Work Text:
“Christ you are as thick as it gets,” Henry says and before he realizes what’s going on, he has Alex’s face in his hands and is kissing him.
Alex’s mind goes blank, unable to genuinely comprehend what is going on. Oh, he thinks.
Henry has been such a constant in his life, ever since he had been all smiles inviting the White House Trio to sit in the Royal Box at the Rio Olympics. No one had expected it, least of all Alex, but he knew he would be a dumbass to refuse an invitation like it. Nora and June had fawned, their security had been notified, and introductions had been made.
Catherine and Arthur had been there as well, greeting Alex as if he were family and not a boy they had never met. The pair had even managed to be escorted down to his mother and tell her they wished her the best of luck in the Election circuit. The media had gone crazy, photos of the meeting blowing up, and a friendship blossomed that even Queen Mary hadn’t been able to strike down. Maybe it was the boost his mother needed to win the presidency, the unofficial support of Catherine, but nevertheless Henry and Bea had been waiting on the other side of a phone after his first speech as the First Son of the United States.
Alex had always been there for Henry, and he always would be. And this, somehow, makes sense. All those weird feelings over the past few months, those looks that he could have sworn Henry gave him when he wasn’t looking. He’d be an idiot to not realize his best friend was a greek statue come to life, but to him he’d always been Just Henry.
But now Henry is kissing him and Alex can't figure out for the life of him why he would want to stop.
It’s as if years of tension finally reaches a boiling point and neither one wants to breathe, wants to move, wants to do anything other than exist in this very moment. Fireworks are still going off, a reminder that they’re barely outside and a party is still going on inside. Anyone could walk by and see them and a whole clusterfuck of scandals and NDA’s would ensue but Alex can’t find it in him to care.
One of Henry’s hands pushes into his hair and grabs it at the root at the back of his head, and he hears himself make a sound that breaks the breathless silence, and
Just as suddenly, Henry releases him roughly enough that he staggers backward, and Henry’s mumbling a curse and an apology, eyes wide, and he’s spinning on his heel, crunching off through the snow at double time.
Oh,” Alex says finally, faintly, touching one hand to his lips. Then: “Shit.”
His mind catches up then, realizing that Henry is walking away and he doesn't even think twice. He begins to quite literally chase after him, trying to get to him before he can get away or, God forbid, try to fly back to England and ghost him.
Henry is very pointedly not looking at him, stuttering apology over apology until Alex has to quite literally throw himself in front of him to get him to stop.
Alex doesn’t know what to do. But the answer is simple, isn’t it? So fucking simple.
He takes Prince Fucking Charming’s lapels into his hand and kisses him back.
Henry isn’t really expecting it if the undignified squawk is anything to go off of but Alex doesn't mind because This is what he's been missing. It takes a few seconds for Henry to relax under his grasp, but when he does it's all Alex can do to keep himself upright.
Henry doesn’t stop kissing him until he has to pull back gasping for air. Alex doesn’t let him break contact for a moment, instead attaching to his lips to the underside of Henry’s jaw. He’d always been pissed that Henry had a few inches on him, but now he relishes in being the perfect height for this one action. Henry lets out a whine of desperation that has Alex hard in a matter of seconds and wonders what he’s going to do about it.
“Fuck you’re perfect,” he hears Henry breath out and he really can’t help it when his hips move on their own accord, thrusting into Henry and Alex keens when he feels a weight grind against his own.
‘Shit’ seems to be the only word in Alex’s vocabulary because it’s all he can say when Henry starts rolling his hips, purposely chasing after Alex’s, and the hand grabbing at his waist should be painful but it isn’t because it’s Henry.
He comes with an absolute pitiful whine, limp and pliant as he falls against the prince, and isn’t so fucking unfair that when Henry comes he laughs? Alex wants to hear that noise again, he wants to make Henry make that noise again. The severity of the situation is slightly starting to dawn on him, what all this is and what the fuck it’s supposed to mean, but he doesn’t have time to dwell on it because Henry is grabbing his hand and they’re making there way in through a side door.
If Alex notices Cash’s shocked yet amused expression once they come in sight, he very pointedly does not acknowledge it. His hair must be a mess and his suit is beyond rumpled, but he doesn’t stop to fix any of it. He lets himself be navigated through his own home, the fact that Henry knows it so well at this point not helping his resolve, and they make their way up to the guest bedroom Henry had claimed nearly four years ago. They barely make it into the room before Alex throws himself at Henry, kissing him more desperately than he’s ever kissed someone before. He doesn’t exactly mean to lead Henry over to the bed but they end up there anyways, tumbling onto the plush blankets and Alex rolls them over so he’s on top.
The sight he’s granted is one of marvel, of a bitten-raw lip between perfect teeth, of tousled hair and flushed cheeks, of wide eyes that are starting to roam and Alex takes his shirt off before he can really think on it. Henry’s hand start roaming every inch of skin he’s offered, and Alex works at the far too many buttons on Henry’s shirt.
“We should really discuss this first,” Henry pants but the sentence is nearly counterproductive because he’s simultaneously unbuttoning Alex’s pants and lifting his hips to help get them off.
“Is now really the time for that?” Alex whines as the cool air hits his thighs, followed promptly by Henry’s long fingers. Both of them realize they’re making an earth-shattering mistake but neither one is willing to stop this. Alex has been in the public eye long enough to know that these moments, moments of unyielding joy and hope are few and far between. He wants this moment, he needs this moment, and he needs it with Henry. Henry however looks nearly pained at the question.
“It is. You’re straight.”
