A/N- Hello. This is my third attempt at chapter 20, so I hope it is at least mildly god. Pearl Earring pointed out that I needed some conflict because this had turned into 24/7 fluff montage. That's all about to end. *evil laugh*
Disclaimer- I own nothin.

(Alec POV)

Magnus' plan to take me out on the town that Friday night were kind of squashed when I received my congratulatory letter from Idris. My mom freaked out and decided to take us all out for dinner, including Magnus and my dad. I had a horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach that this 'family outing' would not be so enjoyable.

We took the family minivan to a quaint little Italian restaurant where a bunch of the waiters had mustaches. I would've begun to giggle like a little kid, but with my dad icily keeping his eyes off of me, it was hard to giggle.

Isabelle was bitter about the whole dinner, too. She and Simon had had date plans but she had to cancel and resort to texting him instead. He promised to take her out Saturday but she was still peeved so Magnus made the effort to cheer her up by giving her a mini-makeover. I had to admit, he did an excellent job and Izzy was decked out in tight jeans, a shirt that cinched right above her ribs, heels, and just the right amount of makeup. She tried to get him to make me up as well, but I wouldn't let them touch my face. Magnus did get me into skinny jeans though…

Actually, Jace, Isabelle, Magnus and I had all planned on going out with our significant other. Jace was blaming me for the whole thing. He wanted to go out with Clary on a 'special' date, but I assumed he just planned on getting in her pants.

Naturally, Clary and Simon both ended up being free and chose to hang out with each other, as they were good friends. Isabelle was the jealous type, and Simon going over to Clary's house was not sitting well with her. Jace was okay with it only because both Clary and Simon were reliable people. But, like I said, Isabelle was the jealous type.

As we sat down at our large booth and looked over the menu, no one spoke. Not a word was uttered by anyone and I was forced to listen to the thoughts in my head, and an annoying song being played over the restaurants speakers. My dad refused to meet my eye and just glared at Magnus. But I had no idea what Magnus did. Maybe he had said something to him?

"So Magnus," my mom said, breaking the uncomfortable silence. "Alec tells me you applied to the same college."

"Oh, uh, yeah I did," Magnus said, nervously looking from my father to my mother. "My English teacher recommended I go there."

Jace looked up from his phone. "The one that hates Alec?" he asked.

When I nodded, my mother tutted at us. "I'm sure she doesn't hate you," she said.

All of us, minus my dad, scoffed at her.

"She hates me," I said pointedly. "Like, there is legit hate in her eyes when she looks at me. I don't know what I did, but she hates my guts."

Jace started laughing and I just looked at him. "Sorry," he said, not at all sorry. "I just remembered what she said to you today." At this, Izzy began laughing as well and Magnus was trying his damnedest not to smile.

"What did she say?" my mom asked with her eyebrow cocked.

Magnus, who was the only one that could still speak, said, "She called him an English-impaired baboon." When my mom only blinked at him he added, "She's got a British accent."

A smile crept its way onto my mom's face and I figured she was imagining that in her head. Jace's laughter was growing increasingly louder and he could barely hold himself together when our waiter came by to take our orders. I don't think it helped that the waiter had a very fake-looking mustache.

After I helped Magnus find a vegetarian-friendly dish and we all ordered, my dad looked me straight in the eye and asked to speak to me privately. He called me by my full name and I was on the verge of puking when I felt Magnus squeeze my hand, but it didn't help me much. My dad was confusing in so many ways and of all the times to ask to speak to me, he chooses to wait until we were eating dinner in a public place? Where is the logic in that?

I slowly left the booth and followed my father to the men's' restroom but halfway there my dad stopped and went to the van instead. He sat down in the driver's seat and I sat next to him. My throat felt sticky and I couldn't speak.

"Alexander," he began. I tried to slow my breathing when he said something I did not see coming. "I'm sorry."

I cleared my throat. "You're sorry?" I asked.

"I haven't been a very exceptional father to you lately," he continued. "You just sprung this whole thing on me, with Magnus and you being… what you are." I sighed when he couldn't say 'gay.' But I figured it would take a while. "And it's taken me some time to adjust to this." No kidding. "I just… don't know why it took you so long to tell us. You're almost a full-grown man and I don't understand what happened. Did… did Magnus turn you like this?"

