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Everything was going wrong.
Charlie had been planning on heading home a few weeks before the winter break officially started, so he could spend time with his family and friends, and finally get some alone time with Nick without being interrupted by his roommates. This had been the longest they’d ever spent apart, and it was a lot harder to see each other now that they were both at uni with different schedules. He’d been looking forward to it for weeks, but of course, nothing could ever be that easy, could it?
Two days before he was due to leave, the classmates he was working on a project with messaged their group chat, asking if they could meet up one last time before winter break started. That wasn’t a big deal to Charlie, he figured they could meet and whatever they didn’t get done, he could just work on from home and send it over. That was fine. Then something he had no control over happened. The heating in the apartment he shared with his uni friends stopped working out of nowhere, and someone had to stick around to let the repair guy in. They talked amongst themselves, and no one else could do it— they all had plans they couldn’t cancel last minute. So, Charlie, being Charlie, reluctantly agreed to stay behind. Then, to top it all off, he realized he’d never actually booked his train ticket home. Though he didn’t technically need to book a ticket in advance, he didn’t have the money to buy one now, and he hated asking people for help. He knew there were multiple people who would have loaned or even given him the money— his parents, Tori, his friends, or Nick, but he didn’t ask any of them, far too ashamed to admit he’d messed up budgeting that month, something he usually took pride in and was good at. He didn’t want them to judge him for not having his shit together, so he gave up and accepted that he wouldn’t be going home early after all.
Charlie texted Nick that night to explain the situation. Of course Nick was disappointed, they both were, but he was sweet about it, trying to see the positive side. It wasn’t a big deal really, they’d just have to wait a few extra weeks to see each other, and in the grand scheme of things, it wasn’t that long. Part of Charlie still felt like he was missing out, though. Every time he opened instagram, he saw pictures of his friends together without him, or of Nick at his childhood home with Nellie and Henry. He felt left out. To make matters worse, his roommates had already left for break or were staying with their partners which made Charlie feel even more alone.
Despite knowing he was doing the right thing, all Charlie really wanted right now was a hug from his boyfriend. Nick had offered to come to him instead, but Charlie regretfully turned him down. Nick was busy with his own stuff, that was the whole reason they were supposed to meet back in their hometown in the first place. They’d always been good about not distracting each other now that they weren’t in school, where things didn’t matter as much (not that Charlie would ever say that to any of his old teachers).
It was four days into his wallowing when Charlie’s phone pinged, a notification appearing with details about a package he needed to collect. He wasn’t expecting anything, but he figured it might be important, so he grabbed his ID and headed downstairs to collect the box with his name and address printed on the front. Bringing it straight up to his room.
With extreme care, he opened the box and was immediately met with familiar handwriting. Next to the handwritten note were two hand drawn doodles— one of a pug and the other of a border collie. One dog wore reindeer antlers, the other a santa hat, surrounded by little hearts.
Char, I know you’ve been feeling down about not being able to come home as early as you wanted. I wish I could’ve done more to help, but I hope this makes you smile, even just a little. Miss and love you loads. –Nick
Charlie gently set the note aside, carefully removing the tissue paper underneath and he couldn’t help but smile at the items that had been placed with purpose inside. First, he pulled out his favourite snacks— perfect because he had just run out, and now didn’t need to brave the cold to buy more. There were also a few sachets of hot chocolate, a new over the top festive mug, and a bag of popcorn. Nestled inside the mug were a pair of fluffy socks with reindeer on them. But underneath all of that was his favourite thing.
A jumper.
Not just any jumper, though. Nick’s jumper. The one Charlie knew Nick had bought recently and wore all the time. He’d seen him in it during their evening video calls and in pictures Nick posted on instagram, with his uni friends. When Charlie held the fabric up to his nose, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes, he could still smell Nick on it, almost like he was there in the room with him. Without a second thought, Charlie pulled the jumper he was wearing over his head and replaced it with the one that had all his senses tingling, feeling cozy as he was enveloped in his boyfriend’s scent.
Reaching into the pocket of the jumper, Charlie felt something, thinking it was probably a protein bar wrapper Nick had forgotten to take out before packing it but when he pulled it out to investigate, he realized it was another note. A simpler one this time.
Call me.
Charlie wasted no time. He grabbed his phone from the bedside table, pressed Nick’s contact, requesting a video chat. He needed to see his face as soon as possible. Two rings went by, and then Nick appeared on the screen, his cute lopsided smile spreading across his face as soon as he saw Charlie.
“I see you got the package then. Nice jumper.” Nick grinned, clearly pleased with himself.
“I did, and you’re definitely not getting this back.”
Nick rolled his eyes fondly, mumbling something about how he wasn’t surprised, and Charlie didn’t get a chance to argue back because Nick was already talking again.
“Okay. You need to put your socks on, grab those snacks, make some hot chocolate, and then grab your laptop.”
Charlie furrowed his brow, watching the screen as Nick grabbed his own laptop and started typing something. He didn’t ask any questions, he trusted Nick and left him to it while he went to make the popcorn, and hot chocolate in his new mug. It didn’t take him long and when he returned, Nick was waiting, now with Nellie and Henry lying against his chest. For a split second Charlie felt jealous of the two dogs he loved almost as much as he loved the boy who was staring at him with warm hazel eyes. It didn’t feel fair that they got to cuddle with Nick Nelson, his boyfriend, and he didn’t.
“You’re back!” Nick grinned, turning his laptop to face Charlie. “I suppose you’ve guessed we’re having a movie night, so you need to set this movie up on your laptop. We’ll press play at the same time and stay on the video call so it feels like we’re watching together.”
Charlie practically melted. Even from miles away, Nick was still the most romantic (and sappiest) person he’d ever met. How he’d gotten this lucky, he’d never know.
“Isn’t that one of those cheesy Hallmark movies where a random person comes back to their hometown, meets the perfect person for them, swears they can’t wait to leave, some miscommunication happens, and then they end up together?”
“Yes, it is. We’re having a christmas movie marathon!”
Charlie groaned, trying to hide the smile that was tugging at the corners of his lips. Nick was always trying to get him to watch those cheesy movies, claiming their love story would make the perfect plot for one, but they’d never gotten around to watching them, always distracted by.. other things when they were together.
“Okay, let’s do it.”
They hit play at the same time. The opening credits rolled just a little behind for him, but he didn’t care. As the movie played, they didn’t talk, the only sounds were the soft echo of music from their laptops and the sound of popcorn bags rustling. Nick was smiling at something that happened on his screen, but Charlie wasn’t sure what it was, choosing instead to watch the man he loved and by the time the credits rolled, he wasn’t even sure what the movie had been about.