Nurseman Jace continued to bring Clary snacks and hot beverages while the two of them curled up on the couch to watch a movie. Clary must not have been too invested in the movie, however, as she let Jace choose something with lots of explosions and little plot.
Magnus puttered around the house trying not to be jealous of the easy way they interacted. He missed that… with Alexander. Magnus knew it was all due to his own insecurities that he had lost that easy interaction, but he couldn't help it. So many things already separated them. Alec's pale complexion against Magnus's caramel skin. Alec's inexperience against all of Magnus's old heartbreaks. Alec's being a freshman while Magnus would graduate next year. Now to learn they were held apart by this as well. And it wasn't just the money, it was what the money meant. Magnus couldn't help but wonder how Alec had grown up. Magnus had worked two jobs for a year after high school and then worked every summer since to be able to pay for school and rent. His Aunt didn't have that kind of money and Magnus didn't have the faintest clue what living with wealth was like. How did the 1% live? It felt like there was this big piece of Alec that Magnus couldn't understand. There was so much about Alexander that Magnus didn't know. Through friendship and now dating, Magnus had never learned anything about Alec's family. And Alec hadn't even wanted to tell Magnus. It had been an accident. Would Alec have ever told Magnus if he'd had a choice?
Magnus sighed. With so many heartbreaks behind him, he was starting to wonder if maybe he just wasn't capable of making a relationship work, regardless of who he was with. Could Magnus really hope that he and Alec had a chance in the long term with so little in common? Would this all end in heartbreak like it had before? He'd tried to fight opening up to someone again, but he'd lost and run right into Alec's arms.
Which lead his troubled mind right back to the other thing Alec had said. Magnus still wasn't sure what to make of it. Had Alec really meant he loved Magnus? The way Alec had said it, had been going round and round in Magnus's mind. And did Alec even know enough to know if he was in love? Alec didn't have any exes, at least any real ones. He'd only come out of the closet toward the end of high school and straight to college after that. What if Alec only thought he cared deeply for Magnus, but was actually just seeing through rose tinted glasses? When the glass shattered, and Alec saw Magnus clearly, would Alec still think he was in love? And would that be enough to keep Alec from leaving him? If this all ended in heartbreak tomorrow, was the joy at the beginning worth the heartbreak after?
Magnus shook his head vigorously. He knew he needed to stop thinking like this, but no matter how he tried, his mind kept coming back to it. He knew the solution was to talk to Alexander, but the idea scared the hell out of him. Thinking something would end and seeing it end were two very different things. Alec was so far out of his league… how could Magnus believe he could hold the love of someone like that? Someone who could so obviously do better?
Giving up on his homework, Magnus flopped into a chair next to the love seat currently occupied by Clace. It was a rather strange word Magnus had to admit, but when Clary had started calling him and Alec 'Malec,' he'd needed a come back.
"That looks like sulking," Clary accused him.
"I know," Magnus replied without looking away from the TV. There was a rather impressive explosion going on and Magnus was trying to focus on that and nothing else… with little, well, actually no success. The same thoughts circled around in his head, making all his worries worse.
Magnus didn't notice Clary get out her phone and begin to type.
It turned out the impressive explosion was in fact a helicopter blowing up. Moving away from the destruction in slow motion, was a well-muscled guy on motorbike. Magnus decided he hated Jace's taste in movies. He knew Jace was not watching for the hot guys so Magnus had to presume he liked the plot, or lack of plot. The only value Magnus found in this particular scene was the eye candy.
When the key turned in the lock of his front door a little less than an hour later, Magnus assumed it was Tessa. He didn't remove his eyes from the mindless television, currently attempting to distract himself from his depressing thoughts.
He was therefore surprised when Alec suddenly stood before him.
"Hi," Magnus's ridiculously rich boyfriend who may or may not love him, said. Magnus mentally kicked himself for such a thought while Alec smiled at him warmly.
"Clary said I had to come over," Alec added. "She said you were sulking."
"Traitor," Magnus muttered turning to his best friend. Clary just stuck her tongue out at him. Magnus was annoyed until a moment later when she covered her mouth with her hand and ran to the bathroom. Could he really be mad at a sick person?
"I really don't want to talk about it right now," Magnus sighed. He reached up with his arms and took Alec's hand. "Come, sit with me."
Alec seemed torn for a moment, but then he let himself be drawn into Magnus's embrace. Alec laid his head on Magnus's shoulder; Magnus circular thoughts were quieter with Alec beside him.
"That was epic," Jace exclaimed as the credits rolled about a half hour later. "Did you see the bit at the end!"
"We were all sitting right here next to you," Alec mocked his friend. "With our eyes open, so unless someone here is blind and does a really good job pretending not to be..."
