AUTHOR'S NOTE: 2 characters from TMI make an appearance in this chapter.

Chapter 21: Exclusive

Magnus glanced at his watch. He just needed the bell to ring, signalling the end for classes. He was like a student himself, he thought. Waiting for the bell. Getting bored in class. Almost nodding off when he gave half the period for free. Nobody ever really told him about the "rules", and so he thought there were none. He believed there were none in his class – for he was the teacher and the classroom his field.

"Sir?" A girl who sat at the front row, who had dark hair and eyes and whose cheeks really stood out. She had strong features.

He tilted his head to the side, his own way of saying that he was listening.

"I was wondering," She started, her voice dropping. If she was going to ask him to repeat his half-hour lecture then she was out of luck. No repeats, none of that crap with him. "If there were still some spots open for the Drama Club?"

Hmm, interesting. She was pretty enough, with her large eyes and somewhat timid way of dressing up and her half-Asian features. But there was also something strong behind those eyes, and he had a feeling she only looked timid.

"Penhallow?" Magnus murmured, trying to bring forth her name. She nodded with a smile.

"Aline Penhallow, sir." He nodded again and he pushed off the table.

Aline Penhallow. A third year.

"So can I still audition?" Aline asked, gripping a notebook in her hands. Magnus nodded. Whatever. Whoever wanted in could get in. Well, if they could put on a good show, anyway.

She turned around and walked back to her table, leaving Magnus alone in the center of the room again.

Yeah. She could audition. He didn't stop anyone. He surely wouldn't start now. Stretching on the table and not minding half the students who'd tuned the world out and only concentrated on their earphones and their music. He wasn't strict with rules. He didn't see how it would really help. And nobody really did disrespect him in his class – they always looked forward to the ten or twenty minutes of "study time" by themselves. And study time meant a free period. Well, a quarter of a free period, anyway.

But the time still dragged on for him. He wanted to be somewhere else. Or to be with someone else. Alec.

Just the thought of the boy made him feel a little better. It would all be over. It was Thursday, and tomorrow would be a Friday. Fridays would mean dates. Or, however his boyfriend would want to spend it.

Was Alec okay with that? Being somebody's boyfriend? They were surely in a relationship. If Alec Lightwood even thought of this as an open relationship then Magnus would bash his own head against the wall until the whole school crumbled and he bled to death. Too over-dramatic, but he was fit for the arts. Still.

He turned away from the students now, looking at the board but not really seeing. He remembered what Ragnor Fell had said last night – That he had found a new boy toy. Magnus frowned.

"You're in a relationship? Jeez, baby! And you never even thought of telling me!" Ragnor Fell said, a touch hurt. Magnus just rolled his eyes and draped one arm at the back of the couch. Ragnor promptly jumped on him then, drawing his legs up and nuzzling into Magnus's side.

Magnus looked down at him and then a smile played across his features. For all he was worth, Ragnor Fell was probably not even half. Okay, joking aside. The man was his best friend. Grew up with him, had fun times with him. Ragnor was a total bitch, but aside from that, he was good company. And he wasn't as clingy as people really saw him to be. He was just…Possessive. Sometimes. Like now.

Okay, so maybe he was clingy.

"Rate him," Ragnor said, disentangling his limbs from Magnus's.

And true, Magnus really didn't mind their closeness. There was no 'chemistry'. Well, if Alec saw them then maybe he would assume that something was there. But no, nothing was there between him and Ragnor. Not before, and surely not now. Besides, Ragnor's types were…Different from his own.

Magnus pushed Ragnor off him and the man laughed, his brown eyes twinkling.

"Ten is an understatement." Magnus simply said and Ragnor's eyes bugged out.

"How good is he?" Trust the man to push past the easy questions and just jump to the tricky ones.

"Darling, we started last Friday."

"Never stopped you before,"

"It's different this time."

"Hmm…That eleven must be worth it, then. For your patience."

"Worth every second."

"Is he a co-worker?"

At that, Magnus paused. Should he? Should he just publicly announce he was in a relationship with a student? Hell yeah. He had no boundaries, he had no restraints – most of the time.

