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🍂
The first time Nick saw him was in his literature course. His eyes had instantly been drawn to dark unruly waves and a sharp jaw. He was wearing converse, ripped black skinny jeans, and an open flannel shirt over a black tee—and Nick had never seen someone look so effortlessly cool. He was tall (though not quite as tall as Nick, by the look of it) with a slender frame, and carried himself with such grace. There was a slight olive tone to his skin, and his eyes were a stormy shade of blue Nick wasn’t sure he had ever seen in real life.
Was this real life?
Nick had never been so immediately enamoured with another person—especially one he had literally just laid eyes on for the first time. Appearance wasn’t usually the driving factor behind Nick’s interest in dating, but he couldn’t deny the effect this man was having on him. Honestly, it didn’t even feel like it was just about his looks—Nick couldn’t shake the feeling that this person was meant to walk into his life today.
Unfortunately for Nick, he kept walking, taking a seat much closer to the front of the room. He tried not to spend the rest of the class dreamily staring at the back of the guy’s gorgeous head, but failed miserably. It didn’t help when he opened his mouth, and Nick was confronted with the sexiest voice he had ever heard. And that voice wasn’t just yammering on for the sake of it—no, it was confident and smart and insightful, and Nick was pretty sure he might die.
At the end of class, he wanted nothing more than to introduce himself to—let’s face it—pretty much his new favourite person, but Nick was a certified bi-disaster. He knew if he went over there, he’d just make a fool of himself. Besides, they had a class together, so Nick would obviously see him again eventually, right?
🍂
The second time Nick saw him was in his favourite cafe near campus the very next day. After walking through the door and spotting the object of his desire behind the counter, in much the same outfit as the day prior just with the addition of an (adorable) apron, Nick briefly panicked and considered walking right back out. But those captivating eyes were already on him, and he didn’t think running away would make a particularly good first impression either, so he forced his legs to carry him forward and hoped for the best.
All things considered, it went fairly well. Nick was definitely a bit flustered and much less eloquent than he would have liked, but he managed to order his tea and sandwich without saying anything particularly embarrassing (like, ‘I want to be with you forever’) and go on with his day with his dignity mostly intact.
And, one very good thing had come out of the chance encounter, in the shape of a small name badge pinned to the corner of the apron—Charlie’s apron.
God, what a gorgeous name.
There was a part of Nick that still kicked himself a bit for not striking up more of a conversation, but he knew that work wasn’t the appropriate time or place to hit on someone anyway. (That was his reason—not being a giant scaredy cat—and he was sticking to it.)
🍂
For the next several weeks, Nick felt like he saw Charlie everywhere. He encountered him at the cafe from time to time, and saw him in class, of course—but it was more than that. Nick frequently noticed him walking by on campus, spotted him in shops, and even ran into him at the pub on a night out. Charlie was always nice enough the times he actually noticed Nick back—you know, like when he didn’t have a choice but to make him his daily cuppa—but it certainly didn’t seem like Nick’s mere presence brightened Charlie’s day the way the other man’s did his.
Nick had told himself that first day in class that he didn’t need to act right away…but now he was starting to feel like he had waited too long. The more time that passed without him making an effort to get to know Charlie, the more impossible the idea of randomly starting up a friendly conversation started to feel.
Ugh! Why am I like this?!
Feeling sad and more than a little frustrated with himself, Nick decided that maybe it wasn’t meant to be. Something about Charlie seemed to make him even more of a disaster than usual, and he decided he should probably try to get over his ridiculous crush on the near stranger.
🍂
It was the weekend before Halloween, and Nick was ready to lose himself in booze and music and somebody else’s identity. It was unseasonably warm, and Nick had decided to take full advantage, wearing a costume that was more revealing than he’d usually go for—but, fuck it, he kind of wanted to get laid tonight. He put on his metallic gold shorts—the spandex covering his bum and his bulge but little else—took a few shots to loosen up, and headed out for the evening.
The party Nick found himself at was pretty fun. His friends, Tara and Darcy, had practically begged him to come, and then promptly disappeared somewhere to hook up. Still, Nick was enjoying the music and being surrounded by loads of attractive people in varying states of undress. Nick wasn’t much of a dancer, but he was buzzed and swaying around on the floor, because he also knew how to have a good time.
