On top of the world A Heartstopper fanfiction

Stephen Nelson

Anything typed in French will be in foot notes 

Nick 

"Dad?" My fist clenches underneath the table. His lips are moving, but I can't hear anything. I feel slightly unwell. There's that tightening in my chest again, the same one I always felt when dad was around. He paces towards me with outstretched hands, gripping my head tightly and planting a kiss on my forehead like I was eight years old again before I had a chance to object or say anything. "*1 content de te voir mon garçon," Dad mumbles into my hair as he pulls back and lets his grip on my head loosen, turning his gaze to Mum, who is clutching her tea cup. "Sarah, good to see you," he says with a cool undertone.

"Hello, Stephen," she says. The men stay standing. David's body language remains its usual standoffish, don't-touch-my-beer, cold, unwelcoming way. As he turns slightly and sees Charlie, who had been there the whole time, Dad notices and raises an eyebrow. "What's he doing here, and why's he in Nick's clothes?" David questions, a slight scoff in his voice.

Noticing the intensity, Charlie slowly stands up. "Hi, it's nice to meet you. I'm Charlie, Nick's friend," he outstretches his hand to shake my father's. "Nice to meet you," Dad says briskly, rejecting the handshake as Charlie sits down slowly. "For once in your life, be nice, Stephen," Mum sighs, threading a hand through her hair. "*1 ma question est pourquoi diable est-ce qu'il y a cet inconnu au hasard dans ma maison?" There's anger lining his voice as he points to Charlie. "He's not a stranger, and as you can see, he's right here in front of you!" I say, feeling my blood boil. "Well then, who is he? I don't see any girlfriends with either of you," David asks, raising an eyebrow, a slight smirk lining his lips as he starts connecting the dots. "Why do you always do this?" I mumble before David has the opportunity to say anything else. 

Suddenly, like a breath of fresh air, almost out of nowhere, I have a rush of confidence and find myself saying, "Sorry, but this is insane." I take a deep breath; my hand finds Charlie's under the table, and I continue my speech, my heart feeling like it's going to jump out of my throat. There's a calming silence over the dinner table.

"Dad, Charlie is my boyfriend. Surprise, I am bi, he's gay, and I was actually really stressed out about how I was going to tell you. But you know what? I don't give a damn what you think about it anymore because you don't even care to see us, no, me especially, more than two times a year. And every time I do see you, I always think... this is it, this is the time when you might actually take an interest in my life. But you never do. So if you don't care, then I don't care either."

I turn to David; the silence still remains over the table, all eight pairs of eyes firmly on me, like I am being watched at a zoo. The words flow out of me like a river. "And you," I say, pointing to David and waggling my finger, hot anger bubbling. "I don't know why you're acting like you're 10 years old, but your bullying simply doesn't affect me anymore. I do not care what you think of me. I like who I am, I love my life, Charlie makes me so happy, and I do not care. Why don't you both do everyone a favour and go back to the holes you crawled out from underneath?"

I take a glance at Mum and stand up from the table. "Sorry, Mum," I apologize. Charlie catches my arm, standing up as well, and we walk out of the kitchen toward the lounge. I shut the door behind us, and I can hear David, Stephen, and Mum yelling at each other. Charlie wrings his hands together. I know he can hear it too. We stand in silence. I don't feel like I am breathing; I feel like we're motionless, stuck in a snapshot of time, listening to the screaming and yelling. After a moment, Charlie breaks the silence and brings us back to reality.

"Maybe I should go home? It sounds like you have a lot to deal with, and I am only making things worse by being here right now." My heart wanted to say, "Don't be stupid. I want you here. You are my safe space, Charlie. Please stay." Yet my head says, "Yeah," and my voice is hoarse. I can feel a tight lump in my throat.