"A student who is so much more than an eleven," He said with a flick of his hair. Ragnor fell silent for a while, his mouth popping into the perfect 'O'.

"Scandalous, Bane. Scandalous." Ragnor purred, those eyes still trained on Magnus. Well, if he wanted to hear more then by all means – Magnus wasn't really holding any information from the one person who hadn't abandoned him after he got a 'firm job' and stopped the parties.

"Well? Introduce me!"

"Not a chance. I don't want anything scary near him," And he gave Ragnor a smirk, knowing full well how he would just creep Alec out. But then, Alec was polite and respectful and would probably brave the whole encounter with a nod and a smile if Ragnor tried to joke around.

"Don't baby the boy," But Ragnor slumped in the couch, flicking through the channels now.

"He's worth every second and every ounce of my patience," Magnus repeated while Ragnor just pursed his lips. "And I will baby him if I please."

"Your boy toy?"

"No. My boyfriend. I don't play like you, Fell." And there was a lightness in his tone that disguised his sickness at the term 'boy toy'. Alec was not a toy. He was a boy, and he was a boy-friend. Not a boy-toy. He broke the charts! He wasn't even an eleven in a scale of one to ten. Maybe he was a solid infinity if Ragnor would ask again.

"I have Drama," Isabelle had told him, tapping him on the shoulder. He was surprised Jonathan wasn't with her. "And you should come with. Watch," And there was that glint in her eyes again and Alec had a feeling she wasn't talking about watching her on stage. He flushed and Isabelle smiled.

And that was why, ten minutes after the bell for the last class had rung, signalling the end, Alec was seated inside the theatre, trying to stay at the far back. It was that one place in the whole theatre that people avoided – it was too far back, too dark and maybe some couples who wanted to fool around would go there, but during practice, nobody even bothered to glance up at his spot.

Which was what he was hoping for.

It wasn't like people would ask why he was here. Nobody ever really talked to him. Well, there were a few who started out conversations, but he never could carry the whole talk through the end and they gave up on him and he wasn't that interested in small talk with people he hardly knew, anyway. A little voice in his head said that that was the reason for small-talk – to gradually get closer to somebody.

The lights onstage flashed a brilliant red and instead of his sister Isabelle, it was another girl. Short dark hair and striking features. A one-act play? He couldn't really register much of what she was saying, or what she was doing.

He had other things in mind, other things to do. Like look for Magnus Bane in this whole theatre. He was in-charge of this club. Surely he would be near the stage?

But Magnus was nowhere, and Alec couldn't even spot the familiar spike of hair or the thin glitter that adorned it. Nor did he see somebody who towered over the rest, incredibly thin but still imposing.

A thump at his side signalled him of the presence of another and he craned his head to the side, looking past the darkness.

And here he thought nobody would bother him. And he didn't think that this could be Jace - Jace would've made his grand entrance. Even if it was just to sit down.

Focusing again on the shadow, he noticed just a hint of glitter and then a stretch of white – teeth.

"Hi," Magnus drawled, and Alec felt those long fingers play with the back of his hand, drawing small circles or just running up and down the length.

Alec wondered if Magnus could make out his blush even in the dark.

"Shouldn't you be watching that?" Alec said, trying to ignore how Magnus's fingers were really tickling him now.

"Ooops," Magnus had laced their fingers together now and just gave Alec's own a squeeze. "Well, I can watch it from here," Magnus gave a one-shoulder shrug and then lifted their hands to his mouth, kissing the back of Alec's palm.

Alec's shoulders went rigid and he reminded himself that they were in the darkest corner of the theatre, nobody would notice. And everybody was too busy watching the audition below to even glance up. And now that Isabelle had taken the stage, well, that provided as a good distraction to what was happening with them.

"I should've asked if I could sit with you," and Magnus lowered their joined hands. When he tried to loosen his hold on Alec's, Alec held on, giving Magnus's fingers a soft squeeze. In the darkness he could just make out Magnus's smile.

"Nobody notices this corner," Alec pointed out. He tuned out the screaming that came from the stage now – this was just acting. His sister was just in a heated verbal (possible slapping) scene with the other girl.

"I noticed you here." Magnus's lips came to brush against Alec's cheek now, and Alec flushed. They were so close. And this was so public.

