The daylight brought a new sense of reality to Merlin. Dawn had never been as bright, and his back never as sweaty. The sensation brought a quick realization of where he was. Arthur's arm was under his pillow and his other arm was over his chest, a tight grip holding him close. Merlin quietly sighed, the feeling of Arthur's warmth and his arms overwhelming him. He gently turned over, doing his best not to wake Arthur, until he realized that Arthur was already awake, watching him sleep. His eyes were gentle on Merlin's skin, making Merlin feel warm and cold at the same time.
"How long have you been awake?" Merlin whispered. His voice swam along the stale air of the room and brought Arthur's mind to life, pulling him back from the fantasies he had been imagining just a few minutes before. He sat up a little, shifting against Merlin and then turned on his side, using his arm to prop his head up and to look down into Merlin's ocean blue eyes.
"A few minutes," Arthur replied, his eyes never leaving Merlin's. "I didn't wanna wake you."
Arthur looked down Merlin's body and became conscious of the fact that sometime during the night they both had lost most of their clothes and were now only in a pair of boxers and socks each. Merlin ran his hand through his hair, rustling the mess that sleeping had made, and Arthur took notice as Merlin's muscles contracted and expanded and created hills and valleys on his chest and arms. Merlin then grinned up at Arthur, a giddy happy smile that was brighter than the morning sun piercing his bedroom window, and Arthur couldn't hold himself back anymore. This night, the night before—everything—and even though nothing had happened, everything had. Merlin felt that he could lie in this bed with Arthur for the rest of his life.
It was too much. Arthur was in bed, with Merlin, almost naked, and Merlin was smiling at him. Time seemed to stop, and the days ahead and the days passed had no more relevance because in this moment, there was nothing but Arthur and Merlin. Arthur tried his best, he really did, but the urge over came him and he quickly leaned in, their lips connecting.
The rush echoed through Merlin's body. It resonated within his heart and caused it to flutter and pound off-beat. This was it. There was nothing to get in the way, no dark rooms, no excuse of not being able to see, because in this moment everything connected.
Merlin's mind had engraved in stone what Arthur had felt like during their first kiss, but this one, it was like Arthur was a different person. His lips were not chapped or awkward like the last time—they were firm and soft and full, like all of his existence was trying to escape from his mouth.
Arthur pulled Merlin in closer, his arms wrapping tightly around his naked torso, bring them skin on skin, chest to chest, mouth to mouth. Arthur savored the flavor of Merlin. His tongue dipped into between his lips, and he felt pulled in by the taste. It wasn't something he could describe. There wasn't a mixture of spices and foods like you'd expect in a meal, but an innate taste that had his mouth digging deeper, moving faster, and kissing harder. He trailed his hand along Merlin's back, feeling the smooth soft skin, sliding over every goosebump, his finger tips mapping the area, discovering what was his.
Merlin's hands awkwardly flailed behind Arthur. He was at a disadvantage by being on the bottom and could only comfortably place them in Arthur's hair to gently knead and scratch at his scalp. He loved the way Arthur's hair felt in his hands, the subtle texture of sweat and oil overlaying the coarse dry locks. Merlin's touch intoxicated Arthur, and he brushed his pelvis against Merlin, and Merlin gasped at the contact.
"Mngh," Merlin tried to say into the kiss. He pulled back and Arthur frowned, desperate to connect with Merlin again. "This... isn't a dream right?" Merlin asked. Arthur's eyes widened as his mind flashed back to the dreams he had of Merlin, kissing, cuddling, fucking. Arthur gave Merlin an odd look because he had been subconsciously wondering the same thing, expecting to wake up, expecting to hear the alarm ring and wake him, pull him from this fantasy, this sanctuary. Merlin looked around the room and then brought his hand up and pinched himself, repeatedly, and then gave a look of triumph.
