It was just acting!
harry collett x co-star!reader (2k)
When the long awaited season three of hod airs, your friends hilarious video reacting to your kiss with Harry goes viral, the fans obsess over your off-screen chemistry and every interview blurs the line between acting and reality.
MATERIALIST
The internet had a habit of falling in love before the writers ever gave it permission.
By the time the third season of House of the Dragon premiered, interviewers barely bothered asking about dragons before bringing up another viral TikTok or a fan edit with millions of views. Harry always admitted he'd seen them. You always claimed you hadn't. Neither of you ever mentioned that after particularly long filming days, one of you inevitably ended up sending the newest edit to the other with an equally ridiculous caption.
The announcement of season three only made the obsession worse.
The scene that would dominate the internet for weeks had taken nearly an entire day to film. It began after your character ignored direct orders and rode alone into enemy territory to warn a neighbouring house of an ambush, returning battered but successful hours later. The reunion wasn't gentle. It was loud, emotional, and raw, the sort of argument that only happened between two people whose feelings had been buried beneath years of duty and pride.
You still remembered standing opposite Harry beneath the blazing studio lights while the director quietly reminded both of you not to hold back.
"I don't want them arguing because they're angry," he had explained. "I want them arguing because they're terrified."
The difference had changed everything.
Your character barely managed to cross the threshold before his was demanding to know what possessed you to risk your life alone. Every sentence interrupted the next. Every accusation was answered with another. Your character insisted someone had to go. His argued that it should never have been you. Neither of them noticed how close they had moved until there was barely any space left between them, voices breaking under the weight of weeks of fear neither had known how to express.
The script originally ended the confrontation with silence.
During rehearsal, however, the director asked the two of you to let the scene breathe before cutting away.
Instead of stepping back, Harry's character reached for yours almost instinctively, his hands settling firmly around your arms as if reassuring himself that you were actually standing there. Your character looked ready to argue again before every remaining word simply disappeared. The kiss that followed wasn't planned as an interruption or a grand romantic gesture. It happened because neither of them could think of another way to say everything they had spent two seasons refusing to admit. It was messy, desperate, and emotional, beginning in the middle of an argument before gradually softening into something infinitely more tender. By the time your characters finally pulled apart, they were both laughing through tears, foreheads resting together while the anger quietly dissolved into relief.
When the director called cut, nobody spoke.
Even members of the crew who had watched dozens of takes throughout the day stayed unusually quiet before applause slowly spread across the soundstage.
Months later, millions of viewers experienced that same moment for the first time.
You had refused every invitation to watch the episode with the rest of the cast. Sitting beside Harry while the biggest romantic scene of the season played across a cinema screen sounded like an experience you were perfectly happy to avoid. Instead, you invited your closest friends to your flat, imagining a quiet evening with takeaway food and comfortable sofas would make the entire thing considerably less embarrassing.
The mistake became obvious almost immediately.
Mia walked into your living room carrying enough snacks to feed an army before stopping dead in her tracks, her eyes narrowing suspiciously at the television.
"This is the episode, isn't it?"
You busied yourself arranging drinks on the coffee table. "There are eight episodes."
"Don't play innocent."
"I genuinely don't know what you mean."
She looked at the others with a triumphant smile. "She's lying. This is absolutely the kissing episode." Within minutes someone had balanced a phone against a stack of books facing the sofa.
You noticed instantly.
"What are you doing?"
"Filming."
"No."
"We're filming ourselves."
"No."
"You're not the subject."
"I know exactly where this is going." Another friend reached over and pressed record anyway.
The opening shot captured everyone settling onto the sofa before Mia cheerfully announced to the camera, "POV: You're reacting to your friend kissing her ridiculously hot co-star."
You groaned so dramatically that everyone burst into laughter. "I hate all of you."
"We love you too."
For most of the episode, your friends behaved surprisingly well. They became invested in battles, loudly criticised terrible political decisions, and celebrated every victory your character achieved. Every so often someone remembered to glance toward you with an amused smile, but as the story unfolded, they became genuinely absorbed by the episode itself.
Everything changed when the final sequence began. The corridor appeared. Harry's character spotted yours stumbling through the doorway, bruised but alive.
Nobody in your living room said a word.
On screen, he crossed the room in seconds before demanding to know what you had been thinking. His voice echoed through the stone corridor as he listed every reckless decision your character had made, while yours argued back with exactly the same amount of passion. The argument escalated until both characters were practically shouting over one another, neither willing to admit that fear—not anger—had fuelled every word.
Your friends leaned so far forward they were practically sitting on the edge of the sofa. Then Harry stopped speaking. He simply looked at your character. Really looked.
His shoulders dropped almost imperceptibly as every trace of anger gave way to overwhelming relief. His character reached for yours so gently it felt accidental, one hand lifted carefully to your face, brushing a strand of hair away before lingering against your cheek.
The room exploded.
"Oh my God!"
"WAIT."
"LOOK AT HIM."
"HE'S ABOUT TO—"
Before anyone could finish the sentence, the kiss happened—not a fleeting television kiss, but something slow. Your friends screamed. Mia snatched the remote and paused the episode halfway through, freezing the two of you on screen as absolute chaos erupted in the room. She pointed dramatically at the television.
"The forehead touch afterwards!" someone yelled.
