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WHISPERS“Well. Here we are.” Merlin turns off the engine of the small rental truck. “Home sweet home.”“Yeah.” Eggsy briefly looks out the window and then down at his hands. “Leannan, are…are ye having second thoughts?” Merlin asks with a frown.“No!” Eggsy quickly looks up and takes Merlin’s hand. “Ain’t having second thoughts about moving in with you, swear down, Ian. Not the way you think, anyway.” He motions to the window. “Your neighborhood is kinda, well, not quite posh, but nice. Ain’t used to nothing like this. Neighbors are gonna take one look at me and…”“…love you,” Merlin finishes. He kisses Eggsy’s hands. “All right, let’s see. I dinnae know too many of the wives, but the husbands are nice. The house with the pink shutters, that’s the Eberlys…Janice and Matthew. Next to them are the Bennetts, Eliza and Frank. The house across the way, that’s Madeline Crosby.” Merlin makes a face.“What’s wrong with her?”“Nothing, I suppose. A very attractive woman, about my age…”“She fancies you,” Eggsy says with a slow grin.Merlin feels his face grow warm. “I would nae know anything about that.”“Fit single bloke like you, obviously has money? She fancies you.”“Rubbish,” Merlin snaps and Eggsy laughs. “On our other side is Mrs. Bancroft. Her husband passed away years ago and now she prides herself on knowing all the neighborhood gossip.”“I’ll be on my best behavior,” Eggsy promises.“Leannan, ye only have to be yourself. I don’t give a fuck what those old biddies think.”“Ian McNair!” Eggsy gasps, pretending to be offended. “Such language.”“I believe I heard such language coming from you the other day when I had ye seated on the kitchen counter…” Merlin leans over to kiss behind Eggsy’s ear.“Ian.” Eggsy turns red. “Stop it.”Merlin growls and kisses him again. “Let’s get everything inside and then I am taking ye out for a nice dinner. Thankfully your suit is already here.”“Ian, we don’t gotta go for a nice dinner. We can…”“I’m taking ye out for a nice dinner,” Merlin repeats. He gets out of the car and opens the back of the truck. “Lad, I love ye, but I dinnae understand how one young man can have so many trainers.”“Ain’t my fault,” Eggsy says bashfully, following Merlin out of the truck. “Give myself a bit of spending money outta every paycheck…spend it on trainers.”“I thought we’d make the spare room into something for Daisy, but it looks like it will be a spare closet,” Merlin teases. Eggsy gapes at him. “You...you wanna make Daisy a bedroom here?”“Of course…I figured you could…” Merlin’s almost knocked over as Eggsy barrels into his arms and kisses him.“You…are the best…sweetest…most amazing…boyfriend ever,” Eggsy says, punctuating the sentence with smacking kisses. He then looks around and blushes. “Oi, guess I’m giving them something to talk about already, ain’t I?”“Let them talk.” Merlin grabs him by the waist and actually swings him around. “I’ve nae been this happy since moving into this house. I dinnae care what they say.”“I love you.”“And I love you, mo chridhe.” Janice Eberly peers out her front window as a strange moving truck stops by the side of the road. She has her phone in her hand immediately. “Madeline.”“Janice, hello. How are you?”“Fine. Did you see the truck out front?”“What…oh, yes. Ian McNair is behind the wheel.”“Interesting.” Janice’s eyebrows go up as a handsome young man gets out from the passenger side. She frowns at his jeans, trainers, and oversized hoodie. “It looks like someone’s moving in with him.”“Nonsense. Ian is a loner,” Madeline declares, as if she has any idea. Janice rolls her eyes, grateful no one can see her. “Oh, well, yes…I suppose so. Perhaps he’s just renting a spare room. The boy is probably a university student and…”Madeline stops talking as the boy throws himself into Ian’s arms and kisses him. “I don’t think the spare room is where that boy will be sleeping,” Janice points out.Madeline gasps as Ian picks the boy up and swings him in a circle. “Well…obviously he has Ian bewitched.”