Hurt (fic) Part 1
It was Orientation Week at Parkdale University, and Merlin Emrys arrived at the main campus at 10:00 am on the Monday morning, keen to get to know people and make new friends at the university where he would be spending at least the next five years, and possibly longer if Honours, or a Masters became possible. It was an exciting time for him, having literally moved from his Mam's house in Ealdor the day before, his Mam having driven down with him to move his effects into his tiny room at Marquisette College. Hunith had decided to have a wander around the local area, and see a film, and would meet up with him later this afternoon, before doing the three hour drive back to his home town.
He was so excited to be at this university, to have received a place in the Law & Arts stream, he had felt incredibly proud of his achievement, as he would be only the fifth student in the last three years from his high school to even receive a place at a university. It had been big news in his hometown, all his friends' mothers had ribbed him, and he could see they were proud, and perhaps a little jealous that their own sons or daughters would not be following suit. Hunith had been particularly proud, she knew how many hours of work he had poured into his final year, forgetting almost all his other interests to reach this goal, and she could not have been happier. She had somehow managed to find additional work in a larger town just to help pay for the college fees, which on their own would be $12,000 a year, although when you considered that two meals a day, breakfast and dinner would be provided seven days a week, plus rent and utilities, both Merlin and Hunith had felt that the choice to be at a residential college would actually make financial sense compared to trying his luck in a share house. In a share house, food, utilities and transport would be additional costs, along with the stress of maintaining a house and getting along with flatmates. Maybe he would consider it in a year or two, when he got to know people better, but for now, it just seemed sensible to do it this way.
Merlin walked through one of the gates of Parkdale University, looking at the map which he had been sent as part of his enrollment pack. There were loads of other confused looking students about his age wandering about, he felt sure if he could get to the free barbecues, or join a few social clubs, that he'd soon make friends. He'd worn one of his better outfits today, he didn't have a whole lot of money for clothes, so it was probably for the best that he would describe himself as a bit indie, alternative, whatever. He definitely was not someone able to buy a new designer label outfit for every day of the week, but today he was wearing his favourite green striped polo shirt, slim fit dark wash jeans, and grey and green Vans trainers. This combination would probably get a few airings this year. Overall, Merlin felt like, perhaps being a guy, there wouldn't be quite so much pressure to be into fashion as it might have been if he was a girl. But he could be proven wrong.
Merlin found himself in what felt like a central area of the university, with a large formal lawned area, that had elm trees bordering two sides, and a small ornamental water feature along the other border. Many students were congregated on the lawn, in groups of two, three, or larger groups of eight or nine. Merlin marveled that on the first day of Orientation Week, all these students seemed to already know each other, and be able to have a chat. There were even a few couples, dotted here and there, lazing away in the sunshine.
He studied his map as he walked, and decided to try and find the Student Union Building, where a lot of the social activities would be. He would also be trying to find some information sessions on different subjects he could take, which would be especially important in his Arts Degree. He had no idea really what subjects he wanted to study, so would need to attend as many introductory lectures as he could get to.
Merlin was walking through a narrow passage area when he noticed about five young guys, all dressed in what looked (to Merlin's eyes at least) like expensive, designer jeans and t-shirts. Honestly, they all looked as though they were just about to go to a club, not mooch about at a pathway with hundreds of students.
Merlin found himself almost staring at a tallish blond guy, athletically built, but still quite slim, wearing blue t-shirt and jeans. He was laughing at something one of his friends had said, and for some reason, Merlin just thought he looked decent, friendly, almost kind in that moment. He realised he was gawking, and looked away from the group, though he hadn't really taken in any of the other guys that much. Merlin was almost passed them when one called out, "Saw something that you liked?"
Merlin felt like his eyes might fall out of his head, he boggled at them as he span on his heel to face the group. "Sorry, was that meant for me?"
A dark haired guy who was standing behind the blond looked Merlin up and down, sneering at him, and said, "You were looking at Arthur here like he was chocolates."
"Riiight," said Merlin, "'Cos that makes a whole lot of sense."
Arthur (the blonde's name apparently) spoke up then, "He meant you were looking at me like you wanted to taste me."
Merlin felt so embarrassed, all he'd done was look at this guy for a few seconds too long, he needed to get out of this situation fast. "Um, I'm lactose intolerant, so I don't actually eat chocolate", (hah! he thought), "and I'm also allergic to shit, which you are clearly full of." He directed his last comment to Arthur, wanting to be so rude as to make a definite break up of this stupid conversation. He turned and walked away, ignoring the catcalls.
