Title: Evidence
Rating: PG
Pairing/s: none
Character/s: Merlin, Arthur
Summary: Arthur knew the truth but waiting for Merlin to tell him was hard.
Warnings: none
Word Count: 200
Arthur knew. Of course he knew. How could he not? Merlin went around tossing magic in front of him, beside him, behind him at every wild turn, uttering traitorous words, barely concealing the molten-gold in his eyes, then making up absurd stories to cover his tracks.
As if Arthur would fall for such rubbish.
It's a wonder he hadn't been caught, a wonder that he hadn't been killed, but almost insultingly, a wonder that Merlin hadn't realized just how much Arthur protected him - with excuses and cover-ups and lies.
Between them, there was always pretense, hiding behind false smiles and feigned idiocy as each tried to protect the other. Both of them drowning in an ocean of lies, betrayed trust, and disillusioned hope they'd created between them. And Arthur didn't know how to break free.
But every day, he tried - with private talks and long looks and acceptance in everything except the thing that mattered most. Daring rescues and adventures and heart-stopping danger, and in the mix, too, was more than a little love. Much more than a little.
But it wasn't enough.
Until Merlin would trust him enough with the truth, there would never be anything more.