“Jealous, Madeline? Obviously the boy succeeded where you have perpetually failed,” Janice snickers.“Just wait until Vera Bancroft catches sight of this. She has a view right into Ian’s garden,” Madeline says triumphantly.“As do we,” Janice points out. Her phone clicks. “Oh, Eliza’s calling me. Come for tea on Tuesday?”“Of course. Goodbye.”Janice pushes a button. “Hello, Eliza.”“Janice! Did you see that? Did you see that young…golddigger…kissing Ian McNair right in the middle of the neighborhood?”Janice grins. Things have been so quiet of late, but obviously not anymore. “No. JB, NO,” Eggsy snaps. “You don’t do your business in someone else’s flower beds. I know this is a posh new neighborhood for you, but you gotta learn.” Eggsy pulls at the leash. JB finally relents and keeps walking.A couple comes out of the house next to Ian’s and heads down to their car. “Hello, there,” the man says cheerfully. “You’re Ian’s friend, aren’t you?”“Yes,” Eggsy says, scooping JB up so he can shake the man’s hand. “Gary Unwin, but everyone calls me Eggsy.” He orders himself to smile at the man and give him a firm handshake. These are neighbors, nothing to be nervous about.“Eggsy. I’m Matthew Eberly, and this is my wife, Janice.”Eggsy holds out his hand and she gingerly takes it. “Pleased to meet you,” she says in an icy tone.Her husband gives her an odd look. “So, you’re moving in with Ian, then?” Eggsy nods shyly. “Such a good neighbor, always giving a hand when something needs fixed. Are you as good with your hands as he is?”“I’m sure he is, otherwise he wouldn’t be living here, now would he?” Janice says slyly and Eggsy turns red.“I, well…I dunno about that, sir. I…he’s the genius, I’m just the…”“Inspiration?” Janice says with a grin.“I’m his assistant,” Eggsy manages. Unfortunately JB chooses this moment to jump from Eggsy’s arms and go running down the pavement. “Fuck me! Beg your pardon, gotta go. JB!” He yells, running down the sidewalk after his dog. Merlin carries a few things out into the shed so Eggsy can have a bit more room in the attic. “Mr. McNair?”He sighs at the familiar voice calling over the fence. “Hello, Mrs. Bancroft,” he says, slowly turning around. This must be a record. Eggsy hasn’t officially been in the house more than an hour before she’s sticking her nose into their business. “How are ye?”“Just fine. Did I see you unloading boxes from a truck?”“That ye did, ma’am.” Merlin closes the shed and locks it. “So you have a boarder. Isn’t that nice.”“No, ma’am, I do not. I have a boyfriend who has moved in with me,” Merlin snaps, and then instantly regrets it. He knows the best way to deal with her is to answer her questions and get on his way.“Oh. Oh, I see.” Her eyebrows go up into her white hair. “Isn’t that interesting?”“I think so. Good day, Mrs. Bancroft.” Merlin heads into the house before he can say something he regrets. Eggsy catches JB and gives him a firm scolding as the dog licks his face. “Ain’t forgiving you,” Eggsy tells him. He makes sure he has a strong hold on the leash before letting the dog down to walk again. They make it around the block, and of course JB decides to poop on the pavement right in front of Madeline Crosby’s house. “Really?” Eggsy murmurs, pulling a bag from his pocket to clean it up. “We’re literally right across the street from the house.”“Well, hello there.” A pair of long legs stop in front of him as he squats down. He might not like women much, but even he can admit that Madeline Crosby has a nice body. “I don’t believe I’ve seen you before.”“No, ma’am.” Eggsy ties off the bag and stands up. “My…my name’s Eggsy. I’d shake your hand, but…” He motions to JB.“I understand. You’ll want to keep him away from that house, however.” She points to Mrs. Bancroft’s home. “She has a dog as well, and she’s very particular as to who he can play with. My name is Madeline. You’re a friend of Ian’s, then?”“Yes, ma’am. Actually he’s…he’s my boss.” Eggsy immediately knows that was the wrong thing to say.