Merlin fanfic: Can't Buy Me Love (3/6)
Can’t Buy Me Love (3/?)
Pairings: Merlin/Arthur, Merlin/Gwaine, Gwen/Arthur, Gwen/Lancelot
Rating:17+
Warnings: author’s sense of humour, irreverence, South Park ‘Virgin Mary’ references, sex
Summary:
Merlin hired a date for his high school graduation dinner. Boy-For-Sale Arthur happens to be Merlin's-university-boyfriend Gwaine’s best friend. So Merlin and Arthur keep the fact that they’ve met, danced and snogged secret from everybody. However Arthur, Lancelot and Gwaine are keeping another something from Merlin. Gwen thinks Arthur and Lancelot are rather dishy and they both seem to like her. Can Merlin's first year get any more complicated?
Words in this post:7849
14. Single Bed
The article in the student magazine features all forms of harassment on campus plus how to avoid and report them with no names. Gwaine and Merlin are still given the evil eye when they’re out together but people are less blatant about it. It doesn’t seem worth it.
Lancelot and Gwen are still in line at the register so Arthur and Gwaine cop the full force of Merlin's complaint.
"It’s the best you can hope for I’m afraid." Arthur responds dejectedly. His expression indicates he feels the same disappointment in his lunch as he pushes it about the plate with a fork. "At least you’ve made it impossible for tertiary schools as a collective to ignore such violence when it occurs. That could mean all the difference to a victim."
"Are you sure you want to be a sports teacher and not a member for parliament or something?" Merlin teases.
"Merlin please, I have standards."
Gwaine smiles as Arthur frowns at his plate and decides he can’t eat that. Merlin hasn’t thought of Arthur as more than an accessory to Gwaine for weeks, thanks in part to the comfortable pattern established by his boyfriend.
The only social time they spend with Gwaine’s friends is during Friday lunch when all four males join Gwen at Chalkie Café. Lancelot, Gwen and Arthur stay on the opposite side of the pedagogy tutorial room and work diligently in their quieter corner while Gwaine and Merlin goof about and work in equal amounts. Gwaine insists that their weekend dates exclude the other three.
"Just admit your friends don’t like me," Merlin demands after Gwaine says no to the bar where his boys will be.
"Of course they do."
"Then what’s the problem?"
"The problem is that they like you. Lancelot will want me to move out and you to move in before Christmas if I let you get too familiar."
Merlin gives up trying to get a serious answer when Gwaine isn’t prepared to give him one. Gwen, however, must be spending a lot of time with Gwaine’s friends. Every third topic seems to involve Lancelot or Arthur, if not both.
Gwaine and Merlin start meeting up in town mid-week for student-nite as well as at Union Bars on weekends. They drink and fool around a lot without actually ‘fooling around’.
"You haven’t made a move on me in days, are you losing interest?" Merlin asks, only half in jest as they play table tennis in the dormitory common room. It’s always empty on a Saturday night and Merlin wanted to be properly alone with Gwaine outside his tissue box bedroom.
"I’m trying to be respectful you dolt."
Merlin laughs and kisses him. Gwaine kisses him back. Merlin sits on the table tennis court with Gwaine standing between his legs as they kiss and begin touching each other up. Getting caught like this won’t do much for the integrity of their complaint against Olaf so they retire to Merlin's room where they make each other come with their hands.
"Thank god for that!" Gwaine exclaims. "You do know you don’t have to wait for me to make the first move?"
"Do now." Merlin rolls onto him and kisses him until they’re nearly breathless.
"You’re something special Merlin," Gwaine says as they lie squished together, dozing off in Merlin's single bed. He says it with deep affection and Merlin thinks ‘so this is how it feels to be in love - gently warm rather than tumultuous heat.’ He decides that he prefers the real thing to the illusion he’d been waiting for in high school. Merlin drapes his arm across Gwaine’s waist.
"Next time, can we sleep at your house?" he asks with his cheek over Gwaine’s heart. He remembers hearing it beat through his mobile phone three months ago, when the only things he knew about Gwaine were superficial. Now he can feel it, real and solid. Like us
"Why?" Gwaine asks. "Hoping to catch another glimpse of the nudist?"
"Don’t you have a bigger bed?" Merlin hints.
"If you’re sure that’s what you want," Gwaine replies softly. His fingers move reverently through Merlin's hair and along Merlin's neck.
Merlin is sure.
15. Say, Say, Say
"Could you ask Lancelot what I should get Gwaine for Christmas?" Merlin asks Gwen over breakfast in the dining hall.
"Would you explain why you’re no longer talking to Arthur first? He apologised months ago for calling you a skinny runt - which you are by the way. I mean, look at your boyfriend and his cohort of definite save-the-world type hunks."
"I talk to Arthur!" he declares defensively. Gwaine recently expressed concern about Merlin’s weight, and then suggested he swallow. Merlin isn’t mentioning that to Gwen.
"No you don’t. You talk around him or about him to Gwaine, Lancelot and me, but unless he addresses you directly you ignore him. What’s he supposed to have done this time?"
"Nothing, I … it isn’t deliberate if I do that, which I don’t believe I do. But if I am doing that, I don’t set out to do it on purpose."
"So ask Arthur about a gift for Gwaine. He’s known him twice as long as Lancelot has."
"Arthur doesn’t approve of our relationship." You see, we fake dated before I met Gwaine. He doesn’t want Gwaine to find out and I don’t want you to know because I had to pay Arthur to go out with me. The longer I’m with Gwaine the more likely we’ll all be covered in spilled beans, and none of us want that.
