It's Not Real

Chapter Twenty Three

Inside two professionally hand crafted wooden photo frames were pictures from their wedding. One held the picture she'd just seen on the front of the newspaper blown up in crisp quality, while the second had them stood outside the venue grinning into a kiss while their family threw confetti.

Evelyn felt a bit overwhelmed.

They had been sent any pictures their friends had taken on their mobiles, but these looked professional and even had the light and colouring edited.

Sherlock slung his arm over her shoulders, stepping into her side. "You okay?"

Evelyn nod slowly. "They're lovely."

"Thought we could hang them above the sofa." She gave a small smile up at him. Sherlock placed a soft kiss to her head. "I promise to stop shooting the wall if we do."

Before she could contain it she laughed, Sherlock grinning widely. "Did you know he'd done this?"

"Nope. Figured they were photos when delivered, wasn't a difficult deduction, but had no idea exactly what of. Seems my big brother is quite benevolent."

"I could have told you that, Sherlock Holmes. Always been a softie deep down," she leans against him. "Even if he is a nosey bugger. Will you really hang them up there?"

He stepped away into the kitchen and came back with an electric drill in one hand and a box of nails in the other. "Definitely."

"Okay, sexy handy man," she giggled when he revved the drill, winking suggestively. "Have you had those sitting out for when I came home?"

"I wanted to wait for you before I made the decision to put a hole in the wall." She tilted her head at him, eyebrows raised. "Okay, more holes in the wall."

"As long as you kept them out of Rosie's reach then that's all that matters."

He mumbled something under his breath, speeding towards the back wall and dropping the equipment on the coffee table.

"What was that?"

"She may have got hold of a screwdriver, but I noticed immediately. Could really help with hand eye coordination skills, anyway."

"Unbelievable."

"Hush. You love me."

She laughed, wrapping her arms around him from behind. "That I do, but remember to leave all sharp objects out of reach when we have our own kids running around, yeah?" Sherlock stiffened in her hold, breathing stopped. Eve stepped back. "Uh..."

They technically hadn't broached the topic of children. There was the passing comment during the whole fake relationship debacle where he'd claimed to know she wanted at least two children, but how he felt on the matter Evelyn wasn't really sure.

"You can forget I said that." She knew it wasn't healthy to keep pushing it aside, it was going to have to be discussed eventually.

Sherlock turned to catch her wrist when she went to move away. "I won't." He soothed his thumb along a vein. "We should talk about it."

"We really don't have to–"

"Evelyn."

"I just want you, you're all I need." The words fell from her mouth in a panic. Sherlock was looking at her like he'd never seen her before, his expression unreadable, and her heart sank. "I just mean– I mean– Augh..."

"You... don't want children? I thought..." he was flummoxed, wondering how he'd got it all so wrong.

Evelyn didn't know what to say, or at the very least how to phrase it, but she'd always been completely honest with him so it seemed pointless to stop now. "I do want children, especially with you. They would be–" She swallowed. "I want your children, but they're not a necessity. What I have is enough. I am happy, Sherlock, as long as I have you."

He was fully facing her now, the crease between his brows only deepening the more she spoke, but he still hadn't released her arm. "You think I'd leave you because you want children?"

Eve closed the space between them, desperate to reassure him, touching his face softly. "No, of course I don't. Don't ever believe I think so low of you. I know you would give me anything and everything in the world if you could, but if you don't want children then you need to understand that I would never leave you over it. Having kids is a significant life change, not everyone wants that, and that's okay."

"But I do," he said slowly. "I do want."

Eve blinked dumbly. "You do?"

"Why wouldn't I? Something created from our affection for one another that is a combination of both our genetic material, to teach them and raise them and..." Sherlock blinks rapidly, processing information. "You–You would have given up... the chance to have that... for me?"

"In a heartbeat," she told him, firm, no hesitation. "You've always been enough, Sherlock. I always wanted you, I never needed anything else."

"W–Why?" He frowned. "Why would you do that?"

"Because I love you." She said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Sherlock moved then, grabbing hold of her head in his palms and crashing his mouth against hers. Eve gave a sound of surprise, clutching onto his shirt to keep her balance. The kiss was hard and biting and leg melting. He was definitely making it clear that it was going to go further if she was willing. "Come off your birth control." He said against her lips between nips tongues.

Smiling against him, all she could manage to squeak out was a joyful, "Okay."