Welcome to the third segment of what was once a oneshot called Cake. I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: The characters are not my own creation and do not belong to me.

When John returned the next morning after dropping Rosie off at a sitter's, Sherlock and Molly seemed much the same. They acted like they had at the café, like nothing had really changed. Except… there had been a little awkwardness…

"Oh hello, John," Molly greeted as she came down the stairs from his old room.

He was about to go into the living room. "Hello, Molly. How was last night?"

She smiled. "Good, actually."

John smiled back, feeling rather successful as they entered the flat. He whispered, "Sherlock any good at dating then?"

"I can hear you!" Sherlock suddenly shouted from the kitchen.

The two laughed and entered farther into the flat. Sherlock looked like he had just finished setting up his microscope.

"Getting into better habits, I see," John commented, walking beside the counter.

Sherlock hummed in response, looking through a stack of slides.

"Well," Molly said after a moment, "I was just coming down to say goodbye before I left for work. I'll see you guys later?" She looked to John and he nodded with a smile. Then she turned to the detective. "You're always welcome to come by the lab…Sherlock."

He looked up suddenly. "Oh, of course. I will probably need… something."

"You can always come to say hello." Molly smiled widely at Sherlock as he looked slightly uncomfortable and at a loss for words.

"Um, yes, we'll, uh, do that." He turned to John for affirmation. John gave him a small nod. "I'll see you later, Molly."

"See you, Sherlock. John." She smiled at both of them, then turned and left.

Once she was gone, John turned to his friend, "Should I ask how successful you were, Sherlock?"

"I took her on a date. It was… good."

"So she said." John saw Sherlock's quick pause before returning to his work. "You had dinner… what about after dinner? You came back to the flat and nothing else happened?" He knew it would be like pulling teeth getting his best friend to talk about his love life.

"We came back to the flat, watched some crap telly, then went to bed. In separate rooms. Don't be so fanciful, John."

He wasn't, but he wasn't going to let Sherlock know. "You're the one that asked if she wanted a baby."

"No, I believe you started that at the cake shop." The two smiled at one another.

"Hm, maybe you're right," John teased. "You should be thanking me then."

Sherlock was quiet for a moment. "Thank you, John." He quickly put an eye to his microscope, but John saw the red on his ears.

"So tell me about what happened after I left then."

"Sherlock?" Molly asked. He was still standing there, looking like he didn't know what to do with himself until she gave an answer. She had waited until she heard the door to 221B close, but he still seemed unresponsive.

"Yes," he answered stiffly.

"Are you… asking me out?"

"Yes."

"Why?" she asked with some caution.

"Because…I like you. I like being around you. You calm me… and understand me. You see me and you matter most to me. It seems that if someone is going to matter most then they should be your 'significant other' or whatever they're being called these days," Sherlock was slow at first but tried to end in his usual logical fashion.

"Sherlock, it's one date." Molly needed him to relax or else her nerves would get the better of her as well. Was she even sure she wanted this? Of course, she had for so long, but…

"It's been 10 years," Sherlock tried to explain.

"Yes, Sherlock, 10 years of you ignoring me or manipulating me or belittling me." Molly started to stand up. "One date isn't going to change that." She shouldn't be angry. She should be happy. But the grief and the trauma of the past years, heck the last few months bubbled below the surface. She kept calm however. She knew one date wouldn't change all that. Hadn't he already started to change when he returned to London?

He was silent but nodded. "No, no it's not, but… that's the past. Focus on this moment, Molly."

She looked at him with a sadness in her eyes. "You've changed a lot Sherlock Holmes, but it doesn't change the fact that I'm here because you relapsed again. I'm here because I'm your friend above anything else."

"I know you're my friend. I'm saying I want to be more. I would like to try, try to be the person you deserve."

"Are you going to keep trying?"

"What?" he asked, confused by her question.

"Are you going to keep trying? To be the person I deserve? Trying to act better than you have? Trying to behave yourself? You'll never be a 'proper' boyfriend; I know that, Sherlock. I don't want you to change for me. But are you going to try to be a decent human being? And treat me like one as well?"

Sherlock smiled. He remembered John's words, she taught me to be the man I already was. "Okay."

Molly looked taken back. "Okay?"

"Okay. It's been 10 years. Give me 10 more to prove myself. Starting today. Now. Let me take you out to dinner."

Molly stared up at him. She saw everything in his eyes. It surprised her, but it made her willing to try too.

"Fine, Sherlock Holmes, where are we going to eat?" She smiled up at him and Sherlock's heart made a leap it had never made before. He prayed it wasn't some sort of drug induced palpitation. He held out his arm and they headed out the door.

"We went to dinner at the Chinese place around the corner like you suggested. It was… just like before… without you there. Comfortable. I thought Angelo's would be too much. Maybe next time."

"So there's going to be a next time?"

"I would think that was obvious. Is that really all a date is supposed to be, John?" Sherlock sounded slightly annoyed.

"Well sometimes there's other stuff… but you and Molly have known each other a long time. You don't have to get to know one another, you just need to spend time together. Girls like to be taken out once in a while."

"Molly is different than most girls."

"I'm sure she still wants to be treated like one though. She wants to feel special. To you, Sherlock. She wants to feel like she matters to you."

"And I've told her so on multiple occasions."

"You have?"

"Yes, John! I'm not entirely lack of emotion as you seem to think."

"I know you're not! I just didn't think you had told her already."

"Well. I have. It was… brought up, yesterday."

"Well that's…good. That's good, Sherlock. I'm happy for you."

"Thank you."

John leaned against the counter with a grin. "So you're going to see her again?"

"Of course, I'm going to see her again. We work together," Sherlock said with an eye roll.

"You know what I mean."

Sherlock smiled, peering into the microscope. "Yes."

John grinned. Things would work out. He believed that. They needed happiness in their lives. He had Rosie and Sherlock had Molly, and they could solve crime and help people. They could help each other get through anything.

The End

Thank you all for reading this! I've really appreciated all the support. 3