So I ended up making a second part, but it went on too long so there'll be a third part as well and then it should be more or less finished.

I hope you guys enjoy this~

-ooo-

"Merlin, do you have a minute?" Gwaine called, grinning and waving in an attempt to catch his friend's attention. Blue eyes quickly turned to him and the familiar skip of his heart accompanied by the lump in his throat found themselves in the young warlock.

"Ah, no…Arthur asked me to get him something to eat," he replied, "Sorry, maybe some other time."

"Sure. When you're done you can bring me a snack too," the knight laughed, expecting a smile from his friend in return. Instead, Merlin forced his expression to turn apologetic and prayed that he could lie effectively, just this once.

"After this, I have to muck out the stables again and then take his sword down to the blacksmith and…Arthur's got me working all day." This made Gwaine frown.

"Oh, then I guess I'll see you later. Work hard," he managed a slightly smile until the servant turned around and paced quickly down the hall. His frown returned; Merlin had been extremely busy for the past week. There weren't any battles or anything overly important, so Arthur had no reason to be working his friend so hard. For Merlin's sake, Gwaine decided he should confront the king.

Besides, he enjoyed hanging out with his friend, admittedly a little more than a friend should like. But no matter how obvious his flirtations were, he would never outright admit it to the man.

So, he headed towards the throne room, stopping by the kitchen to grab that quick snack he'd been wanting, and strolled in. Arthur was currently talking with some elderly men – not that he knew who they were, or that he cared. The king caught him out of his periphery, haphazardly looking up to fully view his knight.

"Your Highness, can I have a word in private?" he asked, looking completely casual as he requested this of his ruler. Though the strangers murmured amongst themselves, Arthur dismissed them without hardly a care. Gwaine watched them leave, looking like anything but a knight of Camelot – rolling back and forth on his heels, lips pursed slightly, eyes wandering. Arthur stood up from his throne, stretching.

"Sitting in that chair's going to be the death of me," he groaned, "Maybe I'll get Merlin to add some cushioning…"

"About Merlin. I think you've been working him too much, Arthur."

"Excuse me?" The royal's brows knitted together in confusion.

"Merlin's always been off doing something or other for you this week. Did he do something wrong or are you just messing with him?"

"I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't seen him since this morning when he brought me my breakfast. Although…I suppose something was bothering him, since he seemed sort of off…but I figured someone had tried to ask him a math question or something." It did bother Gwaine that Arthur would sit there and berate Merlin's intelligence, demeaning him down to some kind of simpleton. The knight knew his friend was smart, knew there was more to the man that he ever let on. He just wished Arthur could see it too.

Then again, he had a feeling that would to more competition. And he was sure if Arthur wanted something, anything, Merlin was probably willing to do it. That bothered him much more than Arthur's insults for his servant.

"Well he said he's been busy all the time lately, so I figured…"

"Oh don't mind that. He's probably down at the tavern," Arthur walked around the table, making small sounds of relief as he stretched his legs out.

"No, Merlin's not much of a drinker," Gwaine interjected. The king laughed, heartily so, at the other man.

"Isn't he? Oh Gwaine, I think you don't know Merlin quite like I do," he commented before patting his friend on the shoulder. This puzzled the brunette. He thought he had known Merlin so well, better than Arthur would ever take the time to know. Yet, here he was claiming to know the servant more than – essentially – anyone else. It couldn't be…

"Arthur?"

"Yes?"

"Do you…Are you…sleeping with Merlin?" The royal spun around, wide-eyed and obviously insulted.

"What?"

"Well I only thought…I'm sure he thinks the world of you and…you spend so much time together and you seem so close, so I just thought that maybe you two were together." His explanation seemed logical in his mind, but he could easily tell that Arthur was in fact not sleeping with his only servant. And, for a reason only he knew, this comforted Gwaine's mind greatly.

"No, we aren't…That's disgusting," he spluttered, "How could you even think that? God, he's not even a woman!"

"He's kind of like a woman…" The knight had let this slip past his lips. He'd noticed that the man's smile was as sweet as any maiden – and he wouldn't be surprised if his lips were he same.

"Just because he can't fight and he's as fearless as a kitten doesn't mean he's a woman, Gwaine," Arthur chastised, "But it puts him pretty close." He laughed, obviously thinking it was a joke. To preserve his reputation as a womanizer, the brunette laughed in response. The king again patted his shoulder before strolling back to his throne.