"He wasn’t happy about it at the start, no. But if you hadn’t been ignoring him you would know how impressed he is that Gwaine has had the one partner for three months and, more importantly, that this partner is someone like you, not some acrobatic sex-addict…"
"What’s that supposed to mean? Is this ‘pick on Merlin week’? Glad it isn’t catching on beyond you lot." Merlin grumbles as he struggles with the waxed-paper bag inside his cardboard box of cereal. Why can’t they let students scoop dry cereal out of a tub or something? Surely it’s cheaper to buy the stuff in bulk.
"Haven’t you seen Gwaine’s Sex Instructor t-shirt, Virgins are my Specialty?"
"What? No. You aren’t serious!"
Gwen nods with a sideways half-smile and her brown eyes crinkle. "Afraid so, have taken it off the washing line myself."
"You do their laundry?" Merlin asks with a disbelieving smile as he stirs milk through his cereal.
"Unlike you, I don’t get paid to work in a lab as part of my scholarship. Arthur pays me…"
"Arthur, pays you, to do his laundry? You’re his servant?"
"He and Lancelot prefer the term ‘favoured employee’, plus they cook me dinner at least once a week. Well, Lancelot does. Arthur’s idea of cooking involves a microwave meal followed by ice-cream on a stick, but it still makes a pleasant change from dining hall fodder. They keep asking me to invite you to join us but you’re always out with Gwaine, in the lab for night prac or work, or playing mad professor and lab assistant in your room with Gwaine…"
Merlin comes up with a cheeky way to change the topic. "If you had to pick between Lancelot and Arthur, who would you choose?"
"Don’t be silly, we’re all just friends." Gwen answers calmly, although she avoids Merlin's gaze and picks dried fruit from her muesli.
"That’s not what Gwaine thinks." Gwaine’s opinion made Merlin snort a small corn kernel out his right nostril so he plans to make no further allusions to it. He forgets about Gwen accusing him of ignoring Arthur and later asks Lancelot about what might constitute an appropriate gift for Gwaine.
"I don’t know. I just add my name to whatever Arthur buys, same as Gwaine. Ask Arthur. Or would you rather I ask on your behalf since you’re ignoring him?"
"Wh…that’s what Gwen said! I am not ignoring him." Merlin makes use of Gwaine’s absence at lunch on Friday due to a co-operative assessment to prove this is so and asks Arthur what to buy him.
"Arthur?" Merlin nudges him with a foot after receiving no reply.
"Hm? Oh, you were talking to me?"
"Yes!"
"Don’t sound so parental. For five weeks you’ve said nothing more than ‘yes’, ‘no’, ‘guess so’ or ‘where’s Gwaine?’ Don’t blame me for assuming you were addressing everyone else at the table. Since you asked; you can’t go wrong with a t-shirt, preferably black with something offensive on it, offensive being the priority. Don’t get upset if he doesn’t wear it, he collects them."
"T-shirts?" Merlin asks doubtfully.
"T-shirts," Arthur confirms.
"I’m going out with a man who collects rude t-shirts?"
"You certainly are," Arthur gloats. Lancelot nods along with a smirk.
"Never would have predicted that one," Merlin admits.
"No. Neither of you seem each other’s type but it appears to be working." Arthur’s approval is apparent.
Gwen flashes a smug ‘told you so’ Merlin's way. Perhaps the danger period is over and no-one can have any reason to suspect Merlin and Arthur met through means other than Gwaine. Perhaps Merlin and Arthur can actually become friends.
"So Gwaine honestly has a ‘Virgins are my Specialty’ shirt?" Merlin asks with a carefree smile.
Arthur retreats from the conversation and the table with a fraudulent excuse. Merlin's smile fades.
"Guess it’s back to ignoring Arthur then," Gwen says softly to Lancelot with a slightly frustrated expression before heading after Arthur.
"What have I done now?" Merlin asks Lancelot. This is ridiculous. Lancelot doesn’t look too happy as he watches Gwen catch up to Arthur.
"That would be the shirt that started the collection. Arthur had it made to order."
Merlin remembers the text message Gwaine sent the first time they all had lunch together with Gwen. "Gwaine said Arthur’s - but he’s not. He can’t be!" The thought that Gwaine would be so blind is more ridiculous than Arthur’s reaction.
"Well he is," Lancelot insists.
"No, I’m pretty sure he isn’t," Merlin contends.
"Is that why there’s always been this wall of weird between you? Did you hook up during O-week?"
"Me and Arthur?" Merlin's heart inexplicably changes pace. "No. I just mean - look at him! Blokes would pay to spend time with him." Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. The words travel throughout Merlin along his pulse.
Lancelot hasn’t noticed. His gaze has returned to Arthur and Gwen. "I doubt Arthur’s interested in men, Merlin."
Merlin is about to refute that flatly delivered statement when Arthur’s hand moves to Gwen’s waist to guide her gently through the crowd. The gesture is deferential, chivalrous. Gwen smiles her thanks with extra dimples and Arthur smiles back with equal affection.
"No!" Merlin leans forward in his seat, mouth gaping after his exclamation. "Gwen?" How rapt in Gwaine has Merlin been to miss this? Arthur should be performing on stage and being showered with accolades for his acting skills. Merlin never doubted that Arthur was Gay!
Lancelot doesn’t scowl, that would be impolite. Whatever the well-mannered version of a scowl may be, that is what adorns Lancelot’s face. His eyes flit to Merlin and back in bitter accusation, as though it’s Merlin's fault their friends have developed this interest in each other.