"Ha ha," Jace scoffed. "Whatever. It was a good movie."
"If you say so," Alec said, but as he stood up he swayed a bit and had to pause to seemingly collect himself.
"You alright?" Magnus asked.
"Yes," Alec said firmly. He shook his head and walked towards the kitchen. "Anyone want something to drink," he called.
"No thanks," Clary called back. "But Alec, how long have you been dizzy like that."
"I'm fine!" Alec replied as Magnus heard him put the kettle on to boil.
"Because that was me yesterday," Clary yelled toward the kitchen.
"I don't have time to get sick," Alec said as he reappeared with a cup of tea.
"Me neither," Clary laughed then coughed. "But here I am."
"Is this bug going around the school?" Jace asked.
"Seems so," Magnus replied.
"I refuse to get sick," Alec said as he sat down next to Magnus who turned to watch Alec closely. Alexander didn't seem very steady. Magnus wondered why he hadn't noticed before since he was sure Alec's 'I'm fine' meant quite the opposite.
"You might have to make time," Magnus told him softly before putting a hand over Alec's forehead. "You're warm."
"Argh," Alec whined.
"I think this calls for another movie," Jace said as he quickly selected another likely horrible movie and pushed play. How had Magnus ended up seeing so much of this blonde guy he wasn't sure… oh that's right it was all Clary's fault.
They ended up watching movies all morning and ordering lunch. No one's homework got done and there were no deep meaningful conversations about the future, but Magnus had a feeling they had all needed this. He surely had. The last few weeks had had been non-stop. It was nice to just do nothing for a change. Tessa arrived home around three o'clock and joined in on the movie marathon.
"There really is nothing better to do while you're sick then binge watch TV," Tessa told him when she sat down. Everyone seemed to be in agreement.
It wasn't until dinner time that Clary started to really feel like herself again. Magnus suspected it was one of those twenty-four hour flus. And right on cue, once Clary was getting better, Alec got worse.
One whiff of dinner and Alec was up and running to the bathroom. Magnus was seriously considering hiring someone to clean that bathroom professionally if this kept up, whether he could afford it or not. Then Magnus remembered that Alec could probably pay to have his whole bathroom gutted and redone more easily than Magnus could afford to have it cleaned!
"I think I have Clary's flu," Alec whined as he emerged a few minutes later. "And I kinda think I hate you for giving it to me." He added to the little redhead.
"Fair enough," Clary laughed. "I think Maia gave it to me so I totally get that."
"Maia?" Jace asked.
"She's in the dorms," Clary answered. "Same floor but a couple rooms over."
"How did you get a flu from someone you likely never interact with," Jace asked.
"She interrupted one of mine and Helen's girl's nights," Clary said. "She came in to borrow something… I can't remember what but anyway, we asked her to join us. She was dizzy so she went home early. She's nice, just a little bold and oddly judgey."
"What do you mean?" Jace asked.
"Well she hates you," Clary said to Jace. "She seems to be under the impression all attractive people are jerks, or I guess attractive guys."
"Ah," Jace said. "That does explain why I've never met her in a bar."
"She used to work at a bar," Clary chimed in, then she leaned forward eyes bright and added, "Oh wait! I have a brilliant idea."
"What?" Jace asked.
"We should set Simon up on a date with Maia!" Clary exclaimed. Magnus sighed. Clary wasn't ready to accept losing Simon, but she was going to have to get ready because classes ended this April and Simon wasn't likely to return next year. It wasn't unreasonable that Simon wanted a break from Clary's platonic attention, but Clary didn't seem to get that.
"I don't think Simon wants to be set up by his ex-girlfriend," Jace reminded her.
"Then someone else has to tell him it was their idea," Clary said. "How about you?"
"Simon said no to being friends with me, remember?" Jace pointed out). "Besides, being set up by his exe's new guy probably isn't better than being set up by his ex."
"Okay maybe I can find a way to talk to Eric," Clary continued to plotted. "Then get him to set up the blind date without telling Simon who's idea it was."
"That might work," Jace said. "Do you have his number?"
Magnus wasn't really listening to them anymore; he was watching Alec. His boyfriend was sitting across from Magnus on the chair looking rather green. Magnus knew he should go comfort Alec the way Jace had comforted Clary. He should also give Clary a lecture about not meddling with Simon's love life. He did neither, however. It seemed even rich people go sick. Magnus shook his head. Why couldn't he let it go? He needed to face his problems rather than avoiding them out of fear. At that moment, Alec got up and ran back to the bathroom. Determined, Magnus followed.
"Do you need anything?" Magnus asked through the closed bathroom door.
