~ Chapter 13: Best Man ~

Arthur didn't see Merlin for three days after he proposed to Gwen. It was the most stressful three days of Arthur's life as they set a date for the wedding, figured out a guest list, and did ten thousand things Arthur never would have thought of if it hadn't been for Igraine.

Their engagement would be short, so they didn't have time to move slowly.

It was a relief when enough was done that they could take a break. Arthur had, on a few occasions, tried to convince Gwen to elope. Her answer of, "my father will literally kill you" was enough to shut him up.

When they finally got to see Merlin, Arthur couldn't wait to tell him.

Merlin didn't even look up from the book he was reading. "Let me guess. She said yes?"

"You knew he was proposing?" Gwen smiled big.

"Knew? The scavenger hunt was my idea… wait, you did the scavenger hunt, right? If you didn't…" Merlin put his book aside.

"I did it," Arthur promised.

Merlin nodded with satisfaction. "I couldn't let him propose to you in some boring way."

Gwen chuckled. "Thank you, Merlin. It was lovely."

"Did you pick a date?"

"August 15th."

"That's… that's two months away. Do you have enough time?"

"Yeah. We're keeping it relatively small. And the hall we're having our wedding in had a cancellation for that date. It was lucky," Arthur explained.

"Well, obviously, not for the couple who were supposed to get married. But, yeah, lucky for us. We'll be married before we start college."

"College?" Merlin asked cautiously.

"Well, it turns out, babies take nine months to grow before they're ready to be born," Arthur deadpanned. "I called to defer my admission, and the person I spoke to walked me through all of my options. We're both doing a full semester and then we'll hopefully take some online classes for a year or two. They're working with us."

"That's amazing!" Merlin was sad to think about missing their wedding, but he pushed that aside. This wasn't about him, and he was so happy for the two of them.

"You know… we spent the last three days making decisions I don't even totally understand. We picked between identical colors, ate so much delicious food at the venue, and I pretended I knew what the hell a tablescape was. Gwen picked Morgana as her maid of honor, but we're missing one thing."

"What's that?"

"My best man."

Merlin sighed. "I'm sorry. There's no way I'll be allowed out. Both of our moms had to pull all the strings they had to get me out for graduation."

"Are you sure?"

Merlin nodded. "Yeah. You should ask Lance. He'd be great."

"Who needs a best man?" Arthur shrugged. "It has to be you, or it can't be anyone."

"Arthur, Lance is great. He's really been there for you. And it won't be that different than him being a groomsman."

Arthur and Gwen exchanged looks. "We weren't going to do groomsmen or bridesmaids. Just a best man and maid of honor. Morgana agreed practically before I could ask her. I don't think I've ever seen her so excited about something."

"You should've seen her the day you were proposing. She was practically jumping off the walls."

"Morgana was here?" Arthur sounded a little too excited. "What happened? Did you…?"

"No. Some people just hang out with each other, you know." Merlin was quiet for a moment. "Ask Lance. You need a best man."

"The only person who deserves to be my best man is you." Arthur crossed his arms stubbornly.

"I know you want it to be me, but it won't be. It can't be. So, ask Lance. He deserves it too."

Arthur didn't agree to it, but Merlin was reasonably confident it would happen. Arthur and Gwen stayed with him for hours. They carefully avoided talking about Morgana or the wedding.

When they left, Merlin pulled himself to his feet and found Henry. "I need to speak with Gaius."

"Are you feeling okay?" Henry brought his hand to Merlin's forehead. "You don't have a fever."

"No, it's nothing like that. I just need to talk to him."

It took nearly two hours for Gaius to squeeze him in, but finally, he was wheeled to Gaius's office.

"Merlin," Gaius said cheerfully. "What can I do for you m'boy?"

"Do you remember when I relapsed? What you told me and my mother?"

Gaius nodded grimly. "We really are trying Merlin. It's just difficult with so many failed treatments."

"Yeah. I get that. You said it would be almost impossible." He had done his best to keep that information from Arthur because Arthur wasn't known for his level headedness. "You also told us there were some experimental treatments I could try. I know there are risks and the success rate isn't great, but there has been success, right?"

Gaius nodded. "If I recall correctly, you and your mother didn't want to consider that treatment."

"My mom didn't think it was a good idea. I've been here for six months, and nothing had improved. I want to try it now."

