I live to cry

Sometimes Bilbo stayed in the kitchen until nightfall, scrubbing pots and plates, which even caused him to fall asleep on a chair with them in his arms. And of course, Thorin would never leave his only servant in such a state...

When Thorin finally got used to having a hobbit in his Mountain, he began to talk to Bilbo more often. At first, their conversations were awkward, more like an interrogation, but gradually they began to find a common language. Bilbo turned out to be a good storyteller, and the lonely king eagerly listened to the stories from his journey. Thorin himself was quite perceptive, and it turns out he could also be a pleasant conversationalist... if he wanted to…

He knew about this glorious kingdom from his mother's legends, knew that it was located somewhere in the east, and that the dwarves hated orcs to the core. And the one old wizard inspired him with additional hope, which inspired him with this stupid idea of asking for help from the dwarves of Erebor. And how Bilbo regretted that he and that wizard had missed each other somewhere after the Misty Mountains.…

But there were special clauses in the contract - mandatory rules for Bilbo. He was not allowed to leave the Lonely Mountain or go beyond a certain area on his floor, he couldn't even try to go find Thorin on his own; he was forbidden to steal; and most important, he must NEVER leave his room on the last night of every month....

[I have an AU in which Bilbo first met Thorin when he was already sick with dragon sickness and looked like a huge monster. But Bilbo needed somewhere to hide from the orcs and the coming winter, so he asked to serve Thorin. And Thorin agreed because he hadn't seen proper food in half a century, and Bilbo was the only one who could cook]