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Nick stared at himself in the mirror, adjusting his shirt. He had been trying fruitlessly to adjust it so that the fabric looked natural enough around his body. The slight budge protruding from his chest made him feel nauseated.
"Nick, sweetie! Charlie will be here soon! Come down and greet him!" Nick’s mother calls from the kitchen.
Nick sighs, defeated by a shirt. Finding no point in dwelling over it, Charlie sighed again and headed out of his bedroom. He had planned out the events of the day. First thing’s first, Nick swore to himself that he would finally come out to Charlie as transgender, female to male. Sure, Nick knew deep down that Charlie wouldn’t mind at all, but Nick couldn’t help but be frightened of the possibility of his boyfriend rejecting him. It would crush Nick.
"Coming!" Nick yelled before running down the stairs, soft thumping noises following his footsteps.
"Hi, Mum," Nick greeted her with a hug, noticing an abundance of food on the countertop. "What are you making?" He asked her.
"Oh, just a snack platter," she replied. "I wouldn’t want anyone to be hungry during our games!"
All of a sudden, a distinct, faint knock rang through the house.
"I'll get it!” Nick enthusiastically exclaimed.
However, when Nick opened the door, his smile completely dropped.
Standing on the front porch, just behind the doorframe, was David, Nick’s prick of an older brother. Just behind David’s figure, stood Charlie. There was a confused look on Charlie’s face; one that didn’t know if he should be apprehensive about the presence of Nick’s older brother or not.
"Nick! Hey!" David smirks. "Didn't think I'd catch your boyfriend here."
Charlie pushed himself past David, passing through the door, pulling a stunned Nick back upstairs. Judging by Charlie’s expression, he was aware that David was a force to be reckoned with. Nick assumed that his boyfriend had an inkling about Nick’s feelings towards his older brother.
"You okay?" Charlie asked once he had pulled Nick into the kitchen, away from David, behind closed doors.
Nick swallowed hard, making a gulping noise. "Yeah... I just didn't expect for him to be here."
"Neither did I..." Charlie agreed. "Let's go down. I'm looking forward to kicking your ass at games."
"As if!" Nick scoffed, a laugh soon following.
Charlie laughed along, placing a fleeting kiss on Nick's lips before heading back into the hall, where Nick’s mom and David stood, conversing about something that the two couldn’t hear.
"Charlie!" Nick's mum exclaimed cheerily. "It is so good to see you again, dear!" She said as she pulled Charlie in for a tight hug.
"It's good to see you, too, Ms. Nelson," Charlie grinned, reciprocating her hug.
David glared at the two. "Well, aren't we going to play? We don’t have all day."
"Oh, yes!" Nick’s mum exclaimed, pulling Nick, David, and Charlie into the living room.
_____
The four played a somewhat civil game of Monopoly; well, as civil as it can be with one of the most stressful games in existence, not even because the room was tense for an entirely different reason.
"So... Nick,” David spoke, rolling the die onto the table. “How is your friend? Charlie, is it?" David asked, smirking when he saw Nick's grip tightening around Charlie's hand.
"Yes, his name is Charlie," Nick grits out, teeth clenched together, "and he's not my friend. Charlie's my BOYfriend," Nick punctuated, emphasizing the ‘boy’ in ‘boyfriend.’
"So… he's gay?" David asked, a knowing grin on his face. "Or… would he be straight?" David smirked and looked Nick straight in the eyes.
Charlie looked at David with a strange expression. "Um… why would I be straight? Nick is a guy."
David's head tilted, looking straight at his younger brother. "Oh. Nick hasn't told you?"
"Told me what?" Charlie asked.
"David. Don't." Nick glared at his brother, begging him to not go on. Mrs. Nelson was making a similar face, starring daggers into her eldest son.
"Oh, well your dear 'boyfriend' here isn't a boy. He's a girl." David had a smug grin on his face, satisfaction leaking from his eyes. David seemed pleased in his own, twisted way when he saw Nick’s petrified face.
Charlie turned towards Nick, confused. “What is he talking about?"
"Uh..." Nick looked down at the floor. His chest tightened even more and his breathing stuttered.
"Well, dear Nick here is convinced that she's a boy even though she was born as a girl!" David laughed at himself.
"Hey! That’s enough, David!" Ms. Nelson yelled, slamming her hands on the table.
All of a sudden, Nick stood up, face going paler than a ghost. "I think I'm gonna be sick," He suddenly dashes away from the table, running upstairs and locking himself in the bathroom.
Nick threw up in the toilet, purely out of anxiety, anger, and fear. Choking on his breath, Nick started to tear up. The secret had been revealed, Charlie would leave Nick for someone better than him, for a real man. Nick lets out a pained sob, gripping the porcelain toilet rim until his knuckles turned white.
Suddenly a soft knock thumped on the door
"Nick?" Charlie’s voice asked. "Can I come in?"
Nick shook his head. "No,” he glumly answered.
"Too bad," Charlie says before forcing the door open. Charlie’s sudden burst of strength surprised Nick.
"Aww, nick." Charlie coos when he saw the state of his boyfriend.
Charlie kneels, pulling Nick into a tight hug, taking Nick’s hands into his own. "I’m not mad if that’s what you’re worried about. I'm not leaving you, either. I don’t care what David says, you're just as much a man as you were before I knew you were trans. David is just a sad prick."
Nick took his hands out of Charlie’s and gripped tightly onto Charlie's shirt, loudly sobbing into his chest. "I'm sorry!" He sobs.
"Why are you sorry, hon?" Charlie asked, rubbing Nick's back.
"Because I should have told you sooner! I’m so sorry!" Nick sobs.
"No," Charlie says firmly. "You should have told me when you were ready. I don't think of you any different, you're the same Nick Nelson I fell in love with. You have nothing to apologize for."
"I love you," Nick says, gripping Charlie’s sleeve tightly, balling the fabric in his fist.
"I love you too," Charlie said as he gently kissed Nick on the forehead.
"I wish that asshole didn't tell you,” Nick admitted. “I wanted to be the one to do it."
"I wish he didn't either,r but I'm glad I'm here to comfort you and that you’re letting me," Charlie whispered as he moved himself and Nick into a more comfortable position; Charlie layed against the bathtub with Nick against his back. "Are you feeling better?"
"Yeah," Nick nodded.
Charlie smiled, glad that his boyfriend had calmed down. "Good."
The two spent the rest of their time together for the night in the bathroom, falling asleep in each other’s warm embrace.