Chapter 26: Coffee

149 8 3
                                    

I wake up the next morning with my dress still on and a terrible headache. I moan as my memories from last night begin to surface. I can't believe I actually kissed Sherlock. What the hell was I thinking?

I try and sift through all my rambling thoughts. Sherlock has known this whole time that there was a small part of me that was attracted to him, he's been checking my pulse this whole damn time. But his pulse was definitely elevated when he kissed me last night. Did he do it on purpose? To manipulate me into thinking he has feelings for me so I would continue to kiss him and he check my pulse again? Is it even possible to increase your heartrate on purpose? Besides, he already knew about my feelings, so why would he need to check my pulse again? Does he actually have feelings for me? But if he did and he knew that I had feelings too, then why hadn't he said anything?

In between these thoughts, fragments of last night's kiss poke through, making my heart flutter. What a kiss. Definitely the best first kiss I've ever had. Would Sherlock be capable of kissing me like that if he didn't have feelings for me? Was that fake too?

"Agh!" I exclaim out loud. I can't figure this out on my own. I need an expert.

I pull out my phone and shoot a text to Eve: "I need your valuable expertise about men. Can we meet for coffee?"

She responds instantaneously. "Sure thing, but do I get a hint?"

"I kissed Sherlock. Or maybe he kissed me. I don't know, alcohol was involved. I need you to help me figure all this out."

"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Absolutely, I can't wait to hear about this...where do you want to meet?"

"I still don't know my way around. I live off Baker Street"

"There's a Starbucks on Baker Street. Meet me there in a half hour. And be prepared to tell me all the toe-curling details ;-)"

I quickly jump in the shower and am ready to leave in under twenty minutes. I check Google Maps on my phone and see that the Starbucks is only a five minute walk. "Good to know for the future," I think.

I grab my things and turn to leave but hesitate at the door. Sherlock. How do I face him after last night? Maybe I can just sneak out.

I tiptoe down the stairs and peek into the living room to discover that it's empty. Sherlock's either in his room or out. I breathe a sigh of relief and proceed down the rest of the stairs normally. As I reach the first floor and grab the doorknob, I hear a door open behind me.

"Oh, good morning, dear!" I hear a cheerful Mrs. Hudson behind me. I turn around and see her walking towards me. "You lot were certainly out late. I tried to wait up but ending up falling asleep on the sofa. Did you enjoy your evening? I tried speaking with Sherlock this morning, but he was in such a hurry."

Ah, so Sherlock had already left for the day. "Umm, yeah, it was great Mrs. Hudson, Sherlock was a perfect gentleman for most of the evening, thank you for preparing him."

"Oh, it was nothing dear, I just told him to open doors for you and be polite, that sort of thing. And if he didn't, I told him I would take his skull away!"

I laugh. I wonder if she would take his skull away if I told her the truth about the pulse-taking thing? Though she'd probably scold me for that incident too, since I tried doing the same thing to him.

"Well, I'm heading out to get coffee with a friend, I'll see you later Mrs. Hudson!"

"Alright dear, take care!"

I step outside and head to Starbucks. Eve is already waiting for me when I arrive, two coffees in her hands and a newspaper under her arm. She hands me one of the drinks. "Double caramel macchiato, hope you like. I didn't want to waste any time with polite chit chat while we waited in line." She takes her free hand and grabs me by the arm, leading me to a couple of comfy chairs in a corner. "Alright, spill. And don't leave a single detail out."

Treble Trouble with Sherlock Holmes (A Sherlock Holmes Fanfic)Where stories live. Discover now