In Heartstopper, Ben Hope, who was in a secret relationship with Charlie and hurt him, realizes that he wants to win him back and apologizes to him. Sebastian Croft plays the role of Ben.
When Charlie was outed before he was ready and bullied at school, Ben, a popular student, approached him and called him brave. Charlie soon came to know that Ben is not straight either, and a vulnerable Charlie got into a secret relationship with him.
Ben would meet Charlie secretly and use him to explore his sexuality, but in public, he would act like Charlie did not mean anything to him. Charlie realizes that Ben is taking advantage of him when he sees him kissing a girl behind his back.
This hurts Charlie, and he tries to end his relationship with Ben, who then forces himself on Charlie. Nick comes to Charlie’s rescue. As Charlie’s relationship with Ben comes to an end, Nick and Charlie grow close and start dating, which does not sit well with Ben.
Ben refuses to take responsibility
When Ben witnesses Charlie and Nick holding hands at the cinema, he gets jealous. He corners Charlie and humiliates him once again. He claims that he never liked Charlie and that he was with him only because he felt sorry for him.
As Ben is insecure and hates himself, he tries to make Charlie feel bad about himself. However, Charlie refuses to be subjected to that anymore and asks him to stay away from him; he makes it clear that Ben does not get to have an opinion about what he does.
In the second season, Ben and Nick are made to sit together for their GCSE revisions, but Nick does not want anything to do with him after what he did to Charlie. Ben still does not take responsibility for his actions and calls it a misunderstanding.
On top of that, he starts dating Imogen, Nick’s friend. He does not care about her but wants to continue being popular, and he needs a girlfriend for that. Ben also keeps taunting Nick about how Nick is the same as him, as he believes that Nick does not want to come out.
In Paris, when Ben keeps ignoring Imogen and acts like he is obsessed with Charlie, Imogen starts questioning if he even likes her. She realizes that he is a terrible boyfriend and breaks up with him in front of their classmates.
Imogen points out that Ben needs to resolve his issues first, but she is not going to wait for him, as she deserves better. Ben is not apologetic and calls her names. For this as well, he blames Nick. He thinks Nick first turned Charlie against him, and now he has done the same with Imogen.
An apology is not enough
In Paris, Ben tells Nick that he wants to be with Charlie again, but Charlie does not want the same thing. Ben accuses Nick of stealing Charlie from him and is now ready to apologize to Charlie.
At the Lambert School’s exhibition, he forces Charlie to listen to him when he is with Nick. He admits to Charlie that he liked him a lot and that he messed up. He wanted to come out, but he knew that his parents would never accept him.
He apologizes to Charlie and tells him that he wanted something good, and Charlie was good. However, this does not move Charlie. He has suffered a lot because of Ben, who now wants to feel better about himself by earning his forgiveness.
Ben had all the control in their relationship, and he took whatever he wanted without asking Charlie. He made him feel like he was worthless, which is still affecting Charlie’s life. Charlie does not think that Ben’s apology makes up for all that he has done to him.
Charlie hopes that Ben changes, but he does not want to see him ever again. Ben watches Charlie walk away with Nick, and since he is not coming back to Truham for sixth form, this might as well be a goodbye.
A rainbow wave reaches out to Ben, but instead of walking towards it and becoming a part of the queer community, Ben chooses to turn his back and walk away.
Also Read: Charlie’s eating disorder in Heartstopper season 2 explained