Merlin Emrys stood in front of the tall mirror in his friends' bathroom, which could have easily held more than one person's reflection, and stared. It was not often that he did so, as he himself did not find his appearance anything that warranted scrutinization. However, today was a somewhat special occasion, as his friends Lance and Gwen were hosting a Halloween party. Rather than spying his usual likeness gazing back at him, the man found one of himself wrapped in the encasement that Gwen had helped him with earlier, covering nearly his whole body.
"Pretty good, eh, Merlin?" Lance inquired from behind him, then walking forward to admire his wife's handiwork on himself.
Nodding, Merlin agreed. When his long time friend stumbled up beside him, he noticed that by some strange coincidence they looked identical. Their hair, which was the same shade, protruded slightly from the tops of their wrappings in various places. Were someone to look at the sideways, neither would be able to be told apart, with even their width being the same.
"Gwen did well, but I expected nothing less from her," Merlin admitted, before turning away from the mirror.
Mimicking his friend, Lance hesitantly followed behind him, then reaching out to grasp his shoulder, he was able to make the other pause.
"Ah, Merlin, I know it slipped Gwen's mind to mention, but Arthur will be coming tonight," Lance admitted, as he watched his friend's facial expressions.
Merlin huffed, and then groaned. Gwen's former boyfriend and Lance's other best friend was just about his least favorite person, if anyone were to ask his opinion. In the early days of meeting him, he was embarrassed to admit, he had hidden a somewhat large crush on the man. Despite the good looks which Arthur had been blessed with though, Merlin had later discovered the man to be a massive prat. Unfortunately, for Lance's and Gwen's sake, he was required to entertain his ill-mannered ways.
"Of course he is," Merlin grumbled.
Lance rolled his eyes, but still put on the smile he did whenever faced with something rather unpleasant, such as mentioning awkward tidbits of information.
"It's just one night, Merlin. Gwen's invited a ridiculous amount of people. I doubt you'll have to speak to him more than once."
For Lance's sake, Merlin nodded, intent on soldiering through the annoyance that was Arthur Pendragon.
"Good. The less I have to speak to the prat, the better."
Lance shook his head, and allowed his hand to fall away from Merlin's shoulder.
"You know, Merlin, once you get to know him, he's not a bad bloke."
The aforementioned man threw him a skeptical glance.
"That's what you told me five years ago, Lance, and look where that got us."
Shaking his head, Merlin was reminded of their first altercation, which had spiraled into a feud that continued into the present day. Arthur had been his usual hot blooded self, even at the ripe age of twenty, which only served to antagonize Merlin's own tendencies to be so. His condescending attitude did little to improve himself in the lanky man's opinion, to boot. Despite the entreaties of both Lance and Gwen, asking him to give Arthur a second chance.
Sighing, Lance gave him one of those withering looks, which Merlin knew to mean that his friend thought he was being pig-headed. He withdrew his blue eyes, and inwardly wondered if his mate was right. In the past year, he had seen so little of Arthur, that he admitted to himself it would be unfair to judge the man as of late. Before then, he had been in his presence more times than he cared to be, simply because Lance and Gwen had been tying the knot. The firm bias in place though within Merlin's mind, ensured that he would think the worst of Arthur at any occasion, which Lance knew. Merlin was a grudge holder.
"I won't attempt to sway you. Just bear in mind what I said," Lance said, an air of finality in his voice.
A creaking door gave way to Gwen entering the room seconds later, her Cleopatra costume on. Glancing between her husband and Merlin, she gave them searching looks. By the strained expression on Merlin's face, she knew what Lance had told him. A small smile played at her lips, and she threw it in her friend's direction, before embracing her husband covered in the mold she had made him earlier.
"Guests are starting to arrive, and I believe a few of them are for you, darling," she informed, gazing up into his eyes.
Grateful for the distraction, Lance nodded and returned her hug.
"Let the fun begin," he said to both out loud.
Planting a kiss on Gwen's forehead, the two made their way out to their living room, leaving Merlin to ponder his thoughts a bit longer.
"Arthur, if you do not come back here this instant," Uther Pendragon's voice filtered through his smart phone, the open ended threat hanging in the air.
Seated in his car outside of Gwen's and Lance's home, Arthur frowned. All around him, people were parking their own vehicles in any space on the street that they could, so that they were able to reach the couple's abode. In the silence, he found solace, even if it was merely an illusion.
"Arthur!" his father yelled, which garnered his attention back to the mobile in his right hand.
"I'm not changing my mind. Either accept me this way, or find a new son," Arthur popped off numbly, before pressing the red button in the middle of his screen.
Once he hung up, the phone found a new home on his passenger seat after he chucked it in that direction.
Groaning, he reached for the handle and opened his door, grateful for the chance to stretch his limbs. The drive over had been horrendous. At least twice he had been caught up in traffic resulting from a collision, which made it perceivably worse. With his feet planted firmly on the ground, he reached up and moved his muscles about until they felt worked over enough.
After shutting the door behind him and locking his car, Arthur began the short walk up to his best friends' home, eager for interaction with people who enjoyed his company, rather than expected it.
Stood by the snack table set up in front of the kitchen, Merlin ate his food, happy in the knowledge that he had managed to make a plate before a number of Lance's and Gwen's other friends had pilfered the spread. The couple, both so friendly in nature, had a number of acquaintances and friends between the two. For the most part, the slender man had heard of each person in attendance. However, their home was filling up fast, and as Lance had predicted, it was hard to tell one person from another. To Merlin's great pleasure, he had yet to see Arthur Pendragon anywhere, at all.
