Obstacles of Wedded Bliss (1/2)
Title: Obstacles of Wedded Bliss
Author:
miss_chevalier
Beta:
millicca (she just turns my words into something so much better - thanks hon! ^^)
Word Count: about 3400
Rating: PG (there are slight mentions of m/m sex but nothing grave)
Warnings/Spoilers: none
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, just borrowing them and playing around a bit :D
Summary: Merlin and Arthur are recently married and Arthur screws up a bit. (For a more detailed summary please click on the link to the actual prompt.)
A/N: This was written for this
kinkme_merlin prompt. My lovely beta helped me clean it up a bit and here you are.
Obstacles of Wedded Bliss
“I can’t believe my boy has married.”
Merlin couldn’t suppress the pout. “Mum, you make it sound as if you feared I’d never get a man.”
“Honestly, your chances were very slim. You should be lucky I took pity on you.”
Merlin glared at his husband. Husband. God, that sounded wonderful. “That’s not true, Arthur. It’s you who should be grateful I agreed to marry you.”
“Of course.” Arthur’s chuckle was cut off by Merlin’s lips.
“Oh, you two are the cutest couple ever.”
Merlin felt his cheeks go red. Gwen had been almost more enthusiastic about their wedding than the two grooms.
“But make sure you’ll top tonight, Merlin. Otherwise my brother will get wrong ideas and think he can just bend you over any surface and take you.”
“I already know that I can do that without resistance, Morgana.”
Merlin knew his cheeks were even redder now and his indignant “Not true.” fooled no one. He hadn’t resisted and wouldn’t resist a dominant Arthur. Merlin was just too head over heels in love with the blond and his charms.
“Well, have fun tonight, boys. It’s your wedding night after all.”
And in Merlin’s opinion it was very creepy to hear someone’s mother say that.
~~~~
two weeks later
Merlin slowly blinked his eyes open to find Arthur lying on his back, head turned and eyes fixed on Merlin. The early rays of sunlight streamed into their bedroom, creating a calm and timeless atmosphere. Arthur smiled at him and entwined their fingers. Merlin felt Arthur’s ring press lightly into his hand and grinned back.
“Morning, sweetheart.”
Merlin felt his smile becoming broader and closed his eyes again.
“Oi!” Arthur nudged Merlin’s feet where they were entangled with his. “Don’t you dare fall asleep again.”
“Why not?” Merlin reluctantly opened his eyes again. Arthur’s face was now closer than before. His blue eyes seemed to contain the same happiness that was visible in his smile. Merlin couldn’t believe how lucky he was to wake up next to this man every morning and fall asleep next to him every evening. He was married to Arthur Pendragon. And he hadn’t believed it to be possible but he found himself falling in love with the prat more and more...
Arthur closed the distance between them and, cupping Merlin’s face with one hand, sealed their lips together.
~~~~
Merlin entered the pub and took his jacket off. He smiled at the sound of Gwaine’s already slightly drunken laughter. It wasn’t that the man with the fluffiest hair Merlin had ever seen couldn’t hold his drink. Gwaine just always drank the double amount of beer his friends did.
Merlin walked towards their usual table and yes, there was Gwaine who sat next to Arthur. The spot to the blond’s other side was empty - for Merlin. Leon, Lance and Percy were there too and it seemed as if they were all laughing about something extremely funny.
“Okay, so we now know that Lance does everything Gwen wants him to.” Heartfelt laughter followed Gwaine’s declaration. “What about you, Arthur? How’s married life with Merlin?”
Merlin stopped short in his tracks, still not noticed by anyone. He had a small smile on his lips, already knowing Arthur’s answer.
“It’s ... alright.”
The smile morphed into a frown.
“Not so great then?” Gwaine really was drunk because the other men had a concerned look on their faces whereas he was still grinning like a lunatic.
“I mean it’s great to spend more time - ”
“Shagging?”
Arthur’s reply sounded hesitant. “Yeah... Honestly, I feel confined.”
Confined? How could Arthur say that?
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s sweet when he cooks and wants everything to be ready and perfect, so that I just have to sit down when I come home... But if I’m late because there was another important meeting at the office, he blames me for ruining everything.”
