Talking is Overrated
Author: schweet_heart
Title: Talking is Overrated
Rating: NC-17
Pairing/s: Merlin/Arthur
Character/s: Merlin, Arthur, Morgana, Edwin, George
Summary: It's Merlin's last day as Arthur's assistant. Between them, Morgana and Arthur make it a memorable one. An epilogue of sorts to the We Need to Talk series.
Warnings: Semi-public sex, office sex.
Word Count: 2000w
Prompt: 354 All I Ask
Author's Notes: This got a bit longer than I intended, but since it's the last one in the series I hope you will forgive me :) With a tip of the hat to weatherfeather, who suggested Morgana's psychic turn a long time ago.
Merlin’s last day at Pendragon Enterprises is somewhat anti-climactic, all things considered. Since he hadn’t been working there for several weeks already, no one really thought to put together a party; instead, they had all agreed that Merlin would collect his things in private on Friday morning, although Morgana had insisted on bringing in some cupcakes for him anyway, just because.
The whole thing is meant to be very low-key, so it’s ridiculous for Arthur to feel so nervous. Things between him and Merlin have mostly returned to normal, which means Merlin has taken to texting him at random intervals during the day and blowing up his inbox with silly memes he’s found on the internet. They haven’t seen much of each other in person, but Merlin has also started signing his messages with little x’s whenever he says good night, which presumably shows that he hasn’t forgotten about their kiss on Elyan’s balcony.
The trouble is, Arthur isn’t sure exactly what that means, relationship-wise. They’ve both been so busy with the Morgause situation that there hasn’t been time to sit down and work things out in detail, and it’s starting to drive Arthur just a little bit insane.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” says Morgana when she sees him. “It’s only Merlin-you needn’t look as though you’re about to face the firing squad. And is that his shirt you’re wearing?”
Arthur looks down, and yes, it is Merlin’s shirt, the same one he’d borrowed a few days ago and ‘forgotten’ to return. “So what if it is?” he asks, folding his arms across his chest. “He won’t mind.”
Morgana shakes her head. “It’s precious,” she observes, “how completely smitten the two of you are with each other. And by precious I mean sickening.”
“Your face is sickening,” is Arthur’s supremely witty rejoinder. “How did you know it was Merlin’s shirt, anyway? It could have been anyone’s.”
Morgana examines her nails. “Because I’m totally, like, psychic, you know,” she says. “And also because it has his initials on it. I’m pretty sure Merlin is the only M-related name that has been embroidered all over your heart these past few months.” Her mouth curls upwards at one corner. “Or did you imagine that you were being subtle with all that pining, brother dearest?”
Arthur is saved from having to come up with a retort by the lift door sliding open, and Merlin himself steps out a moment later. He looks nervous as well, which is some consolation, but he also looks good-he’s wearing a soft blue shirt and dark jeans, more formal than his customary attire but less so than the clothes he usually wears to work. The colours bring out his eyes, and Arthur’s heart skips a beat just looking at him.
“Merlin,” Morgana says, greeting him with a perfunctory kiss on each cheek. “It’s good to see you, although I wish it were under better circumstances.” She glances over at Arthur, who is standing rooted to the spot, and whatever expression she sees on his face makes her roll her eyes.
“I’m going to leave the two of you to it,” she says, backing into the hallway. “Arthur, all I ask is that you give Merlin something to eat once you’re done ravishing him. I spent a whole hour of my life making those cupcakes; I don’t want them to go to waste.”
“Witch,” Arthur calls after her, but she merely flips him the bird and disappears into her office, leaving him alone with his-well, Merlin. “Um. Hi.”
“Hi.” Merlin smiles at him lopsidedly, tucking his hands into his pockets. “So…cupcakes?”
“Yeah, with chocolate sprinkles,” Arthur says stupidly. “We thought, since there wasn’t going to be a party…”
Merlin nods, and after a hesitant pause, Arthur leads the way down the hall into his office, closing the door behind them. The cupcakes are sitting on Arthur’s desk, plainly visible in their neon pink wrappers, but neither man makes a move towards them.
“I wanted to talk to you,” Merlin begins, just as Arthur blurts, “We need to talk.”
Merlin smiles tightly. “You go first,” he says, and Arthur swallows hard.
“I know we have some stuff to sort out,” he says. “But before we get into that, I thought you should know that I’m leaving too. I mean-not right now, obviously, I haven’t-I’ve got to sort out the details first, but I thought-you know I’ve been unhappy here for a while, so it occurred to me that we could-”
“Arthur.” Merlin cuts across the stream of babble. “What are you saying?”
