Merthur Oneshots

Doggo

1594 words

It was May 2nd, 2009 when it started. The same day, five years later, he couldn't believe what his life had become.

Arthur Pendragon was a wealthy man, having inherited his father's position as CEO of Pendragon Incorporated. When he had first met Merlin, he'd been a stuck-up business man who didn't care about anyone but himself and his company. After spending five years together, Merlin had managed to turn Arthur into the kind of person that gets his boyfriend a dog for the anniversary of the day they met.

That's right, Arthur Pendragon, big-shot CEO of Pendragon Inc., was twiddling his thumbs in the lobby of Albion Pets Rescue.. Needless to say, people were staring. They were pointing at him while speaking in hushed tones, but they didn't seem to realize Arthur had both eyes and ears.

Arthur sighed, trying to tune them out, but it was no use. He heard them pondering Arthur's reason for being at a shelter. He heard them wondering why he wasn't at work, as it was noon. He heard it all, but he'd heard worse.

Eventually, Arthur was allowed in to see the dogs. His hands were shaking at his sides, and he resisted the urge to tuck them in his suit pockets. It was a horrible habit: He would shove his hands in his pockets every time he was uncomfortable, and he'd scratch through pocket after pocket after pocket... Merlin found it amusing, of course. "Most people bite their nails or twirl their hair or something, but not my Arthur. He claws holes in his pockets!"

Arthur was jolted from his thoughts by a slobbery tongue licking his hand. He pulled his hand back immediately, observing the dog in front of him. She had dark brown fur that looked incredibly soft to pet. Then there were her eyes. They were the brightest green Arthur had ever seen.

His original plan was to roam around for a while to make sure he found the perfect dog for Merlin, but he was already in love with this one.

As Arthur walked towards one of the employees, the chocolate lab was rubbing against his leg and licking his slacks.

"Hi, may I help you?" The young woman asked when Arthur approached her. She must have thought Arthur was there for business because of his suit. It was uncomfortable, but he had to put it on that morning so Merlin thought he was going to work.

"Yes, please. What is her name?" He asked, gesturing to the lab that seemed to be glued to his leg.

"Oh, she seems to have taken quite a liking to you! Her name is Emerald, and she's two years old. That's technically an adult, and she's been fixed already," she smiled.

"Thank you! I think I'd like to adopt Emerald."

"How wonderful! Well, she's already gotten her vaccines and she's been fixed, so you can probably take her home today!" The young woman seemed genuinely happy for Emerald, and she continued, "If you want, we could sell you a collar and a leash today for only $5. That way you could take her on a walk, which I think she'd enjoy. Of course, you'd have to buy the other essentials at a pet store, and you'll probably want some toys as well."

Arthur was surprised at how much this shelter was giving him, both in material objects and in knowledge. He'd never had a pet before, so he'd had no idea what to do. Now he did. "Thank you. Thank you so much."

The young woman nodded, a large smile plastered on her face.

Later that day, Arthur and Emerald were in the car on their way home. It was earlier than Arthur would usually be home from work, so he could surprise Merlin.

Merlin was a teacher at Camelot High, and Arthur had no idea how his boyfriend could stand being around so much teen angst and hormones for eight hours a day. He'd usually get home at four, an hour after the kids left. It was currently 4:30, so Arthur was sure he'd be home. Arthur usually didn't get home until 5:30, so Merlin would be lounging about, not expecting his boyfriend back yet. It was perfect.

Emerald was lying on a blanket in the back seat, and Arthur smiled fondly at her through the mirror. She was the perfect dog for Merlin; happy, cuddly, and playful.

Five minutes later, they were outside Merlin and Arthur's shared apartment. Arthur had checked earlier, and their landlord said it was okay for them to have a dog, as long as it didn't do too much damage to the building.

Arthur was holding Emerald's leash with one hand, and the other was scratching at the bottom of his pocket. He knew he should stop, but all of the nervous thoughts were making an appearance. He'd managed to repress them for a while, but there they were.