"So don't worry about Merlin; he's probably just down at the tavern again." His words and smile was assuring, but Gwaine remained where he was standing. Arthur waited for him to make some sort of comment, but he simply stood there.

"…is there anything else?" he prompted. The other man looked up, snapped from his thoughts, and his thoughtful expression melted into an apologetic smile.

"No…thanks for your time, Arthur."

"Any time," the blond replied, though mostly to be polite. Still, his knight bowed his head slightly before turning on his heel. He walked out, his mind jumping to all sorts of conclusions. Merlin was not the type to drink, but what else would lead Arthur to believe that he was at the tavern? He had never seen the man drunk, but was sure the servant would act as giddy as a young girl. With that realization, he decided he would need to see him drunk because there was that much of a possibility that he could at least press a few kisses to those almost always smiling lips.

But then the thought crossed his mind that perhaps Merlin wasn't at the tavern. Where else could he be? What else could he be doing when he wasn't serving Arthur's every last wish?

The possibilities were racing across his mind, distracting him for the most part from where he was going. So when he rounded a corner and a body slammed into his own, it took a second for him to be brought back to his senses. When he did, however, he was pleasantly surprised.

"Are you alright?" Merlin questioned, trying to help his friend to his feet, "I'm sorry, I should have been looking where I was going." Gwaine shook his head, smiling slightly as the other man tried to apologize.

"I'm fine, don't worry. It takes more than a little tumble to mess with a knight of Camelot," he joked. The warlock gave him a sweet smile in return, one that he hadn't used for a while, not since that night…But the knight had no way of knowing that, and was simply glad the man seemed to be at ease again. Except Merlin seemed to realize what he was doing, and his smile faltered into one that seemed forced.

"I, I have to go," he admitted.

"Arthur's still got you running errands?" He said this, knowing he would catch the servant in a lie.

"All day," he agreed before moving past him.

"Liar." Merlin stopped and began to turn.

"Wha-" Gwaine took him by the shoulders and pressed him to the wall. Already, the warlock's heart was accelerating and when the knight leaned closer, he was afraid it would simply burst right then and there. All he could think of was the last time he'd been that close, how warm his lips were, how talented he was with his mouth, that indefinable pleasure…

"Merlin."

"Yes?" he breathed, afraid that the knight would repeat his actions – but this time he was undoubtedly sober.

"…you haven't been at the tavern," he released his friend with a slight smile. There wasn't a hint of alcohol on his breath. So he at least knew Merlin better than Arthur. But now the remaining question was: why had Merlin lied to them? What was he hiding?

"Of course I haven't," he agreed with an incredulous sort of undertone. He fixed his clothes, though they needed no fixing, as Gwaine stepped away.

"Well Arthur thinks you have been. And another thing, if you haven't been at the tavern, and you haven't been waiting on him, then where have you been off to all this time?" The warlock panicked for a second, unable to think of a reasonable lie. His panic was misunderstood, much to his luck, and Gwaine shoved a grin across his lips.

"Relax, Merlin. It's nice that you've got a girl," he assured, "And don't worry, your secret's safe with me." His calm reaction surprised Merlin, even if the guess was completely off the mark. The young man knew how his friend felt, and knew the happiness had to be faked – at least to some extent. And that dawning made him ache, made his heart heavy with guilt. He wanted to admit there was no one, perhaps even tell the brunette what he had done.

But he kept his mouth shut. Gwaine walked away, his chest uncomfortable in its jealousy, leaving Merlin and his secrets in the hall. He should have known. With a beautiful face like that and such a sweet personality, why wouldn't he have a girlfriend?

Yet, the servant was now wondering why he had wanted to soothe the knight, why he had reacted so hotly to the proximity.

"Merlin!" Arthur bellowed. No, there was no time to wonder. He would push it from his mind for the moment. The man found himself – for the first time – hoping that Arthur had a long list of chores for him to do. When he scurried into the throne room though, that was far from what the king had in mind.

"Sit down," he commanded, pointing to the chair nearest him at the empty table. Merlin did as he was told.

"Yes sire?"

