The third installment of a series of soulmate stories. Each story has a different pairing in focus, and together they shape a larger whole.
As always, I'd love to hear what you thought. Also, if there's anything else you'd like to see, feel free to let me know. Enjoy!
The door clicked closed behind him, softly, shutting out the laughter and chatter drifting through the apartment. Air left Alec's lungs on a long exhale as his shoulders relaxed. When they'd first viewed the apartment a few years back, he had instantly fallen in love with this room with its dark wooden floor that glowed warmly in the sunlight and its large, panoramic window overviewing a bustling New York City street. It had been a large factor in deciding to get the place despite the hefty price-tag, and he had swiftly claimed the room as his office. The walls were lined with heavy wooden bookcases, the sturdy shelves only just able to sustain the heavy weight of hundreds of books carefully arranged by the colour of their spine. An old-fashioned wood-carved desk was pushed against the wall opposite the door, and was covered in papers and books in a systematic mess that only Alec knew to decipher. His favourite part of his office was, however, the deep windowsill. Decked out with dark blue pillows to match the blue and silver stencil running along the edge of the ceiling, the bench offered the perfect spot for him to hide away from the world with his many manuscripts.
Alec smiled to himself as he got settled with his freshly refilled cup of black coffee and the surprisingly gripping manuscript he had been engrossed with for most of the day. He allowed himself a few moments of starring at the people milling about in the street below – a pastime that had proven on occasions to be fairly distracting – before delving back into the elaborate fantasy universe of the novice writer. He was pulled back into the real world some time later by a shy yet insisting knock on the door. He looked up in time to catch a little familiar head peaking through the tiny split between the door and the frame.
"Hey, Raf," Alec smiled, waving for his son to come in. Rafael was a small child with unruly black curls and a smile to rival the sun. He made his way into the room, carefully, clutching a notebook and a box of crayons to his chest.
"Can I work in here with you, dad?" he asked, blue eyes round. "Mrs. Garroway says we have to draw posters for the school play. It's a comp'tition, so it has to be good!"
"Sure, Buddy," with a smile, Alec effortlessly lifted the seven-year-old from the floor and placed him in the opposite end of the windowsill. This was a ritual they had. When Rafael came home from school after a long day of noise and stimulation, he would seek out the quiet pressurelessness of his fathers office. Over the years the two of them had spent countless of hours on the windowsill, working together in confidential silence.
"What are you going to draw?" Alec asked as he took a sip of his now cold coffee. He winched, but still downed the remains.
"A dragon," Rafael hummed, shifting through the notebook in search of a blank page.
"Sounds fun. Is there a dragon in the school play though?" Alec watched the frown of concentration on his son's face as Rafael carefully opened up the case of crayons. They were a birthday present from his aunt Izzy, and he always treated them with outmost care.
"Nope," Rafael shook his head lightly, picking out the shade he wanted for his dragon. "But Mr. Bane promised there will be one in the play next year."
"Yeah? Then what's in the play this year?" Alec let his fingers drift over the pages of the nearly finished manuscript still in his lap, though he continued watching his son.
"A boring princess." Rafael answered indifferently, starting in on his drawing.
"I thought you liked princesses well enough?" Alec frowned.
"I like princesses that fight and stuff. Not princesses who just wait around to be saved." Alec laughed softly, turning to look down at the street below. It was a little calmer, now, as evening was descending. He could clearly hear his sister's voice in his son's words.
"Right," he smiled, "but if it's a poster for the play, shouldn't you draw something from the play?"
"Nuh-uh," Rafael didn't look up from his work. "Mrs. Garroway said we could draw what we wanted. She just encursed us to draw something from the play, but I want to draw a dragon, so." Rafael shrugged nonchalantly, and Alec shook his head at him, eyes crinkling as he smiled widely.
"Well, then. Cary on." He watched his son for a moment longer before turning back to his manuscript. A while later, could have been 5 minutes, could have been half an hour, a throat clearing pulled the both of them from the bubble they had build around themselves. Lydia raised an amused eyebrow at them when they turned towards her with matching round and surprised eyes.
"Boys," she said, folding her arms over her chest and leaning against the doorframe. "Grandma Lightwood will be here in 15 minutes. You've been warned." The annoyed twitch of her husbands eye and the pout taking over Rafael's face made her fight down a smile. "Get washed up." She shook her head, pushed away from the door and marched away. Schooling his face, Alec turned back to Rafael.
"Come on Buddy," he smiled, putting away his work, and standing up.
"But I'm not done!" Rafael protested, tilting the notebook for Alec to see. He might be biased, but Alec was quite certain that there was a highly talented and creative soul harbouring in his son, just waiting to be cultivated. The dragon unfolding over the page was nothing like what Alec had expected. Red and orange lines shaped out large, bat-like wings that spread out over the page. A small, cat-like body huddled in-between the wings, triangular eyes stared out of a pointy face, as the creature crouched down in front of a warrior princess, long-sword drawn against the enemy.
