A/N: KayLovesBane: Welcome aboard!

Folks have been busy this week. Nearly all of my stories have gotten at least 1 new fav/follow or review. Since all the others finished up a year or more ago, I have to think at least some of those came from fans of this story. So thanks very much!

Also, it seems the site is eating reviews. I got a new one for this and for Falling For You but can't see them. The number changed but no words/name appear. It's upsetting. :(


"Why do all agents have to be so…so…shady?" Magnus complained.

Over the last few weeks, Coach Whitaker had set up meetings with a number of sports agents, hoping to find someone with Magnus's best interest at heart. Unfortunately, they were yet to find an agent with a heart. They were all soul-sucking monsters, or so it seemed.

"Don't worry, Magnus, we'll find one that we like," Alec said, still clinging to the hope that they would, though not totally feeling it.

"The thing to remember," said Robert Lightwood, "is that, slimy as they are, they make more money if they get you more money."

Alec had asked his father to come along for the interviews because he was a successful businessman and had first hand experience dealing with creeps. Between Robert and Coach, they knew all the right questions to ask the agents to make sure Magnus ended up in a healthy working relationship. One that would be mutually beneficial for Magnus and his agent. Okay, they weren't there to give the agent warm-fuzzies, but that would happen by extension if Magnus found the right agent.

So far, they'd been unsuccessful in finding someone even remotely satisfactory.

The first guy was middle-aged, balding, and reminded Alec of Danny DeVito, with an attitude similar to DeVito's character in the cartoon version of Disney's Hercules, the little satyr named Phil. His laugh even reminded Alec of Phil's baaaah, and he'd struggled the whole meeting to maintain his composure.

There were several important points they wanted to hash out with any potential agent for Magnus. First, they wanted to know the agent's connections. Was he respected by the powers-that-be in the NBA? Who were his clients and were they successful? What kind of extra deals had he gotten for them? Some athletes get shoe or clothing contracts with big name sports apparel companies like Nike, Adidas, Under Armor. Some get commercial contracts, car deals, or something else outside of sports. They wanted to know what Magnus could be looking at in the future.

Robert, being a businessman, wanted to know what his fees were. How much of Magnus's salary would he be getting? How well could he negotiate contract extensions and compensation? How many of his athletes had max contracts with the NBA? Although that depended as much on the player's individual talent, there had been players that got paid quite handsomely who weren't necessarily top-tier talent. Essentially, he wanted to know how much money they could expect Magnus to be making in two years, when his rookie contract expired? In five years, when many of the top athletes got max contracts? In ten years, when he was nearing retirement age?

But the thing that weighed most heavily on Alec's mind - and probably Magnus's, too - was his sexuality. They wanted input from the agent on what the General Managers, owners, and others high up in the NBA food chain thought about Magnus's coming out. Did he think it would be a problem? There weren't many precedents for something like this, so no one really knew what the NBA's reaction would be. Did he think it would hurt Magnus's draft position? Coach said no, but the agents worked much more closely with the organizations than he did. Did he think Magnus would have problems with his teammates? Coaches? Fans?

The guy that Alec dubbed 'Phil DeVito' wasn't the one. Alec never even bothered to learn his real name. He bragged heavily about some of the talent he'd represented, but most of the big name stars were not even from the 21st century. His current talent were mostly in the Developmental League, the NBA's version of Minor League Baseball: they still got paid to play, but they weren't the guys getting drafted in the lottery. They weren't the stars. Magnus wanted to be a star. This was not the guy for him.

The second guy was tall and svelte and looked like he might have actually played in the NBA himself a few years ago. He hadn't, but he had the look. He had bleach-blonde hair, a fake tan, and Alec would swear on his life the guy had had more than one cosmetic surgery procedure. He looked fake. He acted fake. He said, "I gotcher back," so many times Alec actually wanted to slap him. He was not the guy.

The third guy seemed promising. He didn't seem to be as full of bullshit as the others. He looked like a businessman, like Robert in all honesty, and Alec noticed his dad's interest was piqued as soon as the guy walked in the room. Robert connected with him, understood his mannerisms and way of speaking. He could have been a board member at Robert's company with the way they were talking to each other.