Merlin thought he heard Arthur mockingly implore him to not run away, but Merlin was not staying in that spot any longer. He made his way to the Student Union Building. Directly outside were tables with all sorts of clubs and societies you could join up, sporting clubs, just to get to know people with similar interests. After perusing the tables for nearly an hour, Merlin signed up for the Parkdale University Theatre Society, the Soccer Club, the Skiing Club and Sci-Fi Lovers Anonymous. He wasn't sure how much he'd be involved, but the soccer club offered a chance to be included in some team sports, and the skiing club were offering some group discount trips later in the year. Merlin was hoping to find a part time job, so if that went well, he would be able to save for that.
The rest of the day was spent going to a few introductory lectures, during which Merlin decided that Sociology, Criminology, Political Science, English, Cinema Studies and Fine Arts were on his short list of subjects to consider for his first year in the Arts Degree. The subjects in the Law Degree were all compulsory, so at least he did not have to make any life altering decisions there.
By the time he came back to Marquisette College he was exhausted, and ready just to flop somewhere, preferably to watch some brain dead television shows. Hunith was pleased to see him, she had been waiting for a half hour, wanting to say good-bye, and then she left, driving back home that evening. Merlin settled into the common lounge area of the college, and made himself a hot chocolate and settled in to watch the large screen television.
He hadn't been sitting there all that long, when he heard someone saying loudly, "What the hell is he doing here?"
Merlin suddenly felt like there was something twisting in his stomach, he turned quickly to look behind him while still sitting in the armchair, only to find himself looking at the blond and his mates ("Arthur, that was his name," Merlin thought) and felt like he could not believe his bad luck.
"We meet again," said Arthur to Merlin, "You ran off like a hare with a greyhound after it this morning, never even mentioned your name!"
"Oh crap," thought Merlin, "these guys are not going to let this rest." Merlin decided to feign friendliness, standing to face the group and addressing Arthur directly. "I'm Merlin Emrys, I'm staying at this college, it's my first year."
Arthur did not say anything to this, just looked over at his friends as if there was some unspoken agreement, and then shook Merlin's hand, "Well, nice to meet you Merlin. We'll probably be seeing a fair bit of each other, myself, Lachlan and Alexander all live at this college too during the year."
Lachlan and Alexander were smirking at each other, but nodded at Merlin as if they had decided that perhaps they didn't want to see him beaten up after all. Merlin felt a bit bewildered, but relieved that they were not repeating the nasty taunts from earlier in the day. Merlin really did not need for a bunch of guys to be implying he had the hots for another guy in his first year in a residential college and university, he wanted to lay low and gradually get to know people, not have assumptions made about him and who he was.
"Well, I'll see you guys later, I need to unpack, just moved in today." With a friendly nod, Merlin excused himself, and went up to his room.
Arthur grinned as Merlin left, and turned to Lachlan and Alexander, "Well, I think this bet is going to be a lot easier for me to win, he's living under the same roof as me, he doesn't stand a chance."
"Well, remember, he has to sleep with you within the month, Arthur, and in case you're in any doubt, I mean you've got to fuck him, not just a blow job or hand job, otherwise you don't win the bet," said Lachlan.
"Right, so if I win, you pay me $1000 each, if I lose, $1000 to share between you, right?" said Arthur, narrowing his eyes.
"No way, $500 from each of us..." retorted Lachlan.
"No, no, no fuckin' way, if I'm going to the trouble to seduce that twerp and fuck his scrawny arse, then you two will pay UP, $1000 each or forget it!" Arthur growled.
Alexander was laughing, "Mate, it will be worth it to see that stupid little country hick get his heart smashed when he realises you've only been nice to him and fucked him for the sake of a bet."
"Serve him right, talk to me like that." Arthur didn't remember ever meeting anyone who didn't want to be on his good side, and he was determined to teach this cocky little idiot a few lessons about life.
The rest of Orientation Week was a blast, Merlin met quite a few new friends, Gwaine, Lancelot, Morgana, who would all be studying Law as well as Arts, while Gwen and Freya were both interested in doing similar subjects in their first years of their respective Arts Degrees. Merlin enjoyed quite a few pub crawls, at one stage dancing like a maniac with Morgana and Freya, who loved a lot of the same music as he did.
It was Friday, and the official Orientation Week program had finished, now Merlin had the weekend to settle in before actually starting classes, and also start looking for a job to pay some of his expenses. Hunith had found additional work to help him pay for studying, but he would also need to have a job. He had some savings, which would not last forever, and he didn't want to apply for a student loan. Merlin was sitting in the common room, looking online to find some suitable job openings. He had done a number of different jobs in Ealdor, gardening, administration in an office, and working in a cafe. In a small town where everyone knew him, he had been able to get a bit of experience in several areas.
