The Photographer

New York was not all he had hoped it to be. Alec had thought that New York was nothing but high fashion and hot models, so he could learn something from it and impress his sister back home, but it wasn't anything like that. He was beginning to think that what he felt maybe wasn't wanderlust after all. He couldn't just drive around America in his van for months on end, because honestly he hated being alone. Where he came from privacy wasn't exactly a well-known term. He knew how his life had been planned out, and it was only because his sister had told him to go see the world before settling down for a job in the small town that he was now here in a café sipping a skinny something-he-couldn't-pronounce-properly. But it was also the only reason as to why he would ever meet him – a dark-haired beauty with cheekbones that could kill. He walked up to the counter casually and tapped on the desk, while ordering an Americano. Alec wrinkled his nose at that, because there was really no other way to destroy good espresso than by mixing it with boiling water. Unfortunately that was the moment the other guy chose to turn his head and notice Alec. His first sight of Alec was of him frowning.

"Something wrong?" He looked up and down Alec. Unlike Alec, who was probably looking more like a lumberjack from Portland, this guy was wearing a nice suit with one hand in a pocket of his dress pants.

"Do you always order Americano?" Alec wondered.

"Yes?"

"Alright then."

"Is that it?" The guy looked sort of disappointed and that's when Alec noticed – he had a certain glow about his eyes, they were almost yellow and he looked superiorly at Alec, but he also seemed intrigued. Alec had learned early on to read people's expression. It was amazing what someone's small twitch of an eye could tell you about them, even if they hadn't intended to show it to you. Alec gaped suddenly, unwillingly.

"I would have warned you if you hadn't tried it before. It's my least favorite coffee," Alec said, when he had collected himself again. The guy took his coffee and left the café. Alec made a quick decision to follow the guy, he gathered his things and ran after him.

"Look, dude…" the guy turned as he felt Alec follow him.

"I'm sorry I was just wondering…" Alec noticed the guy looked bored and impatient, and changed his mind. "Do you know where the Empire State Building is?"

The guy sniggered and looked up behind him at an enormous building. Alec hit himself on the forehead.

"Of course. Sorry," he tried to suppress a laugh, but instead it came out an awful sound. Luckily, the guy smiled at that.

"Look, I'm already late for work, but here's my card if you ever need a tour guide in the New York night life. I work half the day. Sleep most of the afternoon, and party all night." He handed Alec a card, and he felt the guy's soft fingers as they brushed over his own. Alec was mesmerized for a second, while he watched the man walk away. His dress pants were tighter than Alec had seen any man wear before, but it looked fashionable. Once he was out of sight, Alec looked down at the card, half expecting it to be blank or be some sort of prank.

'MAGNUS BANE – FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY'

And then it had a number and a work address. This was a real business card. Magnus Bane? Why did that sound familiar? Smiling to himself, he walked back into the café, absentmindedly ordered an Americano and called up his sister.

"Alec!" she cheered as she answered her phone.

"Izzy, something weird just happened to me," he began.

"Uh-oh, did you get mugged? I should have told you to steer around New York. Remember I told you about my friend Meliorn, who got mugged in New York?"

"I didn't get mugged, Izzy," he sighed. "I got a business card." He needed advice, and when it came to advice about men his sister was the only expert he knew.

"Really? What kind of business card?"

"Fashion photography?"

"But you don't do photography? Uh, did they want you to model for them? I always told you that with your blue eyes and complexion you should do modeling," she said casually.

"He didn't say. But he did take his time to brush my hand while handing it to me. Do you think all he wanted was business?" Alec wondered. There was a silence on the other end of the line.

"He wants to do you," she finally said.

"Like do a photoshoot with me?"

"No, dumbass, he wants to do you," she just emphasized her own words. "Was he hot?" Alec wanted to say 'incredibly' or 'extremely', but he also wanted to act cool about it.

"He was all right." He was beyond all right, Alec thought to himself. "His name was Magnus Bane, does that mean anything to you?" Another silence, but this time he could hear her hyperventilating. "I'm guessing you know who that is?"