It amazes and befuddles me how an adult could be so ignorant.

I struggled to get words out of my mouth. "No," I said. "No, I've always been gay I just didn't realize it until Magnus came along. I was born this way, dad," I said.

My dad said nothing, but he looked like he was thinking the whole thing over.

"You and Magnus," he said eventually. "Are you two… together?"

"Yes, dad," I said slowly. "We're dating."

He nodded and I could tell he was uncomfortable. "Magnus is good to you?" he asked.

"Yes, of course," I said firmly, surprising him.

"And he makes you happy?" I nodded and he gave me one of the tiniest smiles on the planet, but it was a smile nonetheless. "I'm glad you found someone," he said. "Again, I'm sorry."

"I understand," I told him. I think he was going to try to give me a hug or a pat on the back or something but he only smiled again and got out of the car. I did the same and we were back at the booth right before our food got there.

I sat down next to Magnus and he gripped my hand. "What happened?" he muttered.

"I'll tell you later," I said, smiling. "But it's good."

He smiled back at me and dug into some weird, vegetarian dish with no vowels in its name. Magnus claimed it was good but I declined trying any. My throat still felt sticky and my stomach wasn't feeling too good either, but I enjoyed dinner anyways and felt like a new weight was lifted off my shoulders. One that I hadn't really known was there until it was gone.

About two hours later, we were all back at my house, full and sleepy. Everyone went straight to bed, Magnus and I being no exceptions. It sucked not sleeping next to him anymore but I didn't want my parents to freak so I had to deal with it.

Surprisingly, we didn't fall asleep right away and ended up talking until nearly midnight. There wasn't so much talking going on though. After I had told him what my dad said he wouldn't stop smiling… or kissing me.

Eventually we did sleep, in separate beds of course. We switched off every night- one day Magnus would sleep in my bed and I'd take the floor, then the next day we'd switch and so on. It was a little system that we worked out because Magnus felt bad making me sleep on the floor.

Sleep didn't exactly last long for me. I was having an awesome dream that was so rudely interrupted by a nauseous feeling in my stomach. I awoke suddenly and barely made it to the toilet before I vomited up everything I had eaten that night. And trust me, it didn't taste very good coming back up.

I was sick and disoriented, but I still felt someone rubbing soothing circles on my back. It was Magnus, the best boyfriend ever.

I stopped puking and sat against the shower door, looking drowsily at Magnus. He looked back at me with a concerned expression and asked if I wanted him to go get my mom. I felt like a three year old when I nodded, but everyone wants their mom when they're sick, so Magnus hopped up and went to my parents' room.

I threw up again before Magnus got back with my mom and a thermometer. I was slumped against the shower when my mom forced my mouth open and stuck the thermometer inside it. Magnus held my hand and I put my head on his shoulder as we waited for it to beep. My mom, being her awesome self, went and got me some ginger ale then sat down on the linoleum floor with me and Magnus.

Usually I can deal with being sick. I could be sneezing, coughing, wheezing, achy, congested, have a huge headache, hell I could have pneumonia and be just fine, but puking… puking was my weakness. It was just something I could not deal with. It was awful, just awful. It seems babyish, yes, but it's not my fault throwing up is gross.

The thermometer beeped and my mom gently pulled it out to read the number. "102," she muttered as she pushed the hair from my hot forehead. "Poor thing," she said. I only sipped at my ginger ale and swallowed the bile in my throat. "I don't think its food poisoning," she said, mostly to herself. "I got the same thing as you." She sighed and turned to Magnus. "Magnus, can I trust you to look after him if I go back to sleep?" He nodded. "Alright, I'll make an appointment for you tomorrow morning, okay?" she said to me. I nodded and she kissed my forehead then got up to leave. "You have my permission to sleep in the same bed tonight but only because I know nothing will happen." Then she was gone, lucky to have the luxury of sleep.

Even though I told him I could walk the few yards to my room just fine, Magnus carried me back to my actual bed and gently set me down against the soft pillows. He went back to grab my ginger ale and put it on the table next to me, then he brought over the trash can and put it on my lap.

