You and Sherlock

It's Always Like That

Just then, the three of you heard a knock. Sherlock glanced up for a brief moment as the door opened and two newcomers entered. Molly stepped back, and made her way to the far side of the room, exiting, and you got up to the doorway of the office.

One of the men you knew; Mike Stamford. A good man, decent enough, talkative though. You hung back; once the man got talking, he was liable to continue. The second man, you didn't know.

He had closely cropped hair, wearing a neat checkered shirt underneath a black utility jacket and slacks. His shirt was tucked in, and he had a cane held in his right hand. He walked with a limp. A military man, then. But he was too small and lean to be a soldier.

Then he spoke, with a slight laugh in his voice.

"Well, bit different from my day," He tilted his head back to examine the room more closely.

"You've no idea!" Mike chuckled, then waved at you when he noticed you standing in the doorway. You inclined your head.

"Mike, can I borrow your phone? There's no signal on mine." Sherlock said as he sat down, going back to his work.

"And what's wrong with the landline?" Mike raised an eyebrow, shooting you a glance. You shrugged helplessly.

"I prefer to text." Sherlock replied, and you had to actively restrain yourself from laughing and rolling your eyes at him. It was such a Sherlock response.

"Sorry. It's in my coat," Mike shrugged apologetically, and leaned against the counter top near the door.

The man with the cane reached into his back pocket and fished out his phone.

"Er, here. Use mine," he offered. You raised an eyebrow; there weren't that many people around who would offer Sherlock something, even those who had only just met him. He was kind, then, a rare trait.

"Oh. Thank you." Sherlock glanced briefly at Mike, and you didn't miss the surprised expression he wore on his face as he stood up and walked toward the ex-military man.

Taking the cue, Mike introduced the man to Sherlock, "It's an old friend of mine, John Watson."

Sherlock nodded in acknowledgment of Mike's introduction and then reached out and took the phone John held out. Turning partially away, toward you, he flipped open the key and started to type on it rapidly. Without looking up from the screen, Sherlock spoke.

"Afghanistan or Iraq?"

John frowned, and Mike smiled knowingly. You couldn't suppress the smirk that crept up on your face. John looked back at Sherlock as he typed away, affecting an air of disinterest.

"Sorry?"

"Which was it – Afghanistan or Iraq?" Sherlock spared another glance at John before looking back to the phone. John hesitated, then looked at Mike, confused. You felt a little badly for John; the poor man had no idea who exactly he had just met. In response, Mike smiled smugly without saying a word.

"Afghanistan. Sorry, how did you know ...?" John finally said, trailing off uncertainly.

Molly reentered at that point, holding a cup of coffee in her hands.

"Ah, Molly, coffee. Thank you." Sherlock said, taking the coffee out of her hands. He paused and did a double-take at her. You silently cringed; Molly had taken her lipstick off, and Sherlock was going to say something about it.

"What happened to the lipstick?"

Poor Molly, you thought sympathetically as she shifted uncomfortably and smiled awkwardly at Sherlock.