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Arthur had felt the exact moment when Merlin wasn’t behind him any longer. They had worked so hard for this race and it was Arthur’s last chance to win anything in this competition. For a short moment, he pondered stopping and checking on his best friend and training partner, but one sideways glance towards where his father was sitting on the bleachers and expected him to win had made him focus again and he mobilized his last energy to bring this race home.
Only when he crossed the finish line, Arthur noticed that the team’s doctor was tending to Merlin, who sat on the ground clenching his teeth each time someone touched his knee.
His father came over and just told Arthur that he did as expected, there was lots of shoulder-patting and hand-shaking and someone shoved an ugly little trophy in his hand.
But Merlin wasn’t at his side to celebrate with him. The victory tasted stale.