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Alex had been nervous for weeks, a hole burning in his pocket. Had he done the right thing?
It had been all Beas’ idea. Alex had been hesitant, not wanting to cause Henry any unnecessary grief.
“I've told you before,” she had reminded him. “That kind of grief is something that simply never goes away. Doing this isn't going to make things worse. As a matter of fact, if I know my brother- and I'll remind you that I'm his favorite sibling- he'll appreciate that you thought to do this.”
So Alex had made his preparations, and now the day was finally here. Henry was still sleeping soundly (it was ironic sometimes how they were only able to get a full night of sleep when they were together), so Alex knew he had time to get some tea brewing (along with coffee- copious amounts of coffee) and start making them a delicious breakfast.
He was hard at work chopping onions and peppers when he heard Henry's footsteps in the kitchen. He looked over his shoulder to see Henry standing in the doorway. “Good morning, love.”
“You were supposed to stay asleep,” Alex couldn't resist scolding him.
Henry shrugged. “What can I say? You've known I was an insomniac for years now, love. I've always been a little surprised I could sleep at all around you, considering how much you make me come alive.”
“Considering what we get up to at night, are you sure about that?” Alex asked with a wink.
“Cretin.”
“Maybe, but I'm your cretin.”
“That you are,” Henry replied, finally, finally closing the gap between them so he could give him a good morning kiss.
Alex took a minute to lose himself in the kiss before remembering that he had a mission (several, actually) to accomplish that day. He reluctantly parted from Henry. “Much as I'd like to do this all day, we can't. I have plans for us.”
Plans?” Henry repeated, his eyebrows raised.
Alex couldn't help grinning. “Plans.”
Henry knelt down and petted David, who had just come up to them, hoping for his own breakfast. “Why won't he tell us what those plans are, David?”
“Because,” Alex huffed. “Some things should be kept a secret. Don't worry though, David is included in some of those plans too.”
Henry looked relieved, and Alex's heart swelled. The love this man had for his dog was unlike any other. “First, we're going to go to the park.”
Their hour at the park (which would've been more if David had had his way) passed uneventfully. It was one of the things Alex appreciated most about New York City, that it was the closest they could get to being anonymous people in the world, as Henry had phrased it long ago. Sure, they did get stopped occasionally on their walks by a little girl who wanted an autograph from a real life prince (which Alex knew Henry had to bite his tongue to correct after he had abdicated), but mostly, people left them alone. Alex knew Henry appreciated being able to just go through his day like a normal person, a luxury he had never had in England.
After that, Alex had planned a trip to Henry's favorite bookstore, which, incidentally, was only a block away from the brownstone. Henry had once confessed to Alex that part of the appeal of the brownstone, once Pez had shown it to him, was its proximity to a bookstore, and a large one at that. The store itself was several stories. Alex had frequently gotten home from class and found a note telling him his partner was at the bookstore and had gone to retrieve him, making sure he ate something (much like Henry had done for him on the nights when law school had consumed his life to the extent that eating was not even an afterthought).
Their time at the bookstore… honestly, Alex should have known better. Henry loved the place, could easily have spent hours looking at all the books there, especially the queer literature section, which was exactly what he did. Alex had planned more for their afternoon, but instead, he had to send a flurry of texts canceling everything- all except for one thing that he knew Henry wouldn't want to miss.
At last, he had to interrupt Henry flipping through the latest in a long line of author biographies. “Sweetheart, we need to go.”
“Hm?” Henry asked, tearing his eyes away from the pages in front of him. “Where are we going?”
“You'll see.”
They walked hand in hand to their destination. Alex hoped it was okay that they would have baggage with them. He had been naive and thought they would have time to take Henry's purchases back home before the next part of the day commenced. He should've known better. After all, Henry could never resist a good book.
Instead of watching where he was going, Alex only had eyes for Henry's face as they approached their final destination. Once he figured it out, he turned to Alex, his eyes wide. “A carriage ride?”
Alex nodded. “Just like Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy would've taken.”
“What's the occasion?”
Now was as good a time as any. He knelt, balancing himself on one knee, and Henry's gasp told him he had understood exactly what was happening now, a fact that didn't surprise Alex at all. After all, Henry was the smartest man he had ever known. “Henry George Edward James Fox. You are, first and foremost, the reason I get up every morning. Your smile, your laugh, they brighten every single one of my days.
“But it's so much more than that. We balance each other out. You ground me when my brain is going in a thousand different directions, and I take care of you on your darkest days. I'm floored every single time you tell me they happen less because of me. I'm honored every single day of my life that I get to spend by your side. I love you more than words can express - especially mine, since you're so much better at them than me. Will you make me el hombre más feliz del mundo and be my husband?”
Toward the end of his speech, Alex had extracted the box he'd been carrying and opened it to reveal the ring, it's silver band shining in the light of the sunset. He'd had it cleaned, of course, with Queen Catherine’s blessing, but Henry should still recognize it as-
“Dad's ring,” Henry breathed. “Where did you get this? I haven't seen it since-”
“Your dad's last days, I know. Apparently, your mom had kept it all these years, waiting to give it to the next Fox kid who got married. And I'm sorry if it makes you sad, remembering him, but-”
“But Philip-” Henry stopped, shaking his head. “Mum was so out of it then, and Philip never cared about sentimentality anyway.” He sniffed, smiling down at the ring. “Much like you, Dad liked to fidget. I saw him play with this ring, or saw my mum trace its shape, more times than I can count.”
Alex held him until his sniffing subsided. Hesitantly, he pointed out, “I notice you never gav
e me an answer, sweetheart.”
“Yes, Alex. A thousand times yes.”