The word seems to pierce through Alex and he freezes. Like a fucking coward he freezes, and it must be enough for Henry to doubt this because he’s gently pushed off the prince’s lap and falls on his side. He can’t do anything except look at Henry, at the set of his jaw and the lift of his brow. He knows that look. He hates that look.
Without really thinking about it, his hand comes up under Henry’s chin and he forces the prince to look at him.
“Don’t you dare do that, Hen. Don’t fucking shut me out. Now right now.”
Not when there was so much at stake, not when Alex’s heart is pounding and ready to burst out of his damn chest. He realizes how this looks, how wrong it must look for him to jump Henry at the first physical chance, but he’s not going to let Henry run away. Henry looks so lost, so doubtful that Alex can’t help but lean in to kiss him. It’s a soft press of their lips, too intimate for whatever they were planning on doing, but Henry leans into it.
Alex might be making the worst decision of their friendship, but he can’t let Henry go without telling him what he’s feeling. “I… I don’t know what I am, okay? I don’t know if I’m gay or- or if I’m bi or literally any other label, but this? This feels right. You feel right, and I don’t know about you, but I’m not willing to walk away from this. I’ll be whatever you want me to be. A friend, a partner, a long distance booty call whenever our schedules align. I don’t care. Just let me be a part of that conversation.”
Part of him is lying. He can’t go back to being Henry’s friend, not when he’s finally had him. Henry for his part is staring at Alex like he can’t quite understand what is going on. For a moment Alex is scared he’s going to get up and leave the room without a word, and Alex is going to have to let him. He can’t keep a Prince of England in the White House against his will, no matter how much he would want to.
“Alex,” Henry says and he sounds so broken that Alex wants to hold him and not let him go until the sun rose. “I can’t ask that of you. You’re too important to me.”
“Really?”
“Unfortunately,” Henry says, his attempt at a smile coming across more as a grimace. “I won’t ask you to do this, not when I’ve been wanting this for years. I… I love you too much for that.”
Holy shit.
Henry is in love with him.
“You love me?” Alex whispers and Henry nods, a hand coming up to brush away a loose curl from Alex’s face.
“As long as my heart is beating, it’s yours.”
Oh.
Oh.
It’s so fucking obvious now. Alex has loved Henry from the start; ever since he had looked at him with those bright eyes and asked if he’d accompany him to the royal box in Rio, ever since their first trip to the lakehouse after his mom’s election, ever since their late night museum escapades in Britain, ever since the Star Wars marathons, ever since, ever since, ever since—
“Sweetheart, if you don’t think I love you too, the inbreeding must finally be affecting your brain.”
A moment is all it is, a moment for Henry to realize what Alex just confessed, but it changes everything. The look of doubt fades away and in it’s wake is a blinding smile that Alex knows he’ll never get to experience again. Tears are clouding his vision, but he can still see the pure radiance in Henry and he’s being dragged into a kiss before he knows it.
Alex is being pressed into the mattress, Henry a steady weight on top of him, and he doesn’t hold back. He needs to show Henry, needs to prove just how much he loves this man. Lips attach to his neck, his hands coming up to grab Henry’s hair as he leaves bruises. Henry’s lips trail down and down, to his chest and around his nipples, to his abdomen and to the sharp V’s of his hip bones. He’s shaking, unable to keep still with Henry looking up at him so reverently, maintaining eye contact through it all.
“You are so beautiful darling.”
The words affect him more than he is expecting, a low whine escaping him. He’s been told he’s a lot of things in bed, but beautiful has never been one of them. He’s glad it’s Henry who tells him. The lights are low, but there’s enough moonlight and fireworks outside for Alex to really get a good look at Henry, the way the colors dance over his skin, the dips and curves he’s going to memorize. He’s stunning, really, a wonder to behold.
As he makes his way down Alex’s body he pays close attention to his inner thighs, slinging one of Alex’s legs over his shoulders and nipping at the tender skin. He’s aware there will be marks, but at this point Alex’s not stopping because of that. He begins teasing him then, purposely ignoring what’s less than 2 inches away from him. Alex hates him for that, for knowing what he needs and for not giving it to him.
“Hen, please,” Alex cries, not above begging.
The bastard laughs, and Alex is about to throw a pillow at him before he pulls down Alex’s boxers and gazes at it like it’s the eighth wonder of the world. Henry should really stop looking at it like that, Alex fears his own ego can’t handle it. But then he realizes with a start that a Prince of England is in between his legs, staring at his dick like it’s sacred.
Alex’s ego is fucked beyond belief.
Henry finds Alex’s eyes again and his cock twitches when he sees how blown Henry’s pupils are. He grins up at him, a devious look that has Alex’s breath hitching, and the motherfucker presses a kiss to the tip before he starts. And it’s a fucking impressive start, immediately the best blow job of his life and Henry isn’t even trying. He’s sucking him off almost lazily, as if trying to commit all this to memory and Alex is kind of losing it. It’s slow, almost too slow, and it’s close to driving him insane.
“Henry!” Alex sobs, petulance lacing his words as he grabs at those fucking shoulders to ground himself. There’s a fond shake of Henry’s head, which is impressive considering he’s still working to get him off. Henry does pick up the pace, taking Alex in deeper and hollowing out his cheeks and leaving Alex a stuttering mess. He doesn’t mean to but his legs quiver so much that they nearly close with Henry still between them, but the prince doesn’t seem to mind. Alex can see that Henry is loving this as much as he is and grabs a handful of blond hair just as Henry starts bobbing his head up and down.
