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Let me deserve this, please let me be worth it.
It was the mantra Arthur lived by since getting Merlin back and some days it was easier than others. The temper that had burned bright both on the battlefield and in the castle had not be softened by the many reincarnations, and this day was bringing out the worst in the CEO.
First, one of his favorite clients had gotten word his contract might not be renewed for the next season of the show he was on and Arthur had to spend an hour on the phone with the production team explaining why that news should have gone through him and not be sprung on the actor mid-taping.
Frustration with idiots drove him to the break room where he caught the sharp end of a grumpy Morgana's tongue. He snapped back and the conversation degenerated quickly into a screaming match that had nothing to do with anything besides too much work related stress on both their parts.
His boyfriend, god that is so junior high, had unfortunately chosen that day to come take him to lunch and heard the tail end of the argument. Joking about catfights, something Arthur would normally laugh along with, Merlin grabbed the other man's hand to pull him in for a kiss.
Even as Arthur stepped back and wrenched his arm away, his brain was screaming at him asking him what he was doing, this crappy day wasn't Merlin's fault. The hurt that etched itself in the dark haired man's face was like a punch in the gut to his lover, but that didn't stop him from letting the warlock walk right back out the door without saying a word.
Morgana looked at him in shock, her tempered cooled by seeing her idiot brother chase his lover out of the building.
"What the fuck, Arthur? That was Merlin." Her voice was angry and tired, her day hadn't been any better than his, one of her clients' sons had recently been diagnosed with cancer and she had stopped by with gifts at the hospital, Morgana didn't do helpless well.
"You think I don't know that. God, Morgana. His face is the first thing I see in the morning and the last thing I see at night. Every time I close my eyes he's there, and I love him so much it hurts, and makes me say stupid shit like that," the flare of anger cooled and Morgana gasped at the depth of emotion in Arthur's eyes as he continued in a quiet tone, "But sometimes, sometimes I look at him and remember what he did for me and it's too much. He went through so many lifetimes and had to see me die more than I ever want to imagine, but he kept going and for what? I'm not exactly a prize, at least not one worthy of that kind of devotion."
"That's where you're wrong." Merlin's voice was hard but not with anger, it was much closer to determination.
Arthur spun to see the warlock in the doorway. "I thought you left."
"Yeah well, you're an idiot." Merlin's smile was half hearted and Arthur winced. "And if you ever question whether you were worth it again, I swear to God… well I don't know what I'll do but it won't be pleasant. I could have given up, did I tell you that? The residents of Avalon told me that anytime it got to be too much, or I began to think it wasn't worth it I could return to them and they would release me. But It. Was. Never. Not. Worth. It. Understand? I would have walked a thousand more lifetimes if it meant coming home to you, to us."
Arthur's eyes were getting watery, not everyday your lover makes a speech like that, but he knew Morgana would never let him live it down if he cried in the office. He mouthed 'Thank you' to Merlin, unwillingly to speak and betray himself with a shaky voice.
Merlin relaxed and with a swift glance at Morgana made a decision. "We are going to lunch, our phones will be on but don't call. He'll be back at some point, maybe." The warlock grabbed Arthur's hand and started dragging him to the elevator.
Gwen and LJ had been huddled in her office listening for the shouting to stop so they knew it was safe to come out and therefore were witnesses to Merlin shoving Arthur against the wall inside the elevator and initiating what promised to be a very hot, albeit short make-out session as the doors closed.
"Why don't we ever make-out in the elevators anymore? Is the fire gone in our relationship?" The impish gleam in Gwen's eye as she provoked her husband sparkled brighter when he brought her close into a kiss of their own.
LJ's voice was gravelly as he responded, "I think that can be arranged," He turned to shout to a laughing Morgana, "We're taking lunch too, same rules about calling."
The husband and wife team disappeared into the next waiting elevator and Morgana took a moment to admire LJ's smooth moves in getting Gwen hitched up against the elevator wall opposite the one that Merlin and Arthur had claimed.
The dark haired woman pouted, realizing her lover was still overseas at a security conference. Her brain clicked onto a rather fun idea as she drew the shades on her office windows and dialed Leon's hotel number, he should just be getting back from dinner. She had one more thought before the line connected and it was to thank God they all had competent assistants who could man the office while the senior staff was… occupied.
Mordred's Death
"The CEO of Druith Inc. died suddenly yesterday, when he took a tragic fall down the flight of stairs in his foyer. Mordred Druith was one of the youngest CEOs in the area and a bright star in the talent industry; he will be missed."
It was less than three weeks after he had regained the memories of his time as the legendary king, and Arthur felt like he had been punched in the gut at the sight of the day's headlining story. The picture accompanying the article sent a shiver down his spine. Either Mordred had also been on the reincarnation wheel with the former monarch and his friends, or fate was playing a cruel trick in the gene pool. It wasn't the first time Arthur had seen a photo of his company's main rival, but it was the first time he had memories of a murderous druid with the same face. That eerie stare had been perfected across centuries and Arthur couldn't help but feel a little happy he had never met the man in person.
