…thinking about how grayson hawthorne would be as an academic rival (before he dropped out) (and if he studied english literature)
ఌ︎ like every cliché, it starts out with him actually despising you. he wants to be top of his class. i mean he’s in harvard, for god’s sake
ఌ︎ so when you waltz into his classes and know everything about all of his favourite books, it rubs him the wrong way. especially if you answered a question he knew but didn’t put his hand up in time for
ఌ︎ grayson secretly always a competes with you and he hates that you probably couldn’t care less
ఌ︎ in all honesty, this is more of a one sided rivalry
ఌ︎ there was one assignment that required a presentation and you both accidentally picked the same topic. he has to watch you go up and present it, knowing he’s going to look like an idiot after you. that day he decided to fake an illness and go back to his dorm…
ఌ︎ one day, you had the nerve to try and to talk to him. your innocent, “hey, i hope you’re feeling better” made his blood boil
ఌ︎ jameson laughs on the phone when he hears about this, “you’ve met another you.” and grayson couldn’t be more livid
ఌ︎ but something in him changes when you attend a dinner party with your department that you were both invited to attend. yes, he was annoyed that it wasn’t just him being invited
ఌ︎ there was just something about seeing you in that dress, the way it flowed so perfectly down you. now he’s cursing himself for even entertaining that thought
ఌ︎ pair that with your knowledge of literature and how intelligent you were, suddenly grayson’s thinking about how he wants to speak to you
ఌ︎ he wouldn’t be upfront, his stubbornness getting the best of him. instead, he goes in with a question: “so you seem to know tolstoy pretty well”
ఌ︎ he sees the shock on your face but you reply, “i thought you didn’t speak”. and now he hates you all over again with your indestructible confidence. grayson’s an insecure person to put it lightly
ఌ︎ but he still indulges in you. after the awkward laugh he lets out, the pair of you talk for hours about your favourite books
ఌ︎ suddenly he remembers what it feels like to really enjoy someone’s company. maybe you’re not so bad after all
ఌ︎ there’s an open bar at this event so you and grayson of course take advantage of that. you’re drinking wine, he’s drinking whiskey.
ఌ︎ your conversation eventually leads onto the inevitable topic. you ask, “so why do you hate me to much?”
ఌ︎ he wants to be nothing but honest, the alcohol loosening his tongue, “because you’re everything i am but just better”
ఌ︎ his admission doesn’t strike you like he expected. instead, you’re looking at him like he’s an open book (pun intended)
ఌ︎ “the first seminar we had together, i overheard you telling another student all your favourite books. we share quite a few” you pause and look away and grayson physically cant tear his eyes off you. you look so beautiful
ఌ︎ your eyes are back on his, “just the way you act, i see myself in you so much. it took me a while to realise maybe that’s why i’m always trying to beat you. i don’t want to lose, neither do you.”
ఌ︎ grayson’s obviously shocked by this, he was under the illusion that his hatred was completely one sided
ఌ︎ and then, like all clichés, he’s realised he’s fallen for you. all those months spent thinking about you weren’t really from a place of hate, were they? of course not
