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Merlin stared at the one bed in the hotel room. Arthur you idiot, he thought. Arthur booked their room and Merlin reminded him to get two beds. Arthur pushed himself into the room, carrying his bags.
“Oh don’t help me Merlin. I’ve got everything.” Arthur dropped the suitcase he held and stretched his back, groaning. He looked over at Merlin. “What is it? What are you staring at?”
“There’s only one bed Arthur.” Arthur moaned, dropping his head and pinching his nose.
“You’re kidding,” he muttered. Arthur walked over to where Merlin was and stared at the bed as well.
“How could you only get one bed?” Merlin stared at Arthur and Arthur didn’t reply. He just kept staring at the bed.
“We can make this work,” Arthur said. He sounded tired. “Look they’ve left an extra blanket. We can make a wall from that.”
“Or one of us can sleep on the chair,” Merlin suggested.
“Well do you want to do it Merlin?”
“No.”
“Neither do I. So we’ll share the bed but make ourselves a wall.” Merlin still wasn’t fond of the idea of sharing a bed with Arthur but he was too tired to protest anymore at this point.
Arthur made the wall from the blanket and Merlin put their stuff in the corner. Arthur gave the bed a few pats before standing back to admire his work. Merlin walked over and crossed his arms. Arthur looked over at him.
“Go on, pick your side.” Merlin sat down on the edge of the left side and Arthur sat down on the other. “Well Merlin, you can sit like that the rest of the night if you want. I’ll be getting my rest,” Arthur said, getting under the cover and turning off his light. He flipped to his side facing away from Merlin. Merlin sat on the edge for a few more minutes, staring at Arthur for a bit. He sighed before getting under the cover as well and turning off his light.
Merlin stayed on his back, staring at the ceiling for a bit. Despite the wall, he and Arthur were still very close to each other. He could hear Arthur breathing and it made Merlin’s heart race. If he turned the wrong way, he could wake Arthur up or break the wall, so he stayed on his back and tried to sleep. It worked for a bit and he actually got to sleep for an hour before he woke up. He was on his side and Arthur was too. They faced each other, a few inches apart. The wall was still inbetween them, keeping them apart. Merlin could feel his heartbeat in his throat. Arthur made a noise and Merlin froze. Fortunately, Arthur didn’t wake up. Merlin shut his eyes and tried to get back to bed.
The next time Merlin work up, the wall was gone. The blanket that kept them apart was now bunched up at the foot of the bed. Arthur’s arm was on Merlin’s waist and he was warm. Merlin tensed up when he saw Arthur’s arm but kept quiet. He tried to relax but it didn’t work. Slowly, Merlin pushed Arthur’s arm off of him and flipped to the other side. Merlin let out a sigh of relief before feeling Arthur pulling Merlin towards him. Merlin almost panicked. He was tense under Arthur for a while before he started to relax into the embrace.
The next time Merlin woke up, Arthur was sitting up, wiping his eyes with the palms of his hands.
“Arthur?” Arthur flinched, turning to look at Merlin. “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine Merlin. Go back to bed,” Arthur murmured. His voice was heavy and Merlin could hear how tired Arthur was. He wondered how many times Arthur woke up in the middle of the night. Merlin sat up, inching closer to Arthur.
“What is it?”
“Just a bad dream. Go to bed Merlin. I’ll be fine.” Merlin reached out and placed a hand on Arthur’s shoulder. He felt Arthur relax into his touch.
“What was it about?” Arthur sighed, turning to face Merlin completely. He kept opening his mouth trying to find the right words.
“My mother,” Arthur finally mumbled out. “It was about my mother. She died when I was born.”
“Arthur, I’m sorry.” Arthur’s face softened.
“I keep a picture of her in my room. Sometimes I’ll have these dreams where she’s with me but she hates me.” Arthur gulped, swiping his eyes with his palms. “I see why. I’m the one to blame for her death,” Arthur murmured. Without thinking, Merlin wrapped Arthur in a hug. Arthur’s hands hovered over the embrace before Merlin felt him ease into the touch, returning the hug.
“You’re not to blame Arthur. The dreams are wrong. Your mother would be proud to see you now.” Merlin meant to say the last part as a mere observation but he said it from the heart. Merlin had seen Arthur do great things and anyone would be proud of him.
“Thank you Merlin,” Arthur whispered. Merlin planted a kiss on the side of Arthur’s head, acting before realizing what he was doing. Arthur pulled Merlin away to look at him. Merlin knew he probably messed up with that last bit. He waiting for Arthur to shout something but he never did. Instead, Arthur brought his face closer to Merlin’s, leaving a kiss on Merlin’s lips. Merlin smiled and Arthur smiled back.
“Let’s go back to bed Arthur,” Merlin whispered. Arthur nodded, yawning. They stayed close the rest of the night, tangling themselves in each other. When Merlin woke up, he was in an embrace with Arthur. He dug himself deeper into the embrace, as if it wasn’t real. Arthur woke up, wrapping his arms tighter around Merlin. They stayed like that for a few more hours, enjoying the silent company of each other.