These Days

Awkward Questions and Awkward Answers

Sherlock also seemed to have done his best to look expectable, it looked like his clothes had been ironed, his shoes polished, his hair was neatly brushed and maybe even had some product in it, even his eyebrows looked plucked and his fingernails curved. Now maybe this was just school policy to look like you were camera ready, but Sherlock didn't seem the type to care much about school policies. Had he done this for something, or, more specifically, someone? He probably was leaving here to go on a date, some girl that he would like to impress, that made plenty of sense considering he wasn't married. John checked his watch, three twenty four, almost time. A little bit later there was a gentle knock on the door and an older woman, maybe in her fifties with dyed blonde hair was in the doorway.
"I'm here for Hamish?" she asked. Seeing as there was only one person under the age of twenty she looked right at him, and Hamish just twisted his hands nervously.
"Hey, you'll do fine, and I know mommy is ordering pizza for tonight, it'll be there when you get back no matter what happens." John assured, giving Hamish a reassuring pat on the back.
"Okay, I'll see you later." Hamish said nervously, his little face slightly white.
"You'll do great Hamish, we believe in you." Mr. Holmes assured, nodding at the boy. Hamish smiled weakly back and then followed Mrs. Johnston out of the door, closing it quietly behind them. That left John and Mr. Holmes alone, the part John had been both dreading and looking forward to at the same time. Obviously Sherlock didn't know what to say either; he leaned back slightly on his desk and stared at the floor, his long fingers tapping the wooden desk quickly.
"So, um, make yourself at home I suppose. There's coffee, in the break room, I don't know if you drink coffee, but it's, uh, it's there." The confidence that had once been present in his voice had been gone, left with Hamish maybe. Now Sherlock looked less like a figure of power and more like a weak child, no more than the ones he taught.
"Oh, no, I'm fine, thank you." John assured, looking around the room for a chair that was size appropriate for him.
"Uh, there's a chair in the back, it's well, it's not tiny I suppose..." Sherlock suddenly sprang to life, walking swiftly over to the back and bringing back a medium sized plastic chair, a lot bigger than the ones the kids sat in but also a lot smaller than John was hoping for.
"I apologize for the lack of size appropriate seating arrangements, the children, well, they're not exactly tall. They're like little munchkins, loud, smelly little munchkins." Sherlock decided, swooping over and placing the chair next to John.
"Thanks." John muttered, sitting in the chair and now having to look up at the desk. He was kind of just considering sitting on the air conditioner.
"No problem." Sherlock assured, going back over to his desk as if he wanted to say more but couldn't find the words. He simply leaned back once again, tapping his fingers as if he were searching nonstop for something to say. John was doing the same though, staring out the window, or the alphabet on the wall, or the pictures hanging on the ceiling, but not at Sherlock, never at Sherlock. But then again he didn't feel eyes on him either, so he could only assume that Sherlock was avoiding glances as well.
"Are those news articles?" John asked, nodding at a large bulletin board filled with newspaper. Any toddler could see that those were newspapers, but it was a conversation starter.
"Oh, yes, those. I have the children collect them for me, and then we discuss them." Sherlock agreed. John got up, happy to leave the small plastic chair for once. He read the news clippings and blinked a couple of times, kind of hoping he was seeing incorrectly.
"This is morbid." He pointed out, turning to look at Mr. Holmes, who was still sitting on the desk innocently.
"They need to see the world as it really is Mr. Watson, not just a fantasy." Sherlock pointed out.
"Yes, okay, but this is highlighting death, and murder, and robbing, this is just horrible to let children see." John defended. Mr. Holmes sighed, looking disappointed, maybe even hurt that John didn't agree with his method of teaching.
"I do apologize, and if you don't agree with it..." Sherlock started.
"No, no, I'm not going to tell you how to deal with my kid, I'm not going to be that parent, but I'm just commenting." John decided, holding his hands up in defense. He didn't want to see Mr. Holmes look so sad; it was almost heartbreaking to see that face with anything other than a smile.
"Okay then." Sherlock agreed, nodding his head and not looking at John.
"Has Hamish brought any of them in?" John asked.
"I'm not sure, I don't remember who brings them by now, much more important matters to deal with, as I'm sure you can imagine." Sherlock muttered. He sounded sad once again, and John not felt guilty for hurting his feelings. Who knows what Sherlock imagined of this visit, probably just a waste of time, getting in the way of this date he probably had later.
"So, um, do you have any plans after this?" John asked casually, sitting on top of the heater where he could actually look Sherlock in the eyes without having to crane his neck. Sherlock suddenly became, if possible, more fidgety, his cheeks turning a bit red and his eyes darting around the room.
"Um, no, no I don't." he muttered.
"Oh." John nodded. There goes his brilliant theory of Sherlock's pampering. Maybe he just liked to feel well put together, maybe he did this every day, who knows?
"Why do you ask?" Sherlock asked, almost in a croak like voice. He was nervous as heck wasn't he?
"Conversation starter I suppose." John shrugged. Sherlock smiled forcefully but didn't make eye contact, staring at the ground with a sigh, almost disappointed. Was John's answer the wrong one?
