"But I don't want to move! The fucking place is in the middle of nowhere! I am not going to fit in and I won't be accepted."

"Arthur, you are a star football player, and excellent lifter, you love to act, and whether you believe it or not, you are an incredibly friendly person. If you don't find friends after the first week, you aren't trying."

"But Dad-"

"Arthur, that's enough. We are moving and that's final."

Whatever Uther said was final, so Arthur didn't even know why he tried to fight it. It was the third time he had moved, but the first time he was moving in the middle of the school year. The last time he moved was the summer before eighth grade. He had moved from Portland, Oregon to Dallas, Texas. It wasn't that bad, only the scorching summer days he full heartedly was not expecting. If anyone tells you that Texas summers were the best, they lied to you. They have the worst kind of heat imaginable and not even rain, and sure as hell not enough nighttime. Only good thing was that Arthur could sleep in as much as he well please.

Anyways, before they lived in the United States, the Pendragon family lived in Newport, Wales. Interesting enough, for Americans anyways, that was where Arthur and his half sister Morgana, five months older, were born. They lived there until the two of them were ten, and then Uther got the opportunity of a life time: a cheap house and easy seat in politics. So they packed up the house and left the only place they had ever known for the hilly countryside of Oregon. Whether it was right or not, Arthur would always say he moved half way around the world.

Once they got to Dallas, things seemed to settle down. For the most part, at least. Freshman year he learned that he was a star football player, American football. He also learned that he could one and a half times the weight he was, and that he could act better than the seniors. He was incredibly gifted, he would admit that, but he also learned that he was incredibly different. It could have been something in the water during all those practices and training sessions, but Arthur soon began to realize that he was gay. It didn't really bother him, but even before he had learned he was or that he would be moving to Texas, he had heard that people in the south were far less accepting of differences than most places in the United States. So he was a bit apprehensive about "coming out". However, one mishap at a party where he got super pissed fixed that up real quick and it turned out everyone was fine with it. The only person not fine with it was his grandmother back in Wales, but she was fixing to die soon so it didn't really bother him that much. He was surprised that his father was okay with it, though.

However, this time he was moving to the middle of nowhere. Somewhere around Anna or Melissa, Texas to be exact. Uther didn't tell the kids anything about it until the week before they moved. Which wasn't exactly unlike him in the slightest, but he could have told them even a week sooner. Enough time to get their heads around the fact that they were moving to the middle of nowhere.

"We are going to break down-"

"In the middle of nowhere," Arthur finished for Morgana.

"If you kids will stop quoting Doctor Who and get in the car, I will assure you that we will not break down in the middle of nowhere, and you will end up liking the place a lot more than you think."

"You say that now, but what if we hate it?" Morgana questioned.

"Then I will buy you a new car. Within reason, of course."

"Did he just say that?" Arthur quizzedly asked Morgana. "Did you really just promise us that?"

"I don't recall actually promising you anything, Arthur. But, if it makes you feel better, I will."

"Make me feel a whole lot better, actually."

"I, Uther Pendragon, promise Arthur and Morgana Pendragon each a new car if they do not like living in, nor the people, of Anna, Texas after four months."

"Did you record that?" Morgana asked Arthur.

"Of course. Mark this day, Dad. It's October 20th, 2012. On February 20, I expect you to take us to a car dealership, okay?"

"Whatever you say, kid. Come on, you can choose the station we listen to on the way."

"Uh! No fair!" Morgana said as she climbed into the back seat while Arthur climbed into the front.

"You always get to choose."

"You deny that comment, Morgana, and I will make you hug him," Uther teasingly said.

"Fine." If the look on her face said anything, Arthur would be six feet in the ground by now. But, it was alright. Every thing was going to be alright.

Except it wasn't. In fact, it was the worst thing that had ever happened to Arthur, and that includes moving to Dallas in the middle of one of the hottest summers ever. It was beyond that. Beyond getting the first Death Star blown up, watching your friends fall off of a building, your dad making a deal with the devil to save your life, or being trapped in a iceberg for a hundred years. Worse than that. And it came in the form of Merlin Emerson.