The elder of the Pendragon siblings, Morgana, had been one of the first ones to arrive. Decked out in a form fitting witch's costume, she had made her rounds to say hello, before returning to her husband's side. Leon, for his part, was wildly unimaginative in his own footie league uniform. Their daughter Nessa had been dispatched to a sitter, apparently, from what Merlin had overheard minutes ago. While Merlin had not much to do with Arthur, Morgana on the other hand, was one of his closest friends.
As the throng became bigger, Merlin found himself moving to a corner, away from the fray of people. Glancing around again, he groaned inwardly as he spied his least favorite person trudging through the throng of people milling about. The displeasure continued when he noticed that the blond was headed directly towards him. Nodding, at Arthur, who had just done the same to him, he wondered why on earth the man had singled him out that night. Reaching down to a pretzel on his plate, he threw it in his mouth in an effort to silently protest having to speak to the prat.
Breaking the quietude between them, Arthur nodded towards the center of the room.
"Looks like the turn out is good."
Food still between his jaws, Merlin reciprocated the gesture.
Arthur shifted on his feet, surveying the room again.
"My father has come to the conclusion that either I start modelling behavior that he deems decent of the next President of CamLot, Inc., or I exclude myself from the running. His tirade over the matter is what kept me from being early today. Apparently, being openly bisexual is not a trait he wishes for me to display in public, which he made very clear after he found me on a date last weekend. The lad I took out seemed like a nice man. At least, until my father's anger made him bolt from the meal."
Arthur sighed heavily.
Meanwhile, whilst digesting the information he had just received, Merlin did the only thing he could think of, which was to slip a handful of small pumpkin shaped pretzels into his mouth again. Arthur adjusted his body again, and leaned against the wall, with his arms crossed. Unaware of Merlin's unease, he continued on.
"I've worked more hours than any of the others eligible for his job, which he is well aware of. He doesn't give a rat's arse that one of his friends, who is also seeking the position, happens to be divorced because he cheated on his wife. He doesn't give a damn that the other one has his head in a bottle of alcohol more than he should. I care more about that company and its employees than any of them do, my father included, and yet my sexuality has become a matter of contention."
At this point, Arthur had his fists balled up at his sides, clearly seething. Merlin, who had witnessed a myriad of moods from the man over they years, had yet to ever see him this angry. Of course, he couldn't find fault with the blond's anger either, as it had even him vexxed for Arthur.
Swallowing more of his food, Merlin noticed Lance and Gwen in the centre of the room, now becoming distinguishable amongst their various party guests. Unclenching his hands, Arthur reached up and ran a hand through his hair now.
"I apologize for talking your ear off. My father just makes me so angry."
At this point, Merlin knew he had to say something, lest he verge on being rude.
"S'alright," he managed, his voice sounding off kilter even as he spoke, though.
Arthur didn't notice though, as his eyes were now trained out to where Lance and Gwen were. Catching on to this, Merlin followed his line of sight. For a moment, he wondered if the blond still had feelings for Gwen, as he continued to stare. When Arthur shook his head, and turned away, the thinner man wondered. That was, until he spoke.
"Were it not for the fact that Merlin would probably spit in my face, I'd ask him out tonight. After that row with my father, I feel I should just get the rejection over with, so I can handle it all at once."
Stunned, Merlin remained upright, now rooted to the spot. Everything had fallen into place suddenly; Arthur thought that he was Lance.
A bundle of nerves, Arthur watched Merlin in the center of the room, laughing with Morgana, Gwen, and Leon over who knows what. He wished he could be a part of it though, just as he always did. Secretly, he had been infatuated with the man for years, despite common sense telling him he shouldn't be. After all, he purposely acted like an arse to him at every chance he got. It was no curiosity as to why there was an animosity between the two.
It had started by mere coincidence, when they were just barely becoming familiar with one another, as Lance and Gwen had begun to date. However, with Merlin being the stubborn mule that Arthur had learned he was, the die had already been cast. To combat this, Arthur lived up to the other man's expectations every chance he got, just because that was what he expected from the blond. Over the years, as Arthur's infatuation grew, he deeply regretted that course of action. However, as he admitted to himself now, it was probably for the best. He never considered himself worthy of Merlin, regardless.
Beside him, Lance shifted. His best mate since Uni, the two had gotten on famously since their first meeting. With his calm demeanor, Lance was easily able to diffuse Arthur in a tense situation, as the latter had a temper to rival that of his father's. Likewise, where Lance lacked the conviction to go through with certain actions if he were worried about hurting others, Arthur would give him the occasional pep talk, which helped him see where he would be harming himself more, were he to abstain. Over the years, the two had shared a unique bond, and Arthur felt a kinship with him that he rarely did with anyone else. Their friendship had sustained his sanity more times than he could count.
Arthur shook his head, grateful that only Lance had heard his statement. It was just as well that he didn't speak to Merlin, because as much adrenaline was running through his veins, it was equally likely that the two would end up in a disagreement of their own.
Merlin had yet to reply to Arthur's declaration. After all, what was he to say? Grasping for words, he found himself the subject of the blond's scrutinization.
"You've been rather quiet tonight, Lance, even for you. Are you okay? Everything alright with you and Gwen?"
Now, Merlin knew this was the moment of truth. He had to speak up, because it was only fair.
Rather than speaking, Merlin moved to set his plate down on a nearby table. After, he reached up and undid the wrapping the covered his head. In one minute, Arthur's face went from confused to horrified. His face which was previously a normal shade of color, had begun turning red out of embarrassment.
"You-" Arthur spouted out, his voice raised, and then he turned around and walked away.
Merlin stood there, with the rough paper in his hand, wondering if he should have spoken up earlier.