Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It's been a long couple of days for Nicholas Nelson. School has been difficult, form was quiet, his house was loud, rugby was chaos. The rugby team was stressed and tired, preparing for an upcoming match, and Nick being the captain, there was a lot of pressure around him. To complete the chaotic environment, his brother was in town for the week, turning his house into some twisted battlefield, making Nick feel defensive and anxious every time he had to set foot inside the place that should be his home. This week, that word did not seem to fit inside the Nelson household. 

But the worst part of the past two days was that there was no Charlie Spring. The curly boy didn't go to school, still recovering from a cold. "I'm like 90% okay now, I promise" he told his boyfriend during their phone call early in the morning, and the rasp in Charlie's voice was almost gone, so Nick was more relieved.

But two whole days with no Charlie in sight?

Absolutely terrible for one very smitten Nick Nelson.

The math professor's angry mood and the stress hanging around the rugby team were no help, making the second day even worse than the first one.

He was exhausted. And he knew exactly what he needed.

Which was why he was standing on the doorstep of the Spring household looking at a very confused Tori Spring.

"Charlie didn't say you were coming." it's what she says before opening the door wider and waving him inside dismissively.

"He doesn't know." is what the boy replies before the girl disappears. He takes off his coat and hurries upstairs towards his boyfriend's bedroom. He knocks twice before opening the door, and Charlie looks up from the book he's reading while sitting in his bed.

"Nick?" surprised, he drops the book to the side and gets up in a second, hurrying up in the other boy's direction. They meet each other halfway, in the middle of the room, hugging so tight one would think they've been apart for a lot longer than two days. But they are Nick and Charlie. Either it's ten days or ten minutes, they miss each other every second they're apart, each hug tighter than the previous one, as if they're trying to blend together in order to never be apart ever again. 

"Hi" Nick says, his breath tickling against Charlie’s neck, causing him to giggle. 

“Hi. How was your day?” the other boy asks, almost in a whisper, and the care and sweetness in his voice causes Nick to break down after two days of holding everything in. He starts crying, hugging his boyfriend even tighter, hiding his face in the crook of his neck. “Oh, sweetheart.” Charlie traces circles in Nick’s back with one hand, and caresses his hair with the other, bringing him as close as humanly possible. “What happened? Are you hurt?” The worry in his voice causes the taller boy to cry even harder, and it takes him a full minute to stabilize his breathing enough to murmur an answer.

“I’m just so tired, Char.” he cries out while pulling his face up, his voice louder than he intended to. Charlie takes his boyfriend’s face in his hands, looking at him with a mix of worry and love. “I’m just… Exhausted. And I don’t know… How to… Handle it.” He tries to explain, but the words seem to fail at the moment. Charlie, however, understands. Of course he does. He waits patiently as Nick cries it out a bit more, hugging him tight and depositing little kisses on his forehead, while repeating reassuring words. As he calms down, Charlie manages to guide him towards the bed, and they both lay down. Nick on his side, with his boyfriends arms around him, keeping him close, Charlie’s lips against the back of his neck, impossibly close and yet somehow not close enough.

They lay in a comfortable silence for a while, stabilized breathings and gentle touches, their hands clasped together against the taller boy’s chest. Nick turns around slowly, placing a gentle kiss to Charlie’s lips, a shy smile on his face.

“Hi.” the curly boy says, leaning into another kiss, a longer, deeper one. They stare into each other’s eyes for a second, exchanging a thousand words without making a single sound. “I’m gonna go downstairs real quick to make you a cup of tea, ok? And when I come back, we’re gonna talk about your day. Sounds good?” he says, while getting up.

“Mmnn… Kay.” a sleepy Nick answers, turning to the other side so he can have a better view of the door. 

After a few minutes (too many, in Nick’s opinion), Charlie returns. He puts the two cups of tea on the bedside table, and as he straightens his back, he feels a presence behind him, his boyfriend's arms gently involving him, pulling him close. The sudden affection makes the dark-haired boy smile, leaning his head back into the other’s chest. Nick lowers his head, hiding his face on the smaller boy’s neck, placing a tiny kiss on his skin. 