"Do you, um, do you have any plans?" Sherlock asked, still not looking at John.
"Yes I do, Mary ordered pizza and we're going to throw Hamish a little bit of a surprise test party." John shrugged.
"Oh, well that sounds like fun I suppose." Sherlock agreed. He spun the globe once more, which seemed like a little bit of a nervous habit, except now it was going faster than before, the colorful landmasses mixing in with the seas, the globe rocking ever so slightly on the axis. That was the only noise in the classroom.
"So, how is Hamish doing, other than classes, like, any new friends?" John asked.
"I couldn't tell you if they were new, but he hangs out with Archie a lot, I've noticed that." Sherlock admitted.
"Oh ya, Archie is actually our neighbor, they've been friends since they could talk." John admitted with a little laugh.
"That's good, good to have a friend like that. He gets alone fine with the other kids, but he talks to Archie the most." Sherlock shrugged.
"Any girls he's got his eye on?" John asked with a small laugh. Sherlock chuckled a little bit, shaking his head.
"No, there is no romance in this class, too busy for it around here." Sherlock admitted.
"I suppose that's good, wouldn't want any drama until at least high school." John laughed. Sherlock nodded, but he looked strangely sad, why was he so sad? Sherlock went over to sit in his chair, the only chair big enough to seat someone his size in this room, and spun ever so slightly.
"Where are you from Mr. Watson?" he asked, and John couldn't tell if he was interested or if it was just a conversation started, probably the later.
"I'm actually from around here." John shrugged.
"Oh, did you go to this school?" Sherlock asked. John just laughed, shaking his head.
"No, I wasn't that wealthy. I went to the public school, Southwest School District." John admitted.
"That's perfectly fine as well; personally I think this school is a bit too prissy for me." Sherlock shrugged.
"I agree, but Mary kind of insisted on sending him here." John sighed.
"I'll make it the best experience, to all of my abilities." Sherlock assured.
"I believe you will." John agreed. "Where are you from then?"
"Oh, way out there, you wouldn't know it. I just moved here because I needed a place to stay and an old family friend rented me an apartment." Sherlock shrugged.
"Oh, well that's nice. When was this?" John asked.
"Before the start of the school year." Sherlock said with a bit of a guilty smile.
"So you still live there?" John asked.
"Oh yes, she's more like family than anything, the only family I really have." Sherlock shrugged.
"Oh, I'm sorry." John muttered.
"No, they're not dead or anything, we just had a bit of a falling out, as do most families I suppose." Sherlock shrugged.
"Yes well, that's why you start a new one right?" John asked.
"Yes, yes I suppose you do." Sherlock agreed, looking at the globe with a sad expression once more.
"Surely you've got a girlfriend right?" John asked. Sherlock looked up rather suddenly, as if taken a bit aback by the statement. "No, sorry, that's none of my business..."
"No, its fine I assure you. And no, I don't have a girlfriend, far too busy and not really interested." Sherlock sighed. John nodded, the wheels in his head turning.
"Oh, so, um, do you have a boyfriend?" John asked. This time Sherlock turned beet red, his green eyes not daring to look anywhere near John.
"No." he muttered, not really elaborating. John nodded; maybe he was getting a bit too personal, good going John, now he had to sit in a very awkward room for an hour with a sensitive man he just accused of being gay.
"So, um, this family friend, maybe I know her?" John asked.
"I doubt it, she kind of stays in, Martha Hudson, lives over on Church Street." Sherlock pointed out, now mustering up enough courage to look over at John.
"No, never heard of her." John sighed.
"Well it's a big town right?" Sherlock shrugged.
"Not really." John laughed.
"Yes, I suppose you're right." Sherlock admitted.
"Have you made any friends since you got here?" John asked.
"Not really." Sherlock shrugged.
"Any, um, sort of friends?" John asked, now seeing that he was working himself into a corner here.
"You?" Sherlock muttered. Whatever John was expecting, it wasn't that.
"Oh, well, I guess I count." John shrugged. So, in this month or two that Sherlock was here he's only been able to make one friend, and can't even hold a conversation with said friend. What an odd person he was.
"I'm not the most sociable person you'll ever meet." Sherlock admitted.
"Neither am I." John admitted. "I imagine the staff here isn't that easy to get along with anyway?"
"No, they're not really, or I'm just the one that's not easy to get along with. Maybe a bit of both." Sherlock admitted.
"We'll you're getting along fine with me." John pointed out.
"You're not allowed to leave, this really shouldn't count." Sherlock said with a little smile.
"I wouldn't if I could." John assured. Sherlock looked up at him as if that answer surprised him, like no one had ever really paid him any attention before. He looked a bit like a happy puppy.
"Well that's very kind of you Mr. Watson." Sherlock decided, spinning the globe once again as if he didn't know what he was supposed to do. "So how about you, any friends that I may know?"
"Well, considering you don't seem to know a lot of people probably not, there's um, Greg Lestrade, I work with him, Mike Stamford, he's one of those people I just call up if I need a night out. Mary's got most of the friends honestly."
"Ya, as guessed I haven't heard of either of those men." Sherlock decided.
