A Collection of Heartstopper Oneshots

A speech for someone I love - Allhallowstheark

Summary:

Nick speaks at Tara and Darcy's wedding, he's nervous. But...it's fine. It'll all work out in the end.
Notes:

HI! Here is some nice, rare, fluff! I've never written only Nick being trans, and it's not a super big deal in this fic but I just wanted to do it because I could. Enjoy!
(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Work Text:
He really enjoyed wearing suits, and he's sure that most men did. But for him it was different. It made him feel confident. In a perfectly tailored (by his Mum, she was truly the only person he trusted enough to touch his clothes.) suit, his broad, yet (sadly) still a bit feminine-looking figure was hidden underneath a masculine shell. He liked feeling like a man, more than he usually did. He recalls always whining and wanting to wear suits to special events, instead of the dresses his dad put him in. When they were going to court, he always ended up in some sort of collared shirt and a skirt, which was...better. But not good.

A suit is what was good for him. He looked good . He waited for Charlie to come see him. He knew he was probably struggling to accept how he looked, but he was going to make him feel as confident as he did. He deserved to feel good.

He walked in, awkwardly trying to pull the sleeves of his blazer down. Charlie was more lanky...Tori once described him as 'long-limbed and gentle'. He felt that was fitting. From a distance, you might think Charlie was the taller one, since his arms and legs were just...so long. But up close, you could tell that Nick had a few inches on him. It was kind of nice, to be able to date a man and have him be shorter than he was.

"Do...I look okay?" He fixed his tie, he looked fixated on trying not to look at Nick. He knew sometimes, the way he looked made Charlie jealous. Which was insane to him, because he was used to feeling jealous of Charlie .

"You look amazing." He wrapped his arms around his still-too-thin waist. He kissed his nose and grinned as he lifted him up and swayed them from side to side. "We're gonna be the cutest couple at this wedding."

"Not...Tara and Darcy?" He snorted, raising his eyebrow in a mockingly questionable stare.

"Nope! And you bet your ass they'll upstage us at our wedding." He grinned. "Plus, I know what Tao and Elle are wearing and..."

"We won't stand a chance." He groaned. "This is so unfair. Elle can sew!"

"I can sew!" He tried to defend himself but...

"Yeah...I remember when you tried to make a Nellie plush."

"Keyword: Tried." He smiled, it was a horrific sight. He really couldn't sew, his grandma had tried to teach him but he was itching to go play outside so...he just went through the motions and ran out to go throw a ball around with his dad and David. Although...they said it was a boy's activity and sent him to play on the swings instead. Which sucked.

"That plushie was out of a horror movie." Charlie shuddered. "Never sew again. Not your forte."

"We'll...leave it to my mum?"

"Sounds good." Charlie grinned, crouching down to double-check check he had everything he needed in his bag. He knew the emergency list by heart at this point. A bag with his meds, a bag with Nick's meds, a first aid kit, emergency chargers and cables, safe snacks, and spare clothes. Anything that makes Charlie's anxiety a bit less debilitating, he supports. Once he's approved the contents, he slings the bag over his shoulder. He put his phone into his pocket and went downstairs.

He liked watching Charlie's rituals sometimes. It was interesting to see how he tackled what his brain made him do. He pocketed his own phone before running to go get in the driver's seat of the car, while Charlie probably grabbed a water bottle. By the time Charlie got in the car, the clock ticked to the exact time they wanted to leave.

He backed out, putting his sunglasses on and smiling to himself. Charlie seemed so calm now that he had gotten everything perfect, now that he didn't have to do so much. He peacefully rocked back and forth and sang along to music. They didn't talk much on the drive...Charlie was nervous about eating in front of so many strangers, and he was worried about his speech.

When they arrived, Charlie went to go find their seats at the front, while he went to go find Tara. He was her best man, he had to get this right. She was sitting in her dress, makeup and hair done. She looked perfect. Beautiful. The most amazing he's ever seen someone look.

"Speechless?"

He felt a grin break out on his face. "You're so shiny! Like a discoball."

She smiled back. "Thank you. Where's your other half?"

"Oh." He blinked. "Charlie's gone and sat down. He's kind of nervous...you know. He just got out of treatment a few months ago and it's still hard. A liminal stage and...all that."

She nodded sagely, he loved how kind Tara always was. When he asked to make sure no nutrition information was on the menu she sent, she happily obliged. She even changed it so Charlie could serve himself first so he didn't have to worry about contamination. All quietly disguised as "The Paris Squad goes first, since they've been with us for so long."

He sat with her until it was time to go. He went to stand with Elle and Sahar, holding Elle's hand and watching Charlie fidget in an attempt not to cry as Tara's mum and dad walked her down the aisle. Darcy was trying not to cry too, he could tell. They had on a nice suit with a funky collared shirt underneath. They looked...so like themselves. Tara had chosen a pale blue wedding dress, and somehow it meshed so well...

When it came time for him to give his speech, he cleared his throat and pulled out his paper.

"So...I'm kind of really bad at speeches." He laughed awkwardly. "I spoke uhm...as the rugby team captain when I graduated secondary. And...Something I really remember was that Tara was watching me. She was...sitting there. In the front row at the leavers ceremony. And she kept mouthing 'Go Nick!' and 'Keep going! Almost there!'" He laughed. "It was kind of pathetic but...that's always how Tara's been. She keeps people going." He felt himself start to cry. "I remember the first conversations we had. They were awkward and short. I remember that Tara was my first kiss. Funny, right?" People laughed. "She's a lesbian. She's here marrying the love of her life. And...Yknow. It's been 15 years since that kiss. I never thought there would be a moment when Tara and I were friends for so long. Supporting each other as friends...best friends. Actually. When...I was going through a hard time. When...When my own Fiance was in the hospital...years ago and just recently. Tara was my rock." He inhaled. "Tara Jones is the best person I've ever known. The only...The only person worthy of her love is Darcy. Darcy...is the funniest and most energetic I've ever met. They've been through so much yet...their love for Tara...For me. For all of our friends, it's...it's out of this world. Together..." He wiped his tears. "Together they'll take over the world. So...So look out, okay?"

He folded his paper, trying not to start sobbing at the applause. He calms down enough to listen to their vows, but when he gets to sit with Charlie at the reception, Charlie had loaded a plate up for him and held his hand tight.

"It's okay to cry now...you did a great job..."

He let tears fall from his eyes. Trying his best to hide it from everyone else. But when Elle and Tao sat down, they smiled at him.

Everyone was smiling at him.

The rest of the reception went great. Charlie ate his whole plate and even managed to share a dessert with him. Tara and he danced, he danced with Charlie...the entire group.

It was a magical night. And...he was there. He got to sing the praises of the best people in his life.

Magical. He couldn't wait until it was his and Charlie's turn.

Notes:

Thank you for reading <3