Alex screams and he hopes to God that everyone is still at the party because the last thing he needs is someone walking in to find them like this. It’s really fucking unfair how hot Henry looks in between his legs, how quickly he can bring Alex to absolute ruin. He tries to warn Henry, but the warning falls on deaf ears as he comes and Henry doesn’t pull away. By the time Alex comes down from his post-orgasmic high, Henry is working at himself while cleaning Alex up and if that isn’t the hottest thing Alex ever doesn’t know what is.
He gets to hear that laugh and afterwards drags Henry back up and kisses him. He should be weirded out by his own taste on his tongue, but he doesn’t mind at all, not when Henry is holding him like he’s something precious.
“You’re bloody perfect,” Henry tells him and Alex can’t get the words out to express how much he adores that sentiment. It’s not for lack of effort, of course, but rather because of how heavy his eyelids feel suddenly. It makes sense, he was woken up early for the party and a mind-blowingly good orgasm takes a lot out of a person.
He’s half-way to asleep when Henry tries to pull away, probably to overthink like he tends to do, but Alex clings to him like a deranged sex-driven koala. He thinks it’s an apt description.
“No,” he mumbles, pulling Henry back and resting his head on Henry’s chest. How the fuck was Alex ever going to sleep again now that he knew how good Henry’s chest was as a pillow? “Y‘ou’re soft.”
Henry lets out a quiet laugh, a hand coming up to caress Alex’s hair. “Go to sleep, you demon. I’ll be right here.”
“Good. Like your chest. ‘oyfriend’s soft.”
“Your boyfriend am I?”
“Mhmm. Can’t leave me now babe.”
Henry doesn’t speak then, and Alex thinks he spoke too soon, but he knows he hears something right as he’s falling asleep.
“I’m not going anywhere, Alex.”
Henry must see how fucking anxious he is, because Alex feels his hand wrap around his wrist, the most affection they allow themselves in public. He’s glad that years of friendship with Pez and Nora means that the media no longer thinks much of their “platonic” touching, that they think it’s just a result of spending time with physically affectionate people. Just boys being boys.
“Do you want me to go up with you, love?”
He does. He wants Henry next to him during this terrifying thing, wants him to hold his hand to get him through it, but he knows that this is something he has to do himself. Alex shakes his head and gives Henry a small smile. They hug, a bit tighter than they really should, but he can’t bring himself to care. Henry is heading back to England to do exactly what Alex is preparing to do.
Today, Alex is going to come out to his family.
As he makes his way up to the game room on the third floor, the one reserved for informal family dinners, Alex thinks on how long he has been wanting to do this. Honestly, he’s been wanting to tell his family since New Year’s, since he realized that he was in love with Henry, but he didn’t. He didn’t because the last thing his mother needed was her son being involved with a foreign nobleman , a prince of all people, during a presidential election. Maybe a baron would have been fine, maybe a duke.
He told himself he would do it after the election, but then his mom won. Not that he had any doubt that she would, but Alex had failed to realize how much doubt and scrutiny the Richards Campaign had smeared on his mom. The first year of her reelection had come and gone, and Alex rarely saw his mom. With his first year at school and the busiest year of her career, there was never a good time to tell her.
Throughout the whole of it, Henry never pushed. He told Alex it was fine to wait, that there was no rush. Henry told him that Alex could wait as long as he wanted.
But Alex is tired of waiting.
He makes it to the third floor, just a few feet away from the doorway, and an image comes into mind. The key to a beautiful Brownstone, the way he had thrown himself into Henry’s arm when he first saw it, the life he wants in New York with the man he loves.
He wants all of it and now he has to fight for it.
Alex takes a deep breath and walks in.
There, by the pool table Leo bought for their anniversary, was the President hustling her ex husband with a bottle of Texas Shiner in her hand, and for a moment Alex is stunned to see all his parents in a room without screaming. He doesn’t have time to dwell on it though, because Leo spots him and rushes over to give him a bear hug.
“There’s our law student!” His step-father proudly exclaims, and Alex laughs as his father comes around too to clap him on the back.
“Welcome home, mijo,” Oscar says and Alex realizes how happy he is to see both these men together. Leo and Oscar couldn’t be more different, but they both love him and Alex doesn’t want to take it for granted. “Not that I ain’t happy to see you, but any reason you wanted us all here?”
It had been nothing short of a miracle to get Oscar in Washington, though he logically knew that his father would drop anything if it was important enough. He didn’t want to ask something so big of him, especially with how busy he was, but he couldn’t think of another time to do this. Alex is moving in with Henry next week and he wants his family to know. He’s about to respond but he sees a tired smile go across his mother’s face and both men move out of the way.
His mother has never been much of a hugger; even when he was little, hugs were few and far between, reserved for special occasions. Ellen Claremont was a practical woman, and physical affection wasn’t the most efficient way to express her love for her kids. A hand on the shoulder, three squeezes to their joined hands, or an air kiss blown to them. That was the way she had always done it, and Alex isn’t surprised when it’s how she greets him now.
As she places a kiss on his forehead, Alex takes a moment to inhale her perfume and reminisce. He really has missed her.
“Hey there, Sugar,” she says with a fond shake of her head. “What’d you want to talk about?”
He also remembers what a sharp-shooter his mom is. Alex was hoping he would get a moment to sit down and prepare, but it seems his parents have different plans.
“Hi momma,” he replies, gratefully taking the Shiner offered to him and taking a swig. He’s no longer used to the sour taste of it, but the familiarity and comfort of it grounds him. “It’s kind of important. Can we, uh, can we all sit down?”