"You like Gwen don’t you?" Merlin asks like an imbecile.
"What’s not to like?" Lancelot’s response is less gruff than Merlin expected.
"Gwen told me just days ago that the three of you are just friends. She had a go at me in fact for suggesting she preferred one of you over the other."
"So there’s no chance for either of us?" Lancelot’s subtle humour shows around his eyes.
"No, you nit," Merlin declares with mock impatience. "It means you stand an equal chance of wooing her. Gwen has admitted to me more than once that she’s bold as brass, except for when it comes to romance. That girl won’t make a move until confident that it’s safe to do so."
"Like you? Gwaine said the same thing about you. Replace the word romance with…"
"Perhaps I should give my advice to Arthur instead," Merlin muses with fake solemnity and Lancelot chuckles.
16. Material Girl
Merlin decides to take Gwen when he goes shopping for Gwaine’s gift.
"Why do you want my opinion?" Gwen asks after leaving another store empty handed.
"By the sounds of it, the more likely it is to repulse you the more he’ll love it."
"I was raised by my father and older brother and have developed a high tolerance for the disgusting, thought it best to warn you."
"So if you discovered Gwaine is adamant that you, Arthur and Lancelot indulge in threesomes you wouldn’t react like that." Merlin points as Gwen covers her eyes, cheeks aflame and repeats ‘oh-my-god-no’ in a quiet, distressed voice. "Don’t worry," Merlin adds, "I told him you’re strictly an orgy girl and wouldn’t let him miss out on any fun."
Gwen roughly backhands Merlin's arm. "You’re evil." She rubs her knuckles, "and bony!"
They browse through another rack of shirts in an out-of place surf shop.
"So," Gwen begins with exaggerated nonchalance, "has Gwaine invited you to the house for Christmas lunch with the rest of us?"
"No." Merlin puts back a shirt that fails to raise Gwen’s eyebrows.
"I’m sure he will," Gwen smiles supportively.
"He invited me to stay from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day." Merlin is sometimes nervous about it. Two nights in a row without separating during the day, what are they going to talk about? How are they going to fill the time? He knows some of what they’ll do, presents and the obvious thing they haven’t done yet, but that won’t fill forty eight hours, even if virgins are Gwaine’s specialty.
"Get rid of that Pink Panther shirt, Merlin. Lame doesn’t count as offensive." Gwen leans closer and talks quietly. "Don’t worry over things. All that muffled noise from your room when he visits suggests you get up to quite a lot…"
"That’s just…having fun," Merlin mumbles, mortified that a) this conversation is occurring and b) Gwen hears them ‘having fun’.
"If you do it to achieve orgasm it counts as sex. Didn’t they teach Personal Health and Development at your school?"
"Not stuff like that!"
"So you know nothing about post-coital douching?" Gwen’s eyes and dimples are filled with malicious glee.
"Consider the gang-bang comment avenged."
"Oh, urgh!" Gwen holds the sleeve of a t-shirt between two fingers for Merlin's perusal. "Found a winner."
"Urgh," Merlin agrees. He purchases the revolting garment and they celebrate the find with flavoured tea and apple turnovers from the nearest eatery.
"Are you sure about you and Gwaine? He’s a rogue and you’re…"
"A dweeb?"
"…less rowdy."
"Opposites are supposed to attract."
"What I’m trying to get at - what brought the two of you together in the first place?"
"Dunno. Gwaine gave me his number and I used it. He’s fun. We have fun together."
"So basically, nothing? He checks you out, says ‘call me’ which you do and now you’re spending Christmas together?"
"We’ve been together three months! Can we stop using the word ‘together’? It’s starting to sound trite."
"Okay. You’ve been a couple for three months. Three months of what, exactly?"
"Being social and," Merlin pauses, "the rest, normal stuff." What is it about women and relationship vivisection? His mother constantly analyses every interaction between people. It drives Merlin barmy.
"Do you love him?" Gwen asks gently.
"What?" Merlin has only thought about it the once. He enjoys being around Gwaine and he’s certainly attracted to him. "Yeah, I guess so."
"Does he love you?"
Merlin is surprised by how bluntly Gwen asks. He hasn’t thought about Gwaine’s perspective at all. "What’s this about? Have your bosom buddies said something?"
"No. I just get the feeling Gwaine isn’t as serious about this as you are."
"This isn’t a movie Gwen. Love at first sight isn’t real."
"Alright, okay," Gwen raises her hands then places them flat on the table, either side of her empty plate. "Opinions on this topic will no longer be shared."
"Good."
He thinks about Gwaine and love on the bus ride back to the residential side of campus. He remembers Gwaine telling him he’s something special and wonders if perhaps Gwaine is taking their relationship more seriously than Merlin.
17. Ding-Dong Merrily On High
Christmas Eve isn’t spent the way Merlin expected.
Gwaine, Arthur and Lancelot have a tradition that not even separate gap years interrupted. Arthur insists it will be entirely dull without Gwaine so Merlin is forced to participate. None of them will tell him what it is before they get there.
They pick him up in the same car that took Merlin to grad. This time he sits in the back with Gwaine - who wears flashing LED antlers, a shirt declaring the Bible to be the world’s most popular fantasy novel, and a grin. The heater in Arthur’s car is overenthusiastic and Merlin immediately strips off his coat, gloves and beanie. Gwaine has a box on his lap which the three of them refuse to explain. Merlin gives up and settles for singing along to a cassette of Christmas carols.
