Shadowhunters || Jimonael || Not the Best Plan, but the Best Result || Jimonael || Shadowhunters
Title: Not the Best Plan, but the Best Result – How Simon Lost a Boyfriend to Gain Two
Fandom: Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments
Disclaimer: All rights to the Shadowhunters show reserved to Ed Decter, the books the show is based off and its characters belong to Cassandra Clare. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.
Tags: polyamory (m/m/m), fake break-up, fake relationship, pining, hurt/comfort
Main Pairing: Raphael/Simon/Jace
Shadowhunters Characters: Jonathan 'Jace' Herondale, Raphael Santiago, Simon Lewis, Maia Roberts, Bartholomew 'Bat' Velasquez, Magnus Bane, Heidi McKenzie
Summary: Heidi wants revenge on Raphael. To protect his boyfriend, Raphael breaks up with Simon – and starts fake-dating Jace, who goes undercover to lure Heidi into a trap. Simon is left noticing what a wonderful couple Jace and Raphael make, until the mission goes sideways.
Not the Best Plan, but the Best Result
How Simon Lost a Boyfriend to Gain Two
Simon had been very happy with Raphael and he had thought that Raphael was happy with him too. At least until Raphael, out of the blue, broke up with him. Not even a week later, Raphael was suddenly dating Jace. The thing was, Simon couldn't even be angry at them. He knew first-hand just how fickle the heart was and that one couldn't control who to love. After all, he had lost Clary to Jace too before (even though Jace hadn't felt the same way about Clary and nothing had come from it after the Seelie Court). And he had understood it back then too.
Jace was a total catch. He was gorgeous – the dual-colored eyes, the pink, pouty lips, the golden-blonde hair, the hot, waxed six-pack, those thighs, also that ass. And he wasn't just pretty to look at, he was witty and snarky and clever. He was a strong fighter and a cunning diplomat too.
"I just," Simon sighed, digging his spoon into the ice-cream. "I get it, you know? I get why he chose Jace. Look at Jace. How could you not choose him if you have the option? Right?"
"I mean..." Bat looked a bit awkward at that. "I guess he's very pretty. But you do know that you're hot too, right? No homo, but you're an attractive dude, Si."
Simon huffed, stuffing his cheeks with more ice-cream. "But not Jace-levels of-"
"Shut up," Maia's voice was pointed and firm as she made her way from the kitchen. "I'm really, really truly done listening to you compare yourself to Jace. You're different types of guys. What's the point of comparing yourself to him?"
"You don't get input. You were with us both, so clearly we both appeal to you," Simon muttered under his breath. "And you are my friend so you have to say something nice about me."
"That... is not how that works," Maia grunted amused and rolled her eyes. "Look. Santiago is a big idiot if he dumped you. An even bigger one if he did it for Jace-"
"Don't dump on Jace," warned Simon pointedly. "It's not his fault."
"-I'm just saying that Jace is not exactly relationship material. A good, hard fuck? Yes. But from all I've gathered about your now ex, he isn't really into that. So I think he might be in for a disappointment, because Jace is not one for the fuzzy feels."
Simon grunted between two large spoons of ice-cream. "Well, from what I've seen, they work great. They look like a total power-couple, I saw them during the last Downworlder cabinet council. Because technically me and Raph are still co-leaders. Which. Just great, you know?"
Even Maia winced at that one. Yeah, this whole situation sucked. And while Maia was right, Raphael was asexual and sex-repulsed, Simon really did have the impression that Jace and Raphael were doing good. They looked so good together, the way they spoke and interacted, it seemed to come so easy to them and Simon could very easily imagine them just cuddling, curled together in front of the fire-place. They'd look really cute and peaceful together like that.
"Simon," Bat heaved a sigh, exchanging a look with Maia. "I think it's really time you start looking at the way you look at Jace. Because that's not 'I suck compared to him', that's more 'I wanna suck him'. Dude, you have a giant-ass crush on Jace, that's why you think he's perfect."
"What. No. I do not have a crush on Jace-" Simon protested loudly.
"You do," Maia interrupted him, throwing him a pointed look. "You have had a crush on Jace pretty much since the day you met him, from everything you told me. And everything Izzy told me about your first encounters with the Shadowhunters. You know you're bisexual, why are you this oblivious to your feelings for Jace? I mean, you got it together with Raphael."
"Because Raph took the first step," Simon grumbled a little, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Useless bisexual," Maia sighed, rubbing her forehead. "You give us other bisexuals a bad name."