A look of parental concern flashes through the adults, all of them sharing a glance Alex pointedly doesn’t decipher. They move to the sofa on the other side of the room, where Cash and Amy are standing and as glad as he is to see them, he quietly asks if he can have the room for a few minutes. He doesn’t even have to look at his parents to see the panic on their faces. They probably think he’s caused another scandal in a foreign country, or worse, gotten somebody pregnant. He’s not sure which would cause a bigger case of cardiac arrest, presidential baby out-of-wedlock, or banging a foreign prince. He’s about to find out.
Leo looks apprehensive but cheerful as usual, Oscar looks concerned yet neutral, but his mother looks flat out alarmed. He wonders if he can push this off for say, hmm, another decade.
“First off, I’m really happy you guys could make time for me,” he says, like an idiot, to at least break the ice. His father raises an eyebrow and Ellen snorts. They always said they were parents first, politicians second. “I have to tell you guys something. Something really important. Uh, important to me that is, though I can see if it isn’t that big a thing to y’all, but I feel like you guys should know just in case—”
“Alex.”
Ironically, all three of his parents cut his rambling off, in three different tones. He’s sweating. He’s pretty sure he’s sweating, which is a shame because he thinks this couch was owned by President Carter, when the actual fuck did it get so fucking hot, why aren’t the fans working in this—
“I’m moving in with Henry.”
Oh fuck. He said it out loud.
His parents don’t say anything for a moment. The first one to break the silence is his mother. She lets out a sigh of relief, as if a weight has been lifted off her shoulder, and she kind of smiles and grimaces at him at the same time.
“Oh Hun, is that all? You had me worried something was wrong,” Ellen says with a laugh. “I think it’s… nice you have a friend in New York with you.”
Oh fuck.
He didn’t say it out loud.
Alex doesn’t move. He physically cannot move a single bone in his body, and his brain isn’t working. His mom is still going on about his platonic roommate situation, commenting on how Henry must really value their friendship to move from England, and Alex can’t breathe. Oscar, however, isn’t moving either. Alex knows his father sees how alarmed he is, but it isn’t Oscar who first says anything.
Leo is off the couch in a second, sitting an arm-length distance from him, and telling him to grab his hand if he needs to. Alex clutches on to it like a fucking lifeline, and Oscar quickly moves to kneel in front of him, taking to him in quiet Spanish.
“It’s okay, Alé. Just tell us. You can tell us anything.”
Tears well up in his eyes, and he can hardly bring the words out.
“I’m moving in with Henry.”
There’s no missing the implication in his words, and he sees the moment it clicks in his mom’s mind. He’s upset her. Holy fuck, he’s fucked everything up and now everything will be ruined. The dam breaks and the tears are steadily streaming down his face with both his father figures by his side. Alex can’t see anything through the tears, but he feels the impossible happen.
His mother is hugging him.
For a few moments, Alex can do nothing but sob, sob so horribly that his chest hurts and his throat aches. Ellen is hugging him so fiercely, tighter than any Christmas or Birthday hug he’s ever received, and he wishes she would do it more often. The words start to come out again, about how sorry he is that he didn’t tell them sooner, how horrible he’s felt about keeping this from them, how he hates that this is going to affect the presidency.
Ellen isn’t having any of it. She cradles his face in her hands, not seeming to notice or care about the mixture of tears and snot running down his cheeks, and tells him in no-uncertain terms. “This changes nothing. You are my son, the absolute light of my life. I was your mother before I was ever the president, and I’ll be your mother long after. I love you and nothing is going to change that.”
The words only make him cry harder. Alex hears the door open, and he realizes that Leo slipped away. He hears him asking for the kitchen to send something up but he doesn’t hear what. Oscar takes to clutching onto one of his hands, the pressure grounds him enough to come down from his panic. It takes a few minutes, he hasn’t had an attack like this in a while, but he does eventually come down.
“Fuck, I’m sorry,” he says when his breathing evens out, trying to go with humor, but it obviously doesn’t land.
“You say sorry one more time, kid, and I’m smacking the shit out of you.”
Alex thinks his father is only slightly exaggerating.
“Well you might have to, because I am,” Alex jabs, and Oscar does in fact smack him upside the head, which leads to Ellen smacking Oscar, which makes Alex laugh. It makes his parents relieved that he is currently capable of laughter, and that’s when Leo comes in with a tray holding four mugs of what seem to be hot chocolate.
“I thought we could use some right now,” Leo says, putting it down on the table and Alex is the first one to grab one. The adults cautiously take a mug each, but no speaks a word until Alex is completely done with his drink. It gives him a few minutes to gather his thoughts, especially because it’s been too long without the Service present, and now Cash and Amy are in the room as well. Oh well. He knew he’d have to tell them eventually.
“You want to try that again?” Leo says kindly, and Alex nods.
He can does this. He can do this. He can do this.
“I’m bisexual.”
The word is officially out there in the open, and Alex feels like he can breathe again.
“I’m bi, and I’ve been dating Henry for the past two and a half years and I’m so fucking happy. He makes me happy. He bought a brownstone in New York and he asked me to move in with him. Henry… Henry is the love of my life, and I want to do right by him. I, uh. I want to officially come out.”
It wasn’t at all what he came in to do. He just wanted to come in and say his piece, but the more he thinks about it, the more he knows this is what he wants. He wants to let the whole world know how much he loves Henry and how he isn’t ashamed of it. Not in the slightest.
Ellen doesn’t even hesitate. She immediately goes into President mode, asking Amy to get Zahra in here and asks Alex if he’s okay with relaying this to the Office of Communications. He is. She looks at her son, and there’s something like pride in her eyes. He sees it in Oscar’s and Leo’s eyes too.
“Get June on the phone,” she says with a wicked grin he doesn’t see often enough. “We’re gonna need to make one hell of a speech.”
