I Am A Lady

I find myself in a bar, sitting with Sherlock, Enola, and Tewkesbury. Somewhere along the line, Enola had suggested we go drinking. I tried to refuse. I really did. But, how could I refuse when she was looking at me with those big, sparkly brown eyes?

Sherlock watches me closely as I stare at my glass of wine, "Do you want a different drink?"

"I'm not an alcoholic," I snap.

He lets out a sigh, "I never said you were."

Enola and Tewkesbury sit across from us, not even noticing our conversation. Tewkesbury is rolling his eyes at something she said, but he's unable to hide his amused smile. I set my glass of wine down, and glare at the red liquid.

Liquor has always been a fear of mine, I never wanted to be an alcoholic like my father. But getting drunk a few months ago had seriously messed with me. I had decided to avoid alcohol altogether, rejecting any glass of whiskey John had offered me. Sherlock noticed but never said anything.

"I need to get some fresh air," I say.

I stand up from the table, accidentally bumping into my chair as I leave. My fingers run through my messy hair as I make my way outside. It's dark and quiet. It won't be long before the drunks take to the streets, yelling and swinging their empty bottles around. My back rests against the front of the bar, the stone digging into my shoulder blades.

I close my eyes and lean my head back, enjoying the peace. Just the scent of alcohol was enough to trigger my darkest thoughts. The craving of the numbness that comes after getting drunk was gnawing at me relentlessly. Alcohol is supposed to be fun, but not when my father's genes ran through me. Polluting my DNA like some sick and twisted virus.

"We can go home."

I look to my right to see Sherlock staring at me, an unreadable look on his face. I turn my focus to the sky above us, "And why would we do that?"

"Because you're uncomfortable."

"I'm fine. Now, let's go back inside."

I push myself off the wall, preparing to go back inside, but he grabs my wrist.

"You're lying."

I pull myself away from him and walk inside. He cares about me, I know he does. But sometimes it's better to work things out on your own. Sherlock Holmes, of all people, should know that.

"Well, you two look like you're having fun," I say, sitting down.

Enola laughs loudly, "Who would've known that alcohol was so fun?!"

I put on a fake smile, watching as the young couple in front of me laugh at each other's words. They're going to regret this in the morning.

"Why so glum, chum?" Tewkesbury asks Sherlock.

Sherlock gives him a bewildered look, "Oh, great. You're drunk, too."

"I am not!" Tewkesbury yells.

The people around us glare at him, causing him to shrink back into his seat. Enola slaps his shoulder with a laugh, "You're so loud!"

"We need to get them home. They can sleep on the couch."

I shake my head at Sherlock, "Nonsense. My place is closer and I have extra rooms."

Sherlock pulls Tewkesbury to his feet, the poor boy gives me a flabbergasted look. "He's strong. Now I see why you fancy him so much."

"Come on, Enola. You have to at least carry half of your weight," I hiss.

Sherlock and I manage to drag the drunk couple out of the bar, I struggle to pull Enola along as she is too busy trying to skip.

"I've forgotten how to skip!"

She pushes away from me and tries to skip ahead. She, of course, falls to her knees, and I quickly pull her back up. Enola laughs loudly, wrapping herself around me in a tight hug. I pull her away and stare into her eyes, "I need you to focus. We must make it to my house safely, and you are making that incredibly hard."

She gasps, "Taking me to your place? What would Sherlock think?"

My eyes meet Sherlock's, he gives me an amused smile, and I let out a groan. I drag Enola along with me, and the four of us slowly but surely make our way to my house.

~~°°••°°~~

"There's a bedroom downstairs, we can dump them there," I say.

Sherlock looks at me with wide eyes, "Leave them in the same bed?"

"Come on, Sherlock. They sleep in the same bed all the time."

He mutters under his breath as I push my front door open. I drag Enola to the spare bedroom and she collapses onto the bed. Tewkesbury sits at the edge of the bed, smiling at me weirdly.

"Earlier you were my sister, and now you're like my mother."

I roll my eyes at him, "Get some sleep."

"Goodnight, mom," he says with a wild laugh.

