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Chapter Text

Charlie

Friday 20th October

Charlie Spring really hated Fridays. Yes, it meant the school week was over and the weekend was beginning, but that didn’t change anything for Charlie. 

School had become somewhat of a torture session for him. The bullying had been relentless since he was outed last year. He didn’t know how it got out, but it did. Some of the older boys would make it their weekly mission to humiliate Charlie in whichever way they saw fit. Throwing stuff at him, sticking post-it notes with rude words on his back, shoving him into walls, snapping his drumsticks, knocking his books out of his hands as he walked to and from lessons - it was relentless. 

Fridays were particularly bad for a couple of reasons. The first was joint PE with the year 11’s of the same form letter. Each year had 8 letters that were made up of at least 30 students in each form group. For Charlie, his form group was 10H. Sadly, none of his close friends were in his form. His best friend Tao was in 10C and his other friend Issac was in 10L. 

They only shared a handful of classes together and PE wasn’t one of them. 

The second reason Charlie hated Fridays was that for the last four years, the three Spring siblings were to come home, get changed out of their uniforms, and join their family for some ‘bonding time’ at the local Harvester. By ‘bonding time’, they meant enduring a two hour meal with his parents whilst they pretended to be interested in their children’s week. Charlie hated eating out in general, so adding his overbearing mother and father to the mix didn’t help with his anxieties. 

Charlie had a bad relationship with food. It wasn’t that he hated eating it, it was just that he liked to eat on his terms. Eating out in public, where people judged his mostly-full plate whilst everyone else’s at the table was empty, brought unwanted attention to him. He didn’t need random people making snide comments about him when he already got that at home and at school.

As the bell rang for lunch, Charlie made his way to the picnic table that he, Tao and Isaac regularly occupied during the 50-minute lunch break. He managed to get there unscathed by any of the year 11’s he’d later see in his PE class. He took out his lunch box, although the thought of what was inside it made his stomach turn, and placed it next to his bottle of apple juice. 

Tao came bounding over to him seconds later. 

“Am I glad to see your ugly mug,” he joked, swinging his left leg over the bench and sitting side-on opposite Charlie. 

“Hello to you too!”

Tao huffed as he emptied his lunch out of his backpack and swung his right leg over the bench so he was completely facing Charlie. 

“Why so glum, buttercup?” asked Charlie, with zero sincerity whatsoever. He giggled as he watched Tao’s face fall into an unimpressed glare.

“You try having double chem with Mr Muniz and then we’ll have a chat about who’s being glum,” he barked. He flipped open the catches on his lunchbox and dived into his very sad-looking sandwich. He pulled an unattractive face of disgust as he swallowed his bite. “That’s absolutely fucking disgusting. Yan has been giving me tragic sandwiches all week.”

“You know, you could just make your own,” replied Isaac as he walked over to their table. His nose was always buried into a book and today was no different. He was reading a murder thriller novel by some old man that was written before they were even born. His taste in literature was so vast, it left Charlie seriously impressed. 

“Like I have time to do that when I have to make this look as good as it does,” he grinned, pointing at his face. Charlie and Isaac looked at each other, eyebrows creased, and then back at Tao before erupting into fits of laughter. Charlie made a ‘pfft’ sound with his mouth.

“You’re all so fucking rude, you know that.”

Charlie pulled off the lid to his lunchbox and took out his sandwich. “Here,” he said, handing it to Tao as a truce. “Have this instead. A Julio Spring special.”

“No, it’s yours. I’ll just grab something from the canteen. There’s probably a salad or something still left by now. That’s if those dickhead year 11’s haven’t ransacked the whole place.” Tao made to get up, but Charlie adamantly shoved his sandwich in Tao’s face.

“It’s fine, take it. Save your money. I’m not that hungry anyway.”

Tao looked at Isaac and then back at Charlie. “But you haven’t eaten anything. I can’t take your lunch.” 

Charlie shook his head. “I ate at the break,” he lied. He hadn’t eaten since his two mouthfuls of weetabix this morning. “I’ll just nibble on some carrots in the changing room before PE later.” He waved the sandwich once more, urging Tao to take it. “TAO! Take the damn sandwich!”

“Okay, okay! Fine!” he conceded, taking the item from Charlie’s hand and unwrapping it. It wasn’t anything to brag home about. Charlie’s sandwiches were just cheese and ham with a slab of lettuce, but Tao’s lunch made even that look like a gourmet sub. 

The boys spent the rest of their lunch break conversing about their weekend plans and Tao’s legendary (his words) movie night which was taking place on Saturday. It was Charlie’s turn to pick the movie and he had opted for ‘A Knight’s Tale’, a 2001 classic set in 14th century Europe that follows a very young Heath Ledger as he lies his way into a jousting tournament. It was only allowed because ‘It’s medieval and not like that boring shit you usually bring’. Again, Tao’s words.

The 4th-period bell rang, alerting Charlie of his impending doom. The boys rose from their table and said their goodbyes. Tao went off to his GCSE art class and Isaac to his drama lesson. Charlie picked up his PE kit and backpack and headed toward the one place he would least like to be…

The boys' changing room.

★

Charlie was standing at the back of the group, trying to blend in to avoid any unwanted attention from Harry Greene and his posse of twats. Coach Singh, his PE teacher, stood at the front of the group calling the register. 

“Harry Greene.”

“Here!”

“Lewis Yates.”

“Here.”

“Rhys Lowell.”

“Here, Miss!”

“Charlie Spring.”

Charlie’s reply was barely audible. “Here.”

Coach Singh looked around for Charlie, spotting his messy curls behind a tall, broad year 11 near the back. “Charlie Spring, you need to be a lot louder next time. Otherwise, I’ll mark you absent and your parents will receive a letter stating you didn’t attend my class.”

Charlie shrunk into himself, trying to make himself as small as possible as the entire class, including Harry, stared at him, snickering. He nodded so Coach Singh could see and she continued with the list. Charlie zoned out after that. He could feel Harry Greene’s glare burning into the side of his face. His cheeks burnt from the unwanted attention. 

Coach Singh blew her whistle and split the class into their year groups for the first period, for which Charlie was grateful. His year would be doing laps of the field to warm up whilst the year 11’s took part in a game of football. She set the older boys up with a 5-a-side game whilst she prepared the year 10’s for their long run. 

Charlie loved to run. If he was asked what his special talents were, they would be running and playing the drums. Both were ways he could release any pent up energy he’d built during his time at school or at home. 

He took his place at the starting line and waited for his teacher to begin. 

“We’re doing five laps of the track today, boys. After that, I’ll be splitting you with 11H for some rugby drills. On your mark, get set, GO!” she shouted, the shrill of the whistle piercing his ears. 

He took off, setting his pace slowly to begin with. That’s where his classmates went wrong. They took off as fast as they could which, in turn, ended up biting them in the arse after lap 1 when they were inevitably tired. That was when Charlie would pounce and overtake them all. 

After the third lap, Charlie was three quarters of a lap in front of the rest of his class, his feet guiding him round the track with ease. 

“Come on, you lot! Charlie’s got laps on you! He’s making it look easy!” the coach shouted as she clapped Charlie through another lap. He thought this could be his quickest run all term, despite it only being October. Maybe he’d ask Coach Singh after the lesson to confirm it, as she kept track of everyone’s times. Charlie collapsed onto the grass as he crossed the finish line once more, trying to gain some of the air back into his lungs.

A loud whistle blew above him as the last of his classmates crossed the finish line. “Right, boys. Rejoin the year 11’s on the football pitch whilst I plan out the teams for the rugby drills.”

Charlie sighed as he rose to his feet and strolled over to the group of rowdy year 11s. He took one look at Harry, who had his arm leant against another year 11’s shoulder, and rolled his eyes. Harry Greene was a massive knob. He spent most of the year making sure that Charlie had the worst time imaginable at Truham. If he could avoid being paired with him, then at least he’d survive another day without intense bullying.

But, Charlie’s wishes never panned out.

Coach Singh read out the groups of five and of course, he was in the last group with the one person he hated more than anyone. “And finally, group four will be Charlie Spring, Harry Greene, Lee Jones, Sai Verma and Freddie Phillips.”

The announcement of teams was met with a mixture of groans and snickers. The laughter mostly came from Harry. 

“Of course we get the poofter on our team,” he said to one of his lackeys. Charlie tried his best to ignore his idiocy and kept his focus on the drill his teacher was teaching them. “I bet he loves PE lessons. Getting to see all these half-naked men at the end of it. It’s fucking disgusting.”

Some of the boys around him started to laugh, but Charlie zoned him out. He only had about 30 minutes of the lesson left and that meant he was 30 minutes closer to being able to go home and get away from it all for two days. 

Charlie kept his head down, passing the ball to Lee or to Sai and keeping well away from Harry. It wasn’t until the very last drill of the lesson that it was no longer impossible to avoid him. Coach Singh had paired the boys off for a warm-down stretch, getting them to lean against each other for balance whilst they stretched out their muscles. 

“Yeah, no offence, Miss, but I’m not doing that,” Harry stated.

Singh crossed her arms over her chest. “And why not?”

Harry scowled at Charlie. “Because I don’t want to catch what he has. And I don’t want him falling in love with me ‘cos he got to touch me.”

Charlie scoffed. He’d heard it all before but it still stung like hell. “You’d be so lucky. As if I’d ever want to date you. You’re an asshole, Harry and nothing will change that.”

“Er, Charlie. That language is not acceptable.”

“Yeah, well at least I’m not a faggot,” Harry spat, squaring up to Charlie. That was all Charlie needed to hear. He lunged at Harry, raising his fist but before he could make a connection he was being pulled back by another year 11 and Harry was being ushered away by Coach Singh. 

“Right, everyone to the locker rooms. That’s including you,” she shouted, pointing at Harry. “See me after school. Charlie, my office. Now.”

He watched through watery eyes as she marched off the field with the rest of the class following sheepishly behind her. The year 11 boy that pulled him away lingered with him at the back of the group. 

“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice was soft and gentle. Charlie had seen him hanging around with Harry before school and at lunchtime, so Charlie was a little confused at why he was here. Harry’s mates weren’t ones for sincerity nor showing kindness, but this one was showing both.

Charlie was always on edge when he heard the voices of Harry’s crew, wondering what sick joke they’d play on him next or what shitty slur they’d throw his way, but this boy's voice was different. Calm. Soothing. Friendly. He hadn’t heard the boy speak much before, except for informing Coach Singh of his presence. 

So why was he speaking to him now?

“What?” Charlie asked.

“I, um… Are you okay? Harry can be a dick sometimes bu-”

“I’m fine, please just… leave me alone,” he muttered, interrupting the older boy and jogging away from him. He didn’t want to let his guard down in front of Harry’s mates so he ran briskly into the building and towards the teachers office. The door was open but he knocked against it softly, grabbing the attention of his teacher, who was writing something down in her diary. 

Coach Singh swivelled her chair round to face him and beckoned him in. “Shut the door, Charlie.” He took one step toward the chair at her desk and lowered himself into it. He avoided her gaze, knowing full well that he was in a lot of trouble. 

“I’m so sorry, Coach.”

She shifted forward in her chair to get closer to Charlie. “It’s fine. I pulled you in here now so it would give you some time to go in once the rest of the boys got changed. I will have to give you a detention for the language but I’ll make it 15 minutes at lunch on Monday.” 

She made a note in her diary, then filled out a detention slip and handed it to Charlie. “Are you okay?”

Charlie just nodded. Truthfully, he had heard much worse. He had seen much worse written on the back of one of the boy’s cubicles. Harry calling him one slur was nothing compared to some of the things he had been put through on account of Harry. 

“I’ll be speaking to Harry too, after school. I’ll also have to speak to the headmaster about this. Is there anything else you want me to know so I can pass it on to him?” she asked. Her voice was kind, just like the boy who pried him away from Harry. Maybe he was trying to be genuine and show him some compassion. Charlie shook his head and folded the detention slip.

“Can I go now? I don’t want to be late for afternoon registration,” he muttered. Coach Singh nodded. 

“Charlie,” she started, as he stood up from the chair. “If anything like that happens again, please let me know straight away.” 

Charlie didn’t respond. He didn’t know how to respond. Not once in the 14 months since he’s been outed had any teacher shown him any type of sympathy. 

He swung open the door and walked down the corridor towards the boy’s changing room. Thankfully, he noticed as he walked in and over to his peg, the room was empty except for him.

★

Charlie made it home in record time. He didn’t stick around with Tao and Isaac to see Elle after registration but, instead, headed straight for the bus home. Surprisingly, he was the first of the Spring siblings home. Oliver was always the last as he got picked up by his parents, but Tori and Charlie normally made it home around the same time.

He shouldered off his blazer and shirt, swapping it for a baggy, oversized t-shirt and a hoodie, then removed his school trousers, changing into an old pair of joggers he’d found lying on the floor. He bounced down the stairs and threw his uniform into the washing machine. He left the door of the machine open for when Tori and Olly got back but filled the trays with fabric softener and an Ariel pod to help his mum out a bit. He gently closed the door to the laundry room behind him and padded back up to his room. 

His mind raced from the eventful day he’d just been through. It was going okay until his PE lesson and his encounter with resident dicknozzle, Harry Greene. He wanted an excuse to get out of dinner with his family anyway, but this was just the cherry on the cake. He curled himself into a small ball on his bed, dragging the duvet over him like a shield. Sanctuary from the awful day he’d had and the inevitable backlash he would get from his parents for not joining them later. 

Deep in thought, he never even heard Tori come through the front door. She appeared in his doorway, already changed out of her Higgs uniform and into a black hoodie and jeans combo. It was her staple fashion choice.

“Bad day?” she asked, jolting Charlie from his spot. The duvet around him became a messy heap on the floor. 

“Tori, I’m begging you. Please stop doing that,” he said, holding his hand up to his heart. Tori stalked into his room and picked up the duvet from the floor, throwing it back onto the bed. She nestled herself at the end of his bed as Charlie sat up, crossed his legs and fiddled with his hands in his lap. “It was okay until fourth, then it went to shit.”

Tori looked at him sympathetically, her eyes unmoving from his face. “Wanna talk about it?”

Charlie hesitated and then nodded. He explained the Harry situation in depth, how one of Harry’s mates tried to help him and how kind he was but Charlie was sceptical about it, and the meeting with Coach Singh after the lesson. “Fridays are particularly hard for me anyway. So to have dinner with mum and dad later on top of all that, it’s just…”

“Overwhelming,” she replied, finishing his sentence. 

“Yeah, do you think they’ll let me skip?” he asked, looking her in the eyes. Tori’s stoic demeanour was normally unreadable, but something glistened in her eye as he asked her. 

“I doubt it, but I’ll sort them out. Just promise me you’re okay?”

Charlie smiled a small smile at her. “I’m okay, it’s just been… a lot.”

Tori reached over to Charlie and rubbed his arm affectionately. A gentle touch to remind him that she was there for him. She rose from her spot and headed toward the hallway before stopping short at the door. She turned back to her brother and said, “I love you, Charlie. If anyone ever harasses you again, you let me know, okay?”

Charlie fixed his duvet and snuggled back down into it. “I will, thanks Tori.”

She smiled and closed the door behind her, leaving Charlie alone in his room again. He reached across the table and grabbed his phone, putting it on charge. He settled back down under the duvet and closed his eyes for a second, willing this day to just be over.

A noise outside woke Charlie from his peaceful nap. He rolled onto his back and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as they fell upon the clock on his bedside table that read 19:04. He let out a groan and felt around the bedside table for his phone. 

Sat atop it was a note.

Charles,

Victoria told us you weren't feeling well and insisted we leave you be. Your father and I are not impressed that you didn’t tell us yourself.

We have gone out for dinner and will be back at 8:30 pm. The least you could do is fill the dishwasher, put on a wash and take out the rubbish. 

We will talk in the morning.

Mum

X

Charlie still had a bit of time before his parents would be home. He unlocked his phone and scrolled aimlessly through his social media. Tao had sent him a load of memes he didn't understand but sent a thumbs up emoji regardless, and Isaac had sent him a book recommendation that he would add to his list of things to read but never get round to buying.

Tori had also texted him saying that she’d spoken to their parents. They weren’t happy but they agreed to leave him behind. He replied with a ‘thank you x’ and then closed his phone. He rose from his bed, picked up a few stray socks and some t-shirts from his washing bin and carried them down to the washing machine, adding them to the pile of his, Tori’s and Olly’s uniforms. He pushed a few buttons and the machine whirred into action. 

He took out the bin bag from the bin and tied a knot at the top. He’d learnt the hard way when he hadn’t tied it and had left it outside their bin shed when a massive storm blew the entire contents of the bag across the street. Jane made him collect every last piece of rubbish (including Oliver’s three-day-old banana skin) and deposit it neatly inside the bin shed. 

He slid on an old pair of converse and carried the black bin bag out to the front of their drive. He unlocked the gate and threw the bag in the bin.

As he went to push the bin back in, a loud bang behind him disrupted him from the task. He turned around to see what it was when a man dressed in all black skulked up to him and grabbed him, tightening a hand over Charlie’s mouth.

Blind panic rushed through Charlie’s body as he reached up at the hand to try and remove it. The man was extremely strong. He carried Charlie towards a white van and threw him down onto the dirty floor. Another man shut the door behind them and pinned Charlie’s legs down whilst the other tied Charlie’s hands behind his back with cable ties. 

Charlie screamed, fear projecting from his voice. “Help! Please! HELP!”

“Shut the fuck up, you little cunt. Or I’ll make sure your girly screams are the last thing that comes from you!” a raspy voice whispered through gritted teeth from behind him.

He tried wriggling and kicking at the unknown men but before he knew it, a roll of tape was produced and one of the men ripped off a piece. The engine of the van roared into action and the sudden movement jerked the two men as it quickly took off.

“Please, I-I’ll do anything just please l-let me go,” the pleas were muffled into the floor as his cheek pressed harshly against it. 

The two men that crowded him laughed maniacally. “We’ll let you go, once your dad starts to realise who he’s messing with. Until then, you’re staying with us,” one of them said as he roughly pulled Charlie into a sitting position, the other wrapping the piece of tape over Charlie’s mouth.

Charlie’s stomach churned at their words. What had his dad done that would lead to someone kidnapping him? Charlie thought back to his kind and honest dad, who was just an accountant for a low-key law firm in Kent. Who put up with his wife’s nagging and constant moaning about everything and simply accepted it. Who was sitting at a table with his family for a meal, not knowing his oldest son was being taken from them.

It was that thought that opened up the floodgates. Charlie’s eyes began to stream, tears rolling down his cheek and over the black tape that covered his mouth, dripping off his chin and onto his joggers. The bald man sat opposite Charlie saw the drops of tears and let out an audible belly laugh.

“Oi, mate. Look at him,” he gestured for the man on Charlie’s left to turn his attention to the younger boy. “He’s proper crying, like a baby. Scared that daddy won’t be able to save you?” The man opposite sat forward from the wooden make-shift seat, leaning his face inches away from Charlie’s. He turned his face away but the man gripped Charlie’s jaw tightly in his hand and turned it back to face him. 

“You’ll look at me when I speak to you, do you understand?” The man spat, his words were filled with so much venom and anger, even he made Jane Spring sound like a saint. Charlie nodded slightly against the hand at his jaw, a whimper emitting from behind the tape. 

That clearly wasn’t enough. 

The man slammed Charlie’s head against the wall of the van and clenched his hand tighter around Charlie’s face. “I said, do you understand ?” 

His pupils were massive. Dark and bug-eyed, his eyes almost protruded from the sockets. An angry vein popped on his forehead forming a thin line between his eyebrow and his hairline. Charlie nodded vigorously, trying to scream his understanding but all that came out was a muffled yowl. He squirmed under the touch of the burly man, which earned him another slam against the wall.

The man dropped Charlie’s jaw and retreated back to his spot. Charlie let his head lull back against the wall as even more tears threatened to paint his face. His breathing became erratic, the fear of not knowing what was happening or why he had been taken overwhelmed his body. He let out a muffled scream, this time one of panic, and the tears started flowing freely. He didn’t care that two random men found it hilarious and that they were laughing at his expense, he just wanted to know what was going on. Why had he been taken? When would he get to leave?

Charlie didn’t know how long the journey was but it felt like an age in his anxious and disoriented state. As the van pulled to a stop, the man next to him (whose name Charlie had decided was Eagle, due to a large Eagle tattoo on his neck) moved to grab something from his pocket. He chucked a long strip of cloth at his accomplice (Baldy, for obvious reasons), who straightened it out over his knee. Charlie could sense what was about to happen, so started to back away as much as he could in the limited space he had. 

Eagle caught Charlie moving in his peripheral, so grabbed him by his curls and pushed him down in front of him so he was kneeling on the van floor between the two men. Baldy wrapped the cloth around both hands and pulled it taut in front of Charlie, who flinched at the action. 

“This is for our protection,” hissed Baldy, wrapping the cloth around Charlie’s eyes and tying a tight knot at the back of his head. Some of his curls were caught in the knot, but he had a lot more pressing things to worry about. 

Unable to see, touch or speak, the sliding door of the van was pulled open and a strong pair of hands yanked Charlie out onto his feet. He felt the tip of something sharp dig into his throat as he found his balance, breaking a small part of the skin where it sat. Though it may be small, Charlie could feel the trickle of blood starting to pour from it.  

“Don’t fuck around. You walk where we make you walk. Any funny business then this knife will do a lot more damage than that. Got it?”

Charlie wanted to nod but the knife at his throat made him think otherwise. He let out a muffled noise he hoped would come off as an agreement. He wasn’t sure what funny business he was potentially going to do. His hands were tied behind his back, he couldn’t see and he had no idea where he was; doing anything but what they said was a silly move in anyone’s books but especially Charlie’s.

The two men were joined by what sounded like another man, judging by the amount of voices and footsteps he could hear. Charlie took note of where he was being guided - through a door (5 steps from the van), straight on (23 steps), round a corner to the right (2 steps), down an endless corridor (39 steps), up a flight of stairs (11 steps), round another corner to the right (7 steps) until he was forced to wait somewhere, the knife at his throat was back, digging forcefully against his skin.

He started counting his steps in case he needed an escape plan. This wasn’t something he  did often, but he found that he was doing it subconsciously and it was actually helping him  control the impending panic attack he could feel brewing from within.

A door unlocked ahead of him and he was violently pushed into a room. The door slammed behind him but he could sense that the three men remained present in the room with him. Charlie felt like a deer in headlights, except this deer was even more vulnerable. One of the men walked up behind Charlie and jerked his head back by his hair.

“You’re going to pay for what your father did, and then, maybe, he’ll get the hint,” he snarled in his ear. Without warning, one of the men punched Charlie strongly in the stomach. He couldn’t work out who, but whoever it was had a very strong punch. As the fist collided with him, his knees gave way and he fell to the floor, the hand still grasped tightly in his short, brown curls. He tried to cough behind the tape but failed. Instead, it came out as a snort through his nose. 

A foot was next to connect with his stomach, this time knocking Charlie off balance completely and sending him straight to the floor. He tried to curl up on himself, now the hand in his hair was gone, but the pain brewing in his stomach was stronger than ever. Charlie’s eyes started to water again, but the cloth around his eyes soaked up most of the tears before they could even begin to roll down his face. 

Another foot and another foot and another foot pelted Charlie’s skin. Those were definitely going to leave a mark. Or cause some internal problems. Maybe one of them was secretly a doctor and they’d help tend his injuries. Wishful thinking, Charlie.

“Leave him now, boys,” came Baldy’s voice. “We don’t want to break him before the boss gets here.” A chorus of mumbling sounded round the room. Charlie could sense the men starting to back off. 

All except one. 

The firm grip was back in his hair, pulling him half off the floor. “We’ll be back for you. Don’t get too comfortable, the boss will want to see you when he arrives.” And with that, he was thrown abruptly onto the floor. Heavy footsteps became quiet as they left the room and shut the door. 

Charlie lay in silence for a while, making sure they were really gone. After he was certain he was alone, he cried out the most heartbreaking pained sound. His eyes were dry but that didn’t stop the fear and despair in his screams. His head was pounding from the amount of liquid that had escaped through his eyes and the intense hair-grabbing the men had done to him. He tried to sit up but his head was spinning, so much so that he immediately fell back down again. 

Making another attempt was futile, Charlie knew that. So he just lay there, in the same position, wondering how he’d got himself here. Had he just gone to his family dinner, he would still be hurting but in a less physical sense. He would be sat between Tori and Olly as they informed their parents of their days at school. He loved hearing about Olly’s day; it was completely different to his. Where Charlie would have double maths, Olly would be making paper mache masks. Oh, to be that age again, where no one cared who you were or what you became. 

Olly was so carefree, an ’over-excitable ball of energy’ Tori would say. He was two worlds apart from him and his sister. He thought of Tori, who probably had to fight his mother to let him stay home; look where that got him. Kidnapped, beaten and bound in a random room in the middle of god knows where. He didn’t even know if he was still in Kent. The drive didn’t seem long but neither was the drive to any of the surrounding cities. He could literally be anywhere in the world and no one would know where that is.

He was suddenly grateful for chucking on some normal clothes and his shoes before he took out the bins. If he hadn’t, he’d be left to rot in this room in nothing but his pyjamas, and that could have been disastrous, this close to winter. He notes that it’s already cold, what’s it going to be like in a week? Two weeks? Who knows how long he’ll be here for.

God, he hopes not too long.

But how would anyone know where to look? There will be no note, no sign of a struggle, nothing to suggest that Charlie was taken. The front door is wide open but there will be nothing out of place in the house. Would his parent’s know where to start looking? Baldy had mentioned his dad, so maybe Julio knew who had taken him.

Charlie then started to ponder who was behind all this. Perhaps it was a client that he’d turned the wrong way and a small threat had grown into a full blown kidnapping. 

But his dad wasn’t like that, was he?

His brain continued to muse over anything and everything to occupy his thoughts, just to stop him from crying again. He spent what felt like hours trying to come up with a solution to this mess. He thought about his best friends who were in their homes with their families, about his future and what that could hold. But nothing would calm the nerves that rattled in his belly. 

The unlocking of the door tore him away from his thoughts. He brought his knees up to  shield his chest from any further harm they wanted to deal him. Not that it worked – two men grabbed him by his hoodie and sat him down firmly in a chair. He didn’t know if that chair was already in the room with him but here he was, being flung into it.

The blindfold was ripped from his face, his eyes took a while to adjust to the warm light from the bulb above him. His hands were released but only for a few seconds, whilst Eagle taped them to their own respective arm of the chair. Charlie’s eyes darted around the room, taking in his surroundings. 

The room was relatively small but empty, bar the chair he was sitting on and a ratty, old mattress in the far corner. There was a toilet in the opposite corner that looked completely out of place for the type of room this had the potential to be. It looked like an abandoned office or an incomplete build, but Charlie’s mind was far from working out the specifics. 

In front of him, Baldy stood leaning against the wall, digging the dirt out of his nails with his knife. The knife in question was huge. Bigger than a standard knife but smaller than a kitchen knife. If that was the blade that was held at Charlie’s throat earlier, then he counted himself lucky he got away with a little snick.

Another man entered the room from behind the sealed door and whispered something into Baldy’s ear. He nodded and the other man left the room. Baldy pushed himself off the wall with his foot and walked over to Charlie, bending down so he was eye level. 

“I’ve just got word that the boss has arrived. He's looking forward to seeing you,” his gravelly voice informed the room. Charlie’s eyes focused to the left of Baldy, which he didn’t take too kindly. The blade was back at his throat, pressing aggressively into his skin. “What did I say about looking at me when I’m talking to you?”

Charlie nodded and blinked. His scared, blue eyes darted back to the angry-looking grey eyes before him. Behind Baldy, the door swung open and two men burst in, standing either side of the open doorway. Baldy, Eagle and the other man stood at attention away from Charlie. A tall man with dark blonde hair came through the door next. This was obviously ‘The Boss’, Charlie thought, simply by the way the others stood as he walked in. 

The boss was wearing an all-black suit with a matching tie, his hands were covered in tattoos much like Baldy’s, and his face fell into a confused yet angry look.

“Who the fuck is this?” The Boss asked, pointing at Charlie.

All five of his men looked at Charlie and then amongst themselves. Eagle stood forward, pulling a sheet of paper from his pocket. “It’s the boy, the boy you asked us to retrieve.”

The Boss’ face grew redder by the second. If this was a cartoon, steam would be blowing from his ears. He snatched the paper from Eagle’s hands and glared down at it. He walked over to Eagle and grabbed him by the collar of his t-shirt, pinning him against the wall. “You fucking moron, this isn’t the boy!”

Eagle looked mortified. “B-but, he’s the one circled. He’s the one you circled.”

The Boss pinned him harder against the wall. “I circled the blonde one, not this curly haired twat. Fucking fix this and fix it fast, otherwise it won’t be you I come for. It’ll be your family. Got it?”

Eagle nodded and The Boss released him from his grip. Eagle smoothed out his clothes, avoiding staring at the scary-looking man in front of him. The boss turned and walked toward Charlie, who tried to edge away. 

“You know this boy?” he asked, showing Charlie the picture. Charlie shook his head no as his breathing quickened. “Well get to know him, he’ll be your new roommate very soon.”

He stood up and placed the photo on Charlie’s lap so he could study it. The boss and his two men left the room and was shortly followed by Eagle. Baldy stayed behind, cutting the tape from Charlie’s wrists and binding them again tightly in front of him with a new cable tie. He patted Charlie’s cheek with force before turning around and leaving the room. The lock of the door turned shutting him away from the outside world once again.

Charlie looked down at the photo in his lap. It was taken during one of his PE lessons because he was in his full gym kit, standing with his hands on his hips, listening to Coach Singh. There was a big, red circle drawn around him in marker, except he wasn’t the only student in the circle. 

The other student was the boy who helped him earlier when Harry was being a dick. Who asked if he was okay and who showed him kindness that Charlie then walked away from.

The other boy circled was none other than Nick Nelson. 

Chapter Text

Nick

Monday 23rd October

The atmosphere was a little more sombre than usual as he walked through the school gates that morning. A small crowd had gathered around two police cars that sat unattended outside the main reception. Nick overheard whispers of ‘run away’ and ‘year 10’ but nothing concrete to piece together what was going on. 

Nick bypassed the throng of students and headed straight to his form room. He casually walked past Harry and his mob of morons, ignoring their idiotic jeers as he sat down in his assigned seat next to his best mate, Christian. He pulled his planner out of his bag and opened it, writing down his weekly lessons in the margin ready for when he needed it. Christian, however, had his head down in his Maths workbook, attempting to finish his weekend homework. 

“It’s called homework for that exact reason – it’s work you do at home,” Nick laughed, shaking his head. Christian continued to scribble in his notebook. 

“I am aware of that, Nick. I just had a very busy, very stressful weekend,” Christian replied, writing the wrong answer to a question. Nick didn’t bother trying to help him correct it. 

Nick snorted. “Playing Valorant for two days straight is not something people class as being busy.” 

Christian shot up, his face painted red from Nick’s accurate accusation. “But I ranked up, I’m now Immortal two!” 

After that, Nick and Chris fell into an easy flow of conversation. Nick helped him with a hard maths question and then their tutor, Mr Ajayi, entered the room, looking slightly dishevelled. He stood before the class, attempting to grab their attention.

“Good Morning 11H. As you know, Mondays are usually the day we hold our year assembly, but today the headmaster has called an important assembly for the whole school. It’s er.. It’s not an easy subject so, should you need to talk to someone after the assembly then you all know my door is open. Now, er, leave your things and line up. I’ll take you over there.” 

Nick’s form walked single file toward the sports hall. Most of the line chatted idly about what they thought the assembly was about, but Nick stood behind Christian in silence. Nick guessed it was something to do with the two police cars and the student everyone was talking about. But what was so important they needed to call a whole school assembly?

Whatever they’d been gathered for, it was obviously serious.

His class was one of the last to enter the hall, taking up the remaining bit of space on the far left of the gym floor. Headmaster Barnes stood at the podium, waiting for all the doors to close and for the chatter to die down. He received a nod from the deputy head teacher, who was monitoring the doors, that he was good to start.

“Good Morning, Truham, and thank you for joining me this morning,” Mr Barnes' voice boomed around the room through the microphone. “Today will not be like our normal whole-school assemblies. It is with sadness that I must inform you one of our year 10 students, Charlie Spring, is being classed as a missing person. I’m going to pass over to DS Trent, who will share a little more information with you all.”

Barnes smiled at the police officer and gestured for him to take his spot at the podium. The students around him started mummering away, mutterings of ‘who is Charlie Spring?’, ‘Isn’t he that gay kid that was outed last year?’ and ‘so why are we here then? What can we do?’ echoed around the hall. DS Trent cleared his throat into the microphone, cutting all conversations short.

“Thank you Headmaster Barnes. Yes, as your headteacher mentioned, we are currently investigating a report of a missing person. Charlie Spring was last seen by his sister and mother at 1800 hours on Friday 20th October at their home on Britannia Road. 

We are not currently treating this as suspicious, but that has the potential to change due to some evidence I am unable to disclose. If anyone has any information on Charlie’s whereabouts, please come see me or my colleagues after the assembly. You can also speak to a teacher who will happily listen to your findings and pass it on to us. Thank you for your time.”

The police offier stood back next to his colleagues and listened as Barnes continued on with his assembly. Nick looked down at his hands in his lap, trying to hide his emotions from the rest of his class. The last time Nick had seen Charlie was after his and Harry’s almost-fight during PE the day Charlie went missing. He had gone up to ask if he was okay but Charlie didn’t want anything to do with him. 

Nick remembers the first time he noticed Charlie. It was just before Charlie was outed; Nick accidentally bumped into Tao, who was walking with Charlie out of the school. Nick was running late for rugby practice and he ran head first into an angry Tao, who had dropped his books and his phone on the floor. Nick fumbled out an apology, bending down and frantically picking up the pieces of paper that had fallen out of one of the books. Tao had mumbled something about being a rugby lad and Charlie had giggled the cutest little laugh Nick had ever heard.

That’s when Nick truly saw Charlie’s eyes. 

Those cerulean blue gems that made even the clearest ocean look murky. And the dimples? Nick nearly collapsed to the floor there and then. The tiny little indents on his cheek that formed from the big grin his mouth pulled up into. Nick had never been attracted to a boy before, not one that wasn’t fictional, but even Nick couldn’t deny that the curly-haired man was beautiful.

Then Charlie was outed and Nick felt awful. Not that he had anything to do with it, but Charlie constantly had a sad look on his face ever since and that upset Nick greatly. It was a totally selfish reason, not getting to see that smile again. It really did things to his stomach whenever those dimples would come out. So when he found out that Charlie would be in his PE class that year, he couldn’t help the smile that painted his face. Maybe now he would have a reason to talk to Charlie and to get to know him better and maybe Nick could give Charlie a reason to smile again. 

But Harry Greene had other ideas.

Nick wished he had noticed the bullying sooner. Even more, he wished that said bullies weren’t the people he considered his mates. Well, not anymore they're not. After he found out what was going on, he stopped interacting with them. It was hard to convince Christian, Sai and Otis to just up and leave their friendship group, so they formed their own little one. Unfortunately, they still hung around near Harry, but Nick decided he wouldn’t interact with Harry’s shitty personality.

Could Harry Greene be the reason that Charlie ran away? That fight they had couldn’t really be the reason Charlie ran away, could it? Nick didn’t think so; but then, Nick didn’t really know Charlie. He didn’t know anything about Charlie’s personal life at all. The only things he knew for sure was that Charlie was gay, outed last year and was the brunt of everyone’s bullying. 

His hands curled up in anger at the thought of that innocent boy being picked on and tormented by Nick’s so called ‘mates’. Nick and Harry hadn’t seen eye-to-eye for a while now. He was ashamed that he hadn’t stuck up for Charlie, but then Harry would question why Nick was standing up for this random year 10 and he didn’t want to deal with that. Charlie wasn’t the only person that Harry picked on, but he was the one who received it the most. Nick hated that. He hated being associated with someone with such low self-esteem that he felt the need to pick on everyone else's insecurities just to hide his own.

Nick hadn’t noticed the hall had been dismissed until it was his row’s turn to leave. He followed his class back to his form room to pick up his belongings and made a brisk exit toward his first lesson of the day, avoiding any and all people who tried to stop him.

He walked absent-mindedly through the corridors, unaware of his surroundings. His mind was elsewhere. He was thinking about Charlie, of course. Where could he be? Was he safe? Was he hurt? Charlie barely even seemed to know that Nick existed, but Nick cared about him anyway. Even if he didn't know Charlie he would have cared about a missing classmate. Nick's mum tells him that he's very like her; caring too much for everyone is one of their major weaknesses.

As he rounded the corner, he walked straight into the chest of someone. Their book fell to the floor with a loud bang, which startled Nick back to the present.

“Shit, I’m so sorry,” he said, bending down to pick up the book from the floor. He stood up straight and handed it back to its owner. Nick had seen him with Charlie and Tao at their picnic bench during lunch most days. Why was he always bumping into Charlie’s friends?

“It’s okay, I should have been looking where I was going. I wasn’t even reading it, I was… I needed something to occupy my brain right now otherwise I’d just think about… other things,” the boy replied, taking the book back gratefully. 

Isaac’s nose was usually buried in a book, so seeing his whole face was unusual. Nick looked sympathetically into Isaac’s eyes, which were red raw from how he had clearly been crying, and his shoulders were slumped. Nick felt sorry for him; his heart hurt in ways he never knew were possible.

“Isaac, right?” Nick asked.

Isaac nodded. “Yeah, and you’re-”

“Nick,” he replied, cutting him off. 

“Right, yeah. Harry’s mate,” Isaac stated bluntly.

Nick swallowed the lump in his throat and stared down at the floor. “Yeah, not really. Not anymore. I hate the way he treats people, especially Charlie. He said some nasty things to him that Friday and I just… I can’t be around him anymore. Not when he says things like that.”

Nick didn’t go into specifics with Isaac, but judging by the way he hadn’t asked, Nick guessed Isaac was probably aware of the kinds of things Harry had said to Charlie. 

“I really hope he’s okay. Charlie, I mean…” said Nick, urging the tears that were beginning to form in his eyes not to fall. One single tear rolled down from his left eye and dropped quickly onto his blazer. “I’m sorry, I know I shouldn’t be allowed to cry because I didn’t really know him. I did want to get to know him. Ever since he joined my PE class, I have been in awe of him. That sounds weird but he just has this glow, doesn’t he?”

Isaac snorted. Nick wasn’t sure why he was spilling this all to Isaac, whose best friend was missing, but it felt right. “He does, he brings out a side to people they didn’t know they had. It’s a shame he can’t bring it out of Harry.”

Nick’s mouth pulled upwards into a grin. “Yeah, you’re right!"

The pair giggled just as the bell rang, informing them that they were late for their first class.

“Right, got to go,” Isaac announced. “I’m now late for English with Miss Steele. What about you?”

“French with Miss Coles.”

“Well, I’ll see you around?”

Nick nodded and smiled. “Yeah, yeah that sounds good!”

As Isaac went to turn away, he stopped abruptly in front of Nick. “If you wanted, Tao and I were going to meet up with our friend Elle from Higgs at lunch on the benches outside the main gate. Barnes said it was okay so we can ‘be together in this time of crisis’. You’re more than welcome to join us?”

Nick wanted nothing more than to sit with Charlie’s friends, even if he did wish it were under better circumstances. He wished he could have joined them before. When Charlie was there too. “Oh, I er… I don’t want to intrude. It’s probably something you guys should do together.”

“Honestly, I want you to come,” he insisted. “You’re different from that other lot, Nick. I think Charlie would want you to be there too.”

“Yeah, okay, yeah. I’ll see you then!” 

Isaac took off quickly towards the English rooms and Nick spun on his heels, thinking about the conversation he’d just had with Isaac. His feet resumed their unhurried pace to his French class; he didn’t care if he was late. He didn’t want to be here at all. He wanted to walk out of the school and run home to his mum and give her the biggest hug.

Instead, he counted down the hours until the lunch period where he could spend time with Charlie’s friends, who all seemed to have good-natured hearts. He wondered why he ever wasted time with people like Harry, who caused nothing but pain with his presence. 

★

Nick walked out of the main building of the school and headed toward the group of people sitting at the bench outside the gates. Isaac was sitting next to a girl Nick recognised as Elle, who he used to have a few classes with when she was in his year at Truham, on one side of the bench with Tao, and someone he vaguely remembered as Charlie’s older sister on the other. What was her name again? Tori, maybe? She and Tao sat with their backs toward Nick, unaware of him walking up. Isaac spotted Nick as he approached, waving and beckoning him over. 

“Hi guys, I hope you don’t mind me joining you?” Nick asked, taking stock of the 4 faces in front of him. Tori looked drained, like she hadn’t slept in days. Her hair was tied into a messy ponytail. Elle smiled miserably back at Nick with her hand curled tightly around her phone as if she was waiting for someone to call. For Charlie to call. Isaac looked like he did earlier – sad, but as if he was trying to find a positive in everything. And Tao? Tao looked like he wanted to murder Nick. His eyebrows formed a perfect ‘v’ as he scowled back at Nick.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Tao growled.

Elle’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open. “Tao, don’t be so rude. He’s here to show support for Charlie.”

Tao scoffed. “Support? He’s done nothing but bully him for the last year. Are you kidding me right now, Elle?” He sneered and rolled his eyes, looking down into his lunchbox, frowning in disgust at his food. 

“No, I-I didn’t, that wasn’t me,” Nick stuttered.

“But you still stood by and watched it happen. Charlie would be here now if it wasn’t for you and your asshole mates.”

Elle stood up from her seat and slammed her fist down hard on the table; the sudden noise made Tori and Tao jump. “For fuck sake, Tao. He said it wasn’t him, so just leave him alone!”

“Oh, so because he said he didn’t do it, you just believe him?”

“Nick was never anything but kind to me when Harry used to pick on me when I was at Truham. Why would he start bullying people now?”

“Probably because he’s a coward. He saw Charlie’s vulnerability and tried to take advantage of that. But guess what,” he spat, standing and squaring up to Nick. “You can’t do that anymore, can you? Because he’s not here. He’s not here to take your vile fucking bullying.”

Nick was fuming. He shouldn’t be, but he was. How could Charlie’s best friend even suggest that he was weak after everything he’d been through? “But he’s not vulnerable. He’s probably one of the strongest people in this school,” Nick retorted.

“Enough! Can you both shut the fuck up!” Tori screamed. It was the first time she had spoken since Nick had arrived. She was physically shaking and her eyes were filled to the brim with tears. “My brother is god knows where and you two arguing is not going to help.”

The table turned silent. Tao took a step away from Nick, relaxing his shoulders and dropping back down into his seat. Tori waited for the tension to die down before continuing.

“Nick has never been mean to Charlie, Tao. If anything, he’s been sort of protective over him.” Tao, Elle and Isaac watched Tori with confusion. Nick’s face flushed pink; he knew where this was going. 

“Michael overheard Nick threatening Ben to stay away from Charlie. Charlie told me that Ben did some awful things to him. Ben manipulated him into thinking he liked Charlie. From what Michael could tell, it sounds like Nick knew what was going on with Charlie and Ben, but that he had also seen Ben kissing a girl after school,” Tori looked up at Nick, who was chewing on the inside corner of his mouth, for confirmation. Nick nodded. 

“I don’t know how Nick found out about Charlie and Ben but he… he saved Charlie from that… that monster.” Tori was starting to stumble on her words from how worked up she was. 

Truthfully, Nick didn’t want anyone to know how he found out about Ben and Charlie. He was also a little embarrassed to hear that someone had overheard his confrontation with Ben.  He walked into the library a few months ago, looking for a book for his History lesson when he heard a noise from the back corner. He walked over to see what it could be when he spotted the two kissing. Charlie looked uncomfortable but he was consenting so there was nothing he could do. Nick walked away, his book forgotten, and headed straight to his next class. 

It was later that day, after the final bell rang and everyone was on their way home, that Nick spotted Ben kissing a girl from Higgs. Nick confronted Ben the next day, who just laughed in his face. Nick may have gotten a little worked up, shoving Ben hard against a locker. He warned Ben that if he was going to hurt Charlie then Nick would hurt Ben. 

The next day, Charlie looked so sad, so defeated. Nick assumed that Ben had broken it off with Charlie. Nick had seen Charlie upset before, but now he looked like his whole world had collapsed in on him. Nick wanted to go to him and ask if he was okay, but they hadn’t talked much except for a few obligatory sentences in their PE class. 

“And Charlie also told me that Nick stuck up for him last week when Harry tried to fight him. Nick isn’t the enemy here.”

Tao looked across at his friends, whose faces were filled with sympathy. Nick would probably never find out who the sadness was aimed at, whether it was Charlie, Tao, Nick or Tori, but it had clearly worked because Tao shuffled up closer to Tori so Nick could perch on the end of the bench. Nick tipped his head as a thank you and sat down opposite Isaac.

Isaac smiled back at Nick, who was now reaching down into his bag for his lunch. 

“So,” Elle said to the table. “Who wants to play Uno?”

★

After the eventful lunch Nick had just had, he didn’t feel like going to his last lesson of the day. Instead, he signed himself out at the reception, claiming he had a tummy ache, and headed home. 

The fact Tao held a grudge against Nick because he thought Nick was bullying Charlie hurt a little. Nick had always tried his very best to be a nice person, and to think that someone in the world didn’t see that from him meant that maybe he wasn’t succeeding nearly as much as he thought he was.

Nick sent a text to his mum, letting her know that he’d left early so she didn’t panic if the school was to call her.

Nick: I’m not feeling too well. The school have sent me home, just in case you’re alerted on Life360 that I left xx

Mum: Are you okay, Nicky? Do you want me to come pick you up? Xx

Nick: No, I’m fine. The walk might do me some good. I’ll see you in a bit xx

Mum: OK, darling. See you when you get home xx

He couldn’t stomach telling her the real reason he’d left school. She’d bombard him with 101 questions and he didn’t really feel up to thinking on the spot. The walk home wasn’t overly long, roughly about 20 minutes, and Nick was grateful for the cool breeze in the autumn air that helped clear his head.

Nellie was at the door as soon as he walked in, her wet nose nudging against his legs for a welcome hug. 

“Hi, Nellie girl,” he cooed, bending down and scratching up and down her fur. Nellie’s front paws lifted and rested against Nick’s bent thigh as she placed her head on Nick’s arm. She had a sort of doggy sixth sense when it came to Nick and his moods; she always knew when he was down or needed a little hug. 

“Nicky, is that you?” Sarah called from the kitchen. Nick placed a quick kiss on Nellie’s head and then stood up to kick off his shoes and place them on the shoe rack by the door.

“Yep, it’s me,” he shouted in response. He hung his coat above the shoe rack and padded into the kitchen, where his mum was making a cup of tea. The kettle had just boiled and she was pouring the hot liquid into two nearly identical mugs. The only difference was that one had an ‘S’ and one had an ‘N’.

Nick had lived in this house with his mum since he was born. Nellie joined the family during Nick’s fifth Christmas when Sarah rescued her from a shelter and gave her to Nick as a Christmas present. Sarah was always buying Nick extra things at Christmas, mostly to make up for him being an only child living with his single parent mum. He had never met his dad and Sarah never liked to talk about him, but when she did it was never highly of him. Nick and his mum had a special bond – he was a right mummy’s boy and he wasn’t afraid to admit that. 

Sarah placed the steaming hot mugs on the table where Nick had just sat down, taking a seat next to him. She blew on the liquid in an attempt to cool it down, but still took a sip anyway.

“So, how was school?” She asked, reaching for the biscuit jar that sat in the middle of the table. Nick traced the ‘N’ on the mug with his finger, totally unaware that his mother had spoken to him. “Earth to Nick!”

“Sorry, what?” he replied, shaking his head as if to clear it.

Sarah watched him, his sweet and gentle face was squashed with worry. “I asked how school was, but now I’m starting to think that was the wrong thing to be worried about. Baby, what’s wrong?”

Nick didn’t know where to begin. Today had been a lot for him. Finding out that someone he cared about had gone missing and that at least one of his friends blamed Nick for that. Nick took a deep breath in and then out again. He hadn’t known he was crying until Sarah reached across and wiped at his cheek.

“A boy at our school has gone missing. He- he was in the year below a-and everyone was just so mean to him. Harry was so mean to him,” he started as Sarah clasped her hand around his. “He was outed last year, I don’t really know how but as soon as Harry found out, that was it. He said so many nasty things about him, calling him different slurs. I should have stopped him, mum. I should have been there for Charlie.”

Nick was really crying now, his face was soaked from his tears. He wiped at them with his blazer sleeve but as he did, new tears started to roll down his face. 

“You can’t blame yourself for what happened to that boy,” Sarah offered, rubbing small circles into Nick’s hand with her thumb.

“Charlie, his name is Charlie.”

“Sorry, Charlie. It’s not your fault that he ran away. If what you’re saying about Harry is true, then to me, that sounds like it’s Harry’s fault, not yours.”

His mum was right – it was Harry’s fault. But Nick couldn’t help but take part of the blame. If he had stood up to Harry and told him to fuck off like he’d wanted to for a long time now, then Charlie might still be here. 

“I can see the cogs turning in there,” she tapped his forehead with her finger. “Talk to me.”

So he did. He told her, in depth, about the things Harry would say about Charlie when he wasn’t around and the vile things he would say when Charlie was around. He told her about the last PE lesson he had and how Harry almost had a fight with Charlie and had Nick not stepped in, Harry would have decked Charlie. Then he explained the assembly and lunch with Charlie’s friends. Sarah listened, not once interrupting him and still rubbing soothing circles onto his hand.

“So, yeah. I think Tao still hates me but for the same reason I hate myself,” Nick finally finishes his rant. “Because I could have stopped this. I could have made a difference.”

Sarah brought Nick in for a hug. It was awkward with the angle they were at but it still felt motherly and warm. She kissed the top of Nick’s ginger locks and mumbled quietly against him. “You did everything you could, considering you don’t know him, Nick. He might have always planned to run away that day, you just never know.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” he sniffled, wiping his nose on his sleeve. This blazer will definitely need a wash, he thought. “I just- I hope he’s okay.”

“I hope so, too,” she squeezed Nick’s shoulder affectionately. “How about I pop down to Tesco to grab some ingredients and we can bake some of your pumpkin cookies you like to make and we'll drop them round to the Springs? Let them know we’re thinking of them, eh?”

Nick smiled for the first time since, well he can’t remember when. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

Sarah returned the smile and rubbed his arm. “I like that idea, too. Now, why don’t you go upstairs and get changed and then chuck your uniform in the wash. I’ll put it on when I get back.”

Nick nodded, taking a sip of his tea. It was cold now. After nearly 20 minutes of crying to his mum, he wasn’t surprised. He rose from the chair and tipped the tea down the sink, ignoring the screams from the Brit inside him about wasting tea like that.

His mum left the room and came back with a leashed Nellie and a few bags for life. “I tell you what, how about I take Nellie with me and then you don’t have to do it later. I’ll let you off for this one day.”

“Thanks mum!”

“You’re welcome, darling. Now go and get changed, and maybe prep some of the stuff you need from the cupboards. I won’t be long.” Nick bent down to kiss her on the cheek and then Sarah and Nellie were off, leaving a solemn Nick behind. 

He went upstairs and changed out of his uniform as Sarah requested, putting on a pair of shorts and a jumper over his t-shirt. Nick never really got cold, hence the shorts, but if his mum caught him in summer clothes in the middle of October, she would berate him.

Skipping down the stairs, he walked back into the kitchen and threw his uniform in the wash. Hopefully it would be dry by the morning as he only had one blazer (the other was victim to a terrible fountain pen incident). He searched through all the cupboards for the bowls, jugs, and mixers he’d need to make his infamous cookies. 

Firstly, he washed his hands and then lined a baking tray with greaseproof paper, putting it to one side ready for when the cookie dough was ready to be added. He lightly rinsed all the utensils, only because they had been sitting in the cupboards for a while. Nick hadn’t baked in a long time. Sarah used to bake with him every weekend whilst he was growing up, so he got pretty good at it. Since he started his GCSEs, he didn’t really have time to dig everything out and start baking except for when he was stressed. At those times, Sarah would find him covered from head to toe in flour or batter.

The doorbell rang loudly, scaring Nick and making him jump a little. He wasn’t expecting anyone and his mum picked up her keys before she left. He walked to the front door and peeked through the spyhole to check who was knocking.

A tall, bulky man with no hair and a black bomber jacket stood on his doorstep, stepping from foot to foot restlessly. Nick opened the door slightly, and bent his head round to talk to him. The man looked up at him with concern.

“Can I help you?” Nick asked.

The man looked behind him quickly and then stuttered “Are you Nick Nelson?”

How did this man know his full name? What was he doing here?

“Er, yeah. Why?”

“Oh, thank god,” the man breathed a sigh of relief. “It’s your mum, she’s taken a fall in the park. I was out walking and I found her lying on the path with your dog, Nellie, is it?”

Nick knew better than to trust a random stranger but this man knew his name and his dog’s name too. His mum wasn’t accident prone but he had just dropped some heavy stuff on her. Maybe she wasn’t paying attention, or her ankle gave way? Or maybe it was Nellie chasing Ziggy the cat again, she had almost pulled him down last week chasing after him.

“Oh my god, is she okay?” he asked, pulling the door open widely.

The man rubbed his hand over his head. “I don’t know, she screamed out in pain and then I found her and she said she didn’t have her phone so she couldn’t call you. I said I’d come and get you so you could help her back. She told me your address and I ran straight here.”

Nick started to panic. His mum was hurt and lying somewhere in pain – he needed to get there and help her. 

“Okay, give me two secs. Let me get my shoes on.” His instincts kicked in as he ran into the kitchen and picked up his phone, pocketing it into his shorts while he chucked on his old pair of Vans. He grabbed his keys off the side table and locked the door behind him.

The man rushed him down the driveway and onto the road. Nick was so grateful for this random man coming to find him. 

They walked a minute up the road to a small alley that led them to the park. As they neared it, the side door of a white van slid open and a man in a balaclava jumped out. It was all done too quickly for Nick to react. The man threw a bag over Nick’s head and shoved him hard against what he assumed to be the floor of the van.

Nick struggled against the men, who were fighting to get Nick’s hands behind his back. Victorious, they tied Nick’s hands together with a cable tie and then lifted the bag off of his head. His eyes adjusted to the torch light that shone in his face. Standing before him were two large figures, now donning black balaclavas. He was fairly certain the man who lured him from his house was one of them, but it was too dark to see their clothing. 

“Do you know how fucking hard it’s been to find you?” one of the men spat towards him. 

Nick was incredibly confused. Did that mean they had been looking for him? Why? None of this made sense.

“I-I don’t know what you want or what you mean, b-but my mum’s hurt. I need to see her. P-please just let me go?” he pleaded, his voice wavering as he spoke. 

The evil laugh of one of the men sounded around the van. “Oh you’re just as dumb as the other one. I don’t know where your mum is, sweetcheeks. That was just a ploy to get you out of the house. I saw her and your stupid fucking dog on their way out of the house. We’ve been following you for a while, you see, so we had to be certain you were alone in that big ol’ house of yours. Got to say, this job was far easier than before.”

“Before?”

“Enough from you.” Even with his face covered and the bad lighting, Nick could tell that he was rolling his eyes. The other man handed him a roll of tape, which he cut a piece off with his teeth, and placed the strip over Nick’s mouth and then cut off an even larger piece. 

“We’re going to have so much fun with you,” he snarled and then wrapped the tape around Nick’s eyes, sticking the ends down on the back of Nick’s hair. Nick screamed behind the tape, wishing and hoping that anyone would hear him. They wouldn’t, he was in the back of a van with his mouth taped closed but it was worth a try.

The only thing Nick could do was cry. Cry and think. He was sitting in a dirty van, with his hands tied tightly behind his back and two men staring at him, and he had no idea why he was there. 

He cried, thinking about his sweet mum and Nellie who have no idea where he is. He locked the door before he left so it wouldn't look suspicious, but he did grab his phone and put it in his pocket.

A lightbulb lit in Nick’s head. 

Nick tried to angle himself so the two men wouldn't be able to see what he was attempting. With no sight, it was going to be tricky. Judging by where they were sitting before they taped his eyes, he might be able to get away with it.

He bent his knees towards him, his pockets opened wide and his phone fell out beside him. He screamed behind the tape again to cover up the loud thunk of the phone dropping to the metal floor. He waited for a moment to see if they had heard it drop. Once he was sure they hadn’t, he shifted again, swivelling his body so his tied hands were able to reach down and pick up the phone. 

Nick wouldn’t be able to do much with it, not being able to see and everything, so he squeezed the lock button and the volume button together, then blindly swiped midway down the phone, hoping he’d swiped the emergency call button.

He hadn’t.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite get that,” the robotic voice came.

“What the fuck was that?” said the angry voice of one of the men. Nick’s breath hitched as he tried desperately to hide the phone. The other man pulled Nick from his spot and pushed him gruffly against the floor, leaving the phone lying idle where he was sitting. “You fucking scumbag, you had this the whole fucking time?”

Nick mumbled something against the tape, then a fist connected heavily with his head. He felt woozy just from that one blow. His thoughts were fuzzy and his stomach began to churn. The sound of his phone smashing under a foot pulled him back and then he was heaved from his side to a sitting position. 

“I swear to fucking god, if anyone has been following us, you die. Your friend dies. And then we’ll definitely edge your dad out of his hole,” the man growled. 

What friend? And his dad? He doesn’t even know who his dad is, he just knows his name and that he left when Nick was seven months old.

There was another fist to his head and now he really was spinning out. He could feel the blood pour from a cut on his temple and roll down his face.  One final blow to his head was all he needed for his mind to go black and his body to fall to the side, unconscious. 

★

Nick woke up abruptly, his head that bent to the side now shot up straight. His eyes and mouth were still taped shut, his head was pounding, and his mouth was drier than the desert during its peak. The only difference now was that his hands were tied to the arms of the chair he was currently sitting in.

“Oh good, he’s awake,” a new voice echoed through the room. He assumed it was a room because it definitely wasn’t the van anymore. The man whose voice it belonged to walked nearer to Nick; his face was so close that Nick could feel him breathing. Without notice, the tape was being pulled off his mouth. Nick stretched his lips and gulped down a large amount of air.

“Please, I don’t know what you want. Just let me go, I won’t say a word to anyone,” Nick begged. His head was still spinning from the punches and the fresh oxygen that reached his lungs. 

The man close to his face scoffed. “Like I’m going to believe that you wouldn't run off to your father and tell him everything. You’ve already seen the face of Steve and god knows who else. So then what happens, he’ll come after us and all this will be for nothing.” 

Nick felt the cold metal of something pressed into his forehead. If he wasn’t mistaken, it felt like the muzzle of a gun. Inches away from his head, one pull of the trigger away from blowing his brains out.

The muffled scream of someone came from behind him. He could be imagining it – he was severely dehydrated and confused right now – but there were definitely footsteps walking from before him to the noise in the back right of the room. 

“Someone shut him up, this is my time on the floor,” the man said. He must have gestured toward the noise because another pair of footsteps headed that direction. “Actually, you know what? Bring him here and open this one's eyes.”

Now Nick was really baffled. He waited for a man to grab him but it never came. What did come was the tape being ripped from his eyes, painfully pulling out tiny strands of hair from his eyebrows and eyelashes and larger chunks from his golden locks, and the whole room came into view. In front of him were two men, one with an eagle tattoo on his neck and the other was the guy who took him from his house. Behind him was a scuffle. Nick turned his head to look at what it was but was jerked back by his chin to face forward.

“Who said you can look around,” the man with the eagle tattoo spoke up. He was the one who’d done all the talking in the van and after he woke up. He must be the leader, Nick thought. 

All of a sudden, the two men from behind threw something down on the floor at his feet. He didn’t dare to look out of fear he would be manhandled again. It wasn’t until the man with the eagle tattoo bent down and pulled the thing up by its hair. His hair. Those dark brown curls Nick would notice in a crowd of people.

Eagle man had his gun now pointed at the head of…

“Charlie?” Nick whispered, his eyes started to water from the sudden overwhelming terror he felt in his tummy.

Charlie couldn’t speak. His mouth was taped up, much like Nick’s had been, but his face spoke all the words Nick needed to know. Charlie’s blue eyes were crying too, his pupils dilated in fear. His forehead was covered in dry blood that stained the whole of the right side of his beautiful face. His hands were tied in front of him and the only thing keeping him upright was the manly hand that had a grasp of his hair and the gun pointed at his temple.

“Oh, you two know each other?” Steve asked looking between the two boys. 

Nick said nothing. Charlie said nothing. They were both crying. Plus, Nick had said his name, so it was obvious that they knew each other. 

“Here’s what’s gonna happen. We’re gonna let Charlie boy here go back to his little nest in the corner and you’re going to sit there and look pretty until the boss comes to see you, got it?”

Nick’s eyes flickered onto Charlie, who was nodding profusely. He must know that eagle man is talking to Nick, but he answered anyway. Eagle man pushed the muzzle of the gun harder against Charlie’s skull, waiting for Nick to respond. 

“Yes, yeah! I understand, just please let him go,” he pleaded. Eagle man dropped Charlie to the floor where he lay unmoving. Eagle man reached down and grabbed the tape that covered Nick’s eyes before and reapplied it. 

He chuckled, “Now one of you can’t see and the other can’t speak. Charlie boy, explain to Nicky here what will happen if he takes off his blindfold. Have fun you two! The boss is very much looking forward to seeing you, Nick.” His voice lingered on the k. 

And with that, the door slammed shut leaving him and Charlie alone in the room together. 

Chapter Text

Friday 20th October

Charlie’s time in The Room had not gone as quickly as he’d hoped. After he was left there, staring at a picture of him and Nick Nelson, no one came to visit him. His hands were bound in front of him now, so at least it was easier to move around.

He picked up the picture and hid it under the mattress, just in case someone came back to get it. He wasn’t sure why he wanted to keep the photo, especially after being mistaken for Nick Nelson, but maybe it was a nice reminder of what the outside world will be like once he gets out. If he gets out.

The gang of idiots assumed he was Nick Nelson. The thought made him laugh a little. He wasn’t sure how anyone could confuse a scrawny, skinny, dark-haired boy for a bulky, ginger oaf like Nick Nelson.

Charlie couldn’t help but feel a little angry towards Nick, too. What the fuck was Nick’s dad up to that would warrant someone kidnapping him? Surely you would know if your dad is some dodgy gang leader? He wanted to be furious with Nick but he couldn’t. Not only because Nick wasn’t here right now but because he was probably going to be here imminently and therefore put through similar torture that Charlie had endured.

Charlie peeled off the tape from his mouth and scrunched it up into a tiny ball. He threw it against the wall, into the corner of the room before walking around to discover the fine living quarters he’d be residing in for god knows how long. 

Firstly, the mattress in the corner was only big enough for one person. Charlie hoped that, if Nick was really going to be his cellmate soon, the very friendly gang members outside would splash out and find another old mattress at the local dump because he sure as hell wasn’t going to share it with Nick.