Alex has been in a lot of interviews. Ever since he was 15 and hitting various campaign trails with his mom, he’s learned to mold himself into whatever he knows the camera will want to see. Sweet All-American boy, charming cowboy with a Southern twang, a Mexican-American proud of his roots.
But he doesn’t know what he wants to come across as here. For the first time in far too long, Alex doesn’t know how to present himself. He holds a suit jacket up in one hand and a button down in the other, judging both of them in front of the mirror.
“Gran is a stickler for rules, love,” Henry says, pressing a kiss to his curls. “Go with the suit.”
Alex does look good in suits. “Maybe a Union Jack pin wouldn’t hurt.”
Henry is beyond jet-lagged, what with the constant travel and his writing that he doesn't let Alex see, and yet still lets out a small laugh at the joke. It’s a good sign. Both of them are going to need to keep their spirits up for the meeting they are about to have.
Henry’s coming out had gone… better than either had truly expected. Bea, of course, was the first to say how proud she was and pointedly stared at Phillip, who sat in quiet shock. Catherine smiled and thanked him for telling them, and Henry thought that would be it, until Phillip said quietly that Henry could have told him. The words shocked Henry, who told him that as long as he was going to let their grandmother control his life, his support wasn’t worth a damn. Alex had been slack-jawed when Henry told him that, and told him how proud he had been. Telling his family had been easy, Henry said, but now came the hard part.
Telling the Queen.
As soon as Mary was informed, Alex was going to give his coming-out speech. It was an unnecessary procedure, really, a mere formality out of respect for the Matriarch. Alex was giving that speech without or without her permission, but Henry wanted to give his grandmother the curtesy of informing her of his relationship. He had to give it to him, Alex was in love with one brave motherfucker.
A sharp knock on the door, Shaan telling them their meeting in in 10 minutes, has both of them slightly rushing. Henry helps him put the suit on, fix his hair, and pulls him in for one last kiss.
“You sure you wanna do this?”
“If it means I get to have you, love, yes.”
Henry’s voice was solid and firm, posture straight as a rod, and for a moment Alex sees the fighting spirit he sees in Catherine. This is a Henry that is tired of being told what to do. This is an emboldened Henry who is going to fight for what he wants. This, Alex thinks, is his Henry.
They follow Shaan through the halls of the palace, hand in hand while they still can. They don’t have an actual plan, have no idea how this will go, but they’re not going to back down. Queen Mary scares the fuck out of him, but she can’t control Alex. Henry on the other hand…
Before he can finish that thought, though, a nearby door opens and out comes Phillip of all people, holding a stack of folders and a look of determination. “Forgive the intrusion,” he says to Shaan, who’s slight lift of the eyebrow might as well be a dramatic gasp and slide down the wall, “but I’ll be attending this meeting as well.”
Henry gapes at his brother, trying to see what angle he’s working at, when Bea rushes up behind him, harried and slightly unkempt but with the same determination. “You’re not doing this alone, Henry. We’re both here to help.”
Alex thinks they’re fucking with them, until he sees a label on one of Phillip’s folders.
LGBTQIA STRUGGLES IN GREAT BRITAIN AND HOW TO BECOME A BETTER ALLY.
Pigs might as well have been flying over the palace gates, but fuck it. They’re going to need all the help they can get. Alex has to nudge Henry a bit to get him to respond. He just nods at his siblings and they’re off again. Phillip glances at their joined hands and looks away quickly; he has a ways to go, but for the moment, Alex is just happy he’s finally gotten his head out of his ass. Maybe his new fatherhood is doing him good.
The Mountchristen-Windsor-Fox siblings enter the room with the sort of precision that comes with years of routine, and Alex is left squandering a bit now that he’s been forced to let go of Henry’s hand. Queen Mary is sitting down, a cup of tea already in hand, and they all curtsy to her. There’s a hard glint of suspicion in her eyes, near open disdain at the sight of Alex, but she gestures to them to sit down.
The furniture, Alex thinks, definitely isn’t actually meant to be used because it is stiff and uncomfortable, nothing like the ones in the White House. The couch, though, is the least of his problems because he’s on the receiving end of a glare by the Queen of England. She doesn’t even seem to acknowledge her grandson’s return to the country after a month of living in another nation.
“Alexander,” she says, somehow a greeting and insult in one word. “How nice of you to visit.”
Open disdain. His favorite. He doesn’t respond, instead just inclines his head out of more disregard than respect. The siblings can respect this woman, because Alex won’t.
“Gran,” Henry says, voice quiet but no less firm than it had been in their room. “We were hoping to discuss something with you.”
An eyebrow is lifted as Mary glances at her grandchildren. “All of you?”
Bea is the one who nods, staring back just as openly and Alex wants to wonder what a terrifying and impressive queen she would be had she been born the heir.
“What we want to discuss relates to this family,” Phillip says diplomatically, clipped and short and Mary dons a quick a look of surprise of him taking that tone with her. “As well as to our perception in global media.”
“Are you abdicating, Phillip?” The Queen says flippantly. “Because I simply do not have time to entertain such foolish notions.”
“Oh, you’ll make time for this,” someone says and Alex realizes with a start that it was him.
“I do not recall giving you permission to speak,” Mary says sharply, but Alex still doesn’t shrinks down. He’s dealt with this before, with bigots who hate him for the platform he holds. He’s never given them the satisfaction of getting to him and he’s not about to start now.
“Alex is here as my guest,” Henry says fiercely, protective rage in his eyes. “And I will not allow you to treat him with any level of disrespect.”
The room is quiet for a terrifying moment. The Queen says nothing as she pours more tea into her cup and the feeling of impending doom only worsens.