He saved a few jobs which looked promising, the most likely being jobs in cafes and bars where staff were needed in the evening or weekends, as this would be the best option to allow him to attend all his classes during the week. He closed his laptop, deciding he should probably go to his own room to do the necessary work on his resume and covering letters. He looked up to see Arthur Pendragon watching him intently, as if about to speak.
"You look busy," Arthur commented, "Classes haven't started yet, and you've already got a furrowed brow from studying."
"Nah, well not really studying, as such," explained Merlin, "Ive got to find a job, pretty much straight away, so I'm looking at some jobs to apply for."
"Oh," said Arthur, "do you have to pay for staying here yourself?"
"Hunith, she's my Mam, she's helping me pay to stay here, but I need to pay for everything else like my books, food, going out, that sort of thing. She can't pay for all of that."
"Right, so you're going to be pretty busy once you are working and studying. What are you studying anyway?" Arthur quizzed.
"Arts and Law. So yeah, I guess I'll be pretty busy." Merlin wondered why Arthur was being so friendly to him again. His other mates were nowhere to be seen, and the common lounge was deserted apart from the two of them. Merlin got up, making it apparent that he was about to leave, when Arthur suddenly stepped forward, "There's this dance night on at this club Indigo, starts at 9:00 p.m., its kind-of dance, indie that sort of thing, I wondered if you'd be interested in going with me?"
"Ermm...," now Merlin really had no idea what to say, was Arthur asking him out on a date? He could not figure this guy out.
"You can invite some of your friends you know, I just thought you know, you might be interested in getting out and having some fun, and you know, you probably wouldn't know much about what clubs are worth going to yet."
Arthur actually looked a little bit awkward, as if it really mattered to him how Merlin reacted. For his part, Merlin thought "Why not?", apart from that first meeting when Arthur had been so rude, he had since then been likeable, and eager to befriend Merlin.
"Well, okay, sounds like a plan. I'll call my mates and see if any of them are up for a night out, yeah?"
Arthur nodded, "Yep, well, meet you back here, say quarter to nine, I've got my own car, I can drive you in with me if you like. Can even pick up your mates if they are not too far away." Arthur was in charm overdrive, and was exceptionally hard to say no to when he was like this. Merlin nodded, and Arthur knew that the trap was set.
At a quarter to nine, Merlin came back to the common room, and found Arthur standing there. His two mates, Lachlan and Alexander were sprawled out on the couches, as if no one else would be interested in having a seat. Merlin's first impression of these guys being obnoxious was not dispelled seeing this, and he wondered how close friends Arthur was with them. Lachlan and Alexander looked at each other, raising their eyebrows at Merlin's appearance.
Merlin had changed into black skinny jeans, black lace-up shoes with slightly pointed toes, a dark purple shirt and black tie done haphazardly at his slender neck. Merlin always dressed up a bit to go out, but he wondered, catching the look between Lachlan and Alexander, whether they might think his admittedly sexy attire was for Arthur's benefit. Arthur himself didn't look too shabby, Merlin noticed, he was wearing a fitted khaki green shirt, indigo jeans and black Converse All-Stars. Actually, Merlin mused, he looked pretty hot to be honest, not that he would ever admit that to Arthur.
Arthur raised his eyebrows quickly, "You ready then?"
"Yep, errm, Freya and Gwaine are coming too, and Morgana might come as well, but they're gonna meet us there. Freya was quite impressed that you know about Indigo, she's been a few times. I haven't heard from Lancelot or Gwen, so who knows."
With that, Arthur and Merlin made their way out, Merlin intensely relieved that Lachlan and Alexander were not coming. Arthur's car was a silver BMW coupe, Merlin coming to the realisation that his family must be loaded for Arthur to have such a flash car while he was still studying at university. Merlin did his best not to look too awestruck as Arthur remotely unlocked the car and he jumped into the passenger seat side.
Arthur looked across at him in the passenger seat, and smiled. "Ever go out much back home?"
Merlin remembered lots of going out, but not much of it was to clubs, maybe to the local pub for a few drinks. "My mate Will and I, we used to hang out, and sometimes other friends from school. We'd go to the pub, or each other's places, or in summer, we'd go to the river and swim."
"Really," Arthur amused, "No one drowned?"
"We'd all look out for each other. You get pretty close when you see each other every single day."
Arthur was thoughtful, "Sounds nice."
Merlin wasn't having any of it, "You'd hate it, city kid like you having to come up with your own entertainment."