“I’m quitting,” Arthur says simply, and it’s a relief to finally say the words out loud. “I’m leaving Pendragon Enterprises to start my own company.”
Merlin blinks. “You’re-leaving.”
“That’s what I said.” Nervously, Arthur scans his face, trying to discern Merlin’s reaction from his expression. “I’ve been thinking about it for a while, and it seems like this is the right time. You know working for my father has never been my dream job, and without you there’s not a lot to keep me here.”
That makes Merlin’s eyes soften, and he takes a small step forward, his hand sliding down Arthur’s wrist to tangle their fingers together. “I know you feel guilty about what happened,” he says. “But if this is you trying to show me how sorry you are, you really don’t have to. I’ve already accepted your apology, remember?”
“No, I know,” Arthur says. “And I’m not-I mean, part of this is about you, but I’m quitting for me, too. I want to do something more meaningful, something to help people, not to turn a profit.” He takes a deep breath. “And I want you to do it with me. As my business partner, if you’ll have me. And-maybe we could be something more, as well?”
Merlin stares at him for so long without speaking that Arthur begins to wonder whether he has miscalculated. Perhaps Merlin hadn’t meant to kiss him on the balcony after all-or perhaps he’s thought about it and had a change of heart. Maybe this has all been just one giant misunderstanding.
He is about to rescind the offer when Merlin’s stillness breaks, and he launches himself at Arthur, pulling him into a hug so tight it squeezes the breath from his body.
“Every time I think I’ve figured you out, you somehow manage to surprise me,” he says, his voice a little muffled by Arthur’s shoulder. “Are you sure you really want to do this? I mean-it’s a big step, and-well. I don’t exactly have the best track record with relationships, let alone in business ventures.”
“Neither do I.” Gently, Arthur disentangles himself so that they’re standing face to face. “It’s not like I’m asking you to marry me.” Yet. “But I really-I like you, Merlin, and I really want to see where this goes.”
“Me too,” Merlin confesses, smiling shyly. “I think I’ve liked you for a while, actually, but I just…if we do this, if we actually start a business together and things go wrong…”
“We’ve broken up before,” Arthur reminds him, trying to ignore the way the mere possibility makes his heart contract. “And we’ve been good friends for years in spite of it. I’m pretty sure we can handle the fallout, whatever happens.”
“I-” Merlin stops as an all too familiar sound interrupts him, cutting across the quiet. “Oh my God. If that’s Edwin again, I swear-” He steps away from Arthur, pulling his phone from his pocket to check the screen. “Yeah, it’s him. I’m just going to-”
“Give me that.” Plucking the phone from Merlin’s grasp, Arthur puts it to his ear and takes the call, ignoring Merlin’s startled squeak of protest. “Hello, Edwin?”
There’s a pause. Then, “Who the hell is this?”
“I’m Merlin's boyfriend,” Arthur says, meeting Merlin’s wide-eyed gaze with a wink. “He told me you’ve been bothering him, so I thought perhaps we needed to have a little chat.”
“I haven’t been bothering anybody,” Edwin says, sounding sulky. “I don’t know who you think you are, but Merlin and I have something special-”
“Yeah, that’s not what he said last night,” Arthur says, and Merlin covers his face with his hands. His ears are bright red, which makes Arthur smirk, and he deliberately lowers his voice an octave. “You know, when I fucked him into the mattress. I’m pretty sure it was all he could do to remember my name.”
Edwin splutters something unintelligible, apparently so angry that he can't form words, then hangs up with an abruptness that suggests he might have thrown his mobile at the wall. Arthur shrugs and puts the phone down.
“Guess he didn’t like that you’ve moved on,” he says, or begins to-he only manages a few syllables before Merlin surges forward, his mouth crushing Arthur’s in a ferocious kiss.
“You prat,” he says, pulling away briefly and then kissing Arthur again, “you can’t just-say things like that to people-” His hands are untucking Arthur’s shirt, rucking it up to find bare skin, “-without even-God, Arthur-”
“I think you’ll find that I just did,” Arthur points out, and Merlin growls audibly.
“All right, fine,” he says, pushing Arthur back against the door with a determined expression. “Boyfriend. If you fucked me stupid last night, then the least I can do is return the favour.”
