Nick and Charlie One-Shots

Rendez-vous à Paris

A/N: This chapter is based on the comic, so Tao doesn't know that Nick and Charlie are dating.

It was the last day of the Paris trip, and Nick still hadn't taken Charlie on a date. Paris was the most romantic place on Earth—"The City of Love," and yet they still hadn't gone out because all the timing had been wrong.

On the first night, Tao got sick and Charlie volunteered to stay and watch him while the rest of us went to the Louvre. The second night was Darcy's birthday, and she threw a disaster party that left everyone hungover all the way until the third night. And finally, on the fourth night, nothing had happened, and Nick had it all figured out.

It was 8pm, and when Nick walked in to the room Charlie was on his phone, sitting on the bed that he and Tao shared (which disappointed both him and Nick). Aled was in the shower, and Tao was out with Elle somewhere.

"Hi," said Charlie, smiling widely.

"Hi," Nick replied, walking over and sitting on the bed next to him.

Charlie put down his phone and curled up in Nick's outstretched arms. "I miss you," he breathed. "I miss kissing you and hugging you and us, just being us."

Nick grinned. "That's why I had an idea."

Charlie's face lit up. "What?"

"We'll sneak out and go to some park somewhere and we can be us. Take pictures and cuddle up and make out. Sound good?"

"Uh yes!" Charlie exclaimed. He jumped up and began digging through his suitcase for his shoes, and tugged them on.

"Hurry."

In a minute, Nick and Charlie were rushing out the hotel room door and down the extensive hallway, hand in hand, giggling uncontrollably. Nick wanted Charlie to be quiet, so they weren't caught, but Charlie looked so happy and smiley he didn't want to. They rushed down the flights of stairs, too impatient to take the elevator. When they got to the lobby, they heard familiar voices.

Elle and Tao.

Nick pulled Charlie into a little alcove, and when Charlie started laughing, Nick put his hand over his mouth, grinning at him playfully.

"Did you hear something?" Tao asked, narrowing his eyes and looking around.

"No," Elle said sweetly. "I think your head is still messed up from when we kissed."

Nick pulled his hand back.

Kissed? Charlie mouthed.

Nick shrugged. It's about time.

Tao and Elle chuckled and ran straight past Nick and Charlie to the elevator, where they waited for a second, then stepped in. When the door closed, Nick pulled Charlie out of the corner.

"That was a close one," Charlie said.

"It was your fault they almost heard us!" Nick replied, smiling widely. He grabbed Charlie's hand again, and they trudged out of the hotel and down the sidewalk. There was a soft breeze that rustled the trees and blowed coffee-filled air all around the city.

"Do you know where you're going?" Charlie asked.

"Yes, kind of. Don't ask questions."

"Okay..."

"Do you trust me?"

Charlie blushed. "Yeah, of course."

Nick let go of his boyfriend's hand, wrapped his arm around him, pulling him in close.

Leaning his head on his shoulder, Charlie said, "I really like you."

"I really like you too."

"Are we almost there? I want to kiss you so badly." His breath was warm and tickled Nick's neck—it was his turn to blush.

"Almost."

After a few minutes of walking filled with comfortable silence, Nick and Charlie arrived at the park. It was late, so there weren't that many people around, only a few other couples walking — their dark silhouettes visible against the pink and orange sunset. Nick guided them to an empty space under a large tree. He pulled out a blue and yellow striped blanket from his bag and they laid it out flat on the cold ground.

Nick laid down, pulling Charlie down gingerly next to him. Charlie rested his head on his chest, wrapped his arms around and snuggled into him. They looked at each other for a brief moment, just smiling, eyes filled with love, then they pressed their lips together, and Nick felt fireworks. It was the first time they'd kissed in four nights, and it was magical. He couldn't believe he had a boy this perfect in his arms, with eyes like honey and hair like clouds.

When they pulled apart, they smiled and blushed and stared like they always did after they kissed. Laughing, they kissed again, this time deeper and more passionately. Nick pulled his boyfriend's body closer, and Charlie leaned into his embrace.

"Nick, someone's going to see us-" Charlie started, but Nick silenced him with a kiss.

"Then I hope they're jealous that I'm making out with a boy as beautiful as you."

"You think I'm beautiful?" he asked, blushing scarlet.

"Obviously!" Nick replied, pecking his lips again to prove his point further. "Why are we like this?"

"You're beautiful too," Charlie replied, chuckling. He brushed his hand against Nick's cheek, sending shocks through his body and making his skin tingle.

"I wish we could've hung out more... on this trip, I mean," Nick said. "All I've ever wanted since I met you was to just hold you, kiss you, squeeze your hand... and this is the most perfect place to do all of that."

"Yeah, things got so tied up. But I'm glad that we have tonight, because this is the best night of the trip, and I'm going to remember it forever."

Nick smiled. "Well, just in case—" he pulled out his phone from his pocket, "—we must take a selfie, so even when we are old and we forget things a lot, we will always have this memory."

Charlie and Nick smiled at the camera, their eyes shining with pure love. They did another one kissing, which was difficult with Nick holding the phone, but they made it work.

It was almost 11pm when they snuck back into the hotel and up the stairs. They assumed Tao and Aled would be fast asleep, so when they tiptoed into the shared room, they were surprised to see both of them sitting cross-legged on the bed, staring directly at them.

Uncrossing their hands, Nick said awkwardly, "Hey guys, did we wake you up?"

"You guys are dating, aren't you?" Tao said. His face was so blank it was impossible to read his expression or know what he was thinking.

Nick and Charlie looked at each other for a moment.

"Yeah," Nick said, smiling lightly.

"I knew it," Tao replied, standing up and shaking his head. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I already knew," Aled pointed out, and Tao whipped his head around.

"Really? God, Aled."

"I'm sorry, Tao," Charlie said. "I was just trying to keep Nick safe."

Tao nodded, understanding why. He walked over to Nick and Charlie and smiled.

"I'm happy for you guys."

They all grinned, and Nick, Charlie, Tao and Aled shared a hug.