"We'll need to call your mom. Have her sign off on it." Gaius opened his drawer and started to look for Merlin's file.

"No." Merlin waited until Gaius looked up at him. "I'm eighteen, Gaius. I'm an adult. I need to start taking charge of my treatment. I'm tired of sitting in here and dying. We both know the chemo's not going to do it. I want to have a chance at life, and I think this is the only way."

"Merlin, this could kill you."

"But it could also save me." Merlin stared Gaius down. "Cancer could kill me. Yes. We've known that since my first diagnosis. I've spent the last five years being terrified of cancer. I'm done. My best friend is getting married in two months, and I have every intention of crashing that wedding."

"You know you can't go back on chemo after this," Gaius told him. "If this doesn't work out, that's it. You'll die."

"I understand that. I really do, but I've made up my mind. Give me the treatment or discharge me and let me die in peace."

It was rare for Merlin to be so adamant about something. He was usually comfortable letting others make the decisions. It meant something that he was putting his foot down about this.

Gaius studied Merlin for a long time before he nodded. "You need to be off chemo for a week. We can have you started…" Gaius looked at his calendar. "Tuesday. There's a pre–administration program you'll need to work through. It's all online. It'll go through the risks and the expectations of the program. Since it's still early, you'll need to consent to us submitting any testing results to them. I'll send you all the information."

"Okay," Merlin agreed.

"You also have to tell your mother. You're right that you're an adult, but she deserves to know."

Merlin nodded. "Yeah. I'll tell her." He stood up. "Thank you, Gaius." Merlin left feeling freer than he had in a long time.

The next two months passed slowly for Merlin. Most of the time, he felt better than he had in a while. His new treatment involved him drinking various amounts of brightly colored liquids. He never asked what he was swallowing. If it was put in front of him, he drank it without complaint.

The day before Arthur's wedding, Merlin was sitting in Gaius's office squeezing the life out of a stress ball while he waited for Gaius to return with his test results. These were the results that would determine whether or not Merlin was going to be able to leave the hospital. If these results were normal, Merlin would officially be in remission.

Gaius was taking forever. How long did it take to run to the lab in the hospital? To be fair, Gaius probably wasn't running but still. This was torture. He knew he should be grateful. Gaius wasn't even technically working today. He'd agreed to come in for Merlin.

It seemed like hours had passed before Gaius entered his office. "What's the verdict?"

Two hours later, Merlin emerged from Gaius's office, still crying. He went to his room, dug through his drawer, and found what he was looking for: his cell phone.

He dialed the familiar number and waited. They answered on the first ring. "Hello?" Merlin felt himself calm down when he heard the familiarity of the voice.

"Morgana, I need you."

The next day found Arthur standing with their officiant in the back of the room where their wedding ceremony would take place. Morgana snuck back to see him. Her lilac bridesmaid dress flowed down her in waves. "You have a phone call."

"Hello?"

"Hey."

Arthur grinned the moment he heard Merlin's voice. "Merlin?"

"Who else would it be? I just wanna say that I'm sorry for missing your wedding. I really wanted to be there."

"It's not your fault. Stupid cancer."

"Stupid cancer," Merlin echoed. "Are you nervous?"

"Yeah, but it's Gwen. It will be fine."

"Yeah, it will be."

"It's almost time," the officiant whispered.

"I have to go," Arthur said reluctantly. "I'll call you at the reception?"

"No. Enjoy this. Oh and Arthur?"

"Yeah?"

"Congratulations."

He handed Morgana her phone. "Thank you for that."

She nodded. "See you in a bit." She left to join Gwen and Lance.

Their officiant welcomed everyone and then music started to play. It was beautiful. Morgana and Lance came first. Arthur did a double take and blinked several times. No matter what he did, it was still Merlin's arm Morgana held on to.

It took everything in Arthur's power to stay where he was. Merlin grinned at him; a grin so utterly Merlin that Arthur knew this wasn't a figment of his imagination.

Sooner than he thought possible, Merlin squeezed his shoulder and took up his position next to Arthur, seamlessly stepping into the role of best man. The role that should have been his all along.

Merlin nudged Arthur and motioned to the back where Gwen had just entered. Her dress was relatively plain, but was equally breathtaking. He thought it looked better than if she'd gotten some poofy, bejeweled dress. She looked like herself in the dress.

