endlessly yours.

_____
a few days after the last chapter
_____

nick was on the sofa laying down and playing on his ps5, no sign of charlie he was upstairs probably reading his silly little book.

charlie made his way downstairs his soft but fast.

"nick nick!" charlie said.

"mm yeah?" nick said his attention clearly to his game.

"tao called!! him and i are gonna have some drinks tonight im gonna come home late, is that okay with you?" he questioned

"eh.. i dont know char" he pauses his game, "i dont feel like it, sorry darling."

"oh no, just me and tao." he said softly
"he didnt invite you.." he said kinda scared that nick might get angry.

nick never went out alone without charlie and charlie never went out alone without nick

"oh.." nick said disappointed.

what if something bad happened to charlie?
what if someone tried to steal him away from nick?
what if.. someone harassed him?

nicks mind washed over with anxiety, his mind full of things that might happen to charlie.

"my love, i dont want you to go out all alone.. not that i dont want to.. im scared something will happen to you, maybe next time so i can come." he said he felt a bit guilty but couldn't let his sweet charlie go out by himself, especially tao.

Charlie frowned, pausing as he grabbed his jacket. "Wait... are you saying you don't trust me, Nick?"

Nick's eyes widened, panic flashing across his face. "No, no, that's not what I'm saying at all! I trust you. I just—"

"You just what?" Charlie interrupted, crossing his arms. "Think I can't handle myself? Or that Tao isn't a good enough friend to look out for me? You're always saying how much you trust me, but then stuff like this happens."

Nick ran a hand through his hair, clearly frustrated but trying to stay calm. "Charlie, that's not it. It's just—things happen, okay? You know what happened before, and I—"

"Nick," Charlie cut him off sharply, his voice shaking now, "I'm not fragile. I've worked so hard to move on from all that, but it's like you're stuck thinking I'm going to fall apart the second you're not there. It's not fair."

"I'm not saying you're fragile!" Nick shot back, his voice rising slightly before he stopped himself, sighing heavily. "I just... I can't lose you, Charlie. Not after everything."

Charlie softened for a moment but quickly hardened his expression again. "You're not going to lose me just because I want to hang out with a friend. Do you know how controlling that sounds? You're making me feel like I can't do anything without you."

Nick stepped closer, his guilt obvious in the way his shoulders slumped. "I'm not trying to control you. I swear. I just—I worry, okay? All the time. And I know that's not fair to you, but I can't help it. I love you too much."

Charlie's face softened again, but the tension still lingered in the air. "I love you too, Nick. But love isn't about wrapping someone up in bubble wrap. I need you to trust me. To trust that I'll be okay. Because if you don't... I don't know how this is supposed to work."

Nick looked at him, pain flickering in his eyes. He opened his mouth to say something but hesitated, unsure of what to do.

Nick took a deep breath, his shoulders relaxing slightly as he stepped closer to Charlie. "Okay," he said softly, "you can go out. But can you promise me you'll be home by 8? Just so I know you're safe?"