Arthur just has the presence of mind to turn the lock-thank fuck his office has solid walls instead of glass-before Merlin sinks to his knees on the carpeted floor, and rational thought abruptly leaves the building.
+
It’s quick and dirty, because it has to be; they’re both fully aware that Morgana is a few doors down the hall, and the rest of Arthur’s coworkers could start arriving at any moment. Even so, Merlin seems determined to take his time, holding Arthur’s hips to keep him in place and teasing him with his mouth and tongue.
“God, Merlin-” Arthur swears, his head falling back. “You-I’m gonna-”
Merlin doesn’t answer, hollowing out his cheeks as though trying to suck Arthur’s orgasm from him by sheer force of will. He shouldn’t be so good at this-it’s bloody criminal that he’s so good at this-especially since if they weren’t such idiots, they could have started doing it a long time ago. Arthur spreads his legs a little, bucking upwards into Merlin’s grip, and then Merlin swirls his tongue and it’s all over, the corners of his eyelids crinkling as he swallows Arthur down.
Eventually, Merlin lets him go, sitting back on his haunches to look up into Arthur’s face. His cheeks are flushed, his mouth swollen and red; there’s no way anyone looking at him now wouldn’t be able to guess what they’d just done.
“You look gorgeous,” Arthur says softly, touching his thumb to Merlin’s lower lip. Merlin kisses it.
“So do you.”
He gets to his feet somewhat awkwardly, and Arthur is about to suggest that they swap places when someone knocks on the door.
“Mr Pendragon? Excuse me, Mr Pendragon-you have a call.”
“Shit. Just a minute, George!” Arthur calls back. He smooths his hair and hurriedly sets himself to rights, glancing down at the bulge in Merlin’s trousers with a rueful smile. “You know, I could always-”
“Not with your lunatic PA standing right outside the door,” Merlin replies, kissing him firmly. Arthur holds him fast, sliding an arm around his waist and chasing the taste of himself on Merlin’s tongue. “Come to mine later, yeah?” Merlin murmurs finally, tugging himself free. “I believe you said something about fucking me.”
“Mm, I did, didn’t I,” Arthur agrees, checking himself over one last time. “I should get on that. Wouldn’t want to give Edwin the wrong idea.”
“God forbid.” Merlin laughs, snagging a cupcake, and follows his boyfriend out the door.
Title: Talking is Overrated
Rating: NC-17
Pairing/s: Merlin/Arthur
Character/s: Merlin, Arthur, Morgana, Edwin, George
Summary: It's Merlin's last day as Arthur's assistant. Between them, Morgana and Arthur make it a memorable one. An epilogue of sorts to the We Need to Talk series.
Warnings: Semi-public sex, office sex.
Word Count: 2000w
Prompt: 354 All I Ask
Author's Notes: This got a bit longer than I intended, but since it's the last one in the series I hope you will forgive me :) With a tip of the hat to weatherfeather, who suggested Morgana's psychic turn a long time ago.
Merlin’s last day at Pendragon Enterprises is somewhat anti-climactic, all things considered. Since he hadn’t been working there for several weeks already, no one really thought to put together a party; instead, they had all agreed that Merlin would collect his things in private on Friday morning, although Morgana had insisted on bringing in some cupcakes for him anyway, just because.
The whole thing is meant to be very low-key, so it’s ridiculous for Arthur to feel so nervous. Things between him and Merlin have mostly returned to normal, which means Merlin has taken to texting him at random intervals during the day and blowing up his inbox with silly memes he’s found on the internet. They haven’t seen much of each other in person, but Merlin has also started signing his messages with little x’s whenever he says good night, which presumably shows that he hasn’t forgotten about their kiss on Elyan’s balcony.
The trouble is, Arthur isn’t sure exactly what that means, relationship-wise. They’ve both been so busy with the Morgause situation that there hasn’t been time to sit down and work things out in detail, and it’s starting to drive Arthur just a little bit insane.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” says Morgana when she sees him. “It’s only Merlin-you needn’t look as though you’re about to face the firing squad. And is that his shirt you’re wearing?”
Arthur looks down, and yes, it is Merlin’s shirt, the same one he’d borrowed a few days ago and ‘forgotten’ to return. “So what if it is?” he asks, folding his arms across his chest. “He won’t mind.”
Morgana shakes her head. “It’s precious,” she observes, “how completely smitten the two of you are with each other. And by precious I mean sickening.”
“Your face is sickening,” is Arthur’s supremely witty rejoinder. “How did you know it was Merlin’s shirt, anyway? It could have been anyone’s.”