Secondly, the toilet and sink that sat in the opposite corner to his new bedroom needed a bit of TLC. He turned on the taps and not a single drop fell from the faucet. Typical, Charlie thought. I’ve always wanted an ensuite and they can’t even get that right. The toilet was like something from a horror movie. Well, so was his life right now, so that comparison didn’t really mean anything. There was a half-used roll of toilet paper ( who the fuck had used this toilet?) and a cracked mirror above the sink. Charlie stared at himself for a brief second, taking in his surprisingly pale skin. He’d only been missing for what could only be a few hours, but he was already looking worse for wear.

On each wall were a couple of industrial-sized hooks that sat wonkily about 6 feet from the floor. At a guess, they looked like coat hooks but why would they be spread so haphazardly around the place? Charlie wasn’t sure but breezed over them anyway.

Between the mattress and the toilet, there was a small, rectangular glass window on the wall with a little hole in it that someone had tried to cover with a block of wood. That would be a potential problem with the days getting colder. The window wasn’t overly big but it could definitely fit a teenage-size human through it. Charlie made a note to take a closer look once the men had left after their next visit. 

That was it for the tour of his five-star luxury hotel room. Charlie dove, body first, onto the mattress to test it out. It was old and it smelt, so it wasn’t going to be the best night’s sleep, but he’d take it.

He bent his arms under his head and rested it lightly atop them, as if they were a pillow. Charlie closed his eyes, hoping this day had all been a dream and he would soon wake up at 6am to his baby brother screaming for him to come downstairs to watch Paw Patrol on the telly.

But it wasn’t a dream, and Charlie was suddenly woken up by someone screaming at him.

He wasn’t sure how long he’d been out for; it could have been minutes, hours, or days. What Charlie did know was that Baldy had one hell of a mouth on him. Charlie’s eyes flung open as he felt two strong hands pulling him up and off of the mattress and down onto the chair in the middle of the room. 

Baldy was in his face, shouting something at Charlie’s half awake state. “I didn’t say you could take the tape off, did I?” When Charlie didn’t reply, a hand went to Charlie’s hair and yanked hard. “Did I?” he spat, his face mere millimetres away from Charlie’s.

“N-no, I’m sorry. I didn’t think. I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he whimpered, raising his hands to surrender. The man let go of Charlie’s hair but his hand remained there on instinct. 

Eagle joined Baldy in front of Charlie with a bottle of water in one of his hands. “See, we were going to give you this but I don’t think you’ve behaved well enough. What do you think, Ste?”

Baldy, or Ste, grinned evilly toward Charlie. “I think you’re right, Jay. Maybe we should teach this little shit a lesson on basic manners.” Charlie’s head was pulled back again, as far as it could go, and held in place by Ste. Ste pried open Charlie’s mouth, keeping it wide with his thumb and index finger gripped tightly around his jaw. 

Charlie couldn’t see much, except for Ste’s upper half and the ceiling; he was completely unaware of what Jay was up to. He heard the loud crinkle of a bottle and the lid dropping to the floor. When Jay came into view, the now-open bottle of water tipped and poured into Charlie’s open mouth.

The water kept pouring, deep into Charlie’s oral cavity and spilling out and over the rest of his face. At the angle he was held, he couldn’t swallow any of the water. Charlie struggled against the two men, squirming under their brute force, trying to end his slow torture. Ste’s grip was strong, not once faltering as Charlie tried to break free of his grasp. 

As the bottle slowly emptied, Ste threw Charlie’s head forward. Charlie gasped heavily, coughing and sputtering, trying to regain more oxygen back into his body. Ste and Jay were rounding to the front of Charlie, who was cowering back in his seat. 

“I’m sorry, please. I won’t do it again. I’m sorry,” he cried, tears stinging his eyes as they laughed at him. Suddenly, a fresh piece of tape was thrust onto Charlie’s mouth, removing his ability to talk again. He didn’t know where the tape had come from; he was certain none of them came in with it. 

Then Ste produced something he thought he would never see in his life. A gun was pointed at Charlie’s head, the ice cold muzzle sat forcefully against his skull. “You do anything like that again without our permission, these bullets won’t only go through your skull but we’ll make sure they go through every single one of your family’s too, do you understand?” he gritted through his teeth.

Charlie nodded frantically, obeying the man that held Charlie’s life in his hands. “Good boy,” he praised. Ste raised his hand holding the gun and brought it down hard against Charlie’s head. Hot, red liquid dripped down his face from a cut in his hairline and his eyes became droopy. 

His head was pounding and his vision started to blur from the searing pain emitting from the spot where he had just been hit. The last thing he saw was Ste and Jay laughing to each other as they closed the door behind them.

★

Sunday 22nd October

The next time Charlie woke up, he was laying on his side on the mattress. He was certain that he was being beaten in the chair in the middle of the room before he fell asleep, so how did he end up on the mattress? The thought of these people being able to come and go in this room without Charlie knowing made him uncomfortable. 

His stomach grumbled, tearing him away from the thought. His bladder was full, so he stumbled over to the toilet and relieved himself. Luckily for him, his hands were still tied in front of him, so it was a lot easier to pee than he thought. He sat back down on the mattress and stared out at the sky through the window. 

Being in this room made him lose all concept of time. He wasn’t sure if he had been in here for days or hours. Time seemed to speed up when he was awake but he was never sure about how long he was out for, especially when he was knocked out by Ste and Jay. 

He thought about how much he missed seeing the sky in person. Charlie loved being outdoors. Whether he was going for a run or sitting in a park with Tao, Elle and Isaac, the outdoors naturally called to him. 

Charlie didn’t want to think about his friends and family too much. He’d cried a lot in such a short space of time and he knew he’d definitely need to save some for a later date, but he couldn’t help but shed a few tears. He wished desperately that his mum and dad would be out looking for him. That Tori would be at home looking after Olly and when she wasn’t, she would meet up with his friends to try and figure it out. But what was there to figure out? There’s nothing to suggest he was taken. 

Charlie was startled from his reverie as he heard the door unlock and one of the men whose name Charlie didn’t know brought him a sandwich wrapped in cling film. Charlie could have sworn the man smiled at him sadly but he wasn’t certain. The man nodded in acknowledgement and then traipsed out of the room. 

Charlie was a little hesitant to eat something that wasn’t store bought because who knows what could be inside – it could be laced with anything. But, despite his worries, his stomach needed something to line it. He peeled open the cling film and removed the top slice of bread to check the contents. 

It was just a shoddily-cut cheese sandwich, Charlie could work with that. He took a small bit of the sandwich, chewing it slowly yet thoroughly as if not to upset the growl in his belly. Another two bites later and he was full, his brain and stomach telling him he was done. He rolled the sandwich back in the wrap and tucked it under the mattress, along with the photo. 

He’d thought about maybe flushing it down the toilet, it wasn’t very appetising anyway, but he knew he’d quickly regret it in a week when he inevitably wasn’t fed and almost blacked out from hunger.

Charlie’s mind wandered back to the sad look the man had on his face as he walked in and gave him the food. Did he feel sorry for Charlie? Was he even meant to give him the sandwich? It did look like a bit of thought had gone into it, especially considering the conditions he was being left in. Surely a bunch of oversized thugs wouldn’t go out of their way to make food for their prisoner?

A yawn erupted from Charlie’s mouth and he was suddenly extremely grateful he wasn’t gagged. Sleeping wasn’t a thing that happened in The Room; it was more close your eyes and hope for the best. Sleeping was also the only thing you could do in the room, except for taking a beating and just trying to survive, so Charlie laid down on the mattress again and did just that. 

★

Monday 23rd October

Charlie was woken again by the door opening and slamming loudly against the wall, except this time the group of men made no effort to be quiet. They weren’t really the quiet type, but this was the first time he was woken by them entering the room. 

Charlie rubbed gently at his eyes, brushing the sleep out of them and adjusting them to the light. When they finally started to focus, Charlie watched the sight before him. Jay and another cronie dragged someone into the room and shoved them down into the chair in the middle. They did the same routine to them as they had done to Charlie - cutting his hands out of the cable tie and taping them to the chair. Except this time, their eyes and mouth were covered with the same tape as both of their hands. 

Charlie wasn’t sure if the person in the chair was Nick Nelson. It looked like him from the build and the hair, but even Charlie was mistaken for Nick, so maybe this person wasn’t him either. But would they really make the same mistake twice?

Jay, Ste and the other man, who Charlie had yet to be acquainted with, loomed over maybe-Nick like they had never seen another human before. One of them said, ‘Is it really him this time?’ to which another replied, ‘of course it fucking is because I was in charge this time’. All three of them laughed, jeering and shoving at Jay, whom the dig was obviously aimed at. 

Another man entered the room but Charlie was too scared to look up and see who it was. The last time Charlie looked around without permission, it had earned him a tight grip in his hair and he’d really like to get out of there with most of his curls intact. 

“The boss is an hour out, so hopefully this fucker will wake up in time,” the unidentified fourth man announced. Out of his peripheral vision, Charlie could see Jay picking Nick’s head up by his hair and then letting it go, Nick’s head lolling against his chest. 

What was it with these men and pulling hair?

Charlie was terrified of them. The fact Nick was unconscious can only mean his kidnapping wasn’t a smooth one. He felt sorry for Nick, who would eventually wake up with probably the world's worst headache, depending on how he was knocked out. 

“What about this one?” The third man asked, walking over to Charlie and bending down in front of him. He stared at Charlie like he was a piece of art in a gallery, sitting there and asking to be ogled. 

“Gag him. We’ll deal with him later,” Jay replied. Just as he threw the tape, Nick stirred, taking all of the attention of the room. 

“Oh good, he’s awake,” Jay chimed, edging closer to Nick. Nick tried to plead with Jay, asking to be freed and in return he would stay silent. 

Oh Nick, Charlie thought. That isn’t going to work with these lunatics. 

Charlie looked up just as Jay unhooked the gun from the back of his belt loops. He gasped loudly, repeating ‘no, no, no, no’ over and over again. He tried to stand up and reach out to Nick to warn him but it was too late, the gun was pressed up against Nick’s forehead. 

Jay ordered the fourth man to silence Charlie and so he tried, ripping off a fresh piece of tape and attempting to place it over his mouth. Charlie wouldn’t give up without a fight. He backed away slowly, laying down and hiding his face in the mattress so he couldn’t be gagged. 

But the other man was incredibly strong. The fourth man pulled Charlie towards him, holding his arms in place. Charlie still wriggled, trying his best to break free of the man’s grip. Another man had joined now, noticing the struggle that was going on between them. 

“Fucking hold him down, H,” the fourth man asked. H pinned Charlie’s arms against the mattress, whilst the other man firmly covered Charlie’s mouth with the tape. He grabbed hold of Charlie’s hoodie and dragged him over, pushing him to the floor in front of Nick. 

Charlie tried to lay as still as possible, hoping he wouldn’t be tossed about, but it didn’t work. Jay pulled Charlie into a half-squat, half-standing position by his hair and exactly eye level with Nick. Nick looked scared and why wouldn’t he be? He’s just had a gun thrust at his head and he was being held hostage, just like Charlie was. If Nick was feeling anything but scared, then Charlie would have a tonne of questions. 

Nick stared directly into Charlie’s eyes - those stunning cerulean gems he had come to know and love. But Charlie ran away? Why was he here? His face was caked in dry blood. How had innocent Charlie gotten mixed up in… whatever this was? A sudden burst of dread rose in his stomach at just how real this all was and that he and Charlie had somehow ended up in this mess.

Charlie could see the moment Nick recognised who he was. His eyes grew bigger, filling with water, his pupils dilated and his mouth fell wide open. “Charlie?” Nick whispered, taking in Charlie’s appearance. 

Jay noticed Nick’s reaction and pushed the gun against Charlie’s head. He asked if they knew each other but neither of the two boys replied. They were both in some state of shock. Or was it denial?

Charlie was crying now. Warm, salty tears dripped down his face and onto the floor under him. How had his life brought him to this? Was he not doing well and that’s why he’s here? As a punishment?

Jay was talking to Nick but Charlie wasn’t paying attention, his ears tuning in and out of the conversation. He nodded out of habit, agreeing to anything the man with a gun pointed at his head wanted. The gun was pushed harder against Charlie’s temple and then Nick spoke, shouting his response.

“Yes, yeah! I understand, just please let him go!” Nick begged.

Jay let Charlie fall to the floor in front of Nick. Charlie dare not move, not wanting to anger them further. He heard Jay moving above him somewhere near Nick, and then he and his cronies headed towards the door.

The door slamming shut was extremely loud. Maybe it was because Charlie’s senses were heightened from having just had a gun held to his head. He lay at Nick’s feet, frozen in fear with how this gang had so easily taken two teenage boys from the same neighbourhood and no one even batted an eyelid. There were so many books and films written with these kinds of scenarios, but never in a million years would Charlie have thought this would have happened to him.

Charlie let out a quiet sob behind his gag, but not quiet enough that Nick hadn’t heard it. 

“Charlie? Are you okay? Please tell me you’re okay?” he asked. Nick couldn’t see with his eyes blindfolded but he was looking down in Charlie’s general direction. His voice was gentle, even after everything he’d been through. Charlie wanted to talk to him, to let him know he was okay for now, but he was scared of what would happen if the men were to walk in and catch him without his gag on.

He carefully peeled himself off of the floor and sat crossed-legged next to Nick. Nick could hear Charlie moving, so that was a good sign at least. 

“Charlie?” Nick asked again but this time his voice quivered from the impending cry that threatened to make an appearance. Charlie slowly reached out to Nick’s bound hand and began to trace letters on his skin. The gesture was awkward with his hands tied, but he tried his best to make it as distinguishable as possible.

Nick flinched at the sudden touch, but Charlie continued. 

I’m okay

Nick’s head faced his hand as if he was watching Charlie write on his skin. “Oh, thank god. What happened? How did you end up here?” 

Nick waited for a response but Charlie didn’t speak, too afraid of the consequences if he did. “You can speak, y’know. Just take off the gag.”

Can’t, Charlie wrote hurriedly.

“Why not?” Nick asked. Even behind the blindfold, Charlie could tell Nick’s brows were squashed together with confusion. He looked toward the door as if to check if it was safe, then continued to trace on Nick’s hand.

Hurt me. Bad.

He paused for a second, waiting for Nick to understand. Charlie wasn’t sure how much to share, considering he was in this mess because of Nick, but he was in this with Nick after all. Charlie would have to squash all negative thoughts about Nick. 

Scared.

That was probably the first time Charlie had admitted to feeling that way since he got here. Even to himself. Sure, he felt a little uneasy and unsure of what to do, but once he admitted he was scared, there was no going back. 

The sound of voices echoing through the corridors beyond the door startled Charlie back into his corner in the room. He sat anxiously on the mattress waiting for the men, to whom the voices belonged, to burst through the door and initiate more torture for him and Nick.

The Boss and his goons fell into the room, acting a little odder than before. When The Boss first came in to see Charlie, he was stone-faced and filled with anger. Now, he seemed lighter. Not happier, but carefree, so to say. Perhaps it’s because the person he really wanted was here and in front of him, but something in Charlie’s gut told him that wasn’t the reason.

“I can’t even see his eyes and I know it’s him,” The Boss slurred. He sauntered over towards Nick and removed the tape from his face. Nick winced, probably from the hair that was just ripped from his head. 

“Ah, there he is. Nicholas. Fucking. Nelson. Do you know how hard it’s been to plan this? And then when Jay took that curly-haired fucker over there instead of you, I almost lost my shit. But, now you’re here! And I plan on doing everything it takes to unearth that scumbag you call a father,” he continued, wiping the spit he’d fired during his rant off his chin.

Nick shook his head. “I-I don’t know who my father is. You have the wrong person.”

The Boss forcefully slapped Nick across his cheek, jerking Nick’s head sideways towards Charlie. Charlie bit back a gasp, praying no one would hear and punish him for it. That is going to sting , Charlie thought. 

“Do not fucking lie to me,” The Boss snarled through gritted teeth. He was inches away from Nick’s face, glaring furiously into Nick’s eyes. Nick could smell the vile scent of beer lingering on his breath and forcing its way into Nick’s nose. The smell almost made him gag. 

“I’m not lying! I don’t know who he is. All I know is that his name is Stephane. That’s it, I promise,” Nick cried as a small sob left his mouth. 

The sandy-haired man laughed cruelly in Nick’s face. “Again with your fucking lies,” he spat, reaching into his pocket for his gun and placing it against Nick’s jaw. “You’re the reason he up and left. He took everything from me. My business, my family, my life. All because he wanted to reconnect with you.”

Nick’s breathing quickened. “Please. I’m telling you the truth,” he sobbed, a plethora of tears rolled down his face. “I haven’t spoken one word to him in my life and I don’t want to reconnect with him. He is nothing to me, simply a sperm donor, that’s it! I-I just want to see my mum. Please let me see her.”

Charlie felt a pang in his chest for Nick. Did he really not know his father? This man was pretty adamant that he did. Or that he was in some sort of contact with him. 

Jay walked behind the blonde-haired man and whispered something into his ear. The boss's face turned from one of joy and peace to one of pain and anger. 

“Free him from that,” he gestured to the chair Nick was currently sitting in, his eyes met Charlie’s blue ones. He tilted his chin towards Charlie. “Ungag him too. But tie that lunks hands back up. Find them some food and water. I’ll be back tomorrow. I need some time to… think.”

And with that, the man was gone. 

Ste walked over to Charlie and yanked the tape from his mouth, whilst Jay walked over to Nick to cut his hands from the chair and re-bound them in front of him. The two brawny men walked toward the door without muttering a word. As Jay walked over the threshold, Ste reached for the handle to close the door. 

He paused briefly before turning back and glaring at the two boys. “Don’t think you’ve got away lightly. Dino will be back later to have some fun dealing with you.”

Nick and Charlie let out a simultaneous sigh of relief. Nick rubbed his face with his jumper sleeve; sweat, tears and blood stained the grey fabric. The cold air was more noticeable now that Nick was aware of his surroundings. There wasn’t much to the room – just a mattress and a toilet – but Nick wasn’t worried about that. His focus was now on the other boy, who had his arms slung around his bent knees which covered his chest. His head was buried into the tops of his knees and he was physically shaking from head to toe.

Nick walked over to the boy and carefully sat down next to him. He didn’t want to overcrowd Charlie since he clearly wasn’t in the best of states, but he wanted Charlie to know he was there for him. That they were in this together.

“Charlie?” Nick asked gingerly. Charlie didn’t respond. Nick reached out a hand to rub assuringly against Charlie’s arm. As soon as his palm touched Charlie, the smaller boy flinched, his back almost colliding with the wall behind him. 

“Please, don’t…” he pleaded, recoiling away from Nick. He was confused, not knowing how to act. Can he trust Nick? 

“Shit Charlie, I’m so sorry. I should have thought,” Nick sputtered, backing away from Charlie and sitting at the far end of the mattress. Nick's heart hurt seeing that beautiful soul, crushed and defeated; cowering away from him. Like Nick was the enemy. 

But wasn’t he? The guy had said Charlie had been taken instead of him, but what did that mean? Nick had no idea, but maybe there was one person who would.

Nick gently shifted toward Charlie again, but decided not to get too close so he wouldn’t be overwhelmed. 

“Charlie, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I’m sure I’ll find it out another way, but…” He paused, thinking meticulously about what to say next. He didn’t want to trigger anything for Charlie, but he desperately wanted to know why Charlie was here. He continued, “How are you here? Why are you here?”

Charlie didn’t move. He didn’t want Nick to see him like this: Mid-panic attack and vulnerable. Because that’s all he really was, wasn’t it? Weak. Fragile. Feeble. That’s all anyone had ever known of him. But Nick’s words were gentle and soft, like he was talking to a friend in need. Does Nick consider him a friend?

Charlie peered out over his knees, trying to decipher the look on Nick’s face. It was full of pain and hurt, yet also kindness and sorrow. 

Charlie had deeply misunderstood this boy.

He untangled his knees from his arm and reached under the mattress. He felt around for the photo and pulled it out, handing it to Nick without a word. 

Nick stared at the paper he had been handed, trying hard to understand it. It was a picture from a PE lesson and he and Charlie had been circled in red. Charlie was only just in the circle, but he was still there, standing behind Nick. 

“I- don’t understand. Why would they take both of us, if it’s my dad they want to get back at?” Nick asked with a frown, looking back up at Charlie, who was now sitting cross legged facing Nick. 

Charlie took the photo back from the confused boy and looked at it himself. “It was a mistake,” he said finally. 

Nick’s heart started to race at the sound of Charlie’s voice. It was a lot more hoarse than usual, probably from the days of endless screaming. He couldn’t get caught smiling at the sound of Charlie talking, not here and definitely not now.

“The boss gave those idiots this picture to take you, but they took me instead. The circle wasn’t clear enough, so they thought I was Nick Nelson. They took me from outside my house whilst I was taking the bins out. They beat me… kicked me in my legs and stomach, all because they thought I was you. Then the boss came in, almost had a fit when he saw it was me and not you.” He stopped for a second, letting the conversation fully digest in Nick’s brain. Nick looked like he was about to cry; his eyes were thick with tears and his bottom lip was starting to wobble. 

“I’ll be honest, I don’t know what I’m still doing here now they have you. I guess it’s only a matter of days until they get bored of me and do - I don’t know what,” he admitted. Charlie had been thinking about this for a while. What would happen to him once Nick actually turned up in this room with him? It can’t be good; after all, he is no relation to Nick or Stephane. 

Nick looked up at him at that - his dark, brown eyes fixed on Charlie’s pale, blue ones. Nick unconsciously reached out to Charlie’s bound hands and took them in his. Charlie felt the urge to back away but he didn’t. There was just something about Nick he couldn’t quite put his finger on.

“I won’t let that happen to you, Charlie. I promise. I will do everything I can to convince them to let you go, okay?”

Charlie broke eye contact with the older boy, his gaze now focused on their joined hands. “Please don't make promises you can’t keep, Nick. Especially not now.”

Nick knew his words weren’t meant to sting as much as they did. Charlie was right; he couldn’t promise Charlie would be safe, or that the gang of imbeciles wouldn’t do anything to him, but he felt the need to do something . Nick was the reason Charlie was in this mess after all, even if Nick didn’t truly understand what the mess was. 

“Fine, no promises. But, on my life, I will do everything in my power to protect you.”

Charlie felt that in his chest. The overwhelming feeling that he mattered to someone. He hadn’t felt that in a long time; not from someone who was obliged to care for him. He felt it from Tori and from his friends, but no one outside of them. 

Charlie’s mouth pulled upwards into a miniscule grin. This was the first time Nick had seen Charlie’s face do that in a while, even whilst he was at school. Nick felt butterflies in his stomach at the movement. He wanted the feeling to go away, but it wouldn’t; a sudden burst of light bloomed in his chest. Charlie was smiling because of Nick, even under these miserable circumstances. 

The door behind Nick creaked open and the two boys jumped away from each other. Through the door walked the man from the day before who had handed Charlie the sandwich, this time with a tray holding a plate and a bowl. The plate homed 2 slices of plain bread that were definitely moments away from sprouting mould, and the bowl was half-filled with water. 

The man placed the plate and the bowl in front of the boys and then backed away, picking up the tray and heading towards the door. Before he could leave, Nick spoke up. 

“Thank you,” he said, gesturing to the food. The man turned back into the room and looked at the boys with pure sadness. Nick almost thought the guy was going to tear up.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I tried to sneak in some cheese but they wouldn’t leave the room. They insisted you drink from the bowl, too. I don’t know if I’ll be able to sneak away again to bring you things, but if I can then I will. Store them under the mattress so they don’t see.”

And then he was gone, the door locked shut from the outside. Charlie knew this man wasn’t like the other men; he had an aura about him that wasn’t evil in the slightest. Charlie watched as Nick tucked into his slice of bread, ripping off tiny pieces and throwing them perfectly into his mouth. 

“You can have the other slice. Who knows when we’re going to eat again. Though, he seemed different to the other men. Have you seen him before?” Nick asked, tearing off another piece of bread.

The thought of eating was not appealing to Charlie in the slightest, especially not day- or potentially week-old stale bread. “I’m okay, you can have it. He brought me a cheese sandwich yesterday, or maybe it was a few days ago? I can’t remember, the days all merge into one when there’s nothing to do but sleep or get beaten.”

Though it wasn’t funny in the slightest, Charlie huffed a laugh. Nick, however, didn’t reciprocate. He just watched the boy as he sat back against the wall and Charlie’s face drained of all its colour. Nick’s appetite was no more, not whilst Charlie was upset and not eating. He got up from his spot and walked over to the toilet. He ripped off a few sheets of toilet paper and knelt down in front of Charlie. He carefully placed the leftover bread inside the tissue and wrapped it up neatly. He wedged it under the mattress, just as the man had told him to do. 

As he lifted the corner, the remnants of Charlie’s cheese sandwich came into view. Nick reached down and investigated the wrapping. 

Charlie felt awful. Not only from lying to Nick about eating the sandwich, but now because Nick had found the evidence that Charlie had lied to him. 

“This cheese sandwich? That has two very small bites from it?” Nick asked. Nick didn’t sound angry. Nor did he sound disappointed. It sounded like he was concerned.

“Um… yeah, I guess it is…”

Charlie looked away in embarrassment. He knew he should have just flushed it; that would have saved him from the awkward conversation that would follow. 

Nick folded the sandwich back up and tucked it away with the photo and the slice of bread. He climbed back onto the mattress and sat shoulder to shoulder with Charlie, who was still avoiding his gaze.

“Have you eaten anything since you got here?” Nick asked. At least he was going down the nicer route of calling him a freak.

Charlie shook his head. 

“So before you were taken, when was the last time you ate?”

Charlie had to think really hard about the answer to that. He didn’t know what day it was, so he couldn’t give exact timings, but he thought back to that Friday before PE when he was sat at lunch with Isaac and Tao. He had given Tao his sandwich because Tao was complaining about his own lunch. Charlie hadn’t eaten anything that lunch break. He promised Tao he would eat something before PE, but the anxiety of changing in a room full of boys who all thought he was coping a look made him forget.

“Um, I had a few mouthfuls of weetabix before school on Friday. I gave my lunch to my friend that day because he didn’t have any,” he lied, trying to make his excuse a little more believable. “And then I missed my family dinner that evening, so I guess it’s been a couple of days.”

Nick’s eyes widened in shock at Charlie’s admission. He hadn’t eaten in days and yet he was still standing. Well, not physically, but metaphorically. 

“Charlie, you know I was taken on Monday afternoon, right? It’s at least Tuesday morning by now. You’ve got to eat something.”

It had been four days? That can’t be right. Charlie felt uneasy knowing that all the days have melded into one big day. And he hasn’t felt hungry at all in those four days, so maybe he should eat something?

But, Charlie had heard this all before with his mum. Except, his mum wasn’t kind about it. She forced him to eat until he was sick. Until Tori had shoved their mum away from him and taken him up to his room so he could calm down.

Panic welled up with Charlie’s body. His heart rate started to quicken and his breathing became erratic. He didn’t want to eat, he didn’t need to eat. He just wanted to go home. To be with his family. To not live in fear that tomorrow may be his last day on this earth. The sudden realisation of what was happening dawned on him, not helping with the situation. 

He gasped for air, trying to inhale as much as he could but failing. His vision started to blur; all he could see was the blue blob of what used to be Nick Nelson. 

“Charlie, breathe with me okay? We breathe in for three, we hold it for four, and then we breathe out for five. Do this with me, okay?” Nick pulled Charlie’s hands to his chest, settled above Nick’s heart. Nick made exaggerated breaths in and then out, urging Charlie to do the same. 

Charlie felt like it had gone on for ages, his chest rising and falling deeply. In reality, it had only been 10 minutes. Nick had sat with him, holding Charlie’s hands on his chest and breathing with him the entire time. Not once moving. Not once taking his eye off of Charlie.

As Charlie’s breathing evened out and his senses started to come back, Charlie could finally hear Nick’s encouragement. 

“That’s it, Charlie. You’re doing so well, I promise. You’re doing great. Just keep breathing with me, follow my breathing. That’s it.”

When Charlie felt grounded enough, he fell forwards onto Nick’s shoulder, the soft muscle there creating a comfortable pillow for him to lean against. Nick spun Charlie’s hands round so Nick was now grasping them in his. 

They sat in companionable silence, just being with each other. Nick didn’t want to force Charlie to speak before he was ready. Not after what he’d just been through. 

“Thank you,” Charlie finally broke the silence. He raised his head, his watery blue eyes catching Nick’s as he did. 

“It’s alright. Are you okay now?” Nick knew he wasn’t, but he just wanted to check.

Charlie took a deep breath. “You just never think these things will ever happen to you… when you see them on TV.”

Nick scoffed. “Yeah, I totally get that.”

Nick moved from his crouch in front of Charlie to sit back down next to the curly-haired boy. Nick hated himself right now. Charlie had had a panic attack because of him. Because of the situation Charlie was in because of Nick. With the food and the kidnapping. 

This was all Nick’s fault. 

“I can tell you’ve gone into your head. You wear your emotions too well. I can see it all over your face. Please don’t tear yourself up about that – it happens a lot,” Charlie confessed.

“I’m sorry, I just can’t help but blame myself. You’re here because of me. You had a panic attack because I kept pushing you about your food. I’m just- I’m not good for anyone.”

Charlie swivelled in his spot, so he was facing Nick. “I promise you, none of this is your fault. You didn’t order them to kidnap me and you were concerned about me eating. I don’t blame you, Nick, so you shouldn’t either.”

Nick pondered Charlie’s words. He was right; it wasn’t his fault, but he couldn’t help the niggling feeling in the back of his mind. “I promise I won't beat myself up about this whole situation, if you promise me one thing?”

“What?”

Nick chewed on the inside of the corner of his mouth. “Promise me that every morning you’ll at least try and eat some bread with me. We need to keep our strength up if we have any chance of making it out of here.”

Charlie thought for a second and then nodded, smiling back at Nick. “I promise to eat something every morning with you.”

“Good,” Nick replied, smiling too. “Now, do you think we should get some sleep? It’s pretty dark outside, so it must be getting late.”

Charlie mulled over their sleeping situation. There was only one small mattress and two of them. It’s not that he felt uncomfortable sleeping with Nick; he was a little worried Nick wouldn’t want to sleep with him . 

“You can take the bed,” Charlie offered, making a move off the mattress to give him room. 

Nick shook his head. “Absolutely not, you’ve been here longer. You have it. And that’s an order.”

Nick pulled Charlie back onto the mattress and then climbed over him onto the floor. He placed the plate gently onto the chair to give Charlie enough room to get comfortable. The last bit of light that bled into the room through the window disappeared and cast the room into complete darkness. Nick nestled onto his side, next to the mattress. He didn’t want to move too far away from Charlie, purely so he could feel his presence next to him in the night. 

It didn’t take long for him to drift off, using his bound hands as a makeshift pillow. Luckily for Nick, he ran warm so his shorts and jumper weren’t putting him in too much of an inconvenience. Just as he thought he was close to falling asleep completely, a chattering sound came from above his head on the mattress. He raised himself up onto his elbows and studied the sound that came from Charlie.

He was shivering. Nick didn’t think it was too cold, but Charlie was physically quivering in his sleep. He was curled up into a ball, trying but clearly failing to preserve his body warmth. 

Nick thought about taking off his jumper and handing it to Charlie, but he couldn’t – not with his bound hands.

“Charlie, you’re shaking,” Nick stated into the darkness.

“N-no, I’m f-fine,” Charlie replied.

Nick sat up as the words left the other boy's mouth. “No, you’re not. You couldn’t even finish your sentence.” He thought about how he could help. How he could somehow fix this shitty problem they were being dealt with. 

He had one idea, but he wasn’t sure Charlie would agree.

“Would it be okay if I came up there with you and we huddled together? I run warm, so I could help.” Nick asked, wincing as he waited for Charlie’s answer.

Charlie would normally have said no, not wanting to make Nick uncomfortable, but Charlie was freezing. There was no way he would be able to sleep like this. 

“O-okay,” he murmured through his chattering teeth. “But only i-if y-you’re comfortable with t-that.”

Nick didn’t respond. Not verbally anyway. He got up from his spot on the floor and huddled close to Charlie’s back. He raised his arms above his head and told Charlie to shuffle backwards so Nick could wrap his arms around him. Charlie obliged and Nick settled his arms around Charlie’s stomach.

“See, I told you I run warm and I’m wearing shorts,” Nick huffed a small laugh. 

“What k-kind of idiot wears shorts this time o-of year?” Charlie joked, shuffling back closer to Nick. If they were in different circumstances then Nick would be freaking out about this - having his crush extremely close to him, in a bone-crushing embrace - but he couldn’t think about that right now. The only thing he could think about was keeping Charlie warm. 

Keeping Charlie safe.

Nick felt Charlie relax against him, his breathing becoming shallow against Nick’s chest. 

“Goodnight Nick,” he whispered into the mattress. 

Nick smiled into Charlie’s back. 

“Goodnight Charlie.”

Chapter Text

Tuesday 24th October

Waking up next to Charlie was a slightly surreal feeling. Having fallen asleep with his arms wrapped around the smaller boy and his hands tied together meant there wasn’t room for movement. In fact, from what Nick could tell, there hadn’t been any movement at all. Charlie was still lying in the same position as he was when he fell asleep: his head tucked up close to Nick’s chest, with his own bound hands resting in the gap between his chest and Nick’s stomach, and their legs naturally twined together.

Nick’s neck was a little sore from the awkward angle his head had been positioned at during his sleep, but he didn’t mind. Nick was guilt-stricken that Charlie was here because of him, the least he could do was make sure that Charlie was safe and as protected as he could be. As long as Charlie was comfortable, that’s all that mattered to Nick. 

Truthfully, Nick didn’t want to think about Charlie in here alone when it should have been Nick in the first place. Charlie stirred in Nick’s arms, his breath hitching as he regained consciousness. 

~~

Charlie felt the warmth radiating off of Nick; his ice cold legs were now lukewarm and his arms felt somewhat normal pressed against Nick’s chest.

“Morning,” Nick whispered, his voice husky from not speaking for hours. Charlie tilted his head to look up at Nick, whose face was glowing despite the circumstances.

Charlie had never found anyone as attractive as Nick before, but there was just something about him that defied everything he’d ever believed up to this point. Nick could have a tattoo of a naked woman on his thigh and he would still consider him attractive.

This wasn’t the way I thought I’d wake up, Nick’s face looking at me like that, but I could get used to it. In better circumstances anyway, Charlie thought before immediately shaking it from his mind.

Charlie gazed at him, completely engrossed in the golden locks that hung from his head. “Morning. I didn’t bother you, did I? Laying on your arm and being so close to you?” 

“I mean, my neck will definitely have a crick in it and my arm has lost all feeling, but that’s okay, I don’t mind,” Nick answered, wiggling his fingers to get some sensation back into his right arm. 

Charlie felt a bubble of guilt brew in his stomach. How selfish could he be making sure he was comfortable and not caring about Nick? “Oh god, I’m so sorry,” he babbled as he tried to scramble out of Nick’s grip. 

Nick pulled him closer, ignoring the other boy’s attempt at wriggling away. “Charlie, It’s okay. I really didn’t mind. It felt kinda… nice. It kept me grounded. I can’t imagine what your first night was like in here.”

Charlie’s fingers traced the outline of the logo emblazoned across the front of Nick’s jumper, feeling comforted by the empathy in Nick’s tone. “It was okay,” he said quietly. “I was just so cold. It didn’t help that I was soaking wet.” Nick looked at him curiously, so Charlie continued. “I took the tape off and they came in and found me without it. They pulled my head back and poured water into my mouth. I couldn’t breathe. I thought maybe they were trying to kill me.” 

Nick gaped at him and Charlie could see the disbelief on his face. “They did that to you because you took a lousy piece of tape off your mouth?” 

Charlie ignored the question, ploughing on through his retelling. “They kept pouring and pouring but I couldn’t swallow any of it. I tried so hard but I couldn’t. I thought I was going to stop breathing there and then. The bottle was only a small one, but it seemed to last for ages. I was so scared, Nick. I’m still so scared. They can do anything they want to us and we have to obey them. We’re probably going to die here because no one will know where we are,” Charlie cried as panic sped up his rant. “I can’t die here. I don’t want that to happen, Nick.”

Nick’s head pressed closer to Charlie’s and his arms circled him in a comforting embrace. The hug from Nick felt like the best thing Charlie had experienced in days. He felt protected, like Nick would try to keep him safe from the whole world and all the bad shit it kept throwing at him. Charlie melted into the hug, his panicked breathing slowly evening out. 

~~

“Our families are looking for us, I’m sure of it. Tori doesn’t think you’ve run away. She, um.. She’s actually pretty adamant that something has happened to you. Now that… that I’m missing too, maybe she’ll kick their asses and they’ll look deeper into it.”

Nick heard Charlie sniffle below him. He wasn’t full-on crying, but he could feel Charlie's breathing, unsteady against his chest. He squeezed Charlie tighter, rubbing a comforting hand across Charlie's back.

Fuck sake, Nick. He’s been captive for days, you can’t just throw that at him and not expect him to break down over it. 

“I’m sorry, I keep fucking up. Of course you wouldn’t want to hear about your family. I’m being so insensitive right now”

“No s word. You’ve been saying that a lot since you got here,” Charlie said, wiping the hot tears from his freezing cheeks. Nick saw him look at the tears on his fingers in surprise, as though he wondered how he was able to still produce them. How much had Charlie been crying? How much water had he been given to drink? How long until he wasn't even able to make the tears to cry anymore?

“Yeah, well, I have every reason to say it. It’s because of me that you’re here. I owe you a lifetime of apologies,” Nick replied. 

It's true, Nick thinks to himself; he owed Charlie his whole life for putting him in this position. He was going to get them out of this, and when he did he was going to spend the rest of his life making it up to this heartbreakingly beautiful boy. No matter what it took, he decided he's going to make it right. 

Nick’s eyes were avoidant, looking anywhere but into Charlie’s. "You don't owe me that,” Charlie said. “You didn't do this. Anyway, I don’t think I’ll have much of a lifetime left. Not now they've got you." He paused, seeing the stricken look on Nick's face. 

Nick didn’t want to think about Charlie not making it out of this. His nose burned from the impending tears he could feel welling in his eyes. 

"Don't,” Charlie said. “I see you feeling guilty and I can't let you feel that way. I can't bear it. If something happens to me, please try to remember that this is not your fault. Tell me about my family, please. You talked to Tori?"

So Nick told him. 

He didn’t have much to share with Charlie, considering they both went to a different school than Tori, but Nick hesitantly told him about the lunch he’d shared with his friends and sister.

Charlie giggled through most of the story, gasping when Nick told him about the dreaded 8 +2’s that Tao had incurred in the second game. 

Nick hoped that this was actually helping Charlie instead of making him feel worse. He could see the love Charlie had for his sister and friends, and he was glad he could share that they'd comforted each other during this difficult time. All he could do is hope to keep Charlie's spirits up enough to make it through until they can get out of there. 

Maybe once they were free, Nick could be part of Charlie's group of friends. He'd wanted that for a long time, and he wished again that he'd been brave enough to approach Charlie before they'd found themselves in this situation.

Hopefully Nick would be there. Right beside Charlie. Nick and Charlie against the world. 

Nick started to tell Charlie that he and his mum were going to bake something for Charlie’s family when the squeak of the heavy door rattled them from their spot. Charlie curled further into Nick and Nick pulled him protectively closer.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” Ste snickered. Nick could hear the footsteps of two men but he couldn’t see their faces with his back to them. Very quickly, there were two hands on Nick’s back, yanking them apart from each other. 

Ste dropped Nick unceremoniously to the floor where he cowered in on himself. 

“Get the fuck up and kneel or it will be that twat that we punish,” Ste ordered, pointing at Charlie. Nick obliged, forcing himself to his knees in front of Ste. Nick could finally see that the other man in the room was H, who was walking purposefully towards Charlie.

Nick could almost see Charlie's brain working through his options, trying to decide if he should fight or if doing what they say would be the best option. He was too late, though – H was too close for Charlie to have any real options.

H pulled Charlie roughly from the mattress and dragged him next to Nick, where Charlie assumed the same position: sitting on his heels with his knees bent and his bound hands lying idly in his lap. 

Charlie and Nick shared a worried glance and then looked back down at their hands. Nick edged towards Charlie so their arms brushed slightly, reassuring the younger boy of his presence. Though the gesture was mostly for Charlie, having the smallest bit of contact helped Nick, too.

“Didn’t peg you for a poofter, Nicky,” Ste jabbed. “I mean, Charlie boy here looks the part, but you? I have to say I’m shocked.” Nick cringed at the use of the nickname his mum calls him.

Ste stood in front of Charlie and grabbed his head backwards by his hair. “What’s wrong, gay boy? Didn’t expect us to walk in on you and your boyfriend here?”

Charlie shook his head. “H-he’s not my boyfriend. Nick’s not gay…”

Nick felt that in his chest. He was drawn to Charlie unlike the ways he was drawn to his other friends so hearing Charlie say that Nick wasn’t gay made his glimmer of hope shatter in that second.

“Yeah?” Ste asked, jerking Charlie’s head to face Nick. “Then tell his face that.”

Nick wasn't sure what expression he had on his face, but he tried to school it into something neutral. This was absolutely not the way he'd wanted to come out to Charlie.

Charlie was thrown forward, landing sharply against Nick’s side as he tried to balance himself. Ste circled the pair, stopping just in front of Nick. The look on Charlie’s face told Nick that Charlie could see the gun hidden between Ste’s shirt and his jeans. A moment later, Ste had removed the gun from his waistband, casually waving it around as he spoke.

“You see, The Boss is away today. He’s on some very important business,” he rambled, circling the boys again. “So me and H get to have some fun with you, how does that sound?”

The room was silent except for the tapping of Ste’s shoes on the concrete floor as he paced. Neither of the boys wanted to speak, too afraid that one wrong word would cost them or the other a bullet to the head. 

“I see, we’ve lost our tongues have we? Perhaps we’ll find them again after a little game,” he snarled, pointing his gun at Charlie’s head. Charlie remained silent, his eyes trained on the gun. His body was shaking from head to toe. Wanting to protect Charlie somehow Nick edged even closer to Charlie, so slowly that he hoped Ste and H couldn’t tell. 

“Eeny,” he called, pointing his gun closer to Charlie’s head. 

“Meenie,” now the gun was moving towards Nick. 

Nick could feel his heartbeat racing and it felt like his brain was pulsing in his head. His breathing quickened as he worked out who the rhyme would end on.

“Miny.” The gun was back on Charlie. Nick knew what was coming next, and he closed his eyes when he saw the gun slowly headed back toward him. 

Tears rolled down his face when he felt the gun pushed against the front of his skull. 

He took one large, deep breath. 

Suddenly, he felt himself being shoved harshly to the side.

“NO!” he heard Charlie scream as he was pushed out of the way. Nick looked up at Charlie, whose face was frozen with shock. 

No, no! Charlie, why did you do that?!

Nick could tell Ste was fuming. He didn’t think the bald man was actually going to pull the trigger; his finger was nowhere near it and Nick was pretty sure the safety was still on, but Charlie’s act of defiance had not gone down well with Ste.

Ste’s pupils were solid black and full of rage. An angry vein popped prominently from his forehead. “Oh,” he chuckled darkly. “You’re gonna regret that, you little fuck!” Ste lunged towards Charlie, who had a clear read on the situation and was already attempting to crawl away from him, but not with much luck. 

Ste was on him fast, his chunky hands in a vice-like hold on Charlie’s hood. The collar of the hoodie tightened around Charlie’s throat as Ste dragged him by the hood to the mattress, cutting off his airway. Nick watched in horror as Charlie clawed at the hoodie, in what appeared to be a desperate attempt to alleviate the pressure that was choking him.

Nick bolted up straight, attempting to run over to the pair to stop Ste, but H was there, forcing him back into a kneeling position with a gun pointed at his head. 

“Oh no you don’t! You’re going to sit there and look pretty. Enjoy your front row seat to the show,” he snarled, crouching behind Nick and covering his mouth tightly with his grimy hand. 

Charlie reached his hands out to Nick, who could do nothing but sit and watch. Nick knew that if he made any sudden movements towards Charlie, that gun would be firing straight into his head. A warm string of tears billowed from his eyes, blurring his vision of what was happening in front of him. 

The younger boy was coughing and gasping for air as the hold around his neck loosened and he was thrown violently against the mattress. Ste sat himself on Charlie’s chest, constricting the bound arms beneath him. 

~~

Ste lowered his face to Charlie’s; the stench of day-old alcohol and cigarettes lingered on his breath and stained the inside of Charlie’s nose. “You think you’re a tough guy, huh? You think you can get away with shit like that?”

Charlie didn’t respond, but a stream of tears fell from his eyes, pooling at his ears. Ste’s clenched fist collided with the side of Charlie’s face, and a bitter sting tingled along his skin. Charlie’s head jerked to the side with the impact and then recoiled back to its original position, staring directly into the angry eyes of the man above him. 

Charlie didn’t regret pushing Nick out of the way. Yes, it was a stupid thing to do, but Nick didn’t deserve the game that would have been inflicted upon him. So, Charlie decided to take matters into his own hands. 

Another punch to his face broke him from his thoughts; this time the knuckles of Ste’s fist met Charlie’s right eye and eyebrow. 

“P-please… stop,” Charlie sobbed, his chest aching from the weight of the man atop him. 

Ste’s mouth curled into an evil grin. “Oh I’ll stop,” he began, cracking his knuckles in front of him. How stereotypically gangster of you, Ste . Charlie would have rolled his eyes if he wasn’t scared for his life right now. “I’ll stop you breathing, you piece of shit.” 

And with that, Ste’s meaty hands were covering Charlie’s mouth and nose, blocking any and all air from entering Charlie’s small body. Charlie struggled against Ste, the panic and adrenaline welling up inside him, giving him a surge of energy and strength to try and pry the bigger man off of him. 

Charlie gave everything he could to push Ste off of him, but he couldn’t. Charlie’s eye’s darted to the right to catch a glimpse of Nick, who was squirming against H in an attempt to break free and stop Ste.

~~

Above Nick, H spoke, “Ste, come on man. We can’t kill him, you know what The Boss said.”

What did the boss say, Nick wondered. Does that mean Charlie is safe from being killed by them?

“Ste, if you kill him then we will never get anything out of this one!” H shouted, pleading for his colleague to let the boy go. Ste’s face was red from anger, but H’s words seemed to jolt something in his head. He didn’t release his grip on Charlie – not until Charlie’s attempt at freeing himself stopped abruptly and Ste let go, the head of curls slumped to the side facing Nick.

Charlie’s eyes were closed and his mouth gaped open slightly from where he was attempting to suck in any air he could get. Charlie’s whole body was motionless. Nick wasn’t sure whether Charlie’s chest was still rising and falling through the haziness. 

A pained cry emitted from Nick’s mouth behind H’s hand. Ste rose from Charlie’s still body and walked over to Nick. “He’s lucky the boss wants you both alive, otherwise your little cuddle buddy would be nothing more than a stuffed teddy. Pass on a little message to him when he wakes up, will you?” Ste growled, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. “If he dares try anything like that again, then I will kill him and I’ll kill you, too. Got it?”

Nick nodded aggressively against H’s hand and whimpered, desperately yearning for Charlie to be okay. The door unlocked behind Ste, and Jay walked in with a balaclava in his hands. He took one look around the room: at Charlie laying limply on the mattress, H sitting behind Nick with his hand over Nick’s mouth, and Ste standing face to face with Nick.

Jay frowned, confused. “What the fuck happened here?”

“Walked in and found these two gay boys having a right ol’ time. Then this one,” Ste said, walking over to Charlie and kicking his foot. “This one decided he wanted to be a hero. Had to show him who’s boss, didn’t I?”

Jay took in Charlie’s body. “He better not be fucking dead. The Boss will end you if he is.”

“Relax, he’s just having a little nap, isn’t he Nicky?” Nick mewled as more tears fell from his eyes.

“He better be,” Jay snapped sharply. “Come on, leave them alone. We’ve got a job. We need to be out of here in five! I’ll be in the van and if you’re not ready, I’ll leave you here with Phil.”

Nick watched through his blurry eyes as Jay left the room, leaving him alone with Ste and H again. He hoped acutely that the two goons would leave, leave him alone so he could check on Charlie and make sure he was actually alive, but they lingered as if they knew exactly what Nick wanted to do. 

And who the fuck was Phil? How many more of these lunatics were there? 

Ste grunted in annoyance and marched towards the door with H in toe. Nick didn’t even feel the hand from his mouth leave but he was extremely grateful. “Remember what I said,” Ste grumbled, pointing at Charlie, and then the door was shut between them. 

Nick stumbled hurriedly from his spot and ran the short space between him and Charlie. Nick sat by Charlie’s head and checked if he was breathing, lowering his ear close to Charlie’s nose and mouth, waiting for any sign of life. Thankfully, he was, but very shallowly. Nick pulled Charlie into his lap and wrapped his arms delicately around Charlie’s unconscious body.

Nick cried into Charlie’s curls, whispering into them, hoping Charlie would hear him somehow. “Please, please don't do that again, Charlie. I can’t lose you. I can’t. You’re the only thing keeping me from giving up. Please. Please. I can’t lose you. I can’t lose you!”

As Nick swayed back and forth with the younger boy in his arms, he thought he could almost hear the faint sound of a vehicle leaving from outside his window.

★

Nick hadn’t moved from his position with Charlie held firmly in his arms. Time had passed yet no one had come into the room. Charlie’s face looked peaceful, despite the torture he had just endured. There was a small cut above his eyebrow from the punches Ste had given him, and his eye was starting to paint itself with different shades of purple. His eyebrows lay in a thin line - no worries, no anxieties, just thoughtless dreams.

Nick wished that Charlie could be this peaceful forever. His face was so beautiful when he wasn’t in his head, which was most of the time now. Not just here in this room either. Charlie had been so stressed out for over a year, and Nick once again found himself missing Charlie’s easy smile and bright eyes. He wished he could tell Charlie that, but he didn’t want to ruin this friendship he was building with him. He didn’t want their time in this prison to be spent with unwanted hostility because Nick confessed he wanted more than a friendship. 

When Charlie had told Ste that Nick wasn’t gay, Nick’s heart had almost fallen out of his chest. He wanted so desperately to correct him. To tell him that he might be, or that he might be something, but Nick was a coward. Just like when Harry had bullied Charlie all those times, or when Ste called Charlie the f slur and Nick didn’t speak up to defend him. 

Nick hoped that Charlie would wake up soon. It was a quite selfish thing for him to wish for, but the longer he sat in the silence, the more his brain took him to dark places where he didn’t want to go. He wanted to sit and chat with the boy laying in his arms, and get to know him better. To make him laugh and smile and forget that they were trapped there as hostages. 

He had enjoyed their chat earlier, if any time in this dank room could be considered enjoyable. Obviously, he'd rather their conversation hadn't been about the various ways Charlie had been tormented while these thugs had been looking for Nick, but he liked hearing Charlie's soft voice. Liked seeing Charlie looking into his eyes. Liked feeling

Charlie wrapped up in his arms, as safe as Nick could make him. He wanted more, though. He wanted to get to know the real Charlie Spring, as a friend, not a cellmate.

Nick jumped at the unbolting of the door. He clung to Charlie even tighter, scared that Ste, Jay and H were back from their job and were coming back to inflict more pain on them both. But it wasn’t them. It was the kind man from before with a carrier bag and a fresh bowl of water.

The man’s eye’s latched onto the sight of Nick holding a limp Charlie in his arms and Nick’s eyes widened with fear.

“Oh my god,” the man whispered, closing the door softly behind him and creeping closer to the two boys. Nick tried to back away from the man, scared that he would cause more hurt to Charlie, but as the man saw Nick try to back away, struggling with Charlie in his arms, he halted on the spot. 

“Is- is he okay?” The man asked, bending his knees to squat in front of them.

Nick glared at the man in front of him. “Does it look like he’s okay?” Nick spat angrily. He could feel the tears on the verge of spilling again but he willed himself not to break down in front of yet another piece of trash. 

The man’s face turned paler than it had when he entered the room. He reached out a hand to comfort Nick but the younger boy almost growled in retaliation. 

“I just wanted to make sure-”

“W-why do you care? You lot did this to him,” Nick stuttered against the brown curls that tickled his lips. 

“N-no, I’m not like them. I promise.”

Nick didn’t trust him. Yes, he had snuck them in food and he hadn’t hurt them up until this point, but Nick was sceptical with anyone who came through that door now. He buried his face deeper into Charlie’s hair and closed his eyes, hoping the man would just leave them alone. 

Nick heard rustling from the carrier bag that the man had brought in, but chose to ignore the signs telling him to open his eyes. 

A small sigh came from the man. “My name’s Phil, by the way. I’m sure the others didn’t introduce themselves, but I want you to trust me.” His voice was gentle, not mean and degrading like the others. Nick opened his eyes and saw the man was now holding two paper plates wrapped in clingfilm sitting atop Charlie’s legs - one had a few slices of cheese, ham, and dry crackers, and the other had a handful of custard creams and chocolate digestives. 

Nick looked from the plates and up at Phil. 

“Please,” Phil pleaded. His eyes were blue, but not like Charlie’s. They were a darker blue but they still shimmered with hope and honesty.

Nick unhooked his hands from Charlie and reached for the plates to better inspect them. As he looked over them, Nick smiled into Charlie’s head and nodded. “Thank you.”

“I wrapped them in cling film to preserve them, so you at least have something for the next few days. Keep them hidden under the mattress. If they find them, I don’t know what they’ll do but it won't be good for any of us.”

Nick lifted his head from Charlie’s for the first time since he took up that position. He bit his lip and looked up at the man, confusion plastered all over his face. 

“Why are you helping us?”

Phil looked down at the floor, as though hoping to hide all of the emotions that threatened to show. 

“Because I don’t want to be here any more than you do. Your dad is a monster, but so are they. And, I don’t think you or your friend would be taking such good care of each other through all of this if you were anything like any of them.”

Nick noticed the emphasis on ‘friend’ and wondered what he meant. Other than being caught cuddling this morning, he hadn’t shown any signs that he felt anything other than platonic feelings towards Charlie.

“I have to go, they’ll be back soon and I have to pretend that I’ve been doing something,” said Phil, standing up from the squat he had been in all that time. He smiled sadly at Nick and then headed for the door.

“Phil,” Nick shouted after him. Phil turned back into the room. “Thank you again, for the food and for not beating the shit out of us.”

Phil grinned and nodded his head. It felt wrong to be smiling in a time like this, but something in Nick’s chest warmed at the small slimmer of joy. 

“You’re welcome, but please hide those plates.”

The slam of the door still made Nick jump even whilst he knew it was coming. What he didn’t expect was for it to jolt Charlie awake too. 

Charlie’s eyes flew open and his breathing was suddenly erratic. He clawed at Nick’s arms, thinking they were Ste’s, and small screams left his mouth as he took in his surroundings. He spun in Nick’s arms, trying to break free.

“Hey, hey! Char, it’s me. It’s Nick. It’s just me, I promise,” Nick cooed. Charlie’s wide blue eyes met Nick’s soft hazel ones and Nick watched as the fear slowly faded from Charlie’s handsome features.

“Nick?” whispered Charlie, still a little dazed from his beating. As Charlie recognised where he was, his face screwed up and his eyes began to water intensely. Charlie fell against Nick’s chest and Nick pulled him tighter against his body.

“It’s okay, I’m here. I’m here,” Nick breathed into Charlie's hair, repeating the words over and over like a prayer. “I’m so sorry, Char. I’m so, so sorry.”

The pair sat in each other's orbit for a while.  Nick rocked them both gently as Charlie came down from his panic, neither of them speaking. 

“W-what happened?” Charlie finally asked, looking up into Nick’s face. 

Nick looked down at the smaller boy. “What do you remember?”

Charlie retold Nick what he could, that he pushed Nick out of the way and Ste was trying to suffocate him but nothing after that. 

“That’s pretty much it. After you passed out, they got called away on a job. They’re still on it, I think. I’ve just been sitting here with you in my arms, praying you were okay.”

Nick watched Charlie's face closely. He was biting his bottom lip anxiously, looking anywhere but at Nick. He felt Charlie move in his arms, squaring his shoulders like he was preparing himself to do something that was both difficult and unpleasant.

“Don’t you dare apologise, Charlie. This isn’t your fault. I would have done the same, so please do not say you're sorry.”

Nick wasn’t angry at Charlie, and he hated that his tone was so bitter. He was angry at the gang for holding them hostage and for using them as human punching bags. Not at Charlie for standing up to them and protecting him. Never at Charlie.

“Hey, we haven’t eaten since they brought us those slices of bread. How do you feel about some crackers or biscuits?”

Charlie’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”

Of course, Charlie wouldn’t know about Phil’s visit. He leaned across the mattress and pulled up the two plates the nice man had left behind. 

“The man who keeps bringing us food came just before you woke up. His name is Phil,” Nick informed Charlie. 

“Oh, you’re on first-name terms with our attackers now?” Charlie quipped. Nick knew it was a joke but there was still venom behind his words.

Nick shook his head. “I don’t think he’s like the others. He could have beaten us three times now but he hasn’t. Plus, he keeps giving us food and I really don’t think he’s supposed to be.”

Charlie looked dubious at the prospect that one of their kidnappers was actually a decent guy. Nick reassured him that he thinks Phil could be trusted, at least enough to bring safe food. Charlie agreed that so far he has no reason to believe Phil meant to cause them any harm. Not like the others have, at least.

“I could maybe eat a few custard creams,” he said, eyeing the two plates. 

Nick smiled back at Charlie, his eyes creased in the corners. “You know what, so could I.” Nick unwrapped the paper plate from the clingfilm and picked up the beige biscuit. He watched tentatively as Charlie also picked up the beige treat. 

“Cheers,” Nick sang, holding the biscuit out in front of him.

Charlie scoffed at the silly man above him and hit Nick’s custard cream with his own. 

“Cheers!” Charlie repeated and took a bite out of the biscuit in his hand.

★

Thursday 26th October

The following couple of days were not very eventful. Ste, Jay and H never come in to see them again after they left for their job. That was, until two sleeps later when The Boss had barged into the room, Ste with him. Judging by the darkness outside the window, it was either late at night or very early in the morning. Either way, he had woken both Nick and Charlie from their slumber.

Nick and Charlie hadn’t slept as closely as they had that first night, mostly because Charlie was scared of being found huddled together again and receiving another beating accompanied by a slew of slurs aimed at him. So, when The Boss dragged Nick out of bed by his hair and threw him viciously into the chair, Charlie was suddenly grateful they weren’t tangled together.

Charlie lay as still as possible, hoping that neither of the two men noticed him. 

“I have just got back from a failed attempt to contact your cunt of a father,” The Boss spat. “He was this close to coming until he got a call tipping him off.”

Nick didn’t appear to understand how that had anything to do with him. Apparently these men thought it had everything to do with him though. 

“So now, I’m gonna make you pay…”

Making Nick pay entailed a punch to the stomach, a punch to the mouth and several yanks of the hair until Nick was doubled over in the chair with exhaustion. He was left tied to the chair while the men all left the room. Charlie had a feeling they weren't done though, so as much as he wanted to go and comfort Nick, he stayed where he was. Nick's head nodded against his chest, blood streaming from his injuries, until a while later when The Boss came back. 

This time he had Jay with him, and he was a little more chipper than before. 

“You know what, Nick Nack?” 

Nick didn’t reply, earning him a slap round the face. His head spun quickly to the side from the impact. Charlie found himself now looking directly into his amber eyes as Nick continued to face him, not turning his head back to his attacker. Charlie felt a single tear fall down his face, and Nick appeared to be trying to stop himself from crying too.

“Oh, come on Nick! We’re having a fun little chat aren’t we? There’ll be times to ogle your boyfriend later,” The Boss chuckled, turning Nick’s head back to face him. “That’s right, Jay told me all about what you two get up to when we’re not around. I wonder if Stephane knows that his precious little Nicky is in love with a boy.”

The fight in Nick’s eyes seemed to dim and his body sagged from the lack of energy. Even though he and Nick had snacked on the crackers and cheese Phil had given them, the lack of sleep and the repeated abuse his body was going through meant they were constantly running on empty.

Charlie didn’t want him to give up though. He wanted Nick to be able to see his mum and Nellie again. To give them cuddles and take Nellie out for a walk that maybe he could join them on one day. He wanted Nick to feel safe again.

Nick let out a sob which The Boss simply laughed at. 

“Aww, what’s wrong little Nicky? You worried we might hurt Curly, here?” The Boss walked over to Charlie and pulled him up by his elbow. Charlie let out a quiet sigh of relief as he was picked up by his arm and not by his hoodie or hair.

The relief was short-lived though, as The Boss produced a knife from his pocket and held it to Charlie’s throat, his Adam’s apple bobbed against it.

“You see this, Nick. This is what happens when your dad doesn’t play nice. I don’t play nice.”

~~

The Boss’ hand was quick, moving the knife from Charlie’s throat to the side of Charlie’s cheek. The Boss pressed the blade firmly against the skin, cutting a small laceration down the side of Charlie’s face. The smaller boy let out a toe-curling scream that was soon muffled by the free hand of the blonde man behind him. Nick curled his hands into fists and tried urgently to squirm free of the restraints. 

It wasn’t a deep cut, but the blood that poured from it sure as hell made it seem like it was. The Boss pushed Charlie to the floor in front of Nick and laughed maniacally at the sight before him. 

“Let’s go, Jay. Leave these two to… bond. Curly, be a doll and let Nicky here go, will you?” 

And then the door was locked again. Charlie stumbled to his feet to help Nick out of the chair.

“Char, are you okay?”

“I’m fine, it’s not deep, it just stings like hell,” his voice shook. With one hand now free, Nick raised it to Charlie’s cheek to inspect it. He brushed gently over the cut with the sleeve of his jumper, not wanting to get any dirt from his finger into it and potentially infect the wound. 

“Char, don’t worry about me,” he urged as Charlie fumbled with the other hand. “Go and get some tissue and hold it over it until it clots.”

Charlie raised one of his eyebrows and gazed at Nick. Nick had been calling him that a lot recently; when did that become a thing?

“You call me that a lot, y'know?” he commented, walking over to the toilet and ripping a couple of sheets of toilet paper.

Nick’s ears tinged pink. “Huh?” he replied.

“Char. You’ve said it a few times today and at least a couple of times before.”

Nick hadn’t thought anything of it. Calling him Char felt natural, just like Charlie calling him Nick.

“Oh, I didn’t realise,” Nick lied, finally freeing his other hand and balling up the tape. “I can stop if you wa-”

“No!” Charlie replied quickly. He chewed on his lower lip playfully and watched as Nick squirmed a little. He seemed to come to a decision, a little spark lit behind his eyes as he said, “I like it. It can stay…”

Nick snorted and ran his hands through his hair. It was really greasy right now, and Nick was suddenly very conscious that he was becoming less attractive by the second. He traipsed over to Charlie, who was standing and staring at Nick as he approached. Nick reached up to the hand with which Charlie was pressing tissue against his cheek and gently placed his hand over it, pulling it away from the wound.

~~

Charlie was suddenly aware of how close Nick was to him. He could feel Nick’s breath against his face, the warm air tickling the miniscule hairs that covered it. Charlie’s eyes remained trained on Nick’s until Nick’s wandered over the cut, but Charlie still watched. 

