We're Casual

There wasn't a whole lot that wasn't spontaneous about John's life, right down to the weather forecast. It was supposed to be sunny and comfortably warm. Instead, it turned cool and gray and quickly coalesced into a downpour, leaving John and Mary to sprint into the nearest shop to take cover from the rain.

Sure, John didn't like ordinary, but this was pushing it.

"Well, that was nice," Mary said, shuffling off her jacket. "Nice, sunny day."

"Yeah." John rolled his eyes, rubbing rain away from his face. "Bloody weather forecasts, they're completely wrong. Clear, my arse."

"Well, at least it's a snack shop." Mary glanced towards the small queue. "Could be worse. Your treat, right?" she asked with a smile. "For not planning ahead of the weather."

"It's not my fault," John retorted, but halfheartedly, reaching for her hand. "What do you want, the usual?"

"Not sure, give me a sec."

John glanced at the menu briefly before casting his gaze around the snack shop. There were a few other people that were in, and a couple that seemed to follow their example of ducking out of the rain. What he didn't expect to see was a familiar shock of wildly curly hair and a blue scarf, caught up in an animated conversation with yet another familiar brunette, although female and distinctly-

"Is that Sherlock and Janine?"

John blinked rapidly. "Uh... yeah." But after the... after the truth had come out about Sherlock using her, hadn't they... broken up? But they were here together...?

Sherlock's elbows were propped up as he leaned halfway across the table, mere inches away from Janine as he spoke. They were too far away for John to catch the words, but there wasn't any trace of hostility or annoyance in Sherlock's posture - not that there had been while he'd been acting, either, John guessed. Sherlock seemed genuinely... at ease.

Janine laughed at whatever Sherlock was saying, reaching over to clap her hand over his in a gesture of fondness. What was more was that Sherlock didn't pull away. He didn't curl his fingers with hers or make any move that he noticed the touch, really, but he didn't pull away, either.

"I thought they broke up?" Mary asked.

John blinked hard. "... I thought they had. But, uh... I guess not." The world was tilted at the same angle that it had been before, back when John had first found out about Sherlock and Janine, not knowing, at the time, that it had all been for blackmail purposes. But now, Magnussen was gone and Sherlock was... still with Janine.

"You're frowning, John," Mary said, and then, "oh, they've spotted us".

Janine had indeed glanced up and was waving at them now. Sherlock followed her gaze; John watched the laughter fall out of his eyes and morph into something like conditioned bashfulness. He sat up quickly, folding himself back against his chair.

John felt like cringing. He had a feeling that they'd just ruined something.

"Hey, Mary, John," Janine greeted. "What are you two doing here? Sherl didn't tell me you were coming."

"I didn't know," Sherlock muttered, reaching for his mug.

"It wasn't planned," Mary said, effortlessly gliding into the conversation. John didn't know how she could do that. Then again, she wasn't as acquainted with Sherlock as he was and Sherlock being with a woman besides the woman was strange. "The rain chased us in, it was supposed to be sunny."

"Oh, yeah, it's started pouring, hasn't it?" Janine twisted around to look at the window. "Well, why don't you join us? The more, the merrier, right, Sherl?"

Sherlock had seized upon his coffee mug and had not let go, dedicated with staring off into the far wall. It was behaviour that John recognised, the kind that came out when Sherlock was either uncomfortable, angry, or having a pout. He looked back at Janine, though, and then up at Mary and John with a small smile. "Sure."

Something was still niggling at John's subconscious, prompting him to "We wouldn't want to impose" before he thought about it.

"Oh, no, not at all!" Janine replied. "I'll pull up some chairs, it's no problem."

His wife's relationship with Janine, whatever reasons it might have been formed under (and John wasn't going there, still couldn't go there), was as tenuous as any woman's relationship and it was apparently trapping both him and Sherlock in the midst of it. John sighed and resigned himself to a ridiculously awkward coffee double date with Sherlock and Janine.

"I'll get us drinks," he said to Mary.

"Oh, yeah, thanks, just get me the usual, I don't care."

Sherlock stood. "I'm just... going to the loo. Back in a moment," he said, addressing Janine. A practised smile and then he was gone with the turn of coattails.

