I thought this was going to be short but, surprise surprise, I got carried away. I hope you like it, it is fluffier than a baby duckling eating candy floss on a cloud so there are no warnings :). Enjoy

Word count: 1470
John's pov

It had been a sunny day and Sherlock and I had spent it having a picnic under the huge sycamore tree in the park. It had been lovely but it was now beginning to get dark. The long rays of winter sun slanted through the branches as it set, casting beautiful shadows on the ground and bathing everything in a warm, golden light. The day had been unusualy hot for an English winter but it was starting to get colder and colder as the sun sunk lower in the sky. Sherlock shivered and I frowned.

"Are you cold love?"
"No."
"You're shivering."
"Am I? I suppose I must be cold then, i hadn't noticed."
"How did you not notice that you were cold?"
"I don't know, I suppose I just had more important things to think about like how pretty you are." I laughed as my boyfriend reached out and stroked my cheek.
"Aww, if it isn't the great Sherlock Holmes being sweet. I guess this love thing really has changed you."
"Shut up or I'll go back to being cold and pretending I'm not in love with you!" I chuckled and kissed his cheek,
"No you won't, you like me too much."
Sherlock sighed and sprawled out on the picnic blanket.
"That may or may not be true. No comment." I laughed at his stubborn refusal to admit to being wrong. Then he shivered again.
"You're still cold Lock, should we head home?"
"In a minute, I'm not even that cold and if you come here then we can share body heat. And we get the added bonus of cuddling." I grinned and lay down beside him, wrapping him up in my arms. We both looked up at the sky in quiet happiness.

A few minutes later, Sherlock sat up abruptly. I blinked up at him in surprise.
"What are you doing?"
"Admitting I was wrong." I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.
"What about?"
"About not being to cold. I think we need to go home."
I sat up and smiled at him.
"Ok then Bubba, help me put everything back in the basket and we can head back."
He frowned slightly, "how many times have I told you not to use pet names for me, it's really weird and mushy. It makes me feel like a teenage girl."
"What are you on about darling? All couples use pet names for each other, it's cute. Why don't you come up with one for me?"

Sherlock just grunted and began to pack up the remains of our picnic into the large wicker hamper that we had been given by Sherlock's mum and dad for Christmas. I sighed and began to help him. When everything had been put away, he held out his hand to me and I took it.
"Come on then, Watson, my dear let's go home."
"Aww, baby, you gave me a pet name." My heart melted at the fact he was being cute for me.
"It's not really a pet name, it's sophisticated and besides, I already used it when we weren't together yet so it's not a cringe relationship thing."
"Whatever you say Lock, you can make up all the excuses you want but it's still incredibly cute that you used a pet name for me." Sherlock blushed as we walked through the park and I could see that he was enjoying himself even though he was acting like a stubborn bastard.

"Whatever you say, my dear Watson." I grinned widely and kissed him gently on the nose. It was very clumsy due to the fact we were walking and he scrunched it up and rubbed it with the hand that wasn't holding mine.
"Oops, sorry Bubba, I didn't mean to squash your nose." He leant down and pecked me on the cheek to show he didn't mind.

We walked on in silence for a while before we came to the children's play area. The light had been fading and the sky now had the appearance of an opal with its white hue over blue and red pastels which we both knew meant it would be fully dark in about 20 minutes or so. Because of the rapidly diminishing levels of light, there were no children in the park as they had all been dragged home by fussing parents about 15 minutes ago. Everything was silent except for the breeze in the trees, a beautiful chorus of evening bird song and our soft footsteps. When we reached the gate to the play park, Sherlock stopped.

"What is it love?" I asked setting down the picnic basket and looking towards him.
He paused before sheepishly saying, "Theres something I've always wanted to do."
"Ok, and what's that?"
"Kiss someone on a round about, specifically kiss you on a round about." His answer took me by surprise and I chuckled.
"Why are you laughing? Do you think it's stupid?" His eyes were wide as he looked at me. I squeezed his hand.
"Of course not Bubba, I think it's adorable, I just wasn't expecting you to say that is all." He looked relieved.
"Come on then." I picked up the basket and pushed open the gate, tugging him along behind me.
"Really?"
"Yes really, I'm going to kiss you on a round about."

His smile was so wide that it almost reached is ears (when I've used that expression in the past, Sherlock had frowned and looked confused, stating that it was scientifically impossible for your mouth to reach your own ears. I had nudged him and laughed, saying it was just a colloquialism. He had shaken his head and replied that people shouldn't say things they don't really mean, hence my addition of the word almost.).

The round about in question was one of those newer ones that are built directly into the floor with gaps in the sides that allowed you to spin it yourself by pushing with one leg while on it so that tired parents could have 5 minutes to themselves without being asked to be pushed by their excitable offspring. It also had a few seats round the edge the lucky children that weren't nominated as the pusher.

I put the hamper down on the soft, colourful floor that is so common in children's play areas, next to the round about. Me and Sherlock then both stood at gaps at the opposite sides of the contraption and began to push together.

It wasn't long before we were spinning quite fast and we stopped pushing to meet in the middle. He put his arms around me and kissed me tenderly. It felt like something from a film as his soft lips sent fireworks to my brain and the world blurred around us, until it felt like it was just us two in the whole universe. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the gentle spinning motion and the warm smell of Sherlock as he held me.

After what felt like forever, the round about began to slow down and we pulled apart. It was very nearly dark now and his face seemed even more beautiful in the soft blue light of evening. I smiled and brushed a stray curl off his face.

"Did that live up to your expectations?" He smiled blissfully and nodded.
"And more. I love you John Watson." My heart stopped and my eyes widened. We had implied that we loved each other before but we'd never actually said it properly. I didn't hesitate as I replied.
"I love you too, Sherlock Holmes." I leant forward and gave him one last kiss before we had to leave this bubble and return to reality.
"Come on darling, let's get home. You really must be cold now."
Sherlock shook his head.
"Not anymore, your love is keeping me warm." I blushed and ran my fingers through his hair.
"I'm sure it is but it's not going to stop you from getting ill, come on Bubba, we can curl up and watch a film when we get in."
"That does sound nice, ok then, I'm coming."

He let me go and grabbed my hands. The round about had come to a complete stop now and we made our way to a gap to get off. This was easier said than done as the motion of the spinning had made us both a bit dizzy. We essentially fell off and ended up lying in a heap on the ground, with Sherlock pinning me down. We lay there and laughed for a few moments before he gave me a quick kiss and got to his feet, pulling me after him.

I grabbed the basket and we walked home in a contented silence, hand in hand through the lamp lit streets of London.

The end

Bye my dears. Thank you for reading, it means a lot:). I hope you've all had a brilliant day and, if not, that tomorrow brings something wonderful. Love yous and remember to eat, sleep, hydrate and be kind to yourself. When you next look in the mirror, please try and find everything you love about yourself, even if it's just one positive, instead of fixating on the negatives. Sending you all hugs,
Isabella
🐹🐹❤🧡💛💚💙💜🐹🐹