The Five Times Sherlock Didn't Help John With His Nightmares, And The One Time That He Did

1.

The first time Sherlock was aware of John's nightmares was two nights after he had moved into 221B Baker Street. It was about 2am, and Sherlock awoke to the sound of distressed groaning, punctuated by occasional shouts. Although their rooms were on separate floors, the walls in the flat weren't particularly thick, and Sherlock was a light-sleeper with extremely sensitive ears, and he instantly recognised the agonised noises John was making. He had deduced that it was likely for John to be suffering from nightmares and flashbacks; John's psychosomatic limp had told him that the war was still very much alive for him, and it wasn't exactly uncommon for soldiers, invalided or otherwise, to experience such forms of night terrors. Nevertheless, Sherlock felt uneasy lying in his bed and doing nothing to help his new flatmate, but he was completely at a loss as to what he could do.

2.

That nightmare was the last one John had about Afghanistan, and Sherlock put that fact down to the new and exciting work they did together; solving cases, chasing criminals, annoying the police force… Sherlock was glad that John was no longer experiencing the ghosts of the war in his dreams. But that all changed after the night at the pool, when John had been kidnapped by Moriarty and dressed in Semtex. John had fallen asleep on the sofa, and Sherlock had been engrossed in an experiment and so hadn't noticed until John began writhing around. In John's dream, he saw Sherlock's eyes widen in shock as John walked out of the changing room, he saw the red laser dot of the sniper on Sherlock's forehead, and he heard a gunshot echo out. He woke with Sherlock's name on his lips and his hands trembling violently. He made his excuses to Sherlock, who by now was staring at him with keen interest, and hastily went to his own room. Sherlock realised only after John had closed his bedroom door that he probably should have done something.

3.

The nightmares about the pool had continued for a while, but Sherlock had not been aware of them until the next morning, where John's red-tinged eyes and unusual tendency to snap at him gave away his sleepless night. The next nightmare of John's that Sherlock was aware of was on their journey back to London from Dartmoor after the Hounds of Baskerville case. John had fallen asleep on the train, and it hadn't taken long for the bad dreams to start. Sherlock watched with mild curiosity as John twitched and shuddered, murmuring the words 'the hound' over and over again. He stretched out an arm with the intention to wake him, but John's subconscious chose that moment to release him from its grip, and Sherlock hastily looked out of the window, pretending not to have noticed anything. John readjusted his position, glancing warily sideways at Sherlock and clearing his throat minutely. Sherlock tried to push away the feelings of guilt he was experiencing.

4.

The fourth time Sherlock didn't help John after a nightmare was one year and four days after he had come back from the dead. Once again, John had fallen asleep on the sofa while Sherlock read a book, and had dreamt of Sherlock jumping off of St Bart's roof, of his broken and bloody body lying on the pavement. He remembered the sudden emptiness he had felt, and woke up with tears streaming from his eyes. He wiped his damp face with the back of his hand and pointedly ignored Sherlock's pained expression, choosing instead to retire to his own bed. After he left, Sherlock stayed awake for the entire night, unable to sleep, and unable to forgive himself for the pain he put John through when he had believed that he was dead.

5.

The next incident occurred two weeks after the start of John and Sherlock's relationship as lovers. Sherlock was asleep in John's bed, naked from the waist up and with the warm weight of John's body pressed against his chest when the nightmare started, immediately jolting Sherlock from his own dreams of chemicals and experiments and cases. Sherlock pulled away from John as he wriggled and whined beside him, thinking it best to at least pretend to be asleep when John woke up. Sherlock knew that his lover was ashamed of the fact that he experienced nightmares, and Sherlock did not want to do anything that would make him feel uncomfortable. So, when John awoke with a gasp and a jolt, Sherlock was facing the other way, breathing deeply, but with his eyes wide open.

6.

Four days after that, John had another nightmare, and this time Sherlock reached out to him, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder and shaking him lightly. When he didn't stir, Sherlock shook him more forcefully and leant over him, watching as John's eyes flew open and focused on Sherlock.

"It's okay, John. I'm here," Sherlock said slowly, running a thumb down John's cheek.

"Sherlock," John managed to croak out, before he burst into tears, turning to bury his face in the pillow.

Sherlock pulled John up and into his arms, stroking his hands up and down his back as he soothed him. "You don't have to feel ashamed or embarrassed around me." He pressed his lips lightly to John's temple and felt John wrap his arms around Sherlock's waist.

Sherlock slid down in the bed until he was face to face with the smaller man. He leant forwards and claimed John's lips in a gentle kiss, smiling slightly as he felt the fear and tension of his recent nightmare leave John's body.

"I should have done this a long time ago," said Sherlock quietly.

"Hm?"

"Comforted you. I'm sorry it took me so long to realise this was what you needed."

John offered him a weak smile before kissing him again. "It's okay, you're here now, and that's all that matters."