Even though he was in this because of Nick, there was probably no one he would rather be in this mess with. Nick had a heart of gold, the gentleness of a golden retriever and the most authentic personality he’d ever encountered. He’d only known Nick for a short while but honestly, he couldn’t wait to get to know him beyond this.

“Um, it’s all good." Nick said, stepping back. "It's stopped bleeding. You- you can stop holding that against it now,” he informed, avoiding Charlie’s strong gaze. For a moment, Charlie wondered if Nick knew what he’d just been thinking.

“Right, yeah. Thanks.”

Nick walked over to the familiar mattress and settled himself down in his spot. Charlie started internally screaming about the moment he and Nick had almost shared but he had chickened out of. 

“Come on, let’s play 21 questions,” Nick offered as he plonked himself down on the mattress and patted the spot next to him, beckoning Charlie to join him. Charlie took a deep breath before strolling over and taking the seat next to Nick.

“Fine, but you’re going first!”

“Deal. What is your favourite colour?”

★

Saturday 28th October

The first thing Charlie saw as he woke up was Nick’s brown eyes watching over him. He was smiling widely, his nose was flaring gently as he breathed. Charlie smiled back at him with a warm grin.

“Hi,” Nick whispered, shuffling closer to Charlie. The smaller boy welcomed him into his space, threading his legs between Nick’s.

“Hi,” he replied, shifting his head on Nick’s jumper. Jay and Phil had paid the boys a visit before they went to sleep last night. Jay only roughed them up a little bit, but, on request from The Boss, Jay was ordered to cut the tape from their bound hands for the night. 

“For some reason, The Boss wants us to free your hands. I think he's being a stupid twat but what The Boss wants, The Boss gets,” Jay grunted and Phil cut their hands from the tape. Not once whilst Phil was in the room did he look either of the boys in the eye. He remained quiet whilst Jay did all the talking. “But I swear to fucking god, any funny business and I’ll be sure to shave Curly’s hair off strand by strand. Do you understand?”

Visiting hours were over after that and no one had bothered them since. They munched on a few chocolate digestives, and Nick grabbed the mouldy bread from under the mattress and flushed it down the toilet.

~~

Now, Nick had one arm slung protectively over Charlie’s waist and one arm bent under his head for a pillow.

“You only use me for my warmth, don’t you?” Nick chortled as Charlie rubbed his legs up and down Nick’s. Charlie’s legs were freezing, even through his jogging bottoms. Nick instantly wished he had worn a pair of trackies now, if only to give Charlie even more heat.

“What else would I use you for? Your levels of I-spy are pretty shit,” Charlie joked.

Nick stiffened. What else could Charlie use him for? Get your mind out of the gutter, Nick scolded himself. He put on a fake laugh and rolled the top half of his body, onto his back, keeping his legs entwined with Charlie’s.

Before Nick could reply the door creaked open and two men entered giggling. Luckily for Nick, Charlie had already heard them coming and had backed as far away from Nick as he could get. 

Nick sat up and examined the two men before him. Jay and H stood at the door, smiling evilly at Nick. 

“Good morning, Sunshine. Hope you managed to get some rest? You’re gonna need it with what we have planned for you,” H laughed, pulling out something metallic from the duffle bag that Jay had brought in with him. Nick couldn’t see what it was until H was pulling at both his arms and clasping the cold metal around them. 

Somehow these lunatics had upgraded from tape and were now holding his hands together with handcuffs. Jay chuckled behind him as H pulled Nick to his feet with the silver chain that connected each cuff together. 

“That’s it, Nicky. I’m glad to see you’re finally so compliant. Hang him up,” Jay ordered. 

H dragged Nick over to the wall near the bottom of the mattress. Sat above it was a large coat hook, and Nick suddenly knew exactly why they’d switched to handcuffs. H hauled Nick’s arms above his head and wrapped the chain around the top of the hook. The hook was a little taller than his hands could reach, so Nick had to stand on his tiptoes to relieve the pain brewing in his shoulders.

Nick turned his head towards Charlie, who was currently curled into a tight ball, cowering away from the two gang members.

“Don’t you worry about Charlie Boy, we have just the view for him,” said Jay, forcing Nick’s head to the front.

H was hovering over Charlie, who was whispering ‘no, please’ over and over again. H swung the chair round so it was facing Nick, and tossed Charlie down into it. Jay pulled a roll of tape out of the duffle bag and chucked it at H. H ripped off two pieces of tape and wrapped them around his small wrists, pinning them against the arms of the chair.

“Not one bit of squirming from either of you? What’s up with you both?” Jay asked, his tone serious. He looked between Nick and Charlie, who were both staring at the ground, avoiding the evil eyes of the two men.

“Anyway, new game. To celebrate Curly being here for a week, we’re going to take it in turns to give Nick Nack celebratory beats,” Jay explained, all too cheery. “How does Charlie come into this, I hear you ask? Well, he’s going to count after every hit, and if he doesn’t then we start again. Got it, Charlie boy?”

~~

A cold shiver broke from Charlie’s body. He didn’t want to do that, but if he didn’t, Nick would get hurt more, so Charlie nodded. 

Unsatisfied with how Charlie answered, Jay punched Nick hard in the stomach. Nick tried to double over but couldn’t in his position. 

“I said, got it?” 

“Yes! Yes, I got it! I understand!” Charlie screamed. He didn’t know when he started crying, but a stray tear fell into his mouth, leaving a salty taste on his tongue.

Nick was crying too; his head rested against his arm from the impact of Jay’s last blow. ‘It’s okay, It’s okay’ Nick mouthed, trying to console Charlie from afar. Jay’s fist collided with Nick’s jaw, sending Nick’s head sideways.

“O-one,” Charlie whispered through his sobs.

H punched Nick in the stomach. 

“Two.”

Jay’s hand collided with Nick’s eyebrow.

“Three.”

The two men switched up the places on Nick’s body every time. The final blow came from H, who planted one final punch to Nick’s head, splitting the skin and hot, red liquid started to pour.

“S-seven,” Charlie cried. Even more tears had fallen since he had started crying. Nick’s face was all bloody and bruised, and there was nothing Charlie could do about it. H wiped his bloody hand on Nick’s t-shirt and then backed away, looking at their handiwork.

Nick was leaning slightly forward, his weight resting entirely on the chain of the handcuffs. His head was lolling against his chest that was rising raggedly with his heavy breathing. 

Jay chuckled wickedly at the older boy hanging from the wall. “WHOOO!” he cheered, punching his fists in the air. 

What a bunch of assholes, Charlie thought. Who celebrates beating up a 16-year-old kid whilst he’s tied up and can’t defend himself?

“That was better than the gym. H, hang Charlie Boy up over there,” Jay ordered and suddenly H was cutting him from the tape and cuffing his hands, just like he had with Nick. Charlie was yanked from the chair and pushed to the wall opposite Nick. The hook was a little too tall for Charlie, his feet barely touching the floor now his hands were hung above him. 

Jay stood in front of him, tearing off a piece of tape and slamming it against Charlie's mouth. Jay raised his fist, as if to hit Charlie, causing the younger boy to flinch against his restraints. Jay laughed before turning round and placing a badly torn strip of tape over Nick’s mouth. 

“The Boss will be back later, he’s got a little surprise for you both which I think you’ll really enjoy.” H chuckled lewdly. Jay grabbed the duffle bag and he and H left the room, slamming the door behind them.

~~

Nick tried to lift his head to see Charlie, to communicate somehow that he’s alright and that he just needed a second to catch his breath, but all he could hear was the heartbreaking sobs coming from the wall opposite him. 

Chapter Text

Tori felt an immeasurable amount of guilt in her body. She blamed herself for not checking in with Charlie that day, and for leaving him at home when she should have stayed with him, or at least coaxed him out of the house to be with her.

But now he was gone. Missing. And it was all her fault. 

The police were no closer to finding him. Their favourite line was, ‘we’re doing everything we can, but if he’s run away then there isn’t much we can do’. What a load of bullshit, she thought. Charlie was a lot of things - anxious, depressed, and maybe a little cynical - but he was also smart, courageous, and incredibly brave; he wouldn’t have run away at the first sign of trouble and he definitely wouldn’t have left the front door open if he didn’t want anyone to know he was gone. 

The first thing the Springs did as they pulled up in their driveway that Friday was call out for Charlie. With the front door wide open, anything could have happened to him. Julio made Tori sit with Olly whilst he and Jane scoured the house for Charlie. 

“Keep him entertained whilst we look for Charlie please, dear,” Julio had asked her, a small tremble in his voice.

After tipping the house upside down and with no Charlie in sight, they immediately called around Charlie’s friends, but no one had seen him. Tori helped Olly change into a pair of pyjamas and let him pick out a book for her to read to him. Tori didn’t want to be reading a book and ignoring what was happening beyond Olly’s bedroom door, but she didn’t want her youngest brother getting upset with how moody their parents (mostly their mother) were acting.

Olly had chosen a book about a dinosaur pooping a planet that Tori had classed as a ‘good choice’ and they both settled against each other in his bed. She could hear faint shouting from downstairs as she opened up the book and began reading. 

“Danny and Dinosaur liked to have fun,”

‘If I find out he faked being sick just to sneak out, he will be grounded for the rest of his life.’

“Some days they had lots, some days they had none,”

‘Jane, I don’t think he would do that, do you?’

“One day they were bored, they had no games to play,”

‘Well I don’t know, Julio. Where is he then?’

“Danny said, ‘Dinosaur, what shall we do today?’ ”

‘He’s probably just gone for a run, he’ll be back soon.’

“We could mow the lawn. We could tidy the place. We could do our chores or we could go to space!”

‘He bloody better, Julio, or so god help him!” 

But he didn’t. He never came home. The police were called shortly after midnight when there was still no sign of him. Surely Charlie’s phone being on charge in his bedroom was a telltale sign that he hadn’t run away? Charlie never went anywhere without his phone, so perhaps he hadn’t gone far?

Two hours later, a pair of uniformed officers knocked on the door. Julio welcomed them into the living room and offered them a seat on the sofa next to Tori. They politely declined Julio’s offer of tea and immediately began their questioning.

What is Charlie’s full name and date of birth? When was the last time you saw your son? Who was the last to see him? What was his mood like? Could he be staying with someone - a friend or a relative in the area? Has he shown any reason to want to run away? Have any of his belongings been taken or moved? Do you have an up-to-date photo of him for the missing persons report?

All the while, Tori was sitting there stewing. There was absolutely no way that her brother would run away. These people are idiots. All of them. 

The two female officers concluded their questioning and made their way toward the front door of the house. Julio followed them out and thanked them for their time. 

“Maybe now will be a good time to come together as a family. 90% of missing children are found within the first 48 hours but there is always the 10% that Charlie could fall into. We will do everything we can to find your son, Mr Spring,” she stated, standing on the front porch. She reached into a pocket on her vest and pulled out a business card. “If he makes any contact with you, please call us on this number. Try and have a good evening, sir.”

Julio rejoined his family in the living room and sat at the other end of the sofa from Tori, twirling the business card in his fingers. The silence was deafening, the room filled with intense darkness and gloom. 

Tori was waiting for a snide comment from Jane - it’s what she did best - but when a guttural sob emitted from her mouth, Tori sat in complete shock. Julio was at her side immediately, pulling her into his chest and whispering gentle reassurances into her hair. Tori watched through teary eyes as her parents simultaneously cried over their missing child.

There must be no hope if Jane Spring was crying after Charlie had been missing for over six hours. 

But this was Charlie, Tori’s strong and clever little brother.

If anyone could defy all odds, it would be him.

★

Monday 23rd October 

Going to school on Monday was tough for Tori. It was tough any day of the week but it was especially hard for her now. The two uniformed officers turned up on their doorstep early that morning, not with any news but to check in on the Springs and offer them their support.

As it had been over 48 hours and no sign of Charlie, he was now officially classed as a missing person. The officers explained that the Springs would now be assigned a specialised officer, DS Trent, that would be on hand should anything come to fruition. 

The officers were gone before Tori had time to finish her toast. She wasn’t hungry, but she knew she needed to eat something; her day was about to get worse.

Julio gave her a lift that morning – she would usually get the bus with Charlie but Julio didn’t want her to do that today. As they pulled up outside Higgs Girls School, he turned off the ignition. Tori sat in silence, staring blankly ahead out of the windscreen.

“Victoria, we’re here,” her dad informed her, but Tori didn’t move. The moment she stepped out of the car would be the moment everything would change. She would be the talk of the school. Everyone would look at her funny; funnier than people usually looked at her, anyway. Their faces will be filled with sadness and with sympathy and she didn’t want any of it.

Julio reached over the handbrake and dragged Tori into his warm embrace. The two Springs sat hugging each other, being with each other for a few minutes. Tori wasn’t used to this kind of affection, mostly because she didn’t want to partake in such mundane activities, but it felt nice. It felt right.

Tori broke away moments later, saying goodbye to her dad and heading into the school gates. None of the students knew just yet, but the teachers did. She could tell by their pitiful features and the sad smiles they showed her.

She ignored all of them, even her friends who were waving at her and trying to grab her attention. She walked into the reception, passing a few annoying year sevens who were screaming about something Harry Styles had done at his latest concert, and walked straight into her class and to her desk.

Her form tutor was already in there, setting up the classroom so it was ready for the first bell. Mrs Dunn, her tutor, pulled up a chair next to her and slowly leaned forward to talk to her.

“Hi Tori. I’m not going to ask if you’re okay because I know you’re not, but I want you to know that if at any time throughout the day you need to take a break or it gets too much, you can come find me and we’ll go somewhere, okay?”

Mrs Dunn was nice. Perhaps too nice. Tori didn’t mind her; she wasn’t like her other teachers. If she could see Tori wasn’t in the mood for talking, she would leave her be. She did that for most of her students. Some people would see that as her not caring, but Tori saw that as understanding. Mrs Dunn understood that her students may not want to open up all the time, but she always made sure her door was open if they needed it.

Tori nodded at her teacher, smiling gratefully. Mrs Dunn let her be after that, continuing to set up the class and finish her morning planning. Tori didn’t notice the bell ring or her form file in, not until Mrs Dunn was ordering them all to line up so she could take them to a special assembly. 

Mrs Dunn offered Tori the option to stay behind, but she refused. She wanted to see what the idiots she goes to school with had to say about her brother. 

Mrs Lamaire stood at the front of the stage waiting for the final group to take their seats. She babbled on about random stuff that didn’t matter. Tori didn’t care that the year eight’s had a residential trip to Dover next week or that the key stage four netball team had won their game last week against St Phil’s girls school. 

She cared about one person and one person only.

“Lastly, you may or may not have seen the police cars that were stationed outside the main reception of Truham Boys. Unfortunately, over the weekend, one of the students there was classed as a missing person. Charlie Spring has been missing since last Friday after school and has not been seen or heard from since.

As some of you may know, his sister is a student here so out of respect, please keep your gossip outside of school. It must be tough for her, so please show your support for her when you can.”

Tori blanked the rest of the assembly after that. For some reason, she hadn’t expected Mrs Lamaire to name Charlie so now it feels all too real. 

She doesn’t remember leaving the hall or attending her first four classes, but now she was sitting with Charlie’s friends at the picnic table outside of Truham. Tao was rambling on about something a teacher had said to him regarding Charlie and how Tao had stood up and screamed at him for being so insensitive.

Charlie was really lucky to have friends like Tao, Elle, and Isaac. The solidarity they had shown was something she’ll never forget. She’ll have to tell Charlie all about it when he’s home.

A little while later, Nick Nelson had shown up at their table at Isaac’s request. She hadn’t really known him all that well, except for what Michael had told her. Nick had apparently become a little protective of Charlie, fending off some guy that was using him, and standing up to bullies that went anywhere near him.

It was kind of sweet, but still a little weird. 

Tao was yelling at Nick now, getting up in his face and pointing at Nick’s chest, but Nick just took it, not once retaliating.

Nick looked just as broken as she felt. 

“Enough! Can you both shut the fuck up!” Tori screamed. She was shaking and her eyes were beginning to well up for the first time since she found out Charlie was missing. “My brother is god knows where and you two arguing is not going to help.”

Tao backed away from Nick then, like Tori had some sort of power over him. She’d seen him in situations like this before, and it'd take a lot more than a crying girl to pull him away.

“Nick has never been mean to Charlie, Tao. If anything, he’s been sort of protective over him.” 

Tori then explained to the group what Michael had told her, their faces filled with confusion and so many questions that not one of them wanted to ask out of fear of having their head bitten off. She liked having that effect on people, but now wasn’t the best time for an ego boost.

After minutes of ranting, she could feel her shoulders deflating and her heart rate slowing. “And Charlie also told me that Nick stuck up for him last week when Harry tried to fight him. Nick isn’t the enemy here.”

Tori looked around the table and everyone had gone quiet; even Tao. Nick looked like he was about to cry – his hands were clenched into fists to stop himself from crumbling. Tao made the first move, shuffling closer to Tori so Nick could sit down next to him at the end of the bench. 

And he did, dropping his messenger bag to the floor and swinging his leg over the seat of the bench. Elle pulled out a pack of Uno cards and set up a game.

Tori found great pleasure being next to Tao and continuously drawing +4 cards. The rest of the table laughed as she placed down her fourth +4 card of the game.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Tao huffed, pulling four cards from the top of the pile. “She has them up her sleeve, I’m telling you. There’s no way she just has four of them!”

Nick ended up winning that game, despite Tori having the best cards. 

The next game started with Nick playing a +2, followed by Isaac and then Elle. Tori giggled evilly as she placed her +2 on top of Elle’s. Tao banged his fists down on the table in anger.

“WE’VE ONLY JUST STARTED THE GAME! HOW AM I PICKING UP 8 CARDS!”

Luckily for him, he ended up winning that game, jumping in on Nick’s blue seven. He did a victory dance around the table, to which Elle and Isaac booed him.

Tori felt happy for the first time in a few days. She felt optimistic that Charlie would come back to them. As Isaac collected the cards and began to shuffle them, Tori thanked them all.

“I-I haven’t felt so much pain in my life, not knowing where he is, but it helps to have you guys and to know that when he comes back, he’s going to have the most incredible support group. So, thank you.”

Elle rose from her seat and walked around to Tori, pulling her into a warm, loving hug. Tao did the same from the other side. Isaac made his way round and awkwardly hugged Elle and Tao from Tori’s front. She waited for Nick to join but he didn’t. Tori figured he probably felt awkward from the whole thing with Tao, so he stayed back.

Just as Tori was about to say something, Tao spoke up. “You too, Nelson. There’s room for you round the back here.”

Seconds later, Tori felt the bench dip from his movement and then a set of arms embracing her from behind. 

This is nice, Tori thought. This would be even better if Charlie was here.

★

Wednesday 25th October

When Tori walked into school on Wednesday, it started off without a hitch. Becky had waited for her at the school gates, not that Tori had asked her to but she was there nonetheless. Her tutor gave her a smile as she entered the room but left Tori alone for the rest of morning registration.

It wasn’t until halfway through first period maths when Mrs Lamaire had knocked on the door and stood in the doorway. 

“Sorry to disturb you, year 11s, but could I speak with Tori Spring, please?”

The entire class looked round at Tori, their faces expressionless. Tori felt her face bloom pink from the attention. Then it dawned on her: maybe this was about Charlie.

She stood from her desk and walked towards the door that Mrs Lamaire had held open. She stepped outside and then the door was closed behind her.

“Is it Charlie? Have they found him?” she asked with urgency.

Mrs Lamaire looked guiltily back at Tori, as if she hadn’t thought about the consequences of knocking on the door of someone who was eagerly awaiting news.

“Um, no. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have taken you out of your class so abruptly.”

So it wasn’t about Charlie. They hadn’t found him and he was still out there somewhere.

“Will you come with me? Your stuff will be fine, we’ll be back before the bell rings.” She whisked Tori down the corridor, towards the reception and into a room that barely anyone used. Inside were two police officers – not the same ones who had been in her living room a few days before, but still uniformed officers from the same station.

“Hi Tori, my name is PC Diane Jacobs, and this is my colleague, PC Samuel Ibrahim. We’d like to ask you a few questions regarding our missing persons case, if that’s okay?” the woman asked. 

Tori glared at her, confused. “But I already told you what I know about Charlie, I don’t know how much more I can give you…”

“Oh, this isn’t about your brother,” she interrupted. “This is about a new case. Nicholas Nelson was last seen on Monday afternoon by his mother. Have you seen or heard from him since?”

Nick? As in the boy who had spent lunch with them mere hours before he disappeared? The boy who laughed so loudly at Tori +4’ing Tao that he snorted and almost spit out his Fanta?

Tori almost passed out from the news. Her neck was clammy and her ears were ringing; the only sensation she could feel was the touch of someone’s hand on hers, guiding her into a chair. Someone handed her a cup of water, from which she gracefully took small sips. 

When her senses came to and she felt like she wasn’t falling anymore, she looked up at the police officer. “Nick Nelson has gone missing?”

PC Jacobs smiled sympathetically at her. “I’m afraid so. We just wanted to ask when you last saw him and whether this could be in connection to your brother?”

How could it be? Nick and Charlie weren’t friends. Not close friends anyway, so why would Nick run away just because Charlie disappeared? This gave her more reasons to believe that it was suspicious and not at all planned.

Tori told the officers about the lunchtime she’d shared with Nick and the rest of Charlie’s friends that Monday, and how he joined in like he had been friends with the group for ages. She had no reason to believe he had any intentions of running away that evening.

PC Jacobs and Ibrahim jotted down as much as Tori could retell and then thanked her for her time. Once they were done, Mrs Lamaire dismissed Tori back to her Maths class.

When she got there, she tidied up her things and bolted from the classroom. She grumbled something to her teacher about needing to leave and then ran through the corridors. Her legs took her hurriedly out of the school and towards the nearest bus stop.

She couldn’t be in that school anymore. Not today. Not knowing that two people she had recently spent time with had since gone missing.

★

Friday 25th October

Tori didn't want to be at school. Tori didn’t want to be doing anything right now. The only thing she would make an exception for would be to hold her little brother one more time after being missing for a week. 

But that wasn’t going to happen.

DS Trent had asked the Springs to do a press conference that evening, to get Charlie’s picture out in the world so more people know he was missing. They also hoped that Charlie would see it. See the pain that his family were going through and, hopefully, come home. 

So Tori spent another day dodging unwanted apologies and unnecessary condolences and kept her head down. None of her teachers called upon her in classes, nor did they expect any of the work she’d been doing to be completed to the highest of effort.

Tori walked aimlessly from class to class, hoping and praying that Charlie would be okay. That he was safe somewhere. Maybe he was with Nick? Maybe they were together? Helping each other through this. Bonding and becoming good friends.

Tori wished for that, but she knew it wouldn’t be true. 

Tori found it highly suspicious that Nick and Charlie had both gone missing in the same week.. The police were still adamant that they’d both run away. Nick’s mum had informed us that Nick had shut the door before he ran away, but she had gone out to buy baking ingredients and Nick had set up the whole kitchen ready for her to come back. Why would he waste time setting it all up just to run away straight after?

Nothing seemed logical about this whole thing.

The school allowed Tori to leave early so she could get home and prepare for the press conference. Not that she would be saying anything – that would be down to her mum and dad – but the Springs insisted she take the time so they could be together as a family.  

Julio was waiting for her outside the school gates, resting against the bonnet of the car. As she approached, he took a few steps away from the car and gave her a massive hug. He wasn’t much of a hugger, but since last Friday, all he had done whenever he saw Tori or Oliver was hug them. Probably because he felt bad for them. Or, maybe because he felt guilty for never doing it as often when Charlie was there.

Tori peered into the back window looking for Olly, but his car seat was empty. “Dad, where’s Olly?” she asked, stepping away from her dad.

“We’re getting him now. He had a swimming lesson with the school and we thought it would be good for him to do that with his class. He should be back by now,” he informed as he walked round to the driver’s side and got into the car. 

Driving to Olly’s school didn’t take long; it was only five minutes away from Truham and Higgs, so they got there in no time. Olly’s coach was just pulling up as Julio stepped out of the car. He had called ahead to ask the receptionist whether it would be okay to pull him out of school early, to which they agreed. 

Tori got out of the car and stood where Olly could see her. As he jumped off the coach after his classmates, who had made it a game of who could jump the furthest, he caught sight of Tori waiting by the gates.

“TORI!” he shouted and took off running towards her. His tiny curls were still damp from his swim and some of them had even flattened out straight on the top of his head. She picked him up and hugged him close, not letting go of her little brother. 

“How was swimming, Ol?” she asked him, finally dropping him to the floor and kneeling down to his height. Her dad had wandered off to Olly’s teacher, presumably to grab his things and let her know he was taking him early.

“It was so fun,” he squealed excitedly. “We learnt all different types of strokes. There’s butterfly stroke, backstroke and front stroke. They even taught us how to doggy paddle! It was so fun pretending to be a doggy!” 

Tori laughed at him as he reeled off every stroke that his entire class had chosen to show the teacher what they’d learnt. She opened the door for him and helped him into his car seat, buckling the seat belt securely against his small body. She climbed back into the front seat, watching his dad talking to Olly’s teacher. The classroom assistant had ushered the rest of the class into the school, leaving the two adults by the coach.

“Tori?” Olly’s tiny voice asked.

“Yeah Ol?” she whispered, turning round to see his sad little face looking back at her.

“When is Charlie coming back?”

Tori’s heart broke into a million pieces. She was sure Olly was aware that Charlie had gone missing but he’d never addressed it to anyone. Their parents often stayed quiet about Charlie when Olly was in the room, and whenever he wasn’t, they were sure to get out everything they could before Olly came back.

“Soon, hopefully,” she replied, trying to keep her cool and not burst into tears.

“I hope so too,” he said, kicking his left foot with his right. “Everyone is so sad now he isn’t here. I wish he would come back and make everyone happy again. Charlie always makes me happy.”

Tori smiled back at him. Olly was right – Charlie did make everyone happy. She had seen that throughout the week when she hung out with his friends. She felt a piece of her was missing now that Charlie wasn’t there, and the piece was definitely her happiness.

Julio drove Tori and Olly home after that. They only had a few hours to get ready before a car was booked to pick them up and drive them to the police station for the conference. Tori spent the time playing with Olly. She got him changed out of his uniform and into some plain clothes, and then asked him to set up the Nintendo Switch whilst she went upstairs and changed. 

They got an hour’s worth of Mario Kart races in before they were being ushered out of the door by their mother. Julio had removed Olly’s car seat from their car and set it up in the back of the car that had been sent for them. 

As they arrived at the police station, DS Trent had greeted them and escorted them inside. A kind young lady had offered to look after Olly whilst Jane, Julio and Tori were led to another room to wait until the officers were ready for them. 

Inside the room was another lady who Tori vaguely recognised. Her face was pale, and dark circles sat heavy under her eyes. Her hair was a light shade of brown that stuck up at the front from where she had clearly been pulling at it. Her eyes were red and her gentle features were overwhelmed with sadness.

This must be Nick's mum, Tori thought.

Nick had gone missing a few hours after their lunch hangout that Monday. That couldn’t be coincidental? Nick was having such a fun time with them; why would he then run away?

“Mr and Mrs Spring, this is Ms Sarah Nelson. Her son also goes to Truham Boys and was classed missing as of yesterday. We think the boys may have run off together, and having you both here in the press conference could really help draw Nick and Charlie back home.”

Jane looked a little peeved to be sharing the conference with another parent, but it was Julio who spoke next. “Whatever it takes to get our boys back.”

Sarah nodded in agreement, offering her hand out to shake. Sarah got to Tori and pulled her into a hug. It wasn’t like her mother’s hugs, which were static and forced. Sarah’s was like wrapping yourself up in a duvet on a cold evening. 

Homely, genuine and full of love. 

Sarah released Tori from her grasp and tucked a stray piece of hair behind Tori’s ear. “My Nicky told me all about that lunch before he went missing. Thank you for seeing the good in him.”

Julio and Sarah sat on the sofa chatting about their boys, sharing fun stories and cute anecdotes with each other. Tori listened, basking in the joy they were sharing with each other. Jane, however, sat stoically in an armchair, glaring at her husband for indulging in this nonsense. 

“Mum, not now, please. We need to come together for Charlie and for Nick,” Tori pleaded.

“I just don’t understand why she has to be involved in our press conference for Charlie. I mean, who even is this boy? Charlie has never once mentioned him, so why would they run off together?”

Before Tori could tell her about Nick, DS Trent entered the room and asked for the four of them to follow him. He sat them down behind their name cards: Julio first, followed by Jane, then Tori, and then lastly, Sarah. DS Trent took the seat next to Sarah and then addressed the room. 

There weren't any real people there, just a camera and a few microphones that would feed back to the relevant channels. The police had made it that way to protect the families from the onslaught of journalist questions. This press conference was to inform the public of the missing people and for the families to address their missing loved one. 

“Good evening everyone. At 1800 hours on Friday 20th October, Charles Francis Spring was last seen by his mother, Jane, and his older sister, Victoria, in their home on Britannia Road in Kent. A few days later, on Monday 23rd October at 1500 hours, Nicholas Luke Nelson was last seen by his mother, Sarah, at their home in River Crescent, Kent. 

We are classing both Charles and Nicholas’ whereabouts as non-suspicious. We do, however, believe that Charles and Nicholas may be together, wherever they are. No passports were taken and neither child took any belongings, so we are led to believe this was a spur-of-the-moment decision. 

The missing persons hotline will be attached to the bottom of this screen, and we implore you to contact us should you see either of these two about. I will now pass you over to Nick’s mother, Sarah.”

Sarah opened the piece of paper that lay on the table and began reading. It was a lovely speech, full of happy tears from the kind things she had written about Nick. How she missed him and how his dog, Nellie, missed him too. Tori could see the pain etched on Sarah’s face that her one and only son had run away.

DS Trent then handed it over to Jane.

Tori looked from DS Trent to her mother, who was unfolding a pre-written speech from her pocket. Jane took a deep breath and then began.

“If anyone has seen or heard from our little boy, I am begging you to please get in contact with us or the police. He is fragile and he won’t cope well being away from us,” Jane started. Tori gaped at her mum, astonished that she had just called her missing son fragile in front of millions of people. 

“Charlie is sweet and sensitive but he can also be a little naive. He has had some issues in the past and he won’t last very long out there alone. We need him back home. We need you back home, Charlie. You have us all worried sick. Your brother is beside himself and Victoria isn’t doing well. If you have any sort of remorse, then do it for them-”

Tori had heard enough, scraping her chair back against the floor and rising from it, looking down on her mum. 

“Your son has been missing for seven days, with no signs of showing back up, and you’re still acting like he’s just an acquaintance you've known for 14 years,” she started, edging closer to Jane’s face.

“Victoria, sit down right now. You’re embarrassing yourself!”

“I don’t care if I'm embarrassing myself because at least if Charlie sees this he’ll know that I care. That I care that he isn't here right now. That he isn’t banging so hard on his drums that I can hear it in my room. That he isn’t badgering on about the shit movies Tao makes him watch, that he hates so much, but watches them because he loves his friends. I care about him, mum. You don’t. You couldn’t give a fuck. You’re probably more worried that he’s going to miss the family dinner with gran next week. You have never cared about him.

You’re sitting here live on national TV berating him and letting everyone know about the small problems in his life, but you’re not telling them what they need to know. That he is the most caring person in this whole world. That he is selfless and kind and compassionate. He is out there somewhere; alone, frightened, and probably hurting, and he’s going to see you making snide comments about him and never want to come home.” Tori was practically screaming now, her voice shaking with anger.

“So please, have some respect and at least pretend to give a fuck, because I miss him, mum. I miss him! And I need him to come home…” she fell back into her seat and sobbed into her hands. Sarah leaned over and pulled her into another warm hug, whispering soft assurances into her hair to calm her down.

Jane was stunned. So much so, she couldn’t finish her speech. Julio reached across the table and held one of her hands in his as he continued for her. 

“Come home Charlie. We all miss you. The door will be unlocked for you when you do. Please, for us.”

With tensions high in the press room, DS Trent concluded the conference and then indicated for the IT team to switch off the equipment. He let the two families be for a while, allowing tempers to calm and for them to have time to digest what had just happened.

“Victoria, I’m-” Jane started but Tori was having none of it. She pulled away from Sarah’s grasp and pushed her chair backwards. It fell over with a loud bang, but Tori just stepped over it. 

She stormed out of the room and down the corridor, towards the room they had left Olly in. She peeked through the window and watched as Olly played with a couple of toy tractors. She barged in, startling Olly a little and marched straight over to her little brother. 

“Tori, look at these cool tractors!” he shouted, holding up a blue and green tractor for her to see. She ignored the toys and pulled Olly into a fierce hug, her head settling on his slight shoulder. Her tears soaked through his pale blue t-shirt, leaving dark puddles in two very prominent areas.

“Tori,” his quiet voice said. “Why are you crying?”

Tori lifted her head off his shoulder and looked directly into his eyes. She hated to admit it, but Olly was the spitting image of Charlie. Just younger and smaller and bound with an endless amount of energy. His face was the same shape and his curls fell exactly like Charlie’s. It was scary how so alike yet so different they were to each other.

“Nothing, I just- I miss Charlie so, so much!”

Olly nestled against her chest, clutching the toy tractor to his. “I miss him so, so much too, Tori. But he’ll come back, I know he will!”

His cheery optimism never ceased to amaze Tori. Even at his young age, Olly just knew what the moment needed. She pulled him in closer and squeezed him gently.

“I know, Olly. I know he will too.”

★

Saturday 28th October

Nick’s head bowed heavily on his chest from the intense torture his body had been through earlier in the day. He had been in the position for a few hours at least, with his hands cuffed together above his head and hanging from a hook that stood a couple of inches taller than he was. He was standing uncomfortably on his tiptoes, trying to alleviate some of the strain on the muscles in his arm.

Blood dribbled down his face, over the tape that covered his mouth and down onto his t-shirt. He had removed the jumper the day before when his hands weren’t bound because Charlie was too cold. 

Charlie.

Sweet, innocent Charlie, who was currently in the exact same position on the opposite wall. He had only just been hung there not long ago, after he was tied to the chair and made to watch and count as they beat up Nick. Charlie hadn’t been sleeping too well, not after that first night when they came in and caught them cuddling. They still cuddle together, it would be stupid not to in those temperatures, but Charlie doesn’t want to fully commit to sleep in case anyone does visit them during their sleeps, then he has enough time to shuffle away from Nick. 

Ste and Jay had taken a shining to Nick, ever since The Boss had gotten back a few days prior and was fuming. He had told the room that he tried to make contact with Stephane but was unsuccessful. Which also meant it was somehow Nick’s fault.

Nick would happily take the brunt of the beatings if it meant that they would leave Charlie alone. When they went for Charlie, they really went for him. He was currently sporting a black eye that Ste had kindly given him as he’d tried to stand between Ste and Nick one time. 

Thankfully, the black eye was all he received, as Jay had burst in and informed Ste that they had a ‘job’. What that meant, Nick wasn’t overly certain, but he had a small inkling it had something to do with drugs after experiencing one of The Boss’s ‘happy’ visits yesterday. Still earned Nick a knife to the throat, but nothing too severe. 

The Boss’s mood swings were inconsistent. One day he would visit them all smiley and bubbly (he’d still beat them, but not as hard), and other times he would look like his head was about to explode. Those days were never good for Nick and Charlie.

The heavy metal door squeaked open, waking Nick from his delirious state. The Boss walked in with a computer and stood with it open, the lid of the screen against his chest and Jay at his heels. 

Oh fun, just the two of them tonight. 

“Good evening boys, how’s it hanging?” The Boss laughed. If Nick wasn’t in this situation, he probably would have found the joke funny. Charlie was staring down at the floor, avoiding looking at the two men that had entered. Jay walked over to him and yanked his chin up and faced him towards The Boss.

“Now, I’m not really one for television, but someone showed me this clip earlier and you know, it was the funniest thing I have ever seen. So I thought I would show you both. Give you some light entertainment,” he teased. He hit the spacebar and the screen sprung to life.

Nick was confused at first. It looked like a room in a police station; the police logo was blaring behind the man on the screen. It wasn’t until the man said Charlie’s name that he realised what this was. 

The Spring’s were on screen next, panning from Charlie’s dad to his mum and then to his sister. They all looked like they hadn’t slept in days. Tori especially looked worse for wear; her eyes were a lot darker than they had been on Monday.

Charlie was thrashing against Jay’s hand - tears streamed down his pale face,  his screams would have been piercing had the tape not muffled them. Jay smiled wickedly at Charlie as he watched his family on the screen.

Then Charlie’s eyes widened at the next figure on the screen. 

The police officer was now speaking about Nick and the camera fell onto the beautiful face of his mum. A sob released from Nick’s mouth as he watched her plead for him to come home.

Of course, she thought Nick had run away too. Probably to be with Charlie. He knew when he first came here that the police wouldn’t consider him leaving as suspicious. His mum was crying, dabbing at her face with a soggy tissue. He wished he could scream loudly and she could hear him, but he knew that was futile. Everything was. 

Instead, he hid his face in the nook of his shoulder blade so that Jay and The Boss couldn’t see him cry.

Then the tempered voice of Jane Spring appeared and The Boss pressed pause on the keyboard.

“Oh, this is the best bit. I can’t wait for you to see this,” he said with a smirk, turning the volume up so everyone could hear.

“If anyone has seen or heard from our little boy, I am begging you to please get in contact with ourselves or the police. He is fragile and he won’t cope well being away from us. Charlie is sweet and sensitive but he can also be a little naive. He has had some issues in the past and he won’t last very long out there alone. We need him back home. We need you back home, Charlie. You have us all worried sick. Your brother is beside himself and Victoria isn’t doing well. If you have any sort of remorse, then…”

Nick zoned out after that. How could someone be so insensitive towards their missing child, regardless of whether they think that child had done this intentionally? 

He could see the pain in Charlie’s eyes. The hope slowly starting to flicker out.

He could tell Charlie wanted to turn away and not have to watch this, but Jay’s hand stayed firmly around his chin, ensuring he had no other choice.

The tears continued to pour from Charlie’s stunning blue eyes. Nick wanted to run over to him. To hold him. To tell him everything will be okay and that his mum wasn’t important. That he was important.

Then Tori came into view. 

She started screaming at their mum, telling her how it was. Nick resolved the first thing he would do after they got out was to give Tori the biggest hug. Charlie had told Nick all sorts of horror stories about living at home with his mum. She sounded like the devil, and this press conference was just proof of that.

Tori had now finished her rant and was crying into Nick’s mum’s shoulder. He was grateful for his mum being there for Tori; she obviously wasn’t going to get the same from her own mother. Nick wanted to do the same for Charlie, to hold him whilst he cried, to tell him it’ll all be okay. 

He didn’t know when that would be, though. He had a feeling he was going to be in this position for a long time.

As the press conference ended, The Boss slammed the lid of the laptop closed and walked towards Nick. He squirmed against the wall, wanting nothing to do with the blonde man in front of him. The Boss had a mischievous look on his face, like he had just thought of the most cunning idea.

Probably some sort of physical beating he would try out on Nick and Charlie.

“You know what might be fun?” he asked, whispering into Nick’s ear. Nick looked over The Boss’s shoulder at Charlie, whose matted curls were sticking to his face from blood and tears, and whose head was forced to look at Nick. 

“I think we should respond. Send them a lovely little message from their two favourite boys… Well, one favourite boy,” he scoffed, turning round to Charlie. “What the fuck is up with your mum, Curly? She’s a bit of a cunt, isn’t she?”

The Boss looked between the two boys and chortled. “Jay, get them ready. I only need the bigger one, but I think we might take curly here as… persuasion for this lunk to do as he’s told.” He gestured to Nick and then left the room.

“Righto, boss!” Jay shouted after him. He unfastened Charlie’s restraints from the hook and let him fall to the floor in a heap. Charlie rolled onto his back and lay unmoving, watching as Jay unhooked Nick. Nick’s legs held him up, but the wall did most of the job. 

Jay patted Nick on the cheek, ripped the tape from Nick’s mouth and then headed for the door. 

“I’ll be back in a bit with Ste. We’ll make sure you’re camera ready, darling, don’t you worry.” Jay winked back at Nick. 

And then the door was closed again. Nick fell to his knees and crawled over to Charlie. He hauled Charlie into a sitting position and then pulled him into a hug. Nick held onto Charlie as they cried, like he was the only person left in his world. 

It wasn't a lie, because all Nick could think about right now was Charlie.

“I’m so sorry Charlie,” Nick sobbed into Charlie’s hair. “I’m so, so sorry!”

Chapter Text

Saturday 28th October

Nick had been holding Charlie against his chest for a while; his arms were starting to tingle from the lack of blood flowing through them. As they sat in reciprocated silence, Nick began overthinking all the possible ways the gang could force him to perform for their camera. The room was getting a little darker now as the sun started to set outside. It wouldn’t plunge them into total darkness, as the light on the ceiling was still active above them. 

Most of the time, the boys had to depend on the natural light, but sometimes the men would forget to turn the light off as they left. The light was dim and barely lit all four corners of the room, so it rarely did anything for them except disturb their sleep. 

If it wasn’t the light, then it was constant buzzing of the electricity coursing into the centuries-old bulb that no one had a reason to change. Nick didn’t notice it much, too preoccupied with the drumming in his head, but there was no denying it was so fucking annoying. He had to stop himself from getting up and flicking the light off himself. 

Charlie’s head rested weightless against Nick’s chest as his hands tightened firmly around the fabric of Nick’s t-shirt. This seemed to be the new norm for them: Nick with his arms draped around Charlie’s narrow shoulders like a protective bubble, and Charlie nestled in the middle of them.  

The younger boy's sobs had evened out now. Behind his gag, only soft whimpers echoed in Nick’s ears. He ran his hand through Charlie’s hair, gently caressing the greasy curls that sat there. 

“Nick,” Charlie’s voice whispered softly. Nick’s head darted to Charlie, who had peeled back the tape slightly so he could talk. Nick didn’t know whether to be scared for Charlie after what happened the last time he took off the tape, or proud that he was doing so despite it. 

Nick reasoned it was probably the latter, because, what else could they do to him, right?

“What do you think they meant by ‘send them a message?’ ”

Truthfully, Nick was unsure, and he was a little worried to find out. “I don’t know,” he replied, his fingers playing with a single ringlet in Charlie’s curls. “He said to get me camera ready , so I assume they’re gonna make me talk to Stéphane or my mum somehow.”

Charlie tucked himself closer into Nick’s chest and clenched Nick’s t-shirt tighter. “Just… please do what they tell you. We don’t know what they’re capable of and I’m scared that if you don’t then-”

“I will, I promise.” Nick interjected. And he fully intended to. It would be stupid to defy these people when Nick and Charlie’s lives were in the palm of their hands. As much as he wanted to cause a scene and resist, he knew doing so would just make their time in The Room worse.

He especially wanted to make sure Charlie wouldn’t get hurt as a result of Nick’s actions. Charlie was at the forefront of his mind whenever he thought of doing anything nowadays. Nick thought, for the thousandth time, about telling Charlie how he felt towards him. Who knew how long they had left? Nick sure as hell didn't want to die with his true self still a secret. He'd already lost the opportunity to tell his mum; the least he could do is tell the boy that changed everything for him.

Being in The Room with Charlie and seeing him being abused and tortured only confirmed his tummy flutters were not platonic. He would jump in front of a million fists if it meant Charlie would go unscathed.

So maybe he owed it to Charlie to tell him, especially with their future uncertain.

“Char,” Nick started, just as the door to The Room swung open. Charlie had only just managed to reapply the gag when Ste and Jay walked in, brandishing wicked smiles and a roll of tape.

“Ah,” Jay said, noticing the two boys cuddled together again. “There’s my two favourite poofters. You ready for your close up, Nicky?”

Nick looked down at the boy in his arms one more time. Charlie’s eye’s were squeezed shut and his whole body was trembling. Nick placed a tender kiss atop Charlie’s curls before loosening his grip on Charlie’s body. Nick’s action seemed to calm Charlie, albeit briefly. The younger boy had relaxed a bit, though he was still shaking like a leaf.

He didn’t care what the thugs said about him. He didn’t care if they saw him kiss the top of Charlie’s head. He didn’t want to live in regret anymore, and if that meant showing affection to the boy he liked in front of men who will never truly understand love, then so be it.

~~

As soon as Nick’s hands removed themselves from Charlie’s body, Charlie felt like his safety blanket had been ripped from him. Nick wasn’t going very far, judging by the setup Jay was organising in the middle of the room, pushing a chair against the far wall. Ste reached into the duffle bag that Jay had brought in earlier that day, taking out a tripod and placing it a few steps away from the front of the chair.

Charlie avoided eye contact as much as he could, although he accidentally caught eyes with Ste, who was looking over them. 

“Don’t worry, Curly. You’ll have your time in front of the camera soon. This one’s for Nicky,” said Ste as he unceremoniously pulled Nick up from the spot beside Charlie and forcefully guided him over to the chair. The two men uncuffed Nick’s hands and used tape to tie them to the arms of the chair before they continued their setup.

Ste pulled a camcorder from the duffle bag and settled it on top of the tripod, adjusting the height so it was perfect for Nick’s position. Charlie could tell Nick was avoiding looking at him, probably for the same reasons he'd been avoiding meeting Nick's eyes. He knew that the minute they really looked at each other, Nick would start tearing up. Charlie could already feel the liquid pooling in his eyes just from watching them manhandling Nick.

The poor boy doesn’t deserve this, Charlie thought as he watched Nick’s jaw lock sternly.

Because he was too focused on Nick, Charlie hadn’t noticed The Boss had entered the room, flicking on the light as he walked in. He kicked Charlie’s foot, making the younger boy flinch from the sudden movement. “I told you to get this one ready too!” The Boss shouted above Charlie. 

Suddenly, Jay yanked Charlie from the floor and walked him to a position behind the camera. 

The Boss bent down, coming face to face with Charlie as he harshly pulled off the tape from Charlie’s mouth. The Boss’ face was unreadable; he wasn’t his usual angry self but there was something to his expression that Charlie couldn’t quite figure out.

“Here’s how it’s going to go,” The Boss snarled. “Nicky here is going to say exactly what I tell him to. If he doesn’t, Charlie boy is going to keep score so that Nicky will remember what a deviant little fuck he is. Got it?”

Charlie breathed out a yes, although it was barely above a whisper. Nick’s eyes were glued to the floor, his brain clearly dissociating from his body. Charlie’s eyes grew wider at Nick’s silence. He knew that Nick staying quiet and not answering the leader meant Charlie would pay for it.

The Boss withdrew a knife from his pocket and gestured for Jay to pull up Charlie’s hoodie for better access. The knife was sharp across Charlie’s stomach; the sting caused Charlie’s eyes to well with tears and a yelp broke from his mouth.

~~

Charlie’s piercing scream brought Nick back to his body. His eyes darted around the room, trying to find the source of the cry. He caught sight of the two men crowding over Charlie, one with his arm around Charlie’s torso, his bare stomach on show and a hand firmly holding Charlie’s chin in position, and the other man with a knife near Charlie’s tummy.

Charlie’s stomach dripped with blood, a small cut just above his navel now visible and glistening red. 

The Boss was glaring at Nick. “Well?”

Nick didn’t know what he meant – he must have zoned out when The Boss was addressing him.

“I don’t- I don’t know what to say,” Nick rambled.

The Boss’ mouth turned into a thin line before he turned back to Charlie, lifting his knife to Charlie’s body and cutting another small laceration parallel to the previous one. Charlie screamed again, and Nick thrashed against the chair as an endless stream of tears flowed from his eyes.

“Stop! Please, stop hurting him!” Nick begged as he curled his fists into a ball and tried to yank them free. 

“Then answer my fucking question,” The Boss shouted in response. Nick tried to gauge from Charlie what the question was but he couldn’t see Charlie’s eyes from his seat.

“I- I don’t-,” Another cut to Charlie’s stomach. The screams became a lot more pained with each slash added to Charlie’s slender body.

“Just… tell him you… understand, Nick,” Charlie managed between heavy breaths. The two thugs were staring back at Nick, waiting for him to reply.

“I understand, I understand,” he sobbed heavily. The Boss shoved the knife into Jay’s hands and rounded the camera towards Nick.

Nick didn’t want to look up. Looking up meant looking at Charlie, who was now worse off than he was five minutes ago because Nick had separated his brain from his body. He promised Charlie he wouldn’t defy these thugs, but he did. Now he had to live with that. He had to live with the fact Charlie would now have scars on his body because of him. 

Those scars would be a constant reminder to both of them that Nick broke his promise. He needed to make sure he didn’t do that again; he didn’t want to add Charlie’s sad face to his never-ending list of things he would have to make up for when they got out.

The Boss stood before Nick and gripped his chin with his hand, forcing the boy to look him directly in the face. “I thought you’d learn by now that whatever you do, or don’t do , it affects your little boyfriend over there. Now tell him you’re sorry so we can begin the show.”

The Boss moved out of the way, but the grip on Nick’s jaw stayed. He was forced to look Charlie in the eyes – his dull, droopy eyes – and apologise. He wanted to speak but nothing came out; the words just wouldn’t come. 

Charlie looked like he was about to pass out. His jumper was bunched around his chest where Jay’s arm kept him upright. His heavy eyelids looked over at Nick and a single tear dropped from his eye.

“I-I,” Nick started, clutching for the words but nothing came out.

The Boss nodded toward Charlie and Jay flipped the knife in his hand, carving another line into Charlie’s stomach.

That’s four now. Four new cuts on Charlie’s skin that Nick had put there. Nick felt sick, watching Charlie’s face screw up in pain.

“I’m sorry, Charlie. I’m sorry. Please, just- just stop this. Please!” Nick cried.

“Good boy,” The Boss commended. He produced a piece of paper with a script for Nick to recite and taped it to the tripod, just below the camera. The Boss flipped the viewfinder round and laughed when Nick cringed at his own appearance. “This is your script. Go off task and we keep tallying Charlie’s stomach.”

Nick nodded as he glanced once more at Charlie. His head sagged a little from the exhaustion but his icy blue eyes were trained on Nick. Charlie managed to nod slowly, as if to urge Nick to do what they say.

“Ste, If you will,” said The Boss. Nick had forgotten Ste was even in the room until he appeared from the shadows. He stood beside Nick, out of the camera view but still in arms reach, and pulled a gun from his jeans. He pointed the tip of the gun at Nick’s temple and kept it there.

The Boss played with some buttons on the camera; that’s when Nick noticed the leather gloves he was wearing. He hadn't worn those before, had he? Nick tried to remember if he'd seen The Boss with gloves on before, and tried to decide if it even mattered. A sharp beep rang from the camera and The Boss gestured to Nick to start.

“T-this is a message for Stéphane Fournier a-and Sarah Nelson. There will be no police, or else I w-will die,” Nick choked as he read the threat out. He looked up at Charlie, who was also crying, though his mouth was covered by Jay’s hand. The severity of those words had clearly hit both boys in the gut.

Nick didn’t pause for any longer, fearing something would happen if he didn’t continue. 

“Stéphane, you took everything from these people, and all because of m-me. You wanted to rekindle your relationship with me, but at a cost. You took their business, their livelihood and their money, so they took me as leverage. Sarah, they took your precious little boy in hopes to lure Stéphane out of his hole but have been unsuccessful. M-maybe this will work. 

“You have five days to bring us Stéphane or the money he owes. Otherwise,” he lingered, glancing over the next line. The reality of the whole situation hung on the next words, and Nick suddenly felt like he was going to throw up. Ste pushed the gun harder into Nick’s skull and Nick saw Jay’s hand move closer to Charlie’s body.

Nick’s face crumpled again as he watched Jay scratch a diagonal line across the four vertical lines on Charlie’s stomach. Charlie’s screams were muffled behind Jay’s hand but they sounded even more distressed than before. 

“ Please, let him go. Please…”

A sharp pain emanated above his eye and he could feel the sudden pouring of hot liquid escaping from the wound that had just opened up on his eyebrow. 

“Finish it,” Ste growled. The butt of the gun had come down hard on his face, but the muzzle was now back against his head.

Nick looked into the display of the camera, taking in the new gash he had on his head and then back into the lens. “Otherwise, this will be the last time you see me. The details will be in with this video.”

In the corner of Nick’s eye, he could see the smaller boy’s body give up and his legs give way. Charlie’s body crumpled to the floor and Jay took a step back.

“ Charlie!” Nick yelled, wriggling his hands as he attempted to break free. 

“FUCK!” The Boss shouted, jamming his finger into a button on the camcorder and walking over to Nick. “They weren't supposed to know he was here!” he screamed as his fist collided with Nick’s head. 

The last thing Nick saw before losing consciousness was the messy brown curls on Charlie’s head, turning to face Nick and screaming out his name.

★

Charlie’s stomach stung like a bitch. He managed to cope with the four vertical cuts that Jay had inflicted on his middle, but as soon as the final laceration swiped across the previous four cuts, Charlie felt a searing pain shoot through his whole body. 

Perhaps the dehydration or the lack of substantial food caused his body to give way, but the moment Jay removed the knife from his stomach, he didn’t have it in him to stand any longer. The scenes after that were a blur; he vaguely remembered that Nick shouted his name, and The Boss getting mad at that. He had punched Nick several times in the face before Nick blacked out, and the three men cleared out of the room. 

Thankfully, Ste had freed Nick’s hands from the chair, then taped them back together in front of him. Charlie had attempted to cower away from the bald man, who stalked over to the younger boy and unlocked the cuffs around his wrists and retaped them, much like they had with Nick’s.  

As Ste left, Charlie looked over the room. The camera setup was now gone, along with the duffle bag it came in. The light was still on, shining a warm yet dull glow onto Nick. The rest of the room was as it was before they entered, untouched and still.

Charlie pulled himself into a sitting position and winced, holding a hand to his stomach. The blood from the cuts was slowly dwindling as they clotted over. Nick looked almost peaceful in his unconscious state. Despite the blood dripping down to his chin, the frown lines that constantly painted his face were gone and the persistent sadness that clouded over him, absent.

Nick looked uncomfortable, however, in his position: his head slumped against his chest and the weight of his upper body leaned against the arm of the chair. Charlie hauled himself up onto his knees and shuffled over towards Nick. He ran his hand down Nick’s face, gently caressing the tender bruises that were starting to form on Nick’s eye. 

At least they shared some of the same torture trophies, Charlie had thought. It was a morbid thought, but it soothed Charlie a little, knowing that he and Nick were going through the same pain. 

Except Charlie’s was much worse.

Charlie stood on shaky legs as he tried to stand. It took him a few minutes to adjust to the weight of his body, his head swimming with dizziness. Charlie tucked his arms under Nick’s armpits and dragged him from the chair over to the mattress. Luckily, he made it to their shared bed just as his legs gave way, the dirty mattress protecting his fall. 

Charlie sat with his back against the wall and his legs out straight, heaving Nick’s heavy body towards him. He found Nick's discarded jumper from their sleep the night before and draped it over Nick’s upper body like a blanket. He rested Nick’s head on his thighs and dabbed at Nick’s wound with the cleanest fabric on the sleeve of his hoodie. It was all pretty grimy and bloody from the beatings and being dragged on the floor, but Charlie was lucky to find a clean spot. 

He ran his hand through Nick’s greasy and flat hair, just like Nick had done to his. It was very comforting, he had to admit. No wonder Nick does this constantly. Charlie thought of better times, where they would hopefully be in the same position - Nick asleep in his lap and Charlie gently stroking Nick’s hair - but this time in a field on a sunny day after they had just taken Nellie out for a walk.

Charlie smiled at the thought. Soon, his eyes felt heavy, and the nice thought was nothing but darkness.

★

Sunday 29th October

Nick woke with a start. His arms were bound above his head, which pounded from the beating he had received the day before. It took a while for the room to come into focus, but when it did, Nick almost dislocated his shoulder from struggling so much.

Opposite him was Charlie - his beautiful Charlie - tied in the same position, but his hoodie and t-shirt had been removed. His stomach was decorated with the tally marks that Jay had given him before, but also with a host of new lacerations covering his chest, face and lower abdomen.

Charlie’s head was lolling to the side, motionless. His mouth was wide open and his dark eyelashes flitted against his cheeks. Beside him was The Boss, one hand brandishing a knife and the other a gun. 

Nick tried to scream but he couldn’t - nothing would come out. His mouth wasn’t gagged, but his voice was suddenly non-existent.

“Oh good, you’re awake to see the show,” The Boss grinned devilishly. “I didn’t think you’d make it. I was worried I’d have to kill him without you knowing.”

A tear rolled down Charlie’s face, mixing with the blood, sweat and dirt that stained Charlie’s attractive features. 

Nick struggled against the wall, kicking his legs to give him leverage, but nothing worked. He was stuck in place, watching the boy he loved face the unthinkable. 

“There’s no use struggling, Nicky. His time has come,” The Boss laughed. “Any last words, Charlie Boy?”

Charlie struggled to lift his head, but as he did, his stunning blue eyes caught Nick’s watery hazel ones. “Nick, I-I… love you. You have the kindest heart a-and I’m so sorry that we’ll never get to be who we wanted to be outside of this place. Promise me you’ll try, if you get out. Promise me?”

Nick nodded. Hysterical sobs left his mouth as he watched The Boss raised the gun to Charlie’s head. “I promise, Char. I promise you I will try.”

Charlie was crying now, but he smiled. He shouldn’t be smiling, but he was. “Good. I love you, Nick.”

“I love you too, Char.”

The Boss fired the gun at Charlie’s head and Nick bolted upwards, screaming and crying, clawing at his t-shirt as if it was strangling him. 

Behind Nick, a gentle hand landed on his shoulder and he flinched away from it.

“Nick, it’s okay. It’s me. It’s Charlie,” he whispered softly. Nick jerked his head round and took in the boy before him. Alive and breathing, not chained to a wall in front of him. 

“C-char?” Nick asked, reaching out a hand to make sure the boy was real. Charlie held out his own hand, welcoming Nick’s touch. Charlie’s hand was soft, despite the dirtiness of their bodies, and was extremely cold. 

But that was just Charlie; he was naturally cold. 

Nick leapt from his spot and encircled his arms around Charlie in a bone-crushing hug. He fell on top of Charlie, his grip unfaltering. 

“I thought- I dreamt-” 

“It’s okay, Nick. You don’t have to say it,” Charlie comforted. Charlie’s small hands were rubbing slow, reassuring circles on Nick’s back. “You were talking in your sleep, I got the gist of it.”

“I’m sorry,” Nick whimpered into Charlie’s chest. It felt weird being on the receiving end of it, having been on the giving end many times over the last week. 

Charlie breathed in a deep puff of air before responding. “You have nothing to be sorry about.”

“But I do. They did this to you because of me,” he said, gesturing to Charlie’s stomach. “They keep doing things to you because of me and I keep failing you.”

“You’re not failing me, Nick. I think they would have done it even if you had replied to them. They’re sadistic assholes, you can't change their thought process.” 

Nick bit the inside of his lip. Charlie was right - they always come into the room fully prepared with whatever punishment they intended the boys to be put through. 

There was nothing stopping them once they got started.

Nick’s hands fell delicately on Charlie’s stomach; the younger boy winced, but only slightly. Nick wanted to see the cuts they’d carved into him, that Nick had essentially carved into him, but he didn’t want to upset Charlie. He didn’t want Charlie to have to live through that pain again. 

“Do- do you wanna see it?” Charlie asked, noticing where Nick’s hands were gravitating towards. Nick shook his head ‘no’ and speedily moved his hands away. Charlie sighed heavily and lifted his jumper, producing five cuts forming a tally on his skin.

Nick chewed his dry bottom lip, holding back his tears. The bleeding had stopped, but the skin around it was red and swollen, with dry blood caked over the five lines. Nick wanted to trace them with his fingers, but they were probably still sore and he couldn’t risk Charlie getting an infection in this environment.

“Does it hurt?” Nick asked quietly, unable to take his eyes away from Charlie’s skin.

Charlie shrugged. “Only a little bit, I guess. Only as much as the one on my cheek.”

Nick had forgotten about that one, though it was starting to scab over. “They will definitely leave a scar,” Nick informed him. 

Charlie flattened the hoodie so his stomach was no longer on show. He looked down at his hands, avoiding Nick’s mournful gaze. “They can go with the other ones then.”

Nick was confused. What did Charlie mean by ‘ the other ones’ ? “Char?”

Charlie took a deep breath in through his nose and then released it out through the mouth. 

“I- um, I have… other… scars,” said Charlie.

“Oh, er… You don’t have to explain, I’m sor-”

“No, it’s okay. I want to tell you,” he declared, shifting himself so his back was up straight. Nick shuffled himself so he was sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Charlie, despite the ringing in his ears and the pounding in his head telling him to lay back down. Nick reached his hands out to take Charlie’s, which the smaller boy graciously accepted, awkwardly slotting his fingers between Nick’s.

“It started last year, when the bullying got really bad. Harry used to make it his mission to make my life hell even back then. It got so bad that the only way I could cope with it all was to… erm… cut. I won’t go into detail, but I have scars on my arms and my legs, so… I promise, these won’t look out of place.”

Nick’s heart shattered into a million pieces. Hearing Charlie say that he used to self-harm because of something Nick’s ex-best friend used to do to him made Nick’s chest ache beyond repair. He felt his eyes watering again. When weren’t his eyes watering nowadays, though. 

This was certainly a reason to cry. 

He clutched tightly onto Charlie’s hands. “Charlie, I-”

“Do not say you’re sorry. That was all Harry, it had nothing to do with you.”

“Yeah, but I could have stopped it. I could have told him to fuck off or… or… I could have punched him in the face or something. I could have protected you.”

“You weren’t to know, Nick. Not that he wasn’t subtle in his words but, I don’t think he actually said anything whilst you were around. I didn’t really know you existed until Ben mentioned you about a year ago.”

Nick’s brow arched, questioningly. “Ben mentioned me? But we were never friends. Not close ones, anyway.”

Charlie gulped and chewed the inside of his lip. “He said he saw you staring at me one day, called you my ‘secret admirer’. I thought it was sweet, but he… he didn’t like it. He got jealous. Possessive. Yet he would still only meet up with me in dark corners of the school. Then he broke up with me and I… caught you. Multiple times. Checking if I was okay. You got Michael to look out for me, right?”

Nick’s face burnt red behind all the dirt and the blood. “Erm… Yeah. I’m sorry if I overstepped. I just… I walked in on you two in the library once and then I caught him kissing a girl outside the school gates. I was fuming. You didn’t deserve that. I… kind of threatened Ben, and then I asked Michael to look out for you. Make sure Ben went nowhere near you. Sorry, I sound just as possessive as Ben was.”

Charlie huffed a laugh. “Not possessive at all. I think it was nice… what you did for me. A complete stranger. But… you do know Michael is kind of dating my sister, right?”

Nick hazard a guess when Tori had mentioned it during their lunch that Monday, but didn’t think she would tell Charlie about it. “I’m guessing he told her and she told you?”

Charlie nodded. “She wanted to know if I’d got any trouble from you, like I did from Harry. Said she would ‘sort you out’ if you were. Don’t worry, I told her you weren’t.”

“Your sister is very, very scary. But now, she seems like she’s…”

“All bark and no bite?” Charlie finished.

“Yeah,” Nick replied, a little hesitant in case Tori was somehow magically able to listen in on this conversation.