I shut the door behind Sherlock and I, letting out a relieved sigh. "They're worse than you were."

Sherlock follows me to the living room, watching as I begin to light the lanterns. I turn back to see that he's now sitting on the couch. He pats the spot next to him, and I sit beside him. His fingers run through my hair as I rest my head on his chest.

"I'm not great at first impressions, am I?"

I laugh, "You had literally fallen at my feet the first time I saw you."

"Sounds romantic to me," he says.

I sit up to face him, "You didn't even remember me the next day. You thought I was just a figment of your imagination."

"Because I couldn't believe a woman as beautiful as you actually existed."

He stares at me with a loving gaze so strong that every thought in my head begins to melt away. In this moment, it's just the two of us, as the world around us begins to fade away. He pulls me closer to him, our lips connecting in a soft kiss.

My head spins as the kiss becomes more passionate, the two of us unable to keep our hands to ourselves. I feel his hands slide up my shirt and smile into the kiss. I push myself into him more, now sitting in his lap. He lets out a groan as I tug the ends of his hair. My hands fall to his shoulders, tracing his muscles softly.

He pulls away from the kiss, "What is it with you and my shoulders?"

"I'm sorry, should I keep my hands to myself, Mr. Holmes?"

He pulls my hands back to his shoulders, "Absolutely not."

We continue kissing, not noticing the half drunk Tewkesbury that is walking towards us. Just as Sherlock's tongue slips into my mouth, Tewkesbury coughs.

I pull away from Sherlock in surprise, falling right on the floor. The strings of my blouse are untied, so I cover my chest with my hands and tie it as fast as I can. Sherlock stares at me, a proud smirk on his face.

"Sorry to interrupt," Tewkesbury says, smirking.

I stand back up, brushing the dust off my clothes. "What are you doing up?"

"I feel sick."

I roll my eyes, "Yeah, probably because you drank a shit ton of beer."

"My head is pounding, it feels like it might explode," he says.

Sherlock stands up, "I'll go get the pain medicine from my flat. I'll be back in a little while."

He leaves without another word. I turn back to Tewkesbury to see that he's smirking at me.

"Don't look at me like that."

He shrugs, "I'm not doing anything."

I sit on the couch and he sits next to me. Still wearing that irritating grin of his. He crosses his arms, "It's a good thing it was me and not Enola. She would be terrified of the sight of you eating her brother's face."

"Shut up!" I yell in embarrassment.

He laughs loudly, "Hell, I think I'm traumatized."

"Maybe you shouldn't go sneaking around other people's houses then," I reply.

"Sorry, I didn't expect to find you and Sherlock Holmes making out on a couch."

I smack his arm, "Stop mentioning it!"

My head rests against the back of the couch as I still try to catch my breath. Tewkesbury doesn't say anything else, which makes me feel better. I can't imagine continuing that awkward conversation.

~~°°••°°~~

It's been about twenty minutes since Sherlock left, and I was beginning to fall asleep. I can feel Tewkesbury staring at me so I look over at him, "What?"

"I'm just remembering the time you came to me sobbing about how Sherlock Holmes didn't love you back."

I go to respond but another voice cuts me off, "She cried?"

Sherlock walks around the couch, his eyes focused on me as he hands Tewkesbury a pill and a glass of water. How did he get in my house without me noticing?

"She cried like a baby, kept going on about how foolish she was, and that no man like you could ever love her. It was heartbreaking, truly. I had actually thought about kicking your arse myself."

I glare at Tewkesbury, "Alright, that's enough. No need to make me sound even more pathetic."

"You're not pathetic. Now I must return to my beauty sleep, I suggest you two do the same," Tewkesbury says.

He gives me a wink and quickly walks back to the spare room, shutting the door behind him. Sherlock sits next to me, "I didn't realize how bad I had hurt you."

"You didn't, Sherlock, and it's all in the past now."

He grabs my hand softly, "I shouldn't have been so cruel to you after that night."

"Like I said, it's in the past. And you've made up for it," I reply.

He tilts his head, "I have?"

"Yes, unless you don't think you have."