Nick had just been taking in the crowd, and trying to decide if he saw anyone he fancied enough to approach, when someone new entered the room.
Fuck.
This guy looked like he had been plucked straight out of 15-year-old Nick’s wildest fantasies. He was dressed as Spider-Man, but clearly a battle-worn one, with various large rips in his suit obviously intended to make the already skin-tight outfit somehow even hotter—large sections of thigh, his left hip bone, his right nipple—oh christ, and it’s fucking pierced.
Nick knew he was blatantly staring at this man like a real-life version of the lip-bite emoji, but he couldn’t seem to bring himself to look away. See, he might just be a very big Marvel fan, and Spider-Man might just be his favourite. (Tom Holland’s lip sync battle to “Umbrella” also might just have been young Nick’s bi-awakening.)
Spider-Man had ripped his mask over his mouth as well, which Nick imagined would make partying a lot easier to enjoy, and he mentally gave kudos to the guy for being so clever. This meant that Nick saw as the corners of Spidey’s lips curled up into a devilish grin. Nick couldn’t see the guy’s eyes, but he was pretty sure he was looking at him—which made sense since Nick was literally eye-fucking him and making no attempt to hide it.
Without giving himself a chance to overthink it, he started to approach the stranger.
“Hi.” He wasn’t sure how his voice could sound so breathy while being raised enough to be heard over the noise of the party, but somehow he managed it.
“Hi,” the other man said, and then—honest to god—giggled.
Haha…I’m in danger.
“I like your costume.” It was almost laughable what a giant fucking understatement that was, but Nick figured he could try to play it the tiniest bit cool.
“I can tell,” Spidey said with a smirk. Nick felt himself blush a little, but he honestly didn’t feel as bashful as he often did when trying to pick someone up. Maybe it was the drink, or the fact that he couldn’t see most of the guy’s face—or maybe it was just that he was on a mission to get over Charlie (and under someone else).
Spider-Man looked him up and down, nodding his head in a way that made his approval very clear, and Nick thanked his past self for making the bold outfit choice.
“I like yours too…Rocky.”
“Oh my god! Thank you! Hardly anyone has gotten it so far.”
“Really?” The mystery man laughed. “It’s so obvious. I guess there aren’t as many other queers at this party as I was promised.”
“Enough for me,” Nick said, not caring how incredibly blatant he was making his feelings. A bright smile overtook the mouth Nick hadn’t yet taken his eyes off of—still flirty, but something more earnest there as well.
“Well, in that case…come dance with me?” Nick knew that it was technically a question, but the confidence with which it was asked, as if he had no doubt Nick would follow him further into the crowd of heaving bodies, just made this guy even sexier.
Normally, when dancing with someone he just met, Nick might keep his distance at first—but there was no part of him that wanted space. Plus, the dance floor was honestly far too crowded for that anyway, so he pressed his body against the other man’s as they started to move in time to the beat. He was almost certain he knew the answer, but still went to open his mouth to ask if it was okay—when suddenly Spider-Man was slotting one of his thighs in between Nick’s own, and bringing his arms around Nick’s waist to rest up the length of his back.
Nick felt his whole body crackle with electricity, while simultaneously feeling like his brain had gone offline. The other man was clearly a better dancer than him—his sense of rhythm and lean but strong thigh doing the majority of the work for them both.
And, god, was it working for Nick. He hadn’t exactly been soft since the moment he laid eyes on Spider-Man, but it suddenly occurred to him that he was about to get unmistakably hard while wearing the world’s tiniest shorts. He couldn’t find it within himself to care—he just hoped that it wouldn’t make his dance partner uncomfortable.
Nick started to wonder if he should put some distance between their bodies as his problem—grew—but the other man only seemed to double down on his efforts. His body pushed into Nick’s with even more force, while his hands gripped at Nick’s back as if he could read his mind and was desperate to keep him close.
“So,” he breathed into Nick’s ear, “have you always been such a big fan of Spider-Man?”
This was the first time he was expected to speak since he knew exactly how it felt to be pressed into the gorgeous body in front of him, and he was finding it challenging to make his mind think about anything other than their bodies pressing into each other in other ways.