Charlie laughed again as he squeezed Nick’s fingers against his. “Oh she is all bark and all bite. Like a little chihuahua. Looks cute, but when she’s pissed off, she’ll definitely bite your ankles.”

“Noted,” Nick smiled.

Nick felt an overwhelming urge to tell Charlie how he really felt. If not now, then when? If his nightmare was a sign of anything, it’s that he may not have as much time left as he thought.

“Charlie, I have something to tell you…”

“I know, Nick,” Charlie confessed, his eyes avoidant. 

He knew? But… how?

“You know?” Nick asked, trying to be as vague as possible. He wasn’t sure how Charlie would know except for the one-liners the gang kept bringing up. He was pretty sure they shared a moment before, when Nick was checking Charlie’s cheek wound, but that was days ago now. There’s no way he would know for sure.

Charlie’s thumb drew small circles on Nick’s palm. Soothing, circular motions that made Nick feel like it was just him and Charlie alone in the world.

“I- you said something, when you were having your nightmare. You kept thrashing around. I tried to wake you but you said ‘Char, I love you too’ and then you started whimpering. I assume I said the same thing before I… y’know.”

Nick closed his eyes at the mental image of Charlie dying in front of him. An image that would undoubtedly take a lot of time to erase from his memories. 

“Yeah,” he managed to get out. He wasn’t sure how; it felt like his whole throat was closing up from the sheer panic brewing inside him. Charlie found out Nick liked him because of his own stupid nightmare. He had to make this right, to save the embarrassment that was about to follow.

“Charlie, I-”

“I love you too, Nick,” Charlie interrupted. Nick’s heart was beating at what felt like 250 bpm; he definitely thought he was going to have a heart attack. 

“You do?”

“Love is a strong word and I'm not the kind of person to throw it around but…” Charlie hesitated, like he was deciding whether or not to elaborate. “I don't think we have much time left and I don't want to live with regrets anymore. We probably don't have years to go on dates or get to know the ins and outs of a relationship,” his voice broke as he said it, the realisation kicking in.

“So, yes… I love you Nick. I’ve watched them hurt you, torture you, knock you out, and every single time my heart aches watching that happen. And yet, after all that, you still know how to show compassion and benevolence towards me. You comfort me. You make this whole situation bearable.”

Nick felt a huge weight sliding off his shoulders. He only had one secret, and now he had shared it with his best friend, the most important person in his whole world. He had told Charlie how he felt, and in some sort of miracle that brought a little light to this hell that they'd found themselves in. And Charlie felt the same way. Nick wanted to scream gleefully from the rooftops, but for now, he’d have to settle on holding the boy he likes - no, loves - in his arms and enjoying every second they got with each other. 

Charlie lowered his head onto Nick’s shoulder, the dark curls tickling Nick’s cheek. Nick rested his head atop Charlie’s and squeezed the younger boy’s fingers in his. 

In normal circumstances, this would probably be where they kissed each other. Where they held each other and their two worlds became one around them. But these were not normal circumstances. Nick and Charlie’s world was already one, there was no denying that, but Nick was content with having Charlie at his side and looking after him. 

They didn’t need a kiss to confirm their feelings, because deep down, they both knew it was right.

Monday 30th October 

The rest of their day faded into light chatter and a dozen snoozes cuddled together. Nick was the first to wake, his eyes focused on the cute boy next to him. Nick moved his hand to Charlie’s face, gently as to not wake him, and brushed the long curls out of his eyes. He ran a finger tenderly over the bruises that had formed on Charlie’s skin, a mixture of yellows, purples and blues. 

The cuts on Charlie’s eyebrow were starting to heal nicely, considering the lack of suitable aftercare, but his eye was still a little swollen. Nick rubbed his thumb over the lump that cushioned his long, dark eyelashes. He couldn’t help but take note of all the features he couldn’t wait to get to know when Charlie was fully healed and back to normal. 

Nick daydreamed about what it would be like if they had found their way together outside of this Room. Would he have had Charlie wake up by his side yet? Or ever? Did Charlie only love him because there was nobody else to love, or would they have found each other eventually out in the real world? Nick likes to think they would find each other in any situation.

As Nick’s thumb trailed down Charlie’s face, the younger boy stirred in his arms. A soft groan left Charlie’s plump lips as his eyes screwed together, adjusting to the light. 

“Good morning,” Nick greeted with a smile. 

Charlie stretched his arms and legs out, having been curled up in the same spot the whole night. “Good morning,” he grinned back.

Their morning was filled with toilet breaks and a light snack of custard creams (there were only three left, so they snapped one in half - Nick insisted on Charlie taking the bigger piece) and cheese and crackers (that they made a sandwich out of). Nick picked up the bowl of water and took a big gulp before passing it over to Charlie, who did the same. There was only a mouthful of water left, so Nick hoped that someone would come back with more soon.

The boys sat cuddled together against the wall, Charlie with his head resting against Nick’s heart and Nick’s arms around his shoulders. A short period later, the door unlocked to their right. Neither of the boys moved, content with their bodies entwined as one but also too exhausted from the events of the previous day to remove themselves from each other.

Luckily, it was only Phil who entered the room - fresh water and a paper plate of bread in his hands - not even second glancing at the two boys moulded into one. 

“Can’t stay long,” he informed them, dropping the plate at the end of the mattress, swapping the bowls over. “They’re in the room down the hall and if I’m in here longer than I need to be, it’ll alert them.”

Nick nodded and smiled graciously. He could feel Charlie’s mouth pull upwards on his shoulder as he smiled at the older man too. Phil pulled out some wrapped up cheese and crackers from his pocket and handed them to Nick, who cautiously accepted.

Phil had a worried look on his face that Nick couldn’t quite work out the reason for. Maybe it was how he and Charlie were tangled together and Phil was worried about the other men walking in on them. Or maybe he was extremely homophobic and the sight horrified him, but something in Nick’s stomach told him that wasn’t the case.

~~

Phil tried to speak, but it seemed like he couldn't find the words. “I- um… They… I-”

“A-are you okay?” Charlie asked, lifting his head slowly off of Nick’s shoulder.

Phil shook his head and buried his hands in his pockets. His eyes were brimmed with water but he did well to ensure nothing trickled down his face. “I… don’t know how to say this but… tomorrow, they have plans for you both. It’s Halloween, and Dino has this big thing planned. He’s coining it ‘The Halloween Special’. There is absolutely no way I can prepare you for it,” Phil said, his voice cracking towards the end. 

Charlie looked up at Nick with fear in his eyes, and Nick held onto Charlie tighter. Nick didn’t look at him, instead keeping his eyes trained on Phil. 

“W-what do you mean?” Nick asked, his voice betraying him. 

“I mean… I don’t think what they have planned equates to any of the torture you’ve endured thus far. Tomorrow, they will put you through stuff that your young bodies should never have to go through but… I can’t… help you.”

Charlie felt sick- more sick than he usually did whilst being in this situation. He often woke up dreading what the day entailed, but now that he’d been given a heads up, he felt an overwhelming urge to vomit right there on the spot.

“Are they going to kill us?” Charlie asked without realising the words had even come out of his mouth. Nick’s head turned quickly towards Charlie, mortified at the question he’d just asked.

Phil shook his head again. “I don’t think so. I mean… They haven’t explicitly told me what they plan to do, they never do. I just… I pieced two and two together and it’s not good.”

Charlie felt a lump in his throat. Nick’s grip on his shoulders grew tighter, not wanting to let him go. Charlie wished he could rely on Nick’s embrace to protect him, but he knew it would do nothing against the gang. 

“I have to go now but… It’s a bit stuffy in here, don’t you think? Might wanna crack open a window.” And then Phil was gone, the loud bang of the heavy door meeting the wall finished with the lock turning into place. 

Both Nick and Charlie looked up at the window that had been there the whole time and not one of them thought to check it. Charlie had noticed it on his first night, but since then, his mind has been a little busy thinking about how not to die and how to survive the multitude of beatings they’d received. 

Charlie turned his head back to Nick and asked, “You don’t think he means-”

“Surely not?” Nick interrupted. 

Was Phil helping them with an escape plan? There was something weird about that man, Charlie thought to himself. Charlie had met five men during his time in The Room and not once has any of the other four been as amiable and courteous as Phil had been to them. 

Was he a prisoner too? Is that what they’ll do to Nick and Charlie if Stéphane comes through? Those thugs wouldn’t just drop them both back into their normal lives after this, would they? 

Charlie had a million thoughts cruising through his head, and he could see by the look on Nick’s face that he was experiencing the same thing. 

Nick’s forehead was full of frown lines and his nose was scrunched up. Even like this, Charlie couldn’t help the butterflies in his stomach. Subconsciously, he raised his hands and ran his thumb over Nick’s curved eyebrows. Nick visibly relaxed at Charlie’s touch. 

“What are you thinking?” Charlie quizzed.

“I’m thinking that… maybe… It would be a stupid idea to run,” Nick admitted.

Charlie felt all of the hope Phil had given him leave his body. His shoulders deflated and his back caved. 

“What ?”

“No, not like that. I just mean… If they have plans for us tomorrow, don’t you think that they’ll come in here tonight? You know what they’re like; they’re like children in a playground and we’re the play things. I think if we do plan to leave then… We at least have to wait for a few days.”

Nick was right, as always. Leaving tonight would be silly, especially if the gang was on high alert and looking forward to whatever they planned to inflict on the boys tomorrow. But then, what if Charlie’s inkling was true? He didn’t want to die with the disappointment that he could have escaped. 

“I get that but… what if they do plan to kill us tomorrow? We’d have a chance to get out of here before they…” He didn’t want to say it again. Saying it made it all too real, and he already had that seed firmly planted in his head now.

Nick twisted and unwrapped his arms from Charlie’s body. He placed his hands on Charlie’s cheek, one on each side. Charlie had no choice but to look directly into Nick’s chocolate coloured eyes. 

“They’re not going to kill us. They wouldn’t have made me do that video if they were just going to kill me off a day later. They need us. They wouldn’t do anything to jeopardise getting Stéphane,” Nick rambled, wiping Charlie’s cheeks with his thumbs.

Charlie broke eye contact with Nick, unable to look at Nick as he corrected him. “They don’t need us . They need you. I’m nothing to them. They’re only keeping me here to get you to talk, but you don’t know anything, and soon… soon they’ll realise that you’ve been telling the truth this whole time and they won't-” Charlie’s breath hitched into a sob. “They won’t need me. I can’t die here, Nick. I need to see Tori again. I want to pretend to be shit at Mario Kart so Olly can beat me. I can’t- we need to go. Please, Nick. Please.”

~~

Charlie’s eyes were big and blue and filled with panic. Nick hated that Charlie felt this way. The constant fear that his life might end because they didn’t need him anymore or were bored with him. But that couldn’t be true; Nick firmly believed the gang needed Charlie, just like he did. But he couldn’t bear to see Charlie like this - scared, frightened, and the glimmer of hope slowly draining from his body day by day.

Nick nodded his head. “Okay. Yeah, okay. But we have to do this quickly.”

Tears fell from Charlie’s eyes, and Nick could see a tiny spark of happiness flicker behind them. Nick threw the wrapped up food under the mattress so the men wouldn’t find it and potentially hurt Phil once Nick and Charlie had gone. 

The boys rose to their feet, and Nick walked over to the window to inspect it. The window was unlocked from its hinge and was sure to fit both of them through, one at a time. Nick was the strongest of the two, so they decided it would be better if he climbed out last. 

“Okay, I’ll give you a leg up. You have a look round, then I’ll drop you. Tell me what you see and then we go.”

Charlie smiled and Nick bent so Charlie could slot his foot onto Nick’s hands. With his hands tied as they were, it was a little tricky to get a solid grip on Charlie’s shoe, but they managed. Nick lifted Charlie up, and the smaller boy was quick to unlatch the window and look around outside for the first time in ten days.

~~

The winter breeze was cool on Charlie’s face. The air felt different to the cold air that lingered in The Room through the gap in the window - it was fresh, like he was taking his first breath again. He couldn’t wait to be outside in it, breathing it all in, finally free. 

Charlie looked down at the 10-foot drop from the window to the ground. It would definitely hurt, but it would be nothing compared to what they’ve been through. Beyond the landing point was a wooded area, full of looming trees and grass that went on for an age. He couldn’t see much further than the first row of trees in the darkness, but he was certain they would be able to hide in the woods if needs be.

Nick nudged Charlie’s leg with his head and Charlie took that as his sign to come back down. He sealed the window and Nick carefully dropped him to the floor. 

“It’s about a 10-foot drop between the window and the ground. The building is long, so there’s no cars or anything. Behind us is a forest, which will give us some good places to hide if they come looking for us,” Charlie explained.

Nick nodded, but his eyes looked past Charlie as if he was imagining it himself. “Okay, if we’re going. We need to go now. Do you feel strong enough?”

“Not really, but it’s now or never, right?”

“Right,” Nick replied. He looked straight into Charlie’s eyes and pulled him into a hug. “Try not to get separated, okay?”

Charlie breathed in the boy around him. For a week, he’d known nothing but Nick - his cries, his screams, his light caresses after a long day, the gentle breathing on his neck and his face as they slept - and yet, his scent was still unfamiliar to him. 

He squeezed the older boy tighter to his chest and replied a raspy ‘alright’ into his shoulder.

Just as Charlie was about to release Nick, the door to the Room unlocks.

~~

The Boss walked in with Ste and Jay behind him and Nick’s heart sank in his chest. 

“No,” Charlie whispered into Nick, his voice filled with fear. Nick could do nothing more than pull him closer. 

“Oh look, it’s as if they know what’s coming. They’re saying their goodbyes,” The Boss laughed.

Charlie couldn’t be right, surely? There’s no way they’d kill them here and now, not after what Phil had warned them about. Nick watched Ste walk over to the two boys and forcefully tried to pry Charlie from Nick’s arms, but Nick and Charlie tightened their hold on each other. 

“Let go of him, or you’ll never see each other again,” Ste said through gritted teeth, glaring at Nick. Nick didn’t want to let him go, but he had to; he knew how their threats work.

Nick loosened his arms around Charlie but Charlie gripped him even tighter. “No, Nick, no.”

“Charlie, you have to let go,” Nick pleaded. Charlie shook his head, his curls brushing against Nick’s face.

“No, no. Nick, please. No, no, no.”

Nick tried to push Charlie off of him. He could see the looks on the three men’s faces, growing restless and angrier by the second. “Char, I’m begging you. Let go. It’ll be okay. I promise, but you have to let go. I promise you, okay. I promise you.”

Nick was crying now as Charlie slowly released himself from Nick, but Ste was the first to move. 

“Oh, for fuck sake, we don’t have time for your gay shit,” Jay said angrily. He produced a knife from his pocket and walked behind Nick. He could hear the knife connecting with the tape at Charlie’s wrist and Ste was behind Charlie pulling him away. 

Charlie was separated from Nick and Ste had hold of him by the hood of his jumper. Nick went to run to him but Jay was on him, knife to his throat. “Might wanna rethink that one, sweetheart.”

The fight left Nick’s body and he sagged against Jay. “Good boy,” he said into Nick’s ear.

The Boss stood at the door, arms folded, clearly unimpressed with the scene before him. 

“As fun as this has all been, places to be boys. Ste, hold him,” The boss ordered, walking over to Charlie with a roll of tape. He rewrapped Charlie’s wrists together, then tore off another piece, covering Charlie’s eyes.

“NO! NICK? NICK! PLEASE. NICK,” Charlie screamed, flailing his legs at The Boss and trying to shimmy out of Ste’s grasp. Jay quickly covered Nick’s mouth with his hand so he couldn't reply. Nick struggled against Jay, who pushed the knife harder against his neck.

“Take him,” The Boss gestured to Charlie. Ste complied, dragging Charlie kicking and screaming out of the room. 

“NICK, PLEASE. GOD, NICK, HELP! NO, NICK! NICK!”

The Boss watched Ste leave the room and then turned on his heels to stand before Nick. “Boyfriend is going to take a little time out, but don’t worry, you’ll see what he gets up to tomorrow. Halloween is my favourite time of year, and you can bet your ass that we have so much fun shit planned for you,” he chuckled darkly. A fresh sheet of tape was fixed over Nick’s eyes, and The Boss held it there firmly, bowing closer to Nick’s face.

Nick could feel his stale breath on this face. “The Halloween special, coming to a room near you, Nicky boy. And you’re the main attraction.”

The Boss snickered, and then Nick was inelegantly dropped to the floor, the knife on his neck gone and the hold on him dissipating. 

Nick curled himself into a ball and started to sob. Once the door slammed closed, Nick burst into audible shudders. 

"Charlie,” he choked. His nose dripped with snot. “I’m sorry! I promised you and I failed. Forgive me, Char. Please forgive me.”

Chapter Text

Tuesday 31st October

Waking up without Nick was one of the worst feelings Charlie had endured in his time in captivity. Ste had dragged him kicking and screaming out of the room and down the hall, chucking him into a rickety old chair in another room. His eyes were covered with tape so he had no idea where he was; he just knew he needed and wanted Nick there with him. 

Ste hadn’t bothered taping his arms, instead winding the roll around Charlie's torso and binding his upper body to the back of the chair. Charlie hadn’t wriggled – he hadn’t had the energy to. He had cried and screamed until there was a hand in his hair yanking his head backwards, and a hand slapping him hard across the cheek.

“Will you shut the fuck up,” The Boss had spat. Charlie hadn’t known who was in the room with him, and an inner panic had risen in his chest at the unfamiliar surroundings. He had recognised the phlegmy laugh of Jay from behind him, so he could only assume they’d left Nick back in The Room.

The boss had slapped Charlie across the face one more time before leaving the room. Well, Charlie assumed he’d left the room because he didn't speak again. The next person to speak was Ste. “Big day tomorrow, Curly. Might wanna get some rest, you probably won’t be getting any more this week.”

The men had left Charlie in the chair. It was just him. Alone in a room for the first time since before Nick arrived. He hadn’t realised how dependent on Nick he had become until he didn’t have him beside him any longer. After a few more strangled cries, tiredness won and Charlie had nodded off in his seat. 

The only reason he was awake right now was the obnoxious laughter that sounded from beyond the door. Charlie had slumped a little in his sleep. As he sat back up, he was hoping he had dreamt it all and he was actually curled up next to Nick, but he wasn’t. It wasn’t a dream.

“Happy Halloween!” The Boss’ voice sang cheerily. This door was much quieter than the door to The Room; he hadn’t even heard it open. Perhaps it was never closed in the first place. Charlie shivered at the thought of him being on show, no door to protect him, but then his mind was somewhere else as he was dragged across the room in his chair. 

He was being pushed against something hard, the cold metal heavy against his chest and arms. It felt like he was being tucked into a table but he couldn’t be certain, not until someone opposite him threw something down onto the table and Charlie flinched at the loud clang. 

Charlie could hear another scrape of a chair being dragged and someone settling down into it next to him. His vision was given back to him as the tape covering his eyes was ripped off, taking some of his overgrown curls with it. 

Charlie was surprised to see The Boss sitting next to him, not glaring at him from across the room like he usually was. His hair was slicked back and his face was clean shaven, almost as if he was preparing for a visit somewhere. Charlie hadn't noticed it before but he had a thick red scar running from his hairline down to his eyebrow. His eyes were a light brown colour - they almost looked familiar if it wasn’t for the hatred and loneliness that filled them. 

The Boss’ elbows perched on the table, his fingers linked together and his chin settled on top, glaring at Charlie with ferocity. 

“You know, Halloween is my favourite time of year. Ever since I was a little boy, I used to get a fucking thrill out of it. Dressing up, causing mischief, eating so many fucking sweets until I was sick. My dad used to hate it, he’d always find some sort of excuse for not being able to take me out trick or treating. He had to work. He was too tired from working. I was too old. He was too drunk. I was too overbearing and I needed to stop being like other kids. 

“But that didn’t stop me. I went out there by myself, had to do that from a young age so I’ve always been very independent. Anyway, when you’re in this business, it’s basically halloween every day. It’s fucking scary being as famous as I am in this industry, so that’s why we have to hide who we are. Put on stupid fucking masks whenever we go outside, if we go outside.”

Jay handed him a creepy looking mask from over his shoulder that The Boss laid out on the table. It was an evil-looking rabbit mask, which wasn’t as weird as he first expected it to be, but its dead eyes were staring at Charlie and he suddenly felt extremely queasy.

“Now it’s your turn. Do you think Nick will like this?” The Boss asked, learning towards Charlie. Charlie’s eyes flittered between the man closing in on him and the mask staring back at him. 

Charlie knew he should respond, and what would happen if he didn’t. But he couldn’t – nothing would come out. 

But then nothing happened. 

The older man just stared at him. Charlie thought this might be worse than the beating he would usually get.

The Boss scoffed, then sat back in his chair. He beckoned someone from behind him and Jay appeared with two cups. Charlie couldn’t see the contents from his angle and even when they were placed on the table, it was still a mystery to him. He slid the mugs in front of Charlie and sat forward again, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning them on the table. 

“Here’s what is going to happen,” The Boss started. 

He really loves starting shit with that, doesn’t he? Charlie thought, resisting the urge to physically roll his eyes.

“Two mugs. One is a trick and one is a treat. Both contain some sort of drug. One will take you on the wackiest trip of your life and one will make you wish you had chosen the other. So, pick one.”

Charlie started to panic. He didn’t want to take any drugs. He’d never even had a sip of alcohol, so the idea of taking a drug made him anxious. He started to breathe heavily, his feet tried to kick the chair back so he could flee, but there was someone stood behind him with their hand gripped around his jaw.

“Nuh uh uh, where do you think you’re going?” Ste uttered, his finger digging roughly into Charlie’s cheek. The Boss’s face hadn’t changed, still as emotionless as he was before. 

Charlie sputtered, the grasp on his chin halting the words he was trying to spew. The Boss motioned for Ste to loosen his grip and Charlie was able to talk. “But... what's the trick and what’s the treat?” Charlie asked, genuinely confused.

“You don’t get to know. You get to choose the cup and then it will be a surprise trick or treat. It’s a new game I invented about…” The Boss checked his watch, “...20 minutes ago.”

Charlie gulped, almost like they do in cartoons as he weighed up his chances. If he refused, they’d just give him the worst drug, which could be anything. Or he could choose and it’s a 50/50 chance he’d get the better of the two. 

His eyes focused on one of the cups; his natural instincts are drawn to the cup on the right. 

“Come on, asshole. Or we’ll pick for you.” The Boss yelled at him.

“The o-one on the right,” he mumbled as he inhaled deeply. The Boss reached into the mug and pulled out a small white tab with a yellow smiley face on it. Charlie had no idea what the sheet was but judging by The Boss’ reaction, it wasn’t the one they were hoping for.

Ste’s free hand pulled Charlie’s head back by his hair and the hand at his jaw wedged his mouth open so The Boss could drop the tab under Charlie’s tongue. Ste forced Charlie’s chin closed and Charlie had no choice but to wait for the drug to dissolve.

A short period later, the hands on Charlie were gone and The Boss shuffled closer to him. Charlie wasn’t sure how much time had passed, his head was a little fuzzy, but judging by the lack of control he had over his body, it had been a while and the drug had started to kick in.

The Boss laughed at Charlie, whose head lolled on his chest and was babbling to himself, and then put the rabbit mask haphazardly over Charlie’s head. “Take him back to lover boy, let me know when it kicks in. I want to watch the show.” The Boss got up from his seat and was immediately out of sight.

Charlie couldn’t see properly behind the mask. The Boss hadn’t put it on correctly, and his brain was foggy and floaty. Maybe this was a sign of his body finally giving up. He was pulled from the chair, the tape from his chest suddenly gone and his legs were walking him somewhere. 

He giggled at nothing in particular, and when he heard the metal of the lock against the metal of the door, he giggled again. He could hear the faint shouting of someone near him but he couldn’t understand what they were saying; or, maybe he didn’t want to know what they were saying. 

He just knew that everything was so fucking bright, his senses heightened and his vision intensified and there was absolutely nothing he could do to control it. 

~~

Nick was pulled from his spot on the floor and shoved into the chair. He could hear someone laughing above him, but it didn’t sound anything like the guttural laughing he was used to. 

Nick hadn’t moved from the ball he had curled himself into when they took Charlie, hoping that he would wake up and had dreamt it, just like he had dreamt of them killing Charlie before. 

But he hadn’t. 

It was very much real life and he was very much still in this nightmare.

Ste tore the tape from Nick’s eyes and towered over the blonde boy so all Nick could see was Ste and Jay hovering around him. “Got a little surprise for you, Nicky,” Ste grinned, taking a step to the side as he revealed Charlie. Charlie was laying on the mattress, an ugly rabbit mask on his head and one hand in the air, inspecting it as it twisted and turned.

“Charlie?” Nick asked, a spike of shock in his voice. Charlie didn’t respond, which frightened Nick a little considering the way he was taken last night. “Why is he wearing that?”

Ste chuckled. “It’s Halloween, dumbass. Your costume will come later, but for now…” He didn’t finish his sentence, just gestured towards the younger boy who was giggling to himself again. 

Nick got up to move closer to Charlie, hesitant that Ste would hurt him for doing so, but he didn’t. As soon as he realised Ste wasn't going to do anything, Nick ran to Charlie.

“Char? Are you okay?” Nick asked, his words coming fast. Nick tried to pull the mask off of Charlie’s head but Charlie wasn’t helping. He swatted Nick’s hands and backed away. Ste and Jay laughed at the two boys. Nick looked up at them with a pained look on his face and then shuffled closer to Charlie.

“Charlie?” Nick asked again, quieter, so only he and Charlie could hear. Nick reached out for the mask again and Charlie shoved Nick’s hands harder this time. 

“Don’t touch me! S’mine,” Charlie said, a little slurred. Was he drunk?

Nick’s hands recoiled, hurt from the rejection. He knew Charlie wasn’t a very handsy person, but up until this moment Charlie had wanted Nick’s physical touch, if not for romantic reasons then at least for safety and comfort.  

Charlie slowly pulled the mask off and threw it down beside him on the mattress. He looked spaced out, like there was nothing behind his eyes. The frown lines had gone and his face was expressionless, but Nick knew something was up.

“What did you do to him?” Nick asked. His eyes were teary at the thought of these men doing something to his… friend? Boyfriend? Lover? Whatever he was… whilst Charlie was frightened and scared. The men stayed quiet, barring their laughter as Nick started to panic. 

“WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?” Nick screamed this time, rising from his spot and charging towards Ste. Nick wasn’t quite sure why he’d decided walking toward the men who could potentially end his life was a good idea, but he would do anything for Charlie, and if it meant attempting to fight them, then so be it.

“Relax, Nicky. He’s fine, just a little… high, is all,” Jay grinned. The two men laughed again as Charlie tried to stand up but fell down abruptly onto the mattress. Charlie giggled at his own misfortune and began rolling around on his bed.

Then it dawned on Nick. 

“You… drugged him?” he replied, disgusted and horrified all at once. 

“Ding, ding, ding! He’s finally got it. Took you long enough, thought you were meant to be smart,” Jay taunted.

Nick suddenly felt vulnerable, being in The Room with a drugged Charlie and two men who could do anything to him. His face screwed up and a sob left his mouth. The two men bellowed at him, at how helpless he was. He backed away, hoping the men would leave him alone, but then Ste moved with him. 

Ste was a lot bigger and stronger than Nick, so in seconds, Nick was grabbed and forced to watch Charlie in his state - Nick’s back against Ste’s front with Ste’s muscled, tattooed arm wrapped around his neck. 

“How about we stand here and watch the twink go on the trip of his life, huh?” Ste growled into Nick’s ear. Nick shook his head; he didn’t want to watch Charlie go through that. He wanted to sit with him, coach him through it, and be there for him. The tightness around his neck stayed, unfaltering, as he watched Charlie enter the various stages of his high.

Charlie was initially spaced out, laughing to himself and waving at Nick and the men. Charlie tried to get up again but fell down onto the floor this time. He’s definitely going to have a bruise, Nick thought as he watched Charlie hit the ground hard, ass-first. 

Somehow, Charlie had managed to roll himself onto the mattress, where he laid unmoving for a while. His breathing was steady and his fingers twitched now and then, but Nick started to panic when several minutes passed and Charlie had failed to move from his original spot. Nick tried to squirm out of Ste’s grip, but that just fuelled the older man as he latched onto him tighter.

“Nick?” Charlie’s small voice came. His head turned to face Nick and the two men and then his eyes widened in fear. “No… No… please. Where’s Nick? I need Nick!”

“It’s okay, Char. It’s me, I’m here,” Nick called in a soothing voice, trying not to startle the curly-haired boy.

Charlie backed himself as far away from the group as he could, pulling the hood of his jumper over his head like a shield. “No. No, you’re not. You’re a monster. You’re all monsters. I need Nick. I need him.”

Nick’s heart sank. Charlie didn’t recognise him and that hurt. It made Ste and Jay belly laugh but Nick didn’t find it funny. His poor Charlie shouldn’t be going through this; he should be at home reading to Olly or going bowling with Tao, Elle and Isaac, not rolling around in a dirty warehouse, scared for his life. 

“Please let me go to him. Please,” Nick begged. Ste let go of Nick and shoved him towards the younger boy. 

“You can try, but you can’t help him. Not until he comes down from it.”

Nick didn’t care. He didn't care if Charlie didn’t know it was him, but for his own sanity, he needed to make sure Charlie was okay. “Char, it’s me. It’s Nick.”

Charlie looked up ever so slightly, to Nick’s face and then quickly hid his face behind his arms again. “N-no. You’re- you’re a monster. You’re the monster. I want Nick, he’s not a monster. He’s so nice and pretty. Not like you. Please,” Charlie cried. “Just give me Nick.”

Nick wanted to cry, too. He’d cried so much that he wasn’t sure he was even able to produce any more tears. He sat himself next to Charlie, just far enough away that he felt like he wasn’t about to be ambushed, and slowly reached out his hand, laying it in front of Charlie’s hands.

“It’s me, Char. I promise, it’s Nick. I have a dog named Nellie. My mum’s name is Sarah. I have a birthmark on my shoulder that looks like a love heart. I love to play rugby and when we get out of here, you promised you'd whoop my ass at Mario Kart. Remember that, Charlie? We played 21 questions not long after I came here and we told each other about ourselves.” 

Nick’s attempt at luring Charlie out of his hood was a non-starter so far, but he hoped that by reeling off things only Nick and Charlie would know, maybe it would help Charlie’s brain figure out that Nick wasn’t a monster. He was just Nick.

“And you, your name is Charles Francis Spring. You have a younger brother and an older sister. You play the drums in your free time and you hate rugby. Remember? Your favourite colour is green and you won’t tell Tao this, but you like marvel movies because there are loads of fit men in the MCU.”

The room was filled with silence – even the two men had stopped their laughing to watch the two boys intently. Charlie’s hand suddenly uncurled from itself and steadily latched onto Nick’s. “Nick?”

“I’m here. I promise, I’m here,” he whispered, the tone of his voice relieved. 

Charlie clung onto Nick’s hand and squeezed firmly on his fingers. “Nick, everything looks b-bright and weird. I can’t get it out of my head.”

“I know, Char, I know. You’re high right now. They gave you some drugs, but it will all be okay, I promise.” Nick knew his promises didn’t mean a lot in The Room, especially when they had a bunch of asshats that could extinguish them in seconds, but he and Charlie had to cling onto something. If that meant making promises that couldn’t hold up every once in a while, he would do it again and again.

They boys sat in the same position for a while, Charlie buried under his hood but clasping onto Nick’s hand like an anchor. The men gave up not long after Charlie recognised Nick and left the room. Nick was grateful for that; he knew it was probably meant to be a lot of fun watching Charlie freak out, but he hadn’t reacted how they’d hoped he would and got bored.

Nick couldn’t help but go back to The Boss’ words the night before, just after they had taken Charlie from him. 

‘The Halloween special, coming to a room near you, Nicky boy. And you’re the main attraction.’

So they still had plans for Nick, and that terrified him. If they were able to drug Charlie, then what would they do to him? Would he get the same treatment? Or maybe a different drug? Maybe even a new punishment entirely. 

The Boss had some sort of magic power, as if he knew he was being thought about, because he was suddenly opening the door and walking in. He looked a little pissed – not more than usual, but something had irritated him. 

“Why didn’t no one come to find me? He’s almost out of it now,” he screamed at Ste, Jay and H, who had followed him into the room. Nick and Charlie had been in the same position since they left, what felt like a long time ago. As he watched them traipse behind the main man, he gripped Charlie’s hand tighter, letting the younger boy know that he was still there.

“Honestly boss, he was barely in it. The LSD was fine and he was tripping for about an hour but then he crashed. He’s been holding hands with that poofter for half an hour at least,” Jay spat. Nick could feel the anger burning through all of them. 

This can’t be good.

“So we have dud blotters, is that what you’re saying?” The Boss fumed. All three men looked like deer in headlights, not knowing how to answer.

Jay piped up. “Must have been a rogue batch from Stéphane’s lot, can’t be from our guys.”

So it’s drugs that Stéphane had fucked us over with, Nick realised. That explained The Boss’ mood swings and how they had LSD on hand to give Charlie. 

Nick flinched as The Boss kicked the wall, fury flowing off him. He groaned wildly as he picked up the empty chair from the middle of the room and swung it animatedly at the wall, smashing it to pieces. He snatched a broken piece of leg and walked with purpose toward the boys. The Boss’ eyes were black and full of venom as he lifted the chair leg above his head and swung it downwards towards Charlie. The first hit narrowly missed Charlie’s legs but the second one hit its target. Charlie yelped out in pain and pulled his knees up to his chest to protect them. 

It took a second for Nick’s brain to react to what was happening. As he did, he jumped from his spot and covered Charlie’s body with his own, taking three more hits to the back and legs. Thankfully, the chair leg wasn’t heavy, so he would most likely only bruise from the impact, if anything. Nick whispered reassurances to Charlie, that they would be okay and that he was okay as Charlie shivered into Nick’s embrace.

He heard the sound of wood meeting the cement floor, heels backing away, and more footsteps near the door. 

“Get him the fuck ready. Change of plan, he’s going to be our postman,” The Boss shouted from down the hall, his voice exaggerating the word ‘he’s’. Nick caught a glimpse of Charlie’s scared blue eyes that had glassed over from the hallucinogens as he was pulled off the younger boy and forced onto the hooks by the door.

“H, watch them whilst we get the stuff,” Jay ordered before turning to Nick. “And you… well, you’re going to love this.” Ste grinned up at him as he and Jay left the room. Nick looked over at Charlie, whose hand was in the same position as it was when he was holding Nick’s hand, except this time he was shaking and whispering to himself.

★

The room was only just beginning to look normal. The colours still swirled around, but they were less vibrant and not as luminous as they had been. Nick had managed to help him through the high, though he hadn’t done much - his thumb rubbed gently over Charlie’s palm and the weight of Nick’s hand in his was a life jacket in a sea of vivid nightmares.

Charlie was curled into a ball on the mattress, his knees tight to his chest and his right arm wrapped round them to keep them from moving. There was a throbbing pain in his right leg from something hitting him not too long ago, but that pain was the least of his worries. 

His brain felt like it was swelling and shrinking against his skull, and his mouth was extremely dry. He needed water and he could see the bowl of it just above the mattress. Charlie pulled himself up and dragged himself over to the bowl, lapping up the water like an animal, his arms too weak to lift the bowl to his mouth. 

One of the men near the door started chuckling, “That’s it, little bitch. Lap it up, go on. Look at him, Nicky boy. Like a proper dog.” Then the man was crouching down beside him. Charlie looked up and saw the man pointing his phone at him. Charlie didn’t care, he just needed water. He continued drinking from the bowl as the man egged him on. 

“That’s it little doggy, get the water. Get it!” and then his head was shoved eagerly into the bowl. Charlie had no room to breathe. His arms tried to claw at the hand in his hair but it wouldn’t give. Nothing would give. He could hear the faint shouting of someone else in the room, but couldn’t quite work out who it was. He hoped it was Nick; Charlie couldn’t work out where Nick had gone, but he had a tendency to show up and save him in every bad situation. 

His head was lifted from the bowl and he rolled onto his back, gasping for air. The lingering water droplets were cool on his face, providing a small comfort in a dire situation. 

“Stop hurting him, for fuck sake. Do it to me, just leave him alone!” Nick wailed.

It was Nick. Nick was here and he had saved him. Again.

Charlie opened his eyes briefly to see Nick with his arms above his head, hooked against the wall with a man standing beside him. His face was wet with tears and his whole body was thrashing against the wall.

“Nick?” he called, hoping Nick would run to his side. He wanted to cuddle Nick. Cute, adorable, sweet Nick who accidentally confessed his feelings for Charlie in his sleep. Charlie hoped that one day they could laugh about that; maybe in their future when they’re settled down in their own home with kids of their own and loads (and loads) of dogs.

Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves, Charlie. We haven’t even kissed him yet, Charlie’s logical brain thought.

Charlie smiled at the thought and called out for Nick again. 

“I’m over here, Char. Don’t worry, I’ll be back in a bit. Promise.”

Nick liked to promise him a lot. Sometimes he would stick to them, like when he promised that he would be okay after having a nightmare or when he promised they’d get through this together, but this promise didn’t sound too certain.

~~

The door opened and Ste and Jay reentered the room, a tesco bag for life in one of Ste’s hands and a gun in the other. Something told Nick that whatever was in the carrier bag, he was for him, whether he liked it or not.

Ste placed the carrier bag down and pulled out a scream mask as well as a black cloak to match. Jay pointed the gun at the costume and then back at Nick. “We’re going to let you down, you’re going to put this on and then we’re going on a little ride somewhere. You’ll know it when you see it, and I think you’re going to really enjoy this one,” he chuckled deeply.

Nick was uncertain as to why he was being taken outside – surely that’s the last place you’d want your prisoner to be – but they were adamant that Nick was to go. They taunted him for a couple of minutes whilst Ste unhooked him and threw the costume over to the younger boy. 

Charlie was sitting up now, his eyelids heavy and his head propped against the wall, watching the scene before him. He looked completely out of it, and Nick wanted nothing more than to cuddle with him and keep him safe.  

Fully dressed, minus the mask, Jay re-taped Nick's hands together in a way that wasn’t visible beneath the costume. Obviously, going out into public with hands taped together would be a huge red flag that these men couldn’t afford. Then Jay tore a piece of tape off the roll and slapped it over Nick’s mouth. 

“Take a good look at your boyfriend, Nicky, because if you try anything out there… Put one toe out of line, this will be the last time you see him. Understand?” Jay snarled and Nick nodded enthusiastically back at him. Ste threw the mask backwards over Nick’s head so he had no choice but to be guided out of the room. He caught a glimpse of Charlie, who looked confused and upset at how Nick was suddenly not Nick and was being taken away from him.

Nick tried not to think about the look on Charlie’s face being the last thing he ever saw of his favourite person, because he was sure as hell going to do everything they made him do and come back to him in one piece.

★

Nick was guided down a lot of stairs and through a shit tonne of corridors until he was in what he could only assume was the main warehouse. The voices around him echoed off the high walls and, although he was basically blind, he could tell the room was a lot bigger than any of the ones he’d been in so far.

He was pushed against a car door, where he waited to be moved again. 

“Nicky, Nicky, Nicky.” It was The Boss and he was getting closer to Nick. He could sense the man come to a halt before him and then his head was pushed roughly against the car. “Ready for a little journey? I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that if you try anything funny, then it won't be you we kill, it’ll be that fag back there and your pathetic excuse of a mother.”

Nick didn’t need to be told; Jay had made that very clear back in The Room. There was absolutely no way Nick was stupid enough to try something alone, when Charlie wasn’t with him. He nodded vigorously again and screamed behind the gag for extra confirmation, which was met with a ‘good’ from The Boss.

The car door was opened and Nick was shoved into the seat. Judging by the legroom, he was in the passenger’s seat. The back of the seat was lowered as far down as it could go and then his hands were handcuffed to the door handle. They didn't bother with a seatbelt; it wouldn’t have protected him from a crash anyway, but it would have quelled his thoughts for the duration. 

The driver’s door and the back door opened simultaneously, and two of the men got in. The position Nick was in was weird, being half in the front and half in the back and not knowing who was with him or where he was going. Only when The Boss spoke near his head did he realise there was no room for mistakes.

“Thought we’d give you a treat, too, so you and Charlie boy have the same. Or… Is it a trick?” The Boss scoffed, pressing a gun into Nick’s head. “Just a reminder to not fuck about. Ste, go.” 

The engine of the car roared to life as Ste sped out of the warehouse and onto the road. Nick wished he had the memory to remember every turn they took, but his mind was buzzing with thoughts. What was going on with Charlie right now? Where was Nick being taken? What if it was a trick and they were actually leading him to his death? 

There was a small part of his brain that was telling him that, despite how awful and nasty these men were, they had ample chance to kill them, so lying about this and actually killing him didn’t line up with everything they’d done previously.

The muzzle of the gun was pushed firmly into Nick’s head, not once moving even with the speed bumps and the sudden stopping Ste would make. Nick couldn’t work out how long he’d been in the car, but something didn’t feel right. Something felt… odd.

“Home sweet home, Nicky,” The Boss chirped, twisting the mask the right way and nudging Nick into a sitting position. The eyes were a little off, but even partially obscured, he could tell where he was. 

Across the street was the house he had known for 15 years. It looked exactly the same: from the warm glow of the living room light that shone out onto the drive and the fairy lights he could see had been left on in his room. In his room. His bedroom. His mum must have left them on so if he ever came home, a light would always be on.

That thought alone made tears fall. The fact he was sitting outside his home, which he obviously wasn’t going to be allowed into, broke off a chunk of his soul. Torturing him. Tormenting him. If they wanted a way to break Nick, this was the way.

Nick sniffled and exhaled a sob. 

“Like I said earlier, you’re going to be our postman. Remember that little video you made for your bitch mum and scummy dad? You’re going to be the one to deliver it.” 

Nick slowly closed his eyes at the fowl name The Boss had used for his mother. His wonderful and kind mother, who had no idea he was currently within 20-feet of their home. 

“But if you do anything to alert anyone of who you are or where we are, this bullet goes straight through Sarah Nelson’s head. Then, we’ll drive you back and make you watch as we do the exact same to your cunt of a boyfriend. Do you understand?”

Nick nodded as another quiet sob left his throat. 

“Good. Ste, drive down a bit further so we’re out of the way.” 

Ste drove an extra minute down the road and around a corner, parking in the dark shadows of River Crescent. Ste unlocked Nick’s hands from the cuffs and The Boss handed Nick the box he was meant to leave for Sarah. 

“You’re going to drop the box on the doorstep, you’re going to knock and then you’re going to run back to Ste. He’ll have a little surprise for you when you get to him. He will also have a gun trained on you at all times so any funny business… That’s it.”

Ste was then out of the car and rounding the front. He opened the door for Nick, who climbed out unaided. Ste nudged Nick’s back with the gun, urging the younger boy to start walking. As Nick rounded the corner, he could see the familiar white door of his family home. Tears were falling heavily now, staining his face and blurring his vision.

Ste stopped Nick just before his driveway, making sure no one was around before pushing him forward as if to continue. 

Nick walked slowly up to his door and placed the box on the top step. He noticed a group of pumpkins that sat on each step, carved with different levels of integrity. One was perfectly done, most probably by his mum, but the other two seemed more chaotic. One was carved with a sad face and the other was undistinguishable, like a young child had carved it. 

Before he pushed the door bell, he reached out and touched the door for just a little bit of comfort, knowing he was so close to home yet so far away from being back there again. He could feel the looming presence of Ste behind him, so he quickly shook his head, pressed the doorbell and ran back to Ste.

Ste trained the gun on Nick, who was breathing heavily. Ste forced Nick to spin round and face the door. He pointed the gun squarely at the Nelson house as they watched through a small gap in the bush. 

The white door swung open and someone who wasn’t Sarah stepped out.

“Happy Halloween!” the small voice screamed to thin air and became quickly upset when there was no one to hand sweets to. The young child was dressed as a skeleton, his face painted to compliment the look. He called back into the house, his words undistinguishable to Nick under his mask. It took Nick a second to work out who he was, which became more clear when the next person came to the door. 

Tori Spring approached her younger brother and stared down at the box, ushering Olly back inside and shouted for Sarah. Sarah came racing to the door, looking down at the package. She took one step outside, scanning her surroundings. Ste made it clear to Nick that if she took any more steps towards them, he would pull the trigger on her. Sarah bent down and picked up the box, taking one more look outside before stepping back inside and shutting the door behind her. 

Nick broke down into a heavy sob and Ste dragged him back to the car before he could make any more noise. Nick was shoved back into his seat and The Boss’ gun was back on his head. Ste got into the driver's seat and re-cuffed Nick’s hands.

“Did he see her?” The Boss asked, a glint of smugness in his tone. 

“Her and the other one’s siblings. Didn’t expect them to be there but honestly, couldn’t have gone any better,” Ste replied, turning on the engine and setting off. 

The Boss laughed maniacally, slamming his free hand on the back of Ste’s seat in overbearing joy. “See, Nicky. Didn’t I tell you this would be a treat? You got to see Mummy again and you even got to see the in-laws. Oh my god, I have to be there when you tell Curly, he’s going to cry so fucking much. This has got to be the best Halloween ever,” he said, pulling the mask off Nick and basking in the pain on Nick’s face.

Nick blanked the rest of the journey out, his mind occupied with the picture of Charlie’s siblings with his mum. Coping with the loss together. Sharing the grief. Nick had no idea how he was going to tell Charlie about this; maybe he wouldn’t tell him at all. That was probably the best option.

Without realising, Nick was suddenly back in the warehouse and back to his prison, the mask thrown over his head again. He let the thugs guide him back to The Room, where he was shoved down onto the mattress.

His mind was empty, not by choice but from overwhelming emotion. He could feel Charlie hovering over him, pulling the mask off his head and staring into his watery eyes.

“What happened, Nick? Are you okay?” Charlie asked, worried. Nick burst into more tears at the sight of Charlie, and then it was too hard to control his sobbing.

~~

“What did you do to him?” Charlie asked the three men who had come into the room with Nick. Nick looked pale, like he’d seen a ghost. 

None of the men answered him; they just stood staring at the crying boy in his arms. Charlie certainly wasn’t in an ideal state to be looking after Nick – he was definitely still a little high, but not high enough that he couldn’t comfort his hurting cellmate. 

The Boss simply laughed as he said, “Ask him when he’s stopped snivelling like a fucking baby. You can take the tape off for him, Curly, then maybe he’ll share that little adventure he’s been on.”

Charlie tentatively took the tape off Nick and balled it up. The Boss’ phone started to ring and he groaned, answering it. 

“What?” he asked bluntly. He started pacing the room and then stopped abruptly. “You’re sure? Okay. We’ll be there.” He ended the call and crouched down in front of the pair. 

“Sorry boys, looks like we’ll have to pass on hearing your precious little cries when Nicky here tells you about his trip,” said The Boss as he turned to his men. “We’ve got a job, let’s go.”

All three of the men left the room, and the bolting of the door was the only sound amongst Nick’s sobbing. Charlie laid down next to Nick, despite the screaming in his head warning him not to, for fear that it might explode from searing pain, and pulled the blonde-haired boy flush to his chest.

Charlie cooed, whispering sweet assurances into Nick’s hair as he rubbed circles into his back. Charlie had learnt during their time in the room that Nick was chatty, so seeing Nick speechless like this could only mean they must have done a number on him.

“Nick, what happened? You can tell me,” he soothed, pushing a stray piece of hair out of Nick’s face. He didn’t respond, instead sobbing heavily into Charlie’s hoodie. Charlie accepted that he wasn’t going to get much out of Nick for now, so he opted to just hold the other boy. If he had gone through something traumatic then Charlie wanted to be there for him, not pushing him into a frenzy.

If Charlie knew anything, it was that spiralling was never good.

Charlie simply held Nick, rocked him until his crying had stopped and his erratic breathing had slowed down. He lay with the most beautiful man he had ever met in his arms, angry at the world for putting one of the best people he knew in a shitty situation like this.

Charlie wasn’t going to force it, but he hoped Nick would open up to him soon. It would really help with the buzzing in his head and the come down he was inevitably in right now. 

Nick sniffled against his hand, wiping his face on the sleeve of the costume he was still in. Charlie didn’t want to sit in silence anymore, so he broke the quiet.

“When they took me last night - or whenever it was… I don't understand time anymore – I really thought they were going to kill me. I shouldn’t have faffed around looking outside. We should have just gone. Then maybe we wouldn’t have been put through all that today,” Charlie started. He could see Nick gearing up to protest, so he pressed onward before Nick could cut in. “No, it’s true. We could have run off, found some help and then maybe I wouldn’t have been drugged and you wouldn’t have gone through what you did.

“I’m not forcing you to tell me, I’m sure you’ll tell me when you’re ready, but what I’m trying to say is… The thing that got me through all that was you. The thought of you being here on your own, it spurred me on. I agreed to everything they said. They made me choose between two cups, one had a tab with a smiley face on it and the other… Well, I'm not so sure. They said I got off lightly, so I can only imagine it was a stronger drug,” he admitted, stroking his hands through Nick’s hair. Nick seemed to react well to the touch; his shoulders relaxed and muscles unclenched.

“Then when they brought me in here, I knew you were here, too. I could sense you. That sounds so fucking strange.” They both laughed. It was nice hearing Nick laugh again. “But it’s true. Everything was so bright and nothing was like it was before. You all had two heads and the room was spinning into some kind of weird vortex, but knowing that as soon as I was out of it, I would have you by my side for the come down… That’s what got me through.”

Charlie planted a gentle kiss on Nick’s forehead, smiling down at the brown-eyed boy as he pulled away. 

“I think they gave you a dud blotter. That’s what they’re called, those little stickers,” Nick spoke for the first time since he’d gotten back, his voice hoarse from the crying. “When The Boss found out, he went mental. Broke the chair and started hitting you with it-”

“So that’s why my arse and leg hurt,” Charlie surmised.

“Your arse will hurt because you fell on it trying to get up, but yeah… he hit you once really hard but then I jumped in the way and took the rest of the blows.”

Charlie swallowed a lump that had been brewing in his throat. “I’m sor-”

“Don’t you dare say it. I don’t regret it, I would do it a thousand times if it meant you were safe,” Nick confessed, looking Charlie dead in the eye. Eye contact had never been something Charlie had liked before, but Nick’s eyes were different, like they were made for him to stare into. They never bore into his eyes or made him feel uncomfortable; quite the opposite, actually.

Nick’s hands wandered up to Charlie’s chin and rubbed gentle strokes into his skin. “I’m scared that if I tell you what they did to me, you’ll hate me.”

“Impossible. I could never hate you.”

“But you will, because I hate myself. I hate that I didn’t try and get away, but I couldn’t. They promised they would kill you, kill my mum and… if I lost you both, there would be no point in living.” Nick whimpered. He’d looked away from Charlie, talking to his chest instead, ruminating on the thoughts in his head.

Charlie squeezed him tighter. “I promise you, Nick. I won’t be angry at you for what they made you do.”

A worried look crossed Nick’s face; his eyebrows tightened together and small wrinkles painted his eyes beneath the caked-on dirt and blood. He took a deep breath and began.

“They… dressed me up because they took me outside. They drove me somewhere, didn’t tell me where they were taking me but as it was outside, I couldn’t be seen. If I was then they would kill you. So I followed their instructions - don’t interact with anyone and do as they say. We pulled up outside a house a-and,” Nick was crying again now and so was Charlie.

He thinks he knows where this is going.

“It’s okay, Nick. You can say it,” Charlie assured him.

Nick nodded. “It was… it was my house. My house that looks exactly the same as it did before I was taken. T-they gave me a box and told me to drop it off, knock and run, and if I was caught then they would shoot my mum on the spot. So I did what they said, ran back to Ste who forced me to watch her open the door and pick up the box.”

Charlie removed his hands from around Nick and brought them up to Nick’s face, wiping away the tears. “You saw her?”

Nick nodded again, setting off another round of tears. “She wasn't the one who answered the door though.”

Charlie’s brows bent with confusion. “Oh?”

“Char, I can’t. I can’t say it,” Nick cried, edging closer to Charlie.

Charlie rested his chin on Nick’s head. “You can, Nick. You can tell me. Who opened the door?”

Nick stayed quiet for what felt like hours. When he was ready, he moved back and pulled Charlie’s hands into his. “It- It was Olly. Olly was there and so was Tori. I'm so sorry Charlie, I’m so fucking sorry.”

Charlie didn’t know whether to break down crying from sadness or happiness but what he did know was that Sarah and Tori were together. They were supporting each other, and they had each other to lean on. Charlie was glad for that, because he had a feeling they would both need the extra support when they watched that video. 

He could only hope that they put Olly, innocent little Olly, in another room before they started it.

Chapter Text

Monday 23rd October

Sarah Nelson was beside herself from the moment she opened the door, bags full of baking ingredients in one hand and Nellie’s lead in the other, and found the house entirely empty. 

Nick had set the kitchen up – bowls and utensils scattered the marble tops – but her son was nowhere to be seen. It wasn’t like Nick to come home early from school, upset, and then disappear midway through a breakdown without so much as a note. 

Sarah tried calling him, but it sent her straight to voicemail. She even checked his whereabouts on Life360, but he wasn’t visible. It was unlike Nick to let his phone die – he was the one often scolding Sarah for doing just that – so she did as any sensible mother would do: she started to worry. 

She paced around the house, opened doors that hadn’t been touched in a while, and checked the garden shed that had clearly not been visited, as thick cobwebs decorated the decaying wood, but nothing - Nick was nowhere to be seen. 

She tried not to panic too much; maybe he’d gone to see his mates and, being a teenage boy, simply forgot to inform her. But this was Nick, the same boy who shouts out to her that he’s emptying the bins or taking Nellie for a walk, who left school because he was upset about a friend who had gone missing. He wouldn’t set up an entire baking session and then leave. 

Sarah called the parents of Nick’s friends - Sai, Otis, Christian, and even Harry Greene, who Nick had told her early that afternoon wasn’t his friend anymore, yet nothing. No one had seen or heard from him since school. 

His phone was gone as well as his keys and his favourite pair of vans, so Sarah grabbed her car and door keys and kissed Nellie on the head, scruffing behind her ears and whispering an ‘I’ll find him’ before she jumped in the car and drove aimlessly around Rochester. 

She searched high and low, near the school, in the park where he frequently walked Nellie, past his friends’ houses (in case he had shown up after her phone call) and finally, outside a house she had never been to before but had read about in the news earlier in the day. 

Sarah doesn’t know why she pulled up outside the Spring residence, but, after Nick’s outburst in the kitchen, she thought maybe he’d run over earlier than they’d planned to find some solace. She sat perched in the driver’s seat, her knuckles white as she gripped onto the wheel, gearing herself up to get out and knock on the door. 

The door of the family that was currently grieving. 

Shaking her head, she realised that sitting outside a house Nick had never been to before was useless. She would be more at peace at home, in case Nick was trying to get in. As she turned on the ignition, a small yellow car pulled into the driveway and three Springs ducked out of the car, their faces sorrowful and dejected.

A young girl, whom Sarah assumed was Tori, opened the door for the smallest Spring. He climbed out of the car and held tightly onto Tori’s hand, looking up at his sister, confused. Even above the hum of her engine, Sarah had heard him ask his sister, “Now will you tell me where Charlie is?” That was all Sarah needed to hear before the waterworks started and she set off back home. She hoped Nick would be waiting for her, but a small voice in the back of her mind told her he wouldn't be there.

Sarah called the police as soon as she got back from her drive on Monday evening and a few hours later, two police officers had turned up at her door. They asked an abundance of questions on Nick’s welfare and if there were any places Nick could have gone to. After a thirty-minute chat, the officers asked for a recent photo of Nick and explained they would be in touch on Wednesday should they not hear anything from Sarah in the meantime.

★

Tuesday 24th October

24 hours later and still no Nick. 

Sarah had taken the day off work, not feeling up to it. Her manager understood her situation and told her to take as much time as she needed. 

In her occupied haze, Sarah walked into the kitchen and boiled the kettle. She reached for two mugs, throwing a tea bag in each and adding one spoonful of sugar. Once the kettle boiled, she poured the hot water in, quickly fusing with the tea leaves, and then realised what she had done.

She crumbled, her voice caught on a sob as she watched the tea bag float to the top of the ceramic white and gold mug with a huge N printed on the front. 

Nellie could sense something was up; she trotted into the kitchen from her bed in the living room and sat at Sarah’s feet, whining and pawing at Sarah’s leg. Sarah collapsed onto the floor in a heap and Nellie was on her in an instant. 

Sarah had been through this pain before - losing someone close to her - but she never thought she would lose Nick too. The pain she’d gone through was inconceivable and now, she was being put through it all over again. She couldn’t call Stephane, that wasn’t even an option. Her sister, Cindy, was on a 14-day cruise until the following Friday, so she wasn’t available.

The only source of comfort she had right now was her dog. Their dog.

Nellie laid her front paws on Sarah’s thighs and rested her head there too. Sarah leant down and kissed the top of Nellie’s head. “Where is he, Nells?” she whispered. Her lip quivered from the thought of her little boy out there somewhere cold and alone. “Where did he run off to?”

She sat with Nellie on her lap for a long while, her tea forgotten, soaking in the memories that she and Nick have created, hoping he would come back soon so they could create more.

★

Thursday 26th October

A loud, thumping knock on the door of 34 River Crescent was what woke Sarah that morning. Nellie, who was asleep at the end of Sarah’s bed, barked at the noise and Sarah was quick to slide her feet into her slippers, grab the dressing gown from the back of the door and run down the stairs.

“Nicky?!” she yelled as she swung the door open. Unfortunately, it was a young man with a lopsided grin, wearing an Amazon t-shirt and holding a rectangular box. Sarah’s hopes went from high to low in less than a second, as she realised what it was.

“Package for Sarah Nelson?” the man asked, scanning the barcode on top.

Sarah nodded her head, disappointed. “Er, yes. That’s me, thank you.”

The delivery man handed her the box and wished her a nice day. Sarah stood at the door longer than she needed, taking a long look around her house in case there was any sign of Nick. 

There wasn’t.

She sighed and closed the door behind her. She took the box into the kitchen and cut the sealing tape, opening up her latest purchase. She pulled out the sky blue box of the Ring doorbell camera and began unboxing its contents.

The police suggested looking into getting one, in case Nick showed up at the house while Sarah was out; she would be notified immediately and could talk to him through it even if she wasn’t at home. 

The setup was easy. It only took an hour to have it all up and running, but Sarah was proud of herself for doing it (normally she would ask Nick to help her). The first people to use the doorbell were two police officers. 

“Would any of you like a cup of tea?” she asked, both of them graciously accepting.

“We can come into the kitchen to chat whilst you’re making them if you’d like, Mrs Nelson?” the tall non-uniformed officer, who’d introduced himself as DS Trent, offered.

Sarah waved her hand at them and urged them to sit in the living room whilst she made the tea. Moments later, she returned with two cups for her guests before turning back and grabbing her own and sitting down in the chair opposite them.

“Mrs Nelson-”

“It’s Ms Nelson,” she corrected, blowing on her piping hot tea. “I’m widowed. But please, call me Sarah.”

“Sorry, Sarah, we thought we’d stop by to check in on you, in case there had been any sightings of Nick over the past couple of days and to… well, make sure you’re okay?” DS Trent asked sincerely.

Sarah was doing the best she could considering her son had gone missing three days ago. “Nothing so far, I would have contacted you if he had,” she replied. She didn’t intend for it to sound snippy but it was quite a silly question. “I’m… coping. My work have allowed me a week off and I’m due back next Wednesday so until then, I guess I just sit and wait, hoping that my Nicky comes home.”

Trent, who had just taken a sip of his tea, pulled his notebook out of the inside of his jacket and flipped it open, turning the pages to find the one he was looking for. “That’s wonderful that your job has been accommodating for you during this time. I can’t imagine what you’re going through. That’s why we want to ask if you’d be willing to join the parents and siblings of Charles Spring in a press conference tomorrow evening?”

Sarah’s eyebrows formed two sharp, identical curves. “You want us to do one together?”

Trent nodded. “Yes, we think that Nick and Charlie may… be together.”

Sarah hadn’t thought that maybe Nick could be with Charlie, the boy that Nick spoke so highly of that Monday afternoon. But that made so much more sense than him simply running away. He ran away to be with Charlie? Nick was a kind and thoughtful soul that maybe he went out looking for Charlie, maybe he was safe and with Charlie right now and they would be home soon.

“That… does sound like something Nick would do. A friend of his in danger, Nick would do anything to protect them. Yes, I’ll do the press conference, if it will help find them.”

DS Trent passed on the information to Sarah about when and where the conference would be taking place and the time a car would be sent to collect her. The two officers finished their tea and chat and Sarah guided them out of her house a little more hopeful than she had been when they came in.

★

Friday 27th October

Sarah made sure that Nellie was tired out from a walk and had plenty of food and water before she climbed in the back seat of a black Mercedes A Class with tinted windows that drove her to Truham police station.

DS Trent greeted her, opening the door once the car had come to a complete stop and walked her through the station and into a holding room. 

“The Springs are not here yet but make yourself comfortable,” he said, pointing at the sofa. He then pointed at the table with a coffee machine. “There’s hot beverages and biscuits over there and a fridge with soft drinks underneath. Please, help yourself.”

Sarah smiled gratefully at the man and thanked him for his kind hospitality. He swiftly left her alone, so she got up and made herself a tea (of course) and grabbed a mini packet of shortbread rounds that she took over to the sofa.

The Springs walked in shortly after, with Trent guiding them in. He explained the situation to the families and then allowed them to make introductions. Sarah shook Julio and Jane’s hand. When it came to Tori, Sarah pulled her into a famous Sarah Nelson hug. Tori was stiff at first, like she wasn’t used to such affection, but quickly melted into Sarah’s embrace.

Sarah released Tori from her grasp and tucked a stray piece of hair behind Tori’s ear. “My Nicky told me all about that lunch before he went missing. Thank you for seeing the good in him.”

Before she cried her eyes out, she left Tori and walked over to the chair next to Julio and started a conversation with him - asking about Charlie, his family, Julio’s work - things that you would ask any normal adult when you meet them for the first time, except this time there were certain areas neither of them wanted to dive into for fear of opening up fresh wounds.

Sarah caught a glimpse of Charlie’s mum – Julio introduced her as Jane – and Tori bickering about something she couldn’t quite hear. Tori looked horrified; Sarah hoped Jane wasn’t being too unkind to her. The poor girl has been through enough losing her brother and now a friend, Sarah thought.

DS Trent broke the chattering and ushered the families out of the room and into another, more formal, room. This room had one long table containing a tonne of wires and microphones, and one lone camera a little further back in the room. 

Sarah was situated between Tori and Trent at the table. Once she was seated, she took out a piece of paper she had written a speech on and folded it onto the table. DS Trent opened the conference with basic information about Nick and Charlie, when they went missing and where they were last seen. Then he handed it over to Sarah, who carefully unfolded the paper.

“My dear Nick, I hope you’re okay and you’re not in too much trouble? Me and Nellie miss you so, so much, darling,” she began, failing to hold back tears. 

