A/N: I wrote this for someone on tumblr, and it's pretty cute and fluffy, and god who doesn't need more happy malec in their lives haha.
Please leave a comment, I'd love to know what you thought
Find me on tumblr: rowanwhitethon
Alec Lightwood didn't know it was possible to be this nervous, but here he was, sweating buckets and generally a complete mess.
The restaurant was fancy enough that he was wearing a suit, but he knew that it was one of Magnus's favourite and even he had to admit that the food was divine, despite the rather extortionate prices. Alec figured he could splash out tonight, because tonight had to be perfect.
Alec had had it all planned out for months. He'd take Magnus to this restaurant, have a fantastic meal and then a walk to lighten the mood. They'd return back to their apartment and then Alec would ask the question that had been plaguing his thoughts for months.
The ring sat heavily in his back pocket, a reminder of his motive of the whole evening.
Since being taken to their table ten minutes ago, Alec had already ran his hands through his hair five times, fiddled with the edge of his sleeve at least eight times, and had to look away from Magnus's gaze too many times to count. His palms were clammy, and he couldn't really work out what had got him so worked up. At this point, he would take fighting a demon any day over the nerves of actually proposing.
"Alexander, darling, are you okay?" Magnus was smiling, his grin dazzling Alec as always. They'd been together for nearly five years now, and Alec still couldn't believe that he could make him smile, sometimes by doing absolutely nothing.
"I'm fine, I'm fine. Just a bit hot. Has it always been so hot in here?"
Magnus laughed, and Alec melted a little. He always did, when Magnus laughed, because it was a time when he totally let down his guard. There were no secrets lining his face when he laughed. "You're cute when you're flustered, Alec."
This, of course, only made Alec even more flustered. Naturally.
He knew that getting married was just a label, that he was going to spend the rest of his life with Magnus regardless of whether or not they actually had a ceremony to prove it, but wanted some way to prove to Magnus, and to everyone else, just how much he loved him. It was perhaps a bit whimsical, and hopelessly romantic of him, but the idea of calling Magnus his husband made him feel warm inside.
Somehow, he stumbled his way through ordering his meal, and when the waiter left, he tried to forget about the purpose of the night and relax. He was reminded a little of their first date, of the way he'd been certain he'd made a fool of himself. He just hoped that the night had a surprisingly lovely ending like that one had.
Trying to push any negativity out of his head, Alec tried to forget about it all and just pretend he was on another date with Magnus. He smiled at his boyfriend, at the man he loved, and took a deep breath to calm himself. Magnus smiled back, and Alec let it relax him, focusing on the conversation and the food and anything but the butterflies in his stomach.
He made it through most of his meal barely thinking about the task ahead, until Magnus said, "So what's the occasion? Fancy meal at a fancy restaurant, is there an anniversary or something that I've forgotten about?"
Alec nearly choked on his risotto, though he managed to swallow it without too much of a fuss. Magnus was looking at him curiously, and he could feel his cheeks heating up, no doubt his pale skin betraying him and turning red.
"Can't a man take his boyfriend out to dinner without having some sort of occasion?" It was probably the worst excuse he could've possibly come up with, but Alec had never been great at quick thinking. He couldn't spin some elaborate tale like Jace, and so the first thing that popped into his head came tumbling out of his mouth.
Magnus was definitely looking a little suspicious by then, but didn't say anything. In a panic, Alec wondered if he'd guessed the real purpose of the date, but it didn't seem so. And he supposed it didn't much matter if it did, he just wanted it to be a surprise for Magnus, who, as far as he knew, had never gotten married before. He guessed that was part of the reason he was so nervous, because Magnus had lived for so long and had been with so many people, but he'd never decided to get married before.
Most things were firsts just for Alec but this was a first for both of them.
The Brooklyn apartment was home, usually comforting with the promise of lazy kisses and a shared bed, but at that moment Alec wasn't sure whether it was relaxing him or making him even more nervous.
Given the fact that his hands were shaking a bit, probably making him even more nervous. He'd decided weeks ago that, ultimately, he wanted to ask at their home. He didn't want some cheesy public display (he figured he'd already done that when he'd kissed Magnus in the Accords Hall), and he wanted it to be somewhere that meant something to both of them. He'd racked his brain for ideas, but in the end, the apartment was the one place that kept coming back as somewhere that was special for them. It was their home, not just Magnus's anymore. He could see bits of himself everywhere in it, along with bits of Magnus. It was the place of their first meeting, their first kiss, their first so many things.
"I think my boyfriend should randomly take me out to dinner more often," Magnus said as he shut the door behind him, taking off his glittery black shoes to reveal the unicorn socks he had on underneath. "It was fun."
"Yeah, well, maybe not for a while. That restaurant just burned a hole in my pocket. I mean seriously, why does one dish have to be like thirty dollars? That's just a rip off."
Magnus turned and placed a chaste yet sweet kiss on his lips, lingering slightly as he moved away. "The things we must sacrifice for good food are truly tragic."
Alec grinned. "But worth it."
"But of course. Good food is always worth it."
He sighed, and wrapped his arms around Magnus's waist. He hadn't realised how much he liked this sort of physical contact before he'd started dating Magnus, the hand holding and the hugging, the casual touches that sent fire running down his skin. Anywhere Magnus touched him lit up, made him ache for more.