He also had an impressive resume. He had several big time superstars as clients. Several had received max contracts, shoe deals, the whole nine yards. Alec was definitely warming up to him, and by the looks on their faces, so was everyone else. It looked like they might have found what they were looking for.

And then, the magic question: How will he present Magnus's sexuality? The guy honest-to-god spluttered.

"S-sexu-al-ity?" he stammered.

Alec rolled his eyes. "Yes. Magnus is gay. And the whole fucking world knows it," he deadpanned. Except, apparently, YOU, he added in his head.

After significantly more incoherent babbling, the mood in the room grew darker. It was clear that the guy not only didn't know his audience, but didn't exactly approve of it either. Magnus did not need his own fucking agent's disapproval. He needed an agent that would stand by him, protect him. Hell, this guy didn't even seem interested in working with him after finding out he was gay.

He dug under Alec's skin deep enough to make him prickly. When Alec balled his hands into fists, Coach Whitaker decided to end the meeting. He showed the homophobic asshole out the door before Alec had a chance to do something he might regret. Might. Alec was not altogether certain he would have regretted punching that bastard in the face.

When he caught sight of Magnus's face, his anger flared-up, then burned out. Magnus looked so dejected, hurt. Alec went to him, pulled him into a corner so they could talk, so Alec could try to make him feel better. He soothingly caressed Magnus's arms, while trying to get him to look at him. He meant to sound placating, but apparently his anger had not completely resolved.

"Fuck that asshole. We don't need him. He's just a stupid, homophobic dick."

Magnus's eyes snapped up to his at that. Alec bit his lip. He'd said enough - maybe too much - at least until he tamped his anger down. To his surprise, a sly grin spread across Magnus's face.

"You're right. We don't need him."

Alec pulled him into a tight hug. He released him when he felt Magnus's body shaking.

"What the hell are you laughing about?" Alec said incredulously.

"Well, first of all, I love when you get so defensive of me. It's really hot." Alec rolled his eyes. "Second, don't you think it's funny that we use words like 'asshole' and 'dick' to describe people we don't like? I mean…" Magnus leaned in conspiratorially and whispered in Alec's ear, "Those are my favorite parts of your body."

"Oh, god," Alec groaned, play-shoving Magnus away from him. "You are too much."

So they'd went home empty-handed, again. Coach found another prospect for them to interview today, and Alec was struggling to keep up the optimism. Magnus was right. All these agents were shady, or at least not the right fit for them. And Magnus had to have an agent. Someone who knew the ins and outs of the business. Someone who would make sure he got what he deserved to get, at least from a financial stand point. He would have a guaranteed contract for 2 years, and his pay in that time would depend on what number he was drafted. But the extras had to be negotiated. And the offer he got in two years was extremely important. They needed someone they could trust to do what's best for Magnus.

They sat in one of the conference rooms the basketball team frequently used. This one was set up like a board meeting room. A large wooden table took up the center of the room and had many cushioned rolling chairs around it. Alec sat next to Magnus. Robert and Coach sat across from them, chatting about things that were likely to be uninteresting to Magnus and Alec. After hearing about the fiasco of the last guy, Mrs. Herondale insisted on joining them, too. She took up residence at the head of the table, watching them all closely.

The conference room door opened and the secretary of the athletic department entered the room, announcing the man behind her. Baxter Monroe. When Alec first heard his name, his thought was really? He assumed the guy would be like one of the other jackasses they'd dealt with already. Seeing the guy threw all that out the window.

This guy looked about as normal as normal could get. He wore khaki's and a button-up shirt with the top buttons open and a white T-shirt underneath. No tie. No formality. He looked to be late forties/early fifties, was neatly groomed but not excessively like the fake guy they interviewed. He had an easy smile and a firm handshake and Alec took to him immediately. He tried not to, not after the last guy that he liked that turned out to be a homophobic prick, but he couldn't help himself.

