that would be their special spot.
“What is the name of our Kingdom?” Sherlock asked once he thought he thought he understood all John had told him.
“Um,” John started, “I guess you get to name it because you are King.”
They sat for a moment as Sherlock tried his best to think up a name. “How about,” a pause, “the Kingdom of Sherohn? Like Sherlock and John put together!”
A smile spread across John’s face. “I love it! Welcome to the Kingdom of Sherohn, King Sherlock!”
“Thank you, Knight John!”
They played in their newly named kingdom until they couldn’t see the Sun behind the houses anymore. “We should go home now. It will be getting dark soon. And I’m hungry.” Sherlock reminded John.
“Oh,” John said as if only just realizing how much of the light had disappeared. “You’re right. I think my mummy is making vegetable soup for dinner. You'll love it!”
They stood and began walking towards the edge of the park. However, before they could get too far, they were stopped by an older woman who grabbed Sherlock’s arm.
“Excuse me, young man. Just where do you think you’re going?” Her hand quickly moved down to Sherlock’s hand and began tugging him in the opposite director from John’s house. “We need to get home and get you washed up before dinner. Your mother will be expecting you.”
“No!” Sherlock whined as he tried to pull his hand out of the woman’s grip. “I’m going home with John! He said I could sleep in his bed and he would protect me from the monsters in the closet!”
Deciding the woman was most likely Sherlock’s nanny, John tried to step in between the two. Even if it was just pretend, he promised Sherlock he would be the knight in shining armor and protect him from the bullies. And the nanny was definitely a bully.
“Sherlock is coming home with me where I can protect him and he can have bedtime stories! I promised him!” he said as he wrapped his arms around Sherlock’s arm which was being tugged by the nanny.
“Now, you listen here,” she said towards John, “I am in charge here and when I say it is time for him to go home, he will come home. And if he doesn’t,” her head turned to face Sherlock, “He will not be allowed to come back to this park. He will have to stay at home and focus of his lessons instead.”
“No, you can’t take me away from John!” Sherlock whined at the same time John asked, “Never again?”
Frowning, John let go of his death grip on Sherlock’s arm. He turned around so his back was to the nanny, a sad look on his face. “Sherlock, you need to go home.”
Sherlock’s face fell to one of despair. “But who will protect me?”
John sighed and thought for a moment. Moving his hands to his neck, he removed a long cord necklace from around his neck by pulling it over his head. “My mummy gave this to me. When I’m scared, I hold it in my hand and it makes the bad things go away. It will keep you safe.” he said as he tucked it into Sherlock’s free hand.
Sherlock frowned. “But who will protect you?”
John grinned at him. “I’m a knight. I can fight them all away.”
Nodding, Sherlock slipped the necklace over his head. Once it settled into place, he made a small fist round it. “Ok. I will give it back when you can be there to protect me from the monsters.”
John, too, nodded. “Ok. You need to go home now so you can come play again tomorrow.”
“Ok,” Sherlock agreed. He quickly wrapped his arms around John in a tight hug to say goodbye before being pulled away towards the other end of the park where a long, black car was waiting.
John stood at the edge of the playpark until Sherlock and his nanny were out of view. Once he could no longer see them and he was sure the monsters wouldn’t get Sherlock, he turned to run home, hoping his mum wouldn’t be too mad at him for being late and not allow him to go to the park again tomorrow.