“I think she knows something is up, her big brother isn’t here to take her on her daily walks and she has to put up with me. She really isn’t happy with my quality of dog walking. I accidentally made you a cup of tea a few days ago, I’m just so used to having you in the house, humming along to old songs and being an absolute ray of sunshine day in, day out.”

“I need you to know that I’m not angry at you if you have run away, I will never be angry at you. I just…” The tears were truly flowing, Tori handed her a tissue from the box at the front of the table. Sarah smiled at Tori, wiping her face and soaking the tissue. “I need you to come home. I miss you so much, baby. Please, come home.”

Sarah folded up her paper and pushed it away from her, dabbing at the newly fallen tears. She wasn’t able to focus on anything after that; the thought of her Nicky potentially seeing this brought a whole host of emotions. She did, however, catch the end of Jane Spring’s speech, practically berating her son and spilling his deepest, darkest secrets to the world.

Sarah turned her head, mortified that another mother would say such foul things about her own flesh and blood, but then Tori stood up beside her and screamed at her mum. Sarah could sense Tori’s frustration; even Sarah felt her blood boil at Jane’s comments, so she didn’t blame the young girl for standing up for her absent brother.

As the dark-haired girl came down from her anger-fuelled rant, she flopped down into her chair and started to cry. Sarah’s motherly instincts kicked in, pulling Tori into her arms and holding her as she sobbed, rubbing gentle and warm circles into her back.

Julio finished their family’s speech and DS Trent ended the conference. Tori sniffled into Sarah’s chest and Sarah murmured soft whisperings of ‘it’s okay’ and ‘let it all out’ above Tori’s head.

Jane went to speak to Tori but Tori wanted none of it. She flipped her chair as she rose from Sarah’s arms and ran briskly out of the room. Jane held her head in her hands, a loud sob poured out of her mouth. Julio gripped her in a hug and looked over to Sarah with an apologetic look. 

Sarah shook her head and shot him an understanding smile. She mouthed that she would go and see to Tori to which Julio nodded and mouthed back a thank you.

Rising from her seat, Sarah headed out of the conference room and dipped her head into all of the rooms along the corridor until she could hear the faint talking of a young boy. She peered into the room and found Tori, curled in on herself, with her youngest brother in her lap.

The small boy looked up at Sarah as she entered the room and beamed, showing Sarah the tractors he’d been playing with. “Are you a police officer lady too?” he asked as Tori loosened her grip on him.

Sarah chuckled. “I’m not, no. My name is Sarah, what’s yours?”

“Oliver Spring, and this is my big sister, Tori. We have another brother too, his name’s Charlie, but he’s not here right now. He’s gone missing,” Olly tells her, his face getting sadder as he explains where Charlie is.

Sarah takes a seat on the chair next to Olly and Tori and smiles at him sadly. “I know. My son is missing, too. That’s why we came here today – to put out a little message for them, and maybe, if they see it, they’ll come back to us.”

Olly’s brain seemed to be working overtime as he acknowledged that Nick was missing too. “And you don’t know where he is? Your son?” 

She wished she did. Sarah wished that she had answers to Nick’s whereabouts, but nothing made sense to her. She was adamant that something nefarious was at play but she had no proof to suggest Nick or Charlie had been kidnapped rather than running away, and she definitely wasn’t going to share that with a child as pure as Oliver Spring.

Sarah shook her head.  “No, I don’t. I think my Nick might be with your brother, Charlie, so the nice police officers thought that if our families joined forces, we could get them home together.”

Tori caught Sarah’s eye as she smiled at the older woman. Sarah could see the light start to flicker in Tori’s eyes again at Sarah’s hopeful confession. Olly bounced off of Tori’s lap and over to the car road mat that covered the floor. He started racing the tractors like nothing else was happening right now. 

Sarah thought back to when Nick was that age - not a care in the world and would play with almost everything he was given. He was once given a barbie doll by accident (it was supposed to go to his cousin Phoebe, but Aunt Cindy had mixed up the boxes), and refused to give it back when he was told it wasn’t his actual present. 

Tori got up off the floor and sat next to Sarah on the sofa, her hands fiddled together in her lap. 

“Are you okay, dear?” Sarah asked her. 

~~

Tori’s eyes remained focused on her hands as she nodded. Sarah shuffled a little closer to the young girl and rested a comforting hand on her shoulder. The touch felt foreign to Tori; her mum wasn’t really the type of person to show affection to her kids, but she had to admit, it felt nice. 

“You know, it’s okay if you’re not. I’m most certainly not doing okay. I may look like I am but tonight, once I’m at home, I will probably curl up on Nicky’s bed and cry,” Sarah admitted. Tori knew how that felt - every day since Charlie had left, she’d wanted nothing more than to bury herself in Charlie’s bed and let all her emotions flow. But she couldn’t; she had to remain strong for Olly and, most importantly, for Charlie.

“I-I just… I miss him so much. I don’t understand why he ran off? Maybe it’s my fault for not being there for him more,” Tori confessed. Her hands caught her head as she buried it in them.

“Oh, darling, it’s not your fault at all. If Charlie did run away then I’m sure he had his reasons, just like Nick did. But I highly doubt you were on that list, there’s no use blaming yourself for this,” Sarah shot a tight-lipped glare through the wall at the direction Jane Spring was in. Tori assumed she wasn’t meant to see that but it subdued her dread nonetheless.

Tori remained quiet but nestled herself into the crook Sarah’s arm. 

“What do you say tomorrow, we go out together and hang up some missing person posters around the town?” Sarah asked. “You can bring Olly too, if your parents are okay with that.” She pointed at Olly, who was cheering that the green tractor had won the ‘ultimate tractor race in the world’. Tori smiled at her younger brother.

Tori was definitely only asking her dad, because there was no way she was going to ask Jane. Her dad was the most reasonable and, unquestionably, the more rational of her parents. 

Tori nodded and Sarah pulled her in for a closer hug. “That’s settled then, I’ll speak to them and we’ll organise something.”

★

Saturday 28th October

Julio had agreed to let Tori and Olly join Sarah in putting up missing person signs. The police had given them a handful of official posters for them to use and insisted that they visit the station if they needed any more.

Sarah drove to the Spring’s house and parked outside their drive, not wanting to seem like she was making herself comfortable in their lives by invading their driveway. Tori and Olly were already waiting on their doorstep, flyers in hand. Sarah chucked her keys in her bag, climbed out of the car and greeted the Spring siblings with a hug. They took off down the road, Oliver skipping ahead and stopping at every lamppost, declaring ‘this would be the perfect spot to put Nick and Charlie’s posters up!’, to which Sarah agreed.

Jane and Julio, unfortunately, couldn’t take part in the hanging of flyers. Julio said that he had to work but made up a crappy excuse as to why Jane was unavailable. That didn’t matter though, because Sarah made sure that Tori and Olly were okay the entire time: going where they wanted to go, stopping off at the local Londis to pick up some sweets for the duo to share, even entertaining Olly and his unusual game of I-Spy where his answers were almost certainly things he couldn’t see.

Their route took them down Britannia Road, zigzagging across the streets to add to the lampposts on the opposite side, and then onto the neighbouring roads. They managed to work their way onto River Crescent, stapling the sheets of paper onto posts near Nick’s home.

Sarah halted in front of her house, a pang of sadness ripped through her body as she hung a poster of her son’s face just outside her driveway. As Tori stapled Charlie’s poster above Nick’s, she turned and stood next to Sarah, staring at the house too.

“Is this your home?” Tori asked, pointing at the overly huge detached house.

Sarah nodded her head and Olly bounded over to the pair, having just had a long in-depth conversation with a snail. “Woah! This house is mahoosive!” Olly yelled, pointing at it.

“This is where I live, Olly. Me, Nick and Nellie. Well… just me and Nellie right now. It’s very lonely having this big house to myself,” she informed the pair. She wasn’t lying; there was definitely a Nick-sized hole in the house - not having him bounding down the stairs or eating every single thing in their fridge. For the first time in her entire life, she had to throw the milk out because it had gone out of date.

“Who’s Nellie?” Olly asked innocently, disturbing Sarah from her thoughts.

She smiled, “Nellie is my dog. Would you like to meet her?”

Olly squealed in excitement and Sarah had no choice but to take that as a yes. She opened the front door and called for Nellie, who came running out of the kitchen towards the front door. She sniffed at Olly’s outstretched hand and giggled at the warm breath on his skin. Sarah beamed at the scene before her; even Tori was bending down to stroke her.

After some intense pats from Olly and Tori, Sarah grabbed Nellie’s lead and clipped it to her collar, bringing her along as they continued to hang up posters. They made it all the way into the city centre before they ran out. Sarah treated them to a hot chocolate in the local Costa before they headed back to the Springs. 

Tori spent the whole day telling Sarah about Charlie, how special he was to her and how unique he was to the world. Sarah’s heart swelled at how passionately Tori spoke about her brother. Having heard how Jane described him to the cameras, she was warmed to hear nice things about Nick’s friend.

She couldn’t wait to meet him when they got them back.

Sarah didn’t go into too much detail about Nick, but shared some beautiful stories about him as he grew up and about how highly he spoke about Charlie that Monday afternoon. Sarah could sense Tori wanting to say something but she didn’t want to force the girl into speaking when she clearly didn't want to.

Sarah handed Olly Nellie’s lead for the last part of the walk back to the Spring’s, and Sarah could tell that he was overjoyed to be tasked with the most important job in the world. Luckily, Nellie was fully trained and didn’t need to be told when to stop, so all Olly had to do was hold her lead and not let go.

~~

As they neared Tori and Olly’s house, the mood shifted into one of sorrow - Tori’s face fell expressionless and her shoulders slumped. Olly handed back Nellie’s lead and said his goodbyes, giving her a big kiss on the head and laughing to himself.

“Do you want to come in? Dad’s still out I think but mum’s in,” Tori offered.

“I’m okay, dear. I should probably head back and get Nellie fed. Are you going to be okay?” 

Tori looked at the house and then back at Sarah, her mouth pulled to one side as she bit the inside of the cheek. 

“How about this: tomorrow, why don’t you and Olly and your parents come over to my house and I cook us some lunch. I can grab some pumpkins, too, and we could carve them? Me and Nick used to do them every year and… Well, when he comes home, I want it to be as normal as possible for him.”

Tears began to form in the bottom of Tori’s eyelid. But before any could fall, Sarah pulled her into a caring hug. “Shh, it’s okay sweetie. It’s okay, I’m sorry if that idea upset you-”

“No,” Tori interrupted. “It’s just, Charlie loves Halloween. He says it’s because he gets to spend some quality time with Olly. Y’know, dressing up, eating sweets, being silly but… deep down, I know it’s because it’s the one day of the year he can pretend to be someone different and not have to be himself. It’s the only reason I would go out with them, because I got to see him happy for once. It’s… it’ll be tough this year, not spending it with him.”

A lump formed in Tori’s throat. Opening up to Sarah was incredibly easy; she had this aura about her that allowed Tori to be her true self. Sarah was like a confidant that Tori had never had. She exuded warmth and tenderness that no other adult had ever shown her before. 

“I understand, I really do. I’ll call your father tonight and we’ll organise it, okay?”

Tori shot Sarah a grateful smile as she climbed into her car and waved goodbye to them.

★

Sunday 29th October

It was Julio that rang Sarah first that evening, thanking her for the dinner invitation and confirming their attendance. All of them except Jane, who, he claimed, had to work. Sarah wasn’t one for calling out people on their lies, but she knew this was definitely one of them. Not that she would say that to any of their faces, but she was pretty sure Tori was catching on to her dwindled patience with the woman.

Sarah had cooked a gorgeous beef roast dinner that the Springs could smell as they entered the Nelson home. As she opened the door, Julio handed her a bottle of wine and kissed her cheek in greeting. Olly ran straight past the adults, looking around for Nellie - calling her name and hugging her once she was found. Julio shouted at him to be more polite and say hello to Sarah, but she waved her hand, claiming ‘kids will be kids’ before giving Tori a welcomed hug.

She poured Julio a glass of red wine and fetched Olly a blackcurrant squash and Tori a glass of lemonade (all of which she bought based on what Tori had told her the day before) and asked them politely to take a seat whilst she dished up the food. 

“Do you need a hand with anything?” Julio asked as he watched Sarah run around the kitchen, tongs in one hand and an oven mitt in the other. 

Sarah tutted and shook her head. “Absolutely not. You are a guest in my house, so I insist you join your family at the table. The food will be ready any second now.”

Julio shrugged and sat opposite Tori and next to Olly as Sarah began bringing in the plates. “Dig in whenever you want, I just have a few more dishes to bring in,” she called back. Olly had been eyeing up the roast potatoes as soon Sarah had placed them down, so she noticed they were the first on his plate as she re-entered the room.

As Sarah brought in the last of the dishes, she scooted her chair under the table and served herself some of the delicious food she had cooked. A typical Nelson dinner was never quiet; Sarah and Nick often used this time to catch up with each other, but meal times over the last week had been tranquil, much to Sarah’s upset. She was extremely grateful to have little Olly babbling away and bringing some sort of normality to her life.

Julio looked questioningly at the extra two places set at the end of the table. Tori asked Sarah if she was expecting someone else for dinner, but they were both surprised when she explained that she'd been setting a place for Nick every night in case he came home for tea, and decided it was only right to save a space for Charlie too.

Sarah definitely caught Julio and Tori’s eyes glossing with moisture at the gesture but she decided to ask Olly something to pass the moment. 

Julio asked Sarah questions about herself and her family, which she answered as genuinely as she could. She did leave out the traumatic parts of her life she’d gone through when Nick was only a few months old, because no one but her needed to know about that. Sarah had spent the best part of 16 years burying that guilt; it was probably best not to rehash it infront of people she was building a relationship with over their missing sons. 

She did plan on telling Nick when the time came to it, but it never did. 

Maybe it was something she could share with him when he came back. She needed to be more open with him and that could be the perfect place to start. She owed it to him to tell him her deepest and darkest admissions, especially when it came down to his father.

Sarah returned the questions to Julio, asking about his family and found herself intrigued at his honesty. He rattled on about his upbringing in Spain and how he met Jane whilst she was on holiday there. How he tried to bring up the kids speaking Spanish but only Charlie shared an interest. She thinks about the missed opportunity for Nick to be brought up bilingual too, what with Stephane being French, but she didn’t have the heart to teach him a language he had no reason to use.

After dinner, Sarah served up bowls of ice cream with an array of different flavoured sauces (Tori went for chocolate, Sarah chose caramel, Julio decided to leave his plain and Olly… well, Olly chose a mixture of all of the sauces. Julio mumbled something about clearing up sick later), and then told Olly and Tori about the pumpkins she had bought for them.

“Me and Nicky would usually spend the evening carving pumpkins to get ready for halloween, but I thought we could do it this year. If that’s okay with your father?” Olly was an excitable puppy at the prospect of carving pumpkins, so Julio would likely feel like a bad guy if he disagreed.

Tori helped Sarah wash the dishes and load them into the dishwasher, regardless of Sarah’s insistence that she didn’t need to. Tori asserted that she wanted to help because Sarah had been too kind to her and her family, so it was only fair that she repaid the kindness.

Once everything was tidied and clean, Sarah dug through the pantry to find the three pumpkins she had purchased and carried them over to the table. She gathered some knives and carving utensils as well as a couple of pens for stencilling and let the kids choose the pumpkins they wanted. 

Olly went for the smallest one and Tori chose the one shaped more like a square, which left Sarah with the large oval shaped pumpkin that was relatively normal. Julio helped Olly with the gutting and carving, but the younger Spring drew his own design on the front, going for a  simple face that looked more like a worried glare. Olly had a lot of fun putting his hand inside the pumpkin and extracting all of the seeds and fibres.

Tori kept to herself, but smiled whenever Olly would scream at the goo on his hand and the overwhelming joy he got from stabbing the orange fruit with a blunt knife. After she was finished, she spun it round to reveal a sad looking face which Sarah didn’t want to comment on but felt it was very apt for the moment.

Sarah’s was probably the cleanest and well done of the three - after all, she did this year in, year out with Nick. She went for a traditional evil looking pumpkin, whose eyes and mouth curved upwards in a grin.

“Woah, Sarah! That’s so cool!” The little boy exclaimed, shaking off a stray strand of pumpkin goop. 

“Oh, it’s nothing compared to yours though. I think maybe your sister will agree with me that yours is the best at the table,” Sarah suggested, wiggling her eyebrows at Tori.

Tori chuckled. “Yep! Best in house goes to Oliver Spring,” she declared.

Olly cheered, whooping and laughing and the rest of the table joined in. Sarah excused herself to wash her hands in the kitchen and offered her downstairs bathroom to Julio and his family to wash theirs.

With clean hands, Sarah searched through her messy drawer (everyone has them, even Sarah Nelson) and found a brand new pack of tea lights to pop inside the pumpkins that she, Olly and Tori had carried outside to the front steps. She allowed Olly to organise them with help of his sister, and Sarah handed the pair a couple of lights to place into their pumpkins.

Lids attached, Sarah and the Springs took a step back to admire their hard work. They stood in silence, watching the fake flames of the candles light up the pumpkins until Tori took out her phone and took a picture.

She took one portrait and one landscape and then locked her phone. “Charlie and Nick would have loved this,” said Tori, handing her phone to her dad and guiding Olly over to the steps, asking her dad to take a picture of them with the pumpkins to show Charlie when he gets back.

★

Tuesday 31st October

Sarah invited the Springs over for a small halloween party. It wasn’t really a party, but Sarah had gone to Tesco’s and grabbed a few nibbly bits and halloween themed treats for Olly and Tori to enjoy.

The Ring doorbell went off at roughly five o’clock and the faces of three of the Spring family filled her phone. Jane was absent again, claiming to have a migraine but, by that point, Sarah was over the excuses.

Olly was dressed in a skeleton costume; his face was painted (rather well actually) to accompany the look. Tori was dressed in all black - much like she usually did - with her hair in plaits, claiming to be Wednesday Addams.

Sarah chuckled at her and welcomed them in.

Whenever there was a knock at the door, Oliver was the first to wish them a happy Halloween. Sarah had allowed him to be in charge of handing out the sweets, which he took very seriously, making sure people only took one packet of sweets. When a one-year-old, held by her father, grabbed two packets by accident, he was sure to let her know that it was one per person. Sarah managed to get Olly to let this one slip, which he did… reluctantly.

It was nearing eight o’clock when another knock on the door disturbed Olly from watching The Nightmare before Christmas. He sprinted to the front door and grabbed the bowl, which was a little empty for Oliver’s liking. 

“Sarah, the bowl is empty!” he yelled. Sarah walked down the hallway with a fresh packet of sweets and emptied the contents into the bowl. She wandered back into the kitchen, where she was making a cup of tea for her and Julio as she heard Olly shout “Happy Halloween!” at the guests.

~~

“Tori, there’s no one here but there’s a box instead,” he told his sister who had just come out of the bathroom. 

A box? A bit strange considering it’s halloween and was usually a time for pranks. Olly went to take a step towards it, but Tori pulled him back, a little suspicious of the package. It could be a normal delivery that Sarah had ordered from somewhere but better to be safe than sorry.

 “Er, Sarah?” she called. She could hear the clattering of a spoon hitting the tabletop and the slow run of the older lady behind her. She looked down at the box and Tori could see the tears that began to pool in her eyes. Tori was uncertain as to why the older lady was crying but she had an inkling and this couldn’t be good. She ushered Olly back into the living room and handed him a handful of sweets to preoccupy him whilst she tended to Sarah.

~~

Sarah looked down at the box, holding back the tears at the simple scrawl on the box.

From Nick x

She stepped outside, taking a long look round then picked up the box. It was light, and whatever was inside it rattled against the floor of the cardboard. She took one last look around before taking the box inside and closing the door behind her. 

She carried the box into the kitchen and placed it carefully on the surface. Tori had just left Olly in the living room and followed along behind her. All of Sarah’s safety training from work suddenly went out of the window; she knew she shouldn’t pick up a random box. She had no indication of its contents, but that last name written on the box spooked her. She had to know what was inside.

Julio joined her in the kitchen, leaving Olly alone in the living room to watch the remainder of The Nightmare Before Christmas.

“Everything okay?” Julio asked. Sarah’s face was a mixture of shock and confusion. Why would Nick be sending a box to his home? 

She pulled a small knife from the knife block in the corner and attacked the black tape that sealed the box. Ripping it open, all that was inside was an old camcorder. Sarah hadn’t seen one of these in years.

Sarah reached into the box and pulled the device out, inspecting it. There was no sign of who it belonged to. No sign that this was anything suspicious. She opened the display from the body of the camera and instantly felt sick.

On the screen, battered and bruised and caked in dry blood was Nick. Her Nick. Her precious baby that the police maintained had run away, even if Sarah had never really believed that.

A sharp gasp squeaked from her mouth. She felt dizzy, like she was about to pass out. Her legs wobbled, unsteady, but Tori was there to catch her. Tori caught a glimpse of the display and mouthed something to her dad, who shut the door of the living room so Olly was oblivious to the situation at hand.

~~

Tori guided Sarah over to a seat at the kitchen table where she remained still, staring at the screen of the camera. Her face was pale and her hands were shaking vigorously; even Tori was starting to vibrate from the older woman.

“Sarah, I think we should call the police,” said Julio, who was now stood behind the woman, trying to pry the camera from Sarah’s hand. 

“No, I-I want to watch it,” she started, as tears began to fall. “I-I need to know where he is.”

“Do you want us to give you some space?” Tori asked. 

“No!” Sarah half-shouted, half-begged. “Please stay.”

Tori looked over at her dad who replied with a silent nod and took the seat to Sarah’s left, Tori taking the one to her right. Sarah pressed play and the static picture of Nick sprang to life. Tori felt a lump form in her throat. She didn’t want to watch this, the friend she’d made through her missing brother all beaten up and dishevelled, but she couldn’t help it - she was intrigued. Something was telling her to keep watching.

Would there be a similar package waiting for them on their doorstep? Tori shifted in her seat at the thought of a camera holding recent footage of her brother in the same state as Nick. Her thoughts were interrupted by the boy's voice.

“T-this is a message for Stéphane Fournier a-and Sarah Nelson. There will be no police, or else I w-will die,” Nick’s voice quivered as he said those last words. A heartbreaking sob left Sarah’s mouth and Tori curled an arm around her shoulders.

~~

“Stéphane, you took everything from these people, and all because of m-me. You wanted to rekindle your relationship with me, but at a cost. You took their business, their livelihood and their money, so they took me as leverage.” Sarah’s ears started ringing. Stephane was the reason her beautiful boy was taken from her? But, how could that be? 

Taken. Nick had been taken. The sudden confirmation kicked through Sarah’s body that Nick hadn’t run away, but he had been kidnapped. She was soon brought back to her body when Nick began addressing her.

“Sarah, they took your precious little boy in hopes to lure Stéphane out of his hole but have been unsuccessful. M-maybe this will work. You have five days to bring us Stéphane or the money he owes. Otherwise,” Nick paused and Sarah’s heart sank. 

A gun - an actual, real life gun - was pushed against Nick’s face and Sarah couldn’t hold it in any longer. Her tears fell quickly and her cries were tormented with pain. Tori had started crying next to her, but still managed to rub reassuring circles into Sarah’s back.

A loud, muffled noise played in the background of the video and Nick’s face scrunched in anguish.

“Please, let him go. Please…” Nick begged, his eyes darting behind the camera. The video wasn’t clear but she could tell he wasn’t addressing her anymore. The butt of the gun was slammed into Nick’s eye and a cut formed there, blood trickled down his face. A gruff voice above him urged him to continue.

“Otherwise, this will be the last time you see me. The details will be in with this video.” Tori was up and running over to the empty box on the island, returning moments later with a sealed envelope that Sarah had missed earlier.

Sarah felt like her breathing had stopped. Her chest throbbed and stung like a knife had been lodged into her heart. In the video, there was a loud commotion and Nick screamed one word that stole the attention of Sarah, Tori and Julio.

~~

“Charlie!” Nick screamed and struggled against the chair as if he was trying to break free and suddenly, the screen went blank. All three of them sat in shock, an eerie silence filtered through the kitchen. Sarah had somehow managed to grab hold of Tori’s hand with her empty one, and squeezed it with anticipation. 

Nick and Charlie were together. They had been kidnapped… together. But that didn’t make any sense?

“T-they… took him? Charlie?” Tori whispered quietly. Sarah nodded.

Tori gulped noisily, passing the envelope to Sarah. Tori had never seen her dad cry so she didn’t know whether to be surprised or not that his face was wet with tears. Sarah placed the camera onto the coffee table and ripped at the envelope, pulling out the letter and reading it aloud.

“We have them both. 5 days starts today. Bring Stéphane or the €250,000 to Truham Park West at 8pm Nov 5th. Or they both die. We have no use for one of them, so he will go first.”

A strangled noise escaped Tori’s mouth as Sarah read out the last sentence. Charlie. They meant Charlie. They had no use for him because it was the Nelsons they wanted stuff from. But how had her little brother got caught up in this all? 

Now it was all starting to make sense - Charlie forgetting to take his phone and keys, leaving the door wide open, putting his uniform in the wash. 

“But… but they want Nick’s dad? Why did they take Charlie or Nick?” Tori asked. Her mouth gaped open and her eyes darted around as if trying to make sense of it all.

~~

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Sarah started, reaching up to touch the locket that sat around her neck. “Stéphane died in an accident when Nick was a baby. He went out to get Nick some nappies and… never made it back.”

The sick feeling returned, overwhelming Sarah’s body, travelling from her stomach to her throat. Julio pulled out his phone and pressed a few buttons. Sarah could see his hands were shaking from the shock, which was unsurprising. The phone rang twice before the voice answered.

“Hello? Jane? I’m coming to pick you up. No, no excuses this time Jane. It’s about Charlie… H-he hasn’t run away. Darling, he’s been kidnapped.”

Chapter Text

Wednesday 1st November

Charlie had found it difficult to sleep that night, his mind buzzing with the thought of his two siblings spending time with Nick’s mum, collaborating in a time of need for all of them. He wondered whether they truly believed Nick and Charlie were together or if they were uniting because they were experiencing the same pain.

He tried to hold back his emotions as Nick explained what he was forced to watch that night. The fact Nick got to catch a glimpse of not only his mum, but Charlie’s brother and sister too, it made the immense and persistent pang in his chest balloon into unfathomable agony.

Charlie was mostly out of his high at this point; he felt physically and emotionally drained but he was too scared to fall asleep for fear that his brain would send him on another trip. He didn’t mind, not really. It meant getting to watch Nick sleep, and making sure he was okay after his heart-wrenching excursion last night.

Nick had told Charlie that The Boss made him deliver the video he’d filmed to his mum and was forced to watch her collect it from their doorstep. Once he caught a glimpse of her, Ste shoved him back toward the car. It was all planned – Nick was supposed to see his mum, and seeing Oliver and Tori had been an added bonus. 

No one had come to see them since The Boss was called away on a job and took all of his men with him. Phil had popped in briefly after the rest of them left and changed their water bowl, slipped some custard creams and a plate of cheese and crackers into Charlie’s hand and offered a shy smile before he left. He hadn’t uttered a single word; obviously he was being watched, but apparently not close enough to be unable to sneak them food. 

A light graze at the back of his knee woke Charlie from his reverie. He twisted his head backwards to see Nick, curled in on himself and whispering in his sleep. This wasn’t unusual for Nick; his dreams were often haunted by the torture they had both endured, but it had only been the last couple of nights that Nick had started talking in his sleep.

Charlie had decided he would only wake him if it got out of control. 

At the moment, it was bearable. Nick was whimpering but saying very few words, so Charlie turned over to face the other boy in case it got worse. Nick’s mouth was open slightly and his bound hands lay beside his head, his fingers twitching a little. Charlie could just make out the words ‘mum’ and ‘Char’ as they escaped quietly from Nick. 

Charlie brought his own restricted hands up to rub gently at Nick’s face, hoping to somehow soothe him out of his nightmare. Nick nuzzled into the touch, but it wasn’t enough to break him out of his dream state.

“No… Please. I… No! Mum…” Nick muttered, thrashing onto his back. Charlie leaned up on his arm, trying to get a better look at Nick’s face. Tears escaped Nick’s still-closed eyes and Charlie knew then that he needed to wake him.

“Nick, wake up,” Charlie whispered, nudging Nick’s shoulder.

“Run, Char! You have to run, GO! NOW!”

“Nick!”

“No, Charlie? L-leave him… p-please!”

Nick’s squirming was more rigorous now. He threw his arms above him, as if he was trying to hit someone. Charlie tried to pin down his hands but Nick was strong, even in his sleep. Nick accidentally caught Charlie’s face as he threw his arms around, hitting him hard in the nose, which immediately casually started trickling blood. Charlie knew it wasn’t intentional, but he backed away, not wanting to add anymore stress to his wounds.

“NICK, YOU HAVE TO WAKE UP!” he screamed from his new spot just off of the mattress. Nick flailed onto his side, defeated. His eyes slowly opened, full of salty tears, taking in his environment.

~~

The first thing Nick saw was Charlie covering his face, blood dripping down his hands onto the tape around his wrists, and he was sat a little further away than he was when he went to sleep. Had the gang come back? Had they inflicted more pain on this innocent boy whilst he was dead to the world?

“Charlie?” Nick asked, his voice strained.

Charlie simply nodded. “It’s okay, I’m here.”

Nick rubbed the water from his eyes and made an attempt to sit up. His head throbbed from dehydration; all that crying had to come at a cost, and his throat hurt from all of the screaming he had done over the last day or two. He took in the boy before him, who was cowering a little, but his eyes solely focused on Nick.

“Oh… my god. What happened?” he asked, scrambling to his knees and crawling over to Charlie. Charlie lowered his hands a little as the blood continued to pour.

“Uh… You did, actually. You were moving in your sleep and I tried to wake you but… you’re incredibly strong. Even after a week in captivity, you managed to punch me in the nose and make it bleed,” explained Charlie. Nick was up in seconds, rushing over to the toilet to grab some tissue. He had to pause for a moment - the blood rushing from his head, making him dizzy - before walking briskly back to Charlie and holding the tissue to his nose. Charlie tried to grab it from him but Nick insisted he wanted to do it.  

“I got it. Here, lean forward and I’ll pinch your nose with my other hand.” The angle was awkward with the tape restricting his wrists, but he needed to do something to help. After all, he did this to Charlie. He added another notch on Charlie’s injuries. 

The boys sat in close proximity, Charlie with his head bowed and Nick picking up the pieces of his nightmare. He hadn’t even realised he’d hit Charlie. He definitely didn’t mean to. His dreams were becoming more and more vivid, and when he was in them he was certain that they were real.

“Charlie, I’m-”

“Don’t you dare apologise, Nick,” Charlie squeaked. 

Nick sighed. He had just punched Charlie; of course he owed him an apology. But Nick was starting to learn that Charlie was extremely stubborn, so he was doomed from the start.

A few minutes later, the bleeding had stopped. Nick got up and ripped off a few squares of tissues and rounded off the end, handing it to Charlie for him to block the nostril in case it decided to bleed again.

“Thanks,” Charlie said, scooting onto the mattress. Nick sat down next to him and wrapped his arms around his shoulders. Charlie looked up into his dark brown eyes with worry. “Wanna talk about it?”

He didn’t, but he knew he should. There were only so many times you could tell someone that you dreamt about them dying, but Nick knew, deep down, he should probably share it with Charlie. He owed it to him. 

“I- um, it was… they had…” Nick took a few seconds to collect his words before he dived back in. “I dreamt they took me back to my house, but this time my mum came out before I could run away. She tried to hug me and pull me back into the house, but they shot her, like they said they would. I tried to help her but they pulled me away, shoved me into the car and drove me back here.”

Nick pulled Charlie tighter to his chest, stroking through the matted curls. His finger would often catch on a knot but he gently withdrew his finger and began somewhere else. “They dragged me in here, in with you and… you looked so scared. Your eyebrow was doing that little wiggle it does when you’re anxious and you were picking at the skin on your thumb. It all seemed so real. I tried so hard to get you to run but you wouldn’t, you wouldn’t leave me and, well…”

Nick didn’t need to continue; he knew that Charlie understood what happened. It occurred every time he closed his eyes. Charlie dies. It’s a wonder that he actually let himself sleep when that plagues his dreams, but he needs it. He needs it if it means protecting Charlie in the long run. He needs to stay strong and alert and he can’t let anything hinder that.

Charlie looked back up at him again, this time with a small smile painting his face. He reached up and caressed his cheek with his thumb. “You know that’s not real, Nick. I’m still here. I’m real, I promise.” 

Nick smiles back at him. “Yeah, I know. It’s just… really scary. I don’t… I don’t know what I would do if you weren't here,” he admitted, melting into Charlie’s touch. “Even out there, if we get out of here, I don’t think I could be away from you.”

~~

Charlie’s eyes looked from Nick’s big brown ones to his dry, cracked lips. He wanted to kiss him, tell him he felt the same about not being able to be independent on the outside. How could they? They’ve spent the best part of a week and a bit (maybe two weeks, who knows anymore. Halloween feels like it was weeks ago) learning the ins and outs of each other's screams, their cries. They’ve shared a bed together and pretended not to listen whilst the other relieved themselves - it would be hard going back to a place that wasn’t with Nick.

“I feel the same,” Charlie tells him. “I have my siblings to go home to. They’ll be incredibly clingy, I can imagine. And I know you have your mum but-”

“But, she won’t know what I’ve been through. Not the way you do,” Nick interjected. It’s true, even if they did make it out of there, there’s no one in the whole world who would know the things they had been through. 

“I won’t leave you, I promise,” Charlie announced. He looked back down at Nick’s mouth and edged his head forward; closer and closer until he could feel Nick’s breath on his face. He licked his lips and closed his eyes, briefly catching Nick doing the same. 

“Char?”

“Yeah?”

“Can I kiss you?”

Charlie gulped and nodded. “Please,” he replied breathlessly.

In an instant, Nick’s mouth was on his, Nick’s top lip grazing over the cut on Charlie’s lower. Any and every thought Charlie had ever stored in his brain evaporated and his stomach burst with an energy he didn’t know he had. The kiss was sloppy and rushed, but Charlie didn’t mind. He was kissing the boy he’d fallen in love with and not even The Boss and his cronies could stop them.

Nick pushed his tongue against Charlie’s mouth, asking for an invitation that Charlie willingly accepted. Seconds felt like minutes and minutes felt like hours, wrapped in his favourite person’s arms and indulging the small voice at the back of his head that had been telling him to do this days ago.

Nick pulled Charlie down onto the mattress, laying side by side and kissing each other passionately. Nick’s bound hands cupped Charlie’s chin and cheeks awkwardly as he gripped onto the younger boy. The pace started to slow and it was Charlie who pulled away first, his eyes opening slower than a newborn seeing the world for the first time.

Charlie wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but Nick staring back at him, his face in complete bliss was something he would never ever get bored of seeing.

“I-”

“Don’t,” Nick stopped him before he could spiral. Nick leaned forward and planted another firm yet loving kiss on Charlie’s lips before breaking away, kissing the tip of Charlie’s nose and then his cheek.

Nick giggled a cute laugh that reignited the spark in Charlie’s stomach. “Why did I wait so long to do that?”

“Because, let’s be honest, if we weren’t here right now, we probably wouldn’t have spoken. You would have been with your friends and I would have been with mine.”

~~

Nick looks dead into Charlie's eyes. He doesn’t believe that at all, he would have found the confidence to talk to him somehow. “I beg to differ,” Nick started, slotting his leg in the space between Charlie’s, closing the gap between them even further. “I think we would have found each other eventually. I think we would find each other in any universe. I was gearing up the nerve to talk to you, that’s why I spoke to you in PE that day. Who knows, maybe I would have actually got to tell you instead of you finding out from my unconscious self.”

Charlie frowns in thought. “You could still tell me.”

He could. He could reclaim the one thing he never got to do within this relationship. Who would know? Only the two people in this room, one of them being the most important person to him.

“I- okay… um, Charlie. I-” Nick stuttered. You’ve got this, Nick. “Charlie. I like you. So fucking much. I have for a very long time. From the moment I first saw you walking down the corridor a year ago, laughing at something Tao said and your whole face lit up. Your smile curved up to your eyes,” Nick’s fingers trailed up to the corners of his eyes and sat there. “And your dimples were on full show,” his fingers slid down Charlie’s face to the small indents on his cheeks. “I was a goner from that point forward.”

Charlie smiled against Nick’s hands. He sighed in what Nick could only think was contentment, and melted into the touch. 

“I spent a long time wondering what I was. I thought I was straight for fifteen years, but then you came along with your adorably curly hair and your wicked blue eyes and smashed that facade like a sledgehammer. I did some intense google searches for weeks, I took shitty online quizzes about whether I was gay. I even watched some youtube videos… those were a little more enlightening.

“I’ve pondered whether I was bisexual for about half a year now and, honestly, I should have known it sooner. I used to watch Pirates of the Caribbean weekly, but it wasn’t just Keira Knightley I had a crush on-”

“Orlando Bloom?”

“Orlando Bloom.”

Charlie covered his mouth with his hands and giggled. “You’re so obvious, Nick Nelson.”

“What do you mean?” Nick asked, genuinely confused. Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley were technically his bisexual awakening but Charlie added fuel to the fire, he all but confirmed it for him. 

“Tall, skinny white boys with dark curly hair?”

Oh. 

“Oh.”

“It’s a shame we don’t both have blue eyes otherwise that would have been creepily more accurate than it should be,” Charlie laughed.

Nick laughed too. “It appears I have a type,” he replied, tipping Charlie’s face up by his chin. The younger boy beamed at him. Despite the different colours that marked Charlie’s face, Nick couldn’t help but fall in love with him all over again. Nothing could make this boy any less stunning in Nick’s eyes.

“You’re so beautiful,” Nick whispered, but he could see in Charlie’s eyes that he didn’t believe him. “You are, and I need you to know that… In case I won’t be able to tell you that in the future, I want to get it in as many times as possible.”

~~

Charlie looked into Nick’s eyes. Eyes that bled with anguish and sorrow and a hint of guilt. He thought Nick would be over the guilty feeling by now; Charlie had told him countless times that he doesn’t blame him for what’s happened.

This boy, Charlie thought as he wiggled closer to him, his eyes shaped like hearts. 

Charlie responded with this new language he and Nick had discovered: kissing. Charlie’s face inched forward and encased Nick’s lips with his. Charlie could get used to this, even in the shitty conditions they were in. Kissing Nick was like walking on newly fallen snow, like getting into bed with freshly changed sheets. Even though they hadn’t washed in over a week, he still noticed the faint smell of Nick’s homey scent lingering on his body and his clothes.

Charlie didn’t want to break away from Nick, but a hilarious thought crossed his mind and a laugh erupted from his throat.

“Oi, what’s so funny?” Nick asked, spaced out from all of the kissing. Charlie’s tied hands fiddled with a stray piece of thread on Nick’s costume.

“It’s just… after everything we’ve been put through, everything they’ve called us, I can’t believe our biggest supporters are and have been our kidnappers. Who’d have thought them calling us boyfriends would actually be the truth,” Charlie said. He stiffened, not thinking about what had just come out of his mouth. “No, I, er… I didn’t-”

“I’d like to be your boyfriend… If you’re okay with that?”

Nick stroked a curl out of Charlie’s eyes and Charlie smiled, “I’d love that.”

★

Thursday 2nd November

Nick faced the wall, giving Charlie a bit of privacy whilst he took a toilet break. It was mid to late afternoon, judging by the setting light outside, and no one had seen to the boys since Halloween. Nick was beginning to worry about the lack of visits. Not that he wasn’t grateful that he wasn’t being beaten bloody, but this had been the longest they’d gone without anyone coming in. Even Phil.

The toilet flushed behind him and he could hear Charlie washing his hands in the sink. Nick had blocked the drain with some cling film they didn’t need anymore to act as a plug, preserving the little water they had left. The water in the sink was a little murky now, mixed with dirt and blood, but the boys didn’t care; even just a little bit of hygiene was well received.

A pair of arms encircled Nick’s torso and pulled him down to lay on the mattress. Nick turned over and snuggled into Charlie’s chest. Over the last few days, Nick had lost all care about getting caught wrapped in Charlie’s arms. It was a nice feeling, and Nick wasn’t about to give that up because of his homophobic abusers.

“Something’s up, I can tell,” Charlie announced into his hair. Nick took a deep breath. He constantly had one thing on his mind. He didn’t want to tell Charlie about it, but Charlie had a sixth sense when it came to Nick and his unspoken worries. 

“I just… I keep thinking about the message they made me send my mum. They gave her five days to get money or Stéphane and… I think five days are up, or well, they’re about to be up,” Nick shivered at the thought. “They haven’t been here in ages so what if… um, what if…”

Nick’s mouth started to go dry, his breathing becoming heavy like an anvil had been placed on his chest with no way of removing it. He gasped, trying to get the words out, but they wouldn’t come. Nothing would come. He gripped onto Charlie’s hoodie like it was life support.

“Breathe with me, Nick. Like you did for me when you first got here. In for three, hold for four, out for five. Okay, baby, you can do this,” Charlie urged, guiding Nick through the breathing exercise. 

Nick’s clammy hands were beginning to cool and his heart rate decelerated. He’d had panic attacks before but this was something else. This was triggered by a single thought whereas the others had been a multitude of things building on top of each other. 

His body was fatigued but his brain continued to whir. “I-I, I’m-”

“Nick, you do not have to say a word. It’s okay, I understand. I don’t think five days is up. It would be five days from when Sarah received the video, no? So we have a few more days. A few more days to plan something, okay?”

Nick nodded against Charlie’s body; he could feel the brunette’s chest deflate from the breath he was holding. They lay together for a while, silent but satisfied, not needing to engage in conversation to feel close. Not until…

“Baby?” asked Nick, remembering the pet name Charlie had called him before.

“Huh?” Charlie quizzed.

“Earlier… You called me baby,”

Charlie’s cheeks glowed red. “Oh, uh… yeah. I didn’t mean-”

“It’s alright, I liked it… baby,” Nick giggled. 

Charlie snorted a laugh. “Now I’m never calling you that again!”

“But baby, please, I love it when you call me that-”

“Nope!” Charlie said, attempting to remove himself from Nick. Instead, Nick rolled them over so he was laying on top of Charlie, laughing chaotically.

“Baby, please!”

Hearing Charlie laugh was unusual in these times, so Nick took every opportunity to worm it out of him. It was like music to his ears.

“NICK! Get off me you giant rugby oaf!” Charlie squirmed but Nick was considerably stronger. Nick pouted, showing Charlie the biggest puppy dog eyes he could produce. Nick rolled off of the smaller boy, turning his back on him. 

“Fine, but no more kisses for you,” Nick jested, turning his head round to see Charlie before sticking out his tongue. 

A loud bang from outside the door spooked the two boys from their spots. Nick jerked upright and Charlie scooched closer to the older boy, who grabbed hold of Charlie’s hands with his. They both awaited the gang bursting through the door, flinging them apart and using them as their personal punch bags. But nothing happened. The boys sat huddled together, waiting for the door to unlock, anticipating their fate.

Nick could feel his heartbeat pounding against his chest. They were coming for him. It really was today. But, time passed by and no one had visited them. Not one single person. 

Satisfied that no one was coming, Nick curled his arms around Charlie and pulled the smaller boy into him. He kissed the top of Charlie’s head and then tilted the sharp jaw towards him so he could plant a brief kiss to Charlie’s lips.

Charlie licked his lips and smiled. “So much for no more kisses, huh?”

“Shut up,” Nick snorted, nestling further into Charlie’s hair, not giving up his grip anytime soon.

★

Friday 3rd November

“There’s a picture on the wall in the hallway of me crying with Oliver in my arms and Tori is sitting next to me with the biggest smile on her face,” Charlie explained to Nick, who had asked Charlie about his family. He took a bite out of a custard cream before continuing. “Mum put it up because it was one of the only photos she has where Tori was smiling, even if it was at me bawling my little eyes out.”

Nick scoffed as he took a sip from the bowl of water, almost spilling some of the precious liquid down himself. “And why were you crying?”

Charlie looked away from Nick, picking at a loose thread on his tracksuit bottoms. “Because-he-was-really-small-and-cute” he whispered downwards.

“Sorry, what was that?”

A loud groan left Charlie’s mouth. “BECAUSE he was really tiny and super cute and I was so excited to be a big brother, okay!”

Silence broke through the room, so much so they could hear faint birdsong from outside. “Pffffffft,” Nick laughed, falling onto his side, tears rolling from his eyes.

“You’re so fucking mean, Nick Nelson,” said Charlie. He tried to stand up to move away from the laughing lunatic in front of him, but Nick was quick to grab his hands and pulled him back down.

“No, come back. I promise I won’t laugh again, but that is just… so adorable. Do you realise how fucking adorable you are?” Nick rubbed affectionate circles into Charlie’s hands. 

Nick fucking loved this boy with all his heart. He was too pure for this world, too innocent. Crying over his newborn baby brother because he was ‘small and cute’, Nick wanted to bundle Charlie up in bubble wrap and protect him from everything bad in the world.

But first, they had to get out of this hell hole.

Charlie’s face tinged red and his curls bounced as he shook his head. “You’re just saying that.”

“I’m not, I wouldn’t. Not here. Not when we’re relying on each other to tell the truth.”

~~

Charlie’s smile was small but visible; he could feel the tips of his ears burning from Nick’s attention. Nick had a talent for taking Charlie’s insecurities and turning them into loving sentiments. 

“This world doesn’t deserve you, Nick Nelson.” It was true, Nick was way too special for this world - a world full of evil and hate and corruption. Nicholas Luke Nelson was not made for this world. Yet here he was, looking adoringly into Charlie’s eyes and the younger boy couldn’t help but wonder how he got so lucky finding this boy.

Charlie was just about finished with his snack when Nick dove into his own biscuit. Even with his mouth full of food, crumbs hanging from his mouth, Charlie couldn’t help but admire Nick’s natural beauty. His ginger hair, that sat flat against his skull but normally parted on the right and would swoop and sit in a way that defied all laws of gravity. The little crinkle his nose did when he smiled. The freckles that paint his entire face, even in places you can’t see unless you’re up close and personal.

He wanted nothing more than to trace each freckle with his finger, connect them together like a dot-to-dot and draw an endless amount of shapes on them. 

Charlie lay down on the mattress, bringing his bound hands behind his head as a pillow. He looked up into Nick’s eyes, enchanting and calming all in one. He grinned up at Nick, who smiled back. “What?” the older boy asked.

Charlie bit at the inside of his cheek. “Nothing, I was just… admiring the view,” he admitted. Nick’s face turned into a smug grin.

“Oh yeah?” said Nick, batting his eyelashes.

“Yeah, the mould in the corner there is really doing it for me.”

“Ugh, you’re unbelievable!” Nick groaned, pouncing on the smaller boy. He tickled up and down Charlie’s torso. He could tell that Nick was being cautious of where he touched, so as not to conjure any pain in the places the gang had left their mark. Truthfully, it wasn’t very many places and Charlie hissed as Nick’s fingers grazed over his ribs.

“Oh shit Char, I’m so sorry.” Nick shot him a horrified look. 

Charlie placed a reassuring hand on Nick’s cheek. “It’s fine, just… no more tickling?”

Nick nodded in agreement. “No more tickling.” He brushed the crumbs from where he was just perched and then settled down beside Charlie. Charlie held open his arms for Nick to snuggle into, to which he obliged, nestling his head into the crook of Charlie’s shoulder.

Charlie loved this, laying with his favourite person and being overly affectionate with him. But there was a niggling voice in his head that would remind him this wasn’t for forever. That this was soon going to end, one way or another. 

He tried so hard not to listen to the voice but, rationally, he knew it was right. Time was running out, and they needed to do something, before the gang did something to them. 

Charlie looked down at the oily hair resting on his chest and then up at the window at the top of the wall. Maybe now was a good time to try again? But Nick was so against doing it last time – would he be as averse this time? Charlie decided he would ask Nick in the morning. Convince Nick in the morning. If no one had come to see them in that time, then what was stopping them? This was the longest they had left the boys alone, so what better time to plot their escape than now?

★

Saturday 4th November

It was Nick’s turn to wake up to the other boy having a nightmare. Although, it seemed Charlie’s were a little less graphic than Nick’s. Charlie was flinching in Nick’s arms, a position they had settled into after a long make out session, and his eyelashes flitted against the apples of his cheeks. 

He was whispering inaudible words into Nick’s chest, but the older boy simply held him. Charlie gasped as he woke, and his eyes darted around the room to work out where he was. His body relaxed into Nick when he realised. “God, this is fucking insufferable,” Charlie yawned, wiping at his face.

Nick had to agree; these weren’t the best conditions, and it seemed to be getting worse and worse as the days went by. He tightened his hold on Charlie, who melted into his grasp. 

“You make it better though,” Charlie admitted. Nick smiled into Charlie’s hair and planted a loving kiss into his brown locks.

Nick hadn’t been able to sleep that night. He was haunted by the constant worry of the five-day deadline expiring. He couldn’t be a sitting duck any longer. Whilst Charlie was asleep, which wasn’t very long, he thought about their escape attempt from days before. How easy it looked to climb out of the window and just… run.

Maybe Charlie would be up for it again, but he was also worried that Charlie would be traumatised from the last attempt and not want to try it. 

“Char?” Nick said at the same time that Charlie whispered “Nick?”

“You go first, baby,” Nick insisted. Had this been a few days before, Charlie would have roasted him for the pet name, but something else was on his lover's mind.

“Oh, okay, um… I know you probably won’t want to and I’m not going to force you to do anything you don’t want to, but… I think now is the best time than ever, because who knows how long we have left… to, er…”

Nick furrowed his brow. “Charlie, are you asking me what I think you’re asking me?”

Does he want to… do what I think he does?

Charlie sighed and closes eyes, like what he was about to ask was the worst question imaginable.

Oh my god, he is!

“Nick…”

I don’t know if I’m ready for that?

“I think we should try escaping again,” Charlie proposed, his eyes avoiding Nick’s.

Oh…

Nick could feel his face burning with humiliation. How had he misread Charlie’s honest intentions and deciphered it in completely the wrong direction. “Oh, yeah.. Yep! I think so too,” he sputtered. He felt the urge to roll his eyes at himself for assuming something so absurd. Of course Charlie didn’t want to have sex with him right now; they were being held hostage, for fuck’s sake! 

~~

“You do?” Charlie asked, a little baffled at how flustered Nick was getting. Was he doing this all wrong? Why did he look like he had asked him to do the unthinkable?

“Y-yeah,” Nick stammered, his whole face had blushed pink. 

Charlie squinted in thought and then pieced it all together. Did he? Surely not. “That’s not what you thought I was going to ask, was it?”

“W-what? Yes it was,” he lied, avoiding Charlie’s gaze. Nick’s face blushed beneath the dirt and blood and Charlie’s eyes widened when it finally clicked. 

IT WAS! Nicholas Nelson, we are in a fucking prison right now!

“Oh my god, you thought I wanted to have sex with you, didn’t you?”

Charlie wasn’t sure that Nick’s face could get any redder behind the bruises but apparently it could.  “Charlie, I am so sorry!”

“Don’t be, my brain probably would have gone to the same place. After all, we are basically doomed here,” Charlie joked. The younger boy closed the gap on his boyfriend, his mouth close to Nick’s ear. “But who knows how lucky you might get,” he whispered in his best seductive voice, winking as he backed away. 

Nick was sweating beneath him and Charlie took that as the perfect opportunity to laugh at his expense. 

“You’re so evil, Charlie Spring!” Nick groaned, covering his face with his hands. Charlie tried to pry them away from Nick’s handsome face but Nick was incredibly persistent.

“And yet, you still love me.”

Another groan left Nick’s mouth and Charlie continued to laugh until his stomach hurt. He was certainly going to bully Nick with this for the rest of his life, no matter how short it was.

★

Nick picked at the end of the tape on Charlie’s wrists for a while. The glue had seemingly melted into place and wasn’t cooperating with the speediness in which the boys wanted to escape. It was Charlie’s idea to free their hands so they had more of an advantage as they climbed out of the window. He really is the smartest guy I know. If it were up to Nick, they would be climbing out as they were.

Nick’s nails had grown over the time he’d spent in The Room, but they really weren’t helping him at this moment. He clawed and scratched at the end but it wouldn’t give up. Charlie offered to have a go at Nick’s first, as his was fresher and might be easier to dig at.

It worked (of course it did), and Nick’s hands were free for the first time in days. He shook them out, and then, with more room to manoeuvre, dove into freeing Charlie’s. It was much easier this way,  pulling Charlie’s wrists with one hand and the end of the tape with the other.

Finally, both of them were free. 

But, of course, they could have done that a few days ago. The thought had crossed Nick’s mind, but he was scared of the consequences he and Charlie would receive if the gang had walked in and found them without the tape around their wrists. After what Charlie had told him on his first night in The Room with his mouth tape, he didn’t feel like tempting fate with them. 

The boys chuckled at how good it felt to not be confined. Stretching their wrists and arms, making sure the blood was fully flowing in both. Nick tugged the Halloween costume over his head and chucked it messily onto the mattress. He picked up his own jumper and tossed it on over his head.

He inhaled at the fabric as it brushed past his nose. A familiar scent greeted him. “This smells like you now, where you’ve been laying on it,” Nick informed Charlie as he took another deep sniff.

“That’s gross, it’ll smell of blood and sweat and that’s not an attractive scent,” Charlie quipped, bending down to tie his shoelaces. They were already done up, but he tightened them for a better chance of keeping pace.

“No, you have a smell. It’s really faint now, but you smell citrusy and floraly and it’s overwhelmingly addictive,” Nick admitted, pulling Charlie closer to him as the other boy stood up. 

Charlie huffed a laugh. “Nick, we don’t have time for flirting.”

“Yeah, you’re right. Time to get out of here,” he replied, wiping his thumbs over both of Charlie’s cheeks. “Whatever happens, we stick together okay?”

Charlie nodded. His expression changed from one of hope to one of fear and Nick couldn’t have that. He pulled Charlie’s head gently towards his, their lips clashing in a rushed kiss. It felt like one of those moments you see in movies when one person leaves the other and they share one final kiss together, except Nick vowed never to leave Charlie. Not even if Charlie got hurt – Nick would drag Charlie away himself. 

As they broke apart, Nick stole one final kiss from the boy he loved. He smiled, rubbing his thumb against Charlie’s face one more time before dropping it to his side. 

A quick thought passed his mind and he was running over to their secret stash of food and snacks that Phil had given them before he left. There was still a fair bit left: some mouldy bread and a handful of crackers, biscuits, and a few slabs of cheese. Nick grabbed the cling filmed crackers and biscuits and stuffed them into Charlie’s hoodie pocket, chucking the bread and cheese on top of the discarded costume.

“Ready?” Nick asked Charlie, who nodded in confirmation. 

“Ready.”

~~

Nick walked over to the wall and held out his hands, just like he’d done the last time, waiting for Charlie’s foot to slot into place. Charlie took one last look at the room before he planted his foot in Nick’s hands and was raised into the air. 

He unlatched the window and swung it open, the fresh winter air attacked his face again. He lifted his free leg out of the window and used all his upper body strength to take the weight as he lifted his other leg out too. He lowered himself out of the window, dangling by the tips of his fingers, and took one final deep breath before dropping and falling to the ground.

The drop didn’t seem too high from the window, but as his foot connected to the ground, he felt a sharp pain shoot through his ankle and up his leg. He shoved his hand into his mouth to muffle the yelp that almost left it. He didn’t think it was sprained or broken, but this was the most action his body had undertaken in weeks, so he put it down to that. He stood up, testing his feet and thankfully both were okay. 

Charlie looked up just as Nick let go of the window and landed in front of him. Nick’s fall was a little more graceful than his but that wasn’t the point. For the first time in two weeks, Nick and Charlie were free. They were outside and one step closer to getting home. Nick held out his hand for Charlie to take, which he did, and they sped off as quickly as they could for two boys who hadn’t been outside for two weeks, heading straight for the forest. 

From the window, the forest looked deeper than it actually was. There were rows upon rows of trees and shrubbery, but it didn’t go that far back. The boys had no idea where they were heading, but forward seemed like a good idea.

They ran haphazardly towards the sound of cars passing, hoping they could flag someone down and beg them for help. Charlie’s legs started to burn from the exertion his body was being put through, having not used them for a long period.

“Nick… Nick, I need to… Can we stop for a sec?” Charlie puffed. His breathing was fast and heavy from the fresh air hitting his lungs. Nick guided them behind a tree for protection, in case anyone had followed them.

~~

Nick bent down in front of Charlie, who was currently leaning against a tree and trying to control his breathing. He peeked at his surroundings, ensuring that definitely no one had followed them. 

“We can’t stay here for long, Char. We have to keep moving.”

Charlie nodded and replied with an out of breath ‘yeah, okay’ before taking one final deep gasp for air and retaking Nick’s hand. They ran and they ran, not looking back the way they came and were finally rewarded with the welcomed sight of tarmac.

As they approached the opening, Charlie pulled Nick behind a bush and hugged him for dear life. 

“We’re… free?” Charlie mumbled against his chest and Nick gripped him tighter, laughing with happy tears in his eyes. Neither of the boys would have thought this was possible two days ago, but here they were, at the side of the road, one step closer to freedom. Nick took Charlie’s face in his hands and smashed his lips against the smaller boy’s. There was something different about kissing his boyfriend out in the open, and Nick was not opposed to that feeling. 

He rested his forehead against Charlie’s, soaking every single aspect of the boy in front of him. The November glow accentuated Charlie’s sharp jawline and high cheekbones that Nick hadn’t really paid attention to until now.

The sound of a car whizzing by them woke Nick from his trance. They had to be smart about this; flagging down any old vehicle could be costly. Definitely no vans and no dark coloured cars - Nick couldn’t make out the make or the number plate back on Halloween night, his eyes were too blurred from the tears, but he knew it was black or navy, so they were off the table.

“I think we should hide in the treeline until we see a car that looks safe enough to track down,” Nick told the younger man. Charlie agreed, and the pair of them stood and waited for a car to drive by.

There weren't a lot of cars on the road – they must be really out of the way. A black Mercedes drove past as the boys ducked out of the way, then not long after two white transit vans drove past. It must have been five minutes when Nick spotted a silver Audi in the distance. He grabbed Charlie’s hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze before running toward the side of the road and waving his hands frantically in the air to catch the driver's attention.

~~

Charlie checked their surroundings, making sure no one had followed them or was hiding amongst the trees, ready to pounce on them as soon as they were safe. The car in the distance was creeping towards them at a pace, to which Charlie thought maybe they weren’t going to stop after all.

Until he saw who was driving the car. 

“Nick…” he gasped, as the two passengers came into view - a large bald man with a tattoo on his neck and a lanky man with dark hair. “It’s them. Nick, run!”

“What?”

“IT’S THEM. WE HAVE TO RUN, NICK!”

Charlie could see the moment Nick clocked it himself; his eyes were almost bulging from his head and his hand was grasping thin air as it tried to find Charlie’s. Charlie grabbed it and pulled the older boy into the forest with him, not looking back to see if the car had stopped or if the men were chasing them. 

Charlie was a fast runner, but no amount of training would have prepared him for running for his life after two weeks of solid abuse and malnutrition. Somewhere along the way, Nick had dropped his hand, but the pair still ran side by side where they could. When they couldn't, Nick would fall back behind him. Protecting him.

He couldn’t hear anything besides the thumping in his ears and the sound of Nick’s heavy panting, so he was unsure of the whereabouts of his captors. His mouth was beginning to dry from running so much, but they had no time to stop. No time to dwell on anything.

Nick’s breathing was suddenly a groan in his ears and he turned around briefly to see where he was. Charlie stopped in his tracks at the sight of Nick on the floor, clutching his ankle. The younger boy ran over to Nick and bent down in front of him. Nick’s face was scrunched up in pain, his eyes began to water and his face was turned into his shoulder to stifle his cries.

“Nick, what’s happened?” Charlie whispered. 

“I tripped on that branch and… I think I’ve sprained my ankle,” Nick informed him. He winced as he moved it slightly, and Charlie touched Nick’s knee with a sympathetic hand. Charlie looked around them - there was no one around, but he could hear them, the snapping of twigs beneath heavy footed boots and the gravelly shouts of the two men hot on their tail.

Charlie could feel the panic boiling inside him and obviously so could Nick, who turned Charlie’s chin towards him. “Go Charlie, I’ll hold them off. They don’t need us both. Run and find someone,” Nick pleaded, his voice struck with emotions. Tears were beginning to form in his eyes and a single tear fell onto his cheek.

Charlie was crying too, unable to make a choice between leaving the love of his life behind to die or being free. He looked in the direction of the voices and shook his head. “No, I’m not going. I’m not leaving you.”

“Char-”

“I’m not leaving you!” Charlie told him sternly before planting a salty kiss upon Nick’s lips. He could feel a presence behind him and was too scared to open his eyes but he didn’t need to; the voice told him all he needed.

“Oh look what we have here…” Ste chirped. Charlie pulled away from Nick but his eyes remained on his boyfriend, not wanting to believe this was real. “You boys aren’t meant to be out here, are you?”

Ste walked over to Charlie and yanked him back by his hair. Charlie yelped, waving his hands in front of him for Nick to take but Ste was quicker. Nick was up on his knees, hissing at the pain that jolted up his leg from his ankle. 

“Yeah, we’ve found them. They’re in the woods just outside… We can bring them back? Okay… Okay… Yeah… Alright, in a bit.” Jay finished his phone call as he rounded behind a tree and bent down in front of Nick. 

“You know, I didn’t actually peg you for a gay boy but now we’ve seen it first hand, makes sense you’d fall for a pathetic little twink like him,” Jay snarled, pulling Nick up by his auburn hair and dragging him along behind Ste and Charlie. 

Charlie began to sob. They were so close to freedom, so close to going home and it was ripped out of their hands just as quickly as it was handed to them. He could hear Nick squirming behind them as his ankle caught stray rocks and branches along the forest floor.

They were hauled into an open space nearer the warehouse, the trees formed an almost perfect circle surrounding it. Charlie was thrown harshly into the dirt on the floor and, seconds later, Nick fell down next to him. Blue eyes met brown as he could hear the men above him, chattering about how they got out and how The Boss was going to lose his shit with them once he arrived. All Charlie could focus on was the soft whisperings of ‘I’m sorry’ coming from the boy beside him and the single tear that continued to roll down the tracks on Nick’s cheek. 

They stayed there, frozen into place, face in the dirt and glaring into each other's eyes. A thousand words passed between them but not one of them needed to be said. 

Charlie watched as Nick’s eyes wandered just above his head, staring at the scene behind him. Nick’s face paled and his pupils dilated, and Charlie could tell that something bad was about to happen.

“So, you think you can get away with doing shit like that, do you?” The Boss shouted from behind him. A boot connected with Charlie’s legs, then his back and then it found its place on top of Charlie’s head, pushing it harder into the ground. Charlie screamed at the pressure on his skull but The Boss continued to push it further into the mud.

~~

“Please stop hurting him,” Nick begged as he attempted to save his boyfriend. He managed to pull himself onto his elbows before he was yanked upward and held into a kneeling position. Judging by the men behind The Boss, it was H holding Nick’s arms behind his back and a gun was pushed into his temple. 