Simon's grumbling increased and he reached for the ice-cream again, just to realize it was empty. With an overly dramatic sigh, he threw himself flat on his back on the couch. Bat looked at him a bit worried. The two had become good friends and Simon thought it was sweet of Bat to worry, but still. They were both wrong. Simon did not have a crush on Jace. That wasn't why he thought so highly of the blonde, he was just really pretty and kind and good. Simon knew exactly why Raphael had broken up with him in favor of dating Jace instead.
/break\
The thing was, Simon had no idea why Raphael had actually broken up with him. Because Raphael was still very much in love with Simon, in fact that love was exactly why he had broken up with Simon. Heidi was seeking revenge for what Raphael had done to her and the clearly unstable woman was very likely to go after those Raphael cared for. There... weren't many of those and his still relatively newly turned boyfriend screamed easy target. Simon was sweet and kind and soft, not a huge fighter. Sure, he had the vampire-strength but he still hadn't bothered training properly. In an actual fight, he might be out-tricked. Something Raphael couldn't risk, especially with how unpredictable Heidi was. To keep Simon safe, Raphael had to break up with him, publicly, make sure everyone knew so word would reach Heidi.
What had come next had been Magnus' idea. Because just breaking up with Simon might look like a stunt and it might still make her go after Simon, which Raphael just could not allow. And it also didn't solve the issue at hand. So Magnus suggested to get a fake partner; a Shadowhunter. Someone trained to fight and defend themselves, someone who could also take a more official role here, in helping arrest Heidi. While Raphael didn't like the idea of a pretend relationship, he did see the benefit of Magnus' idea. Heidi would go after Raphael's new partner, would be in over her head and then the Shadowhunter could take Heidi down and the whole thing would be done.
Now, if Raphael had to do this, he would prefer to do it with Isabelle – he had once held her very dearly, it wouldn't a problem for him to pretend now, especially since the two despite the way they fell apart had still regained a good friendship. However, Isabelle was very happily engaged to Miss Lydia Branwell and instigating a public breakup between those two to rope Isabelle into this scheme was just silly and also too suspicious, so it had to be someone else.
Jace. Jace. Raphael had looked at Alec in genuine mortification at the suggestion, but the head of the Institute had not been impressed by Raphael's judgment, which admittedly figured. Jace was Alec's parabatai, Alec would always be the blonde's number one cheerleader.
And at this point in time, Raphael felt genuinely bad for his judgment. Him and Jace had been fake dating for a week now and the blonde had been very professional. He wasn't just a snarky flirt, the way Raphael had met him so far, had seen him from an outsider's perspective. He played the part of the clan leader's boyfriend perfectly. Actual diplomatic skills that he put to use, yet always only as advise and suggestions toward Raphael, always respecting the fact that he was the clan-leader.
The two presented as a couple outside, in public – with the clan, with the Institute, even going on long, extensive walks and public dates, just to make sure word would reach Heidi. Much to his own surprise, Raphael found himself enjoying the time spent with Jace. Sure, at first they had mostly just talked about Simon and Isabelle; people they had in common. But since this whole scheme required them to spend a lot of time with each other, they soon ran out of things to say so they switched it up. They tried fishing for anything they had in common – and it turned out, they actually did. They had a similar taste in books and started talking about those. They even read together, in the evening; for the sake of the cover, Jace was staying at Hotel Dumort, in Raphael's suit. To waste the time, the two had even picked up chess with each other. Pleasantly enough, Jace proved to be a worthy opponent. Raphael found himself... enjoying the time with Jace.
"You're distracted tonight," Jace's voice was soft and pleasant.
"I... miss Simon," whispered Raphael, turning the pawn in his hand. "Even if our little plan works, Simon will never forgive me for how I treated him – he shouldn't forgive me. I broke his heart."
"You did it to save his life. And the lives of his family. Because Heidi may not necessarily go after him, he's a vampire, has been one longer than her. But Simon has very vulnerable mundie family members that could be hurt," said Jace nearly gently. "He may be hurt, but Simon loves his mom and sister very fiercely and if there was anything endangering them, potentially hurting them, then he would absolutely do whatever it cost to help them. That includes this here. You just... have to take him aside and explain things, very clearly."
It made Raphael smile faintly. Jace was much more understanding than Raphael had given him credit for; much more compassionate and thoughtful too. He truly had judged this book by its cover. And, admittedly, perhaps a little for his promiscuity. Jace was very good at playing up the shallow playboy persona who was only brawn, leaving his parabatai up to be the brains. While Alec surely was a good strategist and clever, Jace was by no means dumb either.
"Shall we go to Pandemonium after this?" asked Raphael as he finally moved his piece.