“Indeed.” Her eyes widen. “And he’s given you a place to stay?”“He’s given me HIS place. I mean, I’ve…we’re…” Eggsy wishes the ground would open up and swallow him. “I’m living with him. Like, I’m his…boyfriend.”“Oh. Well, aren’t you lucky. He’s quite the charmer. So handsome, good with his hands.” She gets a soft smile on her face. “He’s used them on me…I mean, for me…many times.”“Yeah, he’s the best,” Eggsy says weakly. “Well, I should…I should go. Gotta unpack my boxes and stuff.”“So pleased to meet you, Eggy.”“Eggsy.”“Right.” She wiggles her fingers at him and saunters back to the house. “Oh, bloody hell.” Merlin frowns as he looks out the window and sees Eggsy talking to Madeline Crosby. Eggsy seems to draw into himself, and once she wiggles his fingers at him he turns and plods back to the house. “Are you all right?”“Yeah.” Eggsy undoes JB’s leash and he goes scampering off. “It’s just…maybe this was a bad idea.”“What did she say?” Merlin growls and Eggsy takes a step back. “I’m sorry, lad. I’m sorry.” He takes Eggsy by the hand and leads him into the lounge. “She just…fuck. Should be used to it by now. No one ever…” Eggsy sighs, his eyes actually filling with tears. “She made it sound like you did more for her than just change a light bulb, if ya get me.”“Leannan…”“It’s okay, babe, know that ain’t true. You’d have told me. And before that, ran into the Eberlys. He were nice, but she…she made me sound…like I’m just here…”“To warm my bed?” Merlin says gently. Eggsy nods. “My Eggsy, we both know that is so far from the truth.”“Don’t want them treating you different cuz of me,” Eggsy murmurs.“Lad,” Merlin says in astonishment. “Ye have met me. When have I ever given a rat’s arse what people thought of me?”“I know, but I…”“But ye are a worrier. Ye worry that ye are good enough for me, that ye will nae bring me trouble.” Merlin pulls Eggsy into his arms. “The kind of trouble ye bring me is the kind I welcome.” He nibbles at Eggsy’s earlobe.“I know.” Eggsy sighs. “I just wanted this to be perfect.”“Nothing is perfect, leannan. But it will be good. I promise.” “I’m sure there is only one thing we all want to talk about,” Janice says, pouring tea and handing cups to Eliza, Madeline and Vera Bancroft. “The new neighbor.”“It is disgusting,” Mrs. Bancroft says with a snort. “He was out in the garden doing exercises yesterday morning, wearing nothing but shorts. Not even a vest.”“Is that so?” Madeline purrs. “Shame he doesn’t do it out front.”“Madeline,” Eliza scolds. “Well, my Frank already likes him. He was lugging in some bags from the car and Eggsy came running out to help him. Said he could tell by the way Frank was walking that his back was bothering him and refused to allow him to carry one thing.”“Sad, really…kissing up to the neighbors like that.” Janice shakes her head. “Did you see them leave for dinner the other night?” Madeline asks.“No!” The other women stare at her.“Eggsy was wearing a bespoke suit. He looked…gorgeous,” Madeline says with a grin. “That fabric fit him like a glove. There’s no way a boy that age could afford a suit like that.”“Poor Ian…that young man is using him for his money,” Eliza states.“Or else his last sugar daddy bought it for him,” Janice adds. They all stop to think about that for a moment.Someone knocks on the front door and they all freeze. They hear Janice’s husband Matthew answer it. “Oh, hello, Eggsy.” They all hold their breath.“Hello, sir. Ian was wondering if you had his hammer? He’d loaned it to you a few months back?”“Oh, yes, of course. I’m terribly sorry…slipped my mind or I would have returned it. Come in. You can wait here by the door.”“Yes, sir.”Madeline hops to her feet before the other women can stop her. “Eggsy, darling! So nice to see you.”“Ms. Crosby, hello.”“Oh, do call me Madeline. Come say hello to the other ladies.” She all but drags him into the room. He looks uncomfortable, a red flush creeping up the back of his neck. “Hello, Mrs. Eberly, ma’am. Ladies,” he says politely.“This is Mrs. Bennett, and Mrs. Bancroft.” They nod at him.