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henry-fox-biggest-stan · 2 years

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Oh the symbolism of Alex’s feelings being fire and Henry’s being water.

(Btw,this is mostly just me over analyzing every single detail because I’m like that)

Aside from the fact than Casey themselves said that,it also shows in the book. A lot.

The most obvious one are their signs, Alex being Aries, Henry being Pisces.

Let’s start with Alex.

Alex has the whole Vienna by Billy Joel thing going on. Mostly because he is an ambitious person who knows what he wants, but also, because of trauma.

After his parent’s divorce, he felt like shit so he just focused all of his energy into something to help him in some way, that something being academic validation. He focused into something than made him feel like he was good, like he was smart and like he was worthy.

Alex is also described as having a “fire under his ass” all the time.

Alex focused on the future so much than he forgot to live the present. And maybe, that was the whole point. Maybe he focused on the future because he needed to take his mind off the present. Because the present hurt.

Because in the present, his parents divorced and June was growing up and becoming a teenager while Alex stayed a kid (his parents divorced when he was 12). And as he grew up, he continued to focus on the future. He focused on the future because in the present, his mom was so focused and busy with trying to become the first female president, than sometimes it felt as if she didn’t had time for her family. Time for him. He didn’t held it against her, but deep down it hurt. In the present, June was going to college and leaving him behind, and he didn’t saw his dad as often.

And Alex being both ambitious and dedicated and using denial as if it was a blanket, he could forget about the present and just look into the future. He could put all of his energy into school, into his job. He could pull all night studying, writing and rewriting an essay by hand to the point he didn’t feel his fingers, he could give all of himself to, at least, have someone tell him than he “did a good job”.

Alex had a fire under his ass. He always had it, but maybe, some part of it was from his own creation.

Alex’s feelings are like fire, strong and steady, warm but also, dangerous. They are dangerous since they are so strong they can burn all of him if he let them take over, so he pushes them down. Using denial as a blanket once again.

Henry’s feelings are water. They are like the sea, sometimes calm and slow, like the sea in a summer’s day, like the tides. But sometimes, the sea had storms. Storms than agitated the water, making it dangerous and vicious. Making it swallow boats and people.

But, didn’t matter the state of the sea / Henry’s feelings, there was one thing in common with both the calm and slow sea and the storm agitated sea, and that was than both the sea and Henry’s feelings were always bottomless.

Letting that aside, let’s go directly to the book.

At the lake house confession, Alex used the term “fire under my ass”. They were also inside of the lake, with the water enveloping both of them. Surrounded by water.

Surrounded by Henry’s feelings. Feelings than enveloped both of them, since Alex loved Henry back and Henry couldn’t hide it anymore. It enveloped them both, since Henry’s feelings were so big at the moment, there wasn’t enough space inside of him, and they got out.

After the confession, Henry is the first one to get out of the lake, apparently, running away from Alex’s feelings, but using the symbolism, also running away from his. Not denying himself what he felt, since he already knew, but trying to ignore it. Trying to ignore his feelings and the fact than Alex reciprocated because that just couldn’t work out. It didn’t make sense than Alex loved him back.

When Alex appears at Kensington, it was raining.

It was, basically, Henry breaking down. Henry’s feelings being too much for him to handle, too deep, too bottomless, to keep inside of him anymore. And at the lake house, they were the lake, calm and steady. He had an incredibly good time at the lake house, he still didn’t know than Alex loved him back, he was just basking on the luxury of loving Alex and Alex enjoying his company too.

Now, however, his feelings were rain. Alex said than it was “dark and pissing down rain”. Strongly raining. Henry knew Alex loved him back, and he couldn’t deal with that. He couldn’t deal than, when it all would eventually end, as he thought it would, he would not only break his own heart, but Alex’s too.

At the moment, he still believed than he deserved nothing, than he was only born to be a puppet for the crown. Than he didn’t deserve happiness, didn’t deserve Alex’s love because, what was there of him to love?

However, even if he didn’t feel deserving of happiness, of Alex’s feelings, he still loved him. He loved him strongly like the rain outside.

Rain outside, than, by the way, was soaking Alex.

Alex was soaking in Henry’s feelings the moment he arrived at Kensington. One, because Henry’s feelings were so deep and strong than occupied all of London, and two, because those feelings were directed specially towards Alex.