"Arthur’s car predates CD and not in the sexy, vintage kind of way," Gwaine explains.
Merlin nearly says ‘I know’. Little slips occur on both sides during the evening. Merlin trips first by declaring ‘Of course!’ when they park at a Salvation Army distribution centre. Oliver mentioned helping pack charity hampers with his friends as they danced but Merlin couldn’t be sure what was fact and what was fairy tale at the time.
"What do you mean ‘of course’?" Gwaine asks and Arthur tenses.
"I should have figured they’d force you into redeeming your soul in time for Santa."
Lancelot and Gwaine laugh, Arthur and Merlin relax.
Arthur stumbles next when discussing the commercially produced plum puddings they put in the packs. "No doubt they don’t measure up to Merlin's Mum’s." He covers his gaff by adding "Gwen had the good fortune to sample the one Hunith sent and boasted about what we were missing."
Lancelot supports the truthful part of Arthur’s story. "Gwen complained that her slice was half the size of the one you gave Gwaine. We wondered why you didn’t go home simply for miracle pudding."
"You lot comparing me unfavourably to pudding now?" Gwaine complains half-heartedly.
"What are you smuggling into the hampers this year, Naughty Elf?" Arthur asks cheerily and Gwaine lights up like his antlers.
"Pocket size packets of jelly penises and the standard ‘could be worse’ postcard."
"Which would be what?" Merlin asks.
Gwaine opens a packet of cock-shaped lollies and pops a green one into his mouth, with a red one for Merlin as he shows him a postcard of girl in her late teens emerging from a backyard pool. The pale figure is bedraggled, her thigh length cocktail frock and make up are ruined. A plastic party tiara dangles from black hair longer than her dress. Her expression is horrified as the smartly-suited young man helping her out of the pool projectile vomits into her cleavage. The words Lady of the Lake are embossed on the front while the back reads: It could be worse, you could be her. Merry Xmas, stay safe and party sensibly. Love from Santa’s Elves.
Merlin finds it grotesque and cute at the same time. "How do you know the Lady of the Lake isn’t one of the recipients? That’d be a crappy Christmas." He opens his mouth when Gwaine holds another jelly penis in front of it. They’re tiny but yum.
"That’s my independently wealthy half-sister Morgana celebrating the twenty first birthday of her half-sister Morgause. Thankfully the blond witch is no relation of mine," Arthur explains. "Gwaine’s been getting his revenge this way every year since, love it."
"Revenge for what?" Merlin asks with a grimace of concern-tainted amusement. This photo could be linked to whatever scandals prevented Arthur openly supporting Gwaine after he and Merlin were bullied in the showers.
"Morgana seduced Gwaine to get back at Arthur for not going with their father to the US," Lancelot explains while Arthur pulls a face at the way Gwaine stretches an orange penis before biting its balls off.
"The witch wasn’t in control of her fortune then and Uther refused to pay her way as punishment for uploading video of us going for it. The vid did wonders for our reputations, not so good for Uther’s, hence our internet ban. He’s always watching to ensure Arthur remains scandal free. It isn’t fair," Gwaine complains.
"It wouldn’t be fair on the Americans to send her over there," Arthur declares.
"I blame Morgana for your refusal to go out with me," Gwaine slaps a pink jelly at Arthur’s cheek.
Arthur pulls on the other end until it breaks. "It can’t have anything to do with the fact I’ve never been attracted to you," Arthur retorts before tossing the knob end into his mouth.
"Because you’re hot for Lancelot," Gwaine replies.
"Who will never be attracted to either of you," Lancelot concludes.
Merlin expects it to turn into an argument but every comment is delivered and received with good cheer. This must be another of their idiosyncrasies. He is welcomed into their generalised banter and thoroughly enjoys himself.
The other minor errors demonstrating that he met Arthur prior to his relationship with Gwaine go un-noticed by the others. They share ‘can’t believe we got away with that one’ gestures whenever the coast is clear. Merlin reaches the conclusion that ‘Oliver’ was by majority genuine Arthur. He isn’t sure how to handle that. Not only due to what it might mean for Merlin, but how it could affect Gwen, Lancelot and most of all Gwaine. Arthur doesn’t know how Merlin felt about their night together, or for how long he thought about it afterwards. Merlin plans to keep it that way.
It’s 2am when the room full of volunteers cheer that the last hamper is done. The delivery elves will take over in three hours. There is nothing left to do but say goodbye because everyone cleans up bags and boxes as they’re emptied instead of letting them accumulate.
"Disappointing lack of reaction to your shirt this year, Gwaine," is Lancelot’s only complaint. "You’ll never top that South Park one."
"Do you watch that crap?" Merlin asks Gwaine.
"Indeed I do, as does Lancelot."
"Unfortunately," Arthur mutters as he removes his keys from his front pocket. "If I’d known what was on that bloody shirt I would never have bought it online. ‘South Park Christmas shirt, sounds like the perfect gift for Gwaine. No image available? Doesn’t matter, click.’ Never again!"
Gwaine and Lancelot chuckle with broad grins across the roof of the car.
"Keep going on about it and he’ll wear it when we do this again next year," Merlin declares. Gwaine stares at Merlin and Merlin stares back as Arthur and Lancelot deliberately ignore them. "Not that I meant we’ll be, next year, not that we won’t. I’m not fantasising about us getting married or…"
"Shut up Merlin," Arthur says quietly and Merlin does.