“Oh, umm…”
And, there was that giggle again, which really didn’t help matters any. Nick took a deep breath, hoping to get some oxygen to his brain. Clearly it was struggling since all his blood seemed to decide it had a better place to be. (Nick was aware the human body didn’t actually work like that, but it didn’t stop it from feeling true.)
“Well, I’ve always been a big Marvel fan, but Tom Holland’s Spider-Man might have an extra special place in my heart.”
“Rocky Horror and Tom Holland…clearly a man of taste.” The last word was uttered so close to Nick’s ear he could feel Spidey’s lips just barely brush his skin. The sensation sent a shiver down his spine—the word taste echoing in his mind on repeat.
“I’d like to taste you.”
Shit. Nick had not meant to say that out loud—no matter how true it was.
As he felt the body that had been pressed into his at almost every point pull away, he worried that he had been too forward—but then he was faced with that delicious smirk again, and felt a new wave of excitement rush through him.
“Okay,” he said—and before Nick even had time to celebrate, Spider-Man’s lips were on his.
The kiss was hot and hungry. It had all the excitement of a first kiss, but none of the hesitation—hands roaming over each other’s bodies in a manner that wasn’t particularly appropriate for public. When Nick felt the other man’s hardness press into him as a pair of strong hands gripped his ass, he let out an involuntary moan. He felt Spidey’s lips curl up into a grin against his own, slowly pulling away from Nick once again.
“Well?”
“Uhh…”—Nick was struggling to make his brain function properly—“what?”
The man laughed.
“How did I taste?”
Christ. This was by far the hottest thing that had ever happened to him.
“I…” Nick struggled for a moment to find the words he wanted. So far, brazenly flirting had seemed to very much work for the guy, and Nick figured he might as well go for it. “I think I’d need a larger sample size before coming to a final conclusion.”
“Fair enough.” Spider-Man beamed, and then grabbed Nick’s hand and started leading him out of the party.
🍂
They had ended up back at Nick’s flat after realising it was the closer of the two. He also knew his roommate was visiting his girlfriend for the weekend, so there was no chance of them being interrupted. The second they had stumbled through the door—buzzed and giggly and unable to keep their hands off each other—Spider-Man had reconnected their mouths determinedly.
“Do you even know how hot you are?” Nick practically groaned.
“Yep,” Nick’s dream guy said with a confident smirk as he moved his lips to press hot kisses down the column of Nick’s throat. “How about you, yeah?”
“Oh, I mean, to some people I suppose…”
Spidey let out a bark of a laugh against Nick’s skin.
“To some people, I suppose,” he said, mockingly. ”Get the fuck out of here! You know you’re gorgeous.”
Nick couldn’t stop the ridiculous smile from taking over his face. He thinks I’m gorgeous.
Suddenly their mouths were on each other again, and Nick was slowly guiding them toward the couch. He sat down, pulling the smaller man into his lap, loving the feeling of two strong thighs bracketing his own. They were so close, but Nick wanted to be closer. He wanted—
“Can I take this off?” he asked, lifting his arms toward the mask over the man’s head.
“Are you sure?” Spider-Man asked teasingly. “I got the impression the costume was a bit of a turn-on for you.”
“Oh, it most definitely is!” Nick said eagerly. “But I…I’d really like to look into your eyes.” He felt a bit embarrassed at the sincerity of his confession, but a part of him wanted this guy to know how much of an effect he was having on him.
“Okay,” he breathed.
Nick brought his hands up to gingerly peel the mask away from his guest’s skin. And, fuck, his eyes are beautiful. They hadn’t bothered to turn the lights on when they got in, but Nick could almost swear the man’s eyes were a stormy shade of blue he had only ever seen—
“Oh my god,” he muttered more to himself than anything. “Charlie?!”
“Nick,” Charlie said, sounding amused but not particularly phased, “you’re surprised.” It was said as more of a statement than a question, but Charlie had one eyebrow quirked in his direction, and Nick was pretty sure he was expected to explain.
“Oh, I…umm…yeah, I didn’t realise that was you under there.” He brought his arm up to rub the back of his neck the way he always did when he was feeling a bit embarrassed or unsure of himself.
