Title: Where Does It Hurt?
Fandom: Merlin (BBC)
Rating: Teen and Up
Length: 1,047 Words
Content notes: None
Author notes: Written in modern day, where Arthur has finally come back. Just a day in the life fic.
Summary: Arthur's been back two weeks, and neither of them are sure why. Also, he's stretching out Merlin's t-shirts in the most obscene way possible.



Merlin trudged into his flat, almost immediately swimming out of his suit jacket and tie. It wasn't as if removing the articles could take away the weight of the day, but psychologically it seemed to help. As he draped the colorful tie over the shoulder of his jacket, thoughts went back to how he used to dress in the times of Camelot. Why people today thought modern clothes, with their foreign-feeling fabrics and hard-soled shoes, were comfortable was beyond him. Still, laundry was so much easier in the 21st century. "Arthur? I'm home!"

"In here!" a voice called back to him, followed by a belch so loud he thought he was back in Camelot's tavern.

He took in the sight of Arthur as he crossed into the den, still sitting on his couch, pretty much where Merlin had left him that morning. Except now, there were food wrappers and a couple of empty cans of ale, judging by the dents squeezed into the thin aluminum casing. "'ello, Merlin," Arthur said, the smile evident in his voice.

"Have you been here all day, Arthur?"

Arthur shrugged, a gentle smile on his face. "Not all day," he replied. "I popped down to that Tescos down the corner. Do you know they make shrimp flavored crisps now?" He reached to his side, produced a wrinkled, half-empty bag, and held it aloft until Merlin shook his head. Arthur shrugged, took a broken crisp from the bag, and popped it into his mouth.

"And did you grace Tesco with your presence fully dressed? Or just that obscenely tight t-shirt and pants?" It wasn't Merlin's fault that they hadn't been out of the flat for the first week Arthur had been back. And there was very little of Merlin's clothes that Arthur could wear. Well, he could wear a few of Merlin's t-shirts and sweaters, though they were far too distractingly tight. None of Merlin's trousers fit him, so Arthur was reduced to joggers until the clothes delivery showed up.

The roll of Arthur's eyes was epic and made Merlin smile so big it gave him the urge to kiss him. Something he'd missed for more than a thousand years, but something that he could do once again now that Arthur was back. They weren't sure why Arthur was back yet, but the world would hopefully let them know soon enough.

Merlin moved the remote control, snapping it at the television. The action movie playing in the background stilled just as the overly-muscled protagonist was shooting a bad guy, blood splatter stilled on the screen.

"I was watching that!" Arthur said, his voice petulant.

"What happened to you learning about the history of England after your..." He didn't want to say death, and after blowing out a heavy sigh, decided on, "Departure?" He looked around.

"I'll have you know," Arthur said, taking the remote control, "I was dead for more than a millennia. I think I deserve to come back to a little relaxation before the studies and the tests and the... Whatever those people with their Conservative and Labour and Scottish National parties." When Merlin rolled his eyes, Arthur sat up a little straighter. "And I will say," he said as he clicked the remote control, scrolling through a few of the titles he'd watched. And based on the number, he'd spent more time on the sofa than on his feet. "There are half a dozen movies about me out there, and all of them are complete bollocks." He turned to Merlin. "Did you have anything to do with that?"

"No, Arthur," he replied. "I'm in telecommunications now. That's made-up Hollywood stuff."

Arthur crossed his arms. "Well, you could have at least sent them a correspondence. Set them right."

Merlin shook his head, then leaned into Arthur. He clicked the selection of one of the many titles listed, and the movie started to play. "Oh, Indiana Jones. That was a fun one."

Arthur didn't seem to mind the rewatch as he pulled Merlin closer to him. He kissed him on the nose, then spread out the blanket so Merlin could get comfortable.

"Oh I did learn something today!" Arthur said as he pushed his shoulder against Merlin's. "From this film, too."

"What is that?" His mind raced with the plot. "What, the Ark of the Covenant?"

"No, not the Ark of the Covenant. Besides, my father's grandfather had that Ark-" He turned to Merlin.

Merlin felt one eyebrow raise. "Are you telling me your family-"

"Shh," Arthur said. "Let's watch the movie."

And just like that, it was Merlin rolling his eyes.

They watched the movie for a while until a lull. "Oh, what did you learn, by the way?"

The bashful smile that Arthur gave him felt like one of his kisses. Sweet as honey and breathtaking all at once. Arthur retrieved his arm from where it lay across Merlin's shoulders, then pointed to his hand. "It hurts here," he said.

When Merlin didn't move, he held his hand out. "I said, it hurts here," he repeated. Again when Merlin didn't move, he added, "You're supposed to kiss it."

The scene from somewhere later in the movie played somewhere in the back of his brain, and as he shook his head, Merlin leaned down and kissed Arthur's hand.

"And here," Arthur said, pointing to his neck. Merlin happily agreed, kissing the scruffy hair of Arthur's neck.

"And here," Arthur said, his voice quiet. Except, unlike the movie, Arthur pointed to his crotch.

"Oh, Arthur," Merlin said, then leaned over and kissed Arthur. One hand braced against the couch as the other dug into the thick blond hair that was far too long for Merlin's liking. But they'd get to a barber one of these days.

As much as it pained him, Merlin stood up, then held out a hand.

"What?" Arthur asked. "I thought we were..." He shrugged his shoulders then leaned back on the couch. The couch that they'd spent far too much time on recently getting reacquainted with each other's bodies. Arthur's eyes glanced downward, then quickly back up at Merlin, concentrating so much, the skin between his eyebrows crinkled.

"Shower first," Merlin said as he pulled Arthur to his feet. "Then I'll kiss it and make it better."