Merlin felt his heart sink with every word. This had just happened once and not at all how Arthur described it. Why hadn’t Arthur said something? No, Arthur Pendragon was a big boy who was able to deal with the issue like an adult. He just went to their friends and poured his heart out instead of confronting his husband.
“Surely there’s something positive?” Of course Lance would try to save the conversation. “I love waking up to the sight of Gwen for example. Actually, the whole ‘sharing one bed’ is one of my favourite changes since we moved in together and married.”
“That’s probably because Gwen doesn’t hog the blankets and then gets tangled up in them.”
There was an ache in his chest which made it difficult to breathe and Merlin somehow felt numb. Another thing Arthur hadn’t talked to him about. Merlin had thought Arthur liked waking up in the same bed - even more so after this morning. Arthur’s smile had been radiant, not faked. He’d looked happy, not miserable or annoyed or confined. Maybe Arthur had noticed during the course of the last two weeks that he actually didn’t love Merlin? Or maybe he was just staying because of the sex?
Merlin didn’t feel like drinking anymore. If anything he felt like throwing up. He needed to get away from this place - from Arthur, needed fresh air. So Merlin put his jacket back on - he didn’t want to spoil Arthur’s Saturday night after all.
Outside the pub he bumped into Elyan thanks to unshed tears blurring his view.
“Are you alright, mate?”
“You better ask Arthur that question.”
~~~~
“So, are you still in love with Arthur or has he become unbearable because you’re with him 24/7?”
Merlin had to laugh out loud at that. “It’s not like we spend all of our time together.”
“But you still love him.” Gwen smiled at him knowingly and Merlin felt his grin splitting his face.
“Of course I do. And I think marrying him made it even better. It’s like I want to show my ring to everyone out there. He’s the one, Gwen. I really believe he is.”
“Oh, Merlin. It’s so good to see you being this over the moon. I think I might be afraid that all that enthusiasm and happiness will abate.”
“Maybe. But I’ll still love him.”
~~~~
Arthur was still drinking his first beer and was glad that the topic of conversation had changed from his marital life to Percy’s latest conquest. They all agreed that she had a horrible personality but Percy insisted that the sex was mind-blowing.
Arthur began to wonder what was taking Merlin so long. He had gone to drink a coffee with Gwen and they had agreed that he would join them in the pub immediately afterwards. But there was still no sign of Merlin anywhere. Instead, Elyan arrived and sat down at their table.
“Did you and Merlin have a row?”
Arthur almost choked on his beer at the question. “Of course not. Why?”
“He just bumped into me outside - and man, he seemed devastated. Like totally miserable. I think I even saw some tears.”
Arthur was already putting his jacket on at the end of Elyan’s first sentence. This was not good. If Merlin had overheard what Arthur had said... Why was Arthur so stupid? He should have learned by now that Merlin was more important than his friends’ opinion. It didn’t matter if they considered him some besotted fool who couldn’t think straight when in close proximity to his husband.
Quickly Arthur ran outside and into the direction of their flat. Merlin would be there, right? He wouldn’t do anything rash. No, he wouldn’t.
Arthur felt a tiny bit of relief rush through him when he noticed that the door to their flat was not locked. Inside, he let his jacket fall to the ground, took off his shoes and walked towards their bedroom. The light was turned off but Arthur could hear sobbing and uneven breathing. Arthur stepped into the room and turned the bedside lamp on.
“Merlin?”
The dark haired man was lying in the middle of their bed, curled in on himself. Arthur inwardly cursed himself for being the source of Merlin’s misery.
“Go away.”
“No, I won’t”, Arthur answered to Merlin’s back.
“I heard what you said in the pub.” It was just a sob and it made Arthur instantly hate himself even more. Carefully, he crawled onto the bed.
“Hey.” Arthur extended one arm and lightly stroked Merlin’s back. For the first few seconds the other man leaned into it but then he flinched away as if suddenly noticing what he was doing.
“Leave me alone.”
“No, Merlin. First I want to explain this.”
“Oh, so now you want to talk about all this with me? After you’ve complained about it to your friends.”
