Chapter 3

Arthur entered the small restaurant, his hand clutching the gift bag with the scarf in for his sister. He spotted her sat at their normal table and smiled, happy to see her. He thought back to the time when they struggled to look at each other let alone talk to each other or meet up for a meal that they were not forced into for a family event. Approaching the table he handed her the bag with a quick kiss to the cheek and sat opposite her. She looked at the bag and back at Arthur suspiciously; He should resent that, he thought, but could not help but smile at her, she had been down lately after the death of her fiancé, months previous and as much as he had tried to help, nothing had worked. He had considered trying to set her up with Percy but knew Morgana would eat him alive and as much as she needed a calmer man to balance her, Percy was too serious. He pondered who else he knew who might be suitable but was distracted by Morgana's exclamation.

"Oh, it's lovely Arthur. But what's the occasion? What do you want?" She grinned at him but he could see the happiness in her eyes, a light that had been gone for too long.

"Well, I was shopping earlier and thought it would suit you. Lucky for you, I was in a whimsical mood" He teased her, watching her smile grow.

"Well thank you, I love it, Arthur," She placed it back in the bag and looked at him, serious now. "But, what aren't you telling me? Something's wrong, I can tell. I know you Arthur."

Arthur mentally cursed but decided to tell her about Merlin; after all she might have some advice. He placed his order with the waiter who was hovering near the table and told her the whole story, starting from his first meeting with Merlin. By the time their food arrived, Arthur had finished explaining his dilemma and Morgana was sitting, her eyes dark with concentration. He studied her as she stared into her food and eventually broke the silence, his tone impatient.

"Well, what are you thinking about?"

"Well, it just occurs to me big brother, that for all your thoughts about Merlin, you fail to notice that you never actually asked him if he was with this Gwaine guy. After all, though you're not one of them, some gay men like to express affection and friendship through contact."

Arthur opened his mouth to heatedly reply but shut it as he recalled that neither he nor Merlin had confirmed that Merlin was in a relationship. Hope stirred until he remembered how cold Merlin had been in the bookshop at his friendship request and the sad realisation hit him that even if single, Merlin might not be attracted to him. This hit him hard as he had never been in the position of the one who fancied but was not in return. In fact, it stung a little, Arthur was a young, rich, handsome guy, why wouldn't someone fancy him, he thought, confused. He said as much to Morgana who looked at him incredulously.

"Oh yeah, with all that modesty, you're a huge catch Arthur. Anyhow, if you can get past your love for yourself, consider that maybe Merlin is shy and doesn't share your confidence in his looks and attractiveness. Why not try and be friends with him, let him get comfortable with you and then ask him out?"

Arthur considered her advice, his mind neatly bypassing the sarcasm of the first statement and taking it as a compliment. He decided that there was some merit to her suggestion, after all headstrong could be misinterpreted for clingy he reasoned, and Arthur Pendragon was never clingy. He thought of Merlin's long limbs and lithe strength and amended his thinking; he would be clingy if it was to Merlin's slender body and frame. Images filled his mind, of them entwined together, and he blushed to remember his sister was watching him.

"Uh, that sounds like a good idea. I'll try the sneaky approach and hunt him from the inside."

"Arthur, he is not a deer to catch, he's a man."

Arthur smiled wolfishly at her. She rolled her eyes and signalled for the check, deciding there was only so much of this Arthur she could take and would rather finish off the pint of Ben and Jerry's in her freezer with her latest paperback, than stay and deal with her brother.

Arthur walked Morgana to her car, and surprised her with a hug.

"It was nice to see you today Gana, we should do this again soon. Or come to my place for dinner, we'll order Chinese in?"

"That sounds great Arthur, just text me the details."

"Ok, I'll text you in the week. Drive safe and... uh, thanks for the help tonight."

She smiled at him through the open window and blew him a kiss before pulling off and driving down the street. Arthur headed to his own car, deeming the night a success.

The building was dark when he got home but he liked the way the windows reflected the streetlights. He locked the car and headed in, choosing the elevator rather than the stairs, his stomach to full to walk to the Penthouse at the top of the building. He waited as the doors closed only for them to be wrenched open, accompanied by a shout. He recognised the voice just as his eyes connected with blue eyes, glowing in the false glow of the lights. He kept a hand on the door as Merlin, hoisted a backpack onto his thin frame and almost staggered before regaining balance and walking in through the opening.

Merlin blushed as he realised the other person in the lift was Arthur. He shifted slightly, trying to even out the pain from the weight of the books in his pack. The doors closed with a chime and he pressed the button to his floor, his breathing loud and uneven in the silence of the lift. The enclosed space started to affect him as he inhaled Arthur's clean scent mixed with a mucky aftershave. His mind wandered to covering himself in that scent, and how they might combine scents in all sorts of interesting ways before he was jerked sideways and into Arthur who managed to catch him at waist level despite his surprise at the sudden stop. He pulled Merlin up, sliding his body along his own, Merlin shuddering at the feel of the harder frame against his own before he turned to the display box to see why the lift had stopped. The lights were blinking and none of the buttons responded to Arthur's quick jabs. He paused as Arthur turned to face him, his grin decidedly cheeky as he stared him in the eyes.

"It looks like we're stuck here Merlin," He ran his eyes up and down Merlin's body. "Now, how do we pass the time, hmm?"