"The way he looks at her!" another added. "He looks devastated and in love at the same time."
You laughed, already hiding your face behind a cushion.
"No," Mia insisted, pointing at the frozen screen again. "Because what was that? The way he's looking at you..."
"It's acting."
Mia slowly turned to stare at you. "He looks at you like you invented happiness."
The room fell suspiciously quiet before everyone nodded in agreement.
"That's what I'm saying," someone whispered. "I've never seen someone look at another person like that."
You rolled your eyes, despite feeling your face grow warmer. "It's called acting."
"Is it?" Mia asked.
"Yes."
"Hmm."
The silence lasted for about ten second before another of your friends said, "You kissed Harry Collett."
"I kissed my co-star."
"You kissed Harry Collett."
"I am aware of who my co-star is."
"You got paid...”
"I KNOW."
Another friend replayed the kiss, then replayed it again.
"You know what's crazy?" she laughed. "The chemistry is actually ridiculous."
"I've seen the scene," you replied.
"No, but seeing it as a viewer..." She shook her head dramatically. "I would've believed you two were actually together."
Your cheeks warmed. "Good thing neither of us has to convince you."
"Oh, honey," she said. "You've convinced everyone."
Another friend zoomed in on the paused frame.
"And don't even get me started on the hand."
"Oh, the hand deserves its own discussion."
The room dissolved into laughter as the argument continued. Every time you insisted the scene had been carefully choreographed, someone countered by replaying another few seconds before pausing again to analyse expressions, body language or the way Harry's character softened the instant he realised yours was safe. The TikTok captured every second of it.
Your increasingly desperate attempts to defend yourself. Your friends shouting over one another. The repeated cries of, "She kissed Harry Collett!" and, "Look at the way he's looking at her!" The TikTok ended with all four of them screaming while you slid lower and lower into your chair, trying unsuccessfully to disappear beneath the restaurant table.
“You know what’s even funnier?” Mia laughed, looking up from her phone. When you asked what, she grinned. “We’re posting this.” Your eyes widened in panic. “No, you’re absolutely not.”
“It’s already uploading,” she countered.
“…Mia.”
“Too late.”
You sighed dramatically, muttering that you hoped it would flop. In fact, It did not flop. By the following morning, the video had reached over five million views, and by lunchtime, it had easily crossed twelve million.
People stitched themselves reacting to your friends reacting to the kiss. Editors added dramatic music beneath Mia yelling, "SHE KISSED HARRY COLLETT!" Someone even animated little fireworks around your increasingly embarrassed expression. The comments somehow became funnier with every refresh.
"She's acting like she accidentally kissed him."
"I'd tell every single person I met."
"Her saying 'it's called acting' while refusing to look at the screen..."
"The friend pausing every three seconds is literally all of us."
Around lunchtime the next day, your phone buzzed. Harry had sent you a link to the TikTok, nothing else. You replied almost immediately: Don't.
Three dots appeared, then: Your friends are hilarious.
-They're humiliating me, you typed back.
They're representing the entire fandom.
-They're never allowed in my house again.
Another message arrived: The bit where they paused to discuss my hand placement made me laugh.
You stared at the screen. -You watched the whole thing?
Twice.
-Traitor.
I prefer supportive co-star.
You rolled your eyes despite yourself, a smile slipping onto your face. He was enjoying this far too much.
By the end of the week, fans were using the audio beneath edits of your characters, bts clips, and red carpet photographs. It quickly became one of the most recognizable quotes in the fandom. By the time you arrived at the London premiere a few days later, you knew someone would bring it up, you just hadn't expected it to be the very first question. The interviewer smiled the moment you and Harry stepped in front of the microphone. "So... I have to ask about the TikTok."
You sighed. "I knew this was coming."
Harry laughed beside you. "I thought it was brilliant."
“Of course you did.”
"I liked it."
"I know you liked it," you muttered, as the interviewer grinned and held up her microphone.
"My favorite part is when your friend pauses the episode and says, 'He looks at her like she invented happiness,'" the interviewer said. "After watching the scene... I have to admit, I understand what she meant." Harry rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly far more interested in the carpet beneath his feet than the cameras. Noticing his sudden shyness, you laughed awkwardly. "They're very dramatic."
Harry smiled to himself before looking up. "I suppose that's a nice compliment."
"For who?" you asked.
He looked at you for a beat longer than usual. "For both of us."
"So," the interviewer continued, catching the look, "what do you both think about that observation?"
Harry glanced toward you again. "I think our intimacy coordinator would be very pleased that people believed the scene."
"That's the diplomatic answer," you teased.
"It is," he admitted.
"But...?”
His smile softened. "But... I do think it's one of the best scenes we've ever filmed together."
You nodded, your voice softening as well. "So do I."
The interviewer noticed. The photographers noticed. The fans watching the livestream definitely noticed. Neither of you realized how quietly you'd spoken until the interviewer lowered her microphone with a knowing smile. The clip spread across social media almost as quickly as the original TikTok. For the first time in weeks, fans stopped talking about the fictional kiss. Instead, they talked about the way Harry had looked at you on the red carpet.
“Forget the kiss scene.”
“Someone explain why they're looking at each other like that in real life.”
“Season three gave us one romance on screen... but the press tour might be giving us another.”
