Chapter Text
The sounds of the room slowly came into focus. The gentle beeping of one machine, the whirring of another. He was lying down, in a bed, a blanket over him, a bit scratchy, not like the ones at home.
He opened his eyes. He was in a sparsely decorated room. White walls, some cabinets, medical equipment. A hospital.
He looked to his right. His mother was dosing in a chair next to his bed. He moved to sit up but he seemed to be attached to something. The commotion of his attempt roused Sarah. She leaned over the bed to look at him.
“Nicky, you’re awake! Oh that’s wonderful darling. You stay still, I’ll get a nurse”.
Nick quickly grabbed her hand before she could move away.
“Mum, what’s going on?!”, his voice was hoarse.
“You were in an accident my love. A hit and run. Yesterday. You were walking home from work. Eyewitnesses said you were safely crossing the road when a car came out of nowhere, hit you and sped off. You’ve been unconscious ever since. They called me as your next of kin once you got here. I came immediately. Your injuries are not life threatening thankfully but your leg is in pretty bad shape. You’ll need time for that to fully recover”.
It was a lot for Nick to take in. But one thing stuck out for Nick. He was walking home from work. He and Charlie lived 7 miles away from the school where he worked. Why was he walking home? He always drove. Before he could question his mother further she left to get a nurse.
The nurse came in, helped him to sit up and checked him over. He was attached to a machine that was monitoring his vitals as well as one that was giving him medication and painkillers.
His mother fussed around him, getting him water, fluffing his pillows. She chatted the whole time telling him David and Emma would be in to visit later.
“Who’s Emma?”
Sarah paused, looked at him and laughed nervously.
“David’s girlfriend. They’ve been together over a year. You went on holiday with them this summer. Those must be some strong painkillers!”.
Nick had never heard of, nor met an Emma before. And why was he going on holiday with David? They weren’t that close.
But, Nick didn’t ponder that too long. He had more important issues on his mind. Like, where was Charlie? If the accident happened yesterday then Charlie would be here. He knew Charlie wouldn’t have left his side voluntarily while he was unconscious.
Maybe Charlie was getting something to eat or Sarah had sent him home to get some sleep. But surely she would have contacted Charlie to tell him Nick was awake. She hadn’t.
“Mum? Where’s Charlie? Will you call him? Tell him I’m awake. He must be so worried. I’d like to talk to him”.
His mother froze. She looked confused.
“Nick, Charlie wo-“
At that moment a doctor entered the room.
“Mr Nelson. Good to see you’re back with us. Nurse Ramsay says your vitals are looking good. Thankfully, you should make a full recovery from your injuries. Some bruising, a cracked rib and your left leg will be in a cast for some weeks and will need physio after that. But nothing too invasive. We’ll keep you here for a couple of days. Get more meds into you, keep an eye for signs of concussion etc. Any questions?”
So many, Nick thought. But none about his injuries. He shook his head.
The doctor left.
Sarah smiled gently at him and said, “I’ll be back in a second darling”. She followed the doctor out of the room.
He could see her talking to the doctor in the corridor.
A minute later, both returned.
“Mr Nelson, what year is it?”
“2022, why?”.
Nick watched his mother’s face fall. Tears welled in her eyes.
“Mr Nelson, Nick, can I call you Nick?”, the doctor asked gently.
Nick nodded.
“It’s 2025. I’m going to order some tests. You may have some sort of amnesia from the accident. Nothing to worry too much about at this stage. Memory issues and confusion are fairly common with this type of incident. I’ll order those tests right away. In the meantime, get some rest and drink plenty of water”.
He smiled at Sarah and left the room again.
“Oh darling, I’m so sorry this is happening to you. No wonder you didn’t remember Emma. And asking after- oh”, Sarah’s face went ashen and she started fidgeting with the tissue in her hands.
“What? What is it mum?”
“Nothing darling, rest now. I’m just going to pop to the ladies. I’ll be back in a minute”, she literally ran out of the room looking like she was about to cry.
Nick’s mind was awash with questions. Amnesia? What would that mean for him going forward? Would his memories return? But one question trumped all others. Where was Charlie? Why wasn’t his mum calling Charlie? He needed Charlie here. Charlie would make everything better.
Suddenly, he remembered something else his mother had said. After his accident the hospital had called her as his next of kin. But Charlie was his next of kin. Had been since they started living together two years previously. Also, they lived in Manchester. His mother still lived in Kent. How had she got here so quickly.
He waited for his mother to come back. She had definitely been crying.
“Oh, I thought you might have gone asleep Nicky. You look exhausted sweetheart. You really should rest. You’ve had a lot to take in”.
“Mum, what’s the name of this hospital?”
His mother hesitated. Then took a breath.
“Medway Maritime”.
Medway Maritime. In Kent. He was back in Kent. Working in Kent. So presumably living in Kent. Why had he and Charlie moved back to Kent. They were happy in Manchester. Good jobs, nice house, their dog Daisy. They’d made good friends and weren’t far from Tao and Elle who lived in Liverpool. And Manchester had a great queer scene.
“We moved back to Kent. Charlie and I?”
“You moved back 18 months ago”, something about the way she said you, like she didn’t mean it in the plural sense, piqued his interest. And she wouldn’t look him in the eye.
“Mum, what’s going on? You’ve been acting weird since the doctor was here. And where the fuck is Charlie? I’ve been awake ages. And you haven’t called him. Is he away for work and you don’t want to worry him? I’m awake now. You can call him, tell him. I need to speak to him. This is huge. I need him. I’ll call him. Where’s my phone?”.
“No Nick. You can’t call him”.
“Why not?! Mum, what’s going on? Is Charlie ok? Has something happened to him?”.
“Just rest now Nicky. You’re overwhelmed. Please. We can talk after”.
Nick was crying with frustration and worrry now.
“Mum, please, talk to me!! Is Charlie ok?”
Nick’s mind immediately went to the worst case scenario. Had Charlie died? Is that why his mother wouldn’t tell him.
“Charlie’s fine honey”.
“Then what the fuck is going on?”, he didn’t usually swear this much, especially at his beloved mother, but he was panicking now.
He could see every emotion on his mother’s face. Sadness, worry, hesitation. Eventually she spoke.
“Charlie broke up with you. Nearly two years ago now. It was very unexpected. For you. For everyone. I don’t know exactly what happened. You never really wanted to talk about it. You were so devastated you moved back to Kent. You moved back in with me for a while but you have your own apartment now”.
The bottom fell out of Nick’s world. He stared at his mother in shock. She looked like she had more to say.
“What, mum?”, Nick demanded.
“Ch-Charlie moved to France. Paris. He cut contact with most people. He sends Tori an occasional message to let her know he’s ok. She last heard from him 3 months ago. He texted her to tell her……”, Sarah was openly crying now.
“Go on”, Nick’s voice was cold, steely. He refused to break down until he had all the facts.
“He texted Tori briefly 3 months ago to tell her that he had got married. I’m so sorry honey”.
Nick broke down. This can’t be happening.