Sapnap had been in love for five years.

Five years and six months to be exact.

Five years and six months ago he had met Karl for the first time.

They were partners for a project in their theatre class and became inseparable since then.

They've been everywhere together.

Road Trips to the coast, a lot of picnics and fun fairs, spend countless hours at each other's homes and on the roof of the shed in Karl's garden.

Tonight was another of those nights, when they laid on that roof, listening to music, enjoying how they could be together without the need to talk.

Sapnap turned his head to look at Karl, blushed a bit when Karl looked at him too.

Karl smiled reached for Nicks hand.

Sapnap had that smile engraved in his memories.

Whenever they were on the fun fair and he had won Karl a new plushy and he had smiled like that.

Or when they finally arrived on the beach after an hour long road trip and Karl ran some steps just to turn around and smile at Nick.

"You're beautiful.", Sapnap mumbled, rubbing circles on the back of Karl hand.

"Stop, you're gonna make me blush.", Karl joked and looked back up at the stars.

"I do that on purpose, you're cute when you blush.", Sapnap said with a smile, when Karl giggled.

"You're such a simp!", Karl giggled and Sapnap nodded, mumbled: "Yeah I am."

"What?", Karl asked, looking back at his friend. His beloved Nick.

"What?", Sapnap replied, returning the smile softly.

His heart still couldn't cope with having Karl so close to him, holding his hand and seeing that smile and hearing that giggle he loved so much.

Not even after all those years, that he had loved him and been friends with him had his heart stopped racing the second he saw him.

They fell into a comfortable silence, just looking at each other as if, after all those years, there still were details they could discover.

Karl bit his lip, the same way he did when they would be at the local donut shop and he had to decide between strawberry sprinkles and apple pie filling.

"What are you debating?", Sapnap asked, knowing that expression after all the decisions he had seen Karl make.

It became quiet again and Sapnap saw how Karl became tense.

"What would you do if I told you that I love you?", Karl suddenly asked into the silence, knocking out all the air from Sapnap's lungs.

"I'd tell you that I love you too, you're my best friend, how couldn't I love you?", he tried to give an answer he hoped wouldn't sound too nervous nor too obvious.

Karl sighed, sat up so that Sapnap could only see his back.

When Sapnap sat up too, he could see Karl biting his bottom lip again, saw him fumbling on the seam of his shirt.

"I think I have to rephrase it.", he paused, killing Sapnap with the silence, until, "How would you react if I told you I fell in love with you?"

Sapnap didn't process the words, until Karl was already taking them back.

"You know what, that was a horrible question, I didn't mean it like that. Just forget about it."

"No! No, I won't forget about it.", Nick replied, softly turning Karls face to look at him, "Did you want to say, what I think you wanted to say?"

The smile on Sapnap's face gave Karl hope and he nodded.

"I fell in love with you, Nick.", he whispered.

The younger one's face lit up, surprise and relief leaving a signature on his expression.

"You just said what I never had the courage for to say.", he replied, looking at the Karl in disbelief and suddenly he heard himself say, "I really want to kiss you."

"Why aren't you doing it then?", Karl asked with a smile, gently running right hand up Sapnap's arm, over his shoulder until he reached the back of his neck right in time, for Sapnap leaning in to connect their lips.

The kiss was sloppy and uncoordinated and full of giggles.

Whenever one of them would try to break away, the other would dive back in, chasing the fuzzy feeling the kiss gave them.

And after what felt like sweet eternity, Karl himself glued to Sapnap, who was laying on his back, gently running his fingers through Karls curls.

"I fell in love with you five years and six months ago.", Sapnap mumbled.

He was pretty sure Karl could hear his heart beat like this, but he couldn't care less.

"Aren't we friends for five years and six months?", Karl asked and Nick nodded.

"Yeah, I knew it was you when you held my hand on the day of the audition.", Sapnap confessed, "But I never thought you'd like me back that way."

"That's cute. You should have said something, I fell in love with you four years and a month ago.", Karl replied, "When you won Johnny on the fun fair for me. You were so proud presenting me that teddy bear, my heart couldn't take it anymore."

"We could've dated four years ago?", Sapnap asked, "I could've kissed you for four years?"

"Yeah, guess we have a lot of catching up to do now, huh?", Karl asked and smiled up at the other.

"You bet we do."