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When Henry comes to he is incredibly disoriented. He immediately knows something is wrong. His eyelids feel heavy, as do his limbs. The harsh light from above stings his eyes, and he hasn’t even opened them. There’s the unmistakable smell of antiseptic in the air that you could only even get in hospitals. He can hear some beeping to his left and people talking in the distance. He tries to listen in.
“Shouldn’t he be awake by now? What if something is wrong?”
“Calm down, Alex. The doctors said it might be a while before he wakes up. You know they said everything seems fine.”
“Seems fine doesn’t mean is fine, June.”
“We should be happy they told us anything, you know that. Or that they let us in at all. We have to wait for Bea to get here to get any more news.”
“Fine, but I’m not happy about it.”
They voices seem familiar. They sound worried but make him feel safe. Henry tries to listen some more, maybe let them know he can hear them, but he’s quickly losing his fight with sleep. The pillow feels a bit scratchy but inviting nonetheless. Maybe if he just rests for a little while longer he will be able to answer the voices in his room.
***
The next time Henry wakes up he feels marginally better. He opens his eyes. He’s still drawing a blank on how exactly he ended up here, but he can’t deny that he’s in a small hospital room hooked up to an IV and a heart monitor.
He looks around and sees Bea sitting on the chair on the left side of his bed, but she’s turned away from him and talking to Pez who is sitting in one of the plastic chairs in the corner of the room. June and Nora are sitting on each side of him. The chair on the right side of the bed is empty, but has Alex’s favorite hoodie draped over it.
“Hazza, darling, you’re awake!” Pez exclaims loudly. Henry’s eyes drift from the empty chair back to Pez. “How are you feeling, you’ve given us quite a scare.”
“Hen,” Bea squeezes his hand in hers. “Are you feeling alright?”
“Oh, Alex is never gonna let us live this down,” Henry hears Nora mutter. “Of all the times you could have woken up you chose the only time he’s not right by your bed.”
“I – uh. What happened?” he feels overwhelmed and disoriented if he’s being honest.
“We were getting lunch,” June explains. “You were in an accident. Some idiot almost drove into us on the street. In the end he crashed into a newspaper stand, but you fell and hit your head. Do you not remember?” she sounds worried.
“No, I – I think I remember getting lunch with you. Not much after that. Was anyone else hurt?”
“Of course that’s what you’re worried about,” he hears Bea sigh.
“Not that we know of. I called 9-1-1 and they brought you here,” June tells him kindly.
“Am I… okay?” Henry asks. He feels okay, but he wouldn’t mind some reassurance.
“The doctors think so. They said they wanted to keep you here overnight because your heartrate was a bit irregular for a second in the ambulance so they hooked you up to the monitor, but they said it’s just a precaution and you’re most likely fine. You don’t even have a concussion.” Bea explains.
“You do have a mean shiner, though,” Pez supplies unhelpfully.
“You didn’t all have to come here,” Henry says. He doesn’t want to keep them away from important things, but the fact that they’re all here makes his hear grow a size. He never thought he’d have a family of choice like this one. They’re only missing one person.
“Where is – I mean, is Alex… here?” he stumbles over his words and feels himself flush. He doesn’t want to sound too eager, but he would like Alex to be here, he thinks.
Henry watches Nora and Pez smirk and share a look. He can tell Bea is stifling her own smile. June isn’t doing much better.
He knows his crush on Alex is obvious to everyone. Henry turns into a right idiot whenever Alex is concerned. He’s honestly surprised Alex hasn’t figured it out yet. The way Henry always laughs a little bit too loudly at Alex’s jokes, even if they are not particularly funny. The way he is always watching him when he knows Alex isn’t looking. He’s only been caught doing it a handful of times. He looked away with a flush on his face every time.
Henry’s honestly trying to keep his feelings in check. He’s trying to not let his affections show. What he can’t help is the way his heart always skips a beat when Alex smiles at him. Or the way he turns into a stuttering mess whenever Alex compliments him. Which has been happening more and more recently. It’s Henry’s favorite form of torture. He’s lost the count of how many times he tried to make Alex smile that private, almost shy smile where he ducks his head and looks away. Sometimes he’s even rewarded with a slight flush to Alex’s cheeks. Those are Henry’s favorite moments.
So maybe he doesn’t just have a crush. Maybe it’s never been a crush. He’s probably been infatuated with him since the very beginning, if he’s being honest with himself.
“Alex was just here,” June answers, and Henry can hear the smile in her voice. “We finally coaxed him into going to the cafeteria to eat something. Though, he’s most likely pestering some poor doctors about your condition again.”
“He’s gonna be fucking insufferable when he finds out you woke up during the only five minutes he was not in the room,” Nora adds with a long suffering sigh.
“He’s been here the entire time?” Henry tries not to sound too giddy about it. If the way Bea is looking at him is anything to go by, he fails.
