"alright," the director said, standing on his podium, quieting the students. "for your final project, you will be paired with someone, by my choosing, and performing a piece." he said. "the lists are on the door and i do not want to hear complaining. you stick with the partner i gave you, and you have all of class today and then you can work on it by yourselves whenever you want, but not during my class." he said then stepped off of his podium, going back into his office.

john sighed and set his clarinet down, looking over at his friend, irene, who played flute. she set her flute down in her chair and stood up with him, meeting him at the end of their section. they both waited in line to find out who they were paired with. schupner never paired friends together. he paired the people who never talked together because the class needed to work on being nice to each other and he liked seeing people suffer. they made it to the papers and found their names.

"greg?" irene said in a questioning tone. "who the hell is greg?"

"right here!" a voice piped out. a boy stepped out and raised his hand slightly. "i'm greg," he gave irene a timid smile.

irene sighed. "he doesn't seem bad." she said and pulled john to the side so the people behind them could look. "who'd you get."

"sherlock." john said and looked at the boy who sat in the back on his phone with his violin in his other hand. everyone knew sherlock, and everyone dispised him. john didn't know why, he was an excellent player and john opinion, pretty damn sexy. they had never talked to one another, they had never looked each other even, but john snuck in stares here and there. "greg's a great trombone player." john said to irene as they walked back to get their instruments.

"i just hope he isn't like anderson." irene said and picked up her flute from her chair, grabbing her folder as well.

john huffed out a laugh. "no one is like anderson." he said as he went to his chair. "greg and i have hung out a few times, he's a cool guy." he picked up his clarient, grabbing his folder along with it.

"i hope so." irene said and looked at the boy who was talking with some other trombone player. "meet me at my car after?" she asked her friend.

john nodded. "have fun." he said and smiled with his lips, walking through the maze of chairs and back to where sherlock sat. "sherlock?" he asked.

"what?" the baritone voice snapped back, not looking up from his phone. john glanced at it and it looked like he was on tumblr or something.

"i'm your partner for the project." john said and grabbed the chair that sat next to sherlock, sitting sort of in front of him.

sherlock glanced up from his phone and looked at the blond boy who sat in the chair with his back straight and feet flat, holding a clarinet. he sighed and pocketed his phone, sitting up. "was your father in the military?" he asked.

john furrowed his brows. "excuse me?"

"you always sit like that." he said and tilted his head up a bit more to make eye contact with john. "you sit like that, not because you want to because it was something you were forced into when you were younger. not by your mother though, it was your father. am i correct?"

john nodded and swallowed the dry lump in hid throat. "yeah." he said softly.

sherlock sat up in his chair properly and examined the boy. "he died, didn't he, in the field?"

john nodded again. "last year. afganistan."

"i'm sorry, i didn't mean to."

"it's fine." john said with a kind of laugh, turning away from sherlock so he could wipe his face dry. "so," john said and turned back around. "do you want to go look in the music library?" he asked. "there's probably not a lot of viloin and clarient duets."

"we have the internet for a reason, john." sherlock said and took out his phone again.

john looked at sherlock, confused. "i never told you my name."

"it's on your folder." sherlock said and stood up. "be right back." he said and set his violin in his chair, twirling the bow as he walked off.

john watched him until he walked out of the room, then he started warming up. sherlock came back with sheet music in his hand and slipped the clarient part on john's stand, then sat back down in his chair.

"clarient quartet?" john said in a questioning tone as he picked up the sheet music. "this is six pages!" he said and looked through them.

sherlock chuckled at the poor, clueless boy. "paul hindemith is german, he lables the measures differently."

"are we going to play all of this?" john asked as he looked through the music.

sherlock shook his head. "no, the whole song is twenty six minutes, we're only playing the first two pages then half of the third. hopefully it's not a trouble."

john put the music back on the stand and looked at it, putting his clarinet up to his lips and starting to play. he ignored the last sentence sherlock said and played the first page, getting everything and missing maybe two notes. "i'm first chair clarinet and i've been playing since i was nine," john said and looked at sherlock.

sherlock rolled his eyes at john and looked at his music. they both practiced their parts seperatly, not really talking to eachother until a girl came over and talked to sherlock. john knew her. she played the alto sax, her name was molly hooper. irene had some kind of gay crush on her and john didn't understand because she had never spoken to molly before. he stopped playing and listened in on their conversation.

"i can't give you a ride home. i have to pick up my sister then take her to practice and stay there with her." molly said to sherlock.

sherlock sighed and gave a look at molly. "do know anyone else that can give me a ride?" he asked her.

"i can." john said, butting in. they both looked at him. "i'm sorry for easedropping, but i can give you a ride home if you need one, sherlock."

the friends looked back at eachother and talked through stares. molly gave hin a stare then sherlock sighed and groaned, turning back to john. "a ride home would be lovely, thank you." sherlock said in a smart ass voice, making molly smack him in the back of the head.

"do excuse him, he is a bit of an ass." molly said and glared at sherlock.

john just chuckled. "it's fine."

"i'll meet you in the parking lot then." sherlock said then stood up. "can i have a word, molly?"

"yeah. wha-" she stopped midsetence as she was being dragged away by sherlock out to the corridor.

he made sure no one was around before shouting softly at his friend. "you know i have a crush on him! what the hell?"

molly grinned. "you're not going to get any where by just staring at him from across the stage."

"you don't have to take your sister to practice, do you?" sherlock asked.

molly shook her head. "nope."

"bitch." sherlock muttered as he opened the door to go back into the auditoruim.

"skank." molly responded.

sherlock smiled and walked back in, not holding the door for molly as she walked in, hearing her muffled voice say something that was probably offensive. he walked back over to where john was seated, packing up his clarinet. sherlock glanced over at him before starting to pack up his violin, shoving his music folder in his bag before going over to where molly was seated. irene noticed sherlock had left and she went over to john, grabbing her stuff on the way.