Arthur couldn't look away from the radiant smile on her face. That smile erased any doubts Arthur may have had about this. Gwen wanted this; she wasn't just doing this because of the baby she was growing. Nothing could have been more beautiful to him at that moment.

Arthur had been dreading the actual wedding ceremony. He'd thought it would be long and tedious, but it went so quickly with Gwen's hand in his and the words, 'I do' on his lips ready to be spoken.

When he and Gwen kissed and were declared husband and wife, Arthur felt like he was flying.

They walked down the aisle amidst tears and cheers with Merlin and Morgana quick on their heels. Their photographer was waiting outside, and he knew that they had an hour of forced smiles ahead of them, but he couldn't do it yet. "Give us one moment, please." They were led to a room specifically designated for the bridal party.

The moment the door closed behind him, Arthur spun to face Merlin. "How?"

"Are you incapable of using more than one word when you're surprised?" Merlin teased.

"No. No. You don't get to surprise me on the most important day of my life and then dodge the question. How the hell are you here? When do you have to go back?"

"I, uh… don't?" Merlin smiled. "I'm in remission. Got a clean bill of health yesterday. Morgana talked to Lance, and he agreed to let me take over."

"But how? I thought the chemo…"

"I haven't been on chemo in over two months. I changed my treatment. I didn't want to tell you in case it didn't work out."

"Nearly gave his mother and me a heart attack when he told us," Morgana added. She tried to sound stern, but the affectionate tone in her voice was ruining that effect.

Arthur studied them carefully and noticed their hands were linked together. He motioned toward their entwined hands. "When?"

"Merlin's right. You are exceptionally articulate when you're surprised."

"So, you finally told her."

"Sort of?"

"I think what Merlin's saying is that he didn't so much tell me as scared me to death and then kissed me."

"When… how?"

Merlin and Morgana glanced at each other and seemed to have a silent conversation. "I think it's been in the process of happening since… well, since I went back to the hospital. But officially, last night."

"What happened? I want all the details!" Gwen looked so pleased and eager.

"Do you really want to hear this now? You have to take pictures and then there's the reception. Go enjoy yourselves," Merlin suggested.

"Oh, no you don't. If you don't tell her now, she's going to spend our entire honeymoon trying to figure out how this happened." Arthur looked at Merlin pleadingly. Their honeymoon would be short. They were going to a vacation house Arthur's mom owned by the beach for a few days, but Arthur still wanted to enjoy it.

"Fine." Merlin looked at Morgana. "Do you wanna tell it?"

"Sure. So, this dumbass…"

"Maybe I should tell it," Merlin interrupted. Morgana grinned and rubbed Merlin's still bald head. It made a flush creep down Merlin's neck. "Hey!"

"So, he called me maybe two months ago. He sat down with me and Hunith and explained the new treatment he'd consented to. His mom was furious, but he told us he's an adult, and this is what he wanted to do. Then he begged us not to tell either of you. He wanted it to be a surprise for you, Arthur."

Gwen huffed. "You could have told me!"

"I wouldn't expect you to keep something this big from your fiancé," Merlin pointed out.

Gwen sighed dramatically and motioned toward Morgana. "Continue."

"We didn't know what was going to happen. This was either going to work or it wasn't. And if it didn't… he wouldn't make it. I started visiting Merlin almost every day."

"How did I miss you? I was there all the time!" Arthur protested.

"I saw him after visiting hours a lot?"

"How?"

"Because they don't have my face on a poster saying that visiting hours are strictly enforced for me?" Morgana suggested. Arthur looked down at the floor; he still thought visiting hours were stupid. "Anyway, I knew he was going to hear his results yesterday. He'd been improving but not enough to get out, and Gaius agreed to have him tested early so that he might be able to be discharged before this. He called me crying and told me he needed to talk to me."

"It was terrifying. She literally stormed into my room, pushed me up against the wall, and said under no circumstances am I allowed to be upset because she's upset enough for both of us."

"You were hysterically crying. What was I supposed to think?"

"I was really excited!"

"Oh my God. Can you finish the story?" Arthur asked.

"Well, Merlin looked right at me and said, 'I promised God that if my results came back normal, I would stop being a coward and do something I've wanted to do for over a year'." Morgana had a soft smile on her face as if she was back in that moment.

"You're not religious," Arthur said with a frown.

"Doesn't mean I can't bargain with him."

"You're just as bad as they are." Gwen lightly hit Arthur. "Then what happened?"

