Sherlock's Second Vow [FINISHED]

Chapter 11: Doing it for her

Finally a chapter that's not angsty and depressing! Dad Jawn is the best <3 

Also this one is a little longer :) I hope you enjoy this while it lasts because the next chapter is going to be depressing as heck! It will have ya boi Sherlock in it, too!

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11

Rosie lay curled into a ball on her bed, running her hand through William's fur. Daddy says he loves me, but he doesn't like that part of me. If being weird makes people go away...

...Maybe I should just act normal.

The door creaked softly as John came in to check on her. He sat by her bedside and took a deep breath. "Hey... I have some bad news. Mrs. Hudson called and she said that he's left London."

"He already said he was leaving."

"I'm sorry. I know you'll miss him." He put his hand on her shoulder. That was what Sherlock did-- used to do. "But I'm gonna be here for you, too."

"I know."

"So... Do you want to talk about anything? Or him?"

She buried her face in her pillow, cuddling William to her chest. "I don't think I can make him come back if he's already gone. I wish you guys were still friends. Then he might have stayed."

"We were friends!"

"You stopped talking to him months ago. He started keeping a pack of cigarettes in his pocket, and he only ever does that for a case, rarely, or when he's really upset. You stopped eating so much around the same time, which you only do when you're upset. I saw you get messages from him and not answer them for days. The last time you talked was when we were at the morgue, and you were really mad at him.

"You both have a lot of pride, so neither wants to be the first to reach out. I know you spoke to him at the hospital, and if he's leaving now, that must mean you made him want to go."

Rosie's stomach sank and she squeezed William tighter. She had been doing it again. Deducing was not normal. She had to be normal!

John was silent for a long time, and she braced herself for his next words.

"So you're saying this is all my fault," he said quietly.

"Sorry."

"Look it--it can't be-- since when does Sherlock listen to me?"

She dared to look up at him and found him sitting with his eyes closed and his face drawn, worry lines deep.

"Are you going to stop eating again?"

"No," he said. And then, in a stronger, louder voice, :I'm going to be here and I'm going to take care of you."

"I'll try to be normal."

It would be easier for both of them.

He drew her into his arms, and she hid her face in his shoulder. "You're fine the way you are. I love you the way you are."

"I don't want any more parents to go away."

"Rosie..."

***

He wondered what she must be thinking. First her mother, too long ago to remember, then her Godfather. All she had left was him.

Imagine yourself at seven. You can do something nobody else can. You want to share it, but it makes everyone hate you.