Morgana examines her nails. “Because I’m totally, like, psychic, you know,” she says. “And also because it has his initials on it. I’m pretty sure Merlin is the only M-related name that has been embroidered all over your heart these past few months.” Her mouth curls upwards at one corner. “Or did you imagine that you were being subtle with all that pining, brother dearest?”
Arthur is saved from having to come up with a retort by the lift door sliding open, and Merlin himself steps out a moment later. He looks nervous as well, which is some consolation, but he also looks good-he’s wearing a soft blue shirt and dark jeans, more formal than his customary attire but less so than the clothes he usually wears to work. The colours bring out his eyes, and Arthur’s heart skips a beat just looking at him.
“Merlin,” Morgana says, greeting him with a perfunctory kiss on each cheek. “It’s good to see you, although I wish it were under better circumstances.” She glances over at Arthur, who is standing rooted to the spot, and whatever expression she sees on his face makes her roll her eyes.
“I’m going to leave the two of you to it,” she says, backing into the hallway. “Arthur, all I ask is that you give Merlin something to eat once you’re done ravishing him. I spent a whole hour of my life making those cupcakes; I don’t want them to go to waste.”
“Witch,” Arthur calls after her, but she merely flips him the bird and disappears into her office, leaving him alone with his-well, Merlin. “Um. Hi.”
“Hi.” Merlin smiles at him lopsidedly, tucking his hands into his pockets. “So…cupcakes?”
“Yeah, with chocolate sprinkles,” Arthur says stupidly. “We thought, since there wasn’t going to be a party…”
Merlin nods, and after a hesitant pause, Arthur leads the way down the hall into his office, closing the door behind them. The cupcakes are sitting on Arthur’s desk, plainly visible in their neon pink wrappers, but neither man makes a move towards them.
“I wanted to talk to you,” Merlin begins, just as Arthur blurts, “We need to talk.”
Merlin smiles tightly. “You go first,” he says, and Arthur swallows hard.
“I know we have some stuff to sort out,” he says. “But before we get into that, I thought you should know that I’m leaving too. I mean-not right now, obviously, I haven’t-I’ve got to sort out the details first, but I thought-you know I’ve been unhappy here for a while, so it occurred to me that we could-”
“Arthur.” Merlin cuts across the stream of babble. “What are you saying?”
“I’m quitting,” Arthur says simply, and it’s a relief to finally say the words out loud. “I’m leaving Pendragon Enterprises to start my own company.”
Merlin blinks. “You’re-leaving.”
“That’s what I said.” Nervously, Arthur scans his face, trying to discern Merlin’s reaction from his expression. “I’ve been thinking about it for a while, and it seems like this is the right time. You know working for my father has never been my dream job, and without you there’s not a lot to keep me here.”
That makes Merlin’s eyes soften, and he takes a small step forward, his hand sliding down Arthur’s wrist to tangle their fingers together. “I know you feel guilty about what happened,” he says. “But if this is you trying to show me how sorry you are, you really don’t have to. I’ve already accepted your apology, remember?”
“No, I know,” Arthur says. “And I’m not-I mean, part of this is about you, but I’m quitting for me, too. I want to do something more meaningful, something to help people, not to turn a profit.” He takes a deep breath. “And I want you to do it with me. As my business partner, if you’ll have me. And-maybe we could be something more, as well?”
Merlin stares at him for so long without speaking that Arthur begins to wonder whether he has miscalculated. Perhaps Merlin hadn’t meant to kiss him on the balcony after all-or perhaps he’s thought about it and had a change of heart. Maybe this has all been just one giant misunderstanding.
He is about to rescind the offer when Merlin’s stillness breaks, and he launches himself at Arthur, pulling him into a hug so tight it squeezes the breath from his body.
“Every time I think I’ve figured you out, you somehow manage to surprise me,” he says, his voice a little muffled by Arthur’s shoulder. “Are you sure you really want to do this? I mean-it’s a big step, and-well. I don’t exactly have the best track record with relationships, let alone in business ventures.”
“Neither do I.” Gently, Arthur disentangles himself so that they’re standing face to face. “It’s not like I’m asking you to marry me.” Yet. “But I really-I like you, Merlin, and I really want to see where this goes.”
