Work Text:
Merlin pulled the piece of cardboard out of his pocket again for the umpteenth time that day. Should I or shouldn’t I? She did say . . . he shook his head forcefully and shoved it back into his pocket. Everyone in the shop probably thought he was crazy, but fortunately none of them had left because of it.
He continued the same thought process and behavior for the rest of his shift. When Will came to replace him, he was leaning against the wall, one hand in his chin and one holding the cardboard. He didn’t notice Will until his friend said his name. He quickly stuffed the cardboard bit in his pocket and looked up at Will. “Hey.”
“Hey. You still thinking about calling her?” He rolled his eyes. “Just do it already!”
“I can’t.”
“Oh come on. She gave you that number for a reason—use it!”
A resolute look came into Merlin’s eyes. “You’re right!” He pulled out his phone and walked into the back room. He walked out five minutes later with a glazed look on his face. “She said yes. Oh my—she said yes!”
Will walked over and clapped Merlin on his back. “Good on ya! So she’s coming Friday night?”
“Yeah.”
Will snickered. “Great! Well, I look forward to seeing your famous girlfriend.”
oO0Oo
Merlin’s doorbell rang late Friday afternoon. He opened the door to Morgana Le Fay, the gorgeous actress who’d taken refuge in his shop a couple of weeks ago. “Hi,” she offered.
“Come in,” he replied and widened the door for her to enter. He closed it behind her.
“So, game night huh?”
“Yeah, it’s a tradition my friends and I started in Uni. Whoever wasn’t out that night would get together and play. Sometimes it was board games; sometimes it was video games, but always Friday night.”
“That sounds like a lot of fun.” She frowned as she sat on his sofa. “So, they don’t believe we’ve met, huh?”
“Can you blame them?”
“Not really. But I’m happy to help you out. It’s the least I can do.” She smiled brightly at him and he nearly melted.
“Well, thank you—” he started, but his doorbell rang.
It was Lance and Gwen. He let them in and introduced them to Morgana. They were very surprised, but recovered themselves nicely. Fortunately they weren’t the type of people to fawn over a person—Gwen met several well-to-do people in the course of her business. She ran a wedding dress boutique.
Next at the door was Freya. When she saw Morgana, she clammed up and ran into the kitchen. Merlin, Lance and Gwen let Morgana know that Freya was painfully shy and this was typical for her. She’d warm up over the course of the evening.
Last to arrive was Will. He walked in and his mouth fell open. One of those, Morgana thought. She went over to Merlin and took his hand. “Who’s this darling?” she asked him.
Both men were surprised, but Merlin hid it better. “This is Will. He also works at the shop.”
“It’s so lovely to meet you, Will.” She turned to Merlin. “So what are we playing tonight, darling?” She kissed his cheek for good measure.
“I thought we’d start with Apples to Apples then work our way into Sorry if we felt like it.”
“I can’t wait!”
Everyone put their food and drink offerings on Merlin’s table while he brought out his games. Morgana made sure to seat herself next to him. As the night progressed, she took great joy in the looks Merlin’s friends darted at her and Merlin, like they couldn’t believe how lucky he was. The thing was, she didn’t pretend all that much—she genuinely liked Merlin. He was a down-to-earth guy with a quirky sense of humor. While he wasn’t classically handsome, his eyes were the most unusual shade of blue she’d ever seen. And his cheekbones—well, she could amuse herself for hours just by running her fingers over them.
Merlin’s friends turned out to be some of the nicest people she’d ever met. Even before her television and movie success, her social circles had moved in different directions. They were genuinely kind and generous; they didn’t pander or try too hard. I could really learn to love these people.
At the end of the first game, which shy Freya won, they all decided to call it a night. Gwen, Lance, Will, and Freya were still giving her and Merlin looks. Maybe they thought the two of us want some alone time? Whatever the reason, they bid her goodnight and took their extra food.
Once they’d left, Merlin looked nervous. “Um, thank you for coming. You didn’t have to . . .”
“Oh I absolutely did! And I had a great time! It’s been a while since I’ve been able to enjoy such a simple pleasure.”
He blushed. “Well, now we’re even so—”
She leaned forward quickly and kissed him soundly. When she pulled away, she said, “Oh, I don’t think so.” She giggled at his dazed look. “Call me again sometime, because you owe me now.” She winked then walked out the door. She had a feeling she’d be hearing from him again soon.