Ste, Jay and Phil all stood behind The Boss, a plethora of feelings amongst them. Phil had a worried look across his face, like he knew what was about to come, but the others looked murderous, like they wanted Nick’s head on a stick. 

“We gave mummy and daddy five days to pay up and they haven’t, so I think it’s time we give them a little wake up call, don’t you?” said The Boss as he released Charlie’s head from under his foot. Ste was fast, already looming over Charlie and pulling him up onto his knees opposite Nick. The Boss drew a gun from his pocket and pointed it between Charlie’s eyes. He switched off the safety and wound his finger over the trigger.

“Stop!” a voice called from behind The Boss. Phil rushed over and stood between the gun and Charlie. “You don’t want to do this, Dino.”

“Don’t I?” The Boss spat at the man who had ruined his shot. 

“No, they’re just kids. Young boys. They shouldn’t be caught up in this feud you have with Stéphane. It’s him you want, not them.”

Nick could see the gun lowering in The Boss’s hand. He looked over at Charlie, who had tears streaming down his face from his sealed eyes and snot dribbling from his nose.  

“They can bring me Stéphane!”

“No, they can’t. Stéphane has never spoken to Nick and you know it. He wanted to give Nick the money and flee, he didn’t want a relationship with him but he felt like he owed it to him. Deep down, you know that,” Phil’s voice was calm despite the situation. Who was he that he could get through to The Boss so easily?

“That was my money!”

“You have more than enough, son. Let them both go, you and I both know they’re looking for them right now. The reward money will be higher if they’re both alive. Tie them up back at base, tip off the police and let’s just… get out of here. We’ll collect the money for finding them and if we go back to France, maybe we’ll have a better chance of tracking him there, huh?” Phil placed a hand on The Boss’ cheek affectionately. If they weren’t currently being held hostage then Nick might have thought it was a nice gesture.

Something seemed to flip in The Boss’ head because he nodded and went to stow away his gun. Phil walked away from Charlie, whose eyes were now open but still watery, and went to retake his spot behind The Boss.

The next few seconds went by like slow motion. The Boss raised his gun to Phil, hand gripped tightly on the handle, finger resting on the trigger. His finger twitched ever so slightly and the gun fired, aiming for Phil’s back. Nick watched on in horror as the man crumpled to the floor, unmoving. His eyes and mouth opened wide and a pained scream escaped it. 

The Boss let out a maniac laugh before turning back to the boys. “What? You thought I was oblivious to him sneaking you food? Uncle Phil wasn’t as subtle as he thought.”

Nick didn’t know what to think. He knew these lunatics meant business but he didn’t think he would shoot one of their own in cold blood right in front of them. Nick turned his attention to the gagging noise, and discovered his boyfriend was currently throwing up the little contents of his stomach all over the floor beside him. 

The Boss bent down next to Phil’s limp body and searched the pockets until he pulled out his phone. He gestured to Ste, who produced a stack of cable ties from his jacket pocket and tied Charlie’s hands behind his back this time. Once he was satisfied with his work, he handed one to H, who did the same to Nick’s. 

“No more snuggling for you, fags,” The Boss said. He pointed to the floor next to Phil and Ste lugged Charlie over. The younger boy flailed in Ste’s grasp and, had he not had a gun pinned to his head, Nick would have run forward to follow him. 

“Turn him to face me,” The Boss ordered Ste, who viciously spun Charlie the other way. “You’re going to send the bastards a message this time, Curly, and then maybe… They’ll get the hint that we are not to be messed with.”

The Boss spewed off the script he wanted Charlie to say, warning him that if he didn’t say it word for word then Nick would die. He held the camera on Phil’s phone in front of Charlie’s face. 

“H-hi Sarah and Stéphane, I-It’s your son-in-law. N-nick is having a b-bit of timeout so you h-have me instead. You failed to give them what they wanted, so they took… they took Philip Fournier’s life,” Charlie reeled off from memory. 

Nick was shook to his core. The kind man that had helped him and Charlie out was his uncle? An uncle he had never met but still showed him kindness. Nick didn’t have time to process, because the next sentence out of Charlie’s mouth almost had him throwing up as well. 

“Next, it… it… will be me. Y-you have three more days, or I will end up j-just like him,” Charlie said as he burst into tears and Ste’s closed fist met Charlie’s head. The Boss kept filming as Ste’s foot collided with Charlie’s body over and over again. The small boy wept into the floor as Ste kicked him one more time and the camera was switched off.

One final blow landed on Charlie’s leg and Nick was sure he heard a snap. Charlie screamed in pain, confirming Nick’s original thought. “That’s what you get for trying to run away,” Ste spat at the smaller boy.

The Boss tapped on the screen, smiling to himself. “Let me just send this to mummy dearest, she’s left her phone number all over the place, y’know that Nicky? Boys, move them to the car. We need to be out of here sharpish, it’ll be crawling with pigs within the hour.”

Ste heaved Charlie from his spot, followed by H pulling Nick. Behind him, he watched The Boss wipe the phone down and place it gently back into Phil’s pocket. 

It wasn’t long before they reached the warehouse again and were being brought into the loading bay where the cars and van were stored. Jay ran ahead and removed a roll of tape from the car, walking over to the two boys and taping their mouths shut. The boot of the black Mercedes, that Nick now recognised as the car from earlier on the road, opened by itself and Nick was mercilessly thrown into it, shortly followed by Charlie, who landed on his chest.

“Have fun in there boys! We’ll see you in a bit.” Jay smiled, slamming the boot shut and plunging the boys into complete darkness. Nick let his head fall onto Charlie’s shoulders and cried. 

He cried for his uncle, who was unrightfully shot. Who he’d never known existed until it was too late. He cried for Charlie, who undoubtedly had a broken leg and even more mental and physical scars to add to his ever growing pile. Lastly, he cried for his freedom. The freedom he’d had in the palm of his hands no less than an hour ago, that was ripped away from him, probably never to be seen again. 

Chapter Text

Saturday 4th November

No matter what he did, Charlie couldn’t stop the queasiness he felt building in his stomach. He was stuffed into the boot of a car with Nick at his back, having just had his leg broken and watched a man get shot. He wasn’t certain that his leg was broken, but if it wasn’t then he sure as hell didn’t want to know what it felt like to be broken. 

The one reassuring thing in Charlie’s life right now was that Nick was there with him. He didn't know how long they would be in the boot together, but for now the heat of Nick's breath tickling the hairs on the back of his neck was grounding. When they reached their new destination they would be forced apart, so for now Charlie took what comfort he could in the feel of Nick's body pressed against his.

Charlie couldn’t tell if Nick was awake or not. His breathing had been the same since they were bundled into the car together, except now, Nick’s crying had stopped and the nuzzling of Nick’s nose against his neck had ceased. Charlie couldn’t imagine that Nick was doing very well. He had just lost his uncle. An uncle he had no idea existed, but family nonetheless. It made a lot of sense now as to why Phil had been so amicable towards them: he was looking after his nephew. Even if Nick hadn’t met his dad or his dad’s side of the family, it still had to hurt to see someone he could have formed a relationship with die in front of him.

The car hit a hole in the road and hurled the two boys around in their confined space. Nick’s leg caught the back of Charlie’s injured leg and sent a bolt of pain up Charlie’s body. He tried to hold back his scream, but even muffled behind the tape it was extremely loud.

Charlie felt Nick nestle into his neck, his way of apologising without having his hands or voice to reiterate it. He wanted to turn over, to face Nick and show him he was okay, but he was scared. Scared that if the car was to come to an abrupt stop and the boot opened, the gang would beat the shit out of either of them. They had already been caught kissing in the woods; he didn’t need to add any more fuel to their homophobic fire.

Charlie shifted himself as close to Nick as possible and melted into Nick’s touch at the nape of his neck. With his hands behind his back, he was able to reach out for the fabric of Nick’s jumper, which soothed him even more now they both had some hold on each other.

The boys lay in the same position until the car came to a complete stop. There wasn’t much room to manoeuvre, so if they opened the boot now, nothing would seem out of the ordinary. Charlie could hear the doors of the car slamming and the suppressed chatter of the men outside.

It felt like Nick had reached up and kissed the back of Charlie’s head with his taped mouth, but he couldn’t be sure. Though, he was one hundred percent going to say that’s what happened because the thought alone melted his heart.

The door of the boot lifted open and Charlie looked up into the faces of Ste and Jay, his eyes adjusting to the light above them. Jay looked down at them both and laughed. Charlie wondered what he could possibly be laughing at; nothing about this whole situation was funny.

“Enjoy the ride, boys? I bet you loved being in such a small space with each other,” said Jay, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Jay reached into the boot and dragged Charlie out by his hoodie. His leg caught on the framework and Charlie let out a muffled yelp of pain. Nick was pulled out seconds later and dropped at Charlie’s feet. All of Charlie’s weight was on his left leg; the agony of standing on his right was too much for him. 

The Boss stood before them, arms crossed over his chest and a stern look on his face as he stared at Nick and Charlie. “Now, what am I going to do with you? You ran away, almost jeopardised our whereabouts and I lost one of my men today.” 

You lost him because you shot him you heartless piece of shit, Charlie wanted to scream.

“I think we should just shoot the curly haired cunt right now,” Jay said, coming up behind Charlie and pushing the gun into Charlie’s temple. At his feet, Nick went to move towards his boyfriend but was kicked back onto the floor by Ste. Nick squirmed beneath the big man which earned him a kick to his ribs. 

“No, he has to stay alive until their time is up, otherwise we have no leverage,” The Boss replied. The gun at Charlie’s head relaxed a little but remained in place. 

“But boss… If we get rid of him no-”

“NO!” The Boss shouted, marching over to Jay and squaring up to him. “He is to stay alive until I say so, and so is he,” he pointed at Nick this time. His face was rid of all emotion, but his eyes were filled with fury. “Have fun with them, do whatever you want to them, but they are to remain alive, otherwise our plan will not work. Do you understand?” 

Charlie couldn’t see Jay’s reaction but he could feel him nod behind him. The gun was pulled away from Charlie’s head and he collapsed to the floor, his leg no longer able to hold him up. Nick scooted so he was supporting Charlie’s back with his legs, for which the younger boy was extremely grateful.

The Boss stared at them, at the closeness that he and Nick had built during their time in his company. Charlie almost thought he saw a glint of compassion in The Boss’ dark, devilish eyes, but it left as quickly as it came when he gestured to Ste and Jay to move the two boys.

“Put them somewhere whilst we fix up their room. I don’t care where, just get them out of my sight.”

~~

The men nodded and hauled Nick and Charlie to their feet. Nick’s sprain was still a little unbearable to stand on, but he couldn’t complain – not when Charlie literally had a broken leg. He watched the younger boy cringe as the men forced him to move but all he could do was hop. 

Jay grew restless, Nick could see it on his face, so he pushed Charlie to the floor and dragged him by the scruff of his hoodie. Nick wished his hands weren’t tied behind his back, otherwise he would have run to the younger boy’s aid and helped carry him.

The journey to their new resting place wasn’t long, just inside the door this time; he was grateful Charlie didn’t have to endure the pain of being manhandled for too long. Their new room was a lot smaller than The Room. It was basically a storage cupboard, no bigger than 6 foot by 6 foot. There was no mattress in here and definitely no toilet facilities. Nick was suddenly very happy with his choice to pee before they tried to escape.

As he and Charlie were tossed into the closet, Ste peered over the pair and removed the tape from their mouths. Behind him, Jay began to protest but Ste waved his hand in reassurance. 

“I’m only doing it because that’s what he wants, but it won't be long until we get what we want,” he whispered to Jay, who seemed to vaguely grasp what Ste was telling him. Ste turned his head to the boys this time. “You so much as raise a voice, you’re both dead. You got that? I don’t care if he wants you alive or not.”

Nick utters a quiet ‘yes sir’ and Charlie nodded his understanding and then they were once again plunged into total darkness. Beyond the door, Ste and Jay continued their conversation - a conversation that clearly was not meant to be overheard.

“Listen, we give it until H is back and then we take those two muppets and we go our own way. Graham and Marco are in on it their end, we just need to wait for Dino to leave before we can make our move,’ Ste informs Jay.

Nick and Charlie look at each other in a mixture of confusion and dread. Was the gang going rogue from The Boss? Now that Phil - Nick’s uncle - was dead, was that the final straw for them?

“I don’t know about this, bro. They’re already looking for them, you heard the news. If we move them again, we could risk everything.”

“We’re already risking everything by being here with Dino. He’s a loose cannon, I don’t know why we’re still holding onto the curly haired freak. It’s Nick that they all want, the heir to the business. We should have fucked the other one off as soon as we realised he wasn’t Stéphane ’s boy.”

Nick could feel Charlie tense beside him and he did everything he could to alleviate some of it. He bent his neck and planted a kiss on Charlie’s dirt-caked and bloodied cheek. “I won’t let them do anything to you, Char.”

Charlie’s eyes began to well and a single drop of salty liquid escaped down his cheek. Nick placed another kiss upon Charlie’s cheek, stopping the tear from rolling any further. 

“H will be back in a day or two, once he’s finished at the warehouse. Dino will be high as a fucking kite by then so that’s when we move,” said Ste.

“And then what?” Jay countered. “Where do we go?”

“Back to France. I don’t really care if one or both of them are dead by the time we get to the border. Travis is working in border control at Dover, he’ll get us through with their dead or alive bodies in the boot, and then we head back to base.”

There was a long pause before either of them continued to talk.

“So why take them? Why don’t we just go?”

“Because you fucking dumb bastard, Stéphane wants Nick. So Nick we shall give him.”

And then the voices were mere murmurs in the distance and it was just Nick and Charlie, alone together. Charlie dropped his head on Nick’s shoulder and he responded instantly, resting his head atop Charlie’s. Charlie shuddered against the touch and winced as his leg moved with it. 

“How is it?” Nick asked. It was a stupid question, he knew that, but he wanted to hear first hand from Charlie himself. 

Charlie shrugged his shoulders. “Kills like a bitch.”

“Can I do anything to help? Alleviate some of the pressure?” 

He snorted and Nick took that as a no. “Unless you have some sort of powers that can magically fix a broken leg, then I doubt it very much.”

~~

Charlie hadn’t intended for that to come out snippy but it did and he couldn't take it back. He just felt helpless right now. His leg was broken, his head was throbbing, and he had an overwhelming need to claw his skin off. He felt rotten, he could smell how dirty he was, and he couldn’t believe he was still in this fucked up situation having escaped from it mere hours before.

It wasn’t Nick’s fault; Charlie shouldn’t be hostile towards him, but he was angry. At the shitty men who took pleasure in torturing two teenage boys, at his mum for not giving a shit during that press conference, at Nick’s dad for involving Nick in this, but most of all, he was angry at himself. He should have fought back, he should have just taken Nick’s hand and ran all the way back home and then maybe they would be safe right now.

He hadn’t felt the urge to hurt himself in a very long time, but his mind was all over the place and he needed to tame the ever-growing voices in his head that were feeding into his desires.

He closed his eyes and thought of good things: having family time with Tori and Olly, watching movies with Tao, shopping for new books with Isaac and watching Elle draw her latest masterpiece on the benches outside Truham. He reminds himself about all the nice things he and Nick have to look forward to when they get out of here: taking Nellie on walks, cuddling each other in bed, going on fun dates and getting to meet his mum who he speaks so fondly of.

But all those things become dark and clouded, shrouded by his demons and the four men that have ruined any potential happiness in his life. He didn’t want to give in – he had been clean for three months now and he certainly didn’t want to let his captors win.

“N-Nick…” he stuttered, taking a few deep breaths.

Nick shifted in his spot, edging closer to him. “What’s up, are you okay?”

Charlie shook his head hesitantly. His eyes still remained closed – he didn’t want to see Nick’s face when he told him. “N-no, I need… I need…”

His face scrunched up in anguish. He’d come so far, he couldn’t do this now. His bound hands clenched together behind his back, resisting the temptation to pinch the skin on his palms. 

“What do you need, baby? Please tell me,” Nick breathed into Charlie’s hair.

Charlie took one more deep breath as his eyes slowly opened and he looked up tearily into Nick’s face. “I-I need you to hold my hands. Even if it means we’re not as close to each other and I can’t see you, I-I just need something to… stop myself.”

He saw the moment that Nick had clocked what he was insinuating. Nick nodded and spun around so his back was to Charlie’s and his warm hands grasped Charlie’s cold ones. The angle was awkward with their bound hands but it would have to do. Nick didn’t ask questions, he just knew, and that was the best thing about Nick Nelson. His heart was so full of honesty and good. There wasn’t a single bad thing about him, which made this whole situation even more fucked up.

“Char?”

“I’m okay, I just… talk to me… please,” Charlie pleaded. The urge was still there, and he needed a distraction. “Talk to me about good things. Nice things.”

“Okay, um… Well, I can’t wait for us to get out of here. Because I’m going to take you on so many fucking dates,” he told the younger boy, rubbing circles with his thumb over the spot Charlie was just debating pinching. It’s like Nick knew. He always knew.

Charlie smiled, his eyes started to well. “Oh yeah, like what?”

“Some of them will be a surprise, but I want to take you to the beach. I want to spend so much money at the arcades, wasting it all trying to win you a cute fucking toy that I could probably have bought for cheaper on Amazon. But that defeats the point, I want to win it for you. I want to show you just how much I love you. How much you mean to me.

“I want to name it something whacky like… Constantine.”

“Constantine?” Charlie giggled. It’s working, Nick’s doing it.

“Or, Bittymoo Fudgesmittens!”

Charlie almost choked on his tears and saliva. “Bittymoo Fudgesmittens?”

“Too much?” Nick asked, a hint of mirth in his voice.

“Maybe a little. Better than Constantine though.”

Nick faked a gasp, pausing his thumb strokes. “How dare you! That’s it, I’m going to win you the ugliest looking teddy they have and I’m going to name him Constantine Bittymoo Fudgesmittens and there will be nothing you can do about it. He will be our child and I will name him as I please.”

“God, I pray for your future children if you can’t think of a good name for a hypothetical teddy bear!” Charlie scoffed. He leaned his head back against Nick’s shoulder and Nick reciprocated. 

“My children are going to have great names, thank you!”

“Oh yeah, let’s hear them then?”

Nick shook his head. “No can do, Charles. It’s bad luck.”

Charlie turned his head inwards so he was looking at Nick somewhat. “What? How is it bad luck, Nicholas?”

“Because… What if you don’t like them?”

Oh? Charlie’s brain went into overload. Nick wanted to have kids with him? But… why?

“I’ve broken you haven’t I? I just… I can’t see myself with anyone else after this. They won’t… get it. They won’t get me. But if that’s not something you can see in your future… If you don’t see me in your future, then I respect that. But, I don’t know, I can’t see anything past you.”

Charlie was glad Nick couldn’t see his face because it was embarrassing how red it had gotten from Nick’s admission. He wasn’t used to this kind of attention, let alone from the boy he’d crushed on and was now his boyfriend. 

“I’ve made it weird, I’m sorry. I- forget what I said, honestly, I was just-”

“Nick, you didn’t. I promise. I’m just… not used to people wanting me in that way. I’m nothing special,” Charlie admitted. This was probably the first time he’d said this out loud, except to Tori, who he told everything. 

“You’re special to me,” said Nick, who squeezed Charlie’s hands with his. 

The boys sat in silence for a while, trying to grasp what had happened in the last few hours. “Are you okay now?” Nick asked, breaking the quiet. Charlie pried his hands out of Nick’s and spun himself round as best he could so he could see the blonde-haired boy, who followed suit. Charlie rested his forehead against Nick’s in silent confirmation.

Charlie was so grateful for Nick. To have someone who would drop anything for him, make sure he was okay even though he was suffering too. 

Nick lifted his forehead and smiled at the younger boy. Charlie smiled back, twisting himself so his back was against the wall and his broken leg was elevated against Nick’s outstretched leg. He leaned his head against Nick’s shoulder and settled it there, snuggling into the fabric of Nick’s jumper. He felt Nick lay his head on top of Charlie’s and the smaller boy smiled.

He was content. 

Well, as content as he could be as someone who was being held hostage and was potentially moments away from the end of his life. He could feel his eyes flitting shut, tiredness overcoming him and whilst the pain was bearable, he gave into his body shutting down and fell into a gentle sleep.

★

Nick had fallen asleep not long after Charlie had, resting his head atop his boyfriend’s as they slowly succumbed to their exhaustion. The walls in their current holding room were thinner than the walls in The Room. Nick could practically hear every footstep, every word uttered from the gang’s mouth, every car door being slammed in the warehouse of the building, so not much sleep was being had.

Charlie, however, was out for the count and Nick tried so hard not to wake him. Charlie’s legrested on Nick’s leg, which must have relieved enough pressure for him to sleep through the pain.

Charlie being asleep meant it left Nick alone with his thoughts, with no other distraction and nothing else to do but burrow through them. Phil, the kind man who had fed them and had given them tip offs, was his uncle. His dad’s brother. A whole different family he knew nothing about but could have gotten to know had this never happened. 

But would Nick have wanted to get to know them? His dad left when he was a baby, which must have meant he had some sort of commitment issues. But this was his dad, the man who helped create him. Maybe he would have been worth the gamble of getting to know him? It was something he definitely knew he had to ask his mum once he was home safe, but for now he stored it away in the back of his mind. There were more important things at stake, the most important of which was currently leaning against his shoulder, asleep. 

How were they supposed to get out of here when Charlie’s leg was broken? Maybe he could barter with the gang? Convince them to get Charlie the medical attention he needed but to keep him, use him as their bargaining chip. He’d speak to The Boss next time he came in, seeing as he was the most rational of the men and was the one in charge.

He didn’t have to wait long; the door opened wide and The Boss and Ste came into view. Charlie hadn’t moved from Nick’s shoulder, but the older boy could tell he was awake from the intense shaking coming from the boy beside him. 

“Now, I’ve had a thought,” The Boss began. “I’m sure we told your bitch of a mother not to go to the police? Am I right?”

Nick nodded, but that wasn’t enough. He knew by now that these thugs worked on verbal confirmations, so he wasn’t sure why he didn’t just say he understood. The Boss walked into the cupboard towards the two boys and Charlie flinched behind Nick, waiting for some kind of hit to come. Nick shifted himself to protect Charlie but it wasn’t what The Boss wanted. Instead, he stomped his foot forcefully onto Charlie’s broken leg.

Charlie screamed out in pain, burying his face into Nick’s jumper. 

“I’m certain you said ‘no police’ in the video, so why has your case changed from a missing person to a kidnapping? I mean, there is only one explanation for that. Someone has disobeyed our orders.” The Boss shifted his weight onto the foot resting on Charlie’s leg once more. Charlie bit the shoulder of Nick’s jumper and screamed, his tears seeping onto the fabric. 

“That someone would be your mother, wouldn’t it?” When Nick didn’t reply, The Boss growled and kicked Charlie’s leg. 

“WOULDN’T IT?” 

“I DON’T KNOW! YES, PROBABLY YES! You’re right. I’m sorry she did that. I’m sorry!” Nick shouted, his own voice quivering through tears and sobs. He could hear Charlie whimpering on his shoulder but felt helpless not being able to comfort him or take away his pain. 

The Boss lifted his foot from Charlie’s leg and loomed over the two boys. “You fucking will be. H hasn’t made it back yet and my gut is telling me that the pigs have him. I think I’m going to have some fun with Charlie Boy here until we get H back.” He patted Charlie on his head, infantilising the two boys and then roughly grabbed a handful of the dark curls. The Boss looked over at his men and gestured to Nick. “You bring him. I’m sure he’ll wanna see what we do to his twat of a boyfriend.”

~~

Charlie had little time to react before he was being dragged by his hair away from Nick. Nick made to follow him but Ste was on him before Nick even had the chance. Charlie tried his best to keep this broken leg off of the floor as The Boss pulled him into another room, further down the corridor. 

Charlie watched as Ste guided Nick out of the cupboard, a gun to his head, and was forced to follow behind him. Jay had somehow managed to get ahead of The Boss and was hovering over the smaller boy as he was thrown face first into the carpet. His arms were suddenly freed from the cable tie but were quickly shackled with cold metal of handcuffs as he was forced onto his back and his wrists were restrained in front of him. 

The new room was more like an abandoned office, filled with nothing but a chair and an old painting of a field of lavender that sat crooked on the wall in front of him. It was very similar to the room he was taken to back in the old warehouse where he was drugged against his will. He almost missed the old place. Although it haunted his mind whenever he closed his eyes, it had become familiar to him. Even after everything that had happened to him there, he would much rather be back there than where he is now.

Nick was pushed down into the chair that Jay had manoeuvred so it was facing Charlie, his arms draped awkwardly over the back of it. Charlie shimmied himself into a sitting position and leaned against the wall behind him. He didn’t care if he was supposed to stay in that position, his leg was killing him and he wanted some comfort right now.

“So,” The Boss clapped, gaining the attention of the two boys. “Who’s idea was it to run?”

Charlie felt a pang in his stomach. It was ultimately his, but they both agreed to it. And he wasn’t about to let Nick take the blame for his stupid mistake. Charlie looked at Nick, who was looking back at him with a guilt-riddled expression, and closed his eyes so he couldn’t see Nick’s reaction to what he was about to admit.

“Mine.”

“It was mine.”

Blue eye’s flung open, meeting shocked hazel ones; they both knew that wouldn’t go down lightly. Charlie was unaware of when his body started shaking, whether it was from how cold or how scared he was, but the vigorous vibrating his body was producing was making the constant pain in his leg well known. 

The Boss had his arms folded across his chest, unimpressed with neither of the two boys admitting to it being their idea. He made a gesture towards Charlie, which Ste acted on, pulling Charlie from his seated position into a standing one and raising his arms above his head. Charlie hadn’t noticed the hooks before but now the handcuffs made sense, just like they did back in The Room.

The hooks were still fairly high up on the wall, so much that he had to stand on the tiptoes of his good foot to stop the strain on his arms. His broken leg dangled as delicately as it could against his good leg as he shifted the weight onto it. Even though it wasn’t as high up as the ones in The Room, Charlie could tell he was going to tire soon from over-exerting himself. 

Do these men have an endless supply of hooks and tape that they carry around with them in case they feel like kidnapping other innocent children?

“You see, I don’t think this one is smart enough to conjure a plan like that,” said The Boss, pointing at Nick as he walked between Nick and Charlie and closed the gap on the younger boy. “After all, he fell for Ste’s lie right before we took him. No… I think this was all your idea.”

Charlie tried to hide his face behind his quivering arm but The Boss produced a knife from his pocket and held it at Charlie’s Adam's apple.

Behind him, Nick spoke up. His voice littered with fear, his words creaked out. “No, it was all my idea. Please, don’t hurt him anymore.”

The Boss rolled his eyes dramatically and turned to face Nick, the knife still firmly on Charlie’s throat. “I don’t believe it. Do you believe it, lads?” he turned and asked his men. Both men chorused ‘no’s’ and ‘definitely not’s’ which frustrated Charlie internally. Nick was one of the smartest people he knew, and even a fucking child would think of escaping through a window had they been given the chance. Charlie hated how much these men belittled Nick – belittled them both, but especially his brave, intelligent boyfriend.

The Boss’s head whipped back round to Charlie. His mouth was a thin, solid line, similar to his eyebrows, and his eyes were dull but full of anger. He could faintly see the flame brewing behind them, growing bigger every second he or Nick didn’t comply with The Boss’ demands.

“The question is, what do I do with you? I could kill you, but I need you for Nicky Boy when we get Stéphane, and we need him to negotiate. Maybe, I could give you a little something. I know how much you enjoyed it last time, huh? You wanna get high again, champ?”

“How about you leave him the fuck alone!” Nick spat. Charlie could all but hear the growl that came from The Boss’s mouth. The knife was gone from his throat and the man that crowded him was now looming over his boyfriend. 

~~

Nick knew that shouting that would earn him some sort of punishment but he didn’t care. Not really. Not when a bunch of men with small egos and probably smaller something-elses found joy in torturing a teenage boy who was tied up and defenceless. Nick was just happy the knife was no longer at Charlie’s throat, even if that meant it would soon be at his.

The Boss rushed over to Nick and wrapped his thick hand around Nick’s jugular, cutting off his oxygen supply. Nick thrashed against the man, trying his best to evade his grasp but everything he tried was futile. His arms remained behind his back, no matter how much he squirmed and hoped that they’d magically unbind themselves. This was the first time since they took him that he truly felt like he was going to die.

The Boss’s face grew redder, angrier, as he tightened his hold on Nick’s small neck. The corner of Nick’s vision started to blur and tears escaped them, dripping down onto his flushed cheeks.

He was certain he could hear Charlie’s faint crying in the distance. No, not crying – begging for The Boss to stop his assault, but he didn’t. If anything, he gripped tighter. Of all the feelings Nick should be experiencing right now, he felt immense guilt that he would be leaving Charlie alone in this place. He tried so hard to fight, to resist the urge to just let go and give up, but he was vulnerable, paralysed with fear that these would be his last moments on this earth.

He could feel the life draining from him, his body abandoned the fight and his vision was slowly starting to fade. 

And then the grip on him was gone, his airways opened up and his brain kicked in. He gasped for air, breathing in as much of it as he could; it stung his insides as it circulated through his body. Nick’s vision started to clear and he could vaguely make out the shape of Charlie in front of him, slumped against his stretched arms, crying and muttering something into his sleeve as well as the raspy shouting of two men to Nick’s left.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” 

“You were going to fucking kill him, asshole!” Was that Ste?

“Yeah, and the cunt deserves to die.”

“You said yourself that we can’t kill either of them. We keep them alive until we have Stéphane and then we deal with them as we see fit. What happened to that? You’re just going to risk the entire job because he spoke out of line?” It was Jay this time.

Nick’s head was spinning, his mouth was dry and it almost felt like he had no control over his body. He felt his head slump against his shoulder but had no energy to move it.

“You’re a fucking liability when you’re coked up to your eyeballs. We torture, we beat but we don’t kill. Those were your fucking words when we caught the twat. So what’s changed?”

Nick was unsure how The Boss reacted. His eyes were not cooperating and his brain was all over the place. He didn’t want to look anywhere else but at Charlie. At his incredibly gorgeous boyfriend who just witnessed him almost die. He opened his mouth to call out for him but nothing came. No words, no sounds, nothing. Nick wanted to cry and scream but his body betrayed him, disobeyed him. Instead, he forced himself to avert his eyes from Charlie and onto the three men next to him.

“There’s something you’re not telling us,” said Jay. He looked a little fazed, like he was trying to decipher something behind The Boss’s dark eyes but he came up short. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” The Boss glared at his men and started edging his way towards the door, but Jay was quick, blocking his exit with his hands on his hips. 

“No, come on, share with the room. This has nothing to do with Stéphane, does it? Or maybe it does, but there’s something much deeper as to why you hate Nick’s guts.”

Nick’s head spun sluggishly to face the older man. The Boss’s face was unrecognisable. It was covered in anger and fear and in something Nick couldn’t quite place. Nick could feel The Boss’s eyes boring into Nick’s skull with his death glare from the doorway. He turned back to Jay and uttered ‘not here’ and skulked out of the room, leaving the two boys with Jay and Ste.

~~

Charlie was so fucking confused. The Boss had nearly killed Nick right in front of Charlie’s eyes before causing some sort of civil war between the captors, and now The Boss had some deep, dark secret he hasn't shared with his men?

Charlie’s eyes darted between Jay and Ste, who had been left in the room with Nick and Charlie and looked just as confused as he was. Ste nodded toward Nick and Jay walked over to him, taking a knife out of his pocket and ducking behind Nick’s chair. Charlie saw Nick’s shoulders spring back into place as Jay cut the cable tie holding them together. Though, they weren’t free for long and Nick had no energy to react quick enough before his hands were bound again but this time, in front of him.

For the first time in two weeks, Charlie was seeing some sort of empathy from the two lunks. Though, it didn’t last long. 

“Don’t think we’re going soft on you, both,” Ste sneered as he came face to face with Charlie. Charlie could feel his warm breath on his face and hated every second of it. He had been crying for the last 10 minutes and he felt vulnerable to say the least. Having someone this close to him that wasn’t Nick almost sent him into a panic induced frenzy. 

Ste reached up and removed the cuffs from the hook, dropping Charlie to the floor. He took one step back before planting a couple of kicks to Charlie’s abdomen. Though the pain in his leg superseded any other sensation, he was pretty sure Ste just added a few more bruises to the collection on his stomach from his previous beatings as well as the cuts they’d inflicted upon his skin when they filmed Nick’s video. He hadn’t checked what it looked like below his clothing, scared of what colours would paint his body and what marks they had left but now he was certain there would be some long lasting scars.

The two men marched out of the room and locked the door behind them. 

Charlie couldn’t help but cry. He didn’t mean to, nor did he want to but his body forced the tears out of his eyes against his will. Nick was slowly starting to slide out of his chair and down onto the floor next to him. He looked awful, and rightly so. He had just been strangled almost to death, so Charlie didn’t blame him. Nick crawled over to Charlie, pulling him into a hug.

“Charlie,” he croaked, the aftermath of The Boss’s hands around Nick’s neck left his voice hoarse.

“Nick, your voice. Please don’t hurt yourself any more than they have,” Charlie pleaded. Nick simply nodded, mouthing an ‘okay’ wide enough for Charlie to understand. Content, Charlie laid his head on Nick’s chest and breathed in the familiar scent of the boy below him. “Please don’t ever do something like that again. Just… let them do what they have to do to me. I can’t sit here and watch you almost die again.”

Nick kissed the top of Charlie’s hair and rested his head atop it. “I just… that knife was so close to your throat. One wrong move and he could have cut something deeper.”

“Nick! I said don’t speak!”

“And I ignored you,” he huffed. Charlie knew Nick would never have listened to him; he hated silences, especially in these circumstances. “Plus, I have to make sure you’re okay.”

Charlie smiled against Nick’s jumper, looking up into Nick’s eyes as he stared down into Charlie’s. “I’m okay. I will always be okay as long as you’re still here.” The curly-haired boy bent his head upwards until his lips met Nick’s. He’d missed that. Though that kiss in the woods hadn’t been very long ago, it felt like a lifetime had passed since then.

Nick bent his head down for easier access to Charlie’s mouth, swiping his tongue against Charlie’s pink lips and biting down gently on the younger boy’s bottom lip. Charlie pressed his body against Nick’s, pushing him down onto the cold, hard ground and swung his good leg over Nick’s waist. He paused his attack on Nick’s mouth to look over his stunning boyfriend. 

How his copper hair looked brown from how dirty it was. The purples, yellows and blacks that consumed most of his face. How his skin sank in places from the lack of food and nutrition. The cut to his eyebrow and his lip that scabbed over but showed no sign of healing. The angry red hand mark that was growing prominent on Nick’s neck and would eventually darken into a vile shade of blue. 

Charlie’s face grew sadder. The once admirable features of Nicholas Nelson were nearly unrecognisable beneath his injuries. Nick unwrapped his arms from around Charlie’s back and cupped his hands around Charlie’s slender jaw. “What’s up?” he asked, his voice above a whisper.

Charlie bent down and placed a tender kiss on the tip on Nick’s nose and then again on his cupid’s bow. “I just- I’m so in love with you, Nick Nelson.”

Nick’s mouth turned upwards into an affectionate grin. “And I you, Charlie Spring.” Nick pulled Charlie’s face down so he could kiss the boy one more time. Charlie climbed off of Nick and settled in the familiar nook of Nick’s shoulder, tucking his arms between his chest and Nick’s side. 

He took a large deep breath and nestled himself into Nick’s jumper. “What do you think was wrong with him? The Boss, I mean?”

~~

Truthfully, Nick had no idea. Absolutely nothing the coke head did was normal, so it was anyone’s guess. Though, Jay was right. For someone who had been told repeatedly that Nick knew nothing about Stéphane or his whereabouts, he did take a rather big interest in Nick.

“I don’t know,” Nick admitted. “I genuinely thought he was going to kill me. I guess I owe Ste after that.”

A week ago Nick wouldn’t have thought he’d owe his attackers a thanks but a lot had changed since then. He found out he had an uncle after watching him be tragically murdered with his own eyes, his dad was a famous drug lord, and he’d found the love of his life, all within the thirteen days since he’d been taken.

He’d definitely need to speak to his mum after this. He’d have a lot to talk about. Or maybe he would need to speak to her about getting help professionally. It’s going to be a lot on his mum, and she won’t be able to help him the way a therapist would. And would Charlie be able to go with him? He doesn’t think he’d be able to talk to someone without Charlie there. Even now, his mind had blanked out the first week, so retelling that might be hard.

“You’re in your head again, what’s up?” Charlie asked, focussing Nick’s thoughts.

“I was just… thinking about my uncle. I didn’t even know he existed until now. Mum never spoke about Stéphane, and even when I asked her, she would change the subject. I assume this is why.” Nick wasn’t upset that Sarah had never told him about Stéphane or the rest of his family, but he couldn’t help but feel like he missed out in some way. He had his aunt and his cousins but that’s all he’s ever had. So maybe he shouldn’t be feeling like this, he shouldn’t long for something he never had. But Phil was a nice guy, even with no relationship, he showed nothing but empathy. Maybe there are other family members out there like Phil he didn’t know about, that would like to get to know him. 

But Nick didn’t need them. He had everything he ever wanted in his mum and now he has Charlie. His beautiful, kind and caring Charlie. 

“I’ve noticed you’ve never called him dad, is this why?” Charlie asked innocently, peering up at Nick from his chest. 

God, he’s so fucking hot, Nick thought. His long eyelashes bat unapologetically against the apples of his cheeks and his eyes were still as blue as ever. Even caked in dirt and blood, Charlie Spring was still beautiful. Nick couldn’t quite get over the fact that Charlie likes him. Like, likes him likes him. 

“He’s not my dad. I don’t have a dad. He left my mum before I was even a year old and I’ve never heard of or from him since. That’s why I find all of this hard to believe, there’s no way Stéphane would contact me out of the blue one random day in October, sixteen years after he left.” He awkwardly rubbed circles into Charlie’s shoulder and back. “I don’t need a dad anyway. I have a perfectly amazing mum who fills both parental roles.”

And Nick was happy about that. He didn’t need a male role model in his life. He’s just turned sixteen and everything had worked out well up until now. No male would ever enter his life and change him. No male except Charlie Francis Spring.

★

Sunday 5th November

Charlie hadn’t realised how essential their shitty mattress was in The Room until he didn’t have it anymore. The new room had no window (clearly they’d learnt from their past mistakes) and the light switch was located outside of the room (well done to whoever designed this place). The pair were plunged into darkness not long after their chat last night. Charlie curled up next to Nick and Nick encased the smaller boy in his bound arms. 

Luckily, this room was a lot warmer than their previous hovel. Perhaps the men had ramped up the heating (there was a radiator sitting on the far wall), hoping that the pair would sweat to death. But, having spent two weeks freezing his ass off, he welcomed the heat; so did Nick, who stupidly wore shorts.

He had been awake for a while now, not that he had any concept of time in The Room 2.0: The unnecessary sequel. Charlie wouldn’t even really call it a room. More like an office, but one an employer might stick the new temp worker in because they can’t be bothered to actually give them a proper office. Charlie felt sorry for that hypothetical temp, because this room was fucking horrible. Not a lick of paint on the wall and the floor had a ghastly green carpet laid in it. He wouldn’t be surprised if Tina (Charlie had decided that was the temp’s name) threw up every time she walked in. 

He had counted Nick’s breathing and the rising and falling of his chest as a way to occupy his thoughts. 1,296 breaths later, Nick began to stir. The first thing Charlie felt was Nick’s warm breath in his hair and a soft kiss amongst his curls. Charlie smiled and melted into Nick’s touch.

“You’re awake?” Nick asked. His voice was still a little raspy from the strangulation but it was a lot better than the night before.

“Have been for a while,” Charlie admitted. He sat up on his elbows and leaned down to kiss Nick quickly on the lips. As the younger man pulled away, Nick chased after Charlie’s lips wanting more. His hands moved from Charlie’s waist to the back of his head and pulled him into a toe-curling morning kiss. 

“You should have woken me!” 

“It’s the first time in a while that you haven’t shifted in your sleep from a nightmare. There was absolutely no way I was disturbing you,” Charlie argued. Nick groaned, obviously understanding where Charlie was coming from.

The lights above them buzzed into action and Charlie sprung back away from Nick. Not too far away that he wasn’t close to the boy but far enough away that they wouldn’t suspect they had slept in each other’s embrace.

The tall metal door swung open and The Boss walked in, his men traipsing behind him. Charlie almost hadn’t noticed him as he flanked behind Ste and Jay, but H was there, standing before him in the flesh.

“Wakey wakey, boys! Look who’s decided to join us!” The Boss sang. “H had to hide for a while because your cunt-ass mother sent Curly’s video to the police again.” The Boss hauled Nick from the floor and back into the dreaded chair. Charlie made to get up and crawl towards him but The Boss freed the gun from his jeans and pointed it in his direction. “You make one more fucking move and I will blow your brains out and have lover boy here clear it up.”

Charlie froze on the spot, not daring to move a single finger out of line. 

“We’re going to have a bit of fun today boys, now that Harv is back with us. Ste, Jay, pick one of the boys. Harv will get the other.”

Ste walked further into the room, his head moving between Nick and Charlie as if he was weighing his options. He turned back to Jay, who pointed at Nick. “We choose Nicky.”

“Excellent. H, that means you’ve got Charlie Boy here,” The Boss jeered. H was on Charlie in seconds, heaving him to his feet and placing the chain of the cuffs around the hook above him. Meaty fingers gripped tightly around Charlie’s chin, and his thumb and index finger dug into the skin sharply. “I’m going to have so much fun with you,” he growled, slapping Charlie hard across the face, sending his head abruptly to the side.

Before him, Jay produced a roll of tape that a piece was cut from and placed over Nick’s mouth. Charlie tried his best to hold in his sobs but it was too late; tears were already starting to fall. 

Nick was removed from the chair and shoved over to the wall next to Charlie. His arms raised above his head, much like Charlie’s, and pulled into place on the hook next to his. A loud rip of the tape stole Charlie’s attention and then Jay was in front of him, grinning widely as he placed the material over Charlie’s mouth. 

The Boss chuckled darkly, standing between the two boys. “Remember, remember, the fifth of November. Because today may well be your last.”

Chapter Text

Sunday 5th November

“Remember, remember, the fifth of November. Because today may well be your last.”

Charlie’s stomach churned at The Boss’ words. There was no way he would kill them now, surely? He’d spent so long making sure his gang hadn’t killed them, so what changed?

“Boss? I thought we couldn’t kill them?” Jay asked, a little bemused. The Boss gestured towards Charlie whilst looking at H as if they were talking in a secret, unspoken code. H nodded and removed a pocket knife from the back of his dark blue jeans. Charlie could see what was coming, and he tried his best to wriggle away.  His breathing was heavy against the tape across his mouth as he shook his head, as if that would deter his attacker

H wrapped his hand around Charlie’s neck and pushed his head against the wall, holding the knife at his cheek. The grip on his throat wasn’t tight, but was still strong enough to hold him in place. A single tear fell from Charlie’s right eye, which H collected on the blade and held up to show The Boss. 

“Might wanna save those for later, Charlie Boy,” said The Boss, who had taken residence in the chair in front of them, his left leg crossed over his right as if he was waiting for a show to begin. They were the show, Charlie thought before his attention was brought roughly back to the man with the knife atop of him. 

“Here’s the deal, boys. I don’t give a shit about either of these two anymore. Daddy clearly doesn’t care about Nicky, so why should I?” The room was silent, bar the whistling from H’s nose next to Charlie’s ear that was beginning to grate on his nerves. “My only request,” The Boss continued, glaring at Nick whose head was resting against his strained arms, “is that you take your sweet time. Especially with Nicky, me and him need to have a chat.”

The hand on Charlie’s neck clenched and his head was forced backwards into the wall. Once. Twice. Three times. Charlie could feel something warm trickle down his neck that he could only assume was blood. His head pounded quickly, quicker than any headache he’d ever gotten, and he instantly felt like he was about to throw up. He groaned against the tape at his mouth, which earned a dark chuckle from the older man who held Charlie’s life in his hand.

“Charlie?”

It was Nick. In his peripheral vision, Charlie could barely see Nick’s head searching for the cry he let out moments ago. Nick’s eyes were taped shut so he couldn’t see the torture Charlie was going to be put through, but he could tell by the strain in his voice that Nick knew. He didn’t have to see Nick’s eyes to know he was hurting too. 

“Charlie, are you okay?” 

Charlie wanted to reply, to lie and tell him he was, but he couldn’t. He mumbled against his gag but nothing came out. Ste took the opportunity to respond by punching Nick hard in the stomach. Nick bent forward against his restraints, and the cold metal of the cuffs dug into the weak skin of his wrists. Charlie could just about see the redness starting to form from the intrusion. 

“Boyfriend is unavailable, Nicky, but he sends his love,” Jay laughed. He took out his own knife from his pocket and held it up to Nick’s cheek before sliding the blade across it. Nick let out a guttural scream, the most pained cry Charlie had heard from him during their time together. Tears began to pool in Charlie's blue eyes as he could see the cut on Nick’s face split open and blood started to pour out of it. The cut was on the same side as the one Jay left on Charlie’s face all those days ago; he felt awful for the thought, but he was comforted a little by the fact they would have the same scar after all this. If there was an ‘after this’. 

Charlie had to stay optimistic, because if he didn’t then he would crumble. His brain and body would give in and he would lose all the fight he could muster, and he wouldn’t dare show that in front of these assholes. The only person he would ever show some sort of yielding to would be Nick.

“Do we really have to stick to just one of them? I really want to hurt this one a bit more,” Jay asked as he walked over to Charlie. 

The Boss shrugged. “Y’know what, roam free. Do what you want. Hurt who you want.”

Jay chuckled as he punched Charlie in the ribs and then hard on his shoulder. Charlie didn’t want to look at Nick, who Ste was using as his own personal punching bag, so instead focused on anything else his brain could conjure. He closed his eyes, his mind wandering to nicer memories with his baby brother and big sister.

A 11-year-old Charlie was standing on the soft sandy beach of Alcúdia in Mallorca, a bucket and spade in one hand and a three-year-old Oliver Spring in the other. Olly was positively giddy with excitement, having just conned Charlie into building sandcastles with him. What the younger Spring didn’t know was that Charlie wanted to build sandcastles with him - it beat spending time with his overbearing mother. 

“Sandcastles, Charlie!” Olly shouted excitedly, pointing at a man’s impressive attempt at building the Eiffel Tower from sand. Charlie smiled down at him.

“Come on then, let’s go build one. Where do you wanna sit?”

Olly dragged Charlie over to a flat plot of sand that he declared was suitable for the job ahead. Charlie handed Olly his pink spade whilst Charlie helped him by piling the sand in by hand. Charlie showed Olly how to flatten the sand and then tipped it over incredibly fast. 

Charlie tapped the top of the bucket to ensure the sand was set and then allowed Olly to do the honours of the big reveal. After counting down from three, Olly whipped the bucket up and a half-decent sandcastle sat between them.

“Look at that, Ol! You did it!” Charlie cheered, smiling at his little brother, who was doing a happy wiggle. Olly ran at Charlie and jumped on him, kicking tiny flecks of sand up in the air. Charlie didn’t mind that a few bits of sand landed right in his eye because spending time with his brother was everything to him. 

“Thank you, Charlie. More?”

Charlie noticed his older sister marching over to them, so he shot his hand in the air and waved her over.

“Of course, Ol. How about we get Tori involved too?”

Olly buzzed in Charlie’s lap and then ran over to their sister, pulling her over by her hand. “Come on, Tor! Your turn.”

And that was how Jane and Julio found their children an hour later. Playing and laughing in the sand as they struggled to reapply suncream against a giggling Oliver. 

Charlie loved that day so much. It was very rare that all three Spring siblings got along without one of them getting angry or annoyed with another. 

He was brutally brought back to reality when he felt a hand on his bad leg, holding it into place whilst a foot collided with the broken bone. Charlie screamed behind his gag, and the pain became so unbearable that his head lolled onto his arm.

This time, his eyes did find Nick, whose nose was dripping with snot mixed with blood that trickled down his face. Charlie felt helpless as he watched his love being beaten in front of him, standing in the same position as he was. He’d give anything for this to end. 

He wished in vain that some miracle would happen to get them out of there, and couldn’t bring himself to care if anyone caught him actually praying for that to happen.

★

Nick’s vision was blurry. The light above him was too bright for his damaged eyes. He could hear the thumping in his brain, though he had no idea where it was coming from. Was it the billion hits to his skull? Or was it actually his heart beating so fast that he could hear it in his head? He was so unsure of everything that was happening right now that the noise was the least of his issues. 

It was like he could feel his blood pouring out of every crevice and cut that had been inflicted on his body. Every single drop of blood that fell was a countdown to his impending death. He didn’t want to think so morbidly, but he had no other choice. When the tape was ripped from his eyes, the first thing he did was seek out Charlie. His Charlie. His blue eyes were looking back at Nick - glassed over and lifeless, and it was all Nick’s fault.  If the loss of blood or the lack of air to his lungs didn’t kill him, the guilt definitely would.

The Boss was sitting in front of him – a man so full of rage and vengeance and clearly a lifetime of neglect. His eyebrows were formed into a sharp v and his glare upon Nick was unfaltering. Yet still, after everything, Nick didn’t want to give in to him.

“Take a picture, it’ll last longer,” Nick wheezed as he took a deep intake of breath. It hurt to speak and it hurt to breathe, but Nick felt a pang of joy from his snarky comment. He could see Ste and Jay starting to move towards him, to punish him for his sarkiness, but The Boss halted them.

The Boss rose from his chair and walked closer to Nick. The older man pushed Nick back against the wall by his jaw, forcing Nick’s eyes to look into his own. “This could have been so much easier had he just listened to me a few months ago,” The Boss spoke into Nick’s face. His breath reeked of alcohol, and from this close Nick could see the bags that sat prominently under The Boss’s eyes and the dilated pupils that had been a constant feature for the last week.

“You really have no idea what this is all about do you?” Nick ignored him, which only agitated him more. The Boss pushed Nick’s head back against the wall, the wound there reopening as Nick felt the blood pour. “Do you!”

“I told you from the start, I don’t know Stéphane. He left when I was seven months ol-”

“I’m not surprised that she never told you the full story. She always was a deceitful old cow, our Sarah,” The Boss sniped. 

Nick’s temperature rose to an inhumane level. The anger boiling up inside him and coursing through his veins. “Do not talk about my mum like that!” Nick tried to scream but it came out a little hoarse. 

The Boss shook his head. “Haven’t you figured it out yet? When will this get into your thick skull,” he insulted, forcing Nick’s head back against the wall a few times. “She’s not your mother. She’s our mother.”

Maybe it was the concussion he was undoubtedly receiving, but Nick was baffled. He would have known if he’d had a brother. There was no way this man was related to him, right?

“What?” asked Nick.

“Of course, she didn’t tell you that. She was too embarrassed of me. Shipped me and dad off to France so the two of you could live a life without us.”

Nick felt numb. Like everything he’d ever learnt was reduced to nothing. It suddenly felt like he’d forgotten how to breathe. His mouth was dry, and whenever he tried to open his mouth to speak, nothing happened. The wall he was tied to felt like it was starting to give way and he might instantaneously get sucked in as the other walls began to converge on him.

His loving and caring mother had another son that she kept from him for 16 years? There had to be an explanation. His mum wouldn’t keep something like this from him. There’s absolutely no way she would do that. At least, not on purpose. After all, their relationship was closer than any mother and son he’d ever known. But, there must be something she hadn’t told him.

His ears started ringing and his body became clammy from overheating despite how cold it was in there. This was not like any panic attack he’d had before. He’d had so many in the past that he dared not tell anyone about. His worst of all came after rugby practice earlier in the year when Harry was being his overly shitty self, as usual, and something triggered in Nick’s head, sending him into a complete frenzy. He had to run from the boys changing rooms and into Coach Singh’s office where she helped him down from it. To this day, he never understood what triggered it, but he never needed to since they happened so rarely. This one made sense, though. This one was inevitably going to happen.

“You’re lying.” Nick squeaked, shocked at his own voice.

The Boss laughed in Nick’s face before it turned into a serious glare. “My name is David Fournier. Our mum is Sarah Nelson and we lived in Sevenoaks in Kent. That’s why it took a while to find you – didn’t know you moved to Truham until I saw your ugly mug in the newspaper,” David informed his brother. 

Nick’s brain hurt, and this time it was definitely nothing to do with his injuries. Everything David had said about his mum was true. She used to live in Sevenoaks with him until he was one years old and they moved to their current home on River Crescent. They occasionally visited their old town because that’s where his Aunt Cindy lived but it was very rare. Even then, his mum would take a strange route around the town to get there, as if she was avoiding something. She always told him that the road bumps made her feel sick and so she went the long way to avoid them, but now he thought that maybe she was avoiding something entirely different.

A loud ringing came from David’s pocket and the grip around Nick’s neck was gone. He watched David reach into his jeans and pull out his mobile. He looked down at the screen with what Nick could only interpret as disbelief before looking back at Nick and grinning. 

“Oh this is going to be fun!”

He tapped a button on the screen, followed by another and then showed Nick who was calling. 

Stéphane Fournier
00:01

“Hello?” David answered.

“You killed my brother?” the voice asked as it came through the speaker. His accent was incredibly French and each word was spoken with bad English, it showed that he hadn’t been in the UK for a while. 

This is my dad? Nick thought. The first time I hear from him is over the phone and when I’m about to die?

“You stole my business.”

The voice on the phone sighed. “I told you why I had to do that, but you would not listen. You never listen.”

“I don’t care why you needed to do it. It was supposed to be my business, you promised me that as soon as I turned 21, it was mine.” David growled, the angry vein in his forehead popped out again.

“You don’t care that I’m dying?”

“You ruined my life, why should I care that yours is ending.”

Nick hardly knew the man on the phone, but he felt a hint of sympathy for him. He was dying and the one person he had in his life was showing no remorse, no compassion. He almost wished he had known him, to show him it instead. No one deserved to die, and especially to an illness. 

“I did what I had to do. I had to protect your mother and this was the only wa-”

“And him…” David added, his eyes now staring heavily back at Nick. 

“Yes, and dear Nicholas. But how do you know abou-”

“He’s here, you know. Nicholas. Your precious, golden child that you left behind,” David’s words were like venom. Nick could see David’s hatred towards him resurfacing. “Say Hi to daddy, Nicky.” David forced his phone into Nick’s face but Nick remained quiet, earning him another punch to the stomach. Nick gasped for air and then the same hand was on his neck. 

“SPEAK!”

“D-dad?” said Nick, unsure whether to call him that or just ‘Stéphane’. His brain and mouth weren’t working together right now, so he wasn’t certain he’d even formed any words at all.

“Nicholas?”

Nick started to cry; this whole situation getting the better of him. He’d just learned he had a secret brother he had no idea existed, and now he was talking to his father who had walked out on him all those years ago? 

“Dad...”

“Nicholas, my dear boy. I am so sorry. Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

Nick tried to speak but was cut off by David. “So now you care about your children? Never thought I’d see the day that Stéphane Fournier gives a shit.”

Stéphane sighs. “Of course I care about you. I care about you both. ”

David scoffed. Nick didn’t have any words. He couldn’t begin to form them anyway, even if he tried. He sobbed louder as tears streamed down his face and dripped onto his jumper, turning what was grey into a dark black colour. 

“Oh, my son, this was never meant to happen. When I left your mother, it was to protect you. To keep you safe.”

“What about me, huh? What about protecting me?” spat David. Nick could see the blood starting to boil within his brother. Even though David’s eyes, that began to water, had deceived him, Nick could still feel the anger and rage coursing through him, projecting into the room. 

Stéphane ignored his oldest son, continuing his explanation. “I have been in this life for many years and I never wanted you or David to end up like me. So I left. I faked my own death so she wouldn’t come looking for me. Your mother can be incredibly stubborn-” 

“She’s a coward is what she is,” David interjected. 

Even after everything he’d just heard, Nick’s natural instinct was to defend his mother. Sarah was a good woman who helped anyone in need. Who gave but very rarely took. Who wanted to bring joy to another family who had lost their son because it was the right thing to do. Sarah Nelson was not a bad person. “Stop saying shit about her. She’s a great woman. She doesn’t deserve your foul words being spoken about her.”

David’s grip on the phone tightened. “Is that so? So why don’t you know about me? If she was as good natured as you’re making her out to be, why didn’t she tell you about me? About us? What kind of bullshit did she spew about us?” 

“David, Please. This is not her fault. That night, you wouldn’t leave my side. I knew that was the only opportunity to disappear. Your mother sent me out to buy Nick some supplies, but you, David, wanted to join me.”

“I was five! You should have told me to go play with my toys or something. I would have cried about it but it would have been alright in the end.” Water started to pool in David’s eyes, which surprised Nick – he didn’t think David cared about any of them enough to cry.

“I see that now, but at the time, I didn’t know what to do. You wouldn’t leave me and so your mother told me to take you with me. I couldn’t just leave you behind. So, we left. I faked our deaths and we were on a ferry to France within the hour. My biggest regret was ever leaving you, son,” Stéphane said and Nick realised he was addressing him. He could see the venom in David’s eyes, so he averted his gaze to the floor to avoid it.

“I told myself to never look you up and I didn’t, not until recently anyway. When I was diagnosed with my condition, I knew I didn’t have very long left. I didn’t want to die without making amends.”

“Boo fucking hoo. You’re dying, we know that. That doesn’t explain why you stole my business!” David screamed into the phone.

“I sought you out, Nicholas,” Stéphane continued. Nick could tell by his voice that even Stéphane had had enough of David. “I searched high and low for Sarah and Nicholas Nelson of Sevenoaks, but nothing. Until a news article of the ‘rugby wonderkid at Truham Boys school’ who was set to become the best rugby player of his age. I was so proud. Am so proud. I used to play rugby when I was your age at school in Toulouse, so seeing that you have picked up the sport, it made an old man so happy.” 

“You hated that I wanted to play rugby. You told me I should focus my time elsewhere, why is he different?” 

Nick’s chest hurt so much. It was like his heart was actually breaking, piece by piece and he was suffering a very slow death. He didn’t care that his dad was proud of him or that David was never given the same treatment growing up. He cared that this was all happening because of Stéphane’s lies and deceit. 

“I wanted to make things right. I can’t fix what I did back then but I can make sure that your future is all sorted for you. Settle my debt. I wanted to give you enough money to get you through university, pay for your wedding and ensure you have enough for your children. But in doing so, I had to give up the business. David has enough money, but I wanted to make sure you were well off in your future.”

Nick looked over at Charlie, who was also crying. He wished he knew whether his future with the blue-eyed, curly-haired boy was set in stone. He wished he could picture his future with him but all he could see right now was The Room, his captors and his looming death. 

“Yeah, well, he won’t be needing it for that. His future or a wedding. Did you know that your special little Nicky is in love with a boy? I would put Charlie on the phone but he’s a bit…” David’s eyes flickered to Charlie and then to Ste, who understood the silent command. Ste punched Charlie in the head and brown curls fell slowly onto Charlie’s upright arm beside him. “... indisposed right now.”

Nick squirmed against David’s hand, trying to get away from that maniac and over to his lover. Charlie’s head was unmoving and Nick’s chest began to tighten a little in distress. 

No, no, no, wake up Charlie. Please. Wake up! 

It felt like Charlie’s own hand unclenched the vice-like grip someone had on his heart as he watched the young boy’s head loll back to its normal position and his glassy eyes stare back at Nick.

“Doesn’t matter to me, David. As long as Nick is happy.”

“Well, his happiness will only be valid for, hmm.. Let me see… about an hour or two because Nicky’s time has come to an end.”

“Do not do this, David. You would be stupid to take all this out on your innocent brother.”

David scoffed. “I don’t give a fuck whether he knew or not, it’s his fault I lost my family and my business. He’s going to pay. Any last words to papa, Nicholas?” David asked, shoving the phone back in Nick’s face. 

A gargled sob left Nick’s mouth as he said “please Dad. Help me,” and then the phone was gone and the speaker was shut off. Nick could still faintly hear Stéphane’s voice vibrating against the phone but David was quick to bring the phone up to his ear. 

“Goodbye, Dad. I hope you rot in hell."

★

The Boss, or well, David ended the call abruptly, without a second thought. Nick was beside him, sobbing his heart out and Charlie wanted to go to him and tell him that everything was going to be okay. Charlie’s leg was broken and his stomach sliced to pieces, but nothing would compare to the emotional and mental pain that Nick had been put through during the last two weeks.

David screamed, throwing his phone into the corner of the room where it smashed into dozens of tiny pieces. A shard bounced off the wall and almost hit Charlie in the face. The room fell silent after that, not one person daring to move or speak. Charlie’s anger spiked as he heard Nick’s faint sniffles and David’s heavy breathing, but he and the three gang members remained silent.

Until H broke it.

“So this was never about Stéphane’s money? This was a personal vendetta against him?” H pointed towards a broken Nick whose face was red and blotchy from his breakdown. 

David looked blankly at Nick and then back at his co-worker. “It doesn’t matter why I did what I did, Harv. You have no idea what I’ve been thro-”

“I don’t give a fuck what you’ve been through, mate.” Harv interrupted. Charlie could see in David’s eyes that he was pissed about being cut off. “You told us this was all because of Stéphane and what he’d done to you. What he could potentially do to us. But this is all because you’re, what, jealous of him? You can’t blame him for something that happened before he could even speak, for fuck sake!” 

David gazed between Charlie and Nick again and Charlie couldn’t help himself as he avoided David’s gaze. “Are you going soft for these cunts?” David asked genuinely.

Harv shook his head. “No, but I know a lunatic when I see one. We kidnapped them because you told us to. We drugged them, tortured them and for what? Because you never got to live the life that he is? You can’t penalise him for that. He’s just a fucking kid, he never chose that. And, judging by what Stéphane told you, you did.”

David looked like he had just done ten rounds with a wall. His face had paled and his hair was all over the place from where he’d run his hand through it. Charlie hated to side with his attacker but Harv was technically right. It wasn’t Nick’s fault that David wanted to leave with Stéphane 16 years ago and it wasn’t Nick’s fault that David had continued to follow this path. 

Nick was innocent in all this.

It looked like David was contemplating something. Then Charlie saw a switch turn on in his head and David was marching towards Harv with purpose. He stopped just before Harv and bent his knees slightly so he was eye to eye with his friend.

“And this fucking lunatic knows exactly where your wife and kids are holed up right now. How is that beach house in Malibu treating them? I’d hate for… something… to happen to it,” he threatened, elongating the ‘t’. Harv backed away sheepishly. Charlie could tell Harv was scared of David’s threat; it was written all over the man's face. David smiled evilly and patted Harv three times on the cheek. “Now, be a good soldier and get the car ready for Curly. I think now is a better time than ever to say goodbye to him. What do you think, Nicky?”

“NO! No, please. David, please!” Nick cried. David laughed as he watched Nick struggle against his restraints. 

Harv turned and stalked toward the door, pausing to take one last look at Charlie. Harv winked at him before turning out of the doorway and down the corridor, out of sight.

What the fuck just happened? 

There was no way he had imagined that, right? Was that a show of defiance? Or was it a tease and he was faking standing up for them all along? Charlie had no time to decipher the signal because before he knew it, David was in his face again, screaming at him.

