Merthur one shots || Merlin

Cute guys and shots

Arthur had far better things to do than go to a pub with his friends on a friday afternoon. The days of going to pubs every weekend and drinking himself into an oblivion with his friends had passed as soon as he turned 23 and got a well paying job. Being a top notch lawyer and having court cases to focus on quickly out weighed the need for alcohol at all, except for the occasional beer after a rough case.

He had told this to his friends when they showed up at his apartment but they didn't seem to care, instead practically pushing him to his bedroom and demanding he get changed out of his pyjamas. With a deep sigh, Arthur went to his room and did as told, making sure to spruce up his hair before he went back to the living room and followed his friends outside.

The drive to the pub was a loud and tedious one, with Gwaine and Percival practically screaming to the songs on the radio, apparently having already started drinking before they left home. Arthur was sandwiched in the backseat between Lancelot and Leon who, though they didn't seem to appreciate their friends loud antics, they were still talking to each other over the noise. Arthur on the other hand, was starting to feel the beginnings of a headache and was seriously considering climbing over Leon and throwing himself out of the car. He had a long case at work that went for almost a week, and all he wanted to do was lie in bed and watch netflix and possibly even scroll through tinder.

He had been feeling quite lonely lately and he had downloaded the app one night when he was particularly drunk, but found no one suitable. It had been some time since he had dated someone, and an even longer time since he had slept with someone, so it was no surprise when no one met his standards. His sister constantly chastised him for being so picky with men but ever since he first came out, he had always been drawn to one type of man and it seemed to be getting harder and harder to find one that fit that type lately.

As they arrived at the pub, Arthur sighed a breath of relief and waited until Lancelot opened his door before practically throwing himself out the car. The cool, fresh air was quite different from the stuffy heat in the car and Arthur never appreciated London air more than he did at that moment. They walked towards the pub, Gwaine throwing an arm around his shoulders as they did so. He didn't seem to notice Arthur's glare, or if he did he didn't care.

Just as he suspected, the pub was loud and hot, there was a strong stench of alcohol and sweat, and it was even more crowded than he remembered. He swallowed past the growing nausea and followed his friends through the herd of people to the bar. It was less crowded near the bar but it was also closer to the stage which meant it was louder.

"What can I get you?" The bartender asked, clearly wanting her shift to be over so she could leave. Arthur took pity on her and ordered, knowing if he let Gwaine do it he would slip in flirty comments which tended to make people uncomfortable.

She disappeared with a tired smile, coming back a few moments later with a tray full of beer glasses. Gwaine and Percival took them with a cheer, handing them around before drinking almost half a glass at once. Arthur shook his head and sipped his beer, screwing his face up at the bitter taste it left in his mouth. He felt oddly grown up in that moment, knowing he would have been able to down a whole glass of beer at once in his college days.

It didn't take long for Gwaine and Percival to end up on the dancefloor, practically grinding on each other. Lancelot took his beer and went towards the stage, hoping to find some pretty girl to take home for the night. That left Leon and Arthur alone at the bar

Leon was relatively new to the group, being one of Gwaine's work mates. Arthur and he were yet to be acquainted properly, so things were still kind of awkward between the two. Leon was a nice guy, fun to talk to, they just didn't have anything they could talk about.