What do you want to be when you grow up? I don't want to be alone.

6

I walked home quickly. I don’t know why, but there was something about the stranger I had met this morning that made me trust him. Part of it was the fact he knew that stuff about me, but there was something else. Not many adults took a genuine interest in me.

I passed the blue box that I had seen this morning and turned the corner to where I had met the man, but he wasn’t there. Okay, no big deal. He was probably running late. I sat down on the ground and pulled out my homework. The minutes ticked by and after a while I started to believe he wouldn’t come. Of course he wouldn’t come, he probably had better things to do than to waste time on a kid like me. I shoved my homework back into my bag and stood. I was stupid for thinking he'd show. I started walking back home when I heard someone behind me.

"Hey! Hey wait!" I turned around to see the man from this morning running up to me.

"I was beginning to think you weren’t coming..." I said as he approached.

"I had to get a... job" He said the word job as if it was the worst thing in the world, causing me to smile and laugh a little.

"Can’t be that bad, can it? What is it?"

"I applied at Scotland Yard. Tedious work most of it, but I need a job and it was too much effort to create my old one. They were reluctant to hire me, but after I deduced the interviewer he realize he needed me."

I stared up at the man, unsure what half of what he just said actually meant. "Who are you?" I asked again.

"Sherlock. Sherlock Holmes."

"Who names their kid Sherlock?"

"My parents." He said it so seriously, I was a little afraid I had offended him, but after a few seconds he cracked a smile and I couldn’t help smiling back, and soon we were both laughing.

"So, you were going to tell me about your father..." he prompted me. I looked down at my feet-it was becoming a habit.

"I’d rather not talk about it."

"Then why’d you ask me to meet you?"

I shrugged. "People don’t usually take an interest in me. How’d you know that stuff anyway?"

"You wouldn’t believe me if I told you."

I rolled my eyes at him. Adults always said things like that. As if I was too young and wouldn’t understand. "Try me."

"Let’s just say I have a sixth sense about these things. See that woman over there?" he pointed to a lady across the street. I followed his finger and nodded. "Thirty-two, works a sedentary job, secretary by the looks of it. Out of towner, here to visit family, married but apparently cheating on her husband, the man she cheating on him with is in town, in fact she’s going to meet him tonight before going back home..." he trailed off, his mind still trying to figure out things but no longer voicing them. I just stared up at him in awe.

"That was brilliant..."

He stayed and we talked a while about just about everything until I happened to glance down at my watch. "I should get going..."

"John?"

I turned back to look at Sherlock. "Hmmm?"

"I was wondering...if you wanted to stay with me instead of your father for a while."

I looked up at him hopefully before reality set in and my face fell. "What’s the catch?"

"When I was your age and somebody asked me about what I wanted to be when I grew up, you know what I told them?"

"What?"

"I told them I didn’t want to be alone."

"Why are you doing this?"

"You remind me of somebody...You don’t have to, I just thought..." he trailed off and brought his fingers up to brush my eye.

"Yeah. Why not?" He smiled. I wrapped him in a hug. I could sense that he felt awkward about this and I went to pull away when his arms tightened around me. I told myself I wouldn’t get my hopes up, but maybe, just maybe...

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Hey, that "I don't want to be alone" quote that I got up there? It's from a movie called Young Sherlock Holmes. Which was good. Even though it wasn't Benedict Cumberbatch.