“Merlin - ”
“No. You could have told me that you weren’t happy. But speaking to Lance, Leon, Gwaine and Percy first isn’t fair. I mean I thought we were happy and everything was fine.”
Merlin’s voice trembled at the end of the sentence and he reached for an already gnawed on bar of chocolate. But Arthur was faster and put it out of his reach.
“No more chocolate, Merlin. It only makes you feel more depressed.”
“Just in case you haven’t noticed I’m already quite depressed. As anyone would be overhearing their husband admitting that the only positive outcome of the marriage is being able to fuck more often.”
Tears were back in Merlin’s red, puffy eyes and Arthur felt another stab of guilt.
“I didn’t want to say that.”
“But you said it. And the thing about the cooking: I never said you ruined it. We had a nice meal even though I had to warm it up again and as far as I remember I didn’t blame you for anything. And you never complained about my sleeping habits.”
“I don’t have anything against your sleeping habits. It’s endearing when all your long limbs seem to be squished by this huge wall of duvet or when you’re drooling onto the pillow.”
Merlin frowned at him and the mistrust in his eyes was sadly all too justified. Arthur wanted to take him into his arms and kiss him to prove that he really loved him but he knew Merlin would flinch away again.
“I love you, Merlin. And I married you because of that. What I said earlier in the pub was ... horrible. I know I shouldn’t have said it.”
“Then why did you say it in the first place?”
“I didn’t want them to make fun of me. Yes, I know that’s stupid but you know how much I’ve always depended on what people think of me. I didn’t like the idea of the guys laughing at me because of my feelings for you.”
“So you said all this bullshit because you were ashamed of your love for me?”
At that moment Arthur realised that he had once again said the wrong thing. Before he’d met Merlin he had never had any problems explaining and expressing himself. But around Merlin he seemed to lose his charms and ability to fit in.
Merlin shook his head, stood up and grabbed a duvet. “You know what, Arthur? I’ll sleep on the couch tonight - just in order to prevent you from having to deal with your feelings.”
And then he was out of their bedroom.
~~~~
Part 2
Author:
miss_chevalier
Beta:
millicca (she just turns my words into something so much better - thanks hon! ^^)
Word Count: about 3400
Rating: PG (there are slight mentions of m/m sex but nothing grave)
Warnings/Spoilers: none
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, just borrowing them and playing around a bit :D
Summary: Merlin and Arthur are recently married and Arthur screws up a bit. (For a more detailed summary please click on the link to the actual prompt.)
A/N: This was written for this
kinkme_merlin prompt. My lovely beta helped me clean it up a bit and here you are.
Obstacles of Wedded Bliss
“I can’t believe my boy has married.”
Merlin couldn’t suppress the pout. “Mum, you make it sound as if you feared I’d never get a man.”
“Honestly, your chances were very slim. You should be lucky I took pity on you.”
Merlin glared at his husband. Husband. God, that sounded wonderful. “That’s not true, Arthur. It’s you who should be grateful I agreed to marry you.”
“Of course.” Arthur’s chuckle was cut off by Merlin’s lips.
“Oh, you two are the cutest couple ever.”
Merlin felt his cheeks go red. Gwen had been almost more enthusiastic about their wedding than the two grooms.
“But make sure you’ll top tonight, Merlin. Otherwise my brother will get wrong ideas and think he can just bend you over any surface and take you.”
“I already know that I can do that without resistance, Morgana.”
Merlin knew his cheeks were even redder now and his indignant “Not true.” fooled no one. He hadn’t resisted and wouldn’t resist a dominant Arthur. Merlin was just too head over heels in love with the blond and his charms.
“Well, have fun tonight, boys. It’s your wedding night after all.”
And in Merlin’s opinion it was very creepy to hear someone’s mother say that.
~~~~
two weeks later
Merlin slowly blinked his eyes open to find Arthur lying on his back, head turned and eyes fixed on Merlin. The early rays of sunlight streamed into their bedroom, creating a calm and timeless atmosphere. Arthur smiled at him and entwined their fingers. Merlin felt Arthur’s ring press lightly into his hand and grinned back.