"Are you kidding? His pictures are plastered all over my walls!" she exclaimed. That explained why he recognized the name. "He modeled as a child, and then he grew up to become a fashion photographer. Alec, he takes pictures of all the fashionable actors and musicians!"

"Oh," Alec's hopes for seeing the guy again went down.

"You have to call him!"

"He sounds like a busy guy, I don't want to bother him," he shrugged to himself and sipped his Americano, spitting half of it down into the cup again after one taste – nope, still an awful way to serve coffee.

"If he gave you his card he definitely wants you to bother him!"

"I'll think about it," he promised.

"Call him!" she demanded.

"Say hello to the others back home. Bye, Izzy," he hung up, smiling at his demanding older sister. She had been very supportive of him coming out. His parents however had needed some getting used to. He supposed it was understandable. Jace had offered to be his wingman, but he had never taken him up on it. Simon had explained how he had had to come out as a Jew in a non-Jewish school. And Clary had just shrugged, and said "oh" like it was no big deal. He sometimes forgot to appreciate his friends, but he was really glad to have them. Someone took him out of his reverie, when a name was called.

"Magnus Bane?"

Alec looked up at the acne-attacked boy serving the coffee. The boy was looking at a wallet. He repeated the name, and Alec stood up.

"I know the guy. Mr. Bane, is it his wallet?"

"Yeah," the boy looked surprised that someone responded.

"I can bring it to him. I was going to see him later anyway," he offered. The boy narrowed his eyes.

"Nice try."

"You saw me talking to him earlier? The tall Asian guy with dark hair and slightly yellow eyes?"

"I didn't notice him," the boy said, unimpressed. Alec sighed.

"Look, I'll call him and let him know I'll bring him the wallet." Alec found his phone and typed in the number on the card.

"Bane's office?" a woman answered.

"Hi, this is Alexander Lightwood. I'm at a café with Mr. Bane's wallet. It seems he dropped it here," Alec looked over at the still unimpressed busboy.

"Hold on," she said and he heard a tone sending him to another line.

"Hello?" Alec recognized the voice immediately – a voice of confidence.

"This is Alexander- Alec Lightwood, we met earlier and I'm still here at the café, where an employee just found your wallet?" he said it like a question.

"Brilliant! I thought I'd been mugged on the way to work. Would it be too much trouble for you to bring it to me? I will of course pay for your time," Magnus Bane said.

"No, no trouble at all. But I think you'll have to convince the young employee that you trust me," Alec said and handed the boy his phone.

"Of course I remember you, Mr. Bane. Sure," the boy said and handed Alec the phone and the wallet.

"I'm at work. You have the address?"

"Yes," Alec smiled triumphantly at the busboy, who still seemed completely unimpressed.

Alec decided to walk the distance down town, because it would probably be quicker than his old van in this traffic. He didn't have much trouble finding it, because across one of the larger buildings he could easily make out the window that had the huge letters written across it, saying "BANE PHOTOGRAPHY AND STUDIO".

A young woman greeted him at the reception just inside the building.

"I'm here to see Magnus Bane?" Alec leaned over the counter, realizing he might come off as the hillbilly he probably was, and leaned back again. The woman looked up and she started smiling. It was an endearing sort of smile.

"You're here for the shoot?"

"What? Oh, no I…" he began, but she cut him off.

"You need to go to the elevator and take it down to the basement. Mr. Bane wants the shoot to have a realistically raw edge, that's why he changed it to the basement last minute," she smiled up at him. He cracked a smile, and left for the elevator. Did she think he was an employee? Well, she said he would be in the basement, so that's where he was going.

Entering the basement he was welcomed by half naked people running around, looking busy and stressed. A beautiful white haired woman came over to him with a sigh of relief.

"Please tell me you're here on behalf of Raphael? If he's calling it off three hours late, I swear to God!" she begged him.