“Never left your bedside, mate,” Pez says as he gets up to sit at the foot of Henry’s bed. “You had him pretty freaked out.”
“Oh. I didn’t mean to. Is he okay?”
Nora groans. “God, you guys are unbelievable.”
“Nora,” June chastises.
“What? If they only got their heads out of their asses and –”
“Right!” Bea exclaims loudly. “How are you feeling, Hen? Anything hurts?”
“No, I feel fine,” Henry answers dubiously. Something about this entire conversation won’t let him rest. “What did you mean, Nora? About ‘getting our heads out of our asses’?”
Nora looks like a deer caught in headlights. “I just…”
She’s saved by the door flinging open and Alex coming through in all his glory.
“They told me to wait. Again,” Alex says furiously. He barrels through the door and turns towards the empty chair. “Maybe we should – Henry!” he nearly shouts when their eyes meet.
Alex is wearing jeans and an old Oxford t-shirt Henry’s pretty sure is his. His hair looks more wild than usual and he seems more tense, but he’s still the most beautiful person Henry’s ever seen.
Henry’s heart starts beating faster, as it always does when Alex is concerned. What Henry didn't foresee is the heart monitor, which he is still sadly hooked up to, betraying him like this. It starts beeping louder than before. He’s pretty sure he hears someone in the room snort, but he’s too focused on Alex to check.
“How are you feeling?” Alex slides into the empty chair next to his bed. “Are you okay?” his eyes keep roaming over Henry’s body, like he’s looking for hidden injuries.
“I’m okay. I feel fine,” Henry tries to reassure him, but then Alex takes Henry’s hand in his, and his heart starts pounding again. The frantic beeping of the heart monitor makes Henry flush. Christ, it’s so embarrassing.
“This doesn’t sound fine, your heart is going crazy,” Alex notes frantically. Henry’s sure he can hear Nora giggle. “We should call a doctor,” Alex moves to get up but Henry’s hand grips his tighter.
He doesn’t want to explain this to any doctor. Definitely not with Alex in the room.
“I’m okay, Alex, seriously. I feel good, don’t worry.”
Thankfully, his heart seems to be calming down. Henry prays to whoever is listening that it stays that way.
“Are you sure, sweetheart?”
Henry doesn’t stand a chance against the pet name. His heart starts beating wildly again, and he can feel his cheeks burn. It only seems to alarm Alex further. He gets up and looks from Henry to the monitor and back again. He gently places a hand on Henry’s cheek. Henry’s heart skips a beat again.
“You look flushed. You feel warm. Your heart is going crazy. You don’t seem fine,” Alex points out.
“I –” Henry starts, but he doesn’t know where he’s going with this. He’s stuck looking at Alex’s worried face, the frantic beeping the only sound in the room.
“Oh my God, this is glorious,” Henry hears Nora snort.
“Truly an amazing day,” Pez agrees. Henry wants to die.
“What are you guys talking about?” Alex snaps. “Something could be wrong.”
“Alex,” June starts but Bea beats her to it.
“We should go get some food, come on guys. Alex you can keep an eye on him, right?” Henry can see Alex nod, clearly disoriented. “Perfect. Let’s go get some food.”
It’s quite impressive how quickly they all get up and leave. Unfortunately, this means he’s alone in the room with Alex, and his stupid, traitorous heart won’t take a hint and calm down.
“What’s going on?” Alex asks in a small voice. Henry hates that he’s the one who made him sound like that. Worried and scared. He needs to fix it.
“I’m fine, darling. The doctors said so. There is nothing to be worried about.”
“How do you know?” Alex asks. He sounds really vulnerable. Henry wishes Alex was still holding his hand. “I don’t like this.”
“I know, love. But I promise I’m fine.”
“You would tell me if something was wrong, right?”
“Of course.”
“Because I’m not ready for you to die and leave me here, Wales,” Henry can tell Alex is aiming for humour here, but he can hear the fear in his voice. Henry knows Alex is worried about him. He also knows that Alex has a very poorly concealed fear of abandonment. He doesn’t want to make Alex feel bad.
“I’m good, I swear. Sit down.”
“Okay,” Alex moves to sit down, but seems to hesitate. He shakes himself out of it a second later and bends down to press a gentle kiss to Henry’s forehead.
Henry knows he’s screwed a whole second before the incessant beeping starts again. He groans out loud and covers his burning face with his hands.
He knows he will have to explain this to Alex now. This is going to be humiliating and will probably break his heart, but maybe it will assure Alex that he is not, in fact, dying. Only lovesick.
“That’s it, I’m going to find a doctor,” Alex moves towards the door.
“Wait, please. I can explain. Just give me a minute.”
Alex is still looking at him dubiously, but sits down anyway.
“Please tell me what’s going on, H. You’re scaring me,” Alex admits quietly.
