A Collection of Heartstopper Oneshots

Sent Home Sick - moonstonesandfireworks (Part 1)

Summary:

Nick catches flu, Charlie takes care of him. It's cute
Notes:

A very self-indulgent fic because I just love a bit of hurt comfort man (also I needed something to do while procrastinating doing my degree LOL). Enjoy !

(tw for mentions of anxiety, OCD and eating disorders, nothing graphic just referenced, but take care of yourselves and please click off it this isn't one for you :))
(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Chapter 1: Ibuprofen and Chocolate Digestives

Chapter Text
There had been intense debate in the Spring-Nelson household this morning about whether Nick was well enough to go in to work today. Charlie had noticed he'd been run down lately - a combination of stress, the beginnings of a cold and too many late nights sitting up to mark books were obviously taking their toll and Nick was exhausted.

He'd fallen asleep at 8pm the previous evening while they were supposed to be watching that week's episode of bake off, his head in Charlie's lap, limbs curled into himself tightly, shivering slightly. Charlie had persuaded him to go to bed after just over an hour of his boyfriend repeating the cycle of falling asleep, waking up and in turn vehemently insisting he hadn't been sleeping. The action in itself was hilarious, but Charlie was struggling to ignore the niggling seeds of worry that there was something other than tiredness going on with his boyfriend.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Nick had woken with a grating cough and no voice after a broken night of sleep; he was radiating far too much heat for Charlie's liking when he'd rested a surreptitious hand on his forehead. Charlie had obviously immediately pulled up the phone number for the school Nick worked at so he could call himself out as sick. Though his partner was notorious for working through illness, Charlie had presumed that this was an occasion that would fit the 'I need a day off work' criteria.

Nick, however, was adamant he was going in, getting up and out of bed in seconds, and rushing into the shower in an attempt to end the conversation. They'd had a muffled argument through the bathroom door. Nick insisted that he was fine, and that even if he wasn't, pointed out he'd played a rugby match at uni that one time with full blown tonsilitis. He had been fine then, so teaching his class with only a cold wouldn't be too much of a challenge.

Charlie had countered this ropey argument by reminding him gently of the emergency train to Leeds he'd had to book after Nick had keeled over after the match, and the subsequent 5 days in bed, 39 degree temperature, and 2 week course of antibiotics the 'essential' rugby match had inflicted on his boyfriend.

After much debate, they'd eventually reached a compromise that wasn't really a compromise; Nick was going in to work, but would leave as soon as the kids had left, instead of staying behind for the few hours of tidying and planning he would normally add to the end of the school day.

And so, after being forced to drink a Lemsip and eat a satsuma, Nick had left for work, leaving Charlie leaning against the front door frame like the divorcee character in a 90's romcom, watching him drive away. It was times like these he questioned what could have possibly possessed him to have the world's most stubborn embodiment of a golden retriever as his partner. Nick adored his job, and nothing would prevent him from going in if he could help it, much to Charlie's rightful annoyance.

After watching their battered Ford Fiesta disappear around the corner, Charlie had gone to get ready for his own job, mentally predicating how long Nick would be able to stay upright before he admitted defeat and came home. On his walk to work, his phone buzzed.

Nick:
Jesus there are 7 kids out sick today
This job is like working in the worlds nosiest and most stressful Petri dish

Charlie:
They should hire you to write the get into teaching adverts