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Charlie only woke up enough to recognize the sound of his phone ringing until It was too late and the obnoxious ringtone stopped. Not opening his eyes he groaned and felt around in the pile of blankets on his bed. He smiled to himself as he found it and squinted at the bright screen. He frowned once he realized that the missed call was from his boyfriend. Before he could worry too much, the phone started ringing again, echoing in the small dorm room.
“Shit,” He whispered to himself. He scrambled out of bed and rushed out the door to answer before he woke up his roommate.
“Nick?” He put the phone up to his ear, voice still gravely from sleep.
“Char?” Nick’s voice wavered. Panic quickly flooded Charlie’s chest.
“Hey, love, what’s wrong?”
“I can’t- you- need-”
“Nick, your breaking up, I can’t hear you.”
The last thing Charlie heard before the line dropped were the staticky sounds of shouts in the background and what he thought was glass being broken.
“Nick? Are you there?” He tried, but mocking beeps indicating the call ended was the only thing he got in response.
“Damit,” He mumbled. He tried calling again but it went straight to voicemail. Before Charlie could think of a logical reason why Nick would call him in the middle of the night, every possible negative thing rushed to the forefront of his mind. Panic spread through his body as he quietly went back into his room.
Without thinking, he used his phone flashlight to locate his overnight bag and shoved discarded clothes that were lying on the ground into it. He slung it over his shoulder, grabbed his keys, and was back out the door in under five minutes. As he shut the door behind him he thought he heard his dormmate saying his name, but he didn't care. The only thing that was on his mind was finding out what the hell was going on with his boyfriend.
---
He sat down on the train, out of breath and soaking wet. The pouring rain and rumbles of thunder outside gave him his answer on why the call must have dropped. Even so, he sent to let him know he was on his way.
The time on his phone read it was quarter to one. It was an hour train ride from York to Leeds so he should get there just before three AM. He tried to relax as the train descended, but he felt like he was going to vomit. He shoved earbuds in his ears, attempting to calm his racing thoughts, but it didn't help. Is he hurt? He was in a fight? Does he need help?
---
He either somehow dozed off or zoned out, because he was already at his stop. His brain was on autopilot as he ran in the direction of his boyfriend’s flat. The usual ten-minute walk from the train station to his flat usually only took ten minutes, but he was there in five.
He stopped in front of his boyfriend’s door. He tried to compose himself before walking in, not knowing what he was going to find on the other side. He took a deep breath and burst through the unlocked door to find-
“Nick?” Charlie stared at his boyfriend who was smiling at him? Nick was sitting on the ground, leaning up against the couch. His flatmates, Adam, Leo, and Amir, were also there. Amiar and Leo were slumped on the couch and Adam was in the kitchen.
“Char?” Nick stood up, almost falling face-first on the ground in the process, and strumbled over to him, pulling him into a bone-crushing hug.
His previous panic turned into confusion. Nick was okay? And was squeezing him so hard he could hardly breathe?
“Nick, your okay?” Charlie pulled away and put his hands on his boyfriend’s cheeks. He searched for any sign that something might be wrong but all he saw were lidded eyes and a goofy smile.
“Oh, hey Charlie,” Adam said, walking out of the kitchen with a bag of chips in his hand. “What are you doing here?”
“What am I doing here?” Charlie said, slightly exasperated. Nick’s flatmates were all looking at him in varying states of confusion, while Nick clung to his side like a koala, placing kisses on his face. “Nick, you called me, you sounded like you were crying but the call dropped. I thought something was wrong!”
There was a beat of silence before Adam, Leo, and Amair dissolved into a fit of laughter. Nick just snuggled into Charlie’s neck.
“Nick, will you please just tell me what the hell is going on?”
“I just missed you,” He mumbled and planted a kiss on his cheek. It was then that he smelled the alcohol on him.
Coming down from his laughter, Amiar said, “We were out tonight and Nick got shit-faced.”
Charlie kitted his eyebrows, still confused about how that led to him rushing over.
“Whenever he gets drunk he gets sappy.” Leo piped up. “He was going on and on about how he missed you. In our defense, we told him not to call you and wake you up.”
Charlie felt himself relax. It was no news to anyone who knew Nick that he turned even more into a Charlie-obsessed mess than he already was. He looked up to his boyfriend who was smiling at him. He couldn’t be upset when he looked at him like that, even if Charlie was tired and damp from the rain. He was just glad he was okay.
Nick pulled him over to the spot where he was previously sitting and plopped down, pulling him with him. Nick put his head on Charlie’s shoulder and his arms around his waist. Charlie cringed at his wet jeans on the carpet.
“Sorry for worrying you, I just wanted to be with you,” Nick said.
“It’s okay love,” He kissed the top of his head.
“M’ tired,” Nick sighed.
Charlie stood and Nick whined, reaching for him. Charlie laughed to himself and pulled Nick to his feet. Nick’s arms immediately wrapped around his waist again.
“Well, since I’m here, I will get Drunky to bed,” Charlie said to the room.
“That’s probably a good idea,” Leo chuckled.
Charlie walked as best as he could with his boyfriend on his back to Nick’s room. He helped Nick into his pajamas before Charlie changed into a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt from his closet.
“Since I’m here, I will just stay the night,” Charlie said, climbing into bed next to Nick.
“Yay,” He whispers, resting his head on Charlie’s chest. “I love you,”
Charlie smiled, “I love you too,”
Nick was supposed to come to York this weekend, but Charlie didn’t mind. Any weekend spent with his boyfriend was a weekend well spent.
---
Charlie woke up to fingers dancing through his hair. He opened his eyes to see Nick awake and staring down at him, a soft smile on his lips. Waking up like this was definitely better than the last time he was woke up.
“How’s the hangover,” Charlie murmured, sitting up to lean against the headboard.
“My head is pounding and the room is spinning, but besides that, I’m great.” Nick kissed the top of his head. “I’m sorry for worrying you last night. I feel awful that I made you get all upset.”
Charlie leaned into him, “I worry about everything, Nick.” He giggled. “But, don’t feel bad. I get to see you a day early, so I’m happy.”
“Sap,”
Charlie sat up straight, raising his eyebrows. “Says the one who called me on the verge of tears while drunk off your ass because you missed me so much.”
Nick buried his head into his pillow, “Charlie,” He whined.
Charlie stood from the bed, grabbing Nick’s hand to pull him with. “Come on, let’s go eat breakfast.”
They walked into the kitchen where Amair was already awake and eating cereal at the table. He looked at Nick suspiciously as he pulled Charlie’s chair closer to his before he sat down.
“Nick is not even drunk anymore and still can’t be two feet away from you,” Amair said to Charlie as he put two frozen waffles in the toaster.
“Nick is just like this in general, you should know this by now.” Charlie laughed, pulling himself onto the counter while he waited for the toaster to pop.
“He’s not wrong,” Nick smiled at him.