10
The fact Alec cares so much about how his mother's treating me surprises me. I know he was angry with Jace for hurting me, but I didn't think he would defend me to his mother.
"Magnus, go get your shoes," he tells me quietly.
I obey him hurriedly. I know he's probably gonna take me somewhere, since I don't wear shoes at home. I'm still surprised by how understanding he was over my dislike of wearing them. Until I came here, I never wore shoes.
He clips my leash to my collar. His hands are shaking.
"I might not be back," he tells them, leading me outside.
"Um, where are we going?" I ask, falling into stride beside him.
"Magnus, forget I adopted you for a minute. How do you feel about me? Not as your owner but as a person."
I've never been asked something like this before.
"I like you. You're good to me. And attractive," I murmur.
"Do you wanna go out with me?" he asks.
"That sounds great!"
"How does taking you to dinner sound?"
He undoes my leash and takes my hand instead. I've never held hands with anyone before.
"Okay. Thanks for defending me," I reply, smiling shyly.
"Magnus, you don't have to thank me. I'm sorry I used you," he tells me.
"I'd rather have you do it than someone else."
No matter what I'm being used for, I know he would never do anything to hurt me. He's not like everyone else.
"Are you okay with renting a hotel room for the night?" he asks.
"Oh. Um, we don't—Alec?" I reply, biting my lip nervously.
"To sleep. I'm not after that."
He takes me to Steak 'n Shake. I've never really eaten at a restaurant before.
"Relax. The food's really good here," he assures me, stroking my hand gently.
"I've never ate at a restaurant. Usually, Ragnor brought me here to service him while he hung out with his friends," I murmur.
"You can eat whatever sounds good on the menu. I'm not gonna molest you or something."
"Can I get the mac and cheese burger?"
"Sure. You can get fries and a shake too."
"I've never had a shake before."
"They have some that are half-and-half."
I flip to the back of the menu to the shakes. There's a cookie butter one that sounds amazing.
"Can I have this one?" I ask.
"Sure. I've never tried it, but it sounds really good," he replies.
More people have started filing in. The noise bothers me a little.
"You're okay. I promise," Alec murmurs.
I touch his hand timidly.
"Is there anything you like doing since I adopted you?" he asks.
"I like reading your books. And watching TV with you," I reply,
"Christmas is a ways off yet, but do you want me to get you books? Or I could get you copies of shows you like."
"Why?"
"People give presents on Christmas. Didn't Ragnor's family give presents?"
"Um, I wasn't allowed out of his room on days where their family would be around. I was kept tied up on his bed so he could have his way with me later."
"Hey. You're gonna have a real Christmas, and I'm gonna make it special for you. Okay?"
"What's it like? Why does your mom hate me? Um, I don't think I ever asked what you like doing."
"It's really pretty. There's lots of bright lights and bright colors. Sometimes it snows. And there's hot chocolate and egg nog. And we give each other presents. And there's a big dinner. There probably won't be as big of one since Dad's gone and Mom probably won't bother showing up.
"My parents used to be really close friends with a guy named Valentine. Valentine hated all hybrids. It didn't matter if they were nekos or inus or what. They murdered several and burned down pet stores, pounds, and even some breeders' homes. I understand if you hate me."
"Did you ever see it happen?"
"Y-yeah. That was the first time I ever yelled at my parents. It was a child, Magnus. And they killed it."
He sounds genuinely upset by their actions.
"And you probably think I'm scum now," he mumbles.
"Why'd you adopt me then? Are you planning on dissecting me later?" I ask.
"Because I thought, if I could help one hybrid, it might make up for what my parents did. Magnus, if I wanted to hurt you, I would've already done it."
"Why did they do it?"
"They thought hybrids were evil and beneath people. They didn't think they deserved to live or had feelings."
"But you don't. Why?"
"Because I saw what my parents did. I saw how they tortured a child until he died. How the ground was soaked with blood. I heard the kid screaming and begging. And I decided I wasn't gonna be like them. You probably hate me, don't you?"
"Is that why you got so mad over Jace and your mom? Alec, I don't hate you. I just wanna understand."
