Items to Confirm

Sherlock raised an eyebrow, clearly having no recollection of what she was accusing him of.

"What exactly did you capture on camera to make you think that?" Sherlock took the camera from her. Sitangna leaned over, pointed out the timeline and dragged it back.

"See for yourself!" Sitangna repeatedly scrubbed through those few seconds, showing him the evidence of his crime. Sherlock snorted, and there seemed to be a hint of helplessness in his voice.

"Even I have to admit defeat when it comes to your ability to connect unrelated events." Sherlock turned into Scumlock, dragged the timeline back a few more seconds and pointed to a corner of the frame.

"You've watched the video so many times. How did you miss Lestrade spilling his drink on himself? He was the one who shook the tree."

Following Sherlock's finger, Sitangna finally saw the real culprit.

Inspector Lestrade had been competing with Watson to see who could down a drink in one gulp. He drank too fast and spilled it. The cold liquid made him shiver, and his elbow accidentally knocked against the trunk of the tree beside him.

"And that Christmas wreath-come on, didn't you see it during the day?" Sherlock gently wiped away the traces of tears left on Sitangna's cheek. The fact that she could cry over this had really caught him off guard.

"John prepared the Christmas wreath. He grabbed the mistletoe and hung it on the tree, and he broke that branch during the day."

"I got the ladder to hang it back up. Mrs. Hudson said it would be a shame to throw it away, so I just stuck it on top."

She remembered now. Watson really had broken that branch. Her anger had flared up so suddenly that she had overlooked a lot of details.

Now that she watched the so-called evidence again, the tree really did have nothing to do with Sherlock either.

Having learned the truth, Sitangna had completely lost control of her expression. Visible redness climbed from her neck to cover her entire face, burning so hot that all the moisture in her body was evaporating.

She stole a glance at the mirror diagonally across from her. She looked just like a boiled lobster.

"I-I see. I'm sorry, Sherlock. I wasn't careful enough. I was too impulsive, and my brain short-circuited..." It was the first time she had falsely accused someone, and she could barely get her words out.

Oh god, I shouldn't have let Candy leave. Is there some kind of time-turner or something that can save me?!

"Then I don't have anything else to say. I thought you did it on purpose, and Molly was so heartbroken..." Sitangna scratched her head. Sitangna opened the door and fled.

"Wait." Sherlock was quick to shut the door again. This time, Sitangna saw several heads peering around the doorframe in the dark.

Wait, weren't they all asleep?! Why are they eavesdropping?

And how did that dead-drunk guy get up too!!?

"Never mind them. Tell me, were you upset because Molly was hurt, or because you felt you'd been deceived?"

Sherlock gripped Sitangna's shoulders, stopping her from escaping. The dim yellow light of the table lamp couldn't illuminate the space between them, like a cold mist swirling around them, now drawing close, now drifting apart.

Sitangna swallowed. "B-both, I guess. Why do you ask?"

She had always assumed that pursuing Sherlock would mean making all the moves herself, until he succumbed to her relentless advances.

Or Sherlock would feel nothing for her, and she would scrape through the mission with a low score based on friendship.

"Because I'm confirming a few things." Sherlock was rather close to Sitangna. As he spoke, his breath washed over her forehead, cool and carrying the scent of mouthwash.

Sherlock released her arms and knocked twice on the door, scaring off some of the nosy eavesdroppers.

"Oh. Have you finished confirming them? Can I go? I'm a little sleepy and want to go to bed." Rustling came from outside the door. Those people had sneaked back again! She felt as though she were sitting on pins and needles in this room.

"I have. For example, a certain lady's heart rate is a hundred and forty beats per minute, yet she's sleepy and wants to go to bed. Truly a wonder of the world."

Sitangna's heart really was beating fast. In the silent apartment, she could even clearly feel the surge in her blood vessels. It was so loud that she wondered if Sherlock could hear it outright.

"What are you mumbling about? I can't understand a word. I'm leaving." Sitangna reached for the doorknob again, only for Sherlock to grip her arm and turn her around.

Sitangna felt a little dizzy. Seriously, bro, are you spinning a top here?

"Before you and Watson came into my life, I always believed that emotion was an interference that affected observation, although I still do."

Sherlock cupped Sitangna's face in both hands, forcing her to look him in the eye.

"I'm a high-functioning sociopath. People always call me an emotionally detached freak, a moral relativist and an extremely self-centered bastard."

Sherlock had a very clear understanding of himself, but he didn't care. Nothing could make him care, except an unsolved mystery.

"To me, emotion is simply the most dangerous reagent produced in the laboratory of human nature. It dissolves my reason and makes me lose control."

"But one day, perhaps yesterday or sometime earlier, I discovered that I had fallen into a lake."

Sitangna was bewildered. What is Sherlock doing? Is he confessing his feelings?

"Perhaps you mean you've fallen in love?" Sitangna had never been in a relationship, but she knew how they worked. Sherlock was clearly laying the groundwork for what he was going to say next.

She was about to faint again, but this time it was from excitement. She suddenly didn't regret letting Candy leave quite so much. At least no one but Sherlock knew how foolish she looked right now.

"I didn't say what it was. Do you think I've fallen in love, Miss Sitangna?" Sherlock drew closer. Sitangna's eyes couldn't even focus, and her breathing quickened.

"Relax, Nana. I simply haven't found conclusive evidence that this is love yet." Sherlock bent down and pressed his forehead to hers, as though trying to sense her thoughts through the touch of their skin.

"Abnormal fluctuations in the levels of hormones such as dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin can confirm some things. I often observe signs of those fluctuations in others to identify and assess information that may help solve a case."

"But that day, as I watched you play in the clock tower, I clearly felt hormones being released in my cerebral cortex."

"A substance that excited me more than a high-concentration nicotine patch. That was also the first time I realized that the mind simply cannot resist an invasion of hormones."

"The moment I discovered it, I tried to categorize and file away this sudden 'system error' in my brain, then delete it completely."

Sherlock let go of her and turned to get something from his desk. Sitangna secretly let out a breath.

For someone like her, who had been single since birth, the sensation of their foreheads touching was no less intense than riding a death-defying roller coaster. Sherlock hadn't gone any further, but she had almost failed to hold herself back from kissing him right then. With a fine steed in her arms, would she even be human if she remained unmoved?!