"After I said that, Morgana took a step back from me and looked like she was scared. She asked me if I was going to go streaking through the hospital… because that's a totally normal assumption to make. Then she screamed loud enough that Henry came running to check on us, and found us…" Merlin trailed off and blushed.

"Okay, hold on. He's missing a really important detail. Who asks someone out that way?" Morgana pointed out. "I asked him if he was in remission, and this little jerk doesn't even answer me. He just kisses me. Who does that?" She was smiling too much for her words to sound harsh.

"That's so sweet," Gwen sighed.

Arthur said nothing, but he swelled with pride. It was about time.

Later, at the reception, Morgana clinked her glass and got everyone's attention. She made a beautiful speech about Gwen that left both girls in tears. Then it was Merlin's turn.

"Hey, everyone. Welcome to family and friends. For those of you that don't know me, I'm Merlin. I'm Arthur's best man. Funny thing is, when I suddenly became best man eighteen hours ago, I totally forgot that I would have to make a speech, so in the car on the way here, I googled 'good best man speech ideas' and threw this together. So, yeah, I'll be reading my speech on my phone." Merlin held his phone a little tighter and tried to fend off his fear. "I found a lot of advice on google. Introduce yourself with a twist… well, I think it's a little late for that. Crack a corny joke. I wanted to tell the joke: did you hear about the notebook that married the pencil? It finally found Mr. Write. Morgana told me she would kill me if I said it though, so I guess I'll leave that out." There was loud laughter at that, and it made Merlin feel better; maybe he wasn't screwing this up. "Find a quote. Rita Rudner once said, "I love being married. It's so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life," and that seems pretty fitting for Arthur." Another laugh. "They also suggested I find a theme. This is supposed to be some takeaway that you're supposed to get from all the stories I tell about Arthur. The thing is, I was having trouble coming up with a theme because Arthur is so much more than a theme. His relationship with Gwen is so much more than a theme. They don't have the perfect story book romance. I've watched them fight and argue and still choose each other every day. I think that's what makes them so special. They know what they're getting into, and they believe that they'll get through whatever life throws at them together." Merlin was careful not to mention anything about the baby because most people at the wedding didn't know about that yet (though, Merlin assumed a few of them had guessed because why else would two eighteen year olds be getting married this quickly?).

"I've literally known Arthur my whole life. We were brought together by our mother's beautiful friendship. I think part of the reason we got so close and stayed so close is because of the example they set for us. They showed us how to balance our friendship and make sure that we were equals. I've never told Arthur, but my earliest memory of him was when we were two. I broke my arm falling out of Arthur's treehouse, and his mom drove me to the emergency room. It was the first time I think I understood what friendship with Arthur meant. It meant never being alone and always having someone to give you strength when you've lost your own. This is one of the most valuable qualities Arthur has, and he never lost it. There have been a lot of moments over the course of our friendship where I only stayed strong because Arthur wouldn't quit on me."

Merlin turned to face Arthur. "This moment right now might not have been possible if it wasn't for you. Arthur, I like to think I know you pretty well by now. I know your quirks and your flaws and how deeply you care about the people in your life. I'm honored to be one of them. Gwen, when I say that you deserve Arthur, it's the best compliment and endorsement I can give you. Arthur is an exceptional person, and it takes an equally exceptional person to inspire him and change him. You were that person. Since he met you, he's grown so much. He's learned how to love and accept love in return, to compromise, to trust. They say opposites attract, and there's no greater proof than the two of you. Arthur is impulsive where Gwen is patient, reckless where Gwen is rational, and outgoing where Gwen is a little more reserved. They bring out the best in each other and balance each other perfectly. They aren't just choosing to spend their lives together; they're choosing to create a future together."

"I think about how crazy it is to witness the love of two such incredible people. I'm also flattered that Arhtur thinks I'm the 'best' – his words; he literally put it in my title." Merlin could hear Arthur's laugh over everyone else's.

"I don't know that he totally got it right because I'm the best, Arthur and Gwen are whatever is better than the best. I wish both of you a beautiful, happy forever together." He raised his glass. "To the bride and groom."

"To the bride and groom" echoed throughout the reception hall.

Arthur gave Merlin a big hug. "That was perfect. Thank you!"

Merlin couldn't wipe the smile off his face after that. He knew Gwen and Arthur were going to face trials in the future, but he also knew they would get through it.