Christmas fic: After the Party (M/A)
Title: After the Party
Pairing: Merlin/Arthur
Rating: G
Summary: Arthur's looking through his photos from the Christmas lunch.
Warnings: Sickeningly sappy ending.
A/N: Happy holidays to everyone! This little attempt at modern!AU fluff is especially for ctkelly, who I'm not nearly nice enough to regarding fics and pairings as I should be.
Merlin's legs were stretched across Arthur's lap as the dark-haired man slept, but Arthur wasn't really paying attention- not that he would've minded if he was. Settling himself back into the couch, Arthur clicked through the photos he'd taken that day with the new digital camera Merlin had given him.
Christmas had been at Merlin and Arthur's place this year, so the first picture was of everyone arriving; Morgana and Gwen being giggly and suitably festive in uber bright Christmas-themed shirts that somehow still looked good on them, Gaius wearing a grin and leading in a grudgingly amused Uther in a Santa hat, which he kept on until Morgana stole it. Arthur smiled to himself and wondered what Gaius had to do to get his father to wear that.
He gagged a little and quickly moved to the next photo. Merlin snuffled and shifted more onto his side. Arthur barely refrained from snapping a picture of him then and there.
It was funny but, as Arthur looked through all the photographs, not one had captured Merlin well at all. It was like he had been constantly in motion, always on the edge of the photo or blurred, just out of focus enough to be a smudge next to someone else. You could tell that Merlin had been having a great time- he was laughing or clapping or generally being Merlin. You just couldn't see it properly. As per usual.
There was a sound next to him and Arthur glanced over. Merlin was pushing himself up on one arm and rubbing his eyes with the other.
"How do you feel about leaving the tidying up for tomorrow?" Merlin half-asked, half-yawned.
"Not guilty enough to do it tonight," Arthur replied.
Merlin smiled at him, eyes slightly dazed from tiredness. Arthur slipped Merlin's legs off him and stood up.
"C'mon, time for bed," he said. Merlin didn't protest.
As they walked to their room together, Merlin leaning heavily on Arthur's shoulder, Arthur decided that he didn't care about owning about a thousand rubbish pictures of Merlin. Not when the real one, the Merlin he could look at and love any time, was here by his side.
Pairing: Merlin/Arthur
Rating: G
Summary: Arthur's looking through his photos from the Christmas lunch.
Warnings: Sickeningly sappy ending.
A/N: Happy holidays to everyone! This little attempt at modern!AU fluff is especially for ctkelly, who I'm not nearly nice enough to regarding fics and pairings as I should be.
Merlin's legs were stretched across Arthur's lap as the dark-haired man slept, but Arthur wasn't really paying attention- not that he would've minded if he was. Settling himself back into the couch, Arthur clicked through the photos he'd taken that day with the new digital camera Merlin had given him.
Christmas had been at Merlin and Arthur's place this year, so the first picture was of everyone arriving; Morgana and Gwen being giggly and suitably festive in uber bright Christmas-themed shirts that somehow still looked good on them, Gaius wearing a grin and leading in a grudgingly amused Uther in a Santa hat, which he kept on until Morgana stole it. Arthur smiled to himself and wondered what Gaius had to do to get his father to wear that.
He gagged a little and quickly moved to the next photo. Merlin snuffled and shifted more onto his side. Arthur barely refrained from snapping a picture of him then and there.
It was funny but, as Arthur looked through all the photographs, not one had captured Merlin well at all. It was like he had been constantly in motion, always on the edge of the photo or blurred, just out of focus enough to be a smudge next to someone else. You could tell that Merlin had been having a great time- he was laughing or clapping or generally being Merlin. You just couldn't see it properly. As per usual.
There was a sound next to him and Arthur glanced over. Merlin was pushing himself up on one arm and rubbing his eyes with the other.
"How do you feel about leaving the tidying up for tomorrow?" Merlin half-asked, half-yawned.
"Not guilty enough to do it tonight," Arthur replied.
Merlin smiled at him, eyes slightly dazed from tiredness. Arthur slipped Merlin's legs off him and stood up.
"C'mon, time for bed," he said. Merlin didn't protest.
As they walked to their room together, Merlin leaning heavily on Arthur's shoulder, Arthur decided that he didn't care about owning about a thousand rubbish pictures of Merlin. Not when the real one, the Merlin he could look at and love any time, was here by his side.