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Despite the antagonism that's plagued their interactions since the day they met, Henry has liked Alex from the moment he saw him at the campus coffee shop the semester before. Beautiful and bright with a smile that made Henry's heart flutter like a teenage girl, he'd been gone from the first moment.
And then one day, Alex changed. His insults and barbs ceased, he stopped glaring, there was something almost longing in Alex's eyes, even. Alex's fingers would twitch every time Henry got close, like he wanted to touch. It was odd.
The sudden behaviour shift throws him off and he finds himself staring at his regular seat where Alex usually sat next to him, even at their most antagonistic. Maybe it's time for a change, he thinks.
Instead of his preferred seat, he sits a couple of rows back, setting his notebook down on the desk and opening it up.
For the last month, ever since Alex's behaviour changed, Henry's had alarmingly realistic dreams of him dating Alex. Last night's had been of them with Pez and Nora and their sisters at karaoke and Henry tries to write down some of the details before he forgets them.
The dream version of him had sung "Don't Stop Me Now" and even pointed at Alex during the I wanna make a supersonic man out of you line. Alex had gotten up after and, like the Swiftie he was in the dream, picked "Lover" as his song.
The image of Alex pulling him up to dance together while singing lyrics that evoke common wedding vows is one that Henry's sure won't leave his head any time soon.
He's busy writing out how it felt, Alex's hand in his, swaying to the music before Alex finished the song by kissing him, to notice Alex's arrival in class. It's hard to miss, however, the sound of someone sitting next to him.
When Henry looks up, Alex is sitting there, his own notebook and pen out, and Henry has to blink at him while he processes.
Alex moved seats with him.
"What are you—" Henry starts but the words get caught in his throat, leaving him unable to properly voice his confusion. Alex hated him. Yes, things have changed, but this still makes no sense.
"I don't suppose you'd be willing to start over?" Alex says after a moment. Henry feels his gaping is rather justified, even as Alex's face almost imperceptibly reddens with a blush. "I'm sorry, for what it's worth."
"It—it's worth quite a lot, actually," Henry gets out. "I'd like starting over."
Alex's answering smile is so soft and hopeful that if Henry hadn't been in love before, he certainly was now.