Music sounds better with you

Sleep comes pretty easy after that

Most of this chapter is smut

Since then, the rest of the week has flown by, and now it's the night before Nick's graduation ceremony and he knows he should go to sleep because it's currently 1 o'clock in the morning and everyone needs to be up at 7am, but a week of too much booze and not enough fresh air is catching up with him and he's been lying in Charlie's arms for the best part of an hour as he tries not to cry yet again about the fact that it's coming to an end.

"You'll still have me," Charlie tells him for what feels like the thousandth time he's heard it this week, but he's grateful to hear it again. "Every day if that's what you need." He sighs. "I'm still kicking myself that we didn't just get a place together, you know."

Schooling his face into something carefully neutral, Nick nods and runs his fingers through Charlie's hair, staring into those same deep eyes that are always so full of love and wonder, even after all these years.

"I know, sweetheart," he murmurs. "I know I'm being a big old baby at the minute, and I'm sorry. I just..."
Charlie cuts him off with a chuckle and a peck on the lips. "You're allowed to be. It's a really big change that you're about to go through. And you're staying in this city that you've been living in with these people for a long time, so it's going to be weird for a bit."
"I know," Nick says with a sigh, a sound he tries to use to hide the hiccup that's bubbling in his throat, one that could turn into a sob at any moment. "God, I'm sorry."
"Baby," Charlie giggles, shuffling up so he can bundle Nick into his arms. Nick goes easily; he clings to Charlie like it's the end of the world as he cries his little heart out. "Oh, baby."
"I'm sorry," Nick mumbles again, muffled by how hard he's pressing his face into Charlie's shoulder. Charlie's warm hand cups the back of his neck and cradles him closer.

It's one of those moments that makes him so fucking grateful for his boyfriend, the most gentle soul he knows, and he can't wait for their future together more than anything, even if he's being a weepy bugger about everything surrounding it.

"Don't apologise, you stupid boy," Charlie murmurs before he starts pressing tender kisses over every part of Nick that his lips can reach from this angle; his forehead, his hair, even his ear. "I love you and you're safe here. If you need to cry, have a cry."
"You make it sound like I'm going to war tomorrow. I'm only fucking graduating," Nick grumbles, but he sinks into Charlie's hold even deeper as his boyfriend begins to scratch at his scalp with his long nails, a spot that they both know is a particular weakness for Nick.

Charlie's nails are currently painted a neat black to match the suit he'll be wearing tomorrow, just something smart and sleek, but an outfit on him that Nick definitely enjoys.
And that's another thing he's had the privilege to enjoy over the past three years. Charlie's been in Leeds with him for the past two, and the growth and blossoming that he's seen in him is one of the things in this world that Nick is proudest of. The Charlie he gets to love now is so vastly different from the Charlie he first met in sixth form all those years ago, but he's so brilliantly the same too.

He's still funny and cheeky and full of love and wonder for so many things around him, but he's also got this incredible confidence that Nick both loves to see and wishes he could borrow in equal measure. He's much more aware of himself, of what he likes and who he wants to be, and he's become so much braver in expressing himself. The clothes he wears are bold and bright, and the way he carries himself is a joy to watch.

He's still the dark haired, blue eyed dork that took Nick's hand and pulled him into the light; he still loves reading until stupid o'clock in the morning when Nick pulls the book from his hands and begs for him to turn out his light. He's still a fastidious nerd that insists they actually revise when they go to the library together rather than playing footsy under the table and gets all flustered and embarrassed whenever Nick kisses him in amongst the shelves, but he'll be the loudest person there at any of Nick's rugby games, cheering and screaming at the top of his lungs. Sometimes he'll even bring signs, even though he promised Nick all those years ago he wouldn't.