Boy in the bubble (Modern Merthur AU) (Discontinued)

Chapter Twenty Six

Merlin clutched at the back of his head, tears freely cascading down blotchy cheeks and landing on his knees, sobs escaping through his gaping mouth. His eyes screwed shut as a surge of pain shot through his skull and then crawled his way over to Arthur's - no, what had once been Arthur's - bed, burying beneath the white sheets with an uneasiness he hadn't expected to feel. The sheets smelt of sandalwood, of Arthur, and Merlin supposed it also smelt of himself, although he couldn't smell that; only the boy who had left him. With certainty the pillow cases he was resting his head on was now filling with a red stain that would over take any smell Arthur had left behind and replacing it with that of rusted Merlin.

The brunet reached for his phone that was still tucked into the pocket of his blazer from school and went straight to his contacts, pressing in Freya's number.

"Hey homie!"Freya called through almost instantly, making Merlin wince, "...Merls?"

"It's ruined..." He whispered into the speaker, adjusting the hands on his head to press harder into his scalp.

"What's ruined? What's wrong?"

"Everything..." He sobbed down the line, "It's all so fucked up."

"What's happened?" Her voice was on edge.

"It's so hard - and noth - nothing ever works... and it hurts and I can't do it anymore..." He hiccuped.

"Okay Merlin, Imma be right round, don't do anything stupid..." She said and Merlin wondered what she thought was wrong, what she thought he may do if she didn't advise him against it.

Freya was prompt and arrived not even ten minutes later, Arthur must have left the door unlocked, and at least that Merlin was thankful for, because Freya didn't need to knock and drag Merlin down to open the door.

"Merlin? Merlin!" Freya called through the home, jogging up the stairs and straight past the spare room where Merlin lay and ran straight to Merlin's bedroom and when she didn't find him there she went to the bathroom and when he wasn't there she franticly checked every room until she spotted him curled up on the spare room bed crying, the sheets beneath his patterned with red stains that stopped her dead in her tracks, "Thank god..." She breathed before rushing back out of the room and into the bathroom, retrieving a hand towel before returning and pressing it to Merlin's head, "Gaius! Gaius!" She shouted but he wasn't home.

Merlin cried into her shirt as she held onto the back of his head tightly to stop the slowing bleeding.

"You scared me so much Merlin..." She said softly, it was later but Merlin had no inkling to the time or how long she'd been here and although she was talking to him, he wasn't really listening, "When you called at nd you were crying - god. You were saying how f'ed up everything was and - and... I know your life isn't always good and shit always happens to you - and - and - and I thought you were calling to say goodbye to me. Forever." She was crying now and subconsciously rocking their bodies as a comfort, "I was so terrified... I ran all the way here, expecting to find you - expecting you to be - I thought you were going to be dead - and then you weren't and I think I breathed for the first time since you hung up... fuck... never do that to me again Merlin... I love you far too much to lose you like that... promise me if - if you ever think like that, that you'll call me first?"

Merlin didn't respond, he just cried silently into her bobbing knee cap.

"Promise me Merlin!"

"I promise."

It was a while later that the pair heard Gaius coming through the door and on any other day Merlin would have wondered what had him coming home so late. Freya lifted his head without a word and went down stair, presumably she thought he had fallen asleep on her and he heard her being greeted by Gaius and then talking to him in hushed tones before both came bounding up the stairs and into the room Merlin was laying in.

"Dear God..." Gaius muttered, "Freya can you go and get me some fresh water from the kitchen please?"

"Yeah." She answered softly, retreating from the room and Gaius came and knelt at the side of the bed.

"What happened? Was it the boys from school?" He asked and Merlin only met his eyes.

"He's gone..." He whispered and immediately Gaius understood.

"Arthur did this?" He asked, surprised, but the only response he got was more tears sliding from Merlin's eyes, over the bridge of his nose and falling onto the blood stained pillow.

Once Freya returned Gaius cleaned the back of Merlin's head, confirming nothing too serious had been done and it was only outer damage that would heal with ease.

~~~

"Would you like to stay for something to eat?" Gaius asked, pulling Freya from the room to let Merlin sleep.

"No, thank you. I should probably go home." Freya said, "Do you know what happened?"

"I take it Merlin has told you about Arthur?" Gaius asked and Freya shook her head slightly before asking,

"What that he moved in here about a month ago?"

"Ah, okay. Urm, yes. Well, Arthur has apparently vaccinated our home and apparently on his way out, he left some damage." Gaius cast his eyes towards the huddled up Merlin and sighed.

"What?!? I thought they were getting on?"

"As did I..." Gaius sounded melancholy and left slightly bewildered by Arthur's actions.

"I'll see to it no one goes near him in school..." Freya smiled weakly.

"Thank you dear."

The old carer lead her to the door and waved her off before setting to work on dinner.

~~~

Merlin lay in the bed, the pillows swapped for cleanliness and comfort but still he couldn't sleep. Arthur was gone - had left him and just when everything had seemed such a dream that he had dared hoped be permanent and then it was stripped away and he was to who he was - except he knew nothing of what the next days at school were to be or what he was in for, was Arthur going to go back to the Arthur Merlin once knew or was he going to keep up his act of keeping his friends away from Merlin.

He was confused and scared and in pain. He just wanted to sleep but the world around him was consumed by Arthur; his scent, some of his things.

Merlin didn't know what to do, so when the next morning rolled around he refused to go to school and the next day, but he also refused to move from the bed that smelt of his - not his - blond. Maybe it was a form of torture or pleasure, Merlin wasn't sure - it brought both feeling surging into his chest when a waft of Arthur's sandalwood scent would fill his nose.

AN:

So this is just a short chapter dedicated to giving you Merlin's pov of the follow days and events. I thought it would just add a bit of depth to the storyline, I will be doing the same for Arthur in the following chapter.

So, here's a run-down, the next chapter will be Arthur's experience and the chapter after or after that I think, will be a 'key to the plot' so keep in store!!

Never be afraid to let me know what you think or to leave recommendations, if you do recommend something I like, I'll use it and be sure to give credit in these note that I do. Comment, vote and follow! Thank you all!!

Byyyyyyeeeeeee...