Crawling under the covers and getting comfortable next to me, Magnus said, "I guess we're not going out tomorrow."

I put my head on his shoulder and sighed, trying to wish away the nausea. "I'm sorry," I muttered.

He stroked my damp hair. "It's alright," he said. "We'll go out next weekend. You can't exactly control your puking."

I felt the nausea get stronger and I shook my head. "Don't say puking," I said into his shoulder. "If you say it, I'm gonna do it."

"Noted."

Magnus kissed my forehead and stayed right next to me for the rest of the night, even when I threw up three more times. He told me funny stories about his mom to keep me distracted, but laughing made my stomach flip-flop around so he docked my IPod and played My Chemical Romance instead. He made sure to keep the volume low enough so that I could still fall asleep if I wanted to. I noticed that he was singing along to a few of the songs very quietly, but I could still hear him… Magnus had a nice voice; soothing even. I fell asleep to it.

(Magnus POV)

Alec finally fell asleep at about three AM. I fell asleep right next to him, though it was a little uncomfortable because his fever was really high. I woke up a half hour earlier than him and went downstairs to find his mom. She was at the kitchen table and smiled at me when I walked in. Maryse (she made me call her that) said that Alec had an appointment in an hour and I should go wake him up for her. I grabbed an apple and gingerly climbed the stairs again, reaching Alec's room without getting lost.

Alec was up alright. Awake and puking again. I felt bad for him because I knew how much Alec hated throwing up.

He finished vomiting and sighed, looking up at me. He almost smiled but his face was too pale to make him seem actually happy.

"Hey," I said quietly, walking over to him and sitting on the bed next to my sick little, blue-eyed boyfriend. "You've got an appointment in an hour." I held up the apple and he eyed it skeptically. "You should eat something."

He took the apple and sat back against the headboard. "I won't be able to eat this," he said to me. "I haven't even been able to keep down water…"

"Aw," I cooed, kissing him on the cheek. "Want some gum? I think I've got wild berry." That was his favorite. He nodded and I pulled my wallet from my back pocket and rifled through a few things- a bunch of one-dollar bills, my declined credit card, a picture of my mom and dad together, a picture of Alec, and finally a pack of wild berry gum. I handed Alec a piece and took one for myself.

Alec blew an expertly blown bubble. It popped and he just chewed his gum again then raised his eyebrow at me. "Why do you have your wallet with you?" he asked me.

"I have to run to my house and pick up the mail and then get Chairman Meow," I said. "Sorry I can't come to your doctor's appointment."

Alec shrugged. "It's no big deal," he said. "He's probably going to make me take my pants off like he always does and that'd just be awkward with both you and my mom in the room. And when I say he always makes me take my pants off, I mean always. Even when I had pink-eye."

I tried not to laugh for Alec's sake, but a little giggle escaped. I pecked him on the lips and said goodbye. He told me to take his car and I didn't deny that opportunity, so I arrived at my house ten minutes later, and I totally didn't speed or anything…

I made double sure to lock Alec's car and I immediately noticed the pile of mail on the doorstep. I sighed and picked it all up, unlocking the door at the same time. I slammed my keys down on the coffee table and looked around. The apartment reminded me of so many things and I wanted to get the hell out of there as soon as possible.

The mail was mostly bills and I flipped through it quickly- I'm sorry for your loss, I'm sorry for your loss, your dad owes me money, bills, bills, bills, I'm sorry for your loss, Congratulations from Idris, bills.

I stopped suddenly and flipped back an envelope. Yes, it was there. I had gotten in to Idris! I felt the need to celebrate and tell someone all about it, but who was there? I could always tell Jamie, I had to run to her house to get Chairman Meow anyways.

I hurriedly gathered the rest of the mail and stuffed it in Alec's car, then drove off towards Jamie's house. Knocking on the door (quite loudly, I might add) I got the acceptance letter ready and just waited. Jamie answered the door a minute later and smiled when she saw me. She told me to come on in and I followed her to the living room. Chairman Meow was already waiting on the couch for me and he bounded into my arms, purring happily.

