Alec POV:

Alec sat in French class, trying very hard to pay attention to the teacher, and not the very attractive, very hard to ignore guy, who was sitting right behind him. Alec had never been so close to someone who was so obviously openly gay, and it made him nervous, and more than a little envious. It also made him nervous how hot the guy was.

When Alec had walked in, hoping to sit in the back corner, out of most people's line of sight (like always), the sudden eye contact with the boy, Magnus Bane, is what the teacher had called him, had caught him so off guard that he had panicked and dropped into the nearest seat. If he had been thinking straight (or if he had been straight and not a hormonal, closeted, wreck) he would have picked the seat farthest away from Magnus. But he didn't. Now, for as long as this seating plan lasted, he would have to deal with him sitting behind him. Crap.

It might have been all right, Alec thought, if it hadn't been for the smile.

He had felt bad for Magnus, Madame Verlac shouldn't have insulted him, especially since he was new to the school (Magnus was obviously one of the C.C. Prep. Kids), and Alec had impulsively decided to give him a reassuring smile. Boy did that backfire. Magnus had returned the smile with a grin so wide and dazzling, that Alec had nearly fallen out of his chair. Alec wasn't used to people smiling at him like that. That was the way boys smiled at Izzy, or girls smiled at Jace. So for the rest of the period, Alec tried to slow his rapidly beating heart, all the while acutely aware of those strangely beautiful, yellow-green eyes, burning into the back of his head.

It made him feel panicked and confused. He had never felt this way before. He had noticed other guys before, of course he had, but they had never affected him the way Magnus, a guy he had never even talked to, did with one smile. Maybe it was because before, he had always compared every guy he met to Jace. No guy had ever met had even come close to Jace, in Alec's mind.

Until now.

Until Magnus.

Magnus Bane. Even his namesounded dangerous. Alec decided that he would have to avoid that boy as much as possible. It shouldn't be hard, he reasoned, Magnus seemed to be in the grade above him. However, Alec did have a few more AP and grade 12 courses (he wasn't particularly gifted, but he did well in school because he worked hard, figuring that he had nothing else to do, and that the better grades he got, the higher the chances of getting into a good college, far, far, away), if Magnus were in any of those classes… He didn't really want to think about it.

As soon as the bell rang Alec shot out of his chair, so fast he nearly tripped, but he caught himself and walked quickly towards the door. He breathed a sigh of relief as he got into the hallway and started to walk towards his next class. English. Grade Eleven English, where Magnus Bane would definitely not be. The thought made him feel much more calm, and also a little disappointed, but he shrugged it off and kept walking.

"Hey, wait up!" Alec froze. Magnus. He turned around, mentally berating himself; Magnus probably wasn't even calling to him. Why would he be? Alec was about to turn back around and get to English, when a hand grabbed his arm.

Alec's heart sped up as he found himself face to face with Magnus Bane, who was holding something out in front of him. But Alec couldn't focus on what he was holding. He couldn't seem to focus o anything except for Magnus's hand on his arm. "You forgot your pen." Said Magnus, smiling that smile again. Alec felt his face heat up, and was sure Magnus noticed (god, he hated his pale skin sometimes), "Umm… Thank you." Magnus grinned wider and handed him the pen. As their hands touch Alec felt a strange tingly feeling in his fingers. The feeling was not unpleasant, so he left them there for a few moments, before realising what he was doing and quickly pulling away. However, as soon a he pulled away the first hand, Magnus grabbed his other one and shook it, "I'm Magnus by the way, Magnus Bane."

"I-I know." Replied Alec. Magnus's grin widened (Alec hadn't thought that would be possible), and he felt his face get redder, "I just mean- the teacher called attendance. And she said your name." Alec was feeling more awkward by the second. Why did Magnus keep smiling at him? "It's all right, I remember your name too. Alexander… Alexander Lightwood."

"Um… I prefer Alec."

"Right. You said that…"

Alec felt that feeling of relief mixed with regret again, as he noticed that Magnus had dropped his hand. But he was still looking at him, and of course he was still grinning ridiculously. Alec snapped back to reality, "I-I have to go, to um… English." Was it just him, or did Magnus look slightly disappointed? "Right, I should probably go too. I'll see you soon… Alec." Magnus gave him a flirtatious wink and one more smile, and then he walked off, leaving Alec standing in the hall, trying desperately to recover his composure.

What had just happened?