Alec was grateful for his strange schedule. He worked four 24 hour days in a row, then had ten days off. It went like that all year, unless someone asked him to cover a shift for them. Usually this happened around the holidays. He was one of only a handful of firefighters at his station who didn't have kids and the only one who was completely unattached. He often used work as an excuse to skip holidays with his family, since his parents spent most of the day fighting anyway. He and his siblings still officially celebrated Christmas with their family when they could, but the reality was that they had their own celebration on a different day every year that was their real Christmas. Their parents weren't invited and he doubted they even knew this celebration existed. Alec sure hadn't told them.
Last year's celebration was held on December 27th and it was the last time he, Jace, and Izzy had all been together. Alec had stayed with Izzy and Simon for a week over the summer and had seen Jace several times throughout the year, but this was the first time he would see them together this year and the first time he would be meeting anyone Simon considered family.
Alec had decided over the summer that Simon was a decent guy, and his sister had made a good choice for herself. He hadn't actually come out and said as much. It was his job as a big brother to give anybody his little sister dated at least a little bit of a hard time, but he was pretty confident Izzy would always be treated like a queen if they stayed together. The way Simon looked at her there was no doubt he thought she hung the stars, and he'd happily go to the moon and back if she asked him to.
This was the first year in more than a decade that Alec had decided to keep his Thanksgiving free from work. He hadn't volunteered to work for anyone because he was hoping to spend the entire week bonding with his siblings. Even though this was true, Alec still hadn't told anyone he was staying. It wasn't that he liked keeping things from his siblings, but Alec hated conflict. Both Jace and Izzy had told him they had forgiven each other, but Alec wasn't convinced.
For one thing, if they were getting along so well, why was Jace still staying in a hotel? He wasn't even working anymore, so there really wasn't any reason Alec could think of except trouble.
Also, in the twenty-two years since Jace had become his brother, Alec had never seen him give up on anything he cared about without a fight. The odds that he'd actually decided not to try to break Izzy and Simon up the same day he'd been determined enough to risk his relationship with his sister were slim to none.
All these things led Alec to believe Jace was just acting nice and biding his time until he could enact his next plan, and Alec did not intend to be a pawn in this plan. He also didn't intend to split his time between his siblings if they started fighting and refusing to be in a room together. He didn't even have the patience to be the mediator this time. It was bad enough when their parents pulled that shit. There wasn't much you could do about it when your parents fought, but if Jace and Izzy planned to fight Alec planned to leave.
This is why, even when he was in Kentucky, carry-on in tow and walking with Jace to the rental car, Alec still stayed vague about how long he'd be in town. He'd told both his siblings he'd be checking in with work all week and leaving if anyone ended up needing their shift covered. He'd also made plans with several of his buddies to call him to cover a fake shift if he texted them a code phrase. He knew it was extreme and he was being a bit ridiculous, but Alec had been very tense lately and he just didn't have the patience to deal with anybody's bullshit this week.
If he was honest, he probably really needed to get laid. Unfortunately, unlike his brother, Alec wasn't a one-night-stand kind of guy. He actually wasn't even one to date casually. He'd only had a couple of relationships in his life and neither of them had been rushed into. It had been a while though, and having celebrated his thirtieth birthday a couple months earlier Alec was really feeling old. He didn't feel like thirty was that old exactly… he just felt like it was old to still be so completely single. He didn't even have any prospects in sight.
Alec tried to put all these thoughts aside and focus on his brother. Jace was talking about his new 'friend' again. It was pretty unheard of for Jace to pursue the same person for this long, but Alec figured it was probably because nobody ever said no. Once Jace got this girl to give him what he wanted he would probably see that she wasn't really that different from everyone else and he'd be ready to move on. He hoped he was wrong. It would be great to see Jace happy, but he wasn't going to get his hopes up.
"You should ask her to the bar tomorrow," he finally suggested.
"That's what Izzy said," Jace admitted, "but last time I asked her out it didn't go well. Iz said it's different because we're going in a group and it's not really a date, but I so badly want it to be…"
The brothers had just pulled into the restaurant lot and parked the car. "Just text her," Alec said. "Don't specify if it's a group right away and see what she says. Then if she says no you can let her know you're going with a few friends."
Jace sent a text. Alec couldn't believe how nervous his brother looked. He couldn't remember ever seeing him like this over a girl. "She's typing something!" Jace said. "She didn't send anything. What's taking her so long? Maybe she's trying to figure out how to say no. I'd better tell her it's not a date. I'll send another text." He had the text sent before Alec could get a word in edgewise.
"She says she shouldn't," Jace said sadly. "I thought we were getting along so well. I didn't even ask to stay with her last night. She asked me."