“I can’t believe I kept you here for this long, Charlie boy. Admittedly, it was a stupid idea on my part. That’s my bad. But, it has been so fun getting to know each other, hasn’t it?” David quizzed as he ripped the tape from Charlie’s mouth, freeing his voice. “Hasn’t it !”

“Screw. You.” Charlie spat. He could see Ste and Jay gearing up behind David, ready to pounce on the boy but they were halted by an order from their boss. “Boys, leave me and these fuckers alone for a bit. I think I need to teach them a damn lesson before I end their life. I’ll shout for you when he’s ready,” he gestures at Charlie. “Nicky is mine, but I want a few more rounds with them first.”

Ste and Jay mumbled a chorus of acknowledgements before walking over to Charlie. Jay spat on Charlie’s face, which Ste laughed about as both men walked out of the room and closed the door behind them. 

David paced in front of Nick and Charlie, staring at the other as he turned around and paced in their direction. As he got to Nick, he turned around one final time before descending on Charlie.  Acting so quickly that Charlie didn’t have time to anticipate his movements, David’s fist collided with the side of Charlie’s head, spinning it towards the door.

“You know, there was just something about you that I fucking hated from the moment I saw you,” David barked, punching Charlie in his stomach. Charlie groaned, bouncing around on his good leg so he didn’t make his bad leg worse. He could feel the metal of the cuffs digging into the skin on his wrists, an excruciating sting of pain jolting through his arm at every minute movement. 

“You were the most fun to play with, out of the two of you. Nick had some sort of stick up his arse. Whereas you, your screams and your tears were the fuel to keep me going. So, thank you Charlie. It’s been a real honour torturing you these past few weeks, but unfortunately, your time has come to an end,” hissed David, who gripped Charlie by his chin and inched it sideways towards Nick.

“Wanna say goodbye to your boyfriend, Charlie Boy?”

No, but I guess I have to. Of course Charlie didn’t want to say goodbye to Nick. He didn’t want to say goodbye to anyone. He didn’t want to acknowledge this would be the last conversation he ever had. 

Charlie felt sick at the thought of never getting to see his family again, even his shitty mother. But mostly, his siblings. Oliver and Victoria. Olly and Tori. The best siblings anyone could ever ask for. If he wasn’t already crying, then he would most definitely be crying at the thought of never seeing them again. His mind whirled with all the things he wished he could have said to them. 

I love you both so much. You were the best brother and sister a boy could hope for. Olly, you’re such a special little boy with so much potential, I know you’re going to do so fucking well in life. You’ll definitely outgrow your love for tractors but you’ll never outgrow the passion you show in everything. Be brave and continue spreading the light and love you show now.

Tori, I’m sorry for everything I’ve put you through with my mental health and my food thing. I shouldn’t have leant on you quite so much and I’m sorry I was never there to help you through your shit. Look after Olly and don’t take any of Jane’s shit. I fucking love you big sis!

Charlie felt a lump form in his throat, a constant pain and reminder of where he actually was. He didn’t want to remember. He wanted to be in this world he’d created in his head where he is happy with Nick, Tori and Olly.

Oh Nick. My beautiful, kind-hearted boyfriend. We’ve been boyfriends for a few days and I honestly wish we could have been for much longer. I wish I could have met your mum, the woman you speak so highly of, that has raised a proper gentleman of a son. I wish we got to grow old and own a dog and have kids so I could really judge those names you’ve already picked out. I know that when it comes to it, I’m not going to be able to say all of this to you but I hope that, maybe, you can hear this. That you know just how much I love and cherish you. You are the one, Nick Nelson, and nothing will ever change that. 

Tears seeped down his face, pooling on the apple of his cheeks before dribbling down onto David’s stilled hand. Charlie sniffled, snot and saliva covered his entire face. “Nick, I… I love you so much. I’m sorry we never got to go on our dates you’d planned but just know, these last two weeks have been bearable because you’ve been here with me. You are the bravest person I know, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, okay? I love you so, so much, Nick.”

~~

Nick’s face was soaked from tears. He hadn’t truly stopped crying since his phone call with his dad, so he was surprised he had anything left in his body. 

“Aw, well isn’t that sweet. Got anything you wanna say to boyfriend, Nicky?”

Nick gulped and nodded, directing his gaze to his Charlie. “Char, I promised you that I would protect you and I will never break my promises. I love you with all my heart and I promise I’m doing this for you. I love you!”

The hook above him was a little lower than the one in The Room. Nick calculated that with a little strength and willpower, he could shift his whole body up and off the hook and run towards David.

It was stupid, obviously, but he needed to do something. He couldn’t just sit here and watch the love of his life die next to him, right before it was time for his life to end. 

Adrenaline was coursing through his veins from the urge to save Charlie. With every fibre of his body, he reached onto his tiptoes and strained against the hook. He felt the cuffs digging into his wrists, sending blood trickling down his arms. Just when he thought it was hopeless, he felt the handcuffs break free from the hook. Wasting no time, Nick took advantage of the extra energy circulating through his body and charged at his brother.

~~

It all happened far too quickly for Charlie to register. Nick had managed to unhook himself and then he took off running at David, pinning him to the floor beneath his body. Charlie was screaming; what, he’ll never know. His ears had shut down pretty quickly from the adrenaline. Nick was able to get a couple of punches to David’s face before he was kicked off of the older man and David had the upper hand.

David started punching Nick. In his face, his skull, his throat - all whilst Nick was shouting and cursing underneath David’s hold. Nick’s legs went limp, but David continued his punches. Charlie tried his hardest to free his hands from the hook but his broken leg had other ideas.

He writhed against the wall in hopes that the hook would give way from the force, but it wouldn’t budge. Charlie couldn’t do anything but watch in horror as Nick’s eyes began to flicker shut, blood streaming down his face. Charlie’s cries became louder, more guttural as he watched the life fade slowly from his lover. 

He never heard the door open, his ears still betrayed by his body, until Ste ran in and pulled David off of his boyfriend. He heard the bigger man yelling about police and a rat but nothing solid to piece together what was happening. 

David was up on his feet in seconds, staring down at the lifeless body below him before he turned his gaze upon Charlie. He smiled wickedly at the dark-haired boy before taking off in a hurried run out of the door and down the corridor. 

Charlie was left alone in the room, staring at his beaten boyfriend. He felt bile rise from his stomach and out of his mouth as he retched nothing but water onto himself and the floor below him. His good leg lost all fight; it crumbled under his weight, and the only thing holding him upright was the cuffs secured around the hook. Charlie didn’t care if his wrists broke like that or if his body gave up entirely.

Because at least he'd be with Nick. Wherever Nick was. Charlie knew that as soon as he closed his eyes, he’d dream of Nick again.

★

“Sierra Oscar from 283, we need urgent medical assistance to Unit 12, Garrenden Industrial Estate. Two teenage males with serious and multiple injuries, one is unresponsive. Over.”

“Received.”

“It’s okay, you’re safe now,” the soft voice of a woman told him as Charlie’s eyes blinked open faintly. He was no longer struggling to stand up against the wall, instead laying on his back on the floor with two police officers crowded round him. He felt a single teardrop roll down the right side of his face and into his ear. He was safe? Where had the gang gone? Had they caught them or had they run? Where was Nick? 

Nick.

Charlie’s brain went into fight or flight mode as he struggled against the uniformed officers, searching the room for his boyfriend. His hands were miraculously free now, though one definitely felt like it was broken (yay! A matching pair for his leg!), which made his struggle a lot harder. His head was spinning and he could only see out of one eye, but even partially blind, he knew he needed to find Nick.

“Woah, kid, you need to stay still. You’re bleeding from your head and could injure yourself more!”

Charlie ignored her, rolling over to find a head of copper strands leaning peacefully against the floor. Nick was being put on his side, in the recovery position, his back to Charlie so he couldn’t see Nick’s beautiful face anymore. Charlie knew the position from a video he watched in his PSHE lessons at school. 

“Nick?” He whispered, his throat was sore from screaming and crying for however long he’d been hung up on that wall. Nick didn’t reply; his body was limp and his breathing was shallow. He didn’t want to hurt his boyfriend any more than those thugs already had but he needed to be close to him. He needed to know Nick was okay.

He crawled over to the boy, much to the dismay of the police officers that surrounded them, and he latched on to Nick’s back, spooning him from behind. 

“Nick?” he sobbed as he nestled his face into Nick’s neck. “It’s me, it’s Charlie. Your Charlie. Please wake up! I don’t think I’ll live if you’re not here with me. The world isn’t done with you yet, do you hear me? I’m not done with you yet. We were going to go on so many dates, remember? And we were going to adopt Bittymoo Fudgesmittens, weren’t we? Come on, Nick, wake up! I can’t do this without you. Please don’t make me do this without you! Please!”

“Kid, you’ve got to let go of him. You could hurt him or yourself further.”

He didn’t want that. But he also didn’t want to let him go either. He wanted to hold him for the rest of their lives, grow old together in the safety of Nick’s strong rugby arms, which had shrunk from the lack of everything during their time captive. Charlie knew it wasn’t safe for Nick that he clung onto him for dear life, but he needed to protect Nick, even now the gang weren’t here.

He loosened his hold on Nick’s body and planted a soft kiss on the nape of Nick’s neck. “I’m right here, Nick. I promise I won’t leave you,” he cried, and turned to the police officers. “Please don’t make me leave him.”

“Dispatch to 283, ambulance ETA 5 minutes, over.”

“Received, over,” the lady officer said as she knelt down to Charlie’s level. “I won’t, we just need to keep him in that position until the paramedics get here. Can you start by telling me your names?”

Charlie looked between the officer and then back at Nick, who had another officer looming over him, presumably to make sure he was still breathing. “C-Charlie. Charlie Spring. A-and his is Nick Nelson.”

Her green eyes bulged as he told her his name. She looked up at her colleagues, who looked just as shocked as she did. Her colleague nodded at her before pulling out his mobile and dialling a number. “Okay, Charlie, an ambulance is coming. We’re going to get you some help. Can you tell me where you’re hurt?”

As Charlie reeled off every last scratch the gang had inflicted on him, the officer made a note in her notebook. He winced from the sudden reminder of his broken leg as well as the newer cuts and bruises he’d received today. The male officer caught his attention as he paced towards the corner of the room and spoke into his mobile.

“DS Trent? This is Sergeant Gomez, I’m going to need you to meet us at Rochester hospital. Yes, it’s urgent. It’s them, sir. We’ve found them.”

Charlie had only just calmed down when a noise from behind him jolted his attention. 

“C-Char-lie?”

Charlie’s eyes flung open wide from the sound he never thought he’d hear again. The brown-haired boy sprung from his spot, dragging himself to lay in front of his blonde boyfriend. Nick’s eyes were still shut but his mouth was agape slightly, which was the most the older boy had moved since Charlie had woken up.

“I’m here Nick. It’s me, I’m here,” assured Charlie. Nick’s right eye fluttered open slowly and only slightly, but Charlie didn’t care. Getting to see those chocolate coloured eyes again was like his birthday and Christmas had come at once. Nick shifted his left hand from under his body. Charlie could see the police officer edging her way towards Nick as if to warn him about moving, but Nick’s hand came to an abrupt stop in front of Charlie. 

 It took Charlie all of one second to grasp Nick’s hand with his own as he lay down beside the older boy. 

“Is it… o-over?” Nick’s voice strained. Charlie brushed his thumb against Nick’s palm in reassuring circles, making sure the other boy knew he was there. 

“It’s over. We’re safe now, baby.”

Nick smiled faintly. “Good,” he whispered and then his grip on Charlie’s hand relaxed against the floor. Nick’s right eye closed sluggishly and Nick’s breathing became lighter; much lighter than was safe.

Panic rose from Charlie’s stomach at the lack of anything coming from Nick’s body. “Nick?” cried Charlie, his voice an embarrassing squeak that he didn’t care about anyone hearing. He shook Nick’s hand, but nothing. There was no sign of movement at all.

Charlie lifted Nick’s hand to his face, hoping to wake the other boy from his touch alone. He let out a gut-wrenching sob and then a whimper as he cried into Nick’s still palm. 

“NICK!”

Chapter Text

Tuesday 31st October

Sarah felt absolutely numb. From the depths of her belly to the tips of her toes. The voices in the room reduced to nothing as her ears began to shut down. Her precious baby boy had been stolen from her, he hadn’t run away. Deep down, she knew that. She knew Nick would never have left without letting her know, but the confirmation was like a slap to the face.

A steaming hot cup of tea was placed on the table in front of her but her arms had stopped working, her brain had ceased sending information to her body as she sat motionless, staring at the frozen picture of her son being beaten.

She should be used to this pain, this feeling of emptiness. After all, she’d been through it all before with Stéphane and- well… Now he was suddenly alive again? But the police had found his car in the lake. How could this be happening right now?

Sarah felt a soft touch on her arm and she looked into the sad, blue eyes of Tori Spring. Of course, how could she be so selfish? The Springs had just found out their son had been taken too, along with Nick, because of… Stéphane?

Tori’s face crumpled in front of her and Sarah pulled her into a tight hug. “Oh, sweetheart. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.” She cradled the young girl into her chest and rocked her back and forth in a useless attempt at comforting her. 

“You have nothing to be sorry about, Sarah. This has nothing to do with you,” Julio told her. He placed his mug down on the table and took up the seat opposite her. She smiled meakly at the man. She didn’t totally believe his words. 

“This just… doesn’t make any sense,” she told the pair while really talking to Julio. “Stéphane died when Nick was a baby. The police told me he was dead. Nick and I moved here when he was two because I couldn’t bear to live in that town or that house anymore. Everything reminded me of him. Of them…” She breathed a heavy sigh and then sat up tall in her seat, Tori still clasped firmly in her grasp. 

“I haven’t been 100 percent truthful with you. Or with Nick. I had to lie to him his whole life because I just couldn’t bear the thought of reliving it over and over in my head. I buried it deep down, tried not to make the same mistakes with Nicky but… I truly am an awful mother.” A steady flow of tears fell onto her face and her words became incoherent with her sobs. 

“You are not an awful mother,” Julio comforted her. “You have raised such a special young boy by the sounds of it and I’m sure he is looking after Charlie, wherever they are.”

Sarah wiped away her tears and tried her best to control her breathing. How was she meant to explain what had happened to Julio without him thinking badly of her? She needed to do it. He needed the bigger picture, but she was scared. Terrified of the consequences of her actions. If she had just told Nick what had happened when he was old enough to understand, then maybe she could have protected him in some way.

Sarah took a deep breath as she unclasped the locket from around her neck. She hadn’t taken it off in 16 years, until this very moment. She fumbled with the locket, her shaky hands making it even more difficult, until the necklace opened up into two parts. She spun it round and placed it gently onto the table in front of Julio, urging him to look at it.

Inside were two pictures of small children - one was roughly Oliver’s age, maybe a little younger, and the other was a newborn baby. 

“The one on the left, the newborn, is Nick, several weeks after he was born. He was a right little bruiser but he was such a gorgeous baby,” Sarah smiled at the memory. “Never had any trouble from him. Always slept when I put him down, always took the bottle without any fuss. He was the perfect little angel. On the right, is my other son, David. He was the polar opposite to Nick, but that was what made him so… unique.” 

Sarah couldn’t believe she was telling them this. She’d kept it to herself for years, kept it from her own son, but here she was telling people she had only known for a few weeks. 

“He was incredibly boisterous, always running around the house and causing mayhem. He was a proper daddy’s boy, never left Stéphane’s side. Unfortunately, when Nick was little, Stéphane and David went out to grab some nappies and powder for Nick, but they…” Sarah held back her sobs at the thought. Tori and Julio simultaneously reached for one of Sarah’s hands, holding onto her as she continued. 

“They didn’t make it. It took months to find them, but finally, they told me they’d found the car in a lake but the bodies were too disfigured for confirmation. They later did a dental examination and I got a call that evening to say it was them. All those years I mourned and wept for my baby to come back to me. There’s no way in hell Stéphane is alive.”

~~

Tori had known there was something suspicious about Charlie’s disappearance from the moment they got home from dinner that night. There was always a niggling voice in the back of her head telling her that Charlie wouldn’t have run away. He was a strong kid. He might not think so himself and he most certainly wouldn’t admit it, to anybody, but Tori always believed in him. 

When the bullying was really bad, Tori would always go out of her way to make sure her little brother was okay. She would linger at the school gates to make sure that he got in safely and hassle-free. She would do her homework in his room with him, just to talk to him and keep a protective watch over him. Not in an overbearing way, because she needed her own space a lot of the time, but Charlie was her baby brother - it was her job to look out for him.

Hearing Charlie’s name come from Nick’s mouth was a shock to them all, including Tori, but it was also relieving to know that Charlie wasn’t alone. Of course, seeing Nick all bloody and bruised could only mean Charlie was probably in a similar state, but if they were together then at least that was one thing less to worry about.

And then there was the note. Addressed to Nick’s mum and dad. Hearing Sarah tell her story about Nick’s dad and brother tore her heart into pieces. She could feel the grief pouring out of the older woman and there was absolutely nothing she could do to stop it. Losing her husband and young child and then having to lie to Nick for all of those years must have been really hard for her, and Tori was in no position to judge. Grief did different things to a lot of people and she only wished Sarah knew that not telling Nick wasn’t a bad thing. Nick was a kind person whose heart was made of solid gold, which all stemmed from the love and adoration she’d given him as he grew up. Who knows how Nick might have turned out had she told him?

Whoever had taken Charlie and Nick obviously knew nothing about what happened all those years ago. And even if they had… Why would they take Nick and Charlie? It wasn’t making any sense.

The doorbell rang loudly around the house, stirring Tori from her thoughts. An excitable Olly in the next room ran into the foyer yelling “I’ve got it!”. Tori could hear his voice talking to the person beyond the door and felt the need to check on him in case the person who had delivered the parcel had come back.

Walking into the hallway, she found her little brother clutched to the stomach of their mother, who looked dishevelled and out of breath. “Tori, what’s going on?”

“Why are you out of breath?” Tori asked as she ignored her mother’s question.

“What? Oh, I ran here. As soon as I heard it was about Charlie, I came as fast as I could. I told your father to stay put and made my own way.”

“A car would have been quicker.” Tori stated nonchalantly, crossing her arms across her chest. Oh, so now she cares about Charlie.

“Well… yes, but I didn’t think about that. I just… needed to get here. Where’s your father? Is he still here?” 

She ushered her mum into the kitchen and told her that Julio and Sarah would catch her up and that she would look after Olly in the meantime. In actuality, Tori couldn’t bear to listen to the video again. Hearing Nick cry out hysterically for her brother once was enough to embed it deep into her brain. She’d be hearing it for days; tormenting her whenever she closed her eyes. She didn’t need to hear it again.

Olly guided her into the Nelson’s living room where he had set up Nick’s Nintendo Switch on the TV. She was astonished at just how nimble he was because where the fuck did he get the console from? Oh fuck, had he gone into Nick’s room? God, she hoped he hadn’t.

As if he could read her mind, Olly calmed her qualms. “The Switch was sitting by the telly and I’ve seen Charlie set ours up loads of times, is that okay Tori?”

Tori smiled at her youngest brother. “I don’t see why not. Does Nick have MarioKart?”

Olly held up the tiny SD card, proving to her that Nick did indeed have MarioKart and then squealed with joy when Tori said he should put it in and ready it up. 

~~~

Playing with Tori wasn’t as fun anymore. She used to make it so hard for Olly to win, throwing banana skins at him all the time and she always knew just how to throw the green shells so it would hit Olly’s car, veering him off the track. But, they had played a few races now and Olly had won all of them, no competition. 

Everyone was sad all the time and Olly never knew what to do to cheer them up. He tried to be his usual happy and hyper self but even then people would smile at him for a second before frowning again.

Olly hated when people frowned, but he knew that it was never anything to do with him. It was all because Charlie had run away and then so had Nick. Olly had never met Nick but he really wanted to after hearing Sarah talk about him. He thought that he and Nick could be best friends once he came back home. Maybe he would let Charlie join them too but only if Charlie would let him be Princess Peach, otherwise Olly would put his foot down and tell his older brother that he couldn’t play with them.

Also, Nick played rugby and Olly was starting to learn all about it in his PE lessons. He wanted to get tips from Nick and be the best rugby player in the world. Even better than Nick. 

As he passed the finish line once more in first place, he put the controller down on the floor and shuffled closer to his older sister. Her eyes were watery and she was biting her lip for some reason. Olly swung his arms round her and buried his head into her chest. 

“Tori, are you okay?”

She placed her own controller down on the arm of the sofa and wrapped her arms around him. Tori gave the best hugs. She didn’t give them very often but when she did, they were so warm and inviting. It was like her and Charlie had been gifted with an amazing talent and he hoped he would give nice hugs when he was bigger.

“I’m alright, squirt. Just missing Charlie, is all.”

Olly missed him too. So much. Was that why mum was here?

“Is that why Mrs Sarah was crying a lot? Has something happened to Charlie and Nick?”

His sister took a deep breath. “Yeah, kind of. I’ll let mum and dad tell you later but Sarah got a package earlier-”

“The big box on the doorstep?”

“Yeah, that’s the one. It wasn’t just a normal package, it was from Nick.”

Olly’s eyes widened. Maybe if Nick had written home then Charlie would have done the same and he would have sent his family something to let them know he’s okay. “Does that mean we’ll have one from Charlie when we get home? Can we go now and check?”

Tori just squeezed him tighter and whispered into his curls. “God, I hope not.”

~~~

Lying to Olly was so fucking hard. He was so innocent and inquisitive, it was hard to not just tell him everything there and then. But it was probably better coming from their parents - well… their dad. Jane would probably still blame Charlie as if he’d asked to be kidnapped.

Tori and Olly sat cuddled together for a while and Tori was surprised. Normally Olly would have let go by now and continued playing on the Switch, but maybe he knew that Tori really needed a sibling hug. God, Olly was too smart for his own good sometimes.

Olly jumped from the sofa at the sound of knocking on the front door and ran towards it with the bowl of sweets in hand. Oh yeah, I forgot it was Halloween still. Tori followed behind; an overwhelming urge to make sure Olly was safe flooded her body when he opened the door.

“Trick or treat!” Olly yelled at two teenage boys that were definitely too old to be knocking on doors for sweets, but Olly handed them their one sweet and then they scampered off down the driveway and onto the other house. He hadn’t grasped the fact that it was meant to be the other people shouting it but Tori didn’t have the heart to tell him otherwise. 

Olly stood in the doorway, staring out into the darkness, and Tori walked up behind him to do the same. “What are you looking at, Ol?”

“Nothing, I was just wondering why the funny noise hasn’t been going off when people come to the door.”

The funny noise was the Ring doorbell that Sarah had installed not long after Nick had gone missing - or well, taken now, she supposed. Sarah had told her and her dad that the police suggested installing one in case Nick came home whilst she wasn’t in. 

“They told us to look into one too, but Jane insisted it wasn’t a great idea with Olly running in and out of the house all of the time. She didn’t want it going off every time he walked near it.”

“Oh, that’s a shame. You can deactivate it whenever you like. Just like I have tonight, otherwise my phone would be buzzing nonstop with all these trick or treaters.”

Sarah was right to have disabled it. Olly had opened the door at least 30 times tonight and all of which had been kids knocking for sweets. Except…

Tori’s eyes widened at the thought. The camera would have picked up who delivered the package. She ran into the kitchen, almost sliding into the table from the pace she’d been going at. 

“Sarah, the Ring doorbell…”

“Yes dear, what about it?” she replied, wiping at her eyes. They were puffy from the tears she had cried all night.

“You disabled it, right?”

“Er, yeah. I disabled the alert on my phone and the doorbell noise but it still picks up anyone that comes to the door. Why do you ask?”