“Really?” Charlie laughed. “You’re so obsessed with me—I just assumed you had recognized me, and had finally decided to make a move.”
Nick stared at Charlie with his mouth agape.
“I am not obsessed with you!”
“Right, sure,” Charlie said, putting on a mock serious face and giving Nick a little salute.
Oh my god, the cheeky little shit. Nick could feel himself blushing, and was having trouble fighting the grin that was trying to take over his face.
He wouldn’t normally find cockiness so attractive, but Charlie wasn’t really being cocky—was he?—just confident. And why shouldn’t he be? Nick was, in fact, pretty obsessed with him. And listening to him be so unashamedly self-assured was only making Nick want him more.
Nick grabbed Charlie’s waist and flipped them in one swift motion, so Charlie’s back was up against the arm of the couch, with Nick between his legs. Charlie laughed again, and beamed up at him. Nick brought his lips to Charlie’s collarbone and started trailing hot, open-mouthed kisses up his neck. When he got to Charlie’s ear, he breathed into it, “Fine, you win.” A little jolt of satisfaction made its way through him as he felt Charlie’s entire body shudder underneath his.
Nick moved to claim Charlie’s mouth with his own, when suddenly something occurred to him. He had been so mortified (and then immediately turned on) before that his brain hadn’t even processed it.
“Wait…you know my name?”
Charlie rolled his eyes and gave Nick an affectionate smile.
“Of course I know your name, you absolute turnip. You don’t think I make it a point to learn the names of fit men who stare at me with heart-eyes whenever they see me around?”
Nick stared down at him in disbelief—perhaps for a bit too long, because Charlie decided to add…
“We aren’t all completely useless.” He was back to grinning at Nick like a total menace, and Nick was finding it hard to believe just how much he loved being bullied by this beautiful creature. “I mean, how long did it take for us to actually get here?”
“Uh, I think you’re also to blame for that!” Nick tried to sound affronted, but he knew the ridiculous smile on his face was probably betraying his true emotions.
“Mmm,” Charlie hummed noncommittally, “I figured you’d work up the courage eventually…if you wanted it badly enough.”
Fuck. Why was that so hot?
Charlie wrapped his legs tightly around Nick’s hips, pulling him in closer, until there were mere centimetres between their faces.
“So, Nick,” Charlie whispered into his mouth, sounding positively sinful, “how badly do you want it?”
Nick’s brain spent about half a second trying to think of some words to respond with, before abandoning that plan altogether and crashing his lips into Charlie’s again.
Charlie responded immediately, kissing him back with just as much force—his nails slightly digging into the skin of Nick’s back, sending a fresh wave of pleasure through his entire body.
Nick slid his hands into Charlie’s hair, gripping gently at first, but increasing the pressure as Charlie moaned into his mouth. (Nick was pretty sure he must have actually died at that party, because this was definitely heaven.)
They pulled away from each other, panting, and Nick felt positively giddy at just how wrecked he had managed to make Charlie look.
“Do you wanna see my room?” Nick hoped he didn’t sound quite as desperate as he felt.
“Yeah, alright.” Charlie said, cool as a cucumber, smirking up at Nick.
Nick rolled his eyes fondly and climbed off the smaller man. He held his hand out to help him off the couch, and could have sworn he felt a spark as their hands connected. He pulled Charlie up in one strong motion, his body colliding with Nick’s from the force. Charlie giggled and stared into Nick’s eyes in a way that made him feel more seen than he ever had before.
They brought their lips together again, but this kiss felt different. It was soft and slow and intimate, and Nick’s heart hummed happily at the feeling that this was obviously more than a drunken hookup.
Charlie pulled away and looked at him affectionately.
“Well, come on then,” he said, tugging at Nick’s hand, the cheeky grin he wore most of the night back in its place. “I believe there are still several parts of me you need to taste.”
🍂
When Nick woke up, he was disappointed to find himself alone in bed. He groaned and rolled over to look at his phone on the bedside table.
11:37?! No wonder Charlie was gone.
Nick couldn’t believe he had slept until practically mid-day. They hadn’t stayed at the party that late, and he barely felt hungover—apparently, getting his brains fucked out by the most amazing guy he’s ever met just really took it out of him.
