I Am Sher-locked

18. War of Hearts

Sherlock slowly pulled his face back and they looked at each other. His expression was serious as if something really important had just dawned on him. For a moment Irene thought that Sherlock was about to say something not good but instead....

"Marry me..."

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Her gaze remained fixed on him, her eyes were wide open. That was a marriage proposal, right? No, she had heard well, Sherlock proposed to her. Her throat was dry, she swallowed hard. Her hands where they were wrapped around his neck sweated and began to tremble. It was as if time had stopped and everything was moving unexpectedly slowly but her mind was running a marathon.

Nothing was right, at least not as she expected it to be. Marriage was the first step in the destruction of love. Why did he need to take this fatal step? She felt panic and fear. Her hands slipped on his chest and stayed there, he looked at her eagerly, perhaps impatiently.

"Why do you need a piece of paper to prove your love for me?", she questioned softly, fear dripping of her every word. 

Sherlock frowned slightly, his arms were wrapped around her waist, keeping her on his lap. "This has nothing to do with proof...", he replied lowly. "I want to give you the life you deserve and you really do not deserve to be just my girlfriend. You are a lady. My lady... And you know I'm not saying that possessively. You do not belong to me as an object. I want you to belong to me mentally..."

For a moment it was as if panic had left her heart and a small smile spread across her lips. "You do not believe in marriage. What has changed now?"

"I do not believe in the type of marriage that society has imposed on people", he explained, softly stroking her waist. "In most cases where the marriage has ruined the couple it is because there was no true love from the beginning."

"So ... you believe that we are not in danger of ruining our relationship if we get married", she tilted her head with a faint smirk.

Sherlock nodded his head, looking at her. "Although we still have to set some ground rules."

"Such as?", she arched an eyebrow, her smirk deepened. 

"Well...", he breathed out and teasingly smiled at her. "No more running away from us. No more lies. No more tears. We will discuss any problems together. We will make sure we never get bored. Finally, we will swear that we will never become like the couples we hate..."

"Hm...", she thought it for a second but the excitement was so big that she couldn't contain herself. "I can live with that."

"So... it's a yes?", he looked at her expectantly in her eyes.

Irene slowly nodded her head, biting her bottom lip. "Yes, I'll marry you, Sherlock Holmes..."

Sherlock didn't know how to react. He was surprised and at the same time happy. Different emotions displayed into his clear, blue eyes. He chuckled, then he turned serious and then laughed. Finally he pulled her to him and kissed her lips eagerly with passion. 

Irene slowed down their kiss and softly surrendered body and soul to him. Their kiss deepened and she melted right into his arms. 

"You're making me the happiest man alive...", he whispered against her lips, his eyes closed. 

She tenderly brushed her lips against his and smiled. "I love it when you're vulnerable around me...", she murmured. 

"I don't enjoy it but I can tolerate it", he chuckled softly and pulled back to look at her. "I think it's time to get off the helicopter, don't you think?"