“Morning, sweetheart.”
Merlin felt his smile becoming broader and closed his eyes again.
“Oi!” Arthur nudged Merlin’s feet where they were entangled with his. “Don’t you dare fall asleep again.”
“Why not?” Merlin reluctantly opened his eyes again. Arthur’s face was now closer than before. His blue eyes seemed to contain the same happiness that was visible in his smile. Merlin couldn’t believe how lucky he was to wake up next to this man every morning and fall asleep next to him every evening. He was married to Arthur Pendragon. And he hadn’t believed it to be possible but he found himself falling in love with the prat more and more...
Arthur closed the distance between them and, cupping Merlin’s face with one hand, sealed their lips together.
~~~~
Merlin entered the pub and took his jacket off. He smiled at the sound of Gwaine’s already slightly drunken laughter. It wasn’t that the man with the fluffiest hair Merlin had ever seen couldn’t hold his drink. Gwaine just always drank the double amount of beer his friends did.
Merlin walked towards their usual table and yes, there was Gwaine who sat next to Arthur. The spot to the blond’s other side was empty - for Merlin. Leon, Lance and Percy were there too and it seemed as if they were all laughing about something extremely funny.
“Okay, so we now know that Lance does everything Gwen wants him to.” Heartfelt laughter followed Gwaine’s declaration. “What about you, Arthur? How’s married life with Merlin?”
Merlin stopped short in his tracks, still not noticed by anyone. He had a small smile on his lips, already knowing Arthur’s answer.
“It’s ... alright.”
The smile morphed into a frown.
“Not so great then?” Gwaine really was drunk because the other men had a concerned look on their faces whereas he was still grinning like a lunatic.
“I mean it’s great to spend more time - ”
“Shagging?”
Arthur’s reply sounded hesitant. “Yeah... Honestly, I feel confined.”
Confined? How could Arthur say that?
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s sweet when he cooks and wants everything to be ready and perfect, so that I just have to sit down when I come home... But if I’m late because there was another important meeting at the office, he blames me for ruining everything.”
Merlin felt his heart sink with every word. This had just happened once and not at all how Arthur described it. Why hadn’t Arthur said something? No, Arthur Pendragon was a big boy who was able to deal with the issue like an adult. He just went to their friends and poured his heart out instead of confronting his husband.
“Surely there’s something positive?” Of course Lance would try to save the conversation. “I love waking up to the sight of Gwen for example. Actually, the whole ‘sharing one bed’ is one of my favourite changes since we moved in together and married.”
“That’s probably because Gwen doesn’t hog the blankets and then gets tangled up in them.”
There was an ache in his chest which made it difficult to breathe and Merlin somehow felt numb. Another thing Arthur hadn’t talked to him about. Merlin had thought Arthur liked waking up in the same bed - even more so after this morning. Arthur’s smile had been radiant, not faked. He’d looked happy, not miserable or annoyed or confined. Maybe Arthur had noticed during the course of the last two weeks that he actually didn’t love Merlin? Or maybe he was just staying because of the sex?
Merlin didn’t feel like drinking anymore. If anything he felt like throwing up. He needed to get away from this place - from Arthur, needed fresh air. So Merlin put his jacket back on - he didn’t want to spoil Arthur’s Saturday night after all.
Outside the pub he bumped into Elyan thanks to unshed tears blurring his view.
“Are you alright, mate?”
“You better ask Arthur that question.”
~~~~
“So, are you still in love with Arthur or has he become unbearable because you’re with him 24/7?”
Merlin had to laugh out loud at that. “It’s not like we spend all of our time together.”
“But you still love him.” Gwen smiled at him knowingly and Merlin felt his grin splitting his face.
“Of course I do. And I think marrying him made it even better. It’s like I want to show my ring to everyone out there. He’s the one, Gwen. I really believe he is.”
“Oh, Merlin. It’s so good to see you being this over the moon. I think I might be afraid that all that enthusiasm and happiness will abate.”
“Maybe. But I’ll still love him.”
