Hello My Old Heart: A Johnlock Fanfiction

First Day of My Life

"Yours was the first face that I saw. I think I was blind before I met you. I don't know where I am, I don't know where I've been. But I know where I want to go."  ~First Day of My Life by Bright Eyes

"John, please come over for dinner."

"I can't, Harry. I'm busy."

"Oh, of course, busy sitting on your arse and watching crap telly. You haven't been 'busy' in months!"

"I am busy. I'm out shopping."

"Buying gifts for yourself? It's bloody Christmas Eve, John!"

"Look, Harry, I can take care of myself. Dinner is a no, so stop calling me." Without another word, he hung up his mobile.

John shivered as the icy wind bit at his exposed face. The plump snowflakes sparkled as they swirled around street lamps. Londoners bustled about the snowy streets, rushing to buy last-minute presents. John just watched, walking in a steady rhythm with his cane. It was strange how fast other people's lives were. The shifting seasons brought new joys and sorrows, challenges and triumphs, beginnings and endings. Everybody's different lives buzzed about the city, occasionally colliding or drifting away.

Yet John's life was stuck in place, frozen on one dreadful day seven months ago. The day the consulting detective, Sherlock Holmes, took his own life. The day his head shattered on the pavement, along with John's heart. He was the reason life after the war had seemed exciting and worthwhile. Now he was gone.

Others had tried to start John's life again. Harry would call once in a while to invite him for dinner in Dublin. Lestrade had offered him a job at Scotland Yard a couple months ago. Mrs. Hudson said he could pay a lower rate if he stayed at 221B. Even old mates would contact him, asking if he wanted to grab a drink or watch a football. To each offer John politely declined. He knew they were doing it out of kindness and pity, but that made the wounds no less painful. There were only a few things that John felt made him whole. One had been the war, which was now a blurry and bloody past. The other had been Sherlock. It was strange to owe such a small portion of his life to that one man, but it was true. Sherlock Holmes had the power to start, and stop, John Watson's life.

A sudden force collided with John, shaking him out of his dreary thoughts. He gained his sense of surroundings just in time to see an array of boxes fly into the air. Adrenaline suddenly pumped through John's body, and he caught the boxes just before they hit the slushy sidewalk. 

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry," A voice said, and John looked up to meet the eyes of a flustered woman. She wore a long red coat and woven pink scarf, and her blonde bob was ruffling in the wind. Her emerald eyes were filled with apology and curiosity.

"Um, are you all right?" She asked cautiously when John didn't respond. 

"Ya, fine," he stammered, shaking himself out of his daze. "Uh... these are yours." He akwardly handed her the stack of boxes.

"Wow, thank you! I'm so clumsy sometimes!" She laughed, and John relaxed. 

"Late gifts for the family, huh?" John asked weakily, attempting to make conversation with this pretty stranger.

"No," she replied while balancing the boxes on her hip. "I live alone." Her cheeks suddenly glowed a soft pink. "Oh god, that sounded so sad!"

"No, no, it's okay!" John assured her, "I do, too! The press once called me a 'confirmed bachelor'."

She cocked her head quizzically. "Are you John Watson?"

"That's me," he replied, bracing himself for the inevitable association with Sherlock.

"I love your blog!" She said, admiration shining through her eyes. "You are a very fine writer, Dr. Watson."

"Oh, well, thank you!" It was his turn to blush. "I'll make sure to add you on my small list of fans, um..."

"Mary," she smiled and extended her hand. "Mary Morstan." Her hand was warm and soft, yet John shivered at the touch. "So, where are you off to this fine Christmas Eve?" 

"Nowhere, really," John sighed truthfully. He then felt a spark of courage. "Would you like to come, too?"

Much to his relief, Mary returned the smile with sparkling eyes. "I would love to come with you to Nowhere. It sounds like a lovely place." John grinned back at her, the first real smile in seven months. His life had collided, and he felt like a new adventure was just on the horizon.