“You’re more like your father every day,” she finally says, and it is the furthest thing from a compliment. He hears the sharp intake of Bea’s breathe, sees Phillip flinch slightly, but Henry doesn’t waver. He stares his grandmother down and Alex knows that Henry is proud of that. Arthur was a great man and Henry is every bit his father.
“I am,” he agrees, a slight smile playing at his lips. “My father knew what he wanted, and he fought for it. I’m here to do the same.” Alex doesn’t know what he’s expecting, maybe some hesitance or fear, but no. Henry keeps on surprising him and Alex loves this man so fucking much.
“Once this meeting is over and we return back to New York, the White House Office of Communications will begin to prepare an official statement that will change how the media views us. We will be making this announcement with or without your permission. This is us simply giving you time to prepare.”
A slow dainty sip of tea, a stirring of a spoon. “Prepare for what exactly, Henry?”
This time it isn’t Henry who answers.
“I’m going to announce that I’m bisexual,” Alex says, and the widening of Queen Mary’s eyes alone is worth the last-minute flight to England. “And once I do, Henry is going to announce he is funding multiple LGBTQ Shelters with the Okonjo Foundation.”
The Queen is seething, a slight tremble in her hand she can’t disguise. “And why,” she asks through gritted teeth, “would he do that?”
Henry doesn’t say a word, he only slips his hand into Alex’s and raises them for his grandmother to see. Without a single word said, they just confirmed her worst fear.
In the only non-elegant gesture Alex has ever seen her make, Mary slams her china cup back on the table so harshly that a crack appears and tea leaks out. She’s about to speak, but Bea cuts her off.
“I think it’s a marvelous idea,” she says with a grin. “You mind if I announce my charity for sobriety and addiction recovery after you announce your shelters?”
“Of course,” Henry says genuinely, as if this was an afternoon lunch with family, as if their grandmother isn’t five feet away turning red in anger.
“Beatrice, I refuse to let you embarrass this name any more than you—”
“I would think carefully about your next words, Gran.” Phillip interrupts. Alex gets the feeling that Mary isn’t often interrupted. “As Henry said, this is all going forward with or without your acknowledgement. Though your consent would be appreciated.”
“The people will never agree to this,” she says, hiding behind that excuse. Hiding behind her own homophobic views. “They will never accept this.”
“You don’t know that,” Bea spits out.
“I am still your Queen, Beatrice. It would be best to remember that.”
“That can change.”
The room stilled, every head turning to the man second in line for the throne, looking down at his grandmother. Even Shaan does a double take at those words. They seem to shock Mary into silence, mouth a quiet ‘o’ as Phillip continues.
“You seem to forget that I attend every meeting alongside you, Gran. All the names you can’t seen to keep straight, the countries you forgot were once part of the commonwealth. If that news were to make it’s way outside of these walls, what’s to stop Britain from calling for your removal? We checked the numbers, and my mother’s popularity is steadily rising. If you’d like, we can see if those numbers can go any higher.”
It’s a clear threat, one that Phillip of all people is making for them. If Queen Mary won’t support them, Queen Catherine sure as hell will.
Alex watches in shock as the color drains out of her face, turning white as a ghost and for a moment he sees her for what she truly is. An old woman, a relic of the past century. The idea of becoming obsolete must terrify her, and she takes a moment to glance at her grandchildren, all meeting her eye. Mary was the past, but these three siblings will be the future.
“Well,” she says after a long pause.
“I suppose you don’t leave me much choice.”
[TRANSCRIPTION OF ALEXANDER CLAREMONT-DIAZ INTERVIEW W/ LISA HAMM, MAY 27TH 2022 8:00:00 AM CDT.]
[VISUAL DESCRIPTION OF ALEXANDER CLAREMONT-DIAZ INTERVIEW W/ LISA HAMM MAY 27TH 2022 8:00:00 AM CDT.]
(Alexander Claremont-Diaz comes into frame, shaking hands with Lisa, takes a seat)
LISA: Thank you for meeting with us, Alexander.
ALEXANDER: (smiles) Pleasure is all mine, Lisa, and please. Call me Alex.
LISA: If you insist. Well, Alex, I think we both know what we’re hear to discuss.
ALEXANDER: Oh we definitely know.
(Lisa and Alexander laugh)
LISA: First off, I want to say your coming out speech last week was beautifully written, and I want to commend you for your bravery. All of us do.
ALEXANDER: (grateful smile, tips his head) Thank you, Lisa, though I can’t take all the credit. My sister June and our communications team worked with me to write it. We must have revised it twenty times before I felt it was ready.
LISA: That must have taken some time.
ALEXANDER: (nods) A few weeks, yes. I lost more than a few hours of sleep on it.
LISA: If you don’t mind my asking, how long had you been planning on coming out?
(Alexander pauses)
ALEXANDER: That’s a bit hard to answer. I figured out I was bisexual in early 2020, but didn’t feel ready to tell my parents. In all honesty, I came out only a month after I told my family.
LISA: That soon?
(Alexander nods, crossing his ankles)
LISA: Why the rush? No one would have faulted you for waiting.
ALEXANDER: I feel that… no one should feel rushed to come out, especially if one is uncertain of the reactions one will receive. I’ve known far too many people who’s parents disowned them. It’s a sad reality in the LGBTQIA community, and one I’m constantly aware of. But I knew that my family would respond positively. My father fought for trans rights in California and my mother advocated for same-sex marriage back in 2015. However, it didn’t make coming out any easier, or any less terrifying. But I just knew I couldn’t hide this part of myself any longer. And God forbid it get leaked somehow. I don’t doubt that there are people out there who would do anything to harm me or my family, so I decided to take matters into my own hands.
