Henry introspection
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pull me out of the fire, from my lowest take me higher by anincompletelist (soldouthaz)
Fandoms: Red White & Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston
19 May 2024
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Summary
Henry can’t bring himself to feel shameful about staring when Alex heaves himself up off of the ground, muscles taut and chest heaving as the crowd goes wild around him, chanting Alex’s name and cheering. He shrinks against the noise and the movement but it does him no use to try to hide, every inch of his body prickling with anticipation.
And Alex looks obscene, a filthy grin stretching his lips with his chin jutted into the air and his fist held high in the middle of the ring above his motionless opponent, the blood from his nose staining his flushed skin and a bit of his teeth, his half-lidded eyes locked in on Henry like a fixation: the predator and his prey.
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Henry finds unexpected solace in the thrill of an underground haven, where status—and who he shares a bed with—doesn't really seem to matter. But the deeper he goes, the harder it is to pull away, and Henry's shocked to discover so much of himself where he'd least expected to find it.
He's not the one inside the ring, but he's only just finding out what it truly means to fight.