Nick and Charlie One-Shots

Storm

It was a late night in August, and Nick and Charlie were curled in Nick's bed together. It had been raining all day, and massive clouds had formed across the sky, enveloping the entire town. However, storms like this were quite normal at this time of the year. But when thunder, followed by lightning, rolled through the vast sunset, the atmosphere of the room changed.

Nick moved slightly from where he was lying on the bed, shifting Charlie, who was lying on his chest. When Charlie looked up at his boyfriend, it surprised him to see his face twisted in an anxious frown.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Charlie asked, sitting up and slotting his hand into Nick's.

"Oh, uh, sorry," he mumbled, so quietly Charlie almost couldn't hear him. "It's just, uh...I don't really like storms. They... scare me... a little."

"Remember, no saying the s-word," Charlie said, squeezing Nick's hand. "What about storms scare you?"

Nick turned his face away, obviously embarrassed. "I'm not sure. I just don't like the loud noise, I guess. And the lightning—I always get worried it's near me, or near you."

Charlie couldn't help but blush at that, but he quickly pushed it away. "Hey, you know there's a trick to figure that out, right? How far away it is?" He swung his legs around to the edge of the bed and stood up, beckoning for Nick to come with him. They made their way to Nick's window, and Charlie opened the blinds so they could see the dark clouds and pouring rain.

"Look out the window," Charlie whispered, and gently nudged him over.

Nick looked out nervously, eyebrows scrunched and hands planted firmly on the windowsill.

"Now, when you see a flash of lightning, count until you hear thunder. Then, if you divide that by five, that's how far the lightning is in miles."

"Alright," Nick said, eyes narrow and focused. Suddenly, a flash lit up the room, and he quietly started counting under his breath.

Charlie lost track of time as he admired Nick's averted eyes and listened to his faint voice. Then, there was a loud spot of thunder that vibrated the floor and made Nick jump into Charlie's arms. He gave him a reassuring hug and kiss on the shoulder.

"I counted 80 seconds," Nick said into his hair.

"That's 16 miles away, or like 25-ish kilometers. That's really far, Nick. We'll be okay."

"Okay... okay," Nick said with a giggle. "How does that trick even work?"

"Well, lightning and thunder happen at the same time, but light travels way faster than sound, so you see the lightning first. However, sound travels about one mile every five seconds, so it helps you calculate the distance based on that."

"You are such a genius. How did you even know that?"

"I don't know," Charlie responded. "I just saw it in a book once, and I remembered it."

"And how can you do mental math so well, or do all those distance conversions?" Nick rambled on. "I mean, I don't even know what 12 times 12 is!"

"It's 144," Charlie said, smiling.

"Exactly."

They erupted into laughter, then Nick opened his mouth. Based on his facial expression, and the conversation previously, Charlie knew exactly what he was going to say, so he clapped a hand over his mouth.

"Why—"

"No!" Charlie pushed him onto the bed and crawled on top of him, muffling his voice.

"Are we—"

"Don't say it!"

"Like this?"

"No," Charlie moaned, flopping face down on the bed beside Nick.

"Come on, you know you love me," Nick said, rolling Charlie back over.

"I'm not quite sure about that," he replied, grinning.

"Oh, really? What can I do to convince you, then? Perhaps I should—" Nick grabbed Charlie's wrists, pinning him down on the mattress. "Wrestle you?"

"No, Nick, please," Charlie said, but he wasn't convincing at all—with his uncontrollable laughter and wide grin.

They fought with pillows, Nick on top until Charlie flipped him over, giving him easier access for whacking. They knew they were fighting like three-year-olds who had gotten into a heated argument, but they didn't care because they loved it.

Another boom of thunder silenced their conflict and Nick laid down and rested his head on Charlie's chest. Charlie immediately stroked his boyfriend's hair. "I do love you, Nick."

"I know," Nick said, turning his head to gaze up at him.

They smiled at each other, and as the thunder kept rumbling and the lightning continued its crackling assault, Charlie knew Nick wasn't scared anymore.