Work Text:
Which do you want—
The pain of staying where you are, or the pain of growth?
William was sitting on a bench to get some fresh air and close his eye to feel the breeze, until a young boy approaches him.
"How dare you.", the young boy says.
He opened his eye to see who was talking and it was the real William.
He was shocked.
"You are…”
"You took my name as your identity, killing the nobles and now you're trying to atone for your sins? No one is going to forgive you, you peasant!" the real William says as his face contorted with rage.
William feels speechless as a tear falls off his eye as he feels the guilt overwhelm him.
"Sooner or later, the guy who you love the most will leave you. You should have died." the young boy continues as he chokes the blonde man. He's trying to catch a breath as tears continue to fall down his cheek, and the young boy suddenly coughs blood, just like back then when he and Albert killed the young boy. "I'm...sorry." the blonde man replies.
All of a sudden, his vision gets blurry. Then, he opened his eye slowly.
It was a nightmare.
His tears continue to fall down his cheek. He woke up and tried to catch his breath. His sobs were heard by the man beside him who was asleep, which then wakes him.
"Liam... what's wrong? Are you hurt?"
"Sherly..."
"Just a nightmare, I'll be fine." the blonde continues as he's trying not to make Sherlock worry him too much.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Maybe later."
Sherlock looks at him with concern. He then puts his hand on William's forehead and neck, and his body is still heating up because of the fever. It's been a few days since New York keeps raining, and the cold weather made William catch a fever.
"You still have a fever. Wait here, I'll make you peppermint tea so you feel better" says Sherlock.
William stops him from leaving the room.
"No... please stay. Don't leave me, please..." William replies as he holds Sherlock's hand to stop him. He continues to cry, like a vulnerable child.
Sherlock looks at him, worried. Wondering what kind of a nightmare it could be when his beloved is a crying mess. Then, he sits beside the blonde. "Alright, I'll be here. I won't go anywhere... you're safe with me, my love." Sherlock says as he hugs William gently and rubs his back to calm him down.
After a while, William calmed down and told Sherlock about the nightmares, the guilt, and the fear of abandonment; scared that one day Sherlock will leave him because of his sins.
Sherlock wipes off the blonde's tears. "I'm sorry to hear that, Liam. I've told you before, there's nothing unforgivable in this world. As long as you atone for your sins, then it's good enough already. And… it's okay to feel what you feel, take your time to heal and I'll be here for you. I want you to know that I'm proud of you for taking a step of living, and I won't leave you as I'm still alive" the ponytail reassures.
"Thank you, Sherly... I appreciate it" the blonde replies. He looks at Sherlock and smiles at him, which the ponytail smiles at him back with a soft gaze.