"No, I'm…"

"Shit!" she turned around and left him again, while yelling. "He's a no-show, Magnus! I told you not to hire scum!"

Alec now saw Mr. Bane again and he seemed even more breathtaking in the light of the basement. The other man noticed him and smiled, ignoring the hysteric woman yelling at him.

"Alexander!" he welcomed. He had remembered his name. Alec held out the wallet.

"This is yours," he smiled nervously.

"Thank you very much. How can I return the favor?" Magnus seemed more at ease now than earlier, despite the stress surrounding him. Perhaps he was one of those people who thrived on action and stressful situations.

"Don't worry about it," Alec said.

"Let me take you out for drinks this afternoon?" the other guy offered. Alec's mouth fell open, but he wasn't sure what to say. Magnus waited expectantly. Alec had never been asked out before, and he wasn't even sure that's what happened. He couldn't just assume Magnus was gay. Alec really had awful gaydar.

"You haven't even looked to see if I've taken anything from your wallet, and you're trusting me to go out for drinks?" Alec tried to play it cool.

"I believe you are an honest man, Alec Lightwood," he grinned, and the sound of him saying Alec's full name sent a flutter through his body. "So?"

"MAGNUS!" the woman came up behind him, and he turned calmly to look at her. "Honestly, how are you this calm? You know he's not showing up. He's never showing up. I don't know why you bother with him."

"Camille, calm down. We still have a week."

"Who does he think he is?!" she said, before once again looking at Alec. She cocked her head slightly, and studied him. "Darling, do you do nudes?"

"Excuse me?" Alec's eyes widened. Magnus suppressed a grin.

"You have to excuse my colleague, she doesn't do well with stress. You should really find a new line of work, sweetheart," Magnus told her. She turned on her heels and walked away.

"What's going on?" Alec asked hesitantly.

"We had a photoshoot with Raphael Santiago today, but he's already three hours late and no word," Magnus explained. And Alec couldn't stop himself, before his expression revealed that he knew exactly who Raphael Santiago was. Magnus noticed, and Alec blushed. Raphael Santiago was a famous porn star, he mainly did gay porn and he was quite popular on the Internet.

"I thought you did fashion shoots?"

"It is. The porn industry is gaining popularity, and Raphael agreed to a fashion shoot to raise awareness," Magnus shrugged. "So how about those drinks?"

"Your colleague said nudes?" Alec ignored his question.

"Nearly nudes. It's an issue on underwear," Magnus seemed amused by Alec's interest. "Alexander, do I have to ask you one more time?" he wondered, and Alec had a feeling that Magnus often got what he wanted without effort. Yet, he seemed unconcerned about the fact that the famous porn star had just stood him up.

"One drink sounds good," he shrugged. Without taking his eyes off Alec, Magnus yelled to his colleague.

"Camille, I'll get in touch with Raphael later. We're going for drinks. Business meeting," he smirked.

"With that boy?" Camille sounded contempt. He turned to face her.

"Business," he repeated and the two of them left.

Magnus brought Alec to a quiet and chic bar not long from his work building. He explained that he liked to start his evenings quietly and then work his way up if he felt like it.

"Where do you usually go out?" he asked.

"Me?" Alec said. Of course he meant him. "I don't usually go out. Well, my sister owns a bar, so that's really the only place back home. It's not a big town or anything," he shrugged.

"Do you have a lot of siblings?"

"I have three. Technically Jace isn't my brother, but my parents adopted him, because his mother died giving birth to him and his father was a good friend of the family, but he died when Jace was eleven," Alec told.

"That's horrible," Magnus looked down into his drink.

"What about you?"

"Only child. I'm pretty sure my father is the devil himself, and I've only seen him once since my mother divorced him when I was only two years old. My mother passed away," he bottomed the rest of his cocktail and waved at a waiter.

"That sounds lonely?"

"I have friends," Magnus smiled softly.

"Of course, I didn't mean…"

"I thought Raphael was also my friend, but what do you know." So he was upset about the no-show after all.