“What are you doing?” Charlie asks kindly, not even trying to hide the grin on his face as he places his hands around the other boy’s arms, their hands touching, not a single part of their bodies without contact.

“Recharging.” Is the answer he gets, as his boyfriend pulls him closer.

“Oh… That’s how you do it, then?” He asks, curiously, and Nick simply nods without moving his face, placing yet another kiss to Charlie’s neck, caressing the spot with the tip of his nose. “Nicholas Nelson… You won’t stop being sappy even when you're feeling like shit, I have no words for you.” The tone is slightly sarcastic, but the care into every word is clear even from miles away, causing them both to smile. Nick’s hold lasts for a couple more minutes, until he starts to sway them around slowly, swinging to an imaginary song. 

Charlie turns around, placing his arms around his boyfriend’s neck, standing on his tiptoes to peck him on the lips. 

“Thank you.” Nick says as their eyes meet. He doesn’t explain what he means, nor does he need to. “Thank you.” he repeats, lower, staring deeply into the blue eyes he knows as well as his own. Thank you for caring. For loving me. For being my home. Is what he truly wants to say. 

“Always.” Charlie answers simply. You are my home too, you’re safe with me , is what he says with a kiss, words long forgotten as they hold each other's hearts, never planning on letting it go.

Chapter Text

Nick Nelson’s last class of the week is math, of all things, and he wishes he wasn’t feeling so frustrated about the current subject. When the teacher finishes the class and reminds them about the test they are going to have on the following week, Nick lets out a frustrated sigh and gathers his things, walking down the hallway to the exit.

Truth be told, he is good at some of the main topics they have been studying this year, but something about the current ones just can’t click inside his brain and he doesn’t know what to do. There is a logic behind it, surely, but why can’t his brain just get it? And how is he going to make it to next week’s test like that? 

He keeps walking until he reaches the main doors, bumping into someone as he walks towards the gates.

“Easy there, tiger.” Two hands hold him in place by the shoulders, and Nick is brought back to the present by the voice of his boyfriend. Charlie Spring is there, curly hair and soft smile, eyeing his boyfriend curiously. “I called for you but it seemed like your mind was somewhere else. Is everything okay?” He asks, kindly pushing Nick to the side so they don’t get in the way of the other students leaving the building. 

“Hm? Oh, yeah. I’m alright. Sorry.” He lets out a nervous laugh, bringing a hand to the back of his neck, the other one finding Charlie’s and intertwining their fingers. “I was just thinking about the stuff I have to study for.” He replies, and the curly-haired boy nods once, turning around and guiding them to the bus stop. 

“Okay. Let’s go to my place so we can get started on that.” He answers, squeezing Nick’s hand. “Among other things, of course.” Charlie winks, making the boy blush and let out a giggle.

“You’re impossible.” He replies in a whisper after the bus arrives and they step in, taking their seats.

“You love it.” Charlie answers, dropping his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder, and the latter doesn’t even dare to disagree.

It’s been an hour and Nick feels like nothing has changed inside his brain. He has read and reread everything he had, but when he tried to solve some of the questions, it felt like he was stuck all over again. Taking a deep breath, he drops his pen and closes his book, deciding to stop for the time being before he starts crying on top of his math book. Looking at his side, he takes a second to admire Charlie in all his glory: the string of light against his curls, escaping from the partially closed curtains, his blue eyes focused and his eyebrows furrowed. The tip of his pencil tapping against his closed lips as he stares intensely at his homework. 

Almost a daily view for Nick at this point, as someone who hangs out with his boyfriend pretty much on a daily basis, but the scene still manages to take his breath away and makes his heart flutter. 

“I can feel you staring, Nicholas.” Charlie says, the corner of his mouth tilting up in a side smile, his eyes still fixed on the book in front of him. He scribbles something on it and then places the pencil inside the page, closing his book and raising his blue eyes to meet the honey-brown ones that have been stuck on him for a few minutes now. “What do you need?” He asks, his voice kind and low, making Nick’s eyes water at the utter care inside his boyfriends eyes.