When they let go, Alec's thoughts were racing. This was as far as he'd really planned; he had no clue how to even begin the conversation. Was he supposed to give some long speech about their relationship? Angel, should he go down on one knee? The thought seemed ridiculous to him, and he had to fight back the urge to let out a nervous giggle.
Magnus moved away and sprawled on the couch, and Alec was left standing awkwardly next to the door, his feet seemingly frozen and his mind going into a slight meltdown.
"Alexander?" If Magnus hadn't noticed his weird behaviour before, he was certainly noticing now. Alec had to concentrate on acting natural, and walking over to join Magnus on the sofa.
Even this simple task seemed to be against Alec, however, as after taking one step he found himself tripping over something and nearly face planting the wooden floor. He stumbled, and only just managed to regain his balance after reaching out to grab the arm of the chair in front of him. Something meowed from behind him.
Upon further inspection, it appeared that the object he'd tripped over was in fact Chairman Meow, who was eyeing him with trepidation, though he wasn't as grumpy as Church had been. "Be careful, Alec," said Magnus, who Alec could tell was on the verge of laughter. His amber eyes were shining, and the grin on his face was open and amused. "I'm sure Chairman Meow never intended to be a tripping hazard."
"Shut up," said Alec, who had straightened up, though his face was still burning a bit. Magnus finally let out his laugh, and it was far too infectious, because Alec laughed too. "He was clearly trying to sabotage me."
They laughed together until Alec could barely breathe, and the awkwardness of the whole thing slipped away with it. He didn't need lots of words to describe all the ways he loved Magnus, because the best way to say it was this, this laughter that filled every corner of Alec's heart and made him shine from the inside out.
"Come here," Magnus said between laughs, and Alec finally made it to the sofa, climbing into Magnus's outstretched arms. He had long since discovered that his absolute favourite place in the world was in Magnus's arms, listening to the slow, steady beats of his heart against his often racing one. The way his chest shook as the last few chuckles escaped Magnus's lips was soothing, and all of a sudden Alec wasn't nervous anymore.
"Magnus?" His voice was steadier than he thought it would have been.
"Yes, Alec?" Magnus was looking at him intently, his cat eyes which Alec knew so well yet would always hold mystery burning through him. He let out a shuddering breath, and steeled his nerves.
Magnus brushed his fingers through Alec's hair, and Alec caught his hand and pressed his lips against it. "I love you," he almost whispered.
"I love you too." Magnus's words settled into his bones, giving him the last bit of confidence he needed to say the words that he'd been anticipating for so long.
He looked Magnus in the eyes and didn't let their gaze break. "Magnus Bane, will you marry me?"
Honestly, he was surprised he didn't muck it up or stutter or something equally as embarrassing. He watched as Magnus's eyes widened, as surprise took over his features. Now that the words were out, lingering in the air between the two of them, Alec's worries came back to him in full force. He could hardly bare to think of what would happen if Magnus said no.
After a few painful moments of silence, words came pouring out of Alec's mouth. Magnus's face was impossible to read, and Alec couldn't begin to imagine what he was thinking. "I mean, I don't, you, I—I have a ring," he stammered, pulling the golden band from out of his back pocket and offering it to Magnus, then feeling extremely stupid and almost taking it back.
At the sight of it, Magnus's face finally broke into a smile, a smile that was so wide and so dazzling that it caught Alec off guard. Before he could embarrass himself even further, Magnus pulled him close and kissed him, the passion of the kiss taking Alec off guard. It was slow and deep, a kiss that was perfect in every way. Alec's nerves finally went away for good as he melted into Magnus's lips, his fingers brushing against his jaw, and Magnus's tangled in his hair.
They broke apart, a giddy sense of elation bubbling within Alec. Magnus stroked his cheek, grinning. "Yes," he breathed, and then Alec kissed his again, savouring the way Magnus gasped slightly as their lips made contact.
"God, Alexander. You are always full of surprises." Magnus was looking at him with such adoration and, love that it made his pale cheeks burn slightly. He barely could believe his luck sometimes; that he had somehow managed to make the High Warlock of Brooklyn of all people fall in love with him. He remembered a time when he never thought he'd see looks like that, looks of complete devotion, directed at him.
And now he was getting married. To Magnus, the four hundred year old warlock who'd never been married before. Yet for some reason, he'd said yes to Alec, and it made his heart swell. The whole things was so amazingly ludicrous that there was some part of him that thought he was making the whole thing up.
He laughed, and Magnus joined in. This was even more perfect than Alec had hoped. Chairman Meow seemed to have forgiven him for tripping over him, because he leapt up and joined the two of them who were tangled up on the couch.
Sitting there, with Magnus in his arms and the insanely exciting idea of the two of them getting married, of it not just being a fantasy of Alec's but something that would actually happen one day, racing through his mind, Alec couldn't imagine being happier. Happiness, true happiness not some forced idea of it, was surprisingly rare, but Alec could've sat there all day, grinning stupidly and would still feel like he was on top of the world.
And this feeling, he supposed, was his and Magnus's own little paradise.