Charlie and Nick Fanfic - PG13 Version

Holly Jolly: Part Four

Five minutes earlier, Charlie offered to help set the table, unaware David would volunteer to help him. Any time he looked up, David met him with a cocky grin and those messages popped back into Charlie's head. They were so dreadful, yet here he stood, smiling at Charlie as though he had done nothing wrong.

"Can I ask you a serious question and you give me an honest, serious answer?" Charlie wondered.

"Ask away," David replied. "We're practically family, after all. You can ask me anything."

Charlie could taste the sarcasm but he carried on, strong in his resolve to protect Nick for a change. "I'm curious. Did Nick actually ever do anything to deserve how you treat him? Or is it just that he got more attention than you? What is it specifically that made you so...you?"

"Funny," David said dryly.

"I'm really asking."

He stared at Charlie for a moment, pondering if he himself knew the answer.

"Look," Charlie sighed. "I don't care what you say to me, but Nick does. He's having a hard time and if you ever cared about your brother at all, please leave him be." Only after he stopped taking did Charlie realize that he had overshared.

"A hard time?" David wondered, interest peaked. "Trouble in paradise?"

Sarah poked her head into the room. "David, could you fetch your brother and Ingrid? Murray's almost finished carving the turkey."

"Sure, mum," David replied pleasantly before doing as she wished. "Food's ready!" he shouted to them.

"Would it kill you to be cordial?" Charlie posed to him, feeling surprisingly ballsy.

David only snickered to himself.

Nick finally joined them, kissing the side of Charlie's forehead before he proceeded into the kitchen to assist Murray and Sarah.

"What did you do?" Charlie heard Ingrid whisper to her husband. She cast Charlie a momentary apologetic glance.

"Nothing, love," David replied.

She waited, staring into him with rage that he would lie to her.

He sighed. "You have to be more specific."

In a hushed tone, she asked, "texting Charlie. What did you do?"

He chuckled and playfully smacked Charlie in the shoulder. "Just some friendly chit chat. Right, Charlie?"

Ingrid wasn't convinced, crossing her arms over her chest before she disappeared into the kitchen.

In realization that he was in trouble, David excused himself and followed her. Charlie could hear as they fought in whispers, only making out the words when David swore, "I'll tell you when we get home. I was drunk, I wasn't thinking. But it isn't as bad as you think."

Nick, followed by Sarah and Murray began to corral the food into the dining room to set up a picturesque display on the table.

Everyone, including Ingrid and David took their seats around the table. As they ate, the conversation only spun downwards.

"Murray," David said boisterously.

"Yes, David?" Murray replied before taking a sip of wine.

"Why are you here?" David asked bluntly.

Sarah nearly choked on her food.

"Mate," Nick scolded him. "What is wrong with you?"

David ignored him and continued. "I mean no offence, of course. But why aren't you with your own family for the holidays instead of skulking around ours?"

"How dare you?" Sarah cried, taking Murray's hand into hers. "I'm trying here, David. But you are making it so difficult. Why must you act so horribly?"

Murray, seemingly unaffected by any of this, patted Sarah's hand in reassurance. "I understand. You're curious. I would be, too. But the truth is that one of my daughters, the one with children, lives in Canada. I spent last Christmas there, as I will next Christmas. It is also tradition in my family to celebrate on Christmas Eve rather than Christmas, so your mum and I were with my youngest daughter in Sheffield yesterday. I am here today because your mum asked me to be here. It might have something to do with the fact that Nicholas and yourself are not getting along. I could be wrong." Murray shrugged, then scooped up some mashed potatoes and shoveled them into his mouth.

David nodded, somewhat deterred from stirring the pot. Then he spoke to Charlie. "You've been at the music shop for a while, now," he observed.

"Don't," Nick commanded, demanding silence from his brother.

"What? I'm trying to get to know my future brother-in-law," David told Nick.

"Just stop," Nick requested.

David ignored him, going back to Charlie. "Do you like it there?"

"Yeah," Charlie replied. "It's a good job for now."

"I bet," he grinned, taking a bite of the piece of turkey impaled on his fork. "It must be difficult, though. Selling instruments when you're a failed musician."

Charlie could see Nick tense next to him as he lost patience.

"I actually never wanted to be a professional," Charlie explained. "I only went on tour as a favor."

"Sure," David said sarcastically before shifting his focus to Nick, zoning in for the kill. "How are you, Nicky?"

Grinding his teeth in an attempt to stay calm, Nick replied, "fine."

"Good. Good," he paused, winking at Charlie. "Lilly's been asking about you."

Before anyone could defuse the situation, Nick snapped and lunged across the dining room table to attack David.