"so how was it?" she asked as she sat down in the seat that just occupied sherlock.

"i'm giving him a ride home." john said and looked at irene who had a giant grin on her face. "and, no, i did not talk to molly."

her grin turned into a frown as she looked at the brunette talking with sherlock.

"how do you even know she's into girls?" john asked as he pulled his keys out of his bag.

"same way i know sherlock is into boys." she said and kept her eyes on molly.

john huffed out a laugh. "and how do you know that?"

"i follow him on tumblr." irene shifted her gaze back to his friend. "his page is just screaming gay and i know who he likes. he makes small posts about him and he's even posted a picture of him."

"who?" john asked egarly.

irene laughed at him. "does someone have a little crush?"

"no," john muttered as he stood up, putting his bookbag on. his cheeks had turned red and irene grinned.

"he likes you, dumbo." irene said.

john's eyes went wide as he looked down at his friend, then to the curly haired boy, then back to the girl sitting in the chair with a smile on her face. "w-what?" he asked and laughed nervously. "he doesn't like me."

irene rolled her eyes and stood up as the the bell rang. "have fun on your ride." she said and patted john on the shoulder.

"you're a cunt." john said and looked at her.

"i know, i'm a woman, john." she said with the annoying little smirk on her face. "have a good day johnny boy." she said then walked off.

john sighed and picked his case up off the floor and looked at sherlock, who was still talking to molly, before walking out. he stopped at his locker to get a few things then headed out to the student parking lot, going to his busted up honda accord. he put his stuff in the back seat and as he was doing that, he noticed sherlock comming out with molly. he didn't have to worry about his car being a disgusting mess, because he kept it clean. he had a few articles of clothing in the back, but those were irene's and he didn't realize they were there until now. he sighed and got in, turning the car on and waiting for sherlock who was talking with molly at her car. he looked at them and they were both staring at him, making them both turn their heads quickly. john looked away from them and fiddled with the radio, knowing sherlock wouldn't want to listen to his eighties.

sherlock got in a few minutes later, keeping his bookbag by his feet and his violin in his lap. "so where do you live?" john asked as he started to pull out of his parking space.

"i'll just tell you when to turn." sherlock responded, looking down at his phone.

there was silence except the faint sound of the radio playing. sherlock told john when john to turn and those were really the only words he spoke.

"do you want to work on the music after school tomorrow?" john asked as he stopped at a stop light.

"i suppose." sherlock responded, not looking up from his phone. "left at the next stop sign."

john nodded and went as the light turned green, turning left at the next stop sign. "so do want to work at your place or mine?"

"we can work at mine. which means you'll be giving me a ride again." the boy next to him responded. "don't mean to be rude, but can i change the station?" he asked.

john chuckled. "be my guest."

sherlock set his phone down and switched it to a station with alternative music. music that john normally listens to.

"so you like mccafferty?" john asked, hearing their song playing.

"they're alright." sherlock responded. "another left up here."

john hummed in agreement as he took the next left. "what about arkells?" he asked.

"they're not bad. do you like the wrecks?" he asked and looked at john.

john nodded. "yeah, i do. how about coin?"

"ooh, their songs are good. cage the elephant?"

"yes!" john smiled and glanced at sherlock. "saint motel?"

"hippo campus?"

"the maine?"

"ajr?"

"waterparks."

"888."

"catfish and the bottlemen."

"sir sly."

"britney spears." john said, making sherlock laugh.

"do you listen to her music?" he asked, laughing softly.

john shrugged. "it can be a guitly pleasure."

"oh my god," he laughed. "you listen to britney spears as a guilty pleasure?"

john smiled. "sometimes is kesha or pink. it's not like you don't have guitly pleasure music." he said and glance at sherlock quickly.

"i do, but it's not like yours." sherlock said. "a right up here."

"try me." john said and took a right.

"frank sinatra." sherlock admitted. "dean martin, paul anka sometimes sam cooke."

john grinned, "so you're an old soul?"

"i guess," sherlock sighed. "take a right here."

john took a right and they turned into a posh neighborhood. "do you like eighties music?"

"i suppose."

"you suppose?"

"okay, fine. i like eighties music." sherlock said.

john grinned and changed the station to his eighties, turning it up some more.

"oh my," sherlock laughed as he watched john sing along to the song that was playing. he looked at the road and realized his was almost home, his time with john would be over soon and he stopped laughing. "left up here then my house is at the end." he said.

john stopped singing and turned the radio down some, taking the last turn. "so you're parents are loaded?" he asked as he looked around at the massive houses.

sherlock nodded. "yeah."

john hummed slightly and slowed as he pulled up to sherlock's house, putting the car in park. "so tomorrow?"

"tomorrow," sherlock said then got out. "thanks for the ride." he said as he grabbed his bag.

"anytime." john responded and smiled at him.

sherlock blushed slightly and smiled back. "bye, john."

john waved at him and sherlock closed the door, turning around and walking up to the house. john unbuckled and got out of the car, mot wanting to miss his chance. "sherlock, wait!" he called.

sherlock stopped and turned around. "did i forget something?" he asked as he walked back to the car.

john walked around the car and met him in the middle. "yeah, my number." he smiled.

sherlock laughed lightly at him and handed him his phone, watching him put his number in it.

"how about we get dinner tomorrow?" john asked as he gave sherlock back the phone. "after we practice."

"like a date?" sherlock asked, watching him.

"yeah, i guess that's what i'm saying." john said and rubbed the back of his head.

"that would be nice." sherlock said.

john smiled. "great. i'll see you tomorrow then?"

sherlock nodded and smiled. "tomorrow."