"Did you look for me?" Alec swallowed and Magnus pulled back, but not before he left a fleeting kiss on his cheek.

"I was swooping up and down like a bat." When Alec looked frightened at what he just said, Magnus chuckled. "I was kidding. And yes, I did look for you. Did I ever tell you your eyes shine like a beacon of light in the darkness?"

Did Magnus just?

Did he just try at poetry?

Alec crinkled his nose and Magnus leaned forward, rubbing the tips of their noses together in an Eskimo kiss.

"Um…You said something about my eyes before…But you never went into that much detail," He smiled a little shyly and Magnus sunk back into his seat, playing with Alec's fingers.

There was silence for a few moments, not counting the screaming match that still went on. Magnus didn't look so interested with what they were doing – he was showing much more enthusiasm in drawing cute little hearts on Alec's palm. If Alec so much as felt the tip of his pen on his skin then he would pull back. Okay, he wouldn't. But then he'd have to show Magnus his lack of artistic ability and scribble down on that smooth caramel-like skin of his and and…Okay, Alec, take a breath. Relax.

And he did.

He found it a lot easier to relax and just breathe when he was with Magnus.

"We're not in an open relationship." Magnus finally said after the few moments of silence. Alec's hand jerked in his hold but Magnus didn't let go. "This is exclusive. I'm not seeing anybody but you," And he dropped his voice into that soft velvet purr, the same tone of voice that made the hair at the back of Alec's neck prickle, that sent butterflies to his stomach.

Alec only managed a nod. So Magnus Bane was a boyfriend? Okay, he was glad he was sitting down because the thought of Magnus as a boyfriend – officially. Well, not really official to the general public. With the obvious reasons. But to each other, anyway. – made his head feel light.

"I told a friend last night about how adorable my boyfriend is," The term sent those butterflies in his stomach again.

Magnus's cheek nuzzled against the crook of Alec's neck, and again, Alec was surprised at how easily Magnus could just lean into him, could just close their distance.

"You told somebody?" Alec echoed, and Magnus nodded, eyes fluttering to a close. "What?"

"You told Isabelle." Was the man's only reply, perfectly comfortable in his new position. And maybe Alec would have stayed like this for the next hour if they were not in school and in the theatre.

"And Ragnor Fell has vowed his utmost loyalty to me. Trust me that word won't get out unless you want it to," And Alec did trust Magnus. But there was that moment of panic at the thought of somebody else knowing.

But if that somebody else had a weird name like 'Ragnor Fell' then maybe there was nothing to be so worried about. And he really should not take a jab at this Ragnor Fell's name. Magnus Bane was a weird enough name. But it had a good ring to it.

Magnus lifted his cheek from Alec's shoulder and he brought a knuckle underneath the boy's chin. Alec closed his eyes as their lips met. Kissing Magnus, even with the little possibility that someone would notice them, was sweet. It made Alec feel nice. It was all types of good and soft and when he gasped and Magnus's tongue found entrance, it was another level of sweet and pleasurable.

When the kiss ended, the sweetness lingered.

"I have strawberries in my place." Magnus offered and Alec licked the bottom of his lip, nodding his approval. "Friday?" Alec nodded again.

"Then it's a date!" And Magnus stood up, swooped down to press a kiss to Alec's lips before he sauntered down the steps, heading for the stage.

I will write Ragnor Fell however way I want. Yay?

Oh and guess what? If Magnus and Alec were to make a public kiss then it would probably look like this...

http:/5 . p . s . mfcdn . net/store/manga/5025/01-001 . 0/compressed/ts_ajn_chapter01 . ajn_ch01_24_25 . jpg

Just press back-space before and after the dots ('.') when you copy/paste the link (if ever).

Oh and look! Alec in gif!

http: / 28 . media . tumblr . com / tumblr_lgqu2aLgf21qdmcruo1_500 . gif

Whaattt? He resembles my version of Alec! And Miyavi is now my Magnus Bane. I'm glad I have others on that side, too. Yay. But you know what, when I think of Alec's eyes I picture Alex Evans' eyes (not the whole person, though.). I'm a creep.