Baxter broke the ice by engaging them with stories about the Knicks. Robert and Alec, of course, were fans, and it turned out that Coach Whitaker had grown up a Knicks fan as well. Magnus and Momma H didn't have a favorite team, but they listened just as intensely. Baxter had worked for the organization for several years after college. He'd had an entry level position, but had gotten to know many of the people within the franchise. In fact, one of the guys who did a lot of their scouting was responsible for getting him started in being an agent.

He was in the employ of many stars, and a few superstars. From what he was saying, the guy had to be making an assload of money, yet he didn't show up in a designer suit acting like he would be doing them a favor if they hired him. He was confident in his abilities, a smooth talker that put their minds at ease, a real charmer, but not obnoxiously so. He may have leaned a little toward the arrogant side, but he seemed to genuinely want to help Magnus get what he wanted. Alec liked that.

After awhile, Baxter leaned forward on the table, folding his hands in front of him and smiled at them. "I need to know something," he said in that even voice he'd been using all day. "I need to know about the kiss. I'm assuming you were the other party." He glanced at Alec when he said that, and Alec nodded his assent. Baxter returned the nod. "So, what's the story?"

Alec shared a glance with Magnus. He gave him an encouraging look, and squeezed his hand under the table. "Well, Alec is my boyfriend. We've been roommates for the last two years and we fell in love."

"I see," said Baxter, leaning back in his chair.

Alec felt his hackles go up. "Is that a problem?" he demanded.

Baxter looked startled. "Not for me, it isn't. But I don't know if it will be for the two of you."

Alec deflated, the sudden anger dissipating as quickly as it had flared. Baxter passed the test. He wasn't homophobic, and Magnus's being gay wasn't a deal-breaker for him. "Good," Alec muttered.

"Listen, Magnus, I work with a lot of star athletes, not just basketball players," Baxter said. "I have several clients that are gay. I couldn't care less about that. My concerns are more about your performance on the court. You're good. I've watched you play for the last few years. You've improved tremendously, and I think your game will translate to the NBA just fine. Your coach says your work ethic is good and you are willing to be coached. That's good. It will help us when contract negotiations start.

"But I do want to talk about your sexuality for a minute," he continued. "As I said, I don't care. The people involved with my other gay athletes don't care. I'm not so sure about the NBA though. There's not a lot of precedence to go by. There have been some players that came out toward the end of their career, but I don't know of any that were openly gay going in."

"Do you think it will affect my draft position?" Magnus looked worried. Alec squeezed his hand again.

"I told him I didn't think it would be a problem," Coach Whitaker said. "The NBA folks just want to make money, right? Magnus will make them money. He's the real deal. He had the potential to be a superstar one day."

Baxter paused, mediating on that for a moment. "You're right. Making money is the most important thing to them. But I honestly have no idea how homophobic the owners, GM's, team execs, etc. are, and those are the people that make the decision to draft you. I don't think they would be stupid enough to be openly homophobic about it, and I'd like to think if a team needs a good point guard they wouldn't pass on you just because you are gay. But I honestly don't know yet.

"I'll tell you this though, once this meeting was set up, I got in contact with a few of the teams that are likely to be in the lottery. We won't know for sure until the season is over in a few weeks, but there are a few that don't have any hope of making the Play-offs, so I contacted them. I just wanted to get a feel for what they thought about you. I only heard back from three of the teams so far, but what I heard was pretty positive. They like your game."

Alec was encouraged by this announcement. Hearing it from someone other than Coach made him feel much better. It was also a stark contrast to the other agents they'd interviewed. None of them had taken the time to find out what the teams thought of Magnus. Hell, the one asshole hadn't even bothered to find out that Magnus was gay.

"What you need to do is work your ass off at the combine. Do everything they tell you to do. Go above and beyond. Push yourself physically as far as you can. Show them what you can do and that you are willing to put in the work and effort needed to get their team to the Play-offs. Show them you are mentally tough, too. If someone says something that bothers you, don't react, don't let it show. Just keep doing what you do because at the end of the day, you are better than they are. If you do that, they'll have no choice but to draft you high. They'll have no good reason to pass on you. And no one wants to deal with a discrimination suit. They're expensive and pesky and time-consuming."