"Mh. Wanna show me off again? I feel so flattered," Jace grinned and winked at him.
Raphael rolled his eyes, though not in annoyance. No, he had grown quite fond of Jace. Surprisingly, he had even come to understand why Simon had such a crush on Jace. So far, Raphael had simply ignored that – Simon had chosen Raphael and Simon was very faithful, so there was no need for unnecessary jealousy over a crush. After all, being polyamorous was part of who Simon was and Raphael would never hold that against him. Being asexual, Raphael knew what it felt like to be treated differently for his sexuality by his partner; he had been with people before who felt cheated out of sex, who acted like Raphael owed them something. So Raphael was not going to act like Simon owed him anything, not even his whole heart. Simon had always been very obviously polyamorous – his crush on Jace from the get-go, even when he had still been madly in love with Clary, him loving Clary still even as was briefly dating Maia, then when he was developing feelings for Raphael. Raphael had never held those other feelings against Simon, but he had also never quite talked to Simon about them. If Simon didn't want to talk about them, Raphael wasn't going to be the one to bring them up. Not to mention that Simon seemed a little unaware of his feelings for Jace, he might be mistaking it for hero-worship, with how he framed them. At first, Raphael had assumed Simon did that for Raphael's sake, but by now it became pretty clear that that wasn't the case.
"You do clean up nicely, I have to admit, you'd make a nice trophy husband."
Jace threw his head back in laughter as he walked over to the closet to get changed. One of the first things they had done was go out shopping, the picture of a rich boyfriend spoiling his partner. And all Raphael could think about while Jace paraded around outfits was that Simon would have truly enjoyed that show, would have flustered and rambled to cover his aroused embarrassment.
"At least you are a man of good taste, Santiago."
Jace was stripping down, completely shameless. The first time this had happened, it had bothered Raphael, he thought it was Jace's way of coming onto him. But Jace just felt completely comfortable with his body, he didn't mind someone's eyes on him – and he had apologized, saying he hadn't considered it might make Raphael uncomfortable; he was used to people who didn't mind. Which also figured, in a way. Coming back to the Institute from a mission, covered in demon left-overs, one wanted to strip out of those ruined clothes as quickly as possible and didn't necessarily care if there were others watching. In the end, it didn't really bother Raphael, now that he knew Jace wasn't coming onto him, so Jace didn't bother being modest. Admittedly, Raphael enjoyed the show. Even without being sexually attracted to him, or anyone, he could see how aesthetically pleasing Jace's body was and what great care the blonde took of himself. Well, at least when it came to staying in shape; otherwise he was quite reckless and liked endangering himself. Like taking on an undercover mission that made him the target of an insane, murderous vampire.
"Let's go and show you off, hope you catch Heidi's eye."
Raphael slipped an arm around Jace's waist, pulling the blonde close and leading the way. He noticed the way Jace leaned into him, swaying just a little bit. It was something Jace did, the way he reacted to physical contact. Touch-starved. Maybe it wasn't okay to go behind Jace's back, but Raphael found himself going to Magnus and asking him about this, considering how long the two had lived together. Most of it, Raphael had already suspected – years of abuse, the recent amount of torture, lack of a romantic partner to provide physical comfort. Jace wasn't the kind to go around hugging and cuddling friends, the way Simon did. Alec, Raphael suspected, was the only one Jace let close enough. And his past history of negative connotations with physical contact – abuse and torture – kept him away from others. Right now, in their little pretend relationship, Raphael and Jace had to show affection. And Jace was soaking it up. Was it very strange that Raphael's main thought about this was just how much Simon would love it? Not the fact that Jace was touch-starved or why, but with how affectionate and tactile Simon was, he would simply be hugging Jace all the time, caressing him in passing, and making it all out to be about Simon, about Simon being needy for attention, just so Jace wouldn't have to admit to his own needs.
This wasn't how this was supposed to go. He was supposed to rely on the Shadowhunter's help in taking out the threat and then hope that Simon took him back and never think about this little stunt again. Instead, all he thought about was how good Jace actually was and how much Simon would enjoy this pretend relationship with Jace; if this was a fraction of what Jace would be like in a real relationship. All of that was just so inappropriate, shouldn't be in Raphael's head at all, really.
"You are an excellent dancer," Raphael's voice was a dark whisper.
He leaned in to reach Jace's ear. The two of them had reached Pandemonium and had made their way to the dance-floor. Another public display, putting on a show. This show, however, Raphael enjoyed a lot. He had always loved to dance. Simon was a wonderful singer, but his rhythm didn't translate into dancing, sadly enough. Raphael smiled, one arm leisurely around Jace's waist.