LISA: I’m sorry that that was even taken into consideration.
ALEXANDER: (shrugs) Precautions are taken, but nothing in the White House
can truly be secret. Especially as I am not currently in Washington.
LISA: Yes, you decided to study law in New York last year. I have to ask, did your newfound sexuality have anything regarding this decision?
ALEXANDER: Not in any way that mattered, no. It was just time. Y’know, me and June are the oldest First Children to stay on the White House property. The opportunities given to me in Washington, namely my job on my mother’s campaign, were a privilege to have but I thought it was time to make my own way in the world. New York gave me the opportunity to do so.
LISA: It seems that New York has been a favorite location with many of your… acquaintances.
ALEXANDER: (laughs) You’re referring to Henry, right? Yeah, I couldn’t have talked him out of it if I had tried.
LISA: The fact that His Royal Highness chose to leave England garnered global attention, as well as his announcement that he would be using funds left by his father to support LGBT Youth Shelters.
(A proud smile on Alexander’s face)
LISA: In fact, all members of the Super Six seem to have entered into philanthropic pursuits. Your sister June Claremont-Diaz raising awareness for various issues through her columns, Nora Holleran using her data-science to promote women in STEM centers, Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice funding multiple sobriety and addiction recovery programs after her battle with substance abuse, and of course the shelters with the Okonjo Foundation. Some would say that your deciding to go to law school kicked off a chain-reaction. Care to comment?
ALEXANDER: I wouldn’t dream of taking the credit for that! You wanna know the truth Lisa?
(ALEXANDER leans in conspiratorially, LISA does the same)
ALEXANDER: (stage-whispering) My friends are some of the coolest people on the planet.
(LISA and ALEXANDER laugh, reclining back in their chairs)
ALEXANDER: No but it’s true. When I first let them know I was planning on doing this, law school, coming out, the whole nine yards, I was met with nothing but support. My friends over the pond especially, which was incredibly special. It’s not a secret that as royals, they’re… careful with what statements they make, officially or not. Henry doing this, working with these shelters, is a feat of strength not many people comprehend.
LISA: Some would say it’s long overdue.
ALEXANDER: (raises an eyebrow, nods tersely) I can see why; he comes from the richest family on the planet, he has an incredible platform, etcetera. But he is also human, and I’m sure you remember how withdrawn he was in his younger years.
LISA: (nods) Of course, after the passing of Arthur Fox.
ALEXANDER: Losing his father took a terrible toll on him. Recently he spoke to the Daily Mail, as I’m sure you’re aware, about how his grief was taken advantage of for years. He is starting to find himself again, and he is doing it through these shelters. I commend him for it.
LISA: It seems the Royal Family is as well. Already Her Royal Highness Princess Catherine --
(The interview is interrupted as two different people run up to Lisa and Alex respectfully. A woman, identified as Chief of Staff Zahra Bankston, tugs the microphone off of Alex and hands him a tablet. At the same time, someone whispers something unintelligible to Lisa)
MISS BANKSTON: (voice faint due to lack of microphone) I'm sorry, but due to unforeseen circumstances we are going to have to cut this interview short.
LISA: (slightly stunned expression) Yes, of course. Thank you for meeting with us.
marry me nora @acd_fan6969
HOLY FUCK HOLY FUCK #princehenry #hrh #waterloo
stressed, depressed, well dressed @pexiu7
did what I think just happen just happen?! #princehenry #waterloo
long live pez @zeiiko
queen mary is gonna have a field day with this... #waterloo
NEWS REPORT FROM BUCKINGHAM PALACE: PRINCE HENRY QUOTE "I HOPE TO STAND BEFORE YOU A PROUD GAY MAN."
Charles Rainer - New York Times
The people of Great Britain have received multiple announcements from the Royal Family these past few months, including the birth of Prince Philip and Lady Martha's child His Royal Highness Arthur Fox Mountchristen-Windsor II, but perhaps this is the most shocking.
His Royal Highness Henry Fox Mountchristen-Windsor's memoir titled 'Waterloo' hit British shelves today, following a tweet by Prince Henry showing a rather affectionate dedication just an hour prior to the book's release.
(image description: a book on a wooden table flipped to the first page, Prince Henry's hand slightly visible. The dedication reads "To Thisbe, who danced with me in front of The Blessed Mother. I wish there wasn't a wall.")
The book sold out in a matter of hours, people speculating which lucky woman had earned a place in the memoir. Readers were therefore shocked when instead of learning a name, they were instead met with male pronouns and the declaration that Prince Henry is in fact, gay.
"... I have known since my youth that I was gay, and I also knew that it was possibly the worst thing a prince could be. I was told to keep that part of my self hidden away, but I refuse to do so any longer. I plan to stand before you a proud gay man..."
Prince Henry's team could not be reached for a comment.
Various world leaders have declined comment, namely Queen Kristina of Sweden when asked today. President Claremont stated, "We are immensely proud of His Royal Highness, and he will be welcomed back to the United States with open arms." She is not the only member of the United States government to support Prince Henry; Senators Oscar Diaz and Rafael Luna also tweeted their commendations....
SUBSCRIBE TO CONTINUE READING
______
real_acd @fsotus
don't know about y'all, but that's the bravest son of a bitch I know #waterloo
june_cd @fdotus
hear hear #loveislove
hollaran_your_homeboy @norathescientist
[MUSICAL INTRODUCTION: 15 SECOND INSTRUMENTAL FROM DESTINY’S CHILD’S 1999 SINGLE, “BILLS, BILLS, BILLS”]
VOICEOVER: This is a Range Audio podcast.