The resulting silence prickles. Merlin wonders whether he should ask to be dropped off at his dorm instead of going back to the house. He looks into the rear vision mirror, waiting to catch Arthur’s eye.
"Why wouldn’t we be together a year from now?" Gwaine asks roughly, staring defiantly into the back of the driver’s seat.
Merlin is unsure who Gwaine is asking. Lancelot responds and Arthur’s gaze meets Merlin's and stays there until he has to focus on the road.
"No-one said you wouldn’t. Merlin doesn’t want to scare you off by committing so soon." Lancelot sounds like a masculine Gwen.
Merlin isn’t sure who he’s trying to reassure with that comment. He isn’t sure what he wants, or who. By the looks of things, neither is Arthur.
18. Say ‘nighty-night’ and Kiss Me
Merlin shoulders the backpack containing his clothes and Gwaine's present. He’s still wondering where he should spend the night.
Never mind a year from now, are we going to be together an
hour from now?
Gwaine and Merlin talk a lot while in each other’s company but never about the nature of their relationship. There was no need. It simply happened and they were happy with it. Now Merlin is uncertain. He blames Gwen. Her questions planted these doubts in his mind.
‘Neither of you seem each other’s type,’ Arthur had said, ‘but it appears to be working.’
Is it?
"Woo-hoo, Merlin, front door this way," Lancelot says while waving a hand in Merlin's face.
"Zoned out a bit there," Merlin apologises as he follows him inside.
"Straight to sleep everyone and no naughty stuff you two," Arthur quips with a yawn.
"Far too tired," Gwaine agrees. "My eyes will be lucky to stay open long enough to ogle his bum. Merlin has such a lovely bum. Have I told you how much I enjoy looking at Merlin's bum, Arthur?"
"No need. You didn’t take your eyes off it that first time he walked down the amphitheatre steps."
"Or any time since," Lancelot adds. "Sometimes you purse your lips a little while watching it wander by. Like this," Lancelot and Arthur demonstrate pouts of approval.
"I’d say something about Gwaine erecting a shrine to the glory of Merlin's bum but that would lead to all sorts of innuendo far too inappropriate for this level of exhaustion." Arthur rounds off his comment with another yawn. He waves with one hand while rubbing the back of his head with the other. "Night lads."
"Night boys," Gwaine and Lancelot reply as they each head to their rooms.
Merlin is too embarrassed and flattered by the conversation centred round his bum to say anything as he accompanies Gwaine. "I guess you really like my bum," he says eventually and Gwaine’s usual grin returns to make him more than incredibly handsome.
"Your bum has healing properties. I can’t see it and not think happy thoughts - not always that kind - plus, I simply place my hand on the roundest part, like so," Gwaine demonstrates, "and I am troubled no more."
He and Merlin stand kissing like that for a while then strip down to their underwear and get comfortable in Gwaine’s bed. His quilt has a soothing weight and their body heat immediately warms the cold sheets. They have to move around a lot to warm Merlin's narrow bed to this level of comfort. Gwaine’s dark eyes flit across Merlin's face. Merlin gets the impression he’s bracing himself to say something.
"…well, goodnight," seems anticlimactic, even with the kiss to Merlin's cheek. Gwaine closes his eyes with determination.
"Yeah, night," Merlin replies and does the same. It doesn’t take long for sleep to claim them both.
19. Dream a Little Dream
Merlin dreams of dancing with Gwaine the way he danced with Arthur.
Then he dreams of being kissed by Gwaine the way he was kissed by Arthur.
Then he dreams of naked Arthur holding his bum the way Gwaine did, pressing against him, kissing him the way he did before and offering to spend the night with Merlin ‘on the house’.
"When it comes to butt sex I’m strictly a Top, thanks Merlin." Gwaine’s voice puts everything on pause. He’d been mindlessly rubbing his maturing erection against the small of Gwaine’s back. Gwaine rolls over and gives Merlin's jutting cock several luxurious strokes as he murmurs against his ear. "But I will gladly suck you off."
Gwaine is hardening against Merlin's thigh and they 69 as Christmas morning dawns.
Merlin's dreams are forgotten.
20. Come All Ye Faithful
Gwaine’s nose is in Merlin's ear, his left elbow at a strange angle over Merlin's right shoulder and his right knee under Merlin's left leg. It isn’t this ridiculous position that wakes them up.
"Guinevere will be here in twenty minutes and nobody’s up!" Arthur complains from the kitchen.
"You better be naked," Gwaine grumbles as he reluctantly disentangles his limbs from Merlin.
Merlin's a guest. He exerts guest’s privileges and starts drifting back to sleep.
"Up you get sexy." Gwaine slaps Merlin's thigh. "We can fall back into bed once the lovely Guinevere’s out the door."
Gwaine dresses hurriedly and is out the door before Merlin musters enough energy to say "don’t want to move."
By the time he lugs his bum out of Gwaine’s bed the three residents are dashing and calling across the kitchenette in a bedlam attempt to knock together an acceptable Christmas lunch. Arthur isn’t naked, which is a bit of a letdown really. Merlin volunteers to become slave to the hardworking Lancelot as punishment for thinking such a thing about his boyfriend’s friend. He and Gwaine sucked each other off only hours ago for Christ’s sake! And now he blasphemed on Christmas day.
"I’m going to hell," he mumbles and puts whatever Lancelot passes him onto the round table.
"You can sit with Gwaine, he’s had his ticket booked for years," Arthur says with a grin at Gwaine.
"The three of us can share a row. Poor Lancelot misses out." Gwaine grins back, removes his sweater vest and points at the t-shirt he’s wearing.