"I blame all the sex. I just know how to move with another body in passion."
"Mh. Peculiar, I wonder why I am such a good dancer then," quipped Raphael back.
It made Jace laugh, which had come to be a sound Raphael enjoyed quite a lot. Though Raphael's good mood dropped a little when he spotted the absolute miserable looking Simon at the bar. He'd been kind of stalking Raphael and Jace, never approaching them, trying not to talk to them, but always looking at them with those large, sad eyes that made Raphael feel like the worst person on the planet. He was doing this to keep Simon safe, he reminded himself. That would even be worth Simon hating him, because a Simon hating him was at least alive.
"I'm tapping out, angelito," stated Raphael, before stepping aside.
A pet-name. To sell it better. It made Jace blush though, so that was one thing Raphael didn't quite know what to do with. Jace nodded at him and watched him go before he continued dancing. While them being seen together was important so Heidi would know, there was just no way she would be acting when it was both of them so Raphael made a show of parting with Jace too.
"If your plan was to drive them both mad, I think you might be succeeding, mijo."
Raphael looked up. He'd sat down at a table, on the upper level, in a position so he could observer both his boyfriends – his ex-boyfriend and his fake-boyfriend. One was moping at the bar, the other was still dancing. It was hard to tear his eyes away from them, but Magnus had sat down opposite him, right in his line of sight. There was something amused in his eyes.
"Me? Driving anyone mad? I am trying to protect Simon."
"Yes, yes. I know that. I know, my boy. But... he is so madly in love with you, look at that pining face of his, it's just sad. But the other one, oh. Jace looks really gone on you."
"He does not," Raphael grunted in protest, eyebrows drawn together.
"Don't be in denial about this, Raphael, you're better than that," chided Magnus with one quirked eyebrow. "However fake your relationship may be, it has... certainly made him look at you with the same puppy-dog eyes as your actual boyfriend does."
This time, Raphael refrained from commenting. He had been growing attached himself, so there was a chance Jace too felt that way. Still, that seemed strange to him. And also a bit problematic, because what was Raphael supposed to do with that...?
"What, you suggesting that when Simon doesn't take me back, I just... keep Jace?"
Magnus rolled his eyes in exasperation. "What I'm suggesting is that you keep both. You have been... very affectionate with Jace too. And I know you well enough to know that you wouldn't be this affectionate with him if you disliked him or didn't care for him. In fact, you have grown more affectionate with him with every day... And everybody knows that Simon has a crush on Jace. So, perhaps, you could appease your boyfriend by offering him a bonus boyfriend to make up for it."
"Amor, I love you, please forgive me for breaking up with you, here, I got you this Jace because I know you have wanted one of your own for a while?" Raphael's voice dripped with mocking.
"You mock, but I think you and me both know Simon would appreciate the gift."
Magnus grinned at him like a cat and winked. All Raphael could do was heave an exhausted sigh. Things weren't that easy. Raphael leaned back and lifted his glass to his lips.
/break\
Jace had been dancing until he was panting and sweaty. So he decided to go outside, get a bit of fresh air. And a bit of peace and quiet; the music was loud and so were the people inside the club. Besides, he had to give Heidi the opportunity to try her luck. He'd been leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, just breathing the cold night-air, for a few moments when his phone went off. Frowning, he got it out to check – and was surprised to see Simon's stupidly pretty face smiling at him with the caller ID. It was rare for Simon to call him, even rarer now that Jace had 'stolen' Simon's boyfriend. It wasn't a surprise that Simon was probably going to hate him after this, but that was okay, because Jace wanted to keep Simon safe. That's why he had volunteered for this job.
"Simon? What's up?" Jace asked tensely as he answered the phone.
"Jace! I think this woman is following me. I don't-"
Simon sounded distressed which caused Jace to straighten his back and tense up. "Where are you? Give me your location, stay exactly there. I'm on my way, okay?"
Sure, the whole point of their little play pretend was to protect Simon, but what if Heidi didn't buy it? What if she thought it was all a ruse? Still thought Simon was the right target to hurt Raphael? Jace couldn't let that happen. It was stupid, he knew that, he knew he had no chance with Simon – first Simon had been in love with Clary, then Clary kissed Jace at the Seelie Court (while Jace saw her as his sister and while Jace actually really wanted to kiss Simon), in front of Simon, and it was a miracle Simon hadn't punched him in the face about it, that Simon was still talking to him, then Simon got together with Maia for a while and now he was in love with Raph. And... at this point, Jace understood. A part of him had thought that just maybe this wasn't going to last and he could still stand a chance with Simon. But now Jace knew what a caring and sweet boyfriend Raphael was and... Raphael was the kind of boyfriend Simon deserved. So, even when it was all over, Jace was going to do everything he could to fix this – to explain to Simon why Raphael had broken up with him and why Raphael was worth being forgiven for it. Because all Jace wanted was for Simon to be happy. Even though that wasn't going to be with him.