Arthur raised his eyebrow at Merlin, "I can be pretty good at coming up with distractions you know, for myself and others."
Arthur let the comment hang in the air, as he turned his full attention to the road. He was beginning to think that seducing Merlin wasn't going to be a bore after all. He liked that Merlin was lively, and a bit cheeky. In his slim fitting clothes, which emphasised just how slight he actually was, Arthur could imagine pressing him into a wall and feeling Merlin's angular body against his own. In fact, he was almost beginning to wonder whether taking on the bet had been more of an excuse to well, shag him, rather than how his mates saw it, as Arthur proving his prowess, his ability to be utterly rude and awful to someone and still make them want him. The fact that Lachlan and Alexander had despised Merlin on sight for being poor and slightly unfashionable, helped them to view the bet this way.
Freya, Morgana and Gwaine were already at Indigo when Merlin and Arthur arrived, Freya waving at them to come over and sit with them.
"Hey, this is Arthur," Merlin held Arthur's forearm, and pointed to two gorgeous dark-haired girls, one with deep brown eyes, the other with green eyes, "Freya, Morgana," and turning to a roguishly handsome man, hair skimming over his face which was stubbled, "and this is Gwaine."
Gwaine got up and clapped Arthur on his shoulder, "Well Arthur, any friend of Merlin's is a friend of mine. I only met him this week, and I already feel like he's my best mate and brother all rolled into one." Gwaine was friendly and jovial, but Arthur could sense, already a bit protective of Merlin. If Gwaine got wind of Arthur's wager, things might get ugly. Arthur could handle himself, but Gwaine looked pretty handy too. Still, Arthur thought, no reason why he would, Lachlan and Alexander would not say anything, that would just make them have to pay Arthur out immediately and he knew they did not want that.
"Well, Merlin's best mate," he mockingly addressed Gwaine, "what are you all having, my round."
"Good man," Gwaine approved, "Crown Lager for me."
The girls ordered cocktails, Merlin came with Arthur to the bar to help bring the drinks back. Freya and Morgana were talking about fashion, what they wanted to buy, and Gwaine's eyes were beginning to look a bit glazed.
"If I hear any more talk about wedge heels, or blazers, or capris I think I might fall asleep." Morgana just snorted at Gwaine, "C'mon, are you going to have a dance, or just sit around being a bore all night." With that Freya and Morgana got up, and determinedly paced towards the dance floor, which was still mostly empty. Gwaine just shrugged at Merlin and Arthur, and followed the girls to dance.
Merlin wouldn't have minded joining them, but thought he should sit with Arthur for a bit, as he didn't look especially eager to join them. So they sat in the corner of the club, pretty much on their own for the moment, although there were some other groups settling in to the couch area. As they nursed their beers, Merlin started to feel a bit tense again, sensing that Arthur was not being totally level with him about something.
"So," Arthur looked into Merlin's eyes, "You got a girlfriend?"
Merlin shook his head, a bit shyly, "Used to, back home, but we broke up about a month ago."
"Oh."
"Yeah, she wanted to get a bit too serious to be honest, I mean I'm only eighteen, and she wanted to move in with me, us get a place together, she was pissed when she found out I was going to stay at Marquisette."
Arthur nodded sympathetically, to be honest he thought Merlin's girlfriend sounded a bit clingy. "You're still a bit upset?"
"Yeah, a bit, I mean, I wanted to keep seeing her, but I can't afford to rent a house or flat, and Nim just didn't seem to understand, or want to. So, yeah, still hurts a bit, we'd been together for almost a year."
"She must be kind of crazy, not wanting to work it out with you."
Merlin looked up again at Arthur, and he was starting directly at Merlin. Merlin felt himself blushing under the intense look, but just said, "Yeah, Nim doesn't really know the meaning of compromise, she wanted things her own way or she wouldn't talk to me for days. I thought she'd understand, but in a way I'm kind of glad we broke up for good this time, she was a bit of drama queen."
Arthur laughed at this description, he'd had his fair share of drama queen girlfriends. He only had to remember Sophia, shit, that girl had nearly killed him.
Arthur felt maybe, he could take things up a level, moving infinitesimally closer to Merlin, so that their knees were touching, "Uh, well I was wondering, you know, if you're not seeing anyone right now, maybe you'd like to go out, with me. On a date?"
Merlin suddenly felt he should have known all along where this had been heading. "What, so you like me now? What about the other day, when you and your mates were the inquisitors 'cos I looked at you for too long?"