"Sorry," Alec shrugged. The waiter came down with two other drinks. Alec had barely gotten through his first drink. It was too sweet and sour at the same time. It wasn't like the scotch or lager that Izzy usually served him.

"It's not your fault the kid is an unthankful little bastard. If you don't like your drink I can order something else for you?" he offered, and Alec was taken aback for a second because of the sudden change of subject.

"It's only four o'clock?"

"Your point?" Magnus raised an eyebrow.

"I could use a beer?" Alec had a feeling that he shouldn't try to judge this guy. He was surprised to find that he was attracted to the demanding and bossy attitude that Magnus expressed, but he still wasn't sure if Magnus even liked guys. How did people usually bring it up?

After a few beers and Magnus telling a story of how he had landed Raphael his career, Magnus stood up suddenly.

"Let's go somewhere else," he said. Alec stood up.

"Where?"

"Somewhere with music," he said and walked out of the bar. The bar had music, but supposedly he wanted it to be louder. Magnus dragged him across the street, and into a club.

"I don't usually go to clubs," Alec said apologetically. He didn't really like this kind of crowd. Magnus narrowed his eyes.

"You're not underage, are you?"

"No?" Why did it come out as a question? He knew he wasn't underage.

"Good," he said, and dragged him to the dance floor, where Alec quickly lost him. He tried to sway along with the music, but he had no rhythm. A few moments later Magnus came back into view with no other than Raphael Santiago. "Raphael, this is Alec." Raphael looked terrified by the look of Alec.

"Ew! What is that?" he pointed at Alec's black sweatshirt.

"American Apparel?" Alec said. This seemed to dissatisfy him even more.

"No. Nope. Bye Magnus," he said and walked away.

"Seems like a nice guy," Alec said wryly, and Magnus laughed.

For some reason, Alec stayed for several hours. He was tired and he wanted nothing more than to go back and collapse in his van, but something about Magnus kept him interested, even after girls had started crowding around him and he was having his arms around at least two of them. Eventually, he had come over with a few of the girls, almost trying to give them away to Alec, but of course Alec didn't care much for the girls.

"Do you want to go home?" Magnus said, hanging on to two girls. He had trouble finding his balance, and something about the scene made Alec sad. It wasn't because the man was drunk and probably going home with at least two girls, and not Alec. It was because the man had seemed so at home in his workplace, and now a completely different person seemed to emerge as the drinks kept coming. The guy had to be lonely, even if he denied it, and for that Alec felt sad.

"I want to go back to my van," he said.

"Don't be silly. You can crash on my couch. Or join us. Ladies, you wouldn't mind?" he looked at the two girls and they giggled, biting their lips as they measured an uncomfortable Alec.

Somehow, Alec had let Magnus convince him to go back with them. The apartment was huge, well, it was more like a loft. He was horrified when he found that it was all one big room. Sure, he'd divided a small space into a bedroom by putting up half transparent walls. It wasn't going to cover enough if Magnus was going to have a threesome in there, while Alec sat on the couch. The three of them disappeared up to the bed, while Alec looked around. Everything looked high fashion, but he couldn't be sure. For a photographer he didn't have a lot of pictures hanging around. Alec did find one picture of a child model. He assumed it was Magnus. He had just fallen down onto the couch with a huge sigh, when the two girls appeared, walking towards the door.

"Your friend passed out," one of them shrugged and they both left.

Alec got up and walked up to check on Magnus. He lay on top of a sea of blankets and pillows, no shirt and his pants were halfway off. Alec helped him out of his pants and rolled him off a blanket, so he could wrap him up in it. Before he could leave, Magnus grabbed his wrist.

"Alec?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you know how old I am?" he asked. Alec thought it was an odd thing to ask, but then again, he had to be really drunk to pass out on two girls.

"Twenty-four?" he guessed.

"I turned thirty last week," he said. Alec wouldn't have guessed it, but he also didn't understand the big deal. Maybe he was too young to understand what it was like to turn thirty?