Merlin is the most annoying person in the history or the world. He asks too many questions. Doesn't speak when he knows the answer and said it under his breath. Takes way too many advanced classes but doesn't like to admit that he needs to take a fucking break. He acts and is ridiculously good at it. He can make people laugh a little too much. And he cares about everybody as if everybody has this grand future and if he doesn't be nice to them, he will get bad karma. He is that kind of guy. And Arthur would be okay with it if he wasn't smitten - and yes he just used the word smitten - by those abnormally large ears and that smile that lightens the whole fucking school up. Yup, he is utterly fucked. Not to mention that Morgana instantly took a liking to Merlin, and somehow became best friends with him and his friends. It Arthur remembers correctly that includes Guinevere (or Gwen, but he likes the name Guinevere better), Gwaine (the sexual innuendo-filled git), and Lancelot (the nicest and most humble man you will ever meet you want to take their clothes off and just stare at, seriously), and lastly Percy (who had the biggest arms he had ever met, and it be best to remember that Arthur was a heavy weight lifter, he had seen some arms). It was obviously clear that Morgana would not be getting a car; and it was lunchtime on the first day!

But damn him if Arthur was going to let one attractive little bugger get him out of a new car. He was not going to fall for Merlin, not for his tricks, the attention, the want to be wanted, having new friends, no matter how hard it was. Arthur was not going to-

Fall. On the floor. With food e. So much for not falling.

"Arthur are you okay?" he heard Morgana's voice from his right.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he nonchalantly replied as he tried get up. His arm and stomach hurt like hell and it didn't make it any better when his head bumped into somebody.

"Oh, sorry. I wasn't looking," a heavy but oddly light voice said from his left. He looked up and realized it was Merlin. And his head was right in front of his...

"It's okay, I'm okay, everything is okay," Arthur said as he quickly got up on the floor and bent down to pick up the food.

"You don't look okay. Here let me help you," Merlin said as he crouched down to help.

"Hmm...thank you," Arthur replied. He had to say something, he already looked like a complete idiot.

"So, how do you know Morgana?" Merlin asked.

"She's my sister."

"Half-sister, I would like to add," Morgana interjected.

"Same difference," Merlin supplied. "How far apart are you two?"

"Five months, I'm older." Snoppy was Morgana's middle name. Devil was too if you weren't careful.

"I bet that was awkward for your...?"

"Mothers," Arthur answered as he got readjusted and calmed down a bit. "But, they were...close friends you could say. And mine died during childbirth."

It was the first time all day that Arthur had seen Merlin not smile, so Arthur was taken a bit back and felt the need to make things right. But the words were stuck because Merlin was just so freaking pretty.

"I'm sorry, I don't know when to stop talking, I need to learn. Gwaine has been telling me for years that I need to stop talkingbecauseifIgetnervouso rupsetmywordsturnintoonebigw ord-"

"Merlin, you're doing it again!" Gwaine yelled from the table.

"Sorry," Merlin said looking sheepish.

"It's okay. And it was fine, I answered your question, perhaps with a bit more information than you needed to know, but it's all good. No hard feelings, okay?"

"If you say so," Merlin said with an easy smile. Definitely not going to fall for the smile.

"We better go finish lunch. See you at home, Arthur," Morgana threw back as she walked back to her spot, laughing at something she overheard Gwaine said.

"Well, you should go finish eating. I think I will go clean up a bit. Nice talking to you Merlin," Arthur said with a sad smile and a nod before turning around to walk away.

"You know, I was done eating. I think I will come with you. Make sure you are okay."

Crap. So much for getting a car.

"If you want, cool."

"I didn't catch your name... I know Morgana said it but it must have slipped my mind," Merlin announced as he outstretched his hand.

"Arthur."

"Nice to meet you, Arthur. Now, let's go get you cleaned up, shall we?"