A Rose By Any Other Name | Sherlock Holmes

Chapter 3

The pub was packed. Faces were laughing, talking, and drinking every which way she turned. It was hard to find Lestrade in all of the chaos. Crowds had always made Aryn nervous. She usually never went to places like this by herself and she guessed it was because her job exposed her to the dangers of the world. Creeps hid in plain sight, targeting their victims when they were most susceptible. She went through her own struggles in college with drunks at bars and never liked to revisit those memories.

She soon found herself being flagged down by Lestrade sitting at a booth just after the end of the bar counter. He wasn't alone, John and his wife both smiling when they turned to see who Lestrade was calling to. Hurrying to her seat, she let out a huge sigh of relief not only that she had made it on time, but that there was a nice, cold pint sitting in front of her as soon as she sat down.

"I've needed one of these for a long time," Aryn commented, taking a large swig. The cool brew immediately relaxed her, the amber liquid easing the tensions she had been holding for so long. Looking across the table, she realized that she had failed to introduce herself. "Oh!" she exclaimed, wiping her mouth and setting her drink to the side. She extended her hand and said, "I'm Aryn. Pleasure to meet you!"

"Mary, nice to meet you as well," Mary said with a smile.

"John tells me you're expecting! Do you know what you're having yet?"

The conversation carried on for quite some time with the discussion of children and John and Mary's wedding night. Aryn thought that it was adorable to think that the night John and Mary became one entity was the same night that they would also find out that they would become a family. Although it was sudden, their parental roles seemed to suit them. She could tell they were truly happy to be having this child.

"So what about you then?" Lestrade started, sipping from his beer. "No man in your life at the moment? No bloke for me to harass?"

She blushed at the thought. "Greg, you know me better than that. I work too much to have a decent social life. Why do you think I was so happy to see this pint?"

"In all this time that I haven't seen you, not even one man has tried to win your hand? I'll find you one right now if you like."

The alcohol was having an effect on Lestrade at that point. Aryn laughed at him as she said, "No, no that's quite alright. I'm fine for the moment." Looking down at the pint in her hands, being in a place like this, moreover being back in proximity with old friends, brought Aryn down to a strange level.

In her life, there were only a few things that mattered: family, work, and school. In terms of her family, there was never really anything or anyone to discuss. She was very detached from home and didn't hold a balance between all of the aspects of her life. After leaving for college, she had set out to create a successful life. Here she was, living her "dream", and yet it didn't feel complete. Not just yet.

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Sitting in the library, she thumbed through the various pages of the textbooks in front of her. Notes were spread out across the dark brown, wooden table that had seen many other studious people before her. She held a pencil between her teeth and had another keeping her hair out of her face in a messy bun.

Was there an upcoming exam? No. Was there a pop quiz expected in the next class? Not in the slightest. She was doing research for fun. Her logic class astounded her and piqued her interest so much so that when she wasn't reading her textbooks for math or science, she was learning about symbols, sentences, and patterns.

She hadn't noticed the man who was sitting across the room in a red chair watching her dabble away at her work that night. He was supposed to be studying, but had found the classes too slow for his comprehension. This girl fascinated him, though. She was learning about logic and deductions for fun, noting her scribbles as he walked past her earlier. He wasn't sure if there was anyone else who did that aside from himself and his brother. It was beside the point, though.