You’re listening to “Bills, Bills, Bills,” hosted by Oliver Westbrook, Professor of Constitutional Law at NYU.
[END MUSICAL INTRODUCTION]
WESTBROOK: Hi. I’m Oliver Westbrook, and with me, as always, is my exceedingly patient, talented, merciful, and lovely producer, Sufia, without whom I would be lost, bereft, floating on a sea of bad thoughts and drinking my own piss. We love her. Say hi, Sufia.
SUFIA JARWAR, PRODUCER, RANGE AUDIO: Hello, please send help.
WESTBROOK: And this is Bills, Bills, Bills, the podcast where every week to break down for you, in layman’s terms, what’s happening in Congress, why you should care, and what you can do about it.
But before that. Well. I gotta tell you, guys, I had a very different show planned out a few days ago, but I don’t really see the point in getting into any of it because there's no way you haven't seen this.
JARWAR: I saw the news maybe 10 minutes after stepping into the office. It was all anyone could talk about for a good hour.
WESTBROOK: If you somehow live under a rock and don't know what we're referring to, Prince Henry's memoir Waterloo came out this morning and so did he!
Henry tweeted a photo of the books dedication before the release, so really riling people up wanting to know who this Thisbe person was.
JARWAR: And for those of you who don't know, it's a reference to lovers in a Greek myth forbidden to be together who's only way to speak to each other was through a thin crack in the wall built between them. Very dramatic and forlorn, perfect for a prince really.
WESTBROOK: I actually pre-ordered my copy a few weeks ago, so imagine my surprise when Thisbe turned out to be a him. Suddenly the mythos makes perfect sense.
JARWAR: Doesn't it? The moment someone tweeted that Thisbe was a man, the internet started scouring through the Prince's social medias to gain some clues.
WESTBROOK: Nothing has been confirmed, Henry hasn't even made any official statement, but many people are thinking his partner is actually longtime friend Percy Okonjo, which is helped by the fact that Percy uploaded a photo of them kissing with the caption "glad I can finally post this photo from our uni days hashtag love is love"
JARWAR: Percy has definitely been open about his sexuality for years, but I've seen many more people thinking that it's actually Alex Claremont-Diaz.
WESTBROOK: Supported by the fact that he also recently came out, it makes sense.
Of course we want to preface all of this by saying that is incredibly brave what these young men are doing and this is all speculation. These men have a right to their own privacy and I can only hope that the media is kind to them.
JARWAR: Of course. There's not much else to do except wait; the royals can't let something like this drop without having prepared statements, not something this huge.
WESTBROOK: It's very...telling that the United States President commented on it before any member of the Royal Family.
JARWAR: *gasp* You don't think Henry did this behind anyone's back, do you?
WESTBROOK: I want to say no, but honestly we've never seen this version of Henry before. He's been much more outspoken in the past few months and seen in public more than ever before. His last interview with the Daily Mail definitely made it seem like he wanted some semblance of control in his life.
JARWAR: If I were him, I'd want out and I would take everything down with me.
WESTBROOK: *laughing* You would destroy a centuries old monarchy?!
JAWAR: Yes! And if all I had to was kiss a girl, I'd do it a damn heartbeat.
WESTBROOK: Well let's hope that Wimbledon is still standing this time tomorrow
[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: TWO WOMEN KISSING IN THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM IN FRONT OF THE BLESSED MOTHER, A CROWD CHEERING BEHIND THEM]
[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: INSIDE OF A PUB, TWO DRAG QUEENS RAISE A TOAST]
[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A CROWD GATHERS OUTSIDE OF BUCKINGHAM PALACE, PRIDE FLAGS FLYING. CENTER, YOUNG MAN WEARING A HANDMADE SHIRT SAYING "WE LOVE YOU HENRY']
[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: CROWN PRINCESS CATHERINE HUGGING HRH PRINCE HENRY ON A BUCKINGHAM PALACE BALCONY NEXT TO A SMILING HRH PRINCESS BEATRICE AND HRH PRINCE PHILIP.]
[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: HRH PRINCE PHILIP HUGGING HIS SIBLINGS HRH PRINCE HENRY AND HRH PRINCESS BEATRICE, RAISING THEM OFF BUCKINGHAM PALACE BALCONY BY A FEW MILIMETERS. ALL THREE SIBLINGS ARE LAUGHING]
05/28/2022
Daily Mail - Prince Philip Says Supporting His Brother is All That is Important to Him
06/30/2022
Washington Post - It's Been A Month Since Prince Henry Came Out, What's He Been Up To?
07/21/2022
Buzzfeed - Which Princess Beatrice gif are you? Quiz
07/20/2022
New York Times - FSOTUS and HRH Launch Charity Home for Displaced LGBTQ Peoples
[Configure Device to Disable these Notifications]
Alex swipes away yet another notification from his numerous newspaper prescriptions, fiddling with his suit. He's nervous, but that's never stopped him before. He's a man on a mission.
Bug: you got this!
Nora: DONT FUCK THIS UP
BeaBeaEight: call me when you can!!!
Pezza: 🌈🍆👨
Phil of the Future: Everything will go according to plan, don't worry.
Alex takes a deep breath. Everything will be fine.
06/01/2023
real_acd @fsotus
dear pyramus, i will tear down any wall to be with you
[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: FSOTUS ALEX CLAREMONT-DIAZ HOLDING HRH HENRY FOXS HAND, DOWN ON ONE KNEE. BOTH MEN ARE CRYING. FSOTUS IS HOLDING A RING BOX]