~~~~
Arthur was still drinking his first beer and was glad that the topic of conversation had changed from his marital life to Percy’s latest conquest. They all agreed that she had a horrible personality but Percy insisted that the sex was mind-blowing.
Arthur began to wonder what was taking Merlin so long. He had gone to drink a coffee with Gwen and they had agreed that he would join them in the pub immediately afterwards. But there was still no sign of Merlin anywhere. Instead, Elyan arrived and sat down at their table.
“Did you and Merlin have a row?”
Arthur almost choked on his beer at the question. “Of course not. Why?”
“He just bumped into me outside - and man, he seemed devastated. Like totally miserable. I think I even saw some tears.”
Arthur was already putting his jacket on at the end of Elyan’s first sentence. This was not good. If Merlin had overheard what Arthur had said... Why was Arthur so stupid? He should have learned by now that Merlin was more important than his friends’ opinion. It didn’t matter if they considered him some besotted fool who couldn’t think straight when in close proximity to his husband.
Quickly Arthur ran outside and into the direction of their flat. Merlin would be there, right? He wouldn’t do anything rash. No, he wouldn’t.
Arthur felt a tiny bit of relief rush through him when he noticed that the door to their flat was not locked. Inside, he let his jacket fall to the ground, took off his shoes and walked towards their bedroom. The light was turned off but Arthur could hear sobbing and uneven breathing. Arthur stepped into the room and turned the bedside lamp on.
“Merlin?”
The dark haired man was lying in the middle of their bed, curled in on himself. Arthur inwardly cursed himself for being the source of Merlin’s misery.
“Go away.”
“No, I won’t”, Arthur answered to Merlin’s back.
“I heard what you said in the pub.” It was just a sob and it made Arthur instantly hate himself even more. Carefully, he crawled onto the bed.
“Hey.” Arthur extended one arm and lightly stroked Merlin’s back. For the first few seconds the other man leaned into it but then he flinched away as if suddenly noticing what he was doing.
“Leave me alone.”
“No, Merlin. First I want to explain this.”
“Oh, so now you want to talk about all this with me? After you’ve complained about it to your friends.”
“Merlin - ”
“No. You could have told me that you weren’t happy. But speaking to Lance, Leon, Gwaine and Percy first isn’t fair. I mean I thought we were happy and everything was fine.”
Merlin’s voice trembled at the end of the sentence and he reached for an already gnawed on bar of chocolate. But Arthur was faster and put it out of his reach.
“No more chocolate, Merlin. It only makes you feel more depressed.”
“Just in case you haven’t noticed I’m already quite depressed. As anyone would be overhearing their husband admitting that the only positive outcome of the marriage is being able to fuck more often.”
Tears were back in Merlin’s red, puffy eyes and Arthur felt another stab of guilt.
“I didn’t want to say that.”
“But you said it. And the thing about the cooking: I never said you ruined it. We had a nice meal even though I had to warm it up again and as far as I remember I didn’t blame you for anything. And you never complained about my sleeping habits.”
“I don’t have anything against your sleeping habits. It’s endearing when all your long limbs seem to be squished by this huge wall of duvet or when you’re drooling onto the pillow.”
Merlin frowned at him and the mistrust in his eyes was sadly all too justified. Arthur wanted to take him into his arms and kiss him to prove that he really loved him but he knew Merlin would flinch away again.
“I love you, Merlin. And I married you because of that. What I said earlier in the pub was ... horrible. I know I shouldn’t have said it.”
“Then why did you say it in the first place?”
“I didn’t want them to make fun of me. Yes, I know that’s stupid but you know how much I’ve always depended on what people think of me. I didn’t like the idea of the guys laughing at me because of my feelings for you.”
“So you said all this bullshit because you were ashamed of your love for me?”
At that moment Arthur realised that he had once again said the wrong thing. Before he’d met Merlin he had never had any problems explaining and expressing himself. But around Merlin he seemed to lose his charms and ability to fit in.
Merlin shook his head, stood up and grabbed a duvet. “You know what, Arthur? I’ll sleep on the couch tonight - just in order to prevent you from having to deal with your feelings.”
And then he was out of their bedroom.
~~~~
Part 2