americas_son | (no subject)

Tony looks up, frowns, abandons the disassembled engine on the table, and crosses the room to give Sherlock a hug.

Sorry, man. Tony always knows.

Great. Now he's the bad guy before he's even gotten out of the fucking car. Is there any reason why he shouldn't just pull back out of the parking spot, step on the gas, and see how fast Jarvis can reopen the garage door?

It takes a few seconds for the obvious one to hit: because running and hiding was what he did as a human. He's not like he used to be anymore. That's kind of the entire point of the last couple hours.

Fine. Cal gets out of the car and heads out toward the basement, hands in his pockets.

"...guess he doesn't want a hug, then," Tony concludes.

Sherlock ruffles Tony's hair and kisses his cheek.

"Sometimes," he says fondly, "you are a bit of an idiot."

No, he doesn't fucking want a hug. Leave him alone.

Alas, it is not to be.

Although it is fairly likely that Sherlock, waiting on the other side of the basement door and looking pensive, has something other than hugs in mind.

Cal, for his part, looks annoyed to find him there. Then doubly annoyed when he realizes he hadn't been paying enough attention to hear or smell that Sherlock was there in the first place.

This night is bullshit. Can he have a rewind?

Well, there was that door in the way at first.

"I'm sorry," he says as it swings shut.

Still. What good are vampire senses if he can't use them to avoid things that are irritating?

"- What?"

"That was a pointless bit of self-indulgence I let loose on you before you went out, and I am sorry for it."

. . . to say Cal wasn't expecting that would be an understatement.

"That's okay?" he says automatically, after a few seconds of blank staring.

He smiles slightly.

"Thank you."

". . . no problem."

Seriously, what?

"I won't bother you any longer, then." He straightens, pushing away from the wall he has been leaning against. "Unless you would like me to," he adds.

"Uh." Cal rakes a hand awkwardly through his hair, a gesture stolen directly from his human life. "I don't care."

What just happened?

The complete bewilderment reminds him favourably of Tony; he can't help grinning.

Obviously the only sensible course of action is to close the distance between them and kiss Cal's cheek.

Cal blinks.

He can't quite decide whether to go with it or to cling to the ~~sulking~~ solitary glowering he'd had planned. Having the wind knocked from one's sails is always disconcerting.

Well, Sherlock will not be exerting any undue influence on his decision. Unless that fond smile counts.

"Just don't do it again," Cal decides finally.

"I won't."

"Okay."

This is probably his cue to feel guilty about the girl in the park. He doesn't, though, because vampire.

(And all that petulance that's been piling up has to go somewhere.)

Anyway, Sherlock wouldn't have called it a pointless bit of self-indulgence if he had thought it worked.

(He doesn't know for sure, but the odds are not in his favour.)

"I believe I will go and have a cup of tea," he declares. "Care to come along?"

"Sure," Cal says. "I'll skip the tea, though."

"You know, I had thought you might."

"I didn't even drink that shit when I was human."

Big surprise, right?