"Yeah. I should've done more. Jace doesn't know how bad things were. They had stopped before he came to live with us. Valentine's in prison for cruelty to hybrids. I'm sorry you found out about it like this and that it happened in the first place."
I squeeze his hand gently.
"It's not your fault they did it. I'm glad you told me instead of letting me find out some other way," I tell him, leaning in impulsively to kiss his lips.
He kisses me back shyly.
"Mommy, what are those men doing?" a small voice pipes behind me.
"They're kissing, Caleb," the kid's apparent mother replies patiently.
"But one of them has cat ears. I wanna pet him!"
Alec finds it amusing. I really don't want some munchkin touching me.
The sound of the pair getting out of the booth behind me makes me flatten my ears. My tail taps irritably.
"Sorry to bother you. My son was wondering if he could pet your neko?" the woman asks.
I glance at her son. He's wiped his nose on his hands and has snot on his face. No way I want him touching me.
I look to Alec hopefully.
"That's up to Magnus," Alec replies, stroking my hand tenderly.
"I, um, I don't really like being touched. Sorry," I murmur.
The kid actually throws a temper tantrum. I know I shouldn't, but I find it interesting that he gets by with it.
The rest of dinner goes well. I really like Alec. I'm still afraid he'll decide I'm not worth it.
"Alec, where are we going?" I ask outside the restaurant.
"How do you feel about getting some movies to watch tonight?" he replies, taking my hand lightly.
"Okay. Um, thanks for not making me let the kid pet me."
"You don't have to thank me. Do I suck at this?"
"At what? Owning me? Dates?"
"Dates. Do I suck at the first one?"
"This is the first time I've been on a date. No."
"Are you having a decent time?"
"I get to spend time with you, so, yeah."
He smiles at my words. I like it when he smiles.
"Um, are you having an okay time?" I ask shyly.
"I am. I get to be with someone I care about," he replies.
I can't help blushing.
"Just out of curiosity, do you dislike kids?" he asks, leading me inside the video rental place.
"Not really. I haven't ever been around them so I don't know what to do with them besides look at them."
"You talk to them. Or read to them. Or play with them. They're not really hard."
"Izzy told me about your brother."
"Max probably would've liked you."
"What happened? Sorry."
"He was kidnapped on his way home from school and murdered. It isn't your fault."
"That really sucks. How old was he?"
"Nine."
I can tell it really bothers Alec talking about it.
"I wasn't trying to upset you. I'm sorry," I tell him.
"Magnus, stop apologizing. It's not your fault, alright?" Alec mumbles, staring at the sidewalk.
I still feel really bad for hurting him. He's the one person I really care about.
"Can I make it up to you?" I ask, pointing to a bookstore.
"There's nothing for you to make up for. If you want to, we can go in there," he replies.
He lets me lead him inside the store. It smells like coffee.
"You can get books while we're here," he informs me.
I pad after him eagerly.
"Alec, what do you like doing besides reading?" I ask quietly.
"Cooking. Being with you. Hanging out with Jace and Izzy. Playing soccer. I loved doing kendo when I was younger, but I haven't done it in years."
"Why do you like being with me? I've never done any of those."
"Because you're a good person, even with everything you've been through. You're actually really adorable. I'd like to get to know you more if you'll let me. Anything you wanna learn, I'll teach you. Except for art. I can't draw to save my life."
The confession makes him blush adorably. I knew he liked me from him taking me on a date, but I didn't know he liked me a lot.
"You think I'm adorable? Getting to know you more sounds good to me. Can you teach me all of it?" I reply.
"Magnus, I wouldn't tell you I did if I didn't. One thing at a time," he tells me.
He seems amused by the way I stare at the books. I've never seen so many books in one place.
"Um, how long are we gonna be at the hotel room?" I ask.
"Until she leaves," he replies.
He's bought me several books, including a boy's love series. I've never read those before, but they sound really good.
"I'll pay you back for the books when I start working," I tell him outside the store.
"Don't worry about it. They're my first present for you," he replies.
He looks really happy about being with me for some reason. I hope he knows how happy I am to be with him.