"Okay?"

"You think that's old?"

"No, I don't," he assured him, but he wasn't sure Magnus had heard him, because he was fast asleep again. Alec went out and placed himself on the couch again, but he couldn't sleep. He had had a lot of beers, but he didn't feel drunk anymore. Instead his mind was occupied all night by the stranger lying drunk in the bed. Alec was twenty-one, and he didn't think thirty was old. He kept obsessing over small details of his day, such as his first meeting with Magnus, where he'd been dismissive, or later when he'd been completely grateful for Alec to bring his wallet. And now he'd seen a third side of him, and all within a day. He couldn't help but wanting to know more about him. There had to be a reason for the man's behavior. Before he realized he'd been awake all night staring at the ceiling, Magnus woke up and came out from behind the nearly transparent walls, looking hungover. Alec sat up on his elbows.

"Have you been sleeping there?" Magnus wondered, clearing his eyes.

"You don't remember?"

"Oh no, I didn't take advantage of you, did I?" he asked. Alec blushed. Would it be so awful if he had? It seemed to be a repelling thought, according to Magnus' expression.

"No, you didn't. The girls left though."

"What girls?"

"The ones you brought home last night?" Alec said, a bit concerned that he didn't remember, but also not entirely surprised.

"Right. Coffee?" he offered, and Alec jumped to his feet.

"Let me," he said and went to the kitchen.

"Why are you not hungover?"

"I had beer. You had cocktails," he shrugged. He knew alcoholic drinks had a worse effect than beer, but Magnus seemed unfamiliar with beer. Besides, he hadn't had as many as Magnus. Magnus went to sit down by his kitchen island, while Alec made espresso. He handed Magnus the first cup and the man reacted almost as if he'd had brain-freeze, but surely that couldn't be it.

"What did you do to it?"

"That's how you're supposed to serve espresso," Alec said.

"I need some water in it," he held out the tiny cup.

"No, just drink it. It's no worse than the shots you took last night."

"Shots? Well, that explains it," he wrinkled his nose and poured the rest of the espresso down his throat.

"You need another one for that headache," Alec said and took the cup to make another one.

"Are you trying to parent me, Lightwood?"

"Someone ought to," Alec said, holding his breath, waiting for hell to break loose. Instead Magnus flashed a smile, the smile of a heartbreaker. It made Alec's knees weak, and he couldn't help but smile back.

"How old are you?" he wondered.

"Twenty-one."

"Do you know how old I am?"

"Thirty," Alec said. Magnus looked taken aback. "What, you think you could hide it with botox?" Alec teased.

"No," Magnus looked amused. Espresso always helped with the hangover. "People are often surprised. I have one of those eternal youthful looks. Or so I've been told, but apparently not. And I don't use botox. I do use glitter sometimes though."

"I know. You told me your age last night, before you passed out," Alec admitted.

"No shit," he said, and then shrugged it off. His phone rang and he got up to answer it. Alec tried to make himself useful and washed the espresso cups. His stomach complained. He hadn't had much to eat yesterday, and he realized Magnus hadn't eaten either. When Magnus returned he was rolling his eyes. "Raphael is coming in today. Hopefully," he sighed.

"You're not too hungover?" Alec raised an eyebrow.

"You need to stop parenting me. It's distracting," he chuckled.

"Why? Daddy issues?" he wondered. Magnus flashed another brilliant smile.

"You wish," he said. "In all seriousness though, if you don't have anything better to do today, your espresso-making skills would be highly appreciated?" he offered.

"Are you offering me an assistant job? I'm twenty-one," Alec crossed his arms, now that he knew Magnus enjoyed his little games.

"Only for the day, and all the assistants in New York are twenty-one these days," he grinned. "Besides, Camille isn't coming in today and I just won't be able to deal with Raphael alone."

"What do you mean, he seemed like such a delight last night?" Alec smirked.

"Please save me from the misery of his company?" Magnus let his head fall down dramatically on the kitchen island.