„What of what now?“

„Coco Pops. The sugary delight.“

„Yes, emphasis on „sugary“. Do you know how many calories that has, Gregory? 500 kcal per 100 grams. That‘s at the very least an hour workout, one and a half hours on the-“

„Myc-“

„-threadmill. Are you trying to fatten me up? I‘ve already put on 5 pounds since we‘ve started dating, and I can‘t get them off-“

„Mycroft-“

„-which is just plain unacceptable, my body-mass-index is already on the heavy side and I just can‘t afford to gain any more weight, and you know how Sherlock gets-“

„Mycroft. Stop.“

Mycroft‘s jaw shut with an audible click. 

Mycroft's shoulders slumped slightly. Greg stared at him, his eyes softening. "We don't have to get them if you don't want to, love. I just thought it would be fun-"

The taller man's voice cracked as he spoke. "I-no, it's, it's fine, we can get them--" He met his boyfriend's eyes, his demeanour crumbling.

"....Are you sure?"

Greg's hand covered his, brushing over his knuckles. Mycroft focused on it, steading his breathing, closing his eyes as he traced Greg's pulse point under his fingertips. His eyes opened again. Greg smiled.

"I have an idea."

„Hm, do tell, Gregory“

„How about a compromise, love? How about in the future, before going shopping, we write down a meal plan for the whole week so you know what to expect when we go shopping?“, Greg bit his lip nervously, unsure as to whether Mycroft would be amenable to doing so.

„That might be prudent, yes,“ Mycroft closed his eyes, inhaling deeply.

„That‘s great, darl. How about I make breakfast the way I want, and you make dinner the way you want? After all, it‘s all about balance, isn‘t it love?“, Greg asked.

„Well, that might be a good idea, yes. But what are we going to do with all the extra sweets you‘ve put in the basket?“

„Oh, don‘t worry about that. I know just what to do“, said Greg, his eyes twinkling.

"Greg dear, and Mycroft! What a lovely surprise it is to have you two boys here, sorry, I'll just go pop the kettle on-"

Greg stopped her, "Oh, no, Mrs Hudson, its quite alright. Are-are Sherlock and John in?"

"They left to take little Rosie to the park just a minute ago, dears, but you can wait for them?"

Mycroft smiled politely at the concerned landlady. "Oh, it really is no bother, Mrs Hudson. We've just done some shopping for them, since Rosie's birthday is coming up-"

"-Rosie's birthday isn't til March," Hissed Greg. Mycroft winced. "Right. Since...Halloween is coming up, we thought we'd bring some sweets down for her, and, of course, my brother and Dr. Watson."

Walking up the seventeen steps of 221B, Greg fell into giggles as an idea popped into his head.

„Myc…“

„What now, Gregory?“, Mycroft turned towards his partner.

„How about we hide the sweets?“, Greg giggled.

Mycroft rolled his eyes, but his lips quirked up into that slight smile which Greg loved so much.

„Alright. But we‘ve got to hurry up. I estimate they will be back 27 minutes.“

-

Exactly 49 minutes after the pair left Baker Street, Mycroft‘s phone beeped incessantly on the coffee table in front of the couch where the two were cuddled up on. Mycroft reached across Greg‘s arm which tightened at the movement, and Greg let out a low grumble from where he was laying behind Mycroft, spooning him.

„What do you want, Sherlock?“, Mycroft asked, voice laced with sleep. Greg tightened his grip and whispered into his ear, „put it on speaker“.

„MYCROFT HOLMES, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!“, Sherlock‘s deep baritone boomed over the tiny speakers of the phone. Mycroft winced, holding the phone further away from his face. Laughter and squeals could be heard in the background, an annoyed John telling Rosie to put that down now, it‘s too late for sweets, love.

„Why do you think we‘ve done anything, Sherlock? I‘ve not been anywhere today, in fact, Gregory can attest to that.“

„WHO ARE YOU KIDDING, MYCROFT. THERE ARE GREY HAIRS LITTERED ALL OVER THE PLACE, AND THERE ARE THREADS OF YOUR NEWEST SUIT ON MY CHAIR.“ A thud could be heard in the background, followed by an excited giggle of Papa, look! More sweets!

„Hm, I hear you have your hands full, Papa. I‘ll leave you to it. I hope you have a restful night, Lock. Don‘t forget to call our parents tomorrow, alright? Bye now!“

„MYC-“ the line cut off the rest of the sentence.

Mycroft put his phone back on the coffe table and turned around to face Greg, who was smiling widely. They looked at each other for a few moments, then both burst into undignified giggles.

„Didn‘t that make you feel better, love?“, Greg asked after catching his breath.

„Yes, I suppose so,“ Mycroft smiled softly and snuggled closer to his partner, closing his eyes and breathing deeply. Maybe going shopping wasn‘t so bad after all.