Arthur looked chastened, and just said, "Yeah, well, we didn't get off to be the best start, but we're getting to know each other now, and yeah, I do like you Merlin." Arthur didn't want to admit it to himself, but this was actually true, much as he wouldn't want Lachlan and Alexander to know this.
Merlin didn't know how to respond. He'd only had one relationship in his life, with Nim, and he wasn't used to be pursued. Back home, he was the cute, but dorky, brainy kid that everyone liked, but didn't look at twice. Arthur was gorgeous, with his tousled blond hair, finely drawn cheekbones, slender but toned and muscular, just, the most obvious pretty boy. Merlin had noticed the looks that had been directed their way since they had been sitting there together, and he figured most of the girls and some guys here would agree with his opinion.
"I guess, maybe, I like you a little bit too." Merlin wasn't going to say how he really felt, that the first moment he had seen Arthur, he couldn't look away, wanted to drink him in, but ended up embarrassed at being so obvious. Maybe now there wasn't going to be anything to be embarrassed about. So Merlin nodded his head, "Okay, so let's go out soon. On a date." There, he'd agreed.
Gwaine and Morgana returned from the dance floor, Freya was still out there killing it. Gwaine flopped down next to Merlin, almost on top of him, wanting to know what Arthur and Merlin had been discussing so earnestly. Morgana was just smirking at them both, as if she knew, "How could she know?" thought Merlin, then he figured, body language, damn, that would give them away. None the less, Merlin thought it better not to let on exactly what he and Arthur had been discussing. Trying to appear nonchalant, he turned towards Gwaine, "Just talking about socialising in Ealdor, how it's a bit different to London."
"Yeah, well, as long as there's a pub around the corner, couldn't be too bad, eh Merlin," punching him in the shoulder, making Merlin wince, but also laugh.
"Was that all you two were discussing all that time?" Morgana teasingly asked, very pointedly looking at Arthur.
Arthur stared Morgana down, "I don't know Morgana, I didn't remember to have Merlin record the minutes of our discussion, so I can't recall every little thing verbatim."
"Oh, well then, perhaps you and Merlin can just continue your little tete a tete, don't worry we won't listen in."
"Well why don't you join in Morgana. Tell us what you do with your mates when you're bored and want entertainment. Merlin's is to be a life saver when his drunken buddies go for a swim," Arthur offered.
Merlin just nodded slightly, indicating yep, that's what they had just been talking about.
Morgana scowled slightly, but Merlin had a scary feeling that she was going to get him alone at some point and make him talk. He wasn't sure how good he'd be at keeping this thing with Arthur quiet, but for the time being, that's exactly what he intended to do.
The rest of the evening was actually quite fun, eventually all five of them returned out to the dance floor, and listened to about twenty or thirty songs, Merlin was all "Oh this one, I love this song, gotta dance," and Freya was his willing accomplice, when all the others wimped out.
Finally, Merlin took pity on Arthur. "Wanna go home?"
"Yep, let's go," was Arthurs short reply. Merlin wasn't sure why Arthur was waiting on him, he could have found his own way back to Marquisette, but he suddenly felt like he'd enough for one night, and told Morgana, Gwaine and Freya that they were going.
Morgana just smiled, and said "Bye, for now."
Merlin was a bit exhausted really, and grateful that Arthur was giving him a ride back to Marquisette after all, walking back would have taken at least half an hour, or forty minutes maybe, or maybe he might have called a taxi.
As they walked back through the main entrance, trying not to be too loud, Arthur just said quietly, "See you later, Merlin."
Oddly enough, Merlin felt relieved. Maybe they would talk a bit more another day about Arthur's suggestion of a date. Merlin felt more than a little confused as to why he had agreed so readily, as he honestly thought he was one hundred percent straight, and it had taken him a back a little how he had immediately accepted Arthur's suggestion. Just for now, he was happy to sleep on it.
Merlin spent the rest of his weekend before the beginning of the semester trudging around the town, handing out resumes in cafes and shops, hoping that someone might be willing to take him on. He'd been at it almost the whole day, it was nearly 4:30 pm and he was thinking about going home, when he thought he'd try one last place, a swanky cafe that was inside the foyer of the Crown Theatre. The manager looked at his resume briefly, looked at Merlin appraisingly, and then said, "You'll need to wear black, that's what the waiters here wear, come in on Thursday, 5:00 pm. I need some people for the evenings, so you can start then."
Merlin could hardly stutter out thank you fast enough, it had been a long day, and he had been feeling that nothing was going to come of it, and suddenly he had a result. Relief suffused him as he thought, if I can hold onto this job, it will help me, and my Mam out.