“Hello,” he says again. “Mrs. Bancroft…I hear…I hear you got a dog?” “I do,” she says sharply. “A poodle named Theodore.”“That’s nice…poodles are good dogs, so well-bred. My pug, JB, I wish he was well-behaved, but we’re working on it,” he says with a grin that they cannot call anything but charming.“I see,” she replies. He blushes and looks at his feet. “Here you go, young man.” Matthew reappears with the hammer. “Tell Ian thank you, and I’m sorry for keeping it.”“It’s all right, sir. We’re just putting up some shelves in the spare room…my sister Daisy, she’s five going on six, and we’re making the room up for her. Ladies,” he says respectfully as he follows Matthew to the door.As soon as the door closes the women all begin to talk at once.“Didn’t even remove his hat!”“As if his pug could compare to my Theodore.”“His sister…he SAYS it’s his sister, I bet it’s his daughter.” A few days later Eliza and Frank Bennett are sitting down to dinner when there’s a knock at their door. “Who in the world would come during dinnertime?” She scoffs, getting up to answer the door. “Oh. Hello.”“I’m so sorry to bother you, ma’am.” Eggsy Unwin looks absolutely miserable. “It’s just…Ian is sick in bed. He’s been overdoing it at work, even Harry, his vice-president, says so. He’s been putting in ridiculous hours, and now he’s sick.” She huffs a bit and he blushes. “Sorry, you don’t care about that. I hate to leave him for long, making him some soup and I’m outta carrots, wondered if you had some?”“YOU’RE making him soup?”“Yes, ma’am. Learning my way around a kitchen, always helped my mum but never had a place to try stuff before, you know? Found a recipe, easy enough, but the carrots he has are shite.” He claps a hand over his mouth. “I mean, they’s rotten.”“Come in,” she says sharply. He steps inside. “The grocer is just a short ride away.”“I know, ma’am, but like I said…he’s exhausted but he won’t admit it, and he just needs to fuck…I mean, he needs to stay in bed. Got him there now, but I just don’t wanna go away from him for long.” Eggsy looks anxious and worried, and something about the way he’s caring for his boyfriend tugs at her heart.“Let me see what I can do. Follow me.” She leads him into the kitchen. “Carrots…here is some applesauce…” She finds a bag and starts to fill it. “Oh, and this tea. I swear by this every time Frank is sick.” She leans in and whispers, “He’s a bit of a baby when he’s sick.”“I heard that,” Frank yells from the dining room. “I’d add honey to it as well.” She hands him the bag. “If…if you would need anything else, we’re here, please come and ask.”“I will, ma’am.” He gives her a sweet smile. “Thank you so much, and thank you for Ian as well. Maybe…maybe once he’s better I could repay you by having you over for dinner?”“I’m sure that would be nice. Get back home to him.” She opens the door and sees him out. Janice throws open her back door and stomps into the garden. She’s trying to concentrate on some work in the kitchen but high-pierced shrieks keep distracting her. “Daisy…shush,” she hears Eggsy say. “This ain’t the neighborhood to be yelling, love.”“I’m just having fun!”“I want you to have fun, but you gotta respect the neighbors.”Janice creeps over to the fence and peeks through. A pretty little girl in jeans and a jumper is hopping around with Eggsy’s dog. “Well, they have to respect that I’m having fun.”Eggsy laughs. “No, flower, they don’t. We gotta be nice to them so they’s nice to us. It’s how it works.”“Our neighbors don’t do that.”“Yeah, well those neighbors are fuc…they ain’t the nicest,” he finishes. “These neighbors are posh and fancy and we gotta be nice to them.”“The house next door is real pretty,” Daisy tells him. “I really like the pink shutters. Can we paint my room pink?”“If you like.” He picks her up and tickles her.“I miss you at home, Eggsy,” Daisy says seriously. “Ain’t the same without you. Mum misses you, too. Dinner is…quiet.”“I’m sorry, flower, but this…this is where I need to be now.”