"Merlin, you've been acting strange lately…stranger than usual. As your king, I should have you put in the stocks for your absence," he paused, enjoying the exasperated look on his servant's face, "But as your friend, I want to know what's wrong." This surprised Merlin. His supposed friend always seemed to make him work and never cared for how he was feeling, unless it would distract him form killing an enemy or something of equal importance.

"I-I'm fine," he lied with a goofy smile. With an unwavering expression of concern, the king assured him he was not to be fooled lightly.

"Merlin, if you don't tell me, I will have you put in the stocks." Yes, there was the friend the warlock had become so accustomed to. He looked slightly relieved, but he knew now that his façade could be seen through. The man would have to fix that, so Gwaine never caught on to him – or his ridiculously fleeting heart, for that matter.

"…is it about Gwaine?" he guessed, and from the way Merlin's blue hues widened, he was correct. The servant swallowed harshly; since when had Arthur been good at knowing anything about him?

"He came in here earlier. He asked why I'd been working you so hard, but I told him that was a lie and you were likely at the tavern. But then…he asked if we were sleeping together…" he trailed off, still miffed that the knight would dare suggest such a thing. Yet, before he could continue, Merlin jumped to his feet with his expression of surprise morphed into one of worry.

"You told him no, right?" he demanded.

"Yes, of-"

"Outright? You told him we weren't together just like that?" he persisted. Arthur looked more confused, and suspicious, as the conversation progressed.

"Not in so many words, no. But he seemed upset when he thought we were, and when I told him no, he seemed fairly relieved…Merlin, what's going on?" The warlock then realized his outburst, realized how suspicious this looked, and regretted his actions almost immediately. He shouldn't have involved Arthur in this mess, but perhaps the royal could provide some insight into what he could do. The blond always trusted his manservant's opinion, even if he didn't let on, so it was likely high time Merlin shared something with him.

"Arthur, promise you will tell no one?"

"Tell what?"

"I'll tell you what's going on, but you must swear to keep it a secret," he began, moving to sit down in his chair.

"…alright, I'll take it to my grave, Merlin. I swear." Magical eyes regarded him, uncertain, but eventually accepted the statement and he began his story, trying not to wring his hands in his nervous state.

"You know that night…where you told me to take Gwaine to his room because he was drunk?" he paused, unable to look at the king as he spoke, "Well…something happened. I, I can't explain it…but I didn't know what to do and then he just…did it." He lifted his gaze to his friend, hoping that was enough. Going by the confused expression across his face, however, he realized it was far from done.

"Merlin, just say it outright. Did he ask you a complicated question? Did he ask you what two plus six is?"

"This isn't a joke, Arthur!" Merlin whined.

"Then stop acting like a child and just tell me."

"…you know how there are certain things you do with women? Things you're only supposed to do with women? Well…I thought you could only do them with women, but…but Gwaine, he…he did something to me." His heart sped up at the thought, at the memory of the knight's hot mouth…

"Merlin, what are you saying?" The king's voice was grave, and he was desperate to confirm whether what he heard was correct or not.

"He sucked my…you know," the warlock muttered as a blush dusted his cheeks. Arthur's eyes widened, the truth sinking in. This had never been done before. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to react, or even if what Gwaine had done was forbidden or not.

"How could he…why did he do that?" he demanded.

"He said he loved me," Merlin sighed, finally giving in to the urge to wring his fingers, "But he was drunk, and he doesn't remember it anymore. Any of it."

"Then what's the problem? Just pretend like it never happened," his friend replied, thinking he had just solved all of his problems. Yet, the servant looked down to his fidgeting hands, his blush still evident. There were no words spoken, but the king certainly knew what the man was implying.

"Ah…so that's how it is." He stood up after he said that – which he hoped had sounded fairly suave enough to buy him a few seconds more of thought. Merlin had helped him on countless occasions, so perhaps he could regurgitate some of the man's few wise sayings.

"Merlin, you've said a few wise things in your time," he began, "And now it's my turn to tell you…follow your heart. It may not be…quite the situation I was in, but you get it. Make your decision, and as your friend, I will support it." He was sure that sounded kingly, and with a firm grip on the servant's shoulder and a reassuring smile, he decided that he had played his part.

"Thank you," Merlin murmured. It was surprising for Arthur to be so kind and unselfish, but the young warlock would not take it for granted. He would follow his heart, as the blond had told him to.

But the question was: what did his heart say?