When Simon gave him the location, Jace started running, as fast as he could. He didn't want to let anything happen to Simon, he couldn't. He loved the stupid vampire. The quips, the big smiles, the dorky rambling. He was so cute and soft, soft in a manner Jace had never seen before, because he wasn't a child soldier trained from the earliest age. Simon was allowed to be soft and sweet. And while Jace pretended to be annoyed by that (very poorly, according to Alec who'd give him the most exhausted and annoyed looks at just how gone he was on the mundie), he was charmed by it. He loved Simon, he had fallen in love with Simon, but everything seemed to be playing against Jace. Clary, Simon's first love, who in turn was in love with Jace and had revealed it in the most unfortunate manner at the Seelie Court, only making Simon think even more that Jace was a love-rival for him. That fate had put him into this situation once more, making him look like a rival for Raphael's love, while all Jace really wanted was to be with Simon.
"Simon! Simon, are you okay?" Jace called out tensely as he saw Simon's silhouette.
Simon turned toward him and as Jace reached him, the vampire's face changed. First, just the expression, turning vicious – which just looked wrong on Simon's face. But then it turned from Simon's face into... Heidi's. Magic. Damn it. Jace had been so blinded by fear that Simon could be in danger, he had just run into a trap himself. She was too close, he was too surprised, she got the upper hand in an embarrassingly fast manner and then everything went black.
/break\
When Jace came to it again, he was shackled to a wall. The troubling thing was that... Raphael was shackled right next to him. Frowning, Jace turned toward the vampire, trying to check as good as he could, but he couldn't move much. Damn it. How had everything turned out so very unplanned.
"Mh. I gotta say, upgrade on the boyfriend-department," Heidi's voice was honey-sweet as she tilted Jace's head to look at her. "I'm not going to kill you, pretty boy."
"Well, that's so nice of you," Jace snarled at her annoyed.
"I'm going to make him kill you. It'll break him," Heidi laughed in a maniacal way.
Jace's eyes widened, a bit terrified as he realized that Raphael was bleeding. Bleeding a lot. And Heidi was holding the blood-covered knife. She smiled at him viciously as she pressed it against his arm, cutting down slowly. Then, she opened Raphael's shackles.
"He's going to be so hungry, he will just drain you. Kill the boy he loves. Poetic. I love it."
With a spring to her steps, she skipped out of the cell and locked it from the outside, wiggling her fingers at him as she waved him goodbye. Great, just great. Was this how Jace was going to die? A casualty. Depending on how much Raphael bled out before waking up, the vampire might very well lose his control – especially with his history with human blood. He'd been addicted once before, smelling all of Jace's blood while in a malnourished state might be too much for him.
"Raph. Raphael, I need you to wake up. I need you to wake up and be able to get out of this cell so we can get away from here," Jace growled beneath his breath. "I also need Alec to notice that something is wrong, fast. And find us."
He hoped that Alec had felt the cut on his arm and found it suspicious. But with Jace's tendency of getting injured because of rough-play (both, during fights and during sex), Alec didn't necessarily come running in alarmed at every cut or bruise Jace got anymore.
"J...ace?" Raphael's voice was soft, weak. "What happened?"
"Well, I wanted to ask you that," quipped Jace dryly. "I know she got me by pretending to be Simon in danger. How did she get you though? Same trick?"
It took Raphael a moment to answer, the vampire simply blinking at Jace slowly. "Pretended to be you. Said that Simon was attacked and that you're outnumbered. I came to help but..." Raphael turned his head curiously, looking around. "What's going on?"
"Our esteemed host cut you to make you bleed dry and then cut me to make you kill me in a feeding frenzy, thinks it's gonna break you if you kill me," Jace snorted a little.
"Don't make a sound like that," Raphael glared at him, carefully wrapping a piece of his shirt around his own wound to stop the bleeding. "It may not destroy my whole world forever, but it would not leave me unaffected either, angelito."
With those words, he approached Jace and wrapped the rest of his torn-up shirt around Jace's injury to stop the bleed. Then, he collapsed on the ground next to Jace, leaning against the wall, breathing heavily despite not needing breath. Jace's eyes were drawn to the vampire's bare chest. Not the right moment to get horny, but it was the first time he got to see Raphael shirtless and the man was gorgeous, even without the well-cut suits. Licking his lips, he leaned forward a bit.
