Anomalies

 

Title: Anomalies

Author: Harpling

Characters, Pairing: Sherlock/John, Lestrade, Mycroft, Donovan, Anderson, Dimmock, Mrs. Hudson, OC

Rating: R (eventually NC17)

Summary: Sherlock Holmes was a man accustomed to anomalies.  Things out of place formed the bulk of his work, after all.  But why was he so slow to notice them in his own behaviour?

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, and I am making no money from them.

Warnings: Manly man love, blue-balls

Beta’d by the extraordinary Lynn Maxwell and not yet Brit-picked.

 

 

Chapter 10

 

 

John was gone.  With all his intelligence, all his powers of observation and logic, that seemed to be the only thing Sherlock could acknowledge.  John was no longer here.  He had been here, but he was now gone.  The kitchen, which had so recently been filled with John’s nearly naked body, John’s enticing noises, John’s scent, John’s taste, John… was now completely devoid of John.  All that was left was an endlessly repeating loop of the last few minutes playing in his mind. 

His body was rebelling against him, refusing to move from where John had left him.  He sagged slightly against the table, sending papers cascading to the floor and not caring.  John’s words flitted through his head, “You tested me?… No. You… No” 

Where had he gone wrong?  The seduction had been going exactly according to plan.  All the physical markers indicated that both parties were aroused and eager for intercourse.  In fact, he realized upon looking down that he was still aroused and eager for intercourse.  The ache in his groin stood in stark contrast to the recent feel of John’s eager hips.  His lips felt bruised and tingly from the feel of John’s mouth.  Even his breathing remained ragged and harsh, despite the current lack of physical stimulation.  How had it all gone so badly so quickly?

Sherlock tried to pinpoint logically the precise moment when everything went pear-shaped.  Even his mind was rebelling now and refusing to sort through the data properly.  All he could think of was the feeling of John pressed against him, hot and solid and perfect in his arms.  And the look on John’s face just before he turned and left… 

Eventually, the temperature in the apartment dropped enough that Sherlock started shivering, jerking out of his reverie.  The extra three pounds John had carried meant he had grabbed some of his clothes before leaving.  Since he had just done his laundry three days before, the only reason to leave with extra clothing was the intention to remain out all night.  If he was sleeping elsewhere for one night, John wouldn’t have bothered grabbing more than his toothbrush.  He intended to stay away for several days. 

As he wandered back into the sitting room to correct the thermostat, Sherlock saw that John’s laptop was still sitting on the coffee table.  That could be good or bad, depending on how one read it.  John used his laptop quite a lot, nearly every day.  If he had been thinking clearly, he would have taken it with him.  On the other hand, he wouldn’t have left it behind if he meant to be away permanently; at some point in the next few days, John meant to return to Baker Street.  There was still a chance that Sherlock could fix this… thing that was going on between them. 

At the moment, he was chilly, covered in swiftly drying sweat, and still uncomfortably aroused.  A shower and fierce concentration on the growth rate of the mould in the kitchen (it really was growing remarkably well) restored him to a state of relative equilibrium.  The internet at large had been quite clear that masturbation was the preferred method of dealing with a frustrated erection, but Sherlock found the idea messy and unappealing.  The area remained tender for several hours after the initial problem had dissipated, but that was to be expected when hypersensitive mechanoreceptors were forced into continuous activity for an extended period of time by dilated blood vessels.  Still, an unpleasant side effect.