Arthur's original life was generally a hazy presence in the back of him mind, never making itself known unless he made an effort to remember. The sudden flash of a bloody battlefield and a burst of angry magic consuming him faded, but the face of the man who killed him seemed burnt on his eyelids. He got up and restlessly paced back and forth, trying to convince himself that it shouldn't bother him centuries later.
A phone call broke Arthur's reverie and when he saw his lover's name on the screen it was the first time he ever hesitated to answer. He cursed himself as he collapsed into his desk chair, burying his face in his hands. He shouldn't, couldn't stay on this line of thinking.
But how can I help it? Three weeks with new memories and the man who killed me so long ago ends up dead. Merlin, could you? And worse yet, do I even care?
Angry at himself, the former king still couldn't shake the fact that his old self would not have batted an eye at his sorcerer taking out an enemy. After all ,Merlin had gone through following his death at Mordred's hand, the CEO had trouble bringing up any real condemnation for the alleged deed.
What am I going to do?
A hesitant knock came from his door and he looked up to see his dark haired lover enter the room, his face a study in anxiety and just the barest hint of defiance.
The blond groaned inaudibly before striding forward and yanking the other man into his arms. Face buried in the warlock's hair, Arthur simply said, "Merlin."
Baby Names
Gwen and LJ were relaxing after a successful but exhausting week. On top of Gwen's pregnancy she had two clients renegotiating contracts and lawyers always gave her headaches. LJ hadn't faired much better, having two contract negotiations as well as a high-maintenance model who decided to walk out in the middle of a shoot because an assistant 'looked at her funny.'
To make matters worse Merlin was out of town on a book tour and Leon was across the country to personally handle security for one of their actresses who had a stalker. The heads of the company were in understandably grumpy moods without their respective partners and their normally good-natured sniping had descended into petty attacks as they channeled their frustrations into arguments with each other.
Luckily by Friday the travelers had returned and the contracts were all signed with The Camelot Agency's clients coming out on top. LJ's charm had smoothed things over with the magazine's photographer and the shoot was rescheduled for next week. The married couple practically sprinted out of the office Friday afternoon though, terrified something might come up at the last minute to keep them busy through the weekend.
Gwen was 6 months along and her pregnancy had gone pretty smoothly for a first child. But the week on her feet had her bemoaning her choices in footwear and the ridiculously loving LJ was currently giving her a foot massage that had her groaning in pleasure.
"If there's a Husband of the Year award I'd vote for you honey." Gwen had melted in a puddle of relaxation on the couch, smiling sweetly at her man.
"Thanks dear, I do try." LJ smirked and pinched her toes lightly before gently resting his hands on her ankles. "Have you narrowed them down any?" he asked, gesturing to the book of baby names lying open on her growing stomach.
The couple knew they were going to have a little boy although they'd so far successfully kept that knowledge from their friends. Gwen thought Merlin might know but he hadn't mentioned anything to Arthur yet thankfully. She knew if Arthur found out they were having a boy he would be only half-jokingly telling them to name him Arthur after their favorite former king.
LJ had vetoed that, as much as he loved his friend their baby needed its own name, living up to a legend was too much pressure for a wee little thing.
Gwen sighed, "I don't suppose you remember what we called our children in any of the past lives do you?"
Her husband stilled his hand where he'd been stroking her leg, they didn't often mention the past. The two of them were the lucky ones, most memories they'd gotten back had been of them together and happy, but they knew it wasn't the case for their friends so they generally ignored the lingering flashes of former reincarnations.
"I'd say that's cheating but I've been trying to remember too. I can see their faces sometimes but no names." He shrugged helplessly, "Maybe we aren't supposed to know for some reason."
Gwen sat up slowly and snuggled into her husband's side. "Makes sense I guess. If we kept naming our kids the same thing every time that'd get a bit ridiculous. Still, choosing the name a person has to live with for the rest of their life is more of a daunting task than I'd imagined."
LJ looked down at his wife and smiled, kissing the top of her head as he reassured her, "We'll come up with something, hopefully before he's born or you know Arthur's going to be able to convince us to name the baby after him."
The woman in his arms giggled, "So true, after labor I don't think I'll want to make that kind of decision so I'd probably go along with it just to get some peace and quiet."
The coupled laughed softly, both imagining the arguments their friend would make for why Arthur was a fitting name for their first born. As laughter turned into soft kisses and clothes got tugged away to make room for passion, neither of the future parents could imagine the chaos that surrounded the birth of their first born and how they finally came to agree upon little Nathaniel Arthur's name.