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“I never stood a chance, did I?”
She looked sad, almost. He bristled slightly, knowing the look on her face was yet another act. His lip raised in a silent snarl and she had the decency to appear ashamed for a moment.
“John,” she started, pity flowing from her lips as if he deserved it.
“No, don’t.” He shook his head, moving a pace back. “Don’t, Mary. It’s too late for that.”
The act fell apart then like she shed a second skin. She straightened to her full height, though it wasn’t much taller than he was if you took into account her heels, and glared at him, a sneer pulling at her lips.
“Fine,” she snapped. “Leave me then. For him. Three years of your life gone, John, because he couldn’t be bothered to tell you once he was alive.”
“He was busy, Mary,” John snarled back. “Of all the stupid, idiotic things for him to do with his life, I can accept that. I may hate him for it, yes, but I forgive him. I can’t forgive you. Your lies are worse than anything he’s ever given me and I was wrapped up in a god-damn bomb once!”
Her eyebrow twitched at that, but she seemed to ignore it. “So, you’ll just leave me and what we’ve built–.”
“What did we build, hm? Besides a lie?” John’s lips twitched upward in a smile, but it held no humor as it disappeared quickly as it had come. “That child you’re carrying, is it mine?”
“That’s not fair!”
“Is it mine?”
The words echoed between them, her angry and frightened look giving him the answer he needed. Simple observations were all it took to read her thoughts, he’d learned more than enough in the past few years. Sherlock would have been proud.
“Right.” The only word he could say; a simple word that he fell on when all others failed him. His lips twitched again as his hand clenched and unclenched in rapid succession. He spun on his heel to leave, but turned around again, as if to say something, but words failed him.
“John…”
He shook his head. “I can’t. Not now, not ever. It’s best you leave and forget about,” he waved a hand between them. “Whatever this was supposed to be.”
“John, please.”
“Shut up,” he snapped. “Just shut up.”
For once, she obliged, her lips set into a thin line as she stared at him. Questions and various emotions flickered in those blue eyes, almost like looking into a mirror. He shook his head as he spun again, ignoring the look on her face, the pain in her eyes, everything that nearly broke him. Damn, she was good at this… He made it a few more paces before he paused, pulled back once again by her voice,
“I never stood a chance, did I, John? Not against him?”
He looked back at her, a pitiful smile gracing his appearance. He ran a hand through his hair and chuckled weakly. He turned and walked away, only raising his voice to answer her question as he left her behind,
“That’s the sad part, Mary,” a slight pause, “You did once…”