The Escape; A Heartstopper Story

Clueless About Everything Except, You

Dedicated to heartstopperxo, AmyDerycke, JayMari-lyn, Narlieship, and Robin_Writes_12 for all of their incredibly kind support of my writing ventures so far! You are all truly amazing people :)

Confused.

It was the only word Nick Nelson could've used to describe himself as he experienced the roller coaster which was his life over the past several months, no matter what aspect of it someone was talking about.

Almost as if his feet were marching him forward down the averagely paved path he was supposed to choose, keeping his direction straight as the self-made, tunnel walls which encompassed all its sides with perfect similarity. It was a road sheltered away from the chaos of the unknown, providing the natural comfort the sixteen year-old had relied on for as long as he could remember.

And, if we're being completely honest, probably even before then, too.

It was the path the people-pleaser's family and friends, both new and old alike, had expected him to take up the leisure of.

To remain within the normalized circumference of, his naively curious eyes watching the world around him grow without any concern of having to go along for the ride with it.

In other words, it was safe.

From the judgment of his so-called "friends" and passing peers.

From the insecurity of knowing he could never give his brother the sibling he wanted.

From the indecision which was effortlessly tied so tightly together with openness.

And from the fear that was self-discovery.

And the other option? Well, it was simply a shy, cute fifteen year-old boy from Nick's form class.

A boy whose style consisted almost only of plaid shirts (or an occasional stolen sweatshirt), distressed jeans, and an assortment of converse sneakers. Pieces of clothing that would hardly appear unique to the naked eye, yet Nick couldn't seem to stop himself from smiling at the sight of.

A boy whose short, jet black hair almost always sat messily atop his head, their bouncy curls carrying just enough optimism to emulate the friendliness hidden behind his nervous smile.

And whose touch could light Nick's entire world on fire, igniting an inner rainbow of emotions he'd never known he could truly connect with until he was living those very moments for himself.

Magical things that somehow all managed to be contained in a single boy's softly beating heart.

But that was the funniest part.

The rugby lad wasn't really quite sure there was a difference between all those, or really any, part of his life anymore.

Yeah, sure he technically still had all the basic responsibilities a typical teenager his age would like going to school, hanging out with his friends, and helping his single mom around their house, (though that little family fact would certainly be a hard one for strangers to see due to her incredible capacity to show both determination and support in her every action, something which only made her Nicky appreciate her more) but those little tasks had recently began to feel more like only little blips in time between the moments his whole body ached so desperately for.

A sensation that simultaneously sent an excited shiver shooting up his spine and a longing to his fingertips, nerves which the usually confident rugby lad had rarely found himself experiencing before a few months ago.