“I know. I don’t mean to. Nothing’s wrong, truly. It’s just… the way I react to you,” Henry can’t look at Alex’s face. He’s too afraid of what he’ll find there.
“What? I don’t understand.”
“I’m quite infatuated with you, is all. So you can imagine why my heart would skip a beat whenever you’re in the room. Or when you call me sweetheart or hold my hand. Or kiss my forehead. It’s all pretty standard for me, actually,” Henry confesses.
His heart is in his throat, but a tiny part of him feels a little bit better at finally having admitted the secret he’s kept for so long. If only Alex would let him down gently now, Henry’s pretty sure he could survive this. It will hurt like hell, but maybe he won’t have to lose Alex completely.
He’s starting to get more worried the longer Alex is silent. He can hear Alex shift next to him.
“Sweetheart,” Alex’s voice sounds different than Henry remembers and he finally dares to take a look at the man he loves.
Alex’s face looks so gentle, there is no other word for it. He looks, quite frankly, full of wonder, and Henry’s hopeless little heart starts beating faster again. For once, he decides to let himself fall, he decides to hope.
Alex takes his hand and intertwines their fingers. Henry can only stare.
“Baby,” Alex says and Henry shivers all over, but it only makes Alex smile wider at him, so maybe that’s okay. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
“I’m saying I’m quite in love with you, I’m afraid.” Henry finishes. Whatever happens, he needs to say it. Alex deserves to hear it.
Alex lets out an honest to God giggle at that and immediately slaps a hand over his mouth. It doesn’t sound mean, though. It sounds almost disbelieving.
“Alex?”
“I love you, too, sweetheart. How could I not?” Alex squeezes his hand and lets out the breathless little giggle again. He looks happy. It’s adorable.
“Really?” it’s Henry’s turn to sound disbelieving.
“Of course. I was just too stuck in my head about it. I never thought you felt the same. But I’ve almost yelled at the doctors here today three separate times because I was so worried about you. Of course I love you.”
Henry smiles, he can’t help it. He doesn’t remember being this happy. He doesn’t even care that he’s currently in a hospital bed, the moment couldn’t be more perfect.
“Can I kiss you?” Alex asks tentatively.
“Please,” Henry doesn’t even care that he sounds like he’s begging. He thinks he’s earned this.
The kiss is like everything and nothing he’s imagined. Alex’s lips are soft and gentle on his, like he’s worried he might break Henry if he isn’t careful. He uses his free palm to stroke Henry’s cheek. It makes Henry feel special. Cared for. Loved. He loses himself in the kiss entirely. He’s aware of his heart beating faster and faster, his grip on Alex tightening. He goes to deepen the kiss when someone clears their throat at the door.
They both jump like they’d been burned and scramble away from each other only to see a very disappointed looking nurse standing in the doorway.
“What is going on in here?” she asks as she clearly takes in the frantically beeping heart monitor, Henry’s flushed face, and Alex’s rapidly reddening one. “We thought something was wrong with you, sir. Your heart rate spiked again.”
Henry covers his face with his hands. He can hear Alex chuckle.
“It’s my fault. I’m sorry,” Alex doesn’t sound sorry at all. In fact, he sounds quite smug about it. Henry hopes the ground will open and swallow him whole.
“We need to keep you monitored for a few more hours, sir. I’m sure you can wait with public displays of affection that make your heart accelerate until then,” the nurse says. She sounds exasperated, but also amused.
“Of course. We’re really sorry. It won’t happen again,” Henry chokes out, his face on fire.
The nurse checks his vitals, all the while Alex is trying to stifle his laugher in the corner of the room.
“Everything looks good. I will be back to check on you in a few hours,” she says to Henry before she turns to Alex. “Visiting hours are over in an hour, sir.”
“Sure, yeah, thank you, ma’am. We’re really sorry,” Alex answers.
The nurse shakes her head at them, but there is a small smile on her face, so maybe it’s not so bad.
The second she’s out the door, Alex bursts out laughing.
“You should have seen the look on your face,” he chokes out in between fits of laughter.
“You’re a demon,” Henry snarks back, but there is no heat to it.
“But I’m your demon. You love me,” Alex wiggles his eyebrows at him.
“God help me, I do,” Henry can see Alex’s smile turn a tad softer at the admission. It makes his stomach swoop.
“Okay, I will go find the others so they can talk to you some more before visiting hours are over.”
“I’m pretty sure they’re somewhere close. They weren’t being subtle.”
“What do you mean?” Alex looks adorably confused.
“Christ, Alex. They knew what was going on the second the monitor started beeping. It was so embarrassing. I will never be able to look them in the eye again.”
“I think it’s cute,” Alex says, a shit-eating grin on his face.
“I don’t know why I put up with you.”
“You love me.”
“That I do.”
Later that night, after everyone congratulated them and called them idiots an equal number of times, Henry falls asleep with a smile on his face, his heartbeat steady.