"How's he been?" I asked Jamie as I sat down on the couch.

She grimaced and tried to turn it into a smile. "He doesn't like me much," she said. "He tried to claw my face off."

I only chuckled at her and scolded Chairman Meow for being a lady-hater.

"So, guess who got accepted into Idris?" I said slyly.

Jamie's eyebrows threatened to disappear into her hairline and she beamed at me. "Congratulations!" she said. "I heard Alec got in, too." I nodded. "How are you two doing?"

"Fantastic," was my answer. "He's sick though. Got the stomach flu or something."

She visibly shuddered. "Poor thing," she said. She eyed the clock and nearly jumped out of her skin. "I hate to leave so quickly," she said. "But I've got to run to the hospital. I'm on call tonight."

Jamie quickly said goodbye to me, and Chairman Meow actually did try to claw her face off. I love him, but Jamie did not deserve to have her face clawed off.

I arrived back at Alec's house a little while later but he wasn't back from his appointment yet. I lazed around until he got home and he had the stomach flu. His doctor had made him take off his pants (insert blushing Alec here) and gave him antibiotics. Depending on how he was feeling, he would go back to school on Monday. But he was still violently puking every hour so I doubted he would go back to school anytime soon.

I was right. By Monday, Alec was throwing up a lot less, but his mother wouldn't let him go to school and I had to endure the whole day without him. I hadn't even been with him that long and I felt like I couldn't function without him.

Nothing particularly interesting happened, but William kept trying to talk to me and I had to keep avoiding him. I swear that kid was stalking me, but I had no idea why. Everywhere I turned, there he was, looking all creepy with his weird British accent and devilish smile. Thankfully, we didn't have a lot of classes together and I didn't see him for most of the day. It wasn't until I was at my locker that I saw him.

Alec was supposed to come by the school at three to pick up one of the textbooks he needed for homework and he had told me that morning that he would give me a ride. I purposely missed my bus so he could drive me home. I knew William drove himself home as well, but I was surprised when I slammed my locker and found him standing much too close to me.

"Hello Magnus," he said snidely. I only nodded in response. "Where's your friend Alex?"

I sneered at him, slightly making fun of him, too. "His name is Alec," I corrected. "And he's got the flu."

William shook his head. "What a shame," he said. "I sure hope he gets better." He said that in a way that was still 'I hope he gets better' but it sounded like he meant 'I hope he dies painfully.' That worried me.

"He should be back by tomorrow or Wednesday," I said cautiously. "Actually, he'll be here in a few minutes to get his textbooks."

"Oh?" William said. "Then I have a moment to talk to you… privately."

The hallway was private enough for him. There was no one in hearing range of us and we were right near the front doors, which I looked anxiously to for any signs of Alec.

William took a step closer to me and I tried to back up but I hit the lockers behind me. I swallowed thickly and tried not to appear scared of him. He was six inches shorter than me; what did I have to be scared of?

"I want you back, Magnus," he said convincingly.

I scoffed in his face. "You're a bit too late, William," I said. "If you didn't notice, I have a boyfriend."

"That doesn't mean we can't try again," he said. "You could leave that poor lad, Alec…"

"I would never leave Alec," I said coldly. "He's the best thing that's ever happened t-"

William cut me off by slamming his lips to mine in what I guess he believed to be a kiss. It didn't feel like a kiss to me. It felt like his lips were suffocating mine. It didn't feel like the kisses Alec gave me; his kisses were always sweet and full of love. Whatever William was doing felt so, so wrong. Even when we were dating, he kissed me in a weird way. We weren't meant for each other, no matter how much he thought we were.

I shoved him away from me and raised my hand to slap him in the face. But something stopped me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw someone gasp. I turned immediately and saw Alec standing by the front doors. And he was staring at me with the most crushed expression on his face. He turned on his heel and walked back through the doors with his textbook in his hand. I called his name and tried to run after him, but he was gone before I could explain myself; had disappeared with that horrible look on his face.

A/N- I told ya there'd be conflict. Now review or ALEC WILL DIE! Nahhh, just kiddin. But if you don't review, William will eat you. Eeeaaaaat yyyoooouuuu….
-Ella 8-)