He hoped he’d find a note or something left behind by Charlie, but no such luck. Nick wasn’t going to spiral about it, though. You cross paths all the time…it’s not like you’ll never see him again.
Still, he really hoped that this wasn’t Charlie’s way of trying to tell him that this had been a one-time thing.
Charlie had noticed him around too. Charlie knew his name. Charlie had flirted shamelessly, dragged Nick out of the party, and come back to his to blow his mind (amongst other things).
Charlie had also laughed with him. He had looked at Nick with such longing and affection, like he was the most precious thing he’d ever seen—had wrapped his arms around him and whispered sweet nothings in his ear until sleep had taken them both.
No, this wasn’t a one-night stand. Nick could just feel it.
He trusted that what he felt with Charlie was real, and he trusted that the universe would bring them together again at the perfect moment—it had brought them together in the first place, after all. And, at this point, Nick was pretty sure it was the best thing that had ever happened to him.
He just had to be patient.
He could do that.
🍂
“It’s been three days!” Nick whined, as he walked down the street with his besties.
“Nicholas, my guy, you really are a disaster!” Darcy slapped him on the back in a way he thought was meant to be comforting—but comfort wasn’t exactly Darcy’s strong suit.
“Nick,” Tara said affectionately, “why don’t you just try to find him? Surely it wouldn’t be difficult…have you gone round the cafe he works at?”
“I don’t want him to think I’m stalking him or something!”
“But you go there all the time—Charlie knows that. He won’t think you’re being a creep.”
“What if he doesn’t want to see me again?” Nick was aiming for casual, but his voice must have come out sounding pretty vulnerable, judging by the way Tara looked at him.
“I mean, there’s no way to know for sure until you talk to him”—Tara reasoned—“but from everything you’ve told us, it doesn’t seem like that’ll be the case.” She gave a reassuring smile and a quick squeeze to Nick’s arm.
Nick felt so grateful to have such amazing friends. He knew he’d be alright, even if Charlie didn’t return his feelings—but he still really hoped it wouldn’t come to that, if he was being honest.
“Alright, Nicky boy, that’s enough moping! It’s Halloween…time for some mischief!” Darcy clapped their hands and rubbed them together menacingly.
“Darce, I’m really not in the mood,” Nick said, “and aren’t we a bit old for that sort of thing?”
“Oh, lighten up, grandpa.” They rolled their eyes. “I’m not talking about anything too wild—just a little harmless fun to lift your spirits!”
“Such as…?”
“I dare you to go over to that house, ring the bell, and say ‘trick or treat?’ when they answer the door!” Nick followed the path of Darcy’s finger with his eyes to a house across the street.
“Trick-or-treating?” He raised a sceptical eyebrow in Darcy’s direction. “I know we’re too old for that.”
“Come on, it’ll be a laugh!”
“It’s also the middle of the afternoon…”
“Exactly!” Darcy cried out gleefully, as if this was the best idea anyone had ever had.
“And why that house, exactly?”
“Just picked it at random!” They grinned—which didn’t particularly settle Nick’s mind, but he had to admit it seemed harmless enough.
“Fine,” he huffed, and started making his way to his target.
Nick kind of hoped whoever lived there would be at work, since it was the middle of the day on a Tuesday, but he knew most of these houses were rented by students and he might not get so lucky. Still, as far as pranks—if you could even call it that—go, it was a harmless one. He was sure that whoever lived here wouldn’t be too bothered. Maybe it even would be a laugh, like Darcy said.
As he raised his finger towards the doorbell, he hesitated. He wasn’t sure why he was nervous over such a silly thing, but he gave himself a moment to take a deep breath and then pushed.
He heard the bell sound on the other side of the door, and felt a little spike of adrenaline. A few moments passed, and then he heard someone messing about with the lock. Hoping to get out of there as quickly as possible, he started speaking as soon as the door began to open.
“Trick or—” Nick snapped his mouth shut as he stared into stormy blue eyes.
For fuck’s sake.
He was distantly aware of Darcy cackling somewhere behind him as he stood stock-still, contemplating turning and running away as fast as his rugby legs would carry him.
“Treat.” Charlie said, as his face broke into a suggestive grin—grabbing Nick’s hand to yank him over the threshold, and slamming the door behind them.
🍂