Laughing bitterly, he jokes:

“Honestly? A hug... And a miracle.” He feels his shoulders drop and looks down, frowning when he doesn’t hear his boyfriend’s laugh in reply. Looking up, he finds Charlie’s gaze on him, his eyes intense and curious. The boy grabs their books and throws them to the side, jumping forward to launch himself into his boyfriend’s lap. Nick grabs him by the waist and giggles, as the boy adjusts himself and lets his hands settle around his neck. “Oh, hi.”

“Hi.” Charlie replies as Nick buries his face on the boy’s neck, tightening his grip on his waist and bringing the boy impossibly closer. Charlie wraps his arms around his shoulder, one of his hands resting on Nick’s hair, carefully caressing his scalp. He can feel Nick’s breath against his skin, and the way he seems to relax more at every second.

After a minute, Charlie attempts to lean back to check on his boyfriend’s face, but Nick pulls him back closer, his face still hidden.

“Shhh, one more minute. I’m recharging.” Nick’s voice is muffled but understandable, and Charlie lets out a heartwarming giggle, squeezing his boyfriend even closer and dropping a few kisses on his head.

Recharging, he thinks again, smiling against the other boy’s hair. Oh, how did that word become such a Nick Nelson thing for him now, and how loved did it make him feel.

When Nick leans his head back from Charlie’s grip after another minute (or multiple, but who’s counting?) and looks up at the boy in his arms, their eyes meeting, he can’t help but lean forward and drop a quick kiss into his boyfriend’s lips, feeling the other one’s smile against his. When they separate, Charlie grabs Nick’s cheeks between his hands and smiles kindly.

“Can we work on part two of your request now?” 

“Part… two?” Nick asks, confused, a furrow between his brows.

“The miracle. What is it?” 

“Oh… It’s nothing.” He dismisses, his eyes now focusing on the floor.

“Nicholas…” Charlie brings his face up again, and, when their eyes meet, Nick lets out a frustrated sigh.

“I’m just… I think I’m gonna fail this math test, there is no way I can make my brain understand all of that in a week if it hasn’t understood it so far.” 

“Let me take a look.” Turning around in his boyfriend’s lap, Charlie leans forward and grabs the book, opening on the page Nick was working on last. The taller boy stands still as the other looks at multiple pages, without uttering a single word, simply turning page after page. “Okay.” He says, after a minute, turning back around to face the older boy.

“Okay what?” Nick asks and Charlie blinks, as if woken up from a trance.

“I have an idea to help you study for this. I’m familiar with this subject and it is a tricky one, but if we combine some flashcards with separated exercises it might make it easier for you to understand and memorize what you need to for that test, and then we can just… Are… You about to cry right now?” He slows down his rant, stopping to cup one of Nick’s cheeks in his hand after noticing the sparkle in his eyes. “Nick… ” He pecks the boy's lips multiple times, moving his lips to his cheeks and forehead, then back to his lips, only stopping when he hears his boyfriend’s giggles, leaning back to look at his face and find him smiling again, the ghost of the tears now gone.

“You are so silly.” Nick replies, and is then the one to attack him with kisses, all around his face, until they are both lying on the floor, Nick on top of him, his forearms on the floor, Charlie’s hands on his back. Breathless from the kisses and the laughter, Nick leans back to look into his boyfriend’s eyes, then pecks his lips once more, sweetly and slowly this time. “Thank you.” He says against his lips, leaning back again. “Thank you for wanting to do this, you really don’t have to.”

“I want to.” Charlie replies immediately, his hands on Nick’s neck, holding him close. “Let me be the one to help you this time.” He adds, and Nick smiles, nodding. He wraps his arms around Charlie’s back, turning them until they’re on their sides, facing each other. They’re both smiling now.

“I love you.” Nick whispers, bringing his face closer until their noses touch. Charlie giggles, caressing Nick’s nose with his jokingly, his eyes full of love.

“I love you too.” He replies and watches as, as he predicted, Nick’s cheeks redden and he bites his lip, shy. Charlie is still taken by surprise by how his words seem to affect his boyfriend even after all these months and how much of Nick’s heart is just there on his face at all times, his love out there in the open whenever they look at each other. It’s so endearing and lovely that it makes Charlie feel the butterflies in his stomach all over again. He never wants to stop feeling like that when he’s around this boy. And he has a feeling he never will.

They are Nick and Charlie, afterall.