"Well it doesn't seem to be one," Merlin said, satisfied. His face was still triumphant and showed in his eyes as they drifted up Arthur's body, which was half covered in a blanket and half naked, his stomach and chest protruding from the tops of the covers, taunting Merlin with their muscle. Merlin's eyes finally reached Arthur's face and his face twisted into an awkward grin, his ears pulling back slightly from the tense muscles in his face and Arthur was complete. He really was.
Merlin sat up and got out of the bed, doing his best to hide his erection beneath his waistband. Arthur couldn't help but stare, the thin spread of hair along his legs that traveled up into his plaid boxers, then continued up from the waistband and a few inches up his torso. The sight was slightly unnerving and completely sexy and Arthur couldn't help but want to dive out of the bed and pull Merlin back into it with him.
"I have to talk to Gaius soon, and then I need to call Richard and find out where our family is," Merlin explained as he put on a shirt and pants. "But when I'm done," his gaze turned to Arthur who was still in bed, "we can go out, yeah?"
A sharp shot of adrenaline rushed through Arthur's body. He didn't think that far ahead. Were they boyfriends now? Were they together? What was this, if this was anything at all? Merlin walked back to the bed, half climbing on, and pulled Arthur close, giving him another kiss before breaking it suddenly.
"Also, just saying, you're a fucking spoiled cabbagey dollop head prat fuck cunt for making me wait that long," Merlin cursed, a wash of irritation on his face before it warped back into a smirk as he placed his cellphone in his pocket and then he was strutting out the door and leaving Arthur alone on his bed, feeling confused, terrified, hot, cold, and, of course, desperately in love.
Merlin hung up his mobile. Richard hadn't answered, but Merlin figured that he was just somewhere that didn't have reception. The man liked to go out and camp or go on little trips with Hunith when he went on business ventures so that she didn't feel so bored, and thus this wasn't totally unexpected, but it was irresponsible, and Merlin couldn't shake the inkling that something was amiss. Still, that was for tomorrow. He thought back to Arthur and their morning and holy shit they kissed. Merlin couldn't help but feel his stomach twist in shock every time he remembered their lips touching, their skin, close and hot.
He walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table. Gaius was at the head of it reading his news paper and the old man folded it and looked over at Merlin with a curious expression on his face as he noticed Merlin's giddy and childish smile.
"So, you're in a better mood this morning I take it," Gaius said, face emotionless. Merlin blushed and giggled. He nodded and Gaius broke out in a smile. It was about time Merlin and Arthur finally broke the wall between them—it had taken a lot longer in this life than in the ones before, Gaius thought, but that was to be expected; this life wasn't exactly as simple as the last ones. Gaius leaned forward and gave Merlin a contemplating look. "The dragon, what became of him?" Gaius questioned.
Merlin explained all about what had happened: Morgana and Gwen, Gwen and Lance, Merlin and Arthur, the Drinkers, the Dragon, the leader and the boy, and Lance's death. He let it all spill, his eyes tearing up a few times as he retold the story. Gaius sat and listened intently, sipping from his tea and taking a bite from his biscuit every now and then, nodding and smiling as Merlin told the epic tale.
"I'm surprised Morgana was as powerful as she was," Gaius said eventually with a hint of praise in his voice. "When she left me a long time ago, she was no stronger than a boy who had just learned about his powers, but now, from what you describe, she is quite the powerful witch."
Merlin nodded in agreement. "She's really powerful, much more powerful than I think I'll ever be."
Gaius scoffed at his statement. "My boy, if you only knew what was inside you, you'd laugh at that ignorant statement."
Merlin walked into his bathroom, ready to get a shower before the day ran away with him. He noticed his black case was still on the counter, opened, the scalpel stared at him, mocking him. Merlin walked to it and lifted it up, noticing the shine as it reflected the light from it, the red dull stain on its tip.
His eyes turned gold and the scalpel floated in front of him, and a few seconds later it began to contort and melt, rearranging and twisting. Merlin watched as it became long, thin, thinner, until it became the base material that Merlin wanted, a little longer, it continued to stretch and then it finally began to coil and wrap around itself until it became a small circle of metal, a ring, his dried blood revived and compressed into a jewel at the top, embedded deep in the steel, golden words were etched in Old English along the ring, shimmering in gold.