"You are aware that I am a vampire and I can smell arousal, yes?"
Jace flushed and quickly turned away, instead letting his eyes wander over the cell, trying to find a weakness. An out. Next to him, Raphael huffed in amusement, pressing a hand against his injury.
"You are... very different from the image I had in my mind of you," Raphael's voice was a whisper.
"Taking that as a compliment, considering I've never left a positive first impression before in my life," stated Jace dryly, raising one eyebrow. "Think you can get my shackles off?"
"Doubt it. I'm... I've lost too much blood, I'm glad I could move this much..."
"Kay... on a scale of stale bread to ripe steak, just how appealing am I right now...?"
Raphael huffed out a laugh. "Very. But I still... have control..."
For a stretch, Jace simply looked at him, hard and long. "I think... you should drink from me. While you still have the control. So you will be strong enough to help get us out here and so you won't be pushed to a point of no control because I would like to make it out of here alive."
He could see the reluctance in Raphael's eyes. And he even understood why. He remembered the addiction between Raphael and Isabelle. Still, it was their best shot. Sitting here, waiting for Raphael to be too hungry to fight it off anymore, it would only be reckless and stupid. The look on Raphael's face told him that the vampire knew that too.
"What if I... can't control myself when I feed on you," Raphael's voice wavered.
"I trust you right now much more than the you that bled for another ten or twenty minutes," argued Jace, eyebrows raised. "We don't know how long we're going to be stuck here."
At that, Raphael nodded stiffly and came closer. His touch was gentle as he grabbed Jace's cut arm. He undid the bandages and removed them, smoothing over Jace's arm gently. It was stupid, just how much the soft caresses got to Jace, but he had simply not allowed himself such touches. Jace's eyelids fluttered shut as Raphael's fangs sank into his skin. He gasped breathlessly, feeling arousal course through all of his body. Jace wasn't addicted, he knew that, but he still enjoyed it. Enjoyed it thoroughly. A moan slipped from his lips as he went lax in his bounds, just enjoying it.
Until it ended. Very abruptly. Jace blinked hazily, confused. Simon leaned over him, holding Raphael away from him, securely but definitely so the other vampire wouldn't get to Jace.
"Hey. Hey there, Jace. How are you feeling?" Simon's voice was careful. "Let's get you to the Institute and have you patched up again, mh? Your parabatai is right around the corner."
"What... are you doing here...?" Raphael sounded out of it.
"Uh... so I might have been kind of... following you. And I saw you getting attacked, but wasn't fast enough. But I then went and called Jace for help. Who... didn't answer his phone. So I called Alec, who didn't want to pick up at first but yeah. It's okay. We'll get you out of here."
/break\
Jace was laying on his bed, hand on his stomach, staring up at the ceiling. So this all had not worked out the way it was supposed to, huh. He'd set out to be heroic and protect the boy he loved, pretending to date said boy's boyfriend for that purpose and accidentally perhaps developed kind of a crush on said boyfriend, just for himself and said boyfriend to get abducted, cut open and then saved by the very person they had tried to protect. Total failure on literally all accounts.
Well, perhaps not all accounts, considering that Alec and the backup had secured Heidi. She had been transported to Idris to be put on trial for what she had done. Small mercies.
Knocking on his door disturbed his little pity-party. "Yeah—ouch?"
He had made the mistake of turning. Wincing, he turned back and laid down once more. Heidi had done some damage to him, dislodged his shoulder when she had strung him up. He'd ignored it. The cut on his arm had been so deep, it had severed the ligaments. Sure, he had healing runes, but they only went so far, especially in such a case. It'd be at least a week until he could use his hand again and of course was it his dominant hand. Jace turned to glare at his currently useless hand.
"He—ey, I bring you food. Uh, chicken soup and brownies and a bacon sandwich, because I didn't really know what you'd be hungry for. Also! Orange juice to help replenish your blood."
Jace blinked rapidly as he watched Simon approach him with loaded arms. Genuinely the last person he had expected to come visit him. Then again, the Lightwoods and Clary had already sat at his bedside – he'd played cards with Clary and Isabelle, Alec had just laid with him and listened to him talk about Simon and Raphael, Max had poked fun at him.
"W... What are you... doing here?" Jace tried sitting up, supporting himself on his hands, just to flinch, wince and go back down, eyes closed tightly at the pain shooting up his arm.