When Alex was screaming at Henry about why the fuck he ghosted him, the book says “Henry paces over to the elaborately carved fireplace across the room”

The fireplace. The fireplace has a big part in this scene omg.

He paces over it. He’s deciding whatever he should accept Alex’s feelings or not. Because giving Alex up nearly killed him, but if he accepted his feelings, everything else would be so much more complicated. They would have to fight, and as we see later in the scene, Henry doesn’t think of himself as a fighter, but a coward.

Then, we have Alex saying than Henry didn’t make it fucking easy but than he loved him.

And then, the book says “A small click cuts the silence: Henry has taken his signet ring off and set it down on the mantel. He holds his naked hand to his chest, kneading the palm”

So much happens in a few lines,let’s see.

He takes of his signet ring (a symbol of monarchy, something than probably was passed down to him, which means than it’s also a symbol of history. The prince of Wales signet ring (Charles ring) reads: Ich Dien. I serve. A tangible representation of his service to the country. Of his responsibilities) and he puts it in the fireplace.

The fireplace, which represents Alex’s feelings.

He takes off his ring, takes off monarchy and that sense of expectation than comes with it, and set it in top of the fireplace. Leaves the two possible futures for him side by side. The ring, meaning monarchy, having to pretend someone he’s not, probably marrying a woman and stay in the same place and system than caused him so much pain. But than, nonetheless, would be the easier choice.

Or, a possible future with Alex. A future they both would have to fight tooth and nail for, and maybe, will not even happen. Maybe they will not be accepted. Maybe it all would turn out wrong. But than, even if it’s the most complicated and unknown path, is the one where Henry would be able to be himself for once, and where he would have Alex at his side.

When Alex’s takes out the “Dear Thisbe” note out of his pocket and shows it to Henry, Alex said than the note was soggy from the rain.

Soggy from Henry’s feelings.

The note was full of Henry’s feelings. That was Henry’s confession, his quiet declaration.

Now more than anything, the note was true.

I wish there weren’t a wall.

Before, the wall was, apart from the fact than Henry thought than they could not be together because he was brainwashed by the crown, there were several walls. One wall, was that one. The fact than Henry was a prince. The second wall, was the ocean between them, separating them all the time. The third wall, was the wall between their feelings. The wall than Henry thought was there but never was. The wall than Henry thought separated his romantic feelings and Alex’s platonic and sexual ones.

When Henry declares, he isn’t looking at Alex, but at the mantel. At the mantel while he said than “it was never supposed to be an issue”, than he thought he could just have a part of Alex in secret until he got tired of him.

He said that, while staring at the mantel, at the two possible futures for him.

“I never thought I’d be stood here faced with a choice I can’t make”

He was still staring at the mantel. What was he supposed to choose, the path than was written since before he was born, the easy path yet the unhappy one, or the unknown path, the one he didn’t know where would led them but than, still, it would led Henry to a more happy place, even if it will be more complicated.

When they start to make out, Henry cries. His tears, water, a representation of his feelings. Feelings too deep, too big to keep inside anymore, and slipping out of him.

When they end, Alex said than the fire had gone out.

I don’t think than that fire represented Alex’s feelings, but more like, fire as in anger. Things were calm yet tense when they ended. No more screaming, both too tired for it.

The morning after, its still raining. But focus on the way Alex describes the rain.

“and there’s a violent rain lashing against the big picture window, half-revealed by parting curtains”

Violent rain, Henry’s feelings inside of him, being violent, eating him out.

Yesterday, it was also raining. But, it wasn’t raining in America, but in London. In London, where Alex wasn’t supposed to be, Henry wasn’t expecting Alex in London. So, it was kind of as if he was hiding his feelings for Alex.

Now, it was raining while Henry was aware Alex was in London, in his bed.

The rain was “half-revealed by parting curtains”, he was slowly revealing to Alex his feelings, the intensity of them, and the internal conflict going inside of him.

Alex noted than Henry’s ring was still at the mantel, than he didn’t take it in the morning, it stayed at Alex’s side.

Henry already made the choice. The choice to try, to fight. He choose the future he wanted, and he choose Alex.

So yeah, that was my little analysis.