Gay Panic - Heartstopper AU

6. Pride

A/N: Happy Pride Month friends! I just went to my first Pride, and I sincerely hope you get to experience one someday! Also, I'd love to know how you're liking the story by voting and commenting. It'd help me see what I should work on or keep doing. Thanks for getting this far!

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In the morning, Nick's alarm jolted them both awake. Somehow they had managed to stay in the same position all night, with Nick's arm holding the smaller boy curled up snugly against him. Charlie was the first to try breaking away, but he couldn't get far before Nick pulled him back into his grasp and shook his head.

"Mm-mm," Nick protested.

"But we have to wake everybody up," Charlie said.

"Let me hold you for a little while longer."

Nick secured his leg over Charlie's to keep him in place. They started wrestling around when Charlie tried to escape again until finally he managed to get face to face with Nick. As their warm breaths mingled between their faces, the two stared at each other with sleepy, half-open eyes. Charlie's eyes darted down to Nick's lips and back up again.

"Didn't you promise me something last night?" he said.

Nick blinked a few times. "Did I?"

Charlie rolled his eyes. As they leaned forward, Nick's hand found the back of Charlie's head and gripped his curls. The moment their lips finally touched, Nick knew that the waiting was well worth it.

He closed his mouth around Charlie's bottom lip. When he began sucking on it, Charlie let out a satisfied noise that only encouraged Nick to tug harder on his hair and press their lips together with a greater passion. At the same time, he instinctively put his other hand on Charlie's cheek and caressed it with his thumb.

As they kissed at a slow, tender pace, a comforting warmth came to Nick's own cheeks that spread to his chest and stomach. How was he ever meant to pull away and cut this feeling short?

Nick was desperate to bring them as close together as they physically could be. Although his experience with French kissing was limited, he tried slipping his tongue through Charlie's parted lips. He savored the familiar and comforting taste of his boyfriend's mouth.

After their heads switched angles a few times, Nick grew a bit concerned that his stubble might be starting to agitate Charlie's skin. But there soon came a point where it didn't matter all that much because their wet chins were just gliding sleekly against each other from how sloppy the kisses were becoming.

The sound of giggles and footsteps up the stairs made Nick's ears perk up. When he pulled away from Charlie, a thin string of saliva formed between their lips that broke apart when he turned his head to the noise.

There was a knock on the guest bedroom door. "Charlie, you up yet?" whispered someone in the hallway.

"Just open it," muttered someone else after there was no response.

The door creaked open ever so slowly. "He's not in there."

"Of course. What'd I tell you last night?"

"Can mean only one thing."

As someone started fumbling with his own door knob next, Nick quickly sat upright in bed and scooted over in front of Charlie, as if there was any way to cover up the fact that he was with Nick. He also wiped his chin on the back of his hand and pushed his unkempt hair away from his eyes.

The door swung open to reveal the whole rest of the squad huddled out in the hallway, still in their pajamas.

"Oooooh!"