"Well once you get used to life around here we could all go out for a drink one night, a not so bachelor party." John shrugged. Sherlock kind of laughed, his face lighting up a little bit more in amusement.
"Oh I'm sure you wouldn't want to drag me around, I'm no fun." Sherlock assured.
"I'll be the judge of that." John insisted.
"You really are a character Mr. Watson." Sherlock decided, actually smiling for real now, so that his perfectly aligned white teeth were gleaming right at John.
"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" John asked.
"It's a very good thing." Sherlock assured with a nod.
"Well I'd hope so. I wouldn't want to make a bad impression, then maybe there might be some unfair grading on Hamish's test." John muttered, even though there was no one else in the room.
"Oh, I assure you there is no favoritism, and no least favoritism, even though I dislike most of the children here I'm sure they'll make it out of my class with a passing grade."
"You really are a people's person aren't you Mr. Holmes?" John asked with a little bit of a laugh.
"Certainly." Sherlock agreed. There was a bit of a silence, not uncomfortable but still not comfortable, kind of just silence.
"You met Mary right, at the conferences?" John asked.
"Yes, yes I did." Sherlock agreed. "Very lovely woman." He added after a short pause. He looked a bit conflicting though, as if, for some reason he very much disliked Mary but wanted to say nice things about her in front of John.
"She is isn't she?" John agreed.
"How long have you two known each other?" Sherlock asked.
"We met right after college; we've been together about ten years I think." John decided.
"That's very nice." Sherlock agreed, but he looked as if he had eaten a lemon whole. Obviously there was something about Mary that didn't really sit with him well. Of course the feeling was mutual considering that Mary thought he was the creepiest person to ever creep along the creepy Earth. Honestly John didn't see what was so wrong with him; he could even go as far as saying he was a bit charming. Of course he had his creepy moments, staring at walls, staring at the globe, staring at the floor, even staring at John when he wasn't looking, but then again there was that lovely smile that appeared every so often, that laugh that would make even the prettiest sounding bird croak, and just his personality in general. It really was a wonder that he was still single.
"So, John, are there any good restaurants I should know about here? Mrs. Hudson usually eats in so she doesn't know of many." Sherlock asked.
"Ah yes, something I'm good at for a change. Well, there's the Ironworks Pub on Main Street, they have the best burgers and they make their own beer. The Smith Family Diner, always a good choice for a family, and Mario's Pizza is the best in town." John decided, racking his brain so that he could at least be of some use.
"How about coffee?" Sherlock asked.
"For a good cup I'd go to the coffee shop on the corner, I think it's called Cup of Joy or something cheesy like that, I never really look at the name, just the location." John admitted.
"I'll remember that, I always like a good cup of coffee on a cold day." Sherlock admitted.
"Ah, then we have more in common than you might think." John agreed. "Mary hates coffee, I can never drag her out to go there."
"Well we all have our likes and dislikes I suppose." Sherlock shrugged.
"Yes, I suppose we do." John agreed. Sherlock opened his mouth to say something more when the door opened and Hamish came walking in, a large smile on his face.
"Hey bud, how'd it go?" John asked.
"It was amazing, I think I did really good, the questions were really easy!" Hamish said happily.
"Then you'll get in for sure." Sherlock assured. Hamish smiled even wider and John hugged him, picking him up and twirling him around the room for good measure. Hamish screamed and laughed, his smile big enough to fill the entire room.
"I know you did amazing." John agreed. Sherlock was now standing, smiling as John let Hamish back onto the floor.
"There were no problems; he actually got done earlier than normal." Mrs. Johnston said who was still standing in the doorway as if she didn't want to disturb the scene.
"Brilliant, thank you." Sherlock said, nodding her away. She gave Sherlock a kind of sour look but left as instructed to do who knows what. Probably to go home, like the rest of them wanted to.
"Well we should probably be off, it was nice talking to you and I'm sure we'll see each other again." John decided.
"And it was nice to talk to you as well, congratulations Hamish on the test, I'm sure you did wonderful." Sherlock assured.
"Thanks for letting me take it." Hamish said with a smile. Before Sherlock could react Hamish gave him a hug around the stomach as well. Sherlock's face was priceless, he didn't know what to do but he looked flattered, awkwardly patting Hamish on the back while looking at John for help. John was a bit too busy laughing though, Sherlock obviously didn't have much experience with hugging.
"Yes well, you deserved it, obviously you are meant to be in the program." Sherlock decided.
"Come on Hamish's we've still got pizza waiting at home." John pointed out. That was enough to get Hamish off of Sherlock's legs, running to the door happily without a goodbye.
"Alright then, I guess I'll see you when I see you." John decided.
"Have a safe trip home, and I'll email you about the results as soon as I get them back." Sherlock assured.
"You don't grade it?" John asked.
"No, I don't, that's the schools job apparently." Sherlock sighed.
"Hey, less work for you." John pointed out.
"Yes, I suppose you're right." Sherlock laughed.
"Alright, bye Sherlock." John decided, taking Hamish's hand without waiting for a reply.
"Goodbye Mr. Watson." Sherlock said, but John could barely hear him as he left the room, listening to Hamish ramble on about the test with a smile.