“Merlin don’t need you…WE need you.”“Shush.” Eggsy holds her tight and rocks her. “Know you miss me, I miss you, too. But now you can come visit here all the time, we can play in the garden, or go to the park nearby. You like Merlin, right?”“Love Merlin, he’s the best,” Daisy says.“Yeah, he is.” Janice is shocked by the lovestruck look on Eggsy’s face. “And you can always call me, whenever you wanna talk.”“Okay. Can we go to the park now?”“That’s a good idea, but after lunch.”“Okay.” “Wait, babe.” Eggsy puts a hand on Merlin’s arm as he starts to pull the car out. He opens the door.“It’s raining!”“Yes, Ian, I see that.” Eggsy rolls his eyes and hops out. He jogs across the street, trying to ignore the steady rain falling in his eyes. Madeline Crosby is backing out as well and he jumps out of the way just in time.“Eggsy, what are you doing?” She yells as she puts the window down. “I almost hit you!”“I know, ma’am, I’m sorry. It’s just…” He reaches up and grabs a travel cup from the roof of her car. “You almost drove off with this on your car. Probably wouldn’t have made it far.”“Oh.” She takes the cup and stares at it. “I was in such a hurry, trying to avoid the rain, that I put it there and forgot. That was very kind of you. I’m so sorry…you’re getting wet.”“I’ll dry,” he says with a grin. He winks at her. “Besides, Ian likes it when my clothes are wet…they cling more. Have a good day.” He jogs back to the car. “I thought…I thought we was gonna clean out the…fuck, Ian…” Eggsy gasps, arching his neck as Merlin bites it. They’re laying on the sofa, television long forgotten as they kiss and paw at one another. “Jesus…”“We will, eventually.” Merlin’s hand slides up under Eggsy’s vest. “Your body, leannan…a work of art.”“Dunno about that,” Eggsy manages. Merlin scoots down and starts to kiss and lick his way up Eggsy’s abdomen. “Like how you convince me, though…”“I want to worship ye.” Merlin slides onto his knees and runs his hands up Eggsy’s thighs to the button of his jeans. “Want ye to know how much I love ye…how much I need ye…” Merlin actually unzips his jeans with his teeth and Eggsy shudders.“Fuck, Ian…yes…” Eggsy moans as Merlin mouths his cock through his pants. The doorbell rings and they both jump. “They’ll go away,” Merlin growls, but he stands up and adjusts himself. “You gotta answer it, babe,” Eggsy says, wriggling himself back into his jeans. “Got me so fucking hard dunno if I can even zip these again.”“One of my many talents,” Merlin says with a grin, winking at him.Eggsy sighs, stands up, and pulls himself together. He hears a woman’s voice say, “Is Eggsy home?”“Yes,” Merlin replies, and Eggsy hears the surprise in his voice.“Hello, Mrs. Eberly,” Eggsy says, shocked to see their neighbor at the door.“Good afternoon, Eggsy,” she says with a kind smile. “I was just wondering…we have a lot of paint leftover from when I did the spare bedroom, it’s a lovely shade of pastel pink. I know you said you are redoing a room for your sister…do you think she would care for pink walls?”“Yes, ma’am,” Eggsy says in astonishment. “She’d go mental. Are you sure you don’t need it?”“No. Ask Matthew…I bought far too much. I always do.” She rolls her eyes.“I…I can pay you,” Eggsy offers. “Just let us know…”“Absolutely not.” Janice waves a hand in the air. “Just being neighborly. Let me know when you need it and I’ll have Matthew bring it over.”“Thank you.”“Yes, thank ye, Janice.”“Have a nice day.” She waves over her shoulder as she heads back down to the pavement. The two men stare at each other in shock. “JB, ya can’t go running after every squirrel, Jesus,” Eggsy snaps. He’s not in the best of moods, having spent most of the day trying to fix Harry’s fuck-up with his calendar. Merlin wasn’t in the best of moods as well; he’d been up late the night before working on coding at the office and they’d barely seen each other all day. Eggsy was hoping they could find some quality time together that evening, but it looked like another late night in the office for his boyfriend.