John shook his head slightly and went to join the queue to order. He couldn't believe... Sherlock and Janine. He wondered what the nature of that relationship was, now. It wasn't like he could just ask, not with Sherlock's body language having taken such a turn since they'd seen them. Although he wondered why he hadn't told him in the first place... maybe it wasn't a big thing. Maybe it wasn't a thing at all. That was entirely possible. Maybe they had just happened to meet up in the coffee shop.

... But then, it begged the question of why Sherlock would have been at this particular coffee shop, so far from home where there were so many options. John had never heard him talk about this place before, and if Sherlock had liked their coffee, John knew that he would have been dragged there several times.

So, it probably had been a date, then.

"... It's not what you think."

John jumped from the close proximity of Sherlock's deep voice, glancing over his shoulder as the detective now stood there. He was studiously looking up at the menu.

"... You don't know what I'm thinking," John muttered, following Sherlock's gaze.

"Whatever it is, it's wrong." Sherlock shifted. "We're not..."

"You're not what?" John asked shortly.

"... I don't know." Sherlock paused, and then added, in an almost questioning tone of voice: "Dating".

"Oh."

"We're not engaged, either."

"Well, I didn't figure that."

Sherlock huffed a breath that was almost a laugh, seeming to thaw out slightly. "Yeah. We're... we're..." he trailed off, searching for words. "... Casual."

John raised his eyebrows, looking up at him. "Casual?"

Sherlock frowned. "... Yes?" he said hesitantly.

"Are you sleeping with her?" The question came out unbidden, it was too forward for him to be asking Sherlock that, of all people, but the look on the detective's face following was enough to make John chuckle himself.

"No." Sherlock wrinkled his nose. "Is that what 'casual' means? I don't know, I don't concern myself with that relationship lingo."

"So it is a relationship," John ascertained.

"No. ... Yes. ... Uh." Sherlock narrowed his eyes, managing to have the presence to look both annoyed and abashed at the same time. "It is what it is," he said slowly. "Does it have to be defined as something?"

"No. But people are going to ask questions, mate. You're not exactly a 'private' detective anymore."

"I don't care what they think."

"But you care what I think."

"Of course."

John blinked, looking back at Sherlock again.

Sherlock glanced at him, doing a double take when he noticed John was looking. "What?"

"Uh." John shook his head. "Nothing. Are you happy with her? Janine?"

"Hm?"

"Spending time with her."

"Oh." Sherlock nodded jerkily. "Occasionally. When she's not being irritating."

John laughed softly. "There's no happy medium with you, is there?"

"I can't help it that she prattles on about hew new job and carbs and... whatever character is getting killed in that one show she watches." Sherlock shrugged. "It's all trivial."

"But not all, obviously," John replied.

The corner of Sherlock's mouth twitched up. Only just a smile, only just. "Not always," he admitted.

"Then, that's good," John said, stepping up to the counter. "As long as you're happy." He was concentrating on getting his order that he nearly missed Sherlock's "I am". Almost. "You've just got to tell me these things next time, why didn't you?" he continued, looking back at his friend.

"I didn't want you to get the wrong idea."

"You could have just clarified."

Sherlock looked off into the distance, the cogs turning in his head. He was trying to come up with a response, gauging reactions and thoughts, no doubt. He came back with "... New territory".

John smiled. "Gotcha."

He was sure that it was definitely new territory for Sherlock, and, for goodness sake, John was not going to make fun of him for not knowing about something this time. Solar system, fair game. Love life, different story, especially for Sherlock.

"But you have to tell me if you sleep with her," he said, mock seriously.

Sherlock scoffed, picking up half of John's order to help carry it. "Don't hold your breath."

John grinned, leading the way back to their respective 'dates'.

Sooo I like the idea that Janine could be back (loving that Moffat said she might), and the fact that, well, Sherlock and Janine are both manipulative and maybe, maybe they could work again. I'm not sure that I'm really a Janlock shipper, but I definitely like the 'always to be undetermined'-ship that could happen, and the insecurities that would be involved in that for Sherl.

I do not own Sherlock. Thanks for reading!