Merlin smiled as he placed the ring on his finger, and then he walked over to the shower to turn the hot water on, stepping into it and out of the rut from yesteryear.
Arthur looked in his bathroom mirror. He had just gotten out of the shower for the fifth time. Each time he did his hair he didn't like it and showered again to rinse the product out. He wanted today to be perfect. He had tried a variety of hair styles, bed ridden, faux-hawk, parted, and yet nothing seemed to work. He could hear his mother's words echo in his ears. "Just be yourself," she would say as he had hoped she would say, "He'll love you no matter what."
Arthur dried his hair with a towel and just decided to leave it as it was, Merlin seemed to be content with how he looked so hopefully this was good enough for him. Arthur gave himself a confident look in the mirror before leaving to get dressed, his stomach in a knot and his head in a daze. It was going to be an insane day.
Merlin walked into Arthur's room. He had changed into a pair of white shorts and a green t-shirt, and he had a pair of his newest sneakers on his feet and a big grin on his face. Arthur was just slipping his own shirt on. Merlin watched in lust as the cloth gently fell down his long flat stomach and felt his own shorts tighten as his mind wandered and traveled to the smutty places in his mind.
Arthur walked up to him and placed both hands on his shoulders, bringing Merlin out of his fantasies and pulling him in for a kiss. He meant for it to be a gentle and quick one but found himself staying there, his lips moving gently along Merlin's. Merlin took a few steps forward and their bodies collided. Merlin wrapped his arms around Arthur's neck and let Arthur hold him at the waist, who eventually overcame his lust and pulled his head back. Their foreheads rested against each other, their noses touching.
"Can I ask you something?" Merlin said quietly.
"Of course," Arthur replied.
"Why now? I thought you didn't feel that way towards me... I thought that you and me, that we..." Merlin sighed in frustration. He didn't know how to articulate himself normally, let alone in front of the man of his dreams. He brought his lips tight together and Arthur placed his finger on his chin, tilting his head up.
"I was scared," Arthur confessed in a soft voice. "I thought that you didn't want me either and when I kissed you in the planetarium and you didn't kiss me back... I thought that I had over stepped my boundaries." Arthur saw Merlin's face fill with guilt. "But when you spent the night with me last night, you showed me that you cared for me more than just a friend, more than... I dunno, boyfriends?" he said questionably. Merlin looked up and nodded his head, a smile resuming its proper place on his face. Arthur raised his hand and slid the top of his index finger along Merlin's face, feeling the light roughness of stubble.
"So, what's the agenda for today?" Arthur asked, trying to break the tension of the heavy conversation.
Merlin smiled. "Agenda. Are you sure you know what that means?" he mocked.
Arthur laughed and slid his hands up and down Merlin's sides, caressing him and giving him an expectant look, waiting for Merlin response. Merlin shrugged his shoulders. "We're going to the cinema, I guess, to see... Uh, shit." Merlin looked down to his left, then to his right. "I... don't know what we're going to see."
"I'm sure we'll find something," Arthur said, his breath hot and warm on Merlin's face, arousal filling him and forcing Merlin to blush.
Merlin's gaze drifted up to Arthur's face. His eyes were so deep. Merlin could see his own reflection in them. He was so close, like it was a high definition film, larger than life. A wave of hope filled Merlin, the pain of yesterday and the fear of tomorrow were but whispers along the chords of his emotions, the songs of the here and the now, the songs of being in love, the songs of this is it, this is real.
Merlin closed his eyes stood on the tips of his toes, a kiss gently breaking the silence of the room, and the torrent of reality waxed until Merlin thought he was going to explode. Arthur slid his hands along Merlin's back, pulling him forward, forcing their bodies as close as they could be. Only one thought ran through Arthur's head: Perfection.