And All We Need of Hell

Chapter 6

It took a little practice for Sherlock to get used to holding John's hand. Initially he was nervous about participating in any PDA in the hallways at school in case John's ex-teammates took it as an excuse to attack John, but apparently they all still lived in fear that Sherlock would sneak into their bedrooms at night and gouge their eyes out, so they left John and Sherlock alone for the most part, occasionally shouting a few homophobic slurs at the couple but keeping a safe distance from them.

John hadn't realized before how many gay couples attended Paddington Academy. With all the dirty looks he and Sherlock received from students and teachers as they walked through the hallways hand in hand, it was nice to get a friendly response from someone. Other same-sex couples passing by gave them knowing glances and raised their interlocked fingers in a sign of solidarity. John always nodded back, the evidence of how proud he was to have Sherlock as his boyfriend written all over his face.

Of course, there were times that Sherlock's personality quirks drove him up the wall. He was often very distractible, but he became completely oblivious to the world around him when he was working on a case or an experiment. Also, there were moments when John couldn't tell whether Sherlock was talking to him or to thin air, but he was expected to know the difference. Still, John could never stay mad at him for very long.

"You guys are too damn cute," Dannie said as the three of them sat in the living room at Baker Street waiting for the next episode of House MD to finish loading. John and Sherlock were nestled together comfortably on the sofa. "Seriously, I'm getting chest pains from all the adorableness. I can literally feel my heart squishing itself."

John paused the show as it skipped to the next episode and inched away from Sherlock a bit. "Sorry if we're being inconsiderate."

"No, it's fine," Dannie reassured him. "It's not your fault that I've become a third wheel. I need to find myself a girlfriend."

Sherlock glanced over at her now. "A girlfriend?"

Dannie nodded. "Yeah. Of course, the only girl at school who ever makes eye contact with me is Irene Adler. Apparently she has a thing for damaged people."

John furrowed his brow. "So, you're a..."

"Homo-romantic frigid bitch," Dannie finished for him. "Anyways, Irene gets around a lot. She's probably out of my league."

"Well, you never know," Sherlock said, giving John a sideways glance. "I was quite sure that John was out of my league."

"Shut up, it was the other way around," John said grinning at him. He shook his head. "My God, everyone in my life is gay."

"Really?" Dannie asked. "Everyone?"

"Well, my older sister Harriet is. It took a while for my parents to get used to the idea. I've been trying to work up the courage to tell them that I'm bi, but I know they're still hoping that at least one of their kids is straight."

"My parents did too," Sherlock muttered. "They got over it soon enough." He reached for John's hand and interlocked their fingers. John leaned over and kissed him on the nose, though it was apparent that he was holding back.

Dannie grabbed the remote and turned the TV off. "Seeing as you guys are six episodes ahead of me, I could go back down to my basement apartment and watch on my own. Leave you to do... whatever."

"You sure?" John asked. "If you'd rather keep watching up here we can... behave."

"Oh by all means, misbehave," Dannie said on her way toward the door. Before going down the stairs, she called over her shoulder, "You two know where the bedroom is."