"Woah there, hey, you gotta be careful. Izzy said your ligaments are torn."
Suddenly, he had a Simon all up in his personal space, a hand on Jace's abdomen, one on his back, keeping him stable and helping him sit upright. When Jace turned his head a little, he saw Raphael picking up the things Simon had just dropped. What... were they doing here...? Together, at that.
"So I am a Daylighter now," Raphael threw that out there so casually, giving Jace a look. "You let me drink from you even though you knew that would happen."
"We didn't really have a lot of options there, did we?" Jace huffed, flushing a little at how Simon was still sitting far too close to him. "And I couldn't exactly warn you about it, didn't know where Heidi and her goons were, couldn't risk them hearing..."
"No, no. I absolutely understand that. I just..." Raphael let the sentence hanging open.
"What are you guys doing here?" asked Jace instead, wanting to cut to the chase.
"Checking in on you. After Raph got checked – well, while. Actually, before we even left that cell. You were unconscious and Raph was totally out of it and he just started blurting out everything. His rambling rivaled me, I was really impressed," there was a teasing grin on Simon's lips as he spoke.
"So... So you understand? That we didn't do that to hurt you? That we didn't want to hurt you, but that we were trying to protect you...?" asked Jace a bit fearful.
"Yes. Wow. You ramble nicely too," Simon's grin turned a little softer. "I mean. I was mad. For like half an hour, pacing the infirmary room while they took care of the both of you and in the end all I could think of was those two idiots. So stupid. Doing something reckless and dumb to protect me. And I get. I just. I was angry, still am angry that you two were stupid enough to think you could pull this off and didn't think about telling me about this. And you are so in the dog-house. Like, seriously. You have a lot of trying to make it up to me to do, both of you."
Jace chanced a glance at Raphael and saw the vampire look as chastised as Jace felt. But wait. Why was he feeling chastised? He wasn't Simon's boyfriend. No reason to feel chastised, right?
"But why are you here. Bringing me food, at that," repeated Jace as Raphael put the soup in front of him and everything else next to him. "Don't you have... a week of being a couple to catch up on?"
Jace watched, a bit confused and a bit disturbed, how Raphael sat down on his other side. Simon was still sitting next to him. It was Simon who pulled the lid off the soup-container.
"Well. Raph, he rambled, right? And among his rambling, he offered me a second boyfriend to make up for the pain. Which. I am super taking him up on that," declared Simon with a smile.
"...What?" was all Jace got out before Simon spoon-fed him soup.
What was going on here? The soup was good, but... Swallowing, he turned to look at Raphael, who simply stared fondly at him, not protesting anything. Instead, he opened the box with the bacon sandwich and the scent of perfectly sizzled bacon filled Jace's senses, making his stomach rumble.
"See. I knew you hadn't eaten yet, because you're an idiot, in different ways. You are so clever, but you are also such an idiot when it comes to self-preservation. Such an idiot, in fact, that you might just need two boyfriends to make sure you survive."
Jace opened his mouth to argue, just to have Simon shove another spoon into his mouth. He had never been hand-fed before and definitely not been passive-aggressively hand-fed before.
"You grew on me. I enjoyed our pretend relationship. I'd like... to see what being in a real relationship with you would be like. And I know, I know, that desire roots from a place of knowing that Simon has a crush on you, has had that for a long time. I might have dismissed my own current feelings and tried to put this behind me, but I... think there is no reason to do that. Because you seemed very comfortable with me and because I've seen the way you look at Simon. So between all of those things, I think the most logical conclusions is... that you join our relationship."
"Most logical conclusion," parroted Simon mockingly. "What a way to propose a relationship to someone. Jace, you're... yeah, I've totally had a crush on you since pretty much the day I met you and I've fantasized about dating you... a lot... but the time was never... right, I guess. I finally got the chance to date the girl I loved since kindergarten and then... she broke up with me over you and I figured you two were together and then... Raphael. The time was just never right. I... never considered... having you and Raphael. And maybe I wouldn't have gotten to consider it at all if not for your incredibly idiotic plan. But seeing you two together? You're such a gorgeous and good couple and I will never be able to get that image out of my head, that's for sure. So, Raph is on board with this. I am super on board with this and also, like, no pressure or anything but Raph promised me a second boyfriend to make up for the past week, so I think you, since you played an equal part in it, should totally pitch in there too and do your part."
There was a dorky grin on Simon's lips, while Raphael heaved a sigh. "I would like to emphasis the 'no pressure' because I know you are self-sacrificing enough to do things for the sake of others with no regards to yourself. The choice is up to you, angelito."