"You can work on it before bed instead of a story, okay?" Alec ruffled the curls as Rafael huffed, resigned. "Come on, Buddy. Lets get washed up," He lifted Rafael down from the windowsill, letting his hands stay on the tiny shoulders as he walked his son out of the office.
(***)
"Bye mom. We'll see you next week," Alec kept the smile in place right up until th44e door had firmly closed behind his mother. Then he let it drop along with his shoulders and head. Having his mother over for dinner always left him utterly drained for energy.
On his way to the kitchen he pocked his head into Rafael's room, to find the boy asleep amidst papers and crayons. With a shake of the head he stepped into the room to gather the things and place them in their spot on the little desk under the window.
"The she-dragon's gone," Lydia turned to send him a tight smile from her place next to the boiling kettle. If Alec had chosen the place for his office, then Lydia had agreed because of the kitchen. This was her domain; the place to which she retreated to find peace. As such, it was always kept meticulously clean, not a thing out of place.
"Good," she said, "Did you check in on Rafa?" Alec nodded, walking over to fold his arms around her.
"He's out cold." He pressed a quick kiss to the crown of her head. 8 years of mariage had build up a relaxed familiarity between them. Lydia hummed, leaning her head back into his shoulder. "You want tea?"
"Yes, please," Alec reached past her to grab a couple of mugs as she quietly started filling tealeaves into a filter, and pouring on the boiled water.
"I got an email from mrs. Garroway today." Alec brought the mugs over to a table tugged into a corner of the room. "She wants to do a dyslexia test on Rafa. Apparently he still isn't improving." Alec breathed deeply, nodding slowly. He knew letters had never made much sense to his son, and that his reading skills lacked behind. It wasn't for lack of trying either. Countless of hours had been spent at the kitchen table going over simple words, sounding out letters and constructing sentences. Hours filled with frustration, determination and even tears.
"Well we kind of knew, didn't we?" he said as Lydia joined him with her ceramic teapot.
"Yeah. We did." she sighed, sinking into a chair opposite him. "I just wish this wasn't a hurdle he'd have to struggle with." she poured tea into their mugs, pushing one over towards Alec with a sigh.
"I know," Alec reached over to fold a warm hand around Lydia's small one. "But it's better that he gets help dealing with it than letting him struggle on his own, isn't it?" Lydia smiled, tiredly, nodding her head.
"Yeah. I just wish he wouldn't have to struggle at all. He's my baby boy, you know," she shrugged with that small smile she'd reserved for her child playing on her face. Alec nodded, squeezing her hand before letting go and folding it around his mug instead. "Anyway, they'll do the test this week, and we'll know for sure." Lydia said on an exhale, following it up with a sip of her tea. Alec, too, sipped his tea, letting the hot liquid seep into his bones, filling him with the peaceful sort of tiredness that came after a long day.
"So," Lydia broke the quiet silence a moment later. "Apparently I have a party to plan." Alec groaned, leaning in over the table to hide his face behind his hand.
"I'm turning 30. You'd think that makes me old enough to decide what I want to do for my own birthday!"
"No, apparently that's a job for your wife. So long as she decides what your mother wants to have happen, and invite the people your mother wants invited irregardless of whether we actually know them or not!" Lydia's voice was strained as she spoke with a shake of the head. Alec could only smile in sympathy.
"You know, it's times like this that I almost envy Max for getting out and away from this mess." he said, then frowned at the table at his own words. "God, he'd run away all over again if he saw me like this." this time it was Lydia who reached over to fold a hand around Alec's.
"You brother's always been smart, if a bit hotheaded. I'd like to think that if he actually stayed to listen he'd see that it's possible to live your own life and have a good relationship with your siblings." Alec raised his eyes to meet Lydia's smile, shrugging one shoulder.
"Yeah, maybe. We'd get to find out if he'd just came back. God, I miss him, Lyds." Lydia's smile turned sad as she squeezed his hand tightly.
"I know. Hopefully, he knows that, too." Alec heaved out a sigh, letting Lydia's attempt at reassurance wash over him. It had been more than seven years since his brother decided to take of on the night of Alec's wedding, and no-one had heard from him since. It still made Alec's heart ache and stomach churn, knowing how large a part he and his actions had played in that decision.
"So, about this party," Alec visibly shook of the gloomy feelings threatening at the edges of his mind, "What's the strategy?"
(***)
"Mommy!" Rafael stormed through the door and straight for the kitchen with a war-cry. "Mommy, please don't be sad for ever and ever!" Alec followed, ready to explain the sudden outburst. He had picked up his son, as he did every Thursday, only to find a Rafael filled with questions. Questions about the marks grazing his parents wrists, and why they weren't alike. About why his mother's was filled when his father's wasn't.