“It’ll pick up whoever dropped off the package. You might be able to see who has them!"

~~~

This girl was so intelligent. How had Sarah not thought to check the Ring camera? She fumbled to pull the phone out of her pocket and flipped open the case, waiting for the phone to register her face ID. She swiped into the Ring app and scrolled through the tonnes of footage her doorbell had recorded.

She couldn’t quite remember what time the package had been dropped off but she found the video of Jane entering the house and went from there. Nothing stood out; every single video was of a kid dressed in their halloween best.

“They’re all kids in their costumes. None of them are people dressed in normal clothes,” she informed the room. She looked up to see all four Springs staring back at her. 

“Olly? How many times did you open the door to people before Mummy came in?” Julio asked as Olly settled into the chair next to him. 

“Err… loads of times.”

“How many times whilst you were in the living room by yourself Olly? Remember the parcel you found, how many times after that?”

“Oh, only once and that was to Mummy.”

Sarah looked back down at her phone, clicking on the video before Jane’s. 

It was of a kid dressed in all black with a scream mask on, but they were definitely carrying the box. She watched as the kid placed the box on the doorstep and walked away.

Confusion swirled in her mind. There had to be something she’d missed. She started the video from the beginning again and slowed it down slightly. The person walked up to the drive, put the box onto the doorstep and then…

Then, they reached out to touch the door. Why would they do that? 

And then she saw them. As the kid walked away, she spotted the unmistakable white stripe on the side of the kid's shoes. 

The white stripe she would instantly recognise as a pair of Vans. Nick hadn’t worn another pair of shoes in years. And the only pair of shoes missing when Nick was taken were…

Those were Nick’s shoes. 

The kid dropping off the parcel was Nick.

★

Thursday 2nd November

It had been a few days since Halloween and Sarah had had no choice but to alert the police. Of course, the note and Nick’s video said not to include them but she felt like she needed to, what with them threatening Stéphane and him being dead.

The police were extremely helpful. They took the video camera and box away for evidence, as well as the footage from the Ring camera of Nick delivering the parcel and the note that came with it.

“It’s very rare that they would let the hostage out of their location during a kidnapping, especially to deliver a ransom note to their home,” Trent explained as he took Sarah’s fingerprints to eliminate her DNA from the evidence.

“Yes, well, it’s strange that they’re addressing my dead husband. Nothing about this is normal, DS Trent.”

The police also took Tori’s prints to rule her out, as she had touched the note and the camera.

After that day, both families shared their houses and cooked dinner for one another as they connected through their shared sorrow. Some days, like today, they would meet up in the middle of their two houses and take a walk to see if they could find anything; any clues or something.

Tori hadn’t been to school since Halloween. She had become quite guarded and closed off. Part of Sarah thought that Tori blamed herself for Charlie’s disappearance. The night Charlie was taken, they had all meant to go for a family meal but Tori had covered for Charlie, telling her parents that he was ill. She’d carried the weight of his kidnapping on her shoulders and Sarah had started to notice.

As Jane and Julio pulled ahead, trying to catch up with Olly who was running amok with an overactive Nellie, Sarah pulled up next to Tori who lagged behind.

“You know you can talk to me, don’t you, Tori?”

Tori nodded her head and kicked a large rock across the gravelly pavement. 

“Good. Because there is nothing worse than living with something big on your mind. The more water you add to an already soaked towel, the heavier it becomes. You don’t need the additional weight bringing you down, Tori.”

She didn’t want to push Tori if she wasn’t ready to open up. Just letting her know she was not alone in this whole thing would hopefully give her some sort of comfort at least.

They continued walking down the path, side-by-side, the rest of the Springs just ahead. She could hear Olly in the distance telling stories to Nellie about how he wanted to take Charlie and Nick on walks with her once they were back.

God, he really did know how to diffuse any situation. Even if she had no idea where Nick and Charlie were or who had them, there was a small part of her that was starting to believe that they wouldn’t make it back. That they were gone forever. But, whenever Olly was around saying things like that, she had no choice but to believe the young boy. 

“It’s my fault.”

Sarah stopped in her tracks, watching as tears fell onto the ground from the young girl's blue eyes.

“Oh, darling. I promise you, it’s no-”

“But it is! If I had stayed with him then he wouldn’t have been kidnapped and had God knows what happen to him.”

Sarah sighed. She understood these feelings: Guilt. Remorse. Liability. Whatever this could be classed as. She lived with those feelings for years after David died. Had she told Stéphane not to leave so late and wait until the morning, had she not let David go with him, he would still be alive. They would both still be alive. 

So many ifs and buts. 

“Honey, you don’t know that. These people are clearly well trained. You have no idea what they would have done if you’d been there. They could have taken you and him and that would have destroyed your family. You can’t blame yourself for something you had no control over.”

Tori nibbled on her lower lip anxiously. Sarah knew that tell; Nick would do it all the time when he had an issue. 

“Promise me you won’t beat yourself up about this. I’ve been in your shoes, dear, and it’s not good for you.”

Sarah grabbed hold of the younger girl as she collapsed into her chest, circling her arms around Tori’s shoulders. 

“Okay,” Tori whispered into Sarah’s jumper and Sarah smiled. If she was good at one thing, it was making sure other people were okay and channelling all of her energy into  being just as selfless. 

“Good. Now, let’s catch up with your family. I’m pretty sure Oliver is about to steal my dog.”

★

Friday 3rd November

Charlie had been missing for two weeks now. Olly knew this because he kept a tally in his notebook that he’d hidden under his pillow. Inside was a doodle that Charlie had drawn for him on Christmas Day one year when they’d been tidying away all of Olly’s gifts.

“No Charlie, you can’t use it in there! It has to be in this special colouring book mum got me!” Oliver informed his older brother. Charlie had just helped him set up his new tractor racing track that he had gotten from Father Christmas for being well behaved that year and now he was helping Olly unpack his presents from his family.

Charlie threw the pencils on the floor and held up his hands to protest his innocence. “Oh, I’m so sorry, Oliver. That’s my bad.”

Olly picked up the transparent pouch of pencils and stored them neatly into his stationary box, which Charlie had so kindly bought him earlier that year for his birthday. 

“What about this, Ol? Where do you want this?” His older brother asked, holding up a small wired notebook with dinosaurs plastered on the cover. Olly sat up on his knees and tapped away at his chin, deep in thought.

“I think I want that one under my pillow. I want to use that as my special notebook.”

“A special notebook? And what will you, six-year-old Oliver Spring, need with a special notebook?” Charlie teased.

Oliver thought hard about whether or not to share such secret information with his sibling, but he decided that he trusted Charlie with his whole heart and so he could know. He giggled as he walked over to his brother. Oliver covered Charlie’s ear with his tiny hand and whispered: “It’s going to have all my top secret drawings and letters to myself in, but you can’t tell anyone, okay?”

Charlie winked at him and then zipped his mouth shut. “Your secret is safe with me, little man. But..” He gestured for Olly to come closer and then covered Olly’s ear with his hand. He looked around to make sure no one could hear and then proceeded to whisper. “Can I write something in there for you? Just for us?”

Oliver looked around once more to make sure the coast was clear and then sprung from his spot to find a pencil, which he shoved in Charlie’s hand. “Okay, but you have to be quick. Just in case Tori comes in.”

Charlie snapped the pencil up and opened a page deep into Olly’s notebook. He scribbled and coloured and erased before adding a few finishing touches and handed the book back to Olly. 

“There. Now you’ll always have something to remember me by.” Charlie smiled as Olly took the notebook and opened it to the page Charlie had just used. At the top of the page was a drawing of a tractor and two boys that Charlie had labelled as ‘Oliver’ and ‘Charlie’. Underneath was a messy scrawl of handwriting.

To Oliver,

Thank you for letting me be part of your big secret.

You’re the best <3

Love, Charlie xxx

He squealed, jumping onto Charlie and hugged him tightly. That was the moment Oliver knew that Charlie would always be the best brother in the whole world.

As Oliver added another line next to the other tally marks, he felt an immense pain in his chest. He missed Charlie so much. At first he thought Charlie had run away to their Abuela’s house but now he wasn’t quite so sure. 

Their whole house felt so weird, so empty without him. Dinner was so quiet and it was so much easier to get ready in the mornings because there was one less person in the house. Everyone was so sad all the time and no matter what he did, no one would smile at him. His mum even shouted at him once when he was telling her all about his art lesson at school and how Stacey had accidentally glued her fingers together, but his mum was upset and she snapped. Tori had to take him upstairs to play with his tractors to stop him from crying so much.

A small tear fell from Oliver’s teal eyes, which he wiped away with the sleeve of his jumper. Olly could feel Charlie growing further and further away; the longer he spent apart from him, the more he wanted his brother back.

Olly chucked his notebook and pencil carelessly onto his bed. His tiny legs took him hastily into Charlie’s room where he dived head first into the pillows that lay idle on the single bed.

He and Charlie would spend endless amounts of time here - Olly sat amongst Charlie’s yellow and cream striped duvet as Charlie bashed about on his drums or when Olly would snake himself against his older brother as they watched episodes of Bluey together. This room was associated with nothing but happy memories for the youngest Spring, and that’s when the dam opened.

Olly pressed his head further into Charlie’s pillow. He grabbed the stuffed cat toy that sat perched on the headboard and covered his mouth with the well-loved teddy to stifle his sobs.

It didn’t take long for someone to find him, curled into a foetal position, snivelling into the darkness. 

“Oh Olly, what’s wrong?” His sister cooed. She moved from the doorway to perch in the middle of Charlie’s bed and rested a comforting hand on Olly’s leg.

“Why w-won’t Ch-Charlie come h-home?” he sniffled, pressing Kitty, the stuffed toy, further into his face.

Tori shifted herself so she was laying down opposite him, face to face with him. “Oh, come here.” She pulled Olly into her chest and wrapped him in a strong hug, squeezing him close to her. “Oliver, there’s something we need to tell you, okay? Charlie hasn’t run away, someone took him. Someone very evil. We don’t know why exactly but they took him and they took Nick too.”

Oh. Olly had never heard of anyone being taken before.

“Like, he was kidnapped?” Olly asked as he looked up at his sister’s face with his soaking wet blue eyes.

~~

God, he looked so small and innocent like this. She vaguely remembered holding Charlie like this once, when he came home from school crying because of some knobhead in the year above him.

“Yeah, some nasty people have kidnapped Charlie and Nick. I’m sorry we didn’t tell you earlier, but we didn’t want to worry you.”

“Do- Do you think they’ll take me too?” Olly blubbered. His tears soaked the front of her t-shirt, forming different patterns atop the grey fabric. She could feel her own eyes well up and a singular tear strayed down her face and into the messy black curls below her.

It broke her heart hearing her brother say something like that. The fact that the idea even crossed his mind at all hit her like a tonne of bricks. She went to reply, to comfort him and tell him that of course that wouldn’t happen, she wouldn’t let it happen when she heard the sounds of sniffling and crying from outside of the door.

In the door frame was their mum - the woman who had shown no care during the press conference, who refused to put up missing person posters with her and Olly, who bad-mouthed her kidnapped son to her parents for ruining their evening - crying in the hallway.

“Mum?” Tori called in her direction. She turned her head as Olly lifted his off her chest, watching as their mum sobbed into her tissue.

“I’m sorry, I just- I have been truly awful to all of you, especially Charlie. I should have been there for you both, I didn’t know that’s how you felt Olly.”

Olly clutched more tightly onto Tori and buried his head against her again. 

“You didn’t ask, mum. You didn’t check in with us. You never check in with us. Charlie has been kidnapped and you thought the worst of him. What kind of mother does that?”

Tori didn’t know where the courage came from but she was secretly pleased this was all coming out.

“I know and I’m sorry. I just want to protect you. All of you,” Jane replied as she walked over to the bed. She planted herself at the end, near Tori’s feet and bunched her hands in her lap. “I have been… so awful to you three. I’ll never be able to make it up to you but I’m going to try and be a better mum. I promise you and I’ll promise Charlie when we find him because… I love you all so much!” 

Her mum was full-on crying, her head buried in her hands and her sobs gargled by her gasps for air. Olly unwrapped himself from Tori and crawled over to their mum, hugging her from behind. 

In all of her life, Tori had never once witnessed Jane admitting she was wrong. Maybe this was the turning point she needed. Maybe this would finally give them a mum they could confide in. 

Tori shuffled from her spot and circled her arms around her mum and her brother. They sat in companionable silence for a while, just hugging and being together as they should have done weeks ago when Charlie first disappeared. Olly’s little voice broke the silence.

“He’s going to come back, I know he will. Charlie is so strong and brave, he’ll find a way to come home.”

How was Olly so wise? And how did he always know the right things to say?

Jane kissed the top of Tori’s and Olly’s head, smiling against his dark curls. “He is and he will. I know he will.”

★

Saturday 4th November

Sarah’s phone dinged just as she was about to set off and take Nellie for her walk. She had just come back from lunch at the Springs house, and Nellie was pacing the hallway and clawing at the door to get out.

“Yes Nellie girl, give me two seconds.”

She checked her phone and a text from an unknown number appeared on her screen. Instant regret infiltrated Sarah’s body when a video started playing as soon as she clicked onto it. On the screen was a beaten Charlie Spring, whose face was covered in dirt and blood and whose blue eyes were filled to the brim with tears. 

“ H-hi Sarah and Stéphane, I-It’s your son-in-law,” Charlie stuttered. Sarah could feel her heart in her throat. This poor boy, she thought, taking in Charlie’s tortured appearance. If this was anything to go by, she didn’t want to know what Nick looked like. 

“N-nick is having a b-bit of timeout so you h-have me instead. You failed to give them what they wanted, so they took… they took Philip Fournier’s life.”

Philip? Stéphane’s brother? He was involved? But he knew Stéphane died, why would he have addressed Nick’s video to Stéphane knowing that?

“Next, it… it… will be me. Y-you have three more days, or I will end up j-just like him,” Charlie finished and then was abruptly pushed to the floor where he was beaten even more. Sarah stopped the video, unable to watch that innocent boy endure such gruesome behaviour. 

She felt sick. She didn’t know what to do. Her feet took her to the car by instinct and she drove to the one place she knew she needed to go to. Yes, she should probably have reported it to the police straight away but this family needed to know that Charlie was with Nick for certain.

Somehow she had made it back to Britannia Road, unsure of how she actually got there and pounded on the turquoise blue door. 

Jane answered, a little startled. “Sarah, is everything okay? Did you forget something?”

“No, I- uh, I didn’t know what to do. I should have called the police but I needed to show you. You need to see this.”

Her heart was racing and her thumbs messily clicked the wrong chat twice until she opened up the message and showed Jane the video. Sarah could see the moment the colour drained from Jane’s face, after seeing her son for the first time in weeks and him looking like he’d been through hell and back.

Sarah could see her falling and reached out to stop the other woman from collapsing into a heap on the floor. Sarah pulled her into a firm hug before the woman sobbed into her shoulder. 

“God, I’m so sorry Jane. I’m so sorry your family has been dragged into this,” said Sarah, holding back tears of her own. At the end of the day, this was somehow her fault. Her and Stéphane’s, but as he wasn't here, she felt nothing but guilt that this family had been ripped apart.

“This isn’t your fault, Sarah.”

“Maybe not, but this has something to do with Nick’s dad and our family and somehow Charlie has got caught up in it all.”

The two women stood in the hallway of the Spring’s small detached house for a while longer until Sarah stood back and retook her phone from Jane’s strong grip. 

“We should call DS Trent, let him know I got this,” Sarah told Jane, who nodded and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

“Yeah, and I’ll warn Julio. He’s just popped out with the kids to get something for tomorrow, we were going to do a fireworks display for Charlie. He loved that sort of thing.”

~~

As soon as Tori walked in the front door with her little brother grasping her hand, she was ushered up the stairs to her room with the instruction ‘not to leave it until someone comes up to them in a bit’. Something was clearly up, there was no reason for them to be upstairs if there wasn’t.

So she agreed, taking Oliver to her room to play the Switch with him. They played a few games, Tori only letting him win 3 races before their mum and dad were tapping on the door.

“Can we come in?” Her mum asked and Tori nodded, pausing the game.

They looked awful, like they had just seen a murder. What if they had? Tori’s stomach lurched.

“Sarah received a text from an unknown number today and… and it…” Jane tried to continue but the words wouldn’t come. She looked between Tori and Oliver, who was watching her intently.

Julio rubbed his hand up and down Jane’s arm, consoling her. He cleared his throat and took over what she started. “Sarah was sent a video today, from Charlie… of Charlie and er… it wasn’t nice. DS Trent is on his way ove-”

“I want to see it.”

Tori’s glare was strong. Firm. She wasn’t about to be told no. 

“Victoria, I don’t think tha-”

“So I could see Nick’s but I cant watch my own brother's?”

It was her dad this time. “No, it’s… Tori, he looked-”

Her mum closed her eyes at the thought - it must have been pretty bad then. 

Tori’s jaw set in place, adamantly. “He’s my brother.”

Jane and Julio looked at each other apprehensively. Tori was watching that video whether they let her or she forced Sarah to show her. She needed to see the state her brother was in. She needed to know that her parents weren't lying to her to make her feel better. 

“Okay, fine.”

Oliver shifted next to her. She’d forgotten he was with her, honestly. “What about me? Can I see Charlie?” 

His bottom lip was beginning to wobble from sadness. Christ, she had been so heedless. She should have waited until she was away from him before she coerced her parents into letting her watch it. 

“Darling, I don’t think that’s wise. Charlie… he’s not okay and I don’t want you to see him like that,” Jane replied. Olly’s eyes welled with tears and Tori felt truly awful. “I promise when we get him back, you’ll be the first one to see him.”

That’s a big promise to keep, she thought but as she turned to her little brother, whose eyes had stopped leaking and mouth had perked up into a smile, she had no choice but to cling to that hope too.

★

The day had been a whirlwind that Sarah would rather forget. It had started off lovely with lunch at the Springs but then it had rapidly gone downhill from there.

After the police had been informed about the video from Charlie, Sarah and Jane had spent the rest of the night at the police station making statements, whilst the officers looked over the video she had been sent. 

They weren’t able to trace the sender; it was an old pay-as-you-go number and it wasn’t registered. But, later that evening they got an anonymous report of gunshots and had to investigate it immediately. Sarah and the Springs had been informed and were told they would hear back if anything was found.

Sarah couldn’t sleep, too anxious and scared in case they found anything. Found them. Jane had offered to stay with Sarah, which Sarah had gratefully accepted. Jane had changed over the last few days; like a light had switched on in her head and she’d suddenly realised how serious this all was. She paid more attention to both Tori and Oliver and Sarah could tell that she was really trying to be there for them.

Having Jane with her was different to Julio. It was probably a motherly thing but as they sipped on their piping hot tea, Sarah couldn’t help but confide in the other mother.

“Be honest with me Jane,” she said, blowing on the hot liquid. Jane’s eyes wandered from the TV to Sarah’s in a second, giving her her full attention. “Do you think we’ll get them back?”

Jane huffed a laugh, rubbing circles on the lip of the mug. “Honestly? Yes. I do. Charlie is a strong boy and I haven’t given him enough credit for it. He’s so smart and astute, he’ll find a way and Nick will too.”

Sarah grinned at the thought of Nick and Charlie working out some sort of plan when her phone rang from the table. She placed the tea on the coaster beside it and picked up her mobile.

“It’s DS Trent.” she explained, showing Jane the caller ID. Jane motioned for her to take the call and Sarah pressed the green button. “Hello?”

“Hello? Sarah?”

“Yes, hello. Is everything okay? Has something happened?” Her voice trembled with anticipation and worry. Jane reached across the sofa and held onto Sarah’s free hand. Sarah really needed that right now and so would Jane if it turned out to be the worst case scenario.

“Yes, but not with the boys. Well, it has something to do with the boys but we haven’t found them. Are you at home?”

“Yes, I’m at home, but what do you mean?”

“I think it would be better to explain face to face. I’ll be there within the hour.”

He actually stood on Sarah’s doorstep 17 minutes later, with the older lady welcoming him in and offering him tea, which he refused.

“Ah, Mrs Spring, I’m so glad you’re here too,” he told both women as he ushered Sarah onto the sofa. He took up the chair opposite and reached into his coat for his police notebook. “I can’t stay long but I wanted to tell you this before it got out to the public. Tonight, we received an anonymous tip off of gun shots in a wooden area on the outskirts of an industrial estate in Rochester. We arrived at the scene and discovered the body of a 62-year-old man, whom we believe to be Philip Fournier.”

A breath that Sarah hadn’t realised she was holding escaped her mouth. “Do you think he had something to do with Charlie and Nick being kidnapped?”

DS Trent flipped over the page and looked at Sarah with equal sadness. “We can’t confirm his involvement but we think he was at least partly to blame for their disappearance. Our team is scouring the industrial estate and asking businesses to re-open so that we can investigate but we were able to access one of the warehouses already and…”

“And?”

“And… we believe that Nick and Charlie were being held there. The Halloween costume that was seen on your Ring doorbell was found in one of the rooms, as well as plastic cable ties and black industrial tape. We think that that may be where they were kept for the past two weeks.”

Beside her, Jane burst into tears and Sarah wasn’t that far off herself. But she held it together. She needed to for Nick's sake and for Charlie's. She wrapped her arm compassionately around the other mother. She had so many questions on her tongue but nothing came out. 

“Our forensics team are in there currently, swabbing the room for DNA, but I’m 99 percent sure they were in there.”

Sarah nodded but it was Jane that spoke. “What makes you so sure?” she asked between choked sobs.

“Not only were the Halloween costume and the cable ties a giveaway, but the room looks exactly like the one in Nick’s video. There was also a mattress in the corner of the room that had been inhabited in the last week or so. Also, a lot of blood was found on the floor and mattress which we’re going to check against the DNA we collected from Nick and Charlie’s bedrooms.” The man paused and hid his notebook back in his jacket pocket. 

“Mrs Spring, Ms Nelson, this is the closest we’ve been to finding them in this whole investigation. This is a massive step forward for us. Their mistake has helped us immensely and there is no doubt in my mind that within the next couple of days, they will start making more and more mistakes. I promise you, we will get them back. We will find them.”

And that was all Sarah needed to hear before her own tears spilled down her face and a pained sob left her mouth.

★

Sunday 5th November

It felt weird to Tori that her family still wanted to celebrate with a fireworks display, but nothing about her life in the last three weeks had been normal. 

Her mum had meant to stay at Sarah Nelson’s the previous night but both women ended up back at the Spring house late that night. Tori had just managed to free herself from Oliver’s grasp after they'd settled down on Charlie’s bed for the night, when she heard the front door unlock and the two women walk in. 

Jane and Sarah had explained to Tori and Julio what DS Trent had told them, and from that point, Tori hadn’t been able to get back to sleep. She found herself down an internet wormhole; googling the wooden area and the warehouse, as well as deep diving through photos to see the place her little brother had been held for the last two weeks.

She didn’t know why she did it; it didn’t make her feel any better but she needed to know. She needed to see it. It made her feel a little bit closer to Charlie and she hadn’t felt this close to him since the evening she'd left him alone in his room.

Charlie loved the fireworks; he used to love the shapes and colours they would create in the sky and the euphoria it would bring from hanging out with his family. Sarah smiled as Tori told her that. She claimed that Nick used to love fireworks too and would often drag her along to the local display every year on the 5th of November.

Now, Tori was sitting in her garden, bundled up in coats and jumpers, with an enthusiastic Olly on her lap as they watched Julio light a match and hold it to the fuse of the fireworks he had haphazardly set up around the garden.

She and Olly had come up with a game that they would shout out the colour they thought the firework would be as it soared into the sky and burst overheard. After a few goes, Sarah and Jane had joined in.

“What colour, Olly?” Jane had asked as Julio paced back to the group. 

“Gold!” Olly shouted.

“Purple!” replied Sarah.

“Gold!” said Tori, to which Olly turned round and giggled “you can’t copy me!”

“Yes I can!” she laughed, sticking her tongue out.

The firework fizzed and then shot up into the sky, a stunning lavender colour erupting above them.

“Yay Sarah! You got it,” Olly bellowed, clapping as the sparks disintegrated into nothing.

Julio walked over to the group with two rockets in his hand. “Right, these are the last two. What do you think Olly?”

Olly thought long and hard about his choices, like this was the most difficult decision of his life. He turned round to face Tori and asked “I don’t know. What is Charlie’s favourite colour?”

Tori smiled, thinking about the time Charlie wouldn’t wear anything but his favourite green converse. “Green, he really likes green.”

“Okay, so one will be green and the other…” he turned to Sarah who was looking at Oliver with awe in her eyes. “Sarah, what is Nick’s favourite colour?”

Her eyes began to well with tears and she wiped them with her sleeve before answering. “Blue, it’s the colour of his favourite football and rugby team.”

Olly smiled, “Right, so one will be green for Charlie and the other will be blue for Nick. I’m certain.”

Tori wrapped her arms around Olly’s middle and hugged him from behind. God, his heart was just like Charlie’s and that made her miss him even more. Julio ran back from the fireworks he had just lit and took residence in the chair next to Jane and Sarah and watched as the fireworks flew into the sky and, unexpectedly, exploded into a green and blue star shape.

That was a strange coincidence.

As the colours faded, the doorbell rang inside the house and Jane lept from her seat to see who it was. Moments later she returned with a distressed DS Trent in tow.

“I’m so sorry to disrupt your evening…”

“You’re not disrupting anything,” Jane replied. “Is there something wrong, DS Trent?”

The man ran his hands through his hair and let out a shaky breath. “Mr and Mrs Spring, Ms Nelson, we’ve found them. We found Nick and Charlie. They’re alive.”

Chapter Text

Sunday 5th November

It took Charlie everything in his power not to jump on Nick and shake him awake. All his body would allow him to do was scream his boyfriend’s name at the top of his lungs over and over again, begging and willing the other boy to wake up, to not leave him alone in this shitty world. 

He barely saw the army of people, dressed head to toe in green overalls, swarm the room until he faintly heard a police officer explain the situation. All he could think about was Nick, Nick, Nick. 

One of the green people knelt down behind Nick, wrapped an oxygen mask over his copper locks and secured it against his mouth. 

“Situation?” a woman asked, bending down next to Charlie. Her blue eyes were warm and kind – Charlie supposed they had to be, given the situation – and her brown hair was in a low bun. Charlie noticed she had a nose ring hanging from her left nostril and her septum pierced, which was completely irrelevant but he thought it was cool nonetheless. 

“Nick Nelson and Charlie Spring, kidnapped two weeks ago. Nick has been unresponsive since we got here except for a moment ago when he called out for Charlie, after which his breathing became shallow and uneven. Charlie has an obvious broken leg-“

“Gem, we need to get this one to a hospital ASAP. He’s flagging and fast,” the paramedic attending to Nick alerted his colleague. Charlie’s gut ached; what did that mean?

“W-what does that mean? Is he okay?” Charlie asked the female paramedic at his side. She shot him a smile that was half ‘I’m sorry’ and half ‘we’re going to try our best’. Charlie’s blue eyes darted from hers over to Nick’s limp body. 

The man spoke into his radio but Charlie’s ears had shut down; the realisation that Nick might not be okay hit him like a tonne of bricks. But Nick had to be okay. Not only for Charlie but for his mum; she needed him too, more than anything right now. And also, to prove to those low life scumbags outside, that even after everything they’d put the boys through, Nick Nelson was resilient and strong. 

In a flash, another two paramedics entered the room, wheeling a gurney between them. Charlie still couldn’t hear anything, but watched as the male paramedic and his two colleagues gently lifted Nick onto the bed. 

Charlie wanted to kick himself for his body shutting down at a pivotal moment such as this. 

As a hand landed softly on his shoulder, Charlie could feel the vibrations of someone speaking to him but his mind was preoccupied with worry. He needed to  make sure this wasn’t another elaborate ploy to separate them. 

“I-I need to go with him. I need to keep him safe,” he croaked, edging up on his knee as if to follow Nick. A sharp bolt of pain in his leg reminded him that he wasn’t as nimble as he used to be and couldn’t just act on instinct. But, he needed to go with him. He couldn’t sit there and watch as Nick was slowly taken from his world. Charlie spun his body, his bad leg resting atop the other and dragged himself across the floor behind the gurney.

“Charlie, stop. You’re going to do more damage to yourself-”

“I NEED TO GO WITH HIM. YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND!” Charlie shouted. He was weak, and crawling after Nick had his arms aching and burning. The nice paramedic was in front of him, forcing him to stop. 

“Charlie, I can’t allow that. You both need separate medical attention,” she replied, but her voice was filled with sympathy.

Defeated, he collapsed in a heap and the tears began to stream down his bruised face. Another gurney was wheeled into the room and Charlie was helped onto it. Even the shitty mattress on the bed was comfier than anything he’d experienced in weeks. Whilst grateful for the mattress in The Room, it felt like it was made from springs and tiny pieces of glass.

Gem, the paramedic, placed a hospital-grade blanket over Charlie which he brought up to his shoulders, as if to protect himself. In reality, he wanted to hide the fact he was crying. He still wasn’t sure if he and Nick were safe, and who was to blame him? He’d spent the last two weeks being tortured.

The breeze from the outside sent a chill down Charlie’s entire body. The big door of the warehouse was open and there were dozens of cars with blue flashing lights littering the loading bay. As he was wheeled onto the lift of the ambulance, Charlie took in everything around him.

One police car to his left had a handcuffed Ste pressed against the window while a police officer cautioned him.  Behind that were two more police cars and a police van that was starting up, getting ready to leave. To his right was Nick, being wheeled and lifted into his own ambulance.

Charlie’s eyes began to well again. “Nick! Please, I can’t leave him. Please!” he sobbed, throwing back the blanket and reaching out for his boyfriend. The female paramedic almost looked like she was about to cry too as she looked between Charlie and Nick. Shaking her head, she reached into her pocket and held out her hand to her colleague.

“Will, give me your phone… unlocked.”

The man looked back at her sceptically. “Why?”

“Just… do it.”

The man tapped his code into the screen and then handed her the phone. She fiddled with both phones before running off in the direction of the other ambulance. Charlie’s anxiety skyrocketed as the only person he was beginning to trust left him. He called out for Nick and for the paramedic, but no one came. The man he was left with tried to put an oxygen mask over his head but Charlie struggled against him, begging and pleading to be left alone.

“Hey, I’m back. Charlie, what’s wrong?” the kind woman asked as she climbed back into the vehicle and shut the door behind her. She whispered something to her colleague who climbed into the cab of the ambulance and started the engine. 

Charlie couldn’t speak, too tired and emotional from what he’d been through, but instead started to cry again. The lady held his cold hand and passed him the phone. On the screen was Nick, laying on the hospital gurney, connected to tubes and wires and an oxygen mask keeping him alive.

“This was all I could think of to prove that we’re here to help. You’re safe now, Charlie, and so is Nick. This’ll stay connected the entire ride to the hospital. We’re a bit far out from it but you can keep an eye on him the whole time, I promise. But will you please let me put this mask on you? It’ll help you, okay?”

Charlie wasn’t thinking much. He was too focused on his boyfriend on the screen, unconscious and a shit tonne of wires hanging off his bare chest. His face was covered by the oxygen mask, but… it was him. It was Nick. He was breathing – that’s what the beeps were telling him. The paramedic had gone out of her way to settle all the nerves in Charlie’s body.

“Thank you… Thank you so much.” he cried. It took everything in him not to jump from the bed and give her a hug. She nodded, holding back her own tears as Charlie shuffled down the gurney and wrapped himself in the blanket. She placed the oxygen cannula in Charlie’s nose, and Charlie was thankful for the assistance.

“Nick? It’s me. It’s Charlie. I hope you can hear me. I wish I could be with you, making sure you’re okay, but this will have to do. The nice people gave us their phones so we could still be together in some way,” he started, watching Nick’s chest rise and fall.

“I love you so, so much, Nick. We’re going to be okay now. I promise, I will never let anything bad happen to you again. When we’re better, we’re going to go on those dates we spoke about, but we’ll make them ten times better because it’s you and me, Nick. You and me against the world, eh?” Charlie couldn’t help the sobs that came from his mouth. He didn’t want Nick to see him crying like a baby but he couldn’t help it. They were free. Totally free. And he still hadn’t hugged Nick yet.

“I can’t wait to meet your mum, Nick. You told me all about her, remember? When we were huddled together on the mattress. You told me how she was the best person you knew, always there for you when you needed her. She is your best friend, other than Sai, Christian and Otis. She knows when you’re sad or overwhelmed or you just need a little something. I bet she can’t wait to see you either, she’s going to be so happy.”

He could hear the faint wailing of Nick’s ambulance in the background of the call, even over his own ambulance and the chatter on the paramedic radio. He couldn’t help the tears that fell down his face at the thought of their newfound freedom. He hadn’t seen all of the men be arrested and this could all be a ruse to lure them away again, but something deep down in Charlie’s chest thought that couldn’t be true.

A pang of something washed over Charlie as he watched Nick on the screen. The cuts on his face had finally stopped bleeding, thanks to the care of the paramedic, but the stories and memories would always be there once they start to scab over. The bruises were starting to connect into one, obscuring the warm skin tone Charlie had come to know and love.

Nick had suddenly shifted on the other end, his eyes opened slowly, panicked, darting around to take in his surroundings.

“No… no, no, no… Charlie.” he sobbed, his voice cracked from the intense torture. He thrashed around on his bed, knocking the phone over and blocking Charlie’s view. “P-please… Charlie… I need Charlie.”

“Nick, I’m here. I’m here, I promise-”

“Please… Let me go, I-I need to see him. Where is he?”

Despite Charlie’s efforts, Nick wouldn’t listen to him, the phone buried beneath him and muffling his pleas.

“Mr Nelson, I need you to calm down,” Charlie heard one of the paramedics telling him. The beeps grew louder and the shifting became more erratic. 

“I-I can’t live without him. Please, please take me back to him. Please!”

Charlie was fully crying now, screaming for Nick to listen to him, to search for his voice, but Nick thought he was hallucinating. He couldn’t believe he was truly free. The paramedic with Charlie radioed Nick’s ambulance and ordered them to find the phone amongst the bed. Soon, the blank screen sprang to life and Nick’s scrunched up face entered the frame.

“Nick? I’m here, we’re safe. I promise we’re safe.”

Nick’s eyes widened. “Char-lie?”

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m here.”

Charlie saw Nick’s hand reach out to touch the screen and Charlie’s heart sank. “Why… Why are you not here… with me? Where are you?”

“We couldn’t travel together in the same ambulance, and they needed to get you to a hospital quicker than me. I’m not far behind and I promise, once I’m there, I will come and find you.”

Nick nodded and crumbled at Charlie’s words. His soft sobs turned into loud and painful cries. “I love you, Charlie. I really, really love you.”

Charlie laughed, a mixture of snot and tears ran down his face. “I really love you too, Nick. I’ll be there as quickly as I can. We’re free now, nothing can separate us.”

“Nothing?” Nick asked, his eyebrows furrowed into a pointy ‘v’ shape.

Admittedly, there would always be something or someone that would want to break the pair up, but Charlie was determined to never let that happen. Nothing, not even a group of thugs could break them apart. 

“Nothing.” he confirmed adamantly. 

Nick looked around the ambulance, seemingly taking everything in. He looked back at the screen and smiled for the first time in days. “We’re free?”

Charlie smiled too. “We’re free.”

★

The large metal ambulance doors swung open and Charlie was quickly unloaded and wheeled from the loading bay down the busy corridors of Rochester Hospital’s A&E building. Nick’s ambulance only left five minutes before Charlie’s, but Nick was nowhere to be seen. 

The paramedics pushed Charlie into a bay, lifted him onto a more substantial hospital bed and passed on his notes to the doctor, who later introduced himself as Dr. Longcross. The man took some blood from Charlie, did an initial once over and doodled on a sheet, which he attached to the end of Charlie’s bed before shutting the curtain around him and wandering off, away from him. 

Panic began to brew within him. He hadn’t been left alone since the gang took Nick to deliver the video, and not having Nick or the nice paramedic lady to comfort him brought back a plethora of bad memories. Nurses and Doctors rushed eagerly through the ward, none paying much attention to Charlie, until a sharp looking doctor in a white coat approached his bed, clipboard in hand.

“Hi Charles, I’m Doctor Ambrose. I’m going to be looking after you for a while. I just have a few questions, if you’re okay with answering them?”

The doctor read out a list of mundane medical questions he was obliged to collect, and Charlie tried his best to answer them as well as he could given the circumstances. A Nurse took his blood pressure as well as his other vital readings and then prepped him to insert a cannula into his hand.

The pressure was a little too much for him, passing out from the pain of the needle entering his skin. He came back round a few minutes later, with a group of medical professionals around him as well as…

“Mum? Dad?” 

Charlie had to give himself a few seconds to work out if they were really there or he was imagining them. 

“Oh, Charlie…” His mum sobbed as she gripped onto him in a tight bear hug. It was real, there was no way he could have dreamt it. His tense body finally unclenched and he melted into her touch.

“Mum…” he cried, tears and snot leaking onto her jumper. 

“Oh baby, you’re here. I can’t believe you’re here!” She pulled away from him to look over his face; his bruised and beaten face. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying and there were dark circles under them - probably from lack of sleep - but beyond it all, there was a glimmer of love and relief in her expression. “I’m sorry, Charlie. I’m so, so sorry. This is all my fault.”

Charlie shook his head. “You couldn’t have done anything, I didn’t see them coming. I’m so glad you’re here.” He looked up at his dad behind his mother. “Both of you. I didn’t…I didn’t know if I would…”

He’d suddenly become overwhelmed with emotions and his mum and dad were wrapping their arms around him. For the first time since he left Nick’s arms, he felt safe.

“Charlie?”

Charlie’s eyes opened quickly, looking for the person the small voice belonged to. 

Olly.

“Olly?”

The littlest Spring wasted no time in climbing on Charlie’s bed and jumping carefully onto his older brother. Tori stood at the foot of his bed, her chest heaving heavily, as tears rolled down her face. 

“Where were you, Charlie? The police were looking for you and everything!” Olly asked, refusing to remove himself from his brother despite their mother’s insistence. 

Charlie looked to his parents and Tori, trying to work out how best to navigate telling his younger brother the truth. “Some really bad men took me, but that doesn’t matter. I’m here now, and I’m never leaving you ever again, okay?”

Charlie could feel Olly’s curls tickle his neck as the small boy nodded against his chest. 

This had  all become very surreal. His family were with him, they were real and not a figment of his imagination. The only thing that could make this moment even better was…

“Nick. Where’s Nick? Is he okay?”

Jane and Julio had a guilty look on their faces.

“I’m… We’re not sure. We came with Sarah but we were ushered to completely different wards,” Julio explained. 

Charlie felt the panic rise from his stomach; his hands felt numb and his chest began to tighten. His mum must have sensed his inner turmoil, as she reached for Charlie’s hand and clutched it tightly. 

“I’m sure your father can go check…” she said, not to Charlie but to Julio, who was gawping at her. She pulled a face that she didn’t think Charlie could see, as if she’s speaking to him in some secret code. “And you can take Oliver and Victoria too, get them something from the vending machines.”

Julio frowned but nodded. “Yeah, yes. We- I can do that. Come on kids, let’s go get something from the café.”

“But… I want to stay with Charlie,” Tori whispered. It was the first thing she’d said since she got there and Charlie could tell she blamed herself. Charlie wanted to tell her that it wasn’t her fault, but before he could, his dad was ushering his siblings out of the ward and into the corridor. 

Now, it was just Charlie and his mum. The person who told the entire nation about his problems and showed no remorse in that interview. He felt conflicted. On one hand, she was a monster, someone who had truly humiliated him. On the other, she was family and he hadn’t thought he would see his family again. 

She planted herself in the chair beside Charlie’s bed and cupped Charlie’s left hand in both of hers, the warmth of her grip radiating through his veins. He tried not to look her in the eyes but he couldn’t help it. He needed to feel some familiarity, even if it was hostile. 

What his mum did next surprised him. She brought his hand to her mouth and planted a firm, warm kiss upon his knuckles before bursting into tears. “I-I’m so s-sorry, Charlie. F-for everything I-I did wrong. I-I should have b-been there, we should h-have stayed home that night, if y-you weren’t with us. But, I was shrouded by my… need to be the perfect family.”

Charlie felt like his heart had been ripped out of his chest. He’d never seen his mum like this, not even when her dad passed away a year or two ago. Clearly, the whole… situation had opened her eyes and, maybe even her heart. 

The room was quiet bar her sobs and the beeping of Charlie’s heart monitor. He was lucky, in a way, that he was given a single room to himself, but something told him that maybe the police had something to do with that. 

“Mum, you don’t-”

“I do, I really do. You’re my boy, Charlie. My smart, clever baby boy who… who… was stolen away from me. I-I vowed I would protect you with my whole life, and I didn’t… I couldn’t even do that. I am an awful mother-”

Charlie shifted himself closer to his mum, grasping her hands now in both of his. “You’re not… you’re not an awful mother. You just haven’t been there when you should have been. That doesn’t make you bad, it just means you have a lot of work to do and not only to me, to Tori and Olly too. They need you just as much as me.”

There is a sudden jolt of pain in Charlie’s broken leg. He winced and closed his eyes. 

“What’s wrong? Charlie? What is it?”

He felt his entire body clench, collapsing in on itself. He could hear the faint cry of his mum calling for a nurse, who showed up not 30 seconds later. 

“M-My leg h-hurts.” He whimpered, clutching at the blanket in an attempt to neutralise the pain. 

A doctor entered the room, looking over Charlie’s case on the clipboard at the foot of the bed. His face screwed into an angry glare as he flipped through the pages. “We’re going to need to get him to surgery now. He should have been taken there as soon as he was admitted. Get the anaesthesiologist here now, we need to put it into his cannula, so that he’s ready to be wheeled straight to the table.”

The monitor connected to Charlie began to beep frantically as Charlie’s heart rate quickened. “No, no, no, I’m not… You can’t make me go to sleep. I… I don’t want to go back there. Mum, don’t let them take me back there.”

Jane’s eyes were wide with sympathy. She looked pleadingly at the doctor, whose face remained stoic. “Doctor, he’s been put under immense stress and torture. Does this have to be so sudden?”

“I’m afraid  we need to act now if we want to have any chance of staving off infection. He’s already been days without proper medical attention. If the bones are beginning to mend as they are, then he runs the risk of damaging the ligaments and the leg itself even further.”

Charlie looked up at his mum with sadness, silently begging her to not let them take him. His breathing became heavier and more erratic by the second, and he found himself scooting away from the doctor as best as he could with his one good leg.

Jane wrapped him in a protective embrace and he nestled his head against her chest. “Shh, shh, come on Charlie. You’re safe, I promise. Nothing will happen to you, okay? I won't let it.”

“You can’t… you can’t ensure that,” Charlie sobbed into her jumper. Jane shook her head against Charlie’s. 

“I can, and I will. I won’t let you out of my sight. Not anymore.” She gently kissed the top of his curls, the reassurance that Charlie needed to calm his nerves. 

Reluctantly, Charlie held out the arm in which the cannula had been placed and buried his face further into Jane’s chest. She held him closer than she’d held him since he was a baby and cooed at him as the anaesthesia overwhelmed him. Just as the edges of his vision began to fade, he could hear her informing the medical staff that she wouldn’t be leaving his side throughout the whole surgery and for the first time in a very long time, he finally felt a sense of love from his mother. 

★

Monday 6th November

Nick woke up feeling like a large number of bricks had landed on him, then a car, followed by a herd of elephants and then like he’d been run over by a truck. His eyes hadn’t quite adjusted and the jarring white lights blurred his vision as he blinked awake.

There was a presence hovering above him, and a part of him hoped it was Charlie, hoped that Charlie was still with him in The Room where they had found a place to be themselves and where they felt the biggest connection, despite what else had happened to them there. 

The person held onto his hand, clutched it in theirs, and placed a gentle kiss against his fingers. 

“Ch-Char?” he croaked, his voice hoarse. He needed water, anything to soothe the burning in his throat. But more importantly, he needed Charlie. He needed to know he was safe and unscathed. The last thing he remembered was Charlie chained to the wall as he freed himself from the hook to attack David and everything after that was hazy. 

“Nick?”

The voice was different. Feminine. This wasn’t Charlie, nor was it any of his captors. He opened his eyes slowly and took in the room. 

The monotonous beeping from the machine to his left echoed through his ears. The beige blanket that covered his lower half was rough against his bare legs below it. Tubes flowed from his hand and up into a bag of clear fluid and a brown substance that sat statically on a metal pole. Oxygen pummelled through a thin tube from the wall into his nose, alleviating some of the pain in his chest.

He turned his head towards the person looming over him and his eyes widened at the sight. “Mum?”

“Oh, my poor boy,” she replied, tears rolling down her face. She pushed something on the wall above Nick’s head and then carded her fingers through his matted hair. 

“Mum, why are you here? Did they get you too?”

She shook her head and Nick breathed a heavy sigh of relief, wincing as the pain in his side ebbed. 

“Darling, you’re safe now. You’re in the hospital, you’ve just had surgery on your chest, but you’re safe.”

Nick looked up into her sad eyes and then down at his body. He hadn’t felt it before but the arm his mother was holding was in a white plaster cast from his hand down to his elbow. There was a bandage over his forehead and his chest, covering some stitches. 

He moved to sit up, but his mum was there in an instant, warning him that moving too much might upset his injuries. Nick didn’t care, he couldn’t lay down anymore. He had more pressing issues on his mind than worrying about himself.

“Where’s Charlie? Is he here too?”

“He’s fine, I think. They won’t tell me much as I’m not family but Charlie’s dad popped by not too long ago to let me know that he was awake. He’s been asking for you.”

His heart jumped and his brain turned into protective mode. “I need to see him, I need… I need to make sure he’s okay!” He pushed the blanket off of his legs and found one foot bandaged and the other with small cuts above the ankle. He didn’t care to find out how he got them, he needed to see his boyfriend. He’d drilled it into his entire being that he needed to find Charlie, to hold him against his chest and never let him go again

“Nick, stop, you’ll hurt yourself. Listen to me, if you want a chance to see Charlie anytime soon then you need to be more careful. If you injure yourself further, that’s more time away from him, baby,” his mother pleaded as she ran around the other side of the bed to stop him.

“I just… I need to see him. He’s probably so scared right now. I’m all he’s had for weeks, and it’s my fault this happened to him. I-I… I need to make sure he’s okay. It’s my job. I promised him I would protect him.” His words became unintelligible as his sobs overwhelmed him. He fell into his mother’s arms and cried into her t-shirt. She rubbed soothing circles on his back as she cooed into his hair.

“How about I call for a nurse, get you a wheelchair and we go for a walk? Stop by and see Charlie later? I- um, I have a lot to talk to you about.”

“Is it about Dad?” He wasn’t sure whether to bring it up, but he also needed to talk to her about Stéphane. 

“Well… yes. But how did you…”

“There’s something I need to tell you too,” he cut in, biting his lip.  “That walk sounds good, though. As long as I can definitely see Charlie after.”

She smiled down at him, though the smile wasn’t quite as believable as she probably hoped. Nick could see the confusion and pain written all over her face, but he dared not probe her on it. 

“Absolutely. I swear with my whole heart.” She crossed her fingers over her chest before walking over to the door and beckoning in a passing nurse to help her gather Nick into a wheelchair. 

★

There was a small waiting room at the end of the corridor but Sarah wheeled him straight past it and into the lift. She jabbed the button for the ground floor and the lift gradually burst into action. Their journey was unintentionally silent the entire way down and Nick didn’t mind; he had a million and one things flooding his mind.

As the doors opened, Sarah pushed him in the direction of the cafeteria. 

“I thought we could grab a tea or something? I know you have the IV feeding you right now, but I bet you’re gasping for a cuppa? Maybe a sneaky snack too?”

It was a thoughtful gesture but Nick wasn’t particularly hungry. The lack of food had shrunk his appetite and the thought of anything bigger than the cheese sandwich he’d grown used to made him feel sick. 

“I’m… I’m not very hungry. Maybe just some biscuits; custard creams if they have them…”

He watched as his mum walked over to the cashier and paid for a pack of biscuits and two teas. Out of nowhere, a small boy with dark, curly hair ran up to her and hugged her around her stomach. She bent down and began talking to him. She pointed to where Nick was sitting and the young boy followed her arm, staring back at him with bright blue, teary eyes.

Then a man approached them, rubbed a hand on her arm and pulled the young boy away. Sarah made her way back over to Nick, mugs in hand and carefully placed them down on the table.

“Who was that?” Nick asked, gesturing to the child that looked oddly familiar.

“That’s Charlie’s younger brother, Oliver, and his father, Julio. His sister is at the table too.” 

As the two Springs settled back into their seats, there was Tori staring back at him with tears in her eyes. Nick wanted to take his eyes away from them, but he couldn’t. Charlie’s brother looked exactly like Charlie but smaller, and that made him well up again. 

“Oh Nick-”

“I’m fine, it’s… He looks exactly like Charlie. Just… younger and with less cuts and bruises. Less trauma,” he stated. The tears overwhelmed his eyes and fell onto his face. He could feel the saltiness gather against his lips, tasting just like the ones he would kiss from Charlie’s face as he cried himself to sleep most nights.

Reluctantly, he tore his eyes away from the family whose life he’d ruined and traced his finger on the rim of the mug. He gazed down at the packet of custard creams on the table and smiled. “You know, this is what they would give us. Well, what Philip would sneak us. They were opposed to giving us actual food, except for some mouldy bread and water in a dog bowl. The biscuits remind me of Charlie too.”

“Nicky,” Sarah started, but Nick flinched at the word, spilling some of his tea over his hand and cannula. 

“ Please… please don’t call me that.”

He shivered in his seat, his whole body shaking from the reminder of those men and what they had done to the innocent nickname his mum had given him. He gripped the mug tightly until Sarah prised his hand open and placed it in hers.

“I’m sorry,” he croaked. “They… they called me that. They would taunt me or… or… they’d hurt Charlie and call me that.”

His mum wrapped him up in a tight hug and whispered into his ear. “I’m sorry, baby. I promise I wont ever call you that again.”

They remained tangled in each other's embrace for a while. Nick had been longing for his mother’s touch ever since he’d been taken and he was never going to take it for granted ever again. The familiar smell of his home lingered on her clothes and his heart ached to be back there, cuddled with Nellie and Charlie on his bed. Safe in his home with his favourite person. Just… safe.

“Darling, I think we need to talk. I… have some things I need to tell you, I’m guessing you already know some of it but… I figured you’d want to hear it from me,” Sarah said and pulled away from him. Lifting her finger to his cheek, she swiped at the tears that had collected there and wiped them on her jeans. She took hold of his good hand and held it gently in hers.

“Before you were born, I… I had another child. I loved him so much, of course I did, but there was always something there that made me feel like he loved your father more. I never told you about him because… because you were too young to ever know about him. He died just after you were born, along with your father, and to this day, there isn’t a day that passes that I don’t regret not telling you. You deserved to know and… and I was a coward. I didn’t want you to grow up resenting me.”

Nick was so confused. How could it be possible that his mum still thought Stéphane and David were dead? Did she really have no idea who his captors were?

“I could never resent you, mum. You brought me up alone, you’ve given me everything and more. I would never dream of feeling anything but love and admiration towards you,” he replied, squeezing her hand. “But… I don’t know how to say this… Dad and David, they’re not dead.”

The look his mum gave him was one of pure shock. “How do you know his name? David’s name.”

Nick gulped, anxious about revealing what David had done. “Because David was the one behind this, mum. Behind taking Charlie and I. He orchestrated this whole thing. I didn’t know who he was until the fifth of November. I don’t even know how long I’ve been gone or how long it took for them to find us from what I last remember but… Dad - Stéphane called and they told me everything. That dad had planned all along to leave you. Only David was meant to stay with you, but he-”

“He… wanted to stay with Stéphane.”

Nick nodded. “It wasn’t part of his plan but he… he took David with him. Faked their deaths. Moved to France where they built their drug empire.”

“ Drugs?!” She exclaimed, catching the attention of some of the guests around her. 

“They’re horrible people, mum. David and his men… drugged Charlie. Got a thrill out of it. Made me watch as Charlie had a psychotic episode right in front of me and then they almost tried to do the same to me, but they decided to change it up at the last minute. Instead, I was dressed up in a costume and… and…”

Tears began to emerge again, and something about the way his mum looked at him told him she knew what he was about to say.

“It was you?”

He wiped his runny nose on the collar of his hospital gown. “Yeah. I would have run, I wanted to run but he had a gun trained on you and David had given him orders to shoot you, even if you stepped out of the house. I’m glad you didn’t, mum. They made me watch as Olly opened the door and then Tori and you came to the door too and ushered him back inside. When they took me back there, they made me tell Charlie all about it.”

He felt sick. Reliving that moment over in his head, the face Charlie pulled when he told him was devastating. He shook his head in an attempt to wrestle the memory away. “I-I don’t want to talk about this anymore, Mum. I’m sorry, I wish I was stronger but… I’m not who I used to be.”

Nick jerked away instinctively as his mum placed her finger under his chin, urging him to look at her. “You are, you’re still my baby boy. My beautiful Nicholas Nelson who wears his heart on his sleeve and would do anything for anyone. Just because you’ve been through a traumatic time, doesn’t change who you are and have been. We’ll get through this, I promise.”

She smiled at him and he found it hard not to return the gesture. She placed a kiss on his forehead, just below the bandage so it was actually on his skin, sending warm, soothing sensations around his body. 

He wanted to stay in this bubble for a while. His mum was with him, spending time together like they used to before he was taken. The only thing missing was Charlie. His Charlie. 

“Sorry to interrupt,” a voice said over his shoulder. One quick glance showed it was Julio, Charlie’s dad. “Jane has just rung to say Charlie is awake from his surgery.”

Nick’s face dropped and eyes widened. “Wait, surgery? Why did he have surgery? Is he okay?”

“He’s fine, he needed emergency surgery on his leg. The doctor said he needed it done quickly otherwise Charlie could have lost it or live with permanent damages to it. He’s okay, he’s not going to be able to walk for a while but that’s about all.” Julio explained. 

Nick tried to hold back the impending tears. He’d cried enough today and he definitely didn’t need to cry in front of Charlie’s family considering what he’d put them through. 

“Oh… That’s… that’s good news,” Nick replied, nibbling on his lower lip. “Um… would I… Would it be okay if I saw him?”

Somewhere, deep down, Nick thought that maybe he wouldn’t be allowed. That Julio would want Nick as far away from his son as possible. But he was shocked when the man grinned. “Of course. I don’t think there would be a chance in hell that Charlie would listen to me if I said no. You’re all he’s been asking for since he was brought in.”

Nick let out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding and then settled back comfortably into his chair. Finally, he’d be reunited with his love for the first time since they arrived. 

★

Charlie had been awake for half an hour now, and true to her word, his mother hadn’t left his side. His dad and siblings hadn’t shown back up yet, but after a call between his parents, she informed him that they would be on their way with a gift of some sort. 

Not that he needed a gift – being free from that place was good enough for him. Although, he did want Nick, and that would be the cherry on top of the cake. 

A nurse checked over his leg, making sure he was comfortable as he wouldn’t be able to move for a while with it in the cast. 

Lining his bedside table was a jug of water that had been refilled once already, as Charlie had been extremely thirsty, and a plethora of magazines that Jane had found laying around in the waiting room at the end of the hall. 

She had been on the phone to one of the police officers that had been in charge of his case for a few minutes until she wished him well and ended the call. “That was DS Trent, he’s going to come by in a bit to take your statement. He also has an update on the men they caught when they found you.”

Charlie just nodded, unsure of what to say or feel. He hoped the update was that they were all rotting in hell for what they did to him and Nick, but he thought that would be unlikely. 

“How do you feel, Charlie?” Jane asked, pulling the blanket over him, making sure he was completely covered. 

He shrugged. “Woozy. I feel a little out of it. I want to go to sleep but I need to see Nick.”

“I promise, you can see him soon. Just get some rest first, he’ll be here before you know it.”

A knock on the door broke their bubble and Jane was up quickly, marching over to see who it was. “Hello? May I help you?”

“Er, yes, I’m DS Harris. I’m here to speak with Charlie Spring?” 

From his bed, Charlie wasn’t able to see who it was, but he could just about make out that it was a man at the door. Maybe this was the police officer his mum had been talking to, although he was awfully quick. 

“Sorry, I thought DS Trent was supposed to be coming?” his mum quizzed. 

“He is, he’s on his way. He sent me ahead of him just to check in on Charlie, Nick too, and make sure they’re both up to interview.”

Charlie’s heart began to beat fast. He knew that voice, but how could he be here? He shouldn’t be here. Something was off. This was bad. Really, really bad. 

“May I come in and speak to him?” the man asked. Jane stood with her hands folded across her chest, as if she was trying to decide whether this was a good idea or not. Charlie shook his head but Jane couldn’t see his dismay. 

“Fine, but only for a few minutes. We’re only speaking to DS Trent about this case but as you’re here for Charlie’s wellbeing, I’ll allow it just this once.”

Jane hopped aside and gestured for the man to enter. Charlie could see him hesitate before stepping over the threshold and into Charlie’s private room. 

Charlie tried to scream, but his voice had betrayed him. Nothing would escape his mouth, no matter how hard he tried. There was no way this man was standing in front of him. How could he be? How was this happening? 

The man approached his bed and smiled widely. 

“Hello Charlie.”

Chapter Text

Monday 6th November

Charlie was all Nick could think about ever since he’d woken up. Where is Charlie? Is he okay? Is he safe? When could he see Charlie? And now with the additional did Charlie’s surgery go okay?

His heart pounded vigorously; the thought of seeing Charlie - his Charlie - in the flesh for the first time in however long it had been made his chest flutter to no end. 

Julio allowed Nick and Sarah into the lift first; the space wasn’t nearly enough to fit all four of them and Nick in his wheelchair. Nick thanked him before the door closed between them and carried them to their intended floor. 

The lift seemed to take an age as it crept up to the third floor, eerie creaks filling the metal box as the mechanics worked overtime. The closer Nick got to Charlie, it was like he was complete again. Like a piece of him had been missing ever since they were found, and now that he was moments away from reuniting with his love, the ache in his heart eased and he could fully breathe again. 

First floor. 

Second floor. 

Third floor. Charlie’s floor. 

The lift halted to an abrupt stop and the door squeaked as it opened. It wasn’t the noises of the old lift that made Nick’s heart fall, it was the intense screaming that came from a nearby room. 

Those weren’t just any old screams. Nick was very well accustomed to these screams. 

Charlie. 

Charlie was in trouble and Nick needed to get to him. Without thinking, he pushed himself as quickly as he could out of the lift, his mum traipsing behind, bemused. Nick’s stamina wasn’t what it used to be; his arms felt heavy with every push, but his determination to ensure Charlie was okay took over and the burning in his muscles subsided. 

An innocent nurse was almost knocked over as he was walking towards Nick, who sped down the corridor towards his screaming boyfriend. As he came to an abrupt stop in the doorway, Nick’s instincts took over. He ripped the cannula from his arm and pulled himself out of the wheelchair, leaning against the door to keep from falling. 

Nick took in the room. Jane, Charlie’s mum, was standing next to Charlie’s bed, her face was pale as a sheet as her son cried and curled himself into a tight ball in the top corner of his bed. Nick’s eyes lingered on Charlie’s frail form; he was about to hobble over to him when he saw the reason for Charlie’s extreme wailing. 

“N-no… You can’t… How are you…” 

Nick wobbled against the door, holding onto the wooden frame, as the shock was sure to send him buckling to the floor. He could faintly hear his mother behind him, telling him to sit back down, but he couldn’t. He needed to save Charlie. To protect Charlie. 

He limped over to the table beside Charlie’s bed and picked up the blunt metal knife that Charlie had been given for his food, and held it towards the man. 

“You… Stay away from us,” Nick threatened, walking slowly towards the bed and his boyfriend. The man held his arms up in front of him, a symbol that he came in peace, but not to Nick. Nothing about this man was peaceful. 

“Woah, Nick, please. Put the knife down,” the man pleaded, edging slowly towards Nick’s trembling arm. 

“Don’t come any further. I… I vowed… to protect him,” Nick said, pointing with his free hand to Charlie. “A-and I won’t let you hurt him again. Not again.”

Nick had backed himself towards Charlie, and his free hand, the one with the cast, had now found its way onto the mattress near his boyfriend. 

In his peripheral vision, Nick could see Jane rounding on him. Her eyes were wide and filled with tears. “Nick, put the knife down. He’s just a police officer-”

“NO… he’s not. He’s one of them. He hurt Charlie. Hurt me. And now he’s here to finish us off,” Nick’s grip tightened on the knife. “I won’t let that happen. I promised Charlie that I would take care of him. I won’t… I can’t…”

Nick was sobbing harder than he’d done in a while. His brain was swimming with thoughts and feelings and he just wanted it to be over. When would he and Charlie finally be free? Behind him, Charlie was shaking, muttering words quietly into a pillow. He looked so small, so timid. Nick wasn’t sure when it happened, but soon the knife was free from his grasp. Sarah and Jane were trying to talk to him, but he couldn’t hear them. Or maybe he didn’t want to hear them. He needed one thing and one thing only…

“Nick?”

The ringing in his ears ceased and all he could focus on was the quivering voice from behind him. He could recognise that voice anywhere. He turned around timidly, and his chocolate brown eyes met Charlie’s cerulean blue ones for the first time in… God, Nick can’t even remember. Far too long for his liking. 

“Char?”

The pillow that rested against Charlie’s face lowered to reveal his olive skin, covered in cuts and bruises. Nick pushed the nearest chair close to the bed and eased himself down into it. He held onto one of Charlie’s hands in both of his, warming up the frozen fingers within. 

“You’re… you’re here?” Charlie asked, his eyes darting around Nick’s entire face, searching for a sign that this wasn’t real. Nick was finding it hard to believe it was real himself. That he and Charlie had made it out of there alive. 

“I’m here, baby. I’m never leaving you again.”

Charlie pulled on Nick’s hands and he had no choice but to crawl into the bed, nestling himself beside Charlie, who immediately sank into Nick’s chest. A place that had become a comfort to him over the last few weeks. It didn’t bother him that Charlie’s head was laying against the stitches; he welcomed the pain more than anything. Blinking away his content tears, Nick looked over Charlie’s hair at the chaos that was ensuing.

The familiar man looked almost on the verge of tears as he was ushered out of the room by Julio, whose face was red, almost on the verge of steaming. Jane was talking to another man in a suit just in the doorway and his mum was embracing Charlie’s siblings in an infamous Sarah Nelson hug.

He could feel Charlie simultaneously shake against his body as well as melt into Nick’s arms. He never wanted to forget this feeling. His world in his arms, weighing him down and keeping him grounded. His bubble burst when Charlie’s mum cleared her throat and indicated towards the new man.

"Boys, this is DS Trent. He’s been in charge of your case.”

The man, who stood extremely tall with a slender build, pulled out his badge and showed it to the two boys. He probably didn’t need to, considering the amount of time he’d likely spent with their parents, but something told Nick he was doing it to gain their trust. 

“Hi Nick, hi Charlie. My name is Russell. I’ve been working closely with your family during your disappearance. I want to apologise for my colleague's intrusion, he should never have come up here,” Trent informed the room, not only Nick and Charlie. 

“So he was your colleague? But Nick said he worked for them, the bastards that took them…” Tori replied. 

Tori’s comment was met with silence. No one seemed to correct her use of language towards the gang, and that made Nick feel a little better that they could all agree on something. 

“DS Harris has been undercover for over two years now. He was tasked with infiltrating the Fournier business when he fell off the radar a little under a year ago. He has been uncontactable, and therefore there was nothing we could do but wait until he reached out to us. We assumed he was deep within the gang and that’s why he couldn’t check in when he was supposed to. That is until he called emergency services yesterday, informing us of Charlie’s and Nick’s whereabouts.”

Nick watched as the colour drained from Charlie’s face. A similar feeling washed over him, and his stomach was suddenly full and ready to come up at any second. 

“But… he tortured us. He hurt us so many times… and he was a police officer?” Nick asked. His voice was wobbly and didn’t sound like him at all. 

Trent looked at him sympathetically. “He would have had to do what he could to not blow his cover. I’m sure that whatever he did, he would have beat himself up about it after.”

Nick remembered all the punches, the kicks, the maniacal laughing that H would let out after hearing their cries and pleas. That was not a police officer undercover, that was a trained accomplice. A man who showed no remorse as he abused them. 

“What’s his real name? We knew him as H, and then later as Harv. Were those his real names?”

“His name is Jack Harris. I believe Harvey was the name his alias was given when he went undercover. I know this must be hard for you to hear, but the two men are behind bars. There will be an investigation into DS Harris’s involvement in your kidnapping and abuse, but you’re safe now. We got them.”

Nick could hear the sigh of relief that their families had simultaneously let out, but he would never forget the feeling of Charlie tense against him as he realised. “T-two? But there were five in total. Ste, Jay, Harv, Phil and David.”

“I’m sorry… what?” DS Trent asked. 

Charlie gripped tighter onto Nick’s hospital gown, his shaking intensifying despite Nick’s comforting grip on him. 

“You mean to say there are more of them out there? The ones who put our boys through all of this? They’re walking free?” Julio quizzed, his eyebrows pinched together to form several lines on his forehead. 

DS Trent pulled out his phone and excused himself from the room, claiming the need to inform his superiors at the station. As he left, Nick and Charlie’s families gathered around the bed in various places, not too close to smother them but close enough that they could feel them nearby. 

Charlie was still shaking against Nick, who placed a gentle kiss atop his raven curls and whispered ‘we’ll be okay, Char. I promise we’re safe now’ over and over again. Nick could tell by their parents’ reaction that they were not expecting the pair to be so intimate. Their concerned expressions said that they wanted to know what happened to them, the full story, but he didn’t know if he had it in him to explain. 

His mum was the first to move, standing at the side of the bed that Charlie wasn’t on and rubbing her arm against Nick’s leg. “Baby, I know it’s probably hard, but do you think you could tell us what happened? To you and to Charlie?”

Nick watched carefully as Charlie’s parents sat in the seats on the other side of the bed, whilst Olly held onto Tori’s waist as she leaned against the wall. Not one of them spoke, waiting for Nick or Charlie to make the first move. 

Charlie hadn’t moved since H - the police officer - left the room, and something told Nick that he wasn’t about to start. Nick tilted his head to look into Charlie’s icy blue eyes but found them closed, his breathing evened out and cute noises escaping his open mouth. That would explain it. Charlie always said he felt safe in Nick’s arms and it had been an exhausting day for them both. 

“Um, I guess I can try…”

Nick closed his eyes and took a long, deep breath, breathing out slowly to calm his anxiety. 

“I don’t know how much you know, but Charlie was taken because the gang thought he was me. They were given a photo of me, but Charlie was in it too, they circled the wrong person and so… that’s why he was taken. When they realised they had the wrong person, they went for me.”

Jane and Julio were gripping each other's hands and Sarah was wiping at her eyes. 

“Have the doctors told you anything about our injuries?” Nick asked as he looked between everyone in the room. 

“Only that Charlie broke his leg and that he needed a few stitches elsewhere,” Jane replied. 

Nick nodded, trying to decide whether or not to share what they did to Charlie or wait for Charlie to be ready to tell them himself when he woke up. They were Charlie’s family after all; they deserve to know, and not through a random police officer or doctor. 

“Before I got there, they roughed Charlie up a bit. Punches and kicks mostly, but it was after I arrived that they really took it out on him. They cut his cheek, punched his face, pulled his hair. In the video they sent, whenever I didn’t do as they asked, they… they…”

Tears began to well in Nick’s eyes. The image of the men carving tally marks into Charlie’s skin as he screamed and pleaded with them to stop resurfaced and he felt like he was about to throw up. 

Charlie nuzzled into Nick’s chest, where his head had been laying, as if he knew that Nick was talking about him. As if he knew that Nick needed some extra strength to get through this. God, he loved that boy. 

“They what?” Jane asked, her mouth opening and closing but nothing else came out. 

“They cut a line into his stomach every time I disobeyed them. Mostly, I think they got thrills from it and that’s why they did it. I tried so hard to be good, to listen to them, but it wasn’t good enough. I’m so sorry, this is all my fault.”

There wasn’t a dry eye in the room, except for Oliver who had no idea what was really going on. Julio reached out to Nick’s leg and rubbed it affectionately. “This is not your fault, Nick. You didn’t ask for Charlie to be taken. You didn’t ask for any of this.”

“I just feel so guilty for what they did to him. He’ll have all these scars and it’s because of me. Mentally and physically. That’s not all, either. On Halloween, David said he had this big plan for us. I’m not sure if he actually told us his big idea, everything is still a little fuzzy, but they took Charlie from me. I tried to stop them but they pointed a gun at my head. I should have listened to Charlie, we were planning to run away that night. Phil gave us a heads up about the window being unlocked - some criminals they were that they hadn’t checked the windows. We got as far as looking outside and just as we were about to leave, they came in and took him. 

“I spent all night pacing and screaming for him but nothing happened. Not until a few hours later when they dragged him in, wearing this… awful looking rabbit mask. They put it on him to hide the fact that they’d given him something.”

“Given him something?” Jane quizzed. 

Nick nibbled on his lower lip and nodded. “They gave him a tab of LSD. It sent him into a psychotic episode. Luckily, the tab didn’t work properly so he was only under the influence for a little while-”

“Luckily? Luckily?!”

“Jane…” Julio tried to get her to calm down but it was pointless. 

“Our son was drugged, Julio, and he says it was lucky ?”

Nick couldn’t hold back the tears. His body shook as voices were raised, and his face was streaked with salty liquid which dripped down his chin and into Charlie’s curls. “ I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry…” he repeated, holding on to Charlie tightly and scrunching his eyes shut in fear. 

“Jane, please… You need to calm down, you’re scaring him!” Sarah replied rationally. The room fell into silence again, except for Nick’s whispered apologies. “He didn’t mean it was lucky, he was saying it was lucky it wasn’t any worse. Charlie had Nick to help him through, I’m sure of it.”

The fight left Jane quickly, as she realised how out of line she had been in that moment. Sarah turned her attention to Nick, who was rocking back and forth, trying desperately not to wake Charlie but held onto him for dear life. His mumbling had ceased but his eyes remained squeezed shut. 

“Nick, baby, it’s okay. No ones angry with you. It’s okay. I promise you’re okay.”

The buzzing in his ears and the beating in his chest lessened and he was suddenly aware that he’d had some sort of traumatic response to the shouting and the negative energy aimed towards him. He was so fucked. Nothing would be the same after this. If this is how he’d react to a little shouting, then god knows how he’ll react to something a little more intense. 

“That’s it, you’re okay darling. Do you think you can continue? It’s okay if you can’t, we can wait.”

Nick shook his head. “N-no… I want to… I need to get it out.” Taking another deep breath, he looked down at Charlie, whose face was scrunched up, and kissed the frown lines on Charlie’s olive skin.

“I guess I should tell you that me and Charlie… we’re dating. We’ll probably need to talk now that we’re free, because a lot of our decisions were made because we didn’t think we’d get out of there alive but, the truth is… I love him. It hurts my entire being thinking about life without him, but I would never purposefully hurt him. He means too much to me.” Charlie’s parents seemed a little shocked, probably more so about Nick being queer than them both dating. Sarah smiled at the pair, watching as Nick comforted Charlie, a knowing glint in her eye.

He gently played with a stray curl that sat upright on Charlie’s head. It’s the first time he’d felt the brown locks without the grease and grime from The Room. It definitely hadn’t been shower washed, most likely it was from a bowl but regardless, the smell of apple that wafted into his nose was a welcoming scent. 

“After they drugged him, they forced me into a costume and told me I had to deliver the camera to my mum otherwise they would shoot her and Charlie. I had no choice but to do it, I couldn’t lose either of them,” Nick sniffled. Before he was taken, his mum was the most important person in his life and now, after everything, he’d learnt to make room for Charlie. Charlie was probably the most important person to him right now, determined by the death grip he had on the smaller boy, but his mum was not far off.

"You made the right choice, Nick,” Julio offered.

“Did I? Because they still hurt him. They left us alone for days and we decided to try and run again. We got out, jumped out of the window and ran. We should have just kept on running, not looking back. But we were tired. We stopped and they found us. They broke Charlie’s leg after they shot Phil and filmed that video in the woods. They then moved us to a new place and tortured us even more. That’s when David revealed who he was and made me speak to Stéphane. 

“After that David went crazy, started beating the crap out of us. I knew I had to do something, he would have killed us there and then. I managed to pull myself free from the hook he’d cuffed us to and I lunged at him. I held him off for as long as I could but he was so strong. I don’t remember anything after that, just that I woke up here and Charlie wasn’t with me. I was so scared, I thought they’d kept him. But now…”

“Now you’re both free, you’re safe.” It was Jane, whose eyes were puffy and red and whose hand was still firmly clutched to that of her husband. Oliver had fallen asleep in Tori’s arms; he looked so much like Charlie. Tori’s face was also cherry red from tears. It was hard for Nick to picture her the way Charlie described her. He’d told him that Tori rarely showed emotion, barely reacted to anything; but this wasn’t the Tori Charlie had depicted. 

He kissed the top of Charlie’s curls again, breathing him in and wrapping himself in a Charlie safety blanket. Nick felt himself relax with Charlie pressed onto his body, weighing him down just like he had over many nights in The Room. He felt lighter having told someone what had happened to them. Relieved, even. He knew he’d have to retell it again soon, probably to the police and a doctor, but he was okay with that if that was how he’d feel every time. 

Nick didn’t feel guilty that his eyes fluttered against his cheeks, sleep verging on him quickly and all at once. Perhaps it was the fact he’d shared their story and that’s what his mind and body needed. Either way, he was content. He had his mum, he was free, but most importantly, he had his Charlie with him again. 

★

Nick was released first, leaving Charlie alone in the hospital to deal with his own stupid healing. He wasn’t mad at Nick, it wasn’t his fault that his injuries were more easily fixable than his broken leg, but he wanted to be out there with him. He wanted to meet Nellie and cuddle his boyfriend and have a proper shower. He hadn’t had a real shower since he arrived because of the cast on his leg. Instead, he’s been subjected to really awful bed baths by mediocre, not-as-hot-as-his-boyfriend male nurses, and his hair washed once a week in the sink. 

Usually, someone with a broken leg would be out within a few days. But apparently, to Charlie’s dismay, the doctors decided to keep Charlie in for longer because of how malnutritioned he was, as well as a few other things they detected when they took a full body scan. 

His leg had to be rebroken due to it trying to mend itself back into place in all the wrong ways. Nick had been there, holding his hand, as the nurse secured a mask over Charlie’s face and they pumped anaesthesia through his airways, making sure he wouldn’t feel a thing. He hadn’t and it was a miracle, but Nick looked a little worse for wear and his face had paled considerably. 

Nick stayed with Charlie from as early as he could until as late as he could, the pair usually bundled together under Charlie’s blankets, watching reruns of The Great British Bake-Off until one or both of them nodded off. Charlie had done nothing but be cared for and yet he was always tired, no matter what. 

The police had visited them since, taking their statements and ensuring them that they would do everything they could to track down David and Stéphane. Jane had a few choice words, which definitely made Nick feel guilty, but once she’d left, Charlie made sure to quell all of Nick’s worries. 

Tori stayed with them one day. She remained quiet at first, not sure what to say or how to act around them. But soon Nick needed to eat, so kissed Charlie goodbye as Sarah peered around the door and guided Nick down the hall. Nick’s warm spot was replaced by Charlie’s sister and the two siblings spent time catching up. It was mostly Tori apologising and blaming herself, and mostly Charlie telling her non-verbally to stop being so silly, but Charlie loved being huddled up with his sister after so long. It felt like nothing had happened at all. 

His friends had also tried to visit him, but with school and visiting hours, it never worked out. They did send him a care package via Tori, filled with books (from Isaac), a portable DVD player (from Tao) and baked goods (from Elle, which Charlie didn’t eat but Nick thoroughly enjoyed). 

Time seemed to trickle by slowly when Charlie didn’t have visitors or Nick to pass the time, and when Nick was there, it seemed to end so quickly. He didn’t want to become dependent on Nick, but he was the only thing in Charlie’s life that was normal. No matter what day, Nick would arrive as soon as visiting hours started and he was forced out by the nurses once it was over, only ever leaving to give him some time with his family whilst he took toilet and food breaks with his mum. 

When the time came for Charlie to finally be released, Nick was there to hold his hand - his good hand - as Julio wheeled him out of the ward. It felt weird leaving. On one hand, he couldn’t wait to get home and have a proper shower and sleep in his own bed with his own belongings and not be told when he can or can’t see Nick. But on the other hand, having spent weeks in The Room, he felt safe and comfortable in his hospital bed. He knew nothing could happen to him there. 

“You ready to go home, Charlie?” his dad asked as the doors of the lift closed behind them and the place he’d spent almost a month recovering. 

Charlie didn’t answer. He found it hard to talk now and then, except when he was with Nick and only Nick, and even then his words were few and far between. It’s not that he didn’t trust his dad, but he trusted Nick more. Charlie looked up at Nick with a weak smile. 

“I think he’s a little nervous. I was too when I went home for the first time. Obviously the last time he was there, well… you know what happened. We just need to make this as easy and stress-free as possible for him.”

Charlie didn’t mind Nick talking on his behalf, or like he wasn’t there at all. The reassuring squeezes Nick gave his cold hand as he spoke was enough for him to understand why Nick phrased it like that. 

Getting Charlie into the car was no easy feat. He didn’t want to sit in the front away from Nick, but there wasn’t a lot of room in the back for Charlie to spread out to ease his leg. They compromised with Charlie sitting sideways and resting his broken leg on Nick’s legs. Nick didn’t mind, if it meant Charlie was comfortable and safe; he didn’t care that his thigh went numb after 15 minutes, and his foot was beginning to cramp.

As Julio pulled into their drive, Charlie’s entire body clenched and he could feel his heart beat at twice the speed it was meant to. He felt a sense of dread, of sheer panic that the last time he’d been here was many months ago when masked men stole him away. Deep down he knew he was safe, he knew the men were behind bars, but he couldn’t help but think that something else was out there. David was out there. He could come back at any time, finish off the job he started. 

His eyes darted around, finding everything a little too overwhelming that a whimper escaped his sealed lips. 

“Hey, Char, it’s okay. I’m here, we’re safe. We don’t have to get out until you’re ready, okay? We won’t leave you until you’re ready.” Nick’s voice was calm and tranquil, even though he was most likely panicking internally. Charlie nodded vigorously, holding out his hand for Nick to take, which he did tenderly. His thumb brushed over Charlie’s dry and bruised knuckles, rubbing slow and gentle circles onto his skin. 

They sat in the car for what seemed like days, but it was only an hour in real time. Charlie’s breathing had slowed down to normal and his pupils had deflated back to their small size. Nick stayed with him, holding onto him, anchoring him the whole time, and Charlie was going to have to make it up to him some day. Charlie squeezed Nick’s hand, grabbing the attention of the older boy, who looked up at him with a furrowed brow. Charlie took a deep breath and nodded, signalling that he was ready to leave the car. 

Nick smiled and kissed the knuckles on Charlie’s hand that he had been caressing for the last hour. “I’m proud of you, baby. Come on, let’s go in and get you into some clean clothes. I bet you’re looking forward to getting in your own bed, huh?” Charlie nodded, giving one final squeeze of assurance to Nick before he carefully slid out from under Charlie’s broken leg and opened the door - the first real sight of Charlie’s home coming into view.

★

Nick wanted to carry Charlie upstairs to his room, but his arm and legs were still too weak for anything strenuous like that. He pouted a little as he watched Julio lift Charlie from the car and into the house. He wanted to be there for his boyfriend as much as he could, and not being able to do something as mundane as carry him to safety really sucked.

Julio had asked Nick to open the door, so it was a swift obstacle-free task of getting Charlie up to his room. Nick had never been inside the Spring’s house. He was supposed to drop a cake round the day he was taken, but he hadn’t made it past turning on the oven before his life was changed. For better or for worse, Nick can’t decide. It was a mixture of both. On one hand, he gained Charlie. His sweet and adorable boyfriend who he would burn down worlds to save and protect. On the other hand, he now had a lifetime of mental and physical scars that won’t fade as quickly as others. 

Charlie yelped as Julio accidentally caught his foot on the wall, and Nick had to shake himself out of his spiral to make sure Charlie was okay. 

“He’s fine, Nick. I think I knocked myself more than Charlie,” Julio reassured, as if Nick’s thoughts were on show to the entire world. Julio continued up the stairs and took a right at the top, walking halfway down the corridor and into a large room to his right. Nick followed behind sheepishly, taking in the home of the boy he loved more than anything. It was exactly as Charlie had described to him all those days ago as they cuddled together on the rotting mattress, trying to preoccupy one another. 

Inside, the room was filled with a warm glow from a neon sign that sat above his bed. Unfortunately, Charlie only had a single bed, which meant there wouldn’t be a lot of room for cuddles like he’d planned. 

“Did you want to stay over, Nick? I know Charlie would appreciate it. As long as it’s okay with your mum.”

Nick reached into his pocket and pulled out his brand new mobile that he and his mum had bought on his first day of freedom from the hospital. “Yeah, if you’re sure you don’t mind? I’ll give my mum a text now.”

Of course, Sarah agreed, her only condition being that he ‘look after that young boy and look after yourself too’. Nick planned on doing just that, curling next to Charlie as best he could on the single bed and stroking Charlie’s dark curls with his good hand. 

“Is it weird being back here?” Nick asked. Charlie nodded against his chest, where he’d placed his head moments before. 

“I… I miss… The Room too sometimes,” Charlie spoke softly. “It’s not normal to miss the place you were held captive, but it was just you and me there. Out here… it’s unpredictable. At least there, we knew what was coming. A beating or… or pain. Lots of pain, but it was something we knew was inevitable y’know. I feel… uneasy being here.”

Nick kind of understood what Charlie meant. He’d felt the same when he first went home, but it soon faded. He needed to regain the things that had been taken from him. He spent many mornings before he visited Charlie sitting on his doorstep. He didn’t want to be scared of it, knowing that the last time he’d stood there may well have been his last. His mum had found him one morning, hugging Nellie and with tears rolling down his face. He told her that he needed to do it, to be strong, and so that’s how he and his mum would spend every morning - with a cup of tea and a blanket huddled around his shoulders. 

“Yeah, I get that. But… we can do this together. We got through hell together, we can survive this. I know we will.” Nick placed a gentle kiss on the tip of Charlie’s nose. He felt Charlie physically relax into him and they laid like that for a while, soon dozing off into a well needed slumber. 

★

Charlie opened his eyes, certain he had fallen asleep in his room, atop Nick’s beating heart, but this… this wasn’t it. 

Below him was the mattress he’d become well accustomed to. Around him were the grey walls that prisoned him in and held him captive. 

No. He can’t be back here. How was he back here? He was safe. They were both safe!

“N-Nick?” Charlie called, his voice catching on the panic that was beginning to surface. There was no answer. The room was silent except for his own breathing that became increasingly frantic. Charlie ran over to the window and pushed it, but nothing happened. It was locked. 

No, no, no. This can’t be happening. Please, how is this happening?

Charlie fell to his knees, a wracked sob leaving his chapped lips and echoing around the room. The high-pitched squeak of the door hit his ears and he couldn’t help but clamber to his feet to investigate. In walked David with a bloody and beaten Nick in his arms, dropping him unceremoniously to the floor. Nick’s once copper locks, now dyed thick crimson from the blood, swooped flatly over his bruised face as he lay limp on the ground. 

It took no time at all for Charlie to scramble over to Nick, checking his mouth and chest for any signs of breathing. “What did you do to him?”

“I had to teach him a lesson. He thought he could best me, outsmart me. He was wrong, and he had to pay.”

Nick’s pulse was faint and his breathing was slowing down by the second. “Nick… please. Wake up. You can’t… you can’t leave me here,” Charlie cried, tears dripping down his face and staining Nick’s hoody. 

“He won’t have long left, I’d say everything you want to say now.”

Charlie shook his head in disbelief. “But… You can’t… you can’t do this.”

David grinned, flashing his barred teeth. “Oh, I can and I will. You have one minute, starting… now.”

Charlie curled himself onto his boyfriend's chest, laying his head gently on the ripped fabric of Nick’s hoody. He could feel Nick’s heart beating beneath his ear and how faint it was compared to his own. This can’t be the end. Nick was so strong, he would pull through, surely?

“Nick… I… I love you so so much. Please, I need you… I need you and I can’t live without you. Please. You’ve got to fight this!” Tears dropped onto Nick’s face as Charlie hovered over him.

“C-Char?”

“It’s me, Nick. It’s me.”

Nick smiled, his eyes opening slowly to meet Charlie’s own. Nick huffed a laugh and then went to speak. “I-”

Crack. 

A pained cry left Nick’s mouth as crimson red began to blossom hurriedly from a hole in his chest. Charlie’s eyes opened wide as he watched  an endless stream of blood pour from his lover. He looked up at David, who was still pointing the gun at Nick, a flicker of smoke leaving the barrel. Charlie looked back at Nick, whose eyes fluttered shut and the last remaining breath escaped his lips.

“And now, it’s your turn…” David growled.

Charlie held onto Nick’s hand with all that was left in him. If he couldn’t have Nick, then he didn’t want to be alive. He welcomed David’s threat but not before placing one gentle, chaste kiss to Nick’s paling face. “I’ll be with you soon, darling. Just you wait.”

★

Charlie’s t-shirt was soaked with sweat, a small bead dripped into his eye which he wiped away with his one free hand. He looked down at the other, which was being gripped by a white-knuckled hand that felt familiar to him. Following the arm, he found it belonged to Nick. Nick, who was alive and well, but looking at him with pure agony and pain in his eyes.

“Charlie? You’re okay, you’re safe. I’m here,” he cooed, rubbing circles into Charlie’s back. It wasn’t as gentle as he once knew, realising his hand in the cast was the one at his rear. 

He burrowed his nest of dark curls into the juncture of Nick’s shoulder and let out a sigh of relief. “You’re here? Really here?”

“I’m here, this is all real, I promise.”

Nick quelled his worries by kissing the top of his head and replaying their day back to him. It soothed Charlie to no end hearing Nick’s calm voice; it almost lulled him back to sleep, but  he was too scared to close his eyes again, fearful of what lie waiting for him once he does.

“Do you want to tell me what happened in your dream?” Nick asked. Charlie shook his head, his wild curls bouncing against his skin. “Okay, that’s okay. We can just lay like this. Do you want to put a movie on?”

Charlie nodded. “Please.”

Nick smiled, letting go of Charlie whilst he went looking for the younger boy's laptop. Retrieving it, he retook his place in Charlie’s bed and gathered his boyfriend back into his arms. Charlie informed Nick of the password and then loaded up Netflix, where they decided to watch something light and fluffy considering the mood.

Charlie was content, laying in Nick’s warm embrace in his bedroom, something that a few months ago seemed unrealistic. He laid his head further down Nick’s chest, resting it atop Nick’s pec and listened intently at the welcomed beating of his boyfriend’s heartbeat.

★

Wednesday 25th December

Nick and Charlie’s headmaster had allowed the boys to take the rest of the term off and return upon school restarting in the new year. They were also informed that a new form layout was being introduced, in which students from all year groups would be put into several different forms across the school. Strangely enough, Nick and Charlie were placed in the same form group - something Nick’s mum claimed she knew nothing about, though her shifty smirk said otherwise.

The pair had both been through a tough month and a half since being rescued from David and his gang. They both had to endure their first night away from each other since  being out of hospital, which was agony on both parts. They both felt uneasy and unsafe without the other, so it was doubly hard. 

Charlie found himself screaming out for Nick, who wasn’t there. He jumped out of bed and hopped the short stretch between his and his little brother's room, choosing to leave his crutches behind so as to not make too much noise. Olly was curled up around his dinosaur plushie, his mouth agape but his face still from sleep. He climbed in behind the young boy and wrapped his arms around his small waist, stroking the soft fur of the green and blue stegosaurus held tightly in Olly’s arms. He woke up to his mum watching them both with a tear in her eye. Charlie didn’t have to explain, she just knew. 

Nick, however, wasn’t so lucky with people to confide in. He’d woken many nights in tears, close to throwing up from heaving too much. His mum was there most of the time, but even she had to go back to work. The first night he’d woken up alone, he reached for his phone and read the time. 03:27. He wanted to ring Charlie, who was the only person that understood his nightmares, but what if Charlie was asleep? 

He opened his text thread with his boyfriend, hoping he wouldn't wake him if he was asleep. 

Nick [03:29]: Hey Char 🩷 Are you awake? I had a nightmare and mum’s not in, so I just thought I’d check before I rang you xxxx
Nick [03:29]: You’re probably not and if I wake you then I’m so sorry!! Xxxx
Nick [03:30]: I love you so so much, sleep tight darling xxxx

He waited twenty minutes before giving up, realising his boyfriend was fast asleep. He felt guilty for wishing Charlie was awake. He knew how hard it was for either of them to get a good night's sleep, and the one time Charlie was, Nick needed him. He ended up sitting on the sofa in the living room, watching a show until his mum came home and urged him to get some rest. 

The pair also started their own therapy sessions. It took Jane, Julio and Sarah to pry them away from each other, not wanting to share their grief alone to some stranger, but after intense persuasion, they both went their separate ways into their therapists room. Charlie was joined by Julio, and Nick joined by Sarah, at least for their first session. It was new for them both and their parents wanted to make it as easy as possible. After their hour-long session, Charlie joined Nick at the Nelson’s house for dinner and a sleepover. 

Their parents tried to get them to not be so codependent on each other, only allowing them to stay over each other’s house a few times a week rather than every night. And that’s how they lived their life, mostly. That is, until the week leading up to Christmas, where Charlie was allowed to stay at Nick’s for the whole week until the 27th, where Nick would then stay at Charlie’s until the new year.

The Springs and Nelsons had decided in early December that they were to have a joint Christmas this year to celebrate the year they’d been through as a collective unit, much to Nick and Charlie’s shared excitement. 

Charlie woke up on Christmas morning, encompassed by Nick’s bodily heat and his burly, rugby-playing arms. Nick had worked out a little since The Room. He worked on his cardio, what with his broken arm, attempting to build his strength back to his previous abilities. Charlie had joined him a few times, wanting to work on his upper body strength whilst his leg healed and he couldn’t build up his cardio. 

Nick blinked himself from sleep at the feeling of Charlie shifting beside him. A smile appeared on his lips at the thought of waking up next to the love of his life on Christmas morning. 

“Good morning, sleepy head,” Charlie whispered into Nick’s skin before planting soft kisses there. 

Nick smiled. “Good morning, beautiful. Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas.”

Nick pulled Charlie closer into his body, smelling the apple scented shampoo that lingered on the younger boy's thick curls. He was excited to spend the day with Charlie and his family. They had sort of become an extension of his own family, and Tori and Olly had become siblings to him. He looked out for them both, helping the Springs with Olly’s pickup from school with Charlie, helping Tori with her homework - well, as much as he could, Charlie was much smarter than he was - and became a shoulder to cry on when either of them needed someone to offload onto.

Before the pair could even think about showing any more affection, the squeak of Nick’s door opening and the thump of tiny feet against the carpet roared into the room. 

“NICK! CHARLIE! Wake up! Father Christmas has been! He knew we were here!”

Charlie groaned sleepily, rubbing his eyes as he sat up in bed. “Christmas? Already? Are you sure?” he joked, knowing his little brother would not be taking any shit this morning.

“Yeah! Christmas day comes after Christmas eve, and that was yesterday!” Olly grinned, bouncing with excitement. “Come on! Tori said to wake you first before waking her, otherwise she would set Nellie on me.”

“I don’t think Nellie is capable of being mean to anyone,” Nick chuckled, throwing the duvet over his legs. Charlie scrambled for the duvet, cocooning himself into a burrito. “Oh, looks like someone doesn’t want to get out of bed today, Olls. I think this calls for a tickle pile, don’t you?”

“Don’t you dare,” Charlie replied, gripping onto the duvet further.

“TICKLE ATTACK!” Olly screamed as he jumped on his older brother. Nick joined in, ripping the duvet from Charlie’s grasp for Olly to pounce onto the boy. Charlie squealed as Nick tickled Charlie under his neck with his good hand, whilst Olly aimed for his stomach, but careful enough not to touch Charlie’s scars or his leg in the cast. 

“Okay, okay! Enough! I’m getting up,” Charlie replied between fits of laughter and coughs.

Nick and Olly high fived each other before Olly ran from the room, informing the pair that he was now going to wake up Tori.

“You two are one evil tag team, I’ll tell you that,” Charlie huffed, climbing out of bed. He picked up one of Nick’s hoodies from the chair and chucked it over his messy curls. “Come on then, I know you’re more excited about today than Olly is. Let’s go see what ‘Santa’ brought,” he teased, using air quotes around Santa.

Nick smiled and hugged Charlie tightly one last time before lifting Charlie in his arms, guiding him out of the room and down the stairs.

★

In the softly lit dining room of their cosy home, the scent of roast turkey and warm spices filled the air, mingling with the laughter and chatter of family gathered around the table. It was Christmas dinner, a time for joy and celebration. But for Charlie, the festive meal brought with it a sense of unease and anxiety. Food wasn’t an easy subject for Charlie, or Nick for that matter. Ever since they’d come home, eating for the pair was nothing but a struggle.

As the plates were passed around the table, Charlie's eyes flickered nervously from dish to dish, his stomach twisting with apprehension. His battle with food made every meal a challenge, and Christmas dinner was no exception. His parents noticed his discomfort but said nothing, their worry etched on their faces as they watched their son struggle.

Nick sat beside him, his own plate untouched as he focused his attention on Charlie. He could see the tension in Charlie's body, the way his hands trembled as he picked at his food. Without a word, Nick reached out and gently squeezed Charlie's hand, offering silent support.

Charlie glanced at Nick, his eyes filled with gratitude and a hint of desperation. He knew he couldn't do this alone, couldn't face the overwhelming challenge of the meal without Nick by his side. Swallowing his pride, he whispered, "I can't do it, Nick. I can't eat all of it."

Nick's heart ached at the pain in Charlie's voice, but he remained steadfast in his determination to help him through this. "It's okay, Charlie," he murmured, his voice gentle and reassuring. "You don't have to do it alone. I'm here for you. We can pick what we want to eat and save the rest for later or tomorrow."

With a nod of understanding, Nick began to quietly help Charlie navigate his meal, offering words of motivation and support every step of the way. He encouraged Charlie to take small bites, to focus on the taste and texture of the food rather than the overwhelming anxiety that threatened to consume him.

And slowly, with Nick's unwavering support, Charlie found the strength to take each bite, to savour the flavours of the meal despite the turmoil raging within him. Though it was a struggle, he knew he wasn't facing it alone, that Nick was there beside him every step of the way.

As the meal progressed, Jane and Julio watched in silence, their hearts heavy with worry for their son. But they took comfort in the sight of Nick by Charlie's side, providing him the support and love he so desperately needed.

After everyone was finished, Nick and Charlie offered to wash up the plates, whilst everyone else set themselves up in the living room for presents. Olly was very displeased when he was told he couldn’t open his gifts until after dinner and had pestered everyone since then about how long the food was going to take. Jane had to scold the young boy, who shoved three roast potatoes in his mouth to make the meal go quicker.

They had a good system going down. Charlie sat on a stool and washed whilst Nick dried, and then afterwards they would put everything back in the correct places. Finally, the boys made their way into the living room where Olly was already divvying out the presents. 

“Nick, Charlie, you’re over there on the sofa. I’ve put your presents in a pile. There are some cards on top for you both, too.”

Being in charge had gone a little to Olly’s head when he ordered everyone to open the presents one-by-one so that everyone could see what they were opening. Nick could feel Charlie tense beside him, not wanting the attention to be on him for too long, and suggested that maybe it would be quicker to open everything at the same time. Olly conceded, but only because Sarah and Tori had agreed with Nick. 

Nick started on his cards first, opening ones from his aunt and uncle who couldn’t be there this year, as well as from his mum, the Springs, and a rather sappy one from Charlie about how he was so happy to be spending their first Christmas together. The final card was from someone unknown to him. The handwriting was unfamiliar and the stamp from the Post Office was from somewhere in the UK he hadn’t heard of. 

Upon opening the envelope, a white slip of paper fell from the plain, non-Christmas related card and Nick turned it over to read its contents.  

“Oh my god,” he replied, a little too loudly.  The room fell silent and all eyes were on Nick. 

“What is it, Darling?” Sarah asked, putting down her brand new foot massager that she’d received. 

Nick opened the card and scanned over the messy scrawl within. 

Dearest Nicholas,

I hope this card finds you well. 

I heard on the news that you were found alive and that you have since returned home to your mother and boyfriend. I am beyond happy to hear that. What David did was unfathomable and I can only apologise that this happened because of me. 

I understand that you may not want to hear from me after the way I have treated you and your mother, but I needed you to have this before I passed. 

As you know, I am dying and it is my only wish to know that you are both well looked after once I am gone. I have enclosed a cheque for you to cash in whatever way you like. I know this will never make up for the lack of a father growing up, but I hope this can be some sort of bridge to amends. 

I love you and always have. 

My heart,

Stéphane (Papa)

xxxx

A single tear drop fell upon the card, blotching the ink and making it run down the page. Charlie had been reading it next to him, which Nick was kind of thankful for because he didn’t think he could speak right now. 

“It’s from Stéphane. He says he is happy to hear Nick is free and safe and has sent him some money for his future.” Charlie picked the cheque from Nick’s lap where he’d placed it as he opened the card, and his eyes opened wide from shock. “Holy fu- fudge,” he corrected himself quickly, looking over at his parents. “This is…”

“Two million pounds.” Nick finished the sentence, staring at the only visible piece of carpet under the mess of wrapping paper. 

The room was silent for a while, everyone clearly in shock except Olly, who had no idea what was going on. Sarah had also started crying; one of her hands had flown up to cover her mouth at the large sum of money they now had. 

“After everything he’s put you through, two million pounds is the least he could do,” Tori said from across the room. She was surrounded by her own untouched and unopened presents, as she had been helping Olly with his. 

“Tori, it’s not about that, it’s–”

“It’s what, Charles? That man left Nick when he was a baby to become a drug lord, he raised the spawn of Satan that later went on to kidnap you and Nick, where you were beaten within an inch of your life. No, you’re right, Nick should demand more.”

The siblings continued to bicker, their voices becoming more raised and harsh with every sentence. Jane and Julio had to step in, but their attempt at cooling the situation became futile. 

Nick looked over at his mum, who was watching Nick intently. He shook his head, and it was as if she knew exactly what he was saying. In response, she nodded. She wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled warmly at her son. 

Quickly, Nick swiped the cheque from Charlie’s hands and tore the paper into tiny little pieces. The room watched him, dumbfounded, as he continued to rip and tear. 

Content, Nick threw the paper into the nearest black bin bag that littered the room, the ones Sarah had set up for the wrapping paper to be deposited into, much like every other mum in the UK, and sighed a huge breath of relief. 

“I don’t want his filthy money. That money is tainted by blood, drugs and… and… evil. I’d rather never see two million pounds in my entire life than use his dirty money to get by. We haven’t needed his money up till now, we’re not going to start needing it now. As far as I’m concerned, I don’t have a father and I am an only child. My mum and you guys are the only family I need.” 

Tori remained silent, as if she was guilty that she’d even suggested he keep the money. Charlie stood up next to him, putting his weight on his good leg, and pulled him into a bone-crushing hug. “I’m so proud of you, baby. That must have been a hard choice to make but I’m not leaving your side, money or no money. I love you so much, Nick Nelson. I’ll be your family until the day I day, if you want me too.”

Nick huffed a snotty laugh. “Are you proposing to me, Charlie Spring? And in front of your family?”

“Not right now, but someday I will.”

“Not if I beat you first!” 

Nick leaned down and kissed Charlie’s adorable, plump lips. He was so in love with this boy. Who needs that man’s stolen cash when he has all the wealth in the world right in front of him?

Olly broke the cute moment by fake gagging and screaming “ewww!” at the top of his lungs. “Stop kissing! I haven’t opened all my presents yet!”

The room laughed and Olly continued to rip into his big present from Santa. Nick and Charlie gave each other one more quick peck before retaking their seats on the sofa and opening their presents. 

Charlie had received a plethora of gifts from his parents, including a new set of drum sticks and a cookbook of recipes that he’d shown an interest in after a few sessions with his therapist. Nick had got some new clothes from the Springs and an old fashioned film camera that he could use to take photos whenever he’s out and about. Nick loved that idea, but knew he would mostly be taking pictures of the boy, his world, sitting next to him. 

Nick had given Charlie a key to their house, for him to use whenever he needed it, as well as a hand-made photo frame with a photo of the two of them smiling and cuddling that Sarah had sneakily taken of them one night, and tickets to see Charlie’s favourite band in concert in London. Charlie had given Nick all his hoodies back that he’d stolen in the last month, which made the younger boy laugh more than it should have. He’d also bought a Saracens rugby shirt, Nick’s favourite team, with Nelson 10 printed on the back, and two tickets to watch them play in the Spring. 

After thanking each other for their kind gifts, Olly pointed out the last box sat between the two boys. “It was addressed to you both, so I didn’t know who’s pile to put it in.”

Nick lifted the box, checking the tag that had been written to ‘Nick and Charlie’ and examined the package attentively. He looked at his mum, whose eyebrows were furrowed in confusion, and tore open the paper. He peeled back the tape that held the box closed and dropped it on the floor, on top of the forgotten wrapping paper. 

Inside was black cloth and a folded piece of paper which Charlie pulled out, whilst Nick grabbed hold of the fabric. His body froze at the memory of that fabric against his skin. The fabric that blinded his vision as he was driven from The Room to this exact house and forced to deliver a message to his mother. He unfurled the costume to reveal itself whilst Charlie next to him glared at the unfolded piece of paper. 

On it was a recent picture of the two of them, curled together on a park bench whilst Nellie was running around on the grass chasing a ball that Olly was throwing for her. The two of them were circled in red, much like the original photo David had given Ste and Jay when they made them take Nick all those days ago. Underneath was a note directed at the two of them. Just the two of them. Neither Nick or Charlie could do anything except remain as stone as possible. Their breathing was irregular and they could both sense a panic attack brewing. 

David had been in the house. The box wasn’t addressed, so it must have been put under the tree, but no one knew anything about it. 

Charlie tried to rise to his feet, but couldn’t. Instead, he fell into a heap on the floor, his hand covering his mouth to stop himself from throwing up. Jane collapsed on the floor after him, holding a bag to Charlie’s mouth as he vomited. The rest of the room watched as Nick picked up the piece of paper and the colour drained from his face. 

You think this is over? It’s only just begun. D x