He brushes my hair away from my neck, trailing soft kisses from my jaw to my collarbone. I try not to give into his touch, but how could I not? He sits back up, his blue eyes clouded with love. My breath hitches as he presses another kiss to my collarbone, biting at my skin.

"Absolutely not, no more biting," I say, pushing him away.

"I will not walk around with more hickeys," I add.

He tilts his head with a smirk, "And why not?"

"Because I am a lady."

He lays down on the couch, "Since when?"

"That is incredibly rude," I say, pointing my finger at him.

I continue my rambling, "How dare you come into my house and tell me I'm not a lady? I own dresses and gloves, Sherlock. Gloves! Do you know how mature and posh that is?"

He begins unbuttoning his shirt, my rambling stops the second I notice.

"Please, continue your speech," he says.

I let out a huff, successfully pulling my eyes away from his abs. "I am a lady."

"My apologies, ma'am," he says.

Our eyes meet again and I groan, "Stop looking at me like that."

"Like what?"

"I'm going to bed. You can sleep down here if you want," I say, standing up.

I make my way to my room, letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding. There's not many clothes left here as most of them are at Sherlock's, but I did manage to find a shirt and sleeping pants. I change my pants first and begin putting my shirt on when I hear a knock on the door.

I spin around to see Sherlock standing in the doorway, his eyes slowly trailing down my body. My chest wasn't bare as I was still wearing my bra, but that didn't help me not feel so exposed.

"Sherlock!"

His eyes meet mine again, "You said I could join you."

I turn my back to him and try to put my shirt on. He sits on the edge of my bed, watching as I struggle to get my arms through the holes.

"Panicking isn't going to help."

I look over my shoulder, sending him a glare. "Well, excuse me for being panicked about a man seeing me shirtless."

He tilts his head, "You've never been shirtless in front of a man?"

"No!"

I finally manage to get my arms through the holes and turn around to face him, "And I'd appreciate it if you didn't make fun of me for it."

"Why would I make fun of you?"

"Forget about it."

I sit at my vanity and begin brushing my hair. I can see Sherlock staring at me through the reflection of the mirror, but I avoid his eyes. I'm way too embarrassed to even look at him.

"That scar on your back. What is it from?"

I let out a sigh, "I fell out of a tree."

"You're lying again."

I turn to face him, "You really wanna know?"

He nods and I let out a sigh. I try to think of the best way to explain the story, but my heart tightens as I remember what happened.

I take a deep breath, "Sadie and I were caught one time. Two boys older than us saw us kissing and they chased us through the woods. I fell down a hill trying to get away from them."

The room is silent, my eyes stay focused on the floor in front of me as tears build up in my eyes. Sherlock's hand grabs my chin, tilting my head up to face him. He looks at me with a gentleness I've never seen before. His thumb brushes my tears away, "I'm sorry that happened to you."

He kneels in front of me, holding my face with both of his hands. "You should never be punished for who you love."

"Loved," I corrected.

I take his face in my hands, "You are the one I love now, and you are the one I will love until the day I die."

I pull him into a kiss, it only lasts a few seconds, but it's still enough to leave my heart racing. He rests his forehead against mine, "I want to be by your side forever."

"And you will, or I'll kick your ass."

He pulls away with a laugh, "You're ridiculous."

"Ridiculous," I mock.

He rolls his eyes, "My voice is much deeper than that."

Sherlock takes his shirt off and lays in my bed. "Are you going to join me or not?"

I crawl into bed next to him, the two of us facing each other. I run my hand down his arm, "I like your bed better."

"Then perhaps you should move the rest of your stuff there."

I give him a confused look, "Are you asking me to move in with you?"

"I've asked you to move in everyday for the two months you've been living with me," he says.

"It's been two months?"

He smiles, "Go to sleep. We'll talk about this in the morning."

Author's Note: I need a Sherlock Holmes in my life right now, but he must look like Henry Cavill. I will accept nothing less. Anyways, did you guys enjoy this chapter? Because, it's about to get chaotic and angsty again. Any guesses on what could happen next? 👀