"No Gwaine, not today, Guinevere…" Arthur starts.
Merlin leans in to read the small print forming a halo above the head of a South Park angel: You can suck all the penis you want… Putting that with the ‘and still be a Virgin, Mary’ in the speech balloon makes Merlin lean back with a blunt exclamation. "Oh-my-god!" Will used to play that song all the time but all they heard before the ‘and still be a Virgin, Mary’ was muffled mumbling.
"See," Arthur says pointedly to Gwaine.
"You bought it for me."
They bicker back and forth as Merlin turns to Lancelot. "Is that really how it goes?"
"Yup," Lancelot replies.
"Good morning by the way, merry Christmas," Gwaine says to Merlin with a kiss and quick but eager bum squeeze.
"Merry Christmas morning to you, too," Merlin replies shyly. Having his bum squeezed in front of Arthur and Lancelot embarrasses him a little.
A cheerful pattern is tapped on the front door.
"Lancelot, will you greet our guest?" Arthur asks, glancing around the kitchen.
"With pleasure."
"Should we eat straight away?" Arthur asks Gwaine and Merlin.
"Let’s leave it up to Gwen," Gwaine suggests.
"Good idea."
"I’ll change my shirt," Gwaine adds.
"Another good idea, one more and you can have an early mark."
"Hear that Merlin? If I behave I can get off early." Gwaine grins down the hallway. Merlin is further embarrassed.
"Shouldn’t have said anything, turn everything dirty," Arthur grumbles. He seems uncomfortable in the position of host.
"Thought you’d be used to being king of the castle at moments like this," Merlin admits.
"Father was king. I was paraded in front of guests then kept out of sight. Everything was catered. I couldn’t prepare pot noodles before meeting Lancelot."
"Nothing’s changed then," Gwen jests with a friendly smile.
Arthur holds out a chair so she may sit and tells Merlin to pour Guinevere a drink of her choice while Lancelot drapes her coat across the back of her chair. Lancelot and Arthur sit either side of Gwen as Gwaine returns in a stylishly bland polo shirt. Merlin sits next to Lancelot with Gwaine on the other side and next to Arthur.
"Lancelot will say grace," Arthur says before respectfully bowing his head.
The reverence of the others present prevents Merlin chortling. He witnesses the depth of Gwaine’s respect for Lancelot as he makes no satirical comment or gesture during Lancelot’s simple blessing upon the holiday, the company gathered and the meal they are about to share. Lancelot is clearly in his element.
Gwen starts the casual conversation as dishes are passed around the table with people helping themselves to what they like. It’s an eclectic selection with no real traditions represented, only what was easily stored and prepared in such a basic kitchen. "After my mother left, my father started a tradition of beans-on-toast for Christmas so we weren’t wasting half the day on washing up."
"Wish you’d said something earlier." Arthur glances plaintively at the overflowing sink and Gwen pulls her ‘don’t be cheeky, even if I do find it amusing’ face. Lancelot chuckles and describes the traditions of his foster family.
The meal is spent discussing past Christmases spent with their variously structured families. Gwen and Arthur were raised primarily by their fathers, Gwaine and Merlin by their mothers and Lancelot by non-relatives. Lancelot, Arthur and Gwaine lost their absent parents through death, Gwen and Merlin through desertion and disappearance.
"Yet here we are, forming one strange, little family," Gwen says cheerily.
"What a lovely way to describe the relationships in this room," Lancelot responds with sincere admiration.
Arthur and Lancelot wear similar expressions as they look at Gwen and she develops a slight dither, almost knocking over her glass. Lancelot catches it before anything spills and their hands touch briefly. Arthur’s focus shifts to his plate to avoid being burned by their bright eye contact. That cements it for Merlin. Arthur isn’t Gay, he’s interested in Gwen.
Merlin feels sorry for him, addressing him directly with a change of topic. "So Arthur, we’ve done Christmases past, we’re having Christmas present, what traditions would you like to establish for those to come?"
"Haven’t really thought about it," Arthur admits with a small smile of gratitude for the diversion.
"Well I have," Gwaine jumps in and describes a Christmas so ludicrous they all develop stitches from laughing. "What do you think?" he asks Merlin brightly.
"Sounds brilliant," Merlin grins and quickly kisses Gwaine’s lips because it feels like the most natural thing to do. "Sorry," he says, more for lonely Arthur’s benefit than Gwen or Lancelot.
"Don’t be," Arthur replies earnestly ands points at the pair with the handle of his spoon. "It’s good to know Gwaine’s got someone who appreciates his worth."
"Maybe then Gwaine will see past all the nonsense and realise it himself,’ Lancelot continues.
"Perhaps if you two didn’t give him such a hard time…" Merlin begins indignantly. Gwaine puts a hand on his knee and Merlin covers it with his.
"They’re right to do so. Not now, but perhaps when Lancelot and Arthur walk Gwen home," Gwaine looks questioningly to his friends. All three of them nod, Arthur reluctantly. "I’d like to explain some things to you. I haven’t always behaved honourably…" Shades of aristocratic vocal tones suggest Gwaine feels his father would be disappointed in the man his son has become.
"Who has?" Merlin effectively uses his dimples to lighten the mood.
"Told you Gwaine," Arthur says enigmatically.
"Yes, you did," Gwaine says softly while looking at Merlin.