“Eggsy.” He slowly turns around and sees Madeline coming out of her house. He sighs, really not in the mood to deal with her banter. “How are you?”“Evening, Ms. Crosby,” he says politely. “Fine, thanks, and you?”“Well, thank you.” She bends down to pet JB. “Haven’t seen much of that handsome boyfriend of yours. Has he been all right?”“He’s fine,” Eggsy says tightly. “Been busy working on some new software…he gets sorta hyperfocused on that.”“He’s so smart.”“That he is,” Eggsy agrees.“I’ve always thought…” Madeline’s voice trails off as she looks down the street a bit. “Is…there’s something in that shrubbery!”“Where?” Eggsy looks to where she’s pointing. There’s no wind, but the bushes are definitely moving. “What the fuck?” He murmurs, not even trying to watch his language. He hands her JB’s leash. “Hold this, please?” He carefully approaches the shrubbery, crouching down and eventually crawling along the pavement. “What’s this? Hello there, little one.” A tan poodle looks up at him and whimpers, trying to run away but only getting himself caught tighter in the branches. “It’s a dog,” he says over his shoulder.Madeline comes up behind him, holding JB and scratching behind his ears. “That’s Theodore, Vera Bancroft’s dog!”“Oh, little man, bet your mum’s wondering where you went.” He reaches in and hisses as the branches scratch his arms. “Jesus.” He fights through the tightly woven branches until he can reach the dog. “Your collar’s caught…c’mon, boy…settle down.” He finally gets the collar free and tries to bring the dog out as gently as he can. “Fuck, you stink something fierce. What the hell was you rolling in?” The dog is light brown but his feet are covered in dirt and mud, as is most of his body. “He’ll need a bath,” Madeline says. “But Vera can’t do it, she has a bad back and she can’t bend over the tub. She normally has to take him to a groomer.”“Ain’t no way she’s gonna want him in her car smelling like this.” Eggsy stands up and sighs, cradling the dog in his arms. “Could you at least bring JB in the house for me? I’ll bathe this one and dry him quick.”“I’ll help you,” she says, leading the way to Eggsy’s house.“Can’t ask you…”“He hates baths. That’s the other reason she doesn’t bathe him,” she says. Eggsy groans and unlocks the front door. JB gives Theodore a possessive growl and scampers off.An hour later Theodore is clean but Madeline and Eggsy are soaked and dirty. They take one look at each other and burst out laughing. “A job well done, I’d say,” Eggsy says finally. “Thanks for your help.”“My pleasure. Actually one of the nicer evenings I’ve had lately,” she says with a sigh.Eggsy takes a good long look at her and realizes she’s lonely. “Ian ain’t gonna be home fer a while,” he says slowly. “Was gonna order in Thai. Would you care to join me?”“That…that would be nice,” she says quietly. “I’ll just go home and change…be back around six?”“Sounds great. Hopefully he’ll be home early, and we can all have a nice meal together.” Eggsy scoops Theodore into his arms. “Now for you, young man…back to your mum.”Eggsy walks the short distance to the next house and knocks. He hears the thump of the cane, and then Mrs. Bancroft opens the door. She looks at him, looks at her dog, and starts to cry. “Theodore!” She gasps, cradling him close. “Where have you been, you naughty thing? I’ve been so upset!”“He was stuck up the street, got his collar in a branch,” Eggsy tells her. “Looked like he had quite a time running about town…was filthy, smelled rank. Me and Ms. Crosby washed him up for you, dried him too.” Eggsy ruffles Theodore’s head. “Had a salon day, didn’t ya?” The old woman’s eyes run over Eggsy and he blushes. He hadn’t bothered to change and was still in his dirty and wet clothing.“Thank you, young man.” Her voice trembles. “Theodore is all I have…like a child to me. When he went missing this morning, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do.”“No problem, ma’am,” Eggsy says. “I know if JB went missing I’d go mental. Glad I could find him and bring him back to you.”