"Maybe she's just busy," Alec suggested. "Not to change the subject, but what's the deal with you and Izzy? What's your next plan for getting rid of Simon?"
"What?!" Jace asked, looking shocked. "I told you, she forgave me. Why would I make the same mistake?"
Alec just waited. Jace was still staring at him. "No, seriously. She seems really happy. He never even tried to fight back. I think he might care about her not getting hurt as much as we do." Jace was rubbing the back of his neck. "I have to trust her to make her own decisions and just be there for her if something goes wrong. Plus if she never gives away her heart, she never gets a chance to be the opposite of hurt."
"The opposite of hurt? What does that mean?" Alec asked.
"I don't know," Jace said smiling, "but I hope to find out some day." He was grinning like an idiot and Alec wasn't really sure what to think. This didn't sound like something his brother would say at all. He couldn't help wondering, 'did I fly into Louisville, or the twilight zone?'
Shopping, especially for clothes, had to be Alec's least favorite thing in the world to do. How Izzy had somehow convinced him it was absolutely imperative that he spend all afternoon Friday at the outlets with her finding them each the perfect outfit for tonight was beyond him. The fact that Jace and Simon had stayed at the apartment to play video games together (and seemed to be getting along splendidly) while he was subjected to this form of torture was just further proof that he was in some sort of strange alternate reality.
After hours of obediently trying on everything his sister threw at him and assuring her over and over that she looked great no matter what she was wearing, Alec finally put his foot down. "I will try on only ONE more outfit and if you can't choose from something I've already tried I'll just wear a sweater and jeans to the bar like I wanted to do in the first place. I'm done!" He told her.
Izzy just tisk'd her tongue at him and continued squinting at the rack of men's dress shirts she was currently inspecting. She'd already chosen a pair of black slacks a few stores back that were far too fitted for Alec's taste, but which Izzy and the salesgirl agreed were the perfect fit to "capitalize on his best asset." At least it had been the salesgirl who made that particular comment. It was bad enough to be treated as a piece of meat. It would have been infinitely worse if it was by his own sister.
Alec finally heard a sound of satisfaction leave his sister's lips. "This is the one," she declared. "I just know it!" With that she shoved a shirt into his arms and pushed him toward the dressing room. It was long sleeved, but the sleeves were rolled up and buttoned just above the elbow, which didn't make much sense to Alec for winter in Kentucky. The pattern was tons of tiny lines of all different shades of blue and black which intersected to make small squares. It didn't look like much on the hanger, but when Alec put it on he realized it made the blue of his eyes stand out like a beacon. He had to admit, his sister really knew what she was doing when it came to fashion.
As he walked out of the fitting room to present himself to Izzy, Alec began fiddling with the button on the sleeve so he could roll them down to provide warmth.
"Don't you dare!" Izzy scolded him as soon as he stepped past the door, swatting at the hand that touched the button. "This shirt falls perfectly just the way it is. How's Mr. Right supposed to know you're blessed with these perfect biceps if you go around hiding them all the time?"
Alec blushed at that. He might be lonely, but it wasn't something he wanted to discuss. Least of all in public. "Keep your voice down," he whispered, looking around to be sure no one had heard her. Alec loved his sister but she could definitely be embarrassing.
"What does it matter?" Izzy asked, rolling her eyes. "It's not like you're ever going to see these people again."
"Going by that logic it shouldn't matter what I wear tonight either," Alec pointed out. "It's not like a lot of New Yorkers will be hanging out in the bar tonight."
"You don't know who'll be hanging out in the bar tonight," Izzy chided. "Besides, there's no rule saying you have to live in New York for the rest of your life." Izzy's face got a bit more serious as she studied her brother's face. "Actually… I wasn't quite sure how to bring this up, but I might not be coming back when I finish school." She raised her eyebrows and continued watching Alec's face. Almost like she was waiting for his approval.
"I kinda figured," he told her. "Anybody who looks at each other the way you and Simon do aren't going to want to live in different states."
Izzy launched herself into Alec's arms. "Thank you so much for understanding! I thought you'd be disappointed in me."
"You never disappoint me," Alec told her. "I'll miss you, but I understand. I knew I wouldn't be the most important guy in your life forever," he teased, ruffling her hair.
"Not the hair," Izzy squealed, pulling away from him.
The siblings laughed together. It was nice. Then Izzy got serious again. "I'm kinda dreading telling Jace. He already flipped out when he found out we live together. What's he gonna think when he finds out I plan to get married and stay in Kentucky?"
"Maybe wait a bit to tell him," Alec suggested. "You're not actually engaged yet, are you?"
"No," Izzy said, "but I'm pretty sure the question's coming soon."
"Today's Jace's birthday. Let's not stress him out. At least for today."