Heartstopper Ever After

Charlie Spring moved through the kitchen with the practiced grace of a television chef. The rhythmic thump-thump-thump of his knife against the cutting board provided a steady beat as he expertly prepped a vibrant salad for himself and Elle, the sharp, fresh scent of basil and ripe tomatoes filling the air.

Ell Argent was visiting after her latest show in London. She was standing by the wall of their flat, looking at a painting she had done of Nick and Charlie. It hung surrounded by photos chronicling their life together, starting with a picture taken during their very first beach day.

It was a walk down memory lane for Elle as she looked at photos of herself with Tao, Tara, Darcy and Isaac. It felt like a hundred years ago, but it had only been nine.

“I can’t believe you and Nick are going to celebrate your tenth anniversary,” she said softly.

“I know… I feel so old.”

“Hardly,” Elle chuckled. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you, by the way—Harry Greene bought one of my paintings at the art show.”

“Really?”

“Yes. He even left me a note telling me he was sorry for the way he treated me in school.”

“He’s changed. Even before Nick went off to uni, he was starting to stand up for us,”

“It’s just crazy to think about.”

“Lunch is ready,” Charlie said, setting the salads down on the table. “I need to ask you something, and I want you to keep in mind that I’m only doing this because later Tao will ask me if I brought it up.”

Elle had been avoiding Tao’s messages regarding his upcoming film premiere because of how things had ended the last time they saw each other.

“I know he wants me to go, but the way he acted last time… I just don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“He admits he behaved badly the last time, but he had just lost the funding for his project, and you having a boyfriend caught him off guard.”

Tao had not just acted badly when Elle’s boyfriend showed up at their dinner; he had created such a scene that it ended up in the tabloids. If she went to his movie premiere, there would be even more press, and the last thing she wanted was a media circus.

“What does Nick think? After all, he is the professional on the subject.”

“He thinks that Tao has a lot of unresolved feelings for you, and that he needs to calmly talk to you about them and see a professional to get some help.”

“Tao must have loved that,” Elle said, taking a sip of her wine.

“I think I should point out that you also created a scene that time at the beach.”

Elle had been waiting for that to be brought up. “Because he only brought that… actress with her silicone enhancements because he was trying to make me jealous!”

“I just think he wants what Nick and I have, and he thinks he can still have that with you.”

Nick and Charlie had built a beautiful, successful life since their school days. Charlie had been accepted to the University of Leeds and studied Social and Cultural History. They had put down roots in Leeds, enjoying one of the largest LGBTQ+ communities in the UK. Nick, with his Master’s in Psychology, was now working on getting his doctorate to help queer youth with mental health issues. Meanwhile, Charlie’s thesis on the history of queer people in the UK had been picked up by Isaac’s publisher. It had done so well that Charlie was now guest lecturing at universities all over.

“You and Nick have worked very hard for the life you have created,” Elle pointed out. “After you two took that break, you worked out your issues and got back together stronger. That has not been the case with Tao… he never changes.”

“I know. He still has issues surrounding his father’s death that he needs to work through. But keep in mind that Nick and I helped each other get to where we are now. Maybe if you both tried again, he’d have more incentive to work on himself.”

“Charlie, really?”

“No,” Charlie sighed. “Even Nick thinks it’s a bad idea, but I had to try.”

“I’m going up to see my parents tonight. I will think about it, but I make no promises.”

“Okay. At least I can tell him I tried.”

“Char!” Nick called out, the sound of the front door closing echoing down the hall.

“We’re in the kitchen,” Charlie called back.

Nick Nelson entered just as Elle stood up to greet him.

“I swear you get more muscles every time I see you,” she laughed, pulling Nick into a hug.

“Not possible, I just saw you two weeks ago,” Nick smiled, though his eyes were glued to his phone screen.

“Is everything okay?” Charlie asked, noticing the slight furrow in Nick’s brow.

“Yeah, it’s just Tara.”

“How is she doing?” Elle asked.

“She’s better. She texted me earlier to say she finally got Darcy to go see the therapist I recommended.”

“If you ask me, it’s Darcy’s mother who needs the therapist,” Charlie muttered.

“What exactly happened between the two of them?”

“Darcy’s grandmother passed away, and her mother told Darcy they couldn’t go to the funeral unless they dressed as the gender they were assigned at birth.”

“That wretched woman,” Elle said, shaking her head.

“Anyway, she found out where the grandmother was buried, and they went today to say goodbye and leave some flowers. The issue is that Darcy keeps all of it bottled up and refuses to talk about it, not even to Tara. I told her she needs to go talk to someone too. After all, dyadic stress is a real thing.”

“What’s that?” Elle asked.

“It’s when your partner goes through a hardship that ends up affecting your own mental health. She wanted to talk to me about it, but I told her she needs to speak with someone who isn’t so close to them both,” Nick explained, absentmindedly rubbing his bicep.

“Do you need some ice?” Charlie asked, instantly concerned.

“No. I’m okay. Just a little stiff today,” Nick said, pressing a kiss to Charlie’s cheek.

“What did you do to your arm again?”

“Distal bicep rupture. Basically, I tore the tendon off my bicep playing rugby.”

“That hurts just thinking about it.”

“Yeah, it was no fun sitting in the waiting room trying to find out how the surgery went,” Charlie added.

“Did they give you a hard time?”

“There was this one nurse who said she could only give out information to family and that my being his boyfriend didn’t count.”

“Do you think it was because she is homophobic?”

“I don’t know. The hospital said later that it’s their policy to only give out information to family members. Thankfully, Sarah showed up before I went crazy.”

“I almost forgot,” Nick said, perking up. He reached into his bag and pulled out a package, handing it to Charlie. “This is from Isaac. I think it’s the book.”

Isaac’s new book, Guarding Hearts, was loosely based on Charlie and Nick’s romance in school. Nick hadn’t been entirely sure about the idea at first, but Isaac assured him he would make it clear it wasn’t a direct biography of their lives, just a story inspired by their love for one another.

Charlie inspected the cover before showing it to Elle.

“This story isn’t exactly like you guys,” Elle noted, reading the back. “It says a guy gets beat up, and a jock helps him learn defensive moves while helping him study for his GCSE’s.”

“That’s what I told Charlie,” Nick said. “But he still thinks people we went to school with will assume it’s us.”

“I doubt it, and who cares? The people from school who know you will know the truth.”

“See,” Nick said, giving Charlie a knowing look.

“Okay, okay.”

“Hey, would you mind getting me something for my pain?” Nick asked Charlie.

Once Charlie was out of the room, Nick immediately turned his attention to Elle, dropping his voice. “You are going to be there this weekend, right?”

“Yes. Tao and I will behave ourselves. Did you really call his sister to ask for her blessing?”

“I did,” Nick whispered. “It was more so that she could get his parents to come.”

“Did Tao tell you about the issue with his parents?”

“No. What?”

“I guess they are having marital issues.”

“He didn’t tell me, but I asked him not to message me so that Charlie wouldn’t see it.”

“Anyway, I’m not sure they are coming now.”

“Great.”

”What’s great?” Charlie asked, re-entering the kitchen with a bottle of painkillers.

“We were just talking about her art show,” Nick said smoothly.