"Alec... Alec, wait up!"
So close... Alec had been so close to leaving the annual Christmas Eve party of his sister's sorority early. Wistfully he stared at the door, only about six feet away from him. It might as well have been as far away as the moon though, because now that Izzy had spotted him, there was no way he was going to walk through it any time soon.
He plastered a smile on his face and turned around, just to see his sister making his way through the crowd, dragging a bespectacled and very uncomfortable looking guy with her.
"Izzy... I-I..." Alec stumbled. He didn't want to admit to his sister that he had been on his way out, but judging by the look on her face, she figured as much anyway.
"You were not going to sneak out already?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.
Yes, he totally was. "N-no... Of course not."
"Well, you can't!" Izzy chirped. "Because I found someone for you, Alec. This is Harry, he comes all the way from the UK." She leaned over to Alec and whispered in his ear, loud enough that anyone in a ten feet-radius probably would've heard them, had it not been for the music blasting from the speakers. "His accent is totes adorbs, Alec. He's perfect for you, believe me."
But he's not Magnus Bane... Alec immediately filed that thought away, but couldn't help looking at the handsome man on the other side of the room. His glittery clothes and his blue-streaked Mohawk would look ridiculous on anybody else, but not on Magnus. It just suited him... He was everything Alec had ever dreamed of, and also a million miles out of his league.
Harry shuffled from one foot to another, looking more uncomfortable by the minute. He probably heard Izzy's not so subtle remark as well.
Izzy pushed Alec a glass with a gold-colored drink in his hand and gave him the most unsubtle wink in the history of winks. "Felix Felicis. Or 'Liquid Luck" as Clary calls it. This is going to be your lucky night, Alec, I can feel it. Oh, look there's Simon. Finally!" In a flash she was gone, jumping her new Flavor of the Week in his arms. Except this Flavor of the Week lasted three months already, which was unlike Izzy.
It could have been worse. At least she didn't push him under the mistletoe, forcing Harry to kiss him, because - according to Izzy - it would bring bad luck otherwise. Not really knowing what to do with himself, Alec took a large gulp from his drink and nearly choked.
"Holy mother..." Alec managed between coughs. "What is this?"
Harry clapped him on the back. "Liquid Luck. But it tastes like Liquid Muck, to be honest."
"You don't say," Alec muttered. Had he imagined it or had Magnus just looked at him with concern in his eyes? God, he only had one sip of that Liquid Luck and already his mind was starting to play tricks on him.
"I'm Harry." Harry held out his hand. "Harry Potter. "
Alec shook Harry's hand. "Alec Lightwood. Don't believe anything my sister told you. I'm really not that bad... Well, I probably am, but..." He quickly took another sip of his drink, to avoid any more verbal diarrhea sprouting from his mouth. Apparently, Liquid Luck had to grow on you, because as a warm feeling started to spread through his body, Alec decided that it wasn't so bad after all.
"Straight people just can't resist pairing up the gay people they know, can they?" Harry smiled, but the smile didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Izzy means well." Alec shrugged. "But you're right, I do wish she would stop pushing every gay guy she meets in my direction, expecting us to magically hit it off, just because we play for the same team, so to speak."
"You're absolutely right. I'll drink to that." Harry clunked his glass against Alec's. "To gay people who are not attracted to each other."
Alec grinned, deciding that he quite liked this guy with his posh accent. He didn't feel that electric zing shooting through his veins the way he did when he looked at Magnus, but hopefully chatting to Harry would get Izzy of his back for a while. Coming out of the closet two years ago hadn't been all that easy, but his parents had eventually come around to the idea. But now, because he'd never had a boyfriend, his mother thought that Alec was pretending to be gay to hide the fact that he couldn't get a girlfriend.
Harry gestured to a couch in the corner. "You want to sit down? That will really get their tongues waggling, I think."
Alec nodded and followed Harry to the couch and sat down. From here, he had a perfect view of Magnus, who was now chatting to his ex-girlfriend Camille. Were they back on? Magnus and Camille had gone through a very public break-up last year, which had been the talk of the town on campus for months. After Camille, Magnus had dated a string of both beautiful men and equally gorgeous ladies, but Alec somehow always felt that it was just Magnus putting on a façade to avoid people seeing how hurt he was on the inside. But really, what did he know? It's not like he had ever even plucked up the courage to actually talk to the guy.
Camille placed her hand on Magnus's arm and leaned in close to tell him something. Pain lanced through Alec's heart... God, was he ever going to get over Magnus? He was such an idiot... He was 23 years old, he was out of the closet and yet he couldn't stop longing for a man that would never give someone like Alec the time of day.
"So, what brings you here?" Alec asked Harry, trying to get his mind of He-Who-Shall-Remain-Unnamed-From-Now-On.
"Short story: my friend Hermione is an exchange student here and she invited me over." Harry's face darkened. "Long story: I was supposed to celebrate Christmas with my boyfriend, but as it turned out, he omitted telling his parents about me and brought Pansy, a girl approved by his mother, instead." He shook his head, defeat etched all over his face. "I knew coming out was a big deal to him. Draco doesn't have the easiest relationship with his parents and they put a lot of pressure on him. So for a while, I pretended to be fine with it. But now that he's taking a girl home... I just don't want to remain shoved in the cupboard anymore, only to be taken out when it's convenient for him."
"Your boyfriend... Your ex-boyfriend is an idiot."
Harry took off his glasses and wiped them clean. "I don't know about that. Because even after everything he has put me through, I still miss him. I still have to physically restrain myself from calling or texting him, just to see how he's doing." He nodded in the direction of a tall girl with long, mousy-colored hair. "I've given my phone to Hermione, just to be on the safe side. Anyway, that's how I ended up here."
Alec nodded.
