Coming Home
Summary: After finding out Gwen had cheated on Arthur, Merlin rans away from his life and friends. Morgana is getting married and has sent out an invitation to Merlin's flatmate Gwaine, and Merlin winds up getting dragged along. What happens when a secret Merlin's been keeping from them all, is shown? Warning/Spoilers: Merlin has a panic attack which causes him to have an asthma attack, if you don't like that kind of stuff then I suggest you don't read.
Merlin ran away from his home town Camelot almost four years ago now. He's been living in a small area called Dragon Valley all this time. He lives in a flat with his new found friend Gwaine who Merlin finds both annoying and entertaining as a friend. Out of nowhere Gwaine came into the living room with a letter, which he opened as he sat down on the sofa next to Merlin. Gwaine lets out a slight chuckle. "I've been sent a wedding invitation, and it says I can take one guest." Gwaine states, then a smile appears on his face. "Hay, do you want to come with me? You're the only person I have to take and since it's during our summer holiday I know you haven't got anything better to do." Gwaine asked, Merlin looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"But I don't even know these people." Merlin states.
"So?" Gwaine questions, Merlin just give a look that told Gwaine he wasn't convinced. "Oh, come on. It'll be fun." Gwaine almost begged.
Merlin decided to give in. After all, what could go wrong? "Sure…I'll accompany you." Gwaine smiled at his friend with delight.
"Great!" Gwaine said happily. "You better get your things together, because we've got to leave early tomorrow morning if we're going to make it." Gwaine taps Merlin on the shoulder playfully before standing up to go pack. When Gwaine left the room, Merlin sure that the wedding invitation was left on the coffee table and decided to pick it up so he at least knew the names of these people. When he opened it and read the names, his eyes widened, his heart started to raise, his chest got tight as his breathing got faster. He reached for his back pocket but came to find that what he was looking for wasn't there. He rushed to his room quickly as his vision got blurry, he knocked over a lamp as he got to his room. He entered his room and opened his top drawer of his dresser where he kept all his spars and refills. And took out the one he used most often, took the lid off, placed his lips round the bottom, pressed the button on the top and took in the salbutamol it contained to open up his air ways so he could breathe probably. You see, Merlin had one little secret he never told anyone except doctors because he felt they were the only people who needed to know.
"Merlin are you ok? I heard a lot of commotion!" Gwaine came running into the room with a paniced look on his face, but once he sure what Merlin was doing he looked at him in sympathy. "Merlin, I've told you over a thousand times to keep an asthma pump on you at all times and a re-fill just in case it runs out." That's right, Merlin has asthma. Merlin has had asthma for as long as he can remember, the only people who knew where doctors, his teachers from school and his parents when they were alive. He didn't tell anyone else because he felt that it wasn't important. Not even Arthur knows and he's Merlin's best friend…or at least he was before Merlin ran away. Even Gwaine wouldn't have known if it wasn't for Merlin having an asthma attack right in front of him, which Gwaine hated to remember. He generally thought he was going to lose Merlin that day, ever since Gwaine's quickly gotten used to it. He felt sorry for Merlin, he was saddened that Merlin needs an asthma pump. Gwaine has even got used to Merlin leaving his pump in the most stupid of places, he doesn't put it in him pocket. No, Merlin decides to put it in his bag, or leave it in his drawers even at work, or like the times they had to stay the night at a hotel and Merlin decided to leave it in his bag, which he left in the hotel room. Gwaine was so used to it, he even made sure to carry a spare, just in case Merlin had an asthma attack and didn't have his asthma pump on him.
"I know…I just hate that I have to use it." Merlin said with upset written all over his body. "Why can't I just breath normally like everyone else Gwaine?" Gwaine quickly made his way over to Merlin and hugged him, as he sat them both down on Merlin's bed. Since Gwaine was the only person who knew of Merlin's asthma, he was the only one Merlin would open up to about it. Merlin just wished with all his heart that he could have done so with the person he loved. "I can't go to that wedding Gwaine…I can't go back there…I can't see him again…because if he's there, she's going to be there and if she's there so is her daughter…I can't Gwaine…please…I can't do that to him." Merlin begged. Gwaine had seen Merlin in bad straights before when his friend Arthur came into his mind, but never this bad. Even the day Merlin told Gwaine why he ran away wasn't as bad as now. Probably because now he was faced with going back after so many years. This was going to be really hard on Merlin, especially since the thought of Arthur ever finding out that Gwen had cheated on him and that his daughter wasn't actually his was the main cause to Merlin asthma attacks.
"Then I won't make you…but I would love it if you came. Then I'd have someone to talk to, and I know you'd be taken care of, cause you and I both know what your like with those asthma pumps of yours. I mean have you ever heard or putting it somewhere that useful?" Merlin chuckles at that, which makes Gwaine smile. "Please come with me Merlin. You can avoid Arthur as much as possible, even if that means you're going to lock yourself in the hotel room till the wedding actually starts, please." There was a reason Gwaine was trying so hard to persuade Merlin to come, but he couldn't tell Merlin unless it worked.
"Ok, I'll go. But you have to be prepared to see me in the worst state of panic you've ever seen me. You have to be sure you can watch me panic every time Gwen, Arthur or Yasmin in a room, especially if there all there at the same time. Do you think you could do that? Because I know that you care about me Gwaine since I was your first true friend." Merlin asks, wanting to make sure Gwaine could handle that, for they both new Merlin couldn't help his panic attack with they both just called asthma attack since the panic attack would cause him to have an asthma attack.
"You're my friend Merlin, I won't like seeing you like that but I promise to help you through it. But knowing that you may have so many just because of what she did, make me wonder if I'm doing the right thing in making you come." Gwaine tells his black haired friend.
"No, you encouraged me. There's a difference. Besides, maybe it's time I go back and face it. It's like the old saying goes, it doesn't matter how far you run from soothing, you will always wind up having to face it in the end. You just have to promise me that you won't say anything about my asthma to anyone, especially Arthur." Merlin tells Gwaine who smiles at his friend in pride.
"I promise." Gwaine confirms. "Now pack your thing's and don't you dare forget about your inhalers or your re-fills, and please…keep one on you." Merlin nods his head as he takes out two other asthma pumps and at least six re-fills, placing them on the bed as a way of reassuring Gwaine. Gwaine puts out his head which Merlin look at blankly before looking up at Gwaine. "Don't try that one, you know why I'm doing this." Merlin rolls his eyes as he passes on of the two pump that was on the bed to Gwaine. There was a reason he had three, two were for him, the third was for Gwaine so he knew where at least one of them was, just in case Merlin forgets. "Thank you, now pack up. We gotta be out of here and at the airport before midnight if we're going to make it on time tomorrow." Gwaine told him, as he patted Merlin's shoulder.
Merlin chuckles and shakes his head slightly at his friend. "Ok Gwaine." Gwaine left the room with a satisfied smile. When he left the room Merlin sighed, "What am I going to do if I see him again?" Merlin asked himself sadly, then he thought of something. "Nothing…I'm going with Gwaine to be there for Morgana's wedding, which means I'm going for Morgana. That's what I have to focus on." Merlin told himself with a nod. If Arthur started asking questions, or anyone for that matter Merlin would just tell them he came for Morgana's wedding, not to be harassed. With that in mind Merlin packed all the things he thought he'd need, quite confidently considering where he was going.
To Be Continued
Massively inspired by a Merthur story called, Homecoming by EachPeachPearPlum. Please go check out their story is amazing! Here's the link: /works/5249498
And if you want to see the art for it, there in the story but here's a link to the deviantart work: art/Merlin-Homecoming-Part-1-559439190
Thank you