Voice of a Stranger (Johnlock)

The Game

"Right, anything else you want to add or change?" John asked, reading over the spreadsheet he had been creating.

Sherlock looked down at the concussion print out. "Well, you can put origami on there, but you know I'm never going to do it."

Chuckling, John typed fast. "I bet if I assign enough points to it, you would." He put 20 points for a half hour of the activity. Most other activities only earned 5 to 15 points. "OK, well, I'm going to put dating on my list. Do you want it on your's as well?"

"Dating?" Sherlock's brow furrowed like it was a word he'd never heard of before.

John rolled his eyes at the detective. "You know, dating? Where two people who like each other go out and have fun."

Sherlock looked like John had suggested taking a dog-grooming course. "Dull."

Here was the opening John had been waiting for to ask Sherlock about his romantic interests. He trod carefully. "You don't want a girlfriend, then?"

"Girlfriend? No, not really my area." Sherlock said dismissively.

The answer... was Sherlock saying what John thought he was saying? He tried to keep his tone neutral and bravely pushed forward. He had to know for sure. "Oh, right. D'you want to have a boyfriend?"

Sherlock looked round at him sharply, his eyes searching.

Oh shit! Did I offend him? John rushed to soothe things over, just in case. "Which is fine, by the way." Very, VERY, fine.

He got a bit of a scoff for his efforts. "I know it's fine." Sherlock said, his tone betraying nothing.

John smiled, trying to convey that he's OK with whatever orientation Sherlock had. "So, you want a boyfriend then?" He knew he should drop this, but curiosity forced him to ask it.

"No." Sherlock seemed distant, his answer clear.

Well, shit. Disappointment crashed over John like a large wave. Well, he'd pushed and pushed for a definitive answer, and now he had it. John tried to give a friendly smile, act normal, but he could tell it was a little crooked. Tight and awkward. "Right, OK. You're unattached. Like me." Oh, shit. What was he saying? Move on. John scrambled for something else to say, another topic, but he was coming up blank. "Fine. Good."

Sherlock was giving him an assessing look, and John felt terrified at what he might be reading there. "John, um ... I think you should know that I consider myself married to my work, and while I'm flattered by your interest, I'm really not looking for any ..."

Oh crap, now Sherlock thinks I'm coming onto him. "No." John interrupted, his voice not very firm. He cleared his throat, trying again, wanting to fix this. "No, I'm not asking... No."

Clearly Sherlock wasn't interested in getting involved with anyone right now. Maybe he'd been burned so badly by past relationships that he considered himself 'married to his work' and didn't want to be in any type of romantic relationship. The last thing John wanted was for Sherlock to think he'd volunteered to stay here this weekend for any reason but his concussion.

Besides, even if Sherlock wasn't interested in a romantic relationship, it didn't change the fact that John was still intrigued by Sherlock, and wanted to get to know him better.

John did the only thing he could think of to show Sherlock that John wasn't obsessing over him. "I think I'll give 15 points for going on a date." If he went out with other people, hopefully Sherlock would relax and forget this whole conversation. Let things go back to normal.

---

They worked out the rest of the details of their game. Sherlock could earn points for activities that supported his concussion recovery like taking naps, regular meals and short walks. He could also earn them for not doing certain things for the whole day, like not reading or not using the computer. Penalties were taken for activities like drinking alcohol, smoking, and complaining about what he couldn't do.