Alec hadn't thought about it that way. But it made sense. If Magnus gave them no reason to pass on him, there would be no reason to pass on him. Duh.

"You can do that, Magnus. I know you can. I've seen you let things roll off you that would drive other people crazy. I know you can go into your basketball star mode and no one can touch you there. You've got this."

Alec glanced at Baxter and found him nodding in agreement. "You seem like a pretty grounded person, Magnus. I've seen you play. You've got ice in your veins when you're on the court. Your teammates love you and follow your leadership. That's what NBA teams are looking for in a point guard. They want someone with skills and talent, yes, but they also what someone who is confident, who can lead the team and that the team is willing to follow. Be that person, and you're golden."

Magnus nodded. He glanced at his companions, then turned back to Baxter. "What should I do about…Alec?" He said the name softly, like he was afraid of hurting him.

Alec stared at him, maybe just a little hurt. What did he mean by that anyway? He started to ask him, but Baxter spoke first.

"Are you asking me if I think you should hide your relationship?" Baxter folded his hands in front of him on the table as he studied Magnus.

Alec's eyes narrowed. Magnus stared at his hands as he nodded his head. The gesture seemed to cause him pain, and even though Alec was on the verge of speaking his mind, he couldn't quite bring himself to say something that might hurt Magnus more.

"I don't know how to tell you to handle this, Magnus. As I said, there is no precedent. We don't really know how the big wigs will feel about it." Magnus nodded again, looking thoroughly deflated. "But, I don't think you should hide it."

Everyone had been watching Magnus, but at that moment, everyone's head snapped to attention in Baxter's direction. He smiled a knowing smile at them. "Look, if you hide it now, it will look like you're trying to hide something. My recommendation is to just be yourself, work your ass off, and deal with whatever comes. Maybe try to stay out of the tabloids until after the draft? But no, I wouldn't recommend hiding it."

Alec perked up. "You really think so?"

"Yes, I do. He needs to concentrate on basketball right now, let his game speak for itself. Give the press something to talk about with regards to his skills and athleticism, and what an asset he'd be to a pro team. You two should still do the things you normally do. He'll need your support through all this. Maybe lay low on the PDA, but I doubt being seen together is going to hurt him in any way."

"What about the fans? Will they be a problem?" Alec wondered aloud.

Baxter grinned and shook his head. "Nothing you can do about that. Fans will either love you or hate you. That doesn't mean anything to the team or higher-ups of the organization. Don't sweat the fans. Be nice to the ones that are nice to you, and just smile and walk away from the assholes. I'd be telling you that no matter what the potential issue is, by the way. It's not just because you are gay."

After a bit more business talk with Robert, and Momma H had a few questions answered, they said goodbye to Baxter Monroe. As soon as the door closed behind him, five pairs of eyes scanned the faces of the others at the table. No one wanted to be the first to speak, so they just stared at each other until it started to become uncomfortable.

"So…" Coach Whitaker said.

"Him," Magnus said. "I want him."

"He certainly said all the right things," Robert said, a thoughtful expression on his face.

"Do you believe him, Dad?"

"I want to. I like that he's already talked to a few of the teams to gauge where they stood with Magnus. I like that he has experience with top talent. I'd like to check him out some more, make sure what he says is true."

"What about you, Momma H?" Alec said, knowing that Magnus would not hire Baxter if Momma H didn't like him, no matter how much he liked the guy.

She took his hand and smiled her gentle smile. "I'd like a few days to think about it. Maybe interview a few more people, just to make sure he's the one. But I do like him. He seems genuine, even if he thinks a little highly of himself."

Magnus shared a look with Alec that showed how excited he was. Alec wanted so badly to believe this was the right guy. He was sick of interviewing the wrong guy. He liked Baxter more than any of the others they'd interviewed, and it wasn't even close.

The meeting adjourned and they went their separate ways. Over the next few days, they each did their own research, making sure everything Baxter Monroe had said rang true. They found nothing that raised a red flag, nothing to make them think he couldn't do everything he claimed he could do.

They met in Coach Whitaker's office four days later to discuss what to do. It was a very short meeting. They were all in agreement. Baxter Monroe was Magnus's new agent.