Jace's eyebrows shot up and his cheeks felt warm as he heard the nickname he had grown quite attached to over the past week. He'd like to keep hearing it. This time, when he opened his mouth, Simon didn't shove a spoon in. Instead, Simon stared at him in eager anticipation.
"I might have... I might have volunteered for this because I have a... for you. And I might also... now... for you..." Jace sighed frustrated, leaning back, just to wince as he irritated his shoulder.
"Are you alright?" asked Raphael concerned, reaching out for him.
"Dislocated shoulder. It's healing. Should be good by tomorrow," Jace grunted dismissively.
"Great. I mean, that it's healing, not that you're hurt. So, could we have... more words? Because there were words missing there," requested Simon. "You have a what?"
"Crush," Jace narrowed his eyes at Simon for making him say that. "I have a crush on you. That's why I wanted to be... your hero, help save you. I thought... that you're still mad at me about Clary. I thought if I helped save you, you are more likely to forgive me again."
"Oh, bonito, I've forgiven you for that weeks ago," Simon sighed softly, reaching out to cup Jace's cheek. "I mean, I know you didn't start dating Clary at all. Much less while I was still with her. There's... nothing to hold against you, aside from being so hot that people wanna kiss you. That's a feeling I can relate to, you know."
He grinned at Jace and Jace felt compelled to lean in and kissing Simon. It was a gentle kiss and it ended as quickly as it started, because Jace quickly leaned back again, staring at him surprised.
"He likes Spanish pet-names," noted Raphael teasingly. "He's had a reaction to it every time I used one for our cover too. You have to listen to his pulse. Right, angelito, you like it?"
Jace glared at the smug look on Raphael's face and the gleeful giant grin on Simon's. It wasn't like he could control the way his pulse jumped in excitement. And it wasn't so much the Spanish in particular (though it sounded really hot the way it rolled off their tongues), it was more that he was only used to quick 'babe's or something between fucking. The way they used pet-names made them feel powerful, genuine, loving. And that did things to Jace.
"It's okay," Raphael's voice was a soothing whisper. "You're allowed to kiss him if you become our boyfriend, you know? So, is that your answer then?"
He traced Jace's jawline gently, tilting his head toward Raphael. Jace was given a gentle kiss and Jace nodded eagerly as they parted. So, just perhaps, the mission hadn't been a failure.
"Now, let your boyfriends take care of you," declared Simon, motioning at the food. "Lots of food and water and rest for you. And the dog-house. That means you don't get to upset me for at least a month, which means no missions until you are all healed up, you hear me?"
Despite the words, Jace had to smile just a little. He might like having two boyfriends.
/break\
Simon liked having two boyfriends, especially two who were groveling at his feet. Raphael and Jace were trying very hard to make up for their idiocy and it was quite pleasant. The two had meant well, had meant to protect him, he knew that. But, seriously, they had gone about it in the dumbest and most reckless manner possible. Simon had nearly lost them both!
"You know what, as far as apology gifts go, this one is really impossible to beat," whispered Simon.
He tilted his head sideways to look at Raphael with a small, teasing grin, his fingers running through golden-blonde hair. Jace was deep asleep on top of Simon, cheek plastered against Simon's chest. Seeing as Jace had to rest and heal, Simon and Raphael had come over every single day since they got together. While Jace grumbled about the bed-rest and the no-work thing, he seemed appeased by their company and the good food. One thing Simon learned quickly was just how cuddly Jace was (even though he hated that word). Jace loved being touched, in a soft and comforting manner. Which suited Simon quite well because Simon was most definitely, and proudly, cuddly. Smiling, Simon wrapped his arms around Jace's waist, pulling him closer.
"I do wonder, will you stop referring to him as a gift from me any time soon?"
Raphael looked mostly bemused as he leaned in to kiss the top of Simon's head. "Nope. Mine. You rambled and blurted out and gave me a Jace. So no, he is now the best gift I ever got."
Simon snuggled up to Raphael, pulling Jace along with him so the three were cuddled close. Not where Simon had seen himself just a week ago, but he definitely liked this. A lot.
~*~ The End ~*~
Author's note: This fic was brought to you by - me reading SuperWonder comics, actually. The plot of "Superman's Girlfriend, Lois Lane" #136 is exactly this; Clark breaks up with Lois to protect her and starts fake-dating Diana to lure the threat to Lois' safety into a trap, all while Lois is narrating what a PERFECT couple Clark and Diana are. And all I could think while reading it was "DAMN that is such an OT3 set up", soon followed by just how perfectly this would fit for Jimonael. So, here we are! ;D