AU – Teenlock/Unilock
“Always”
The door slammed open; John stumbled into their shared dorm room. Sherlock glanced up from where he’s was working on his notes and froze. “What the hell happened to you?” Sherlock asked. His limbs are strangely numbed; he thought how someone normal would already be trying to comfort John.
“Can’t you deduce it?” John said sarcastically. Sherlock swallowed uncomfortably. (Split eyebrow, recently scabbed over scrap on right cheekbone – left handed punch. Wincing, moving other limbs gingerly, fought back. Knocked down at some point – scrape on the underside of John’s chin, small patches of dust on his sleeve. John doesn’t start fights but this one must have hit an emotional nerve, otherwise he wouldn’t be angry, only resigned. Emphasis on deduce – he got into a fight over me.)
(Again.)
Sherlock looked away; each bruise and scrape accumulated on John’s soft skin screamed at him. “You need to stop caring what those morons say,” he said. (They’ve always said cruel things. You’re wasting your time.)
“No, Sherlock!” John said loudly. “I can’t stop caring… They talk about ‘us!’” Sherlock stared at the desk. If he was a better person, perhaps he would be looking for the first aid kit they’ve stashed in their room for when this happens to Sherlock instead. If Sherlock was a better person, maybe he wouldn’t have let an “us” happen. (Full Fic on AO3.)