Work Text:
Merlin, Will and Gwaine had all gone on a pub crawl last night.
Having downed too many drinks and not having a single braincell between them, they'd all gone to get tattoos and had then stumbled their way, slurring and singing, back to Merlin's flat where they all passed out within close succession of one another.
Sunlight was now peeking through the curtains. It pinpricked Merlin's eyes. He blinked and slowly sat upright, looking at the various crap strewn across his apartment.
Gwaine had woken up when Merlin had, slowly stirring and mumbling an incoherent sentence before slumping back down into the duvet.
The door to Merlin's room was slightly open and Merlin could see Will, flat on his face on the sofa, snoring loudly.
An idea sparked in the back of Merlin's head, no doubt only thought of due to his thoroughly sozzled state. He poked Gwaine to full wakefulness and grabbed a pack of sharpies.
Gwaine followed him into the living room. They turned Will over so that he was facing them instead of the sofa and uncapped the black sharpies.
They were giggling a little as Will continued to snore as they doodled inappropriate symbols on his face.
Suddenly, Will's phone went off. Merlin and Gwaine scarpered, having been startled by the loud ringtone. They dove back under the covers in Merlin's room.
The ringing continued. Will groaned and a thump sounded. The ringing stop.
A string of swear words followed by some more thumping and then the front door opening and closing was heard.
It was only later, long after the door shut following Will's exit that Merlin brought up the sharpie prank.
"Do you think I should text and tell him?" Merlin's question was muffled by Gwaine's arm.
"Nah," Gwaine said, placing a kiss on Merlin's ear. "He'll be fine."
Will was not fine.
Merlin had received twelve text messages, all of which involved some emergency Will couldn't explicitly name and a desperate need to find out what Merlin was doing and where he was.
Falling for it, Merlin told him.
He was on a date with Gwaine at one of the local cafés.
When Will entered, rather dramatically as he was inclined to doing, he said "Well, well, well. Fancy seeing you here."
"Got something on your cheek, there?" Gwaine said, pointing, as Will approached their table. Will scowled.
"Oh, ha ha." He said. "Shove over."
Merlin shuffled along and Will sat down in the booth.
"It's payback time. I can't believe you two drew a dick and the word 'wanker' on my face in sharpie when you knew I was meeting up with that bird I like."
"What are friends for," Merlin said, teasingly.
"Good bloody question, not much it seems." Will grouched.
The waitress came over then to take their order. "Hello, love," Will greeted.
"You're buying," Will said turning to Merlin before ordering everything on the menu.
"Really, Will?" Merlin asked when the waitress was gone. Will looked very smug.
"Still not as funny as the sharpie though," Gwaine said.
Will pulled a face.
"You found the tatt yet?" Gwaine asked.
"Oh yeah, spent a good 20 minutes trying to rub it off my ass before I realised that it wasn't sharpie." Will said. "Imagine my surprise."
Merlin snorted a little at that.
"Oh, find that funny do you Merls? What tattoo did you get again?" Will turned to him. Merlin grew red, mumbled something and sipped at his coffee.
Gwaine entwined his legs with Merlin's underneath the table, wiping the embarrassed look from Merlin's face and replacing it with a shy smile hidden behind his cup.
The food arrived. There was so much of it that it barley all fit on the table. Will polished off the first two dishes in record time and was now onto his third.
Merlin rolled his eyes at Will and commented on what a pig he is.
Will just smiled and stuffed more bacon into his gob. Gwaine was grinning wide and shaking his head.
"Well played," he commended.
fin