"So, what about you?" Harry asked.
"Me?"
"Yeah, you." Harry pushed his glasses back on his nose. "Your eyes are practically glued to Mr. Glitter over there. What's going on between you?"
Boy, did those glasses grant Harry the ability to look straight into Alec's heart? "There's nothing going on between Magnus and me." Alec sighed, shaking his head. "I wish there was, but he's just way out of my league, you know."
"No," Harry said, gazing in Magnus's direction. "Actually, I don't know. We've only been sitting here for like five minutes and your Magnus has already given me the death glare about a gazillion times."
His Magnus... Alec tasted the words in his mouth and he quite liked the sound of them. "But he just... I don't know, Magnus just radiates light like he's the most beautiful star."
Harry shrugged. "Even a bright star needs a calm sky to sparkle, Alec. Remember that."
"I don't know," Alec said, more to himself than to Harry. "Magnus just stands out everywhere he goes, whereas I..." Alec gestured at himself. "Not so much." He looked at Magnus and their gazes locked. Time seemed to slow down, the sounds of the crowd slowly fading away until it was just the two of them and...
"Oh, boy," he heard Harry muttering under his breath. "Oh, boy... How did he find me?"
"What? Who?" Alec shook his head and shot a quick glance at Magnus, who was now engaged in a deep conversation with a red-haired girl Alec vaguely recognized as Clary Fairchild. He probably imagined that look Magnus gave him... Must be the Liquid Luck because, boy, that stuff was strong. Although he didn't feel drunk at all, strangely enough.
Harry tried to make himself invisible by putting a bright colored blanket over his head, but that didn't stop the broad-shouldered blonde guy striding in their direction as if he was on a mission for Santa himself. He might look tough and imposing but Alec saw the uncertainty in the blonde man's eyes and the way he clutched a branch of mistletoe in his hand as if he was hanging on for dear life.
"Harry," the guy said, stopping right in front of the blanket formerly known as Harry Potter.
"Go away, Draco," came Harry's muffled voice from under the blanket. "Why are you here?"
Draco was probably a very good-looking guy normally, but at the moment he looked like death warmed up. His blonde hair was tousled, his eyes were red-rimmed and the bags under his eyes were big enough to stuff all Santa's presents in. "Harry... Can we please talk?"
"No," said Harry. "We've said it all, Draco. Just bugger of to Pansy."
Draco swallowed visibly. "I don't want Pansy, Harry. I want you."
"You always say that." Harry pushed the blanket away, tears glistening in his eyes. "And I always believed you. But not anymore, Draco. It's over."
"Harry, please..." Draco looked as close to tears as Harry was. "I know I mucked things up. Blimey, I know I don't even have the right to ask you for one last chance, but... Let's just say that I had a visit from the Ghost of Christmas Future, and it showed me a future without you in it and I was just..." Draco knelt down in front of Harry. "I love you, Harry. I told my parents about you and they kicked me out, so that means that from being an average ass, I have now officially graduated to being a full-blown, penniless ass and I wouldn't blame you if you kicked me to the curb and moved on to..." He looked at Alec, uncertainty etched on his face.
"He hasn't," Alec said quickly. "Well, not with me, at least."
People around them had stopped talking and everybody was looking at them. Everyone, including Magnus, Alec noted, even though he seemed more focused on Alec than on the drama unfolding between Draco and Harry. Camille was nowhere in sight, thank God.
Draco looked at Harry again, holding a branch of mistletoe above his blonde head. "I know I don't have the right to assume anything, Harry," he said softly. "But no matter what, you'll always be my Patronus and..."
"Just shut up, Draco Malfoy," Harry whispered, leaning towards Draco while tenderly wiping his blonde hairs out of his pale face. They seemed lost in each other, totally oblivious to the people surrounding them. "This for real, Draco? You told your parents?"
Draco nodded. "Yeah. We never have to spend a single day in that goddamned cupboard again, Harry. I promise."
"Thank God." Harry looked at Draco's outstretched hand above his blonde head, still clutching the branch of mistletoe. "You are aware that you are under the mistletoe?"
Draco grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, I know how much you love those holiday traditions, so I hoped holding mistletoe above my head would at least earn me a kiss from you."
Harry smiled. "Well, who am I to break tradition?" He kissed Draco and the crowd erupted in cheers and applause.
Alec stood up, looking at Magnus. He wretched the mistletoe from Draco's hand, who didn't even notice and took a step in Magnus's direction.
Magnus's amber gaze locked on his.
Alec took another step, and another until he stood right in front of Magnus. Maybe he was inspired by Harry and Draco or maybe that Liquid Luck had some secret magical abilities... It didn't matter. It was now or never. His mouth felt dry, but the faint smile tugging at Magnus's lips gave him the courage to carry on. "Hi, I'm Alec..."
"I know. Alexander Gideon Lightwood."
Magnus Bane, king of the Campus, knew who he was? Cared enough to find out Alec's full name? Well, Christmas miracles existed after all. "You d-do?" Alec stuttered. "I think you're magical." Okay, maybe it was better if he just stopped talking. The miracle of Christmas had failed to grace him with eloquence, but courage... He had courage in spades, he thought, as he held out the branch of mistletoe above his head, his hand trembling ever so slightly.
Magnus faint smile transformed into a full-blown grin that lit up his whole face. "Took you long enough," he said, before gripping Alec by his lapels and pulling him close.
"Yeah, I know," Alec whispered, still holding the branch of mistletoe over his head. His heart skipped a beat. "But here I am."
"Finally." Magnus cupped Alec's face between his hands and kissed him softly.
No matter how often Alec had wished upon the star that was Magnus Bane, he had never dared to hope that one day, he would be holding that very star in his arms. But apparently, underneath the mistletoe, anything was possible.
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