Merlin recognises the tiny ‘squee’ that escapes Gwen for what it is - anticipation of a cliché riddled, romance novel style love declaration - and gets embarrassed. Gwaine saves them all from Gwen’s girlie moment by instead turning to Lancelot and asking what his ideal Christmas might entail. The topic bounces across and around the table like a ping pong ball until everyone but Arthur has had a turn.
"Well Arthur?" Gwen smiles as brightly at Arthur as she does at Lancelot. Her body language is less shy toward Lancelot, her social equal, but Merlin can see that she doesn’t favour one over the other. Gwen is torn between letting herself develop feelings for either and so tries to feel nothing. It doesn’t appear to be working. Merlin suspects Gwen to be equally love struck with both. He feels sorry for all three of them now and doubly lucky that he has Gwaine. "What would make a perfect Christmas?" Gwen asks.
"This," Arthur replies seriously, "not some formal affair for showing off. A spiritual gathering, surrounded by people who choose to be together, joined by friendship and trust."
"And love," Lancelot adds without looking at anyone in particular. "Amen." He raises his glass and the companions complete the toast.
"You trust me?" Merlin asks Arthur, forgetting that no-one else at the table understands how important a point this is.
"I do." Arthur smiles with serious eyes. Gwaine sits tensely between them until Arthur continues with drily delivered humour. "No images of my bedraggled willy have surfaced on the internet since your first visit…"
Gwaine laughs and Merlin relaxes with a genuine smile. Gwen asks "What’s this?" and all four males relay the story with aplomb.
21. What You Need
The shirt Merlin gives Gwaine features Pinocchio characters. The Blue Fairy sits on Pinocchio’s face with her mouth full of Geppetto who is saying ‘Quick Pinocchio, tell another lie’. Merlin waits until Gwaine’s boys are walking Gwen home to hand it over.
"This is brilliantly atrocious!" Gwaine is gorgeous when he grins, Merlin can’t deny it.
"Does it fit?"
"I’m not wearing that in front of you. I don’t want anything like that touching you." Gwaine puts it on his dresser and touches one side of Merlin’s face with his other hand. "I shouldn’t be touching you."
Merlin almost says ‘you’ve been more than touching me’ but Gwaine looks at him as though he’s a Faberge egg and Gwaine’s a sneak thief. "Why not?"
"Because I’m trouble and you’re perfect." Merlin leans forward and kisses Gwaine. Gwaine pulls back, gently. "I don’t want you to be like the others Merlin. You’re worth more than that. I don’t know if I can give you…"
"You don’t have to give me anything."
"I want to give you me without taking anything away from you. Do you see what I mean?"
"No," Merlin admits.
"My history, I have a habit, I break my partners in Merlin and soon after move onto the next one. I don’t want to grow tired of you."
"Is this a line? You make me feel unique, I give you what you want and the pattern continues?" He’s starting to understand why Arthur warned him off and why he is impressed with the longevity of their relationship. Arthur and Lancelot think Merlin and Gwaine have already crossed that boundary.
"No Merlin, that’s the point. You aren’t part of the pattern. You were going to be but Arthur…"
"Arthur what?!" Merlin steps back from Gwaine.
"He told me to treat you with the respect you deserve or find somewhere else to live. I fell in love with you without being told to, if that changes anything. I love you Merlin. I haven’t been taking things slow to score points with Arthur and Lancelot but because I want to stay with you. If it means letting you top… I’m not sure how I’ll go, but for you I’m willing to try. I’d cut my willy off to keep you."
Merlin laughs. He can’t help it.
"Yeah, pathetic I know," Gwaine admits. "There are more drastically romantic ways to express that but let’s face it, without my willy I’m nothing. Without you I’m empty."
"You love me?" Merlin asks.
"I love you."
Gwaine stands before him, fully clothed yet completely exposed.
Or does he? He lies and admits he lies. He and Arthur excel at seduction, especially when it comes to dweebs like Merlin.
"I want to believe you."
"But you don’t."
"I can’t."
"How can I prove it?"
Merlin shrugs. "When did it start? When did I drop out of the pattern?"
"When you offered to draw runes on my bum, no I lie. It was before that, when you asked Arthur if Lancelot and I were drawn to him like children to an ice-cream van."
"Sucking me off in a stairwell on our first date, that was going slow for you?"
"I wanted to fuck you instead of going out at all, so yes, excruciatingly slow, practically reverse."
"I wanted to fuck you too," Merlin admits.
"Now’s your chance." Gwaine stands with his arms out at his sides. "I’m yours, do as you will."
Merlin is tempted to walk away and never speak to him again, for about half a millisecond anyway, before commanding Gwaine to get his kit off and get onto that bed. Merlin helps him, kisses, licks, touches and nips at him because now he doesn’t care if his inexperience scares Gwaine away. He wants, he wants, he wants and blood pulses through his cock chanting just that want, want, want, want, want, now, now, now.
He wanted to fuck Gwaine the first time he saw that grin, those dark eyes hungry for him. Gwaine didn’t have to wait. They could have fucked in the shadows of the residential area that night and no-one would know. He could have made Merlin felt cheap and pathetic anytime, anywhere. He slows down. This is his first foray, the one everyone claims he will never forget. Does he want to remember it like this?
"You don’t have to tell me you love me Gwaine. The sight of you turns me on."
Gwaine helps Merlin out of his jeans. His erection is already forcing its way out of his underwear. "So it does."
"You’re the expert on virgins, what should we do next?" They kiss and touch as Merlin becomes as naked as Gwaine.
"Stop talking Merlin and finger fuck me. Do it right and I’ll be begging for your cock and unable to breathe."
