Reconciliation — Chapter 5: Room no 24 : The first patient

When Sherlock left London, John and his identity behind, so did Molly. But destiny can be cruel at times, throwing things from your past at you when you'd rather make a fresh start. Eventual Sherlolly, Post Reichenbach. Please read and review!

Her heart had started hammering again as she saw him for the first time after so many months. His hair was cropped short and he had lost a lot of weight. His face looked gaunt, his cheeks were bruised and his bloodshot eyes, oh those eyes which she had loved so much had now sunken inside their sockets and were staring at her angrily. 'Why am I locked in here? Why can't I get out?' he yelled and Molly took a step back, slightly alarmed by his condition. He was hyperventilating and she the blood rush to his pale face. She had to calm him down somehow, even if it meant making false promises. 'Why don't you lie down and we'll talk about this, love' she said sweetly, hoping against hope that he wouldn't throw something else at her. To her immense surprise, he walked to the bed without a word and sat on the edge and stared at his hands that lay in his lap. 'I'm bored. I don't want to be here' he said sulkily. It reminded her so much of Sherlock that she burst out laughing before realising her mistake and stopped immediately. His head snapped up at her and his voice was dangerously low. 'You think this is funny' he growled in a voice that made her skin creep. 'Now now Jim, no need to get angry. I'm sorry, I wasn't laughing at you. Just a little something I remembered' she rambled on and on, trying to lighten his mood. It worked surprisingly well once again. He let out a long breath and got into bed, staring at the sky. She had read about the severe mood changes that Gage suffered from after his accident but nothing could've prepared her for this. He was almost like putty in her hands, with no control over his emotions at all. It would take a great deal of time and patience to fix him, but despite everything, Molly was relieved. When the china cup had shattered above her head, she had thought that her worst fears had come true. Jim had become a senseless, crazy, angry young man. But this.. this was something she could deal with. She felt herself relax a bit and smiled a little. He was staring at her now and he returned her smile. It was a simple upturn of his lips but her spirits definitely rose with it. Suddenly he frowned at her. Her eyebrows rose into her fringe, fearing one more angry outburst. Instead he merely wondered aloud. 'Who's Jim?' he asked. Oh . 'J-Jim? Who said anything about Jim?' she stuttered. She had resolved to keep every detail of his previous life from him and here she was, breaking it within the first five minutes of meeting him. Congratulations Molly Hooper, said a voice in her head that sounded very much like Sherlock. 'You called me Jim. Why Jim? What's my name anyway?' his eyes rolled in confusion and he stared at her again. Oh God, his stares. They made her feel like he could see through every fibre of the clothes she wore, every living cell present in her body. She instinctively clutched her lab coat tighter before taking a deep breath and turning to him. 'Your name is Richard, love. Richard Brook. Isn't that a nice name?' she said with false sweetness. 'Yea it's nice I suppose, but I liked Jim more. Why did you call me Jim anyway?' he asked once again. And there we go, she thought in exasperation. 'It was a mistake, Richard. You just reminded me of someone I used to know. He looked just like you' she said gently. 'Really? Who was he?' he asked curiously. It was at this point that she snapped. Two days of staying awake for Sherlock, plotting his death, leaving London merely hours later, losing her very existence all due to the person sitting in front of her, and he had the nerve to ask her endless questions! 'It's got nothing to do with you. Why don't you think about things that are your own business?' she said coldly to him before biting her tongue as she realised her mistake. And there comes another outburst, she thought helplessly and closed her eyes. But it never came. Instead when she opened her eyes, she found him curled into a foetal position, shaking as silent sobs wrecked his body. Molly felt a stab of guilt go through her before she walked over to the other side of the bed and pried his hands away form his face. There were tears, real tears glistening on his cheeks and his eyes were red again. 'I'm sorry Richard' she whispered and he just nodded staring at her again. 'Why are you crying?' she asked as gently as she could. 'It's the other people' he sniffed, 'They all treat me horribly. They never talk to me even if I'm awake. They ignore me altogether. They talk about me in front of me but never tell me why I'm here. I've been so alone all these days. Nobody bothers' he sobbed into his hands. Despite knowing fully well what terrible crimes the man had committed, a pang of pity went through Molly. It must have been so maddening for him, no company at all, no television, no newspapers, no books. Just loneliness as his constant companion. Her hand reached for his face and she brushed away his tears without even thinking what she was doing. The only thing she could think of was how she had done the same for Sherlock a few days ago. Fate really was cruel sometimes. 'Don't you worry Richard. I'm here now. I'll make sure you aren't alone anymore' she promised and he smiled at her suddenly. It was a full ear to ear smile and it made his face light up the way it would when they were dating. She returned the smile without hesitation. 'I'd like to sleep now. My head feels heavy' he muttered and she nodded, tucking him in. 'I'll see you later then ok? Take care' she smiled at him before walking towards the door. 'Wait' he said and she turned. 'You never told me who you were' he said slowly. 'I'm Mol- Eleanor. Your very own friend' she told him, catching herself in time. 'El-ea-nor' he said very slowly and then shook his head. 'It's too difficult. I think I'll just call you Ella' he brightened up again. 'Whatever you wish, love' she said to him and strolled away just catching the words he muttered before drifting off to sleep. Ella. My Ella Maybe looking after him wasn't going to be as difficult as she had thought.

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