“Me too,” Merlin confesses, smiling shyly. “I think I’ve liked you for a while, actually, but I just…if we do this, if we actually start a business together and things go wrong…”
“We’ve broken up before,” Arthur reminds him, trying to ignore the way the mere possibility makes his heart contract. “And we’ve been good friends for years in spite of it. I’m pretty sure we can handle the fallout, whatever happens.”
“I-” Merlin stops as an all too familiar sound interrupts him, cutting across the quiet. “Oh my God. If that’s Edwin again, I swear-” He steps away from Arthur, pulling his phone from his pocket to check the screen. “Yeah, it’s him. I’m just going to-”
“Give me that.” Plucking the phone from Merlin’s grasp, Arthur puts it to his ear and takes the call, ignoring Merlin’s startled squeak of protest. “Hello, Edwin?”
There’s a pause. Then, “Who the hell is this?”
“I’m Merlin's boyfriend,” Arthur says, meeting Merlin’s wide-eyed gaze with a wink. “He told me you’ve been bothering him, so I thought perhaps we needed to have a little chat.”
“I haven’t been bothering anybody,” Edwin says, sounding sulky. “I don’t know who you think you are, but Merlin and I have something special-”
“Yeah, that’s not what he said last night,” Arthur says, and Merlin covers his face with his hands. His ears are bright red, which makes Arthur smirk, and he deliberately lowers his voice an octave. “You know, when I fucked him into the mattress. I’m pretty sure it was all he could do to remember my name.”
Edwin splutters something unintelligible, apparently so angry that he can't form words, then hangs up with an abruptness that suggests he might have thrown his mobile at the wall. Arthur shrugs and puts the phone down.
“Guess he didn’t like that you’ve moved on,” he says, or begins to-he only manages a few syllables before Merlin surges forward, his mouth crushing Arthur’s in a ferocious kiss.
“You prat,” he says, pulling away briefly and then kissing Arthur again, “you can’t just-say things like that to people-” His hands are untucking Arthur’s shirt, rucking it up to find bare skin, “-without even-God, Arthur-”
“I think you’ll find that I just did,” Arthur points out, and Merlin growls audibly.
“All right, fine,” he says, pushing Arthur back against the door with a determined expression. “Boyfriend. If you fucked me stupid last night, then the least I can do is return the favour.”
Arthur just has the presence of mind to turn the lock-thank fuck his office has solid walls instead of glass-before Merlin sinks to his knees on the carpeted floor, and rational thought abruptly leaves the building.
+
It’s quick and dirty, because it has to be; they’re both fully aware that Morgana is a few doors down the hall, and the rest of Arthur’s coworkers could start arriving at any moment. Even so, Merlin seems determined to take his time, holding Arthur’s hips to keep him in place and teasing him with his mouth and tongue.
“God, Merlin-” Arthur swears, his head falling back. “You-I’m gonna-”
Merlin doesn’t answer, hollowing out his cheeks as though trying to suck Arthur’s orgasm from him by sheer force of will. He shouldn’t be so good at this-it’s bloody criminal that he’s so good at this-especially since if they weren’t such idiots, they could have started doing it a long time ago. Arthur spreads his legs a little, bucking upwards into Merlin’s grip, and then Merlin swirls his tongue and it’s all over, the corners of his eyelids crinkling as he swallows Arthur down.
Eventually, Merlin lets him go, sitting back on his haunches to look up into Arthur’s face. His cheeks are flushed, his mouth swollen and red; there’s no way anyone looking at him now wouldn’t be able to guess what they’d just done.
“You look gorgeous,” Arthur says softly, touching his thumb to Merlin’s lower lip. Merlin kisses it.
“So do you.”
He gets to his feet somewhat awkwardly, and Arthur is about to suggest that they swap places when someone knocks on the door.
“Mr Pendragon? Excuse me, Mr Pendragon-you have a call.”
“Shit. Just a minute, George!” Arthur calls back. He smooths his hair and hurriedly sets himself to rights, glancing down at the bulge in Merlin’s trousers with a rueful smile. “You know, I could always-”
“Not with your lunatic PA standing right outside the door,” Merlin replies, kissing him firmly. Arthur holds him fast, sliding an arm around his waist and chasing the taste of himself on Merlin’s tongue. “Come to mine later, yeah?” Merlin murmurs finally, tugging himself free. “I believe you said something about fucking me.”
“Mm, I did, didn’t I,” Arthur agrees, checking himself over one last time. “I should get on that. Wouldn’t want to give Edwin the wrong idea.”
“God forbid.” Merlin laughs, snagging a cupcake, and follows his boyfriend out the door.