Natalie

Perfect

Dad is back. Mark and I are dating. John only wants to kill him a little bit now, which is usual. Mark and I are dating. John and Mary are getting married! Mark and I are dating. Molly got a promotion. Mark and I are dating. Oh, and I have some exciting news! MARK AND I ARE DATING.

Dad doesn't exactly know yet, but I told Molly. Eeeeeekkkkkkk. I've never had a boyfriend. I've never really liked anyone enough. But Mark. Mark is just. Mark. Cause he's all hunky and smart and really sweet and I'm babbling again. And he's just, like, perfect. Like uuugggghhhh. Anyway, things are going pretty great right now. By pretty great, the best they've ever been.

I walked into the flat and Sherlock and Mary and John were wedding planning.

"I like the bridesmaids in purple." John stated.

"Lilac." Sherlock corrected.

"Lilac." John repeated.

"Good morning, Nat." Mary smiled at me and gave a little wave. I did the same. I plopped onto the couch as Sherlock confessed to Mary that he had looked up napkin folding on YouTube. After a short meeting of the engaged couple in the kitchen, John and Sherlock left in pursuit of a case.

"So why did you send them off?" I raised an eyebrow at Mary, grinning.

She smiled back. "They need to go out on a case together. Plus it gets them out of the way so you can tell me his name." She smirked at me from the desk.

"I'm not even going to ask how you know." I got up and sat in the floor were Dad was previously. "His name is Mark." And I described Mark while Mary listened and giggled.

"He sounds nice. Don't be afraid to tell your father, he'll be okay with it." She smiled as we planned a little more. I was a bridesmaid and super excited.

"You should invite him to the wedding."

"That sounds wonderful Mary!" I hugged her as someone knocked on the door downstairs. "I'll get it!" I ran down the stairs and to the door, looking through the little peep hole. It was Mark! I opened the door, still in my plaid pajama pants and black tank-top. "Hey, what are you doing here?"

"Just dropped by to see if you wanted to go for lunch or something." He smiled and rubbed his neck, looking a little nervous.

"Um, yea, I'd love to. Come on in. I'll go get dressed. My Uncle's fiancé, Mary, the one I told you about, is upstairs. But don't worry, she doesn't bite." I smiled, leading him up the stairs.

"Only some of the time." She grinned still from the desk. "Mark, I presume? I've heard a lot about you."

"Yes, ma'am. Likewise. What's all this?" He gestured to all the papers and folded napkins.

"Wedding planning, it's a mess, but it'll be worth it." She smiled. I began my journey downstairs.

I got dressed in my favorite jeans and a nice top. I threw on my jacket and secured a toboggan onto my head. I applied lipgloss and tucked my phone and money into my pocket. Last, but never least, I tied my scarf and made my way back upstairs. "Shall we?"

Mark turned and smiled, we had been dating for a week today. He stood up and walked over, putting his arm out. "We shall."

I took it and turned my head back. "If Dad asks just have him call me!" I winked at Mary and left with Mark.

"So, where are we headed?" I asked as I locked up the flat.

"How about I grab us some lunch at the little cafe over on fifth street and then we can adventure around this endlessly beautiful and mysterious city." He said, swinging our intertwined fingers down the sidewalk.

"You really are amazing. That sounds wonderful." I smiled, with my eyes twinkling with something that could only be love.

"Not as amazing as you." He said in his deep but not too deep voice with his perfect smile. He reached over with his free hand to boop my nose, sending me into a giggling fit.

We made our way to the restaurant and ordered. We are our meal and talked and laughed and had a really great time. One hour turned into two and two into four and before we knew it, it was six o'clock. We grabbed milkshakes and left to explore our corner of London. We just wandered around aimlessly, and the sun began to get low. We went down to the park and cuddled on a bench as the day drew to a magnificent close. Around seven as we were leaving the park, my phone buzzed. Dad.

"Nat?"

"Heya. How'd the case go?" I answered walking close to Mark, I had to let go of his hand to reply.

"Eh, still working on it. Where are you? It's dark. Are you with Mark still?" He asked simply, but impossible to tell if he was angry. Hopefully not.

"We're actually headed home right now. We'll be there in about seven minutes."

"Alright. Be careful."

I put my phone back in my pocket just as a large hand grabbed my arm and pulled me into an alley. How many times will this happen, sheesh. I struggled in vain. The guy was too big. Then Mark stepped in. He put a swift kick into his ribs, right beside mine. As the guy left go for a split second he grabbed me and held me close to him. "Leave her alone. Now." He growled. Then the man reluctantly left. I guess he was really a wimp. "Nat? Are you alright? Did he hurt you?"

I felt my left cheek, there was a bleeding scratch, not very deep. My hair was a mess, I'm sure. But mostly alright. "I'll be alright. Just a scratch, John can fix it."

We arrived home two minutes late. Sherlock met us at the door. "In." He stated and Mark followed me up the stairs and into the flat. John and Mary were both still there.

"Natalie, what happened?" John rushed over to look at my cheek.

"I'm fine John, really." I smiled and moved his hand away.

"Mary, why don't you patch her up. Mark, you can stay here." John said looking over to Mark.

"Before one of you send him out the window, he didn't cause this, he saved me actually." I gave Mark a smile and allowed Mary to take me into the kitchen. As she cleaned and bandaged the wound (which took literally two minutes) we could the boys in the living room. I sighed.

"I'm an army doctor that could break your arm faster than you could blink. He's a high-functioning sociopath that will literally jump off a building to ensure Natalie's safety. So, what we're saying. Don't. Hurt. Her. Or you'll have us to deal with. And that's not something you want."

I figured it was my time to step in. "Oh, John, calm down. You and I both know the only way he'd have to deal with an angry you is if he had an angry me. And I'm not angry, so it's all good." I smiled and winked at him and then looked to Dad. "And we all know that Dad would get to him first anyway. And that is something I'd be afraid of seeing." Dad finally grinned at that and I grinned back. I showed Mark to the door. "Sorry about them. They can be a tad over protective."

He smiled. "No, it's alright. It shows they care. I'll see you later Natty." And then he kissed me on the cheek. He kissed me on the cheek.