Falling (a Heartstopper fanfiction)

Snails

Tonight they were having a dinner in a fancy restaurant. Charlie had heroically chosen not to cling to Nick, not wanting to make it seem like they were joined at the hip or anything, so he ended up next to Ben, of all people, instead.

The menu options had been prechosen. Charlie had let Nick talk him into getting the beef bourgignon, which had sounded good at the time, when it was the two of them in Nick's room, excited about their choices. Tonight, stuck next to Ben, it looked nauseating. At least he had Tao on his other side, so he wasn't completely alone.

Tao had ordered the escargots—the only one at the table who had been brave enough, it seemed. They were placed in front of him, and everyone teased him about the way they looked. Who ever thought eating snails was a good idea?

He forked one up, staring at it as though he thought it might leap of the fork.

"No, don't do it!" Darcy begged him. "Don't do it, don't do it, don't do it."

The snail was absolutely dripping butter and garlic. Nick did a drumroll on the table, and Tao shoved the snail into his mouth, quickly, before he could think better of it. He chewed slowly, to Darcy's open disgust and Nick's enthusiastic encouragement, and swallowed hard. Then he followed it up with an entire glass of water, while the rest of them laughed.

As Charlie toyed with his food, Ben turned to him. "I haven't spoken to you properly in ages. How was your first day in Paris?"

Charlie stared at his bowl, which no longer even looked like food.

Across the table from him, Imogen spoke up sharply. "Not interested in how my day was, then?"

"Why are you in a mood with me?"

"Because you're supposed to be my boyfriend! But instead, you've got some sort of obsession with Charlie."

Charlie froze. Was she about to out Nick? Or Ben? Did she even know about him and Ben?

The entire table had gone silent. Ben dropped his fork onto his plate and it clattered loudly in the stillness. "What are you trying to say?"

"I don't know why you're obsessed with Charlie! And, to be honest, I don't even care."

Across the table, Charlie met Nick's eyes. He wished so much to be sitting next to him, holding his hand, feeling safe.

Imogen wasn't finished. "All I know is, you're a terrible boyfriend, and I deserve better!"

Yes, she did. Charlie was glad she was standing up for herself, although he really wished she'd picked a better time. Like, anytime when he wasn't sitting next to Ben.

"I'm breaking up with you," Imogen announced. "Your energy's off! You're not mature, and clearly you have some issues that you need to resolve before you're ready to be in a relationship. And I'm not going to wait around for you! I think it's time I focused on myself." She sat back, taking a deep breath.

"If you don't want to be with me anymore, that's fine," Ben said, calm and collected, "but you don't have to be such a bitch about it."

From the teachers' table, Mr. Ajayi's voice cut into the sudden buzz. "Benjamin. Language!"

Someone else said, "She's got a point," and Mr. Farouk called out, "Pipe down."

Then, Harry Greene, of all people, said, "There's no need to call her a bitch. What?" Who would have expected Harry to stand up for someone?

Ben looked directly across the table at Nick, and then back to Imogen. "Fine, then." He got up and left the table.

As conversation started back up, the hum of juicy gossip being discussed, Imogen got up, too, and headed for the bathroom. Charlie and Nick looked at each other, and Nick tilted his head, indicating that he was going after her. Charlie went, too. He knew all too well what Ben could do to a person.

Charlie knocked on the bathroom door and then gently pulled it open. Imogen was staring into the mirror. She smiled a little when she saw them. "Oh. Hey."

"Hey."

Nick pulled the door closed behind them. "Just wanted to come and check you were okay."

"I think I am." Her voice was shaky, but she was holding it together. "I don't know, maybe I shouldn't have done that in front of everyone."

Embarrassing as it had been to be dragged into the middle of it, Charlie realised how satisfying it had been to see Ben called out for what he was in front of everyone. "Well, I think it was one of the coolest things I've ever seen, so ..."

"Agreed."

Imogen laughed shakily. She was on the verge of tears, Charlie could tell. "Did you and Ben ever—"

He looked down. He didn't want to say. He wanted to pretend it had never happened.

"It doesn't matter," Imogen said quickly. "He's gone now. Ugh ... everything would be so much easier if I was into girls."

"Uh ..."

Nick smiled. "I'm not so sure about that, but, um ... I know what you mean."

"Could I maybe have a hug?"

Nick reached out and pulled her in, resting his chin on the top of her head. And then he turned to Charlie and held out an arm for him, too. And the three of them hugged. Maybe Imogen didn't know everything, maybe she had guessed some things. As she said, it didn't matter. What mattered was that both of them were going to be okay. Ben didn't have power over them any longer. And they had friends, and each other, and three more beautiful days in Paris.