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Goodreads asked Alexander Davidson:

Who is your favorite fictional couple, and why?

Alexander Davidson Thank you Goodreads for asking this question in anticipation for Valentine's Day next week. Unfortunately, my favorite fictional couple is a tragic one, which might be why I'm still single.

I love the complicated relationship between Lady Brett Ashley and Jake Barnes in Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises. They are completely in love, but she requires a physical relationship ,and he has been made impotent due to an injury in World War I. He wants to be with her, but all he can do is watch as she dates literally every other guy but him. She wants to be with him, so she is entirely miserable with every relationship she has. They both take turns dreaming of each other and turning the other away. The novel ends with one of my favorite famous literary lines.

"Oh, Jake," Brett said, "we could have had such a damned good time together."
Ahead was a mounted policeman in khaki directing traffic. He raised his baton. The car slowed suddenly pressing Brett against me.
"Yes," I said. "Isn't it pretty to think so?"

On a happier note, Ron and Hermione are pretty great, too.

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