What if he doesn't like Emerald? What if she doesn't like him? What if Merlin expected more? What if he's disappointed? What if he's allergic? What if she's too messy and the landlord kicks us out? What if we can't take care of her well enough? What if we can't leave her at home while we're both at work?

Shut up, Arthur told his brain. Everything will be fine. Merlin will love Emerald, and Emerald will love Merlin. It will all be okay.

With that, Arthur took a deep breath and unlocked the door. Emerald immediately tried to run around and explore, but instead Arthur slowly walked her towards the couple's shared bedroom, thanking the stars that she wasn't barking.

He peeked through a crack in the door and saw Merlin laying on the bed reading, wearing dark jeans and a dark blue plaid dress shirt that brought out his eyes in the most beautiful way. Arthur smiled to himself, reviewing his plan for attack.
So, I'm going to walk in the room, he'll be surprised to see me home early. I'll say I got the rest of the day off because it's our anniversary. He'll be happy, and I'll ask if he wants to go out to dinner. He'll agree, because Merlin loves going out to eat. He'll suggest some restaurants, and I'll mention that we need to find somewhere dog-friendly. He'll be surprised, and then I'll go and get-

Arthur's thoughts were interrupted when he felt Emerald running past him and into the bedroom. He cursed under his breath, but decided to stay outside and watch through the crack in the door.

"Emerald ran over to Merlin, who hadn't noticed her until she jumped up on his lap and knocked the book away. "Oh!" he cried, obviously surprised. Arthur watched as his boyfriend awkwardly shuffled around, trying to get Emerald off of himself, and couldn't help but laugh. It seemed Merlin had heard him, as the dark-haired man's head turned in Arthur's direction.

Arthur wiped the smile off his face and walked in the room. He stood at the foot of the bed, while Merlin and Emerald lay side-by-side on the duvet. Merlin seemed content, mindlessly petting the soft fur of the dog beside him, staring up at his boyfriend. "Arthur, did you..." he trailed off, a smile lighting up his face. "Did you get me a dog for our anniversary?"

Merlin's smile was infectious, and it took all of Arthur's self-control not to jump onto the bed and cuddle with his boyfriend and his dog. "Yes, yes I did. Her name is Emerald. I got her from the shelter today."

"So, you weren't at work?" Merlin seemed confused, still petting Emerald softly. She nuzzled her face into his side, and he broke eye contact with Arthur for a second to smile at her.

"I didn't go to work at all today. I researched shelters that had good histories and well-behaved dogs, then I drove out to Albion Pets Rescue, and she found me. She seemed perfect for you, so I adopted her. Is that okay?" By the last sentence, Arthur's hands were back in his pockets, scratching away.

Merlin slid out from under Emerald and over to the side of the bed. He slowly threw his feet over the edge and stood up, all without breaking Arthur's gaze. He walked over to Arthur and held his wrists. Merlin gently pulled his hands out of the tattered pockets, and slid them into his own warm grip. "Arthur Pendragon, you are the best thing that has ever happened to me. Of course it's okay, you prat! In fact, it's more than okay. It's wonderful! Now we have our own little family."

Merlin began leaning forward, and Arthur's lips met his in a frenzy of softness and heat. The shaking in Arthur's hands was forgotten as his hands explored Merlin's back, slipping under his shirt to caress the small of his back.

When Merlin pulled away, Arthur was a bit disappointed, but he supposed the rest could wait until later. After all, it was only 5:15. Merlin looked thoughtful, and just when Arthur was about to ask if something was wrong, Merlin spoke up.

"You know, I said it was wonderful, but there's one thing that bugs me." Arthur's eyes went wide in surprise and his hand resumed their shaking. Then Merlin smiled and held his hands once more, nodding towards the discarded book on the bed, then to the bookmark on the pillow.

"I lost my page."