“I’d like to give you something…” Mrs. Bancroft turns toward the parlor.“You will not, ma’am!” Eggsy almost shouts. “I mean, sorry, ma’am, for yelling, but you ain't gonna give me nothin'. Was happy to help you.” “You’re a good boy,” she whispers, giving him a hug. “I hope Ian McNair knows how lucky he is.”“I’m the lucky one, I think, but thanks.” Eggsy smiles sheepishly. “Better go get changed. Have a good night.”“We will.” Mrs. Bancroft waves at him from her front door. Merlin is beginning to think he’s moved into an episode of the Twilight Zone. He’d come home the week before to find Eggsy and Madeline Crosby having dinner in his kitchen. “Babe!” Eggsy’d said delightedly, jumping up from the table to give him a kiss. “You're early! I was just saying I hoped you didn't forget about me.”“As if I ever could, lad.” Merlin happily welcomed the kiss and gave one of his own.“That’s what I told him, Ian,” Madeline said. They’d actually had a very nice evening. Two days later he’d awakened late on a Saturday morning and found himself alone in his bed. He checked his phone and found a text from Eggsy saying he’d taken JB for a walk. This was an hour before Merlin woke up, and he’d gotten concerned. He finally texted Eggsy again, who apologized and said he was next door at Vera Bancroft’s house. Merlin got dressed and went over to knock on the door. Eggsy answered it. “Sorry, Ian, lost track of time. Came by to ask Mrs. Bancroft if I could walk Theodore with JB, and then she offered me tea and was showing me pictures of her husband. He was in World War Two!”“I’m sorry I’ve monopolized his time, Mr. McNair. I get so few visitors,” she said wistfully.“That’s fine. I’m afraid I was being quite lazy, still in bed.”“I should go,” Eggsy said regretfully. “But I’ll come back.”“You are welcome any time, my boy,” she said with a smile.And now as he gets out of his car he’s accosted by Janice Eberly and Eliza Bennett. “Good evening, ladies.”“What have you done with your boyfriend?” Janice asks almost angrily. “I was going to show him a few things about stenciling the walls of Daisy’s bedroom, and I haven’t seen him in days.”“And I always greet him while bringing the rubbish bins in.” Eliza points to Merlin’s empty bins. “He’s sick?” Merlin tells them in confusion.They gasp. “What do you mean, he’s sick?” Janice asks. “And if he’s sick, why aren’t you in there taking care of him?”“He took care of you when you were sick,” Eliza says accusingly. “He came to me for soup ingredients.”“I went to work.” They glare at him. “He told me to! Said he was fine.”“Of course he said he was fine. A young man like that is far too unselfish for his own good, didn’t want you to make a fuss,” Eliza says and Janice nods in agreement. “I will make soup and bring it over,” Eliza says decidedly.“And you tell him that if he stays home tomorrow, and you go into work, he’s to come to me if he needs anything, anything at all,” Janice snaps. “Do you understand?”“Yes, ma’am,” Merlin says meekly. He slowly makes his way into the house, tossing his keys on the table in the hall. “Leannan, I’m home.” He goes upstairs to the bedroom. “Hey,” Eggsy says sleepily.Merlin kisses his forehead. “Ye still feel warm.”“I feel like shite, is what I feel like.” Eggsy burrows into the covers. “I missed you.”“Well, I have a question for ye, lad.” Merlin takes off his jumper. “Are ye secretly a sorcerer, some sort of magical creature?”“Are you sure you ain’t sick?”“Nae, lad…apparently you’ve cast quite the spell over the neighborhood. Mrs. Bancroft thinks ye walk on water, Madeline would marry ye if ye liked women, and the other two, well, I believe they have adopted ye.”“Just been myself,” Eggsy says, coughing for a moment afterwards.“Aye, your own perfect self.” Merlin kisses his forehead again. “Eliza Bennett is making ye soup…would ye like a hot bath until it comes?”“That sounds great. Thanks for taking care of me, babe.”“Always.” Merlin touches his cheek and goes to run the bath.