Beauty and the High-Functioning Sociopath {#PFCC2k16}

Allergic Reaction

It had been a couple months since Vanessa had performed an experiment on the table. Alex had punished her by grounding her from watching televison and playing on the computer. She was also grounded from being in the kitchen without Sherlock or Alex supervising her. Alex had a new song due in two days and she hadn't even started it. She was very stressed out and on the verge of tears. Sherlock had learned not to mention it in front of her so she didn't flip out on him. He found her on the couch one day, staring blankly at her notebook which was also blank. He sat down next to her on the couch and smiled at her.

"Hey." He said.

"Hi." Alex said.

"How's everything going?" He asked.

"Terribly. I can't think of anything." Alex said.

"Can I see what you've got so far? Sherlock asked.

"Whatever." Alex said, handing him the notebook. She put her face in her hands. Sherlock looked it over.

"I don't see what the big deal is. It's good." He said. "You could just leave it where it is." 

"No, Sherlock, I have to write a song that's at least three minutes long." Alex said. "I'm on the very brink of getting dropped from my record label as it is."

"Well, it's not like we'll lose our flat." Sherlock said.

"But I like writing my songs." Alex said.

"Just try to relax." Sherlock said. "I'll make you some tea."

"I don't like tea." Alex muttered.

"Then you haven't had tea the way I make it, dear." Sherlock smirked. 

"Fine." Alex sighed.

Sherlock went into the kitchen and started making tea. He added a few herbs to the mixture. This would calm Alex down right away. He put the kettle on and went back to Alex. She had her head in her hands. She looked so stressed out...

"You okay, dear?" He asked.

"I guess." Alex nodded.

"Don't worry. The tea will be done soon." Sherlock said.

"How many times do I have to tell you? I don't like tea." Alex said.

"You will drink it and like it." Sherlock threatened playfully.

"Whatever you say." Alex said, resting her head against her husband. "I love you, you know."

"I love you too." Sherlock said.

Alex scribbled a few lines in her notebook and then crossed them out. She felt like she was going to burst into tears at any second. She was so stressed out. She wanted nothing more than to throw her notebook into the fire. Sherlock sensed what she wanted to do and grabbed the notebook out of her hands. He quickly wrote something in it and then handed it back. Alex took a look at it.

Hello, dear. I am so proud of you for keeping at this, even though it's stressing you out. I would never be able to keep at it for so long. Good job. I love you so much.
~ Sherlock 

Alex looked up at Sherlock and smiled. He was pouring tea into cups. He smiled back at her as he brought both cups over to her. He sat down beside her and Alex rested her head on his shoulder. Sherlock nuzzled his face into her hair. He handed Alex her tea.

"Drink this." Sherlock said. "It will calm you down."

Alex took a sip of the tea. It actually tasted okay. The herbs Sherlock had added gave it more flavor. She drank about half of the cup before something began to feel wrong. She dropped the cup on the floor and started gasping for breath. Sherlock looked at her in horror. Alex looked at him desperately for her help. Sherlock realised that she must be allergic to something he had put in the tea.