"As simple as that?" Merlin asks and lies on top of him. Their cocks touch and their hips automatically start moving. This is nothing new. Merlin curves a hand under Gwaine’s buttock and gives it a squeeze as their tongues meet. No wonder Gwaine enjoys doing that to him. Merlin slips his index finger between Gwaine’s cheeks, moves his hand up and down. "Just stick it to you?" Merlin blows the question past Gwaine’s ear. He knows there’s more than that. He can read after all and not only erotica.
"Messy stuff’s all taken care of while I was in the bathroom. Lube me up, tickle the starfish, have a play, dive on in. I made up my mind while sucking cum from your cock this morning that this is how I want to be with you."
Merlin moans. "Mm, you’re very good at sucking my cock but I love the way you suck your cum from my throat."
They continue talking along those lines as Gwaine opens the lube and they slick Merlin's fingers. He tickles and teases Gwaine because he doesn’t want this to be over too quickly. He softens and hardens again by the time presses in with a fingertip. He has to press harder than he expected. Maybe he should have started with his pinkie and worked his way up. Once he’s in though…
"Oh g-n, g’oh," Gwaine declares then relaxes. Merlin feels the difference in the muscular ring around his finger. He turns and probes, pulls out and kisses Gwaine, hinting at him to roll over onto his stomach. "I normally face…" Gwaine begins to protest mildly.
"I’m different," Merlin reminds him. He sees Gwaine’s balls move and their cock’s twitch against each other. Gwaine rolls over and his arse lifts reflexively as Merlin kisses his shoulder and back. Merlin takes advantage of that to get his index finger into position.
"Thooo," Gwaine inhales and his knee slides along the mattress, granting Merlin better access along with a rather nice visual. His hips move as Merlin's finger explores his tight arse. He seems to like the way Merlin's knuckles move against his buttocks which is good, because Merlin enjoys how it feels to push his finger in deep and stir it around.
"Ready for more?" Merlin can’t believe that’s his voice asking that question. It sounds like a stranger.
"Yes, more."
He’s never heard Gwaine sound like that either and they’ve made lots of noises together since September. Gwaine wasn’t lying. Everything he told Merlin tonight is true. He can’t explain how he knows, only that something in Gwaine’s voice as he grants Merlin permission strips away all his doubts.
Merlin carefully opens this man who loves him, kissing and complimenting as he goes because Gwaine is sexy, gorgeous, fun and Merlin needn’t be ashamed of loving him in return.
"Can’t wait," he says urgently against Gwaine’s back after fucking him with two fingers. His cock has softened and hardened three times and now it pulses angrily.
Gwaine holds the edge of the mattress and lifts onto his knees, head down and bum up, waiting. Merlin resists the urge to wank as he puts the condom on because the sight of Gwaine like that puts strain on his balls. Gwaine’s starfish resists Merlin's knob. He and Gwaine have to relax a bit. He plays with Gwaine’s opening and when the tension eases pushes his cock-head in. Muscles welcome and resist his intrusion at the same time. Nothing could have prepared him for this. Nothing compares. He almost comes with the first short thrust.
Merlin closes his eyes and just wiggles his hips slowly because god that feels miraculous and then it suddenly isn’t enough and he pushes faster and further into Gwaine.
"Yes," the say together the first time he gets all the way in and his groin hits Gwaine’s bum. ‘Oh-hoh yes!"
Merlin gives it hard and Gwaine takes it but not for as long as Merlin would like because he’s already coming. The slick warmth of release has never been more unwelcome - okay, that time at the school swimming carnival was less welcome for an entire catalogue of reasons. Before Merlin can say ‘no, too soon’ to his independent scrotum Gwaine tenses all over and cries out.
"Oh good god!" Merlin's cock twitches in response to Gwaine’s verbal ejaculation because he can feel the words thrumming through his member. "I’ve never come without actually sprogging before!" Gwaine pushes back, almost grinding against Merlin who can feel Gwaine’s muscles going crazy before he drops down onto the mattress, making Merlin's droopy cock flop out sans condom which dangles from Gwaine’s arse. Not the triumphant climax Merlin hoped for. "That does it Merlin, I am never topping again. Get down here and kiss me." That’s more like it. He drapes half on, half next to Gwaine and they kiss passionately. "Be a dear and pull that second skin out of my arse."
Merlin laughs which makes Gwaine laugh which makes it difficult to extract the dangly mess. He manages to remove and dispose of the thing. Gwaine is under the covers and inviting Merlin to join him in a flash.
"Your past doesn’t matter to me Gwaine," Merlin assures him as he slips into the warm bed. "This, now, is what matters."
Gwaine kisses him with fingers catching in his hair. "You’re remarkable Merlin and you deserve to know."
"That I’m remarkable?" Merlin asks cheekily and Gwaine agrees with a grin.
"That you are." He kisses Merlin again and squeezes his bum.
"Is this for real then?" Merlin asks. He didn’t care before Gwaine made his admission, now it’s important. "Arthur isn’t going to give you a car or something…?"
"You need to know how real this is? You asked me months ago did I love Arthur. I thought I did until I found you. Is that real enough for you?"
"Does he know…?"
Gwaine presses Merlin's lips together between fingers and thumb. "He knows how I felt about him and how I feel about you. He said you’d break the curse I built for myself and set me free but I had to be honest with you. So I have been, and you did, and I love you."
"I met Arthur before," Merlin nearly says it. He wants to say it, needs to - but can’t. He can say this, though: "I love you too." And he does.