Alec found his wife and son in the kitchen as expected. Rafael had his arms around his mothers knees, face pressed into her thigh. Lydia was facing the doorway, both hands raised perplexedly in the air as she looked down at her son.
"They talked about soulmates at assembly today." Alec said in explanation, leaning against the doorway. "He put two and two together all on his own."
"Mrs. Garroway said not having your soulmate anymore makes you sad. I don't want you to be sad, mommy!" Rafael said, looking up at Lydia with large wet eyes. A soft smile spread over Lydia's face as she ran a hand through Rafael's curls, then bending down to be able to look him straight in the eyes.
"I was sad for a while," Lydia said, slowly, one hand resting on Rafael's tiny shoulder. "But now I'm not. Now I have you and I have daddy. You take the sadness away." Lydia had met John in highschool, and for a few months, she had been one giant ray of sunshine. Then a stupid car crash had taken all that away from her in an instant, leaving her with a whole in her heart that Alec knew no-one could ever fill. He had seen it. Seen the way the deep, in-explicable grief had clung to her skin, making her grey and dull to the bare eye. That hadn't changed until the moment she'd held her son in her arms for the first time. That was when the spark had returned to her eyes.
"You promise?" Rafael's voice was small, prompting Alec to make his way over to the pair.
"I promise," Lydia made sure to hold her son's eyes as she said those words, running her hand through his curls. Rafael's lower lip was still wobbling, though, and he fell against his mother's shoulder, his small arms coming up to fold over her shoulders. Lydia's eyes met Alec's over Rafael's head as she pulled him into her arms. There was a helplessness in her eyes that prompted Alec to reach over and wrap the two of them tight in his own arms.
"We're a family. Making each other happy is what we do." Alec said, giving his little family a tight squeeze. "And today we do so by getting ice-cream!" Lydia and Alec shared a small smile as Rafael cheered, and shuffled out of their hold to rush to the fridge. With a shake of the head, Alec got to his feet, helping his exited son getting the cartoons out of the fridge.
(***)
"Dinner in half an hour!" Magnus called after Max as the smalle boy wrestled out of his coat and ran straight for his bedroom. with the patient sigh of a parent, Magnus bent down to pick up the gear his son had left all over the floor.
Magnus smiled to himself as he made his way through their small flat to put his own things in his bedroom/study. There was a time when this place had been too filled with sadness for Magnus to stay. - Back when Camille had left and Magnus had had to figure out how to be a single working dad. But Magnus had worked hard to put the happiness back into his home, and now all he saw were the kids drawings on the hallway halls, the portraits Ragnor had gotten him for his 30th in the livingroom, and the litter of little clay figurines and paper cuttings spread all over. He had removed all reminders of the person he'd thought he'd be spending life with, and replaced them with new ones of the person he knew he'd get to keep.
A few minutes later the pasta was boiling happily in its pot and Magnus was swaying his hips to the cheeky beats of 'Don't stop the music' as he chopped tomatoes for the sauce. The cheerful song suddenly cut of in favor of blasting Magnus' ringtone through the small kitchen.
"You ruined my jam!" Magnus accused as the face of his adopted brother toned into view on Facetime.
"Well, mission accomplished then," Ragnor narrowed his eyes at the camera. "Can't have you scaring my nephew with your taste in music," Magnus poked his tongue out at the other man, waving his knife in the air as he positioned the phone near the chopping board.
"His current favourite is 'In the Summer' from frozen - The one with the snowman looking forward to the summer. I think you'll find I'm the one getting scars here." Ragnor only laughed at his disgruntled face. "Anyway, how's married life?" Ragnor and his soulmate, Will, had gotten married a month earlier after having been together for almost seven years.
"It's good," Ragnor nodded with a soft smile. "not much different from before, but. Before was pretty good, too, so. How are things your end?"
"Yeah, good. The summer play is coming up, so work is, you know, crazy. But so much fun. I have this little guy, sweet as all the world. He plays one of the knights, and the other day he gave the entire group a lecture on why the princess' self-agency was important. - Couldn't pronounce the word Self-agency, but other than that it was a moving speech."
"Good." Ragnor narrowed his eyes, tilting his head to the side. "That's good. That you have something to put a smile on your face." Shaking his head, Magnus let out a huff of breath.
"My son does that every day," he said. It got tiring always having others think they had to look out of for you just because your girlfriend and soulmate left you alone with your newborn child. "Speaking of, I'm sure he wants to tell his uncle everything about his new Ninja Turtles back pack." Ragnor smirked and nodded. "Max!" Magnus called loudly over his shoulder. "Your uncle Ragnor is on the phone!" at once little tap tap tap's of little feet against hardwood floors sounded from down the short hallway, signaling Max' eagerness to talk to his uncle. Magnus watched with fond amusement as his son and brother prattled on on about the backpack as if it was the most interesting thing ever. Life may not be exactly what he'd thought it would be, but it was pretty dang good as it was.