"A better immune system," Alec whined.
"I have saltine crackers," Magnus said cheerily.
"Not helpful," Alec replied before Magnus heard the unpleasant sound of his boyfriend throwing up again. With a sigh, he turned back to face his guests, only to be surprised by their sudden change in position.
"Where are you going?" Magnus asked them. Clary and Jace were standing up and headed toward their coats.
"I have a blind date to organize and you should take care of Alec," Clary told Magnus. "And talk to him too."
"You don't have to go," Magnus said.
"Thanks for everything," Clary smiled. She leaned in to give him a quick hug then added, "But yeah, we do."
With a sigh, Magnus waved goodbye to Clace, only to turn and see Tessa leaving as well.
"Where are you going?" Magnus asked.
"Jem's," Tessa replied.
"Weren't you just there?" Magnus argued.
"I was at Will's this morning," Tessa said.
"You're crazy," Magnus laughed. "You know that right."
"Yep," Tessa replied cheerfully as she put on her jacket. The door closed behind his roommate and friends; Magnus sat on the couch in his now completely empty living room as he waited for Alec to get out of the bathroom. His mind was still very unhelpfully running around in circles while he did so. When Alec finally emerged, still slightly green, he collapsed on the couch.
"Do you have a fever?" Magnus asked standing up to put his hand to Alec's forehead.
"Oh, probably," Alec whined.
"You are warm," Magnus said as his cool hand touched Alec's hot forehead. "Do you want to try and sleep?"
"I want to know what's going on in your head," Alec whined. "I feel like crap, my head hurts and I don't care how pathetic I am right now. It's been weeks of you acting weird and me trying not to worry, but Magnus I'm worried."
"You need sleep," Magnus said like the coward he was. He reached for the blanket behind Alec to cover him with it.
"At least tell which stupid thing I said is bothering you?" Alec pleaded. Magnus didn't reply because he didn't know what to say. The first one? The second? Maybe neither of them was the problem and Magnus was just going insane? Or maybe both? He'd been over this stuff so many times in his head now Magnus wasn't so sure himself. He tucked the blanket around Alec more securely, then made to move away.
"Stay," Alec requested, reaching his arms out toward Magnus. Alec looked so miserable, so worried; Magnus was powerless to refuse him. He sat on the floor near Alec's head and felt Alec's hand against his neck. It was like Alec wanted the physical assurance that Magnus was there to fall asleep.
"There's no pressure Magnus," Alec whispered after a moment's silence. Magnus was fairly sure Alec had his eyes closed at this point. "Just talk to me."
Magnus thought of a thousand things to say but finally settled on, "What was it like growing up with money?" He was sitting facing away from Alec which seemed to be making talking about this easier. Also, Alec's desperate pleas had struck a chord with him.
"So, this isn't about the other thing?" Alec asked.
"I don't know," Magnus confessed. "It's just, we are so different, even before…" He paused then continued. "My Aunt raised me on her own. We didn't have money. I got my first real job the week I turned sixteen, but I had been working even before that to help out. I can't imagine what your life must have been like."
"Less working," Alec summed up his life groggily. Magnus wasn't sure why it was easier to talk to Alec like this, facing the wall with Alec half asleep behind him.
"I've never figured out his whole relationship thing," Magnus whispered. "Every time it falls apart and I'm left bleeding. This... everything, it just- it scares me."
"I don't want us to fall apart, Magnus," Alec whispered, stroking Magnus's cheek gently. "I love you." Alec spoke with such confidence despite his delirious state, but Magnus's heart just couldn't believe it.
"Yeah?" Magnus asked.
"I might not have any experience in this area, but I know how happy your smile makes me," Alec whispered as if he knew exactly what Magnus needed to hear. "You can make my skin tingle with the slightest touch. A day without kissing you is, in my opinion, a day wasted." Magnus didn't speak. He simply stared straight ahead at his living room wall, taking in his boyfriend's words in awe while tears pooled in his eyes.
"You had hold of my heart long before we so much as kissed," Alec whispered. "Money isn't so important really." Magnus wanted to add 'that's because you have it,' but he remained silent. Alec's breathing was evening out now and Magnus suspected his boyfriend was falling asleep. When Alec's grip slackened, Magnus got up, gently tucked Alec's hand under the blanket and sat opposite his boyfriend's sleeping form.
Getting an answer to his questions did seem to help, but Magnus was by no means out of questions and now he had a new one. Did he love Alec? Magnus had built up so many walls around his heart so many times, he wasn't sure. Alec's words had been so genuine that Magnus could do nothing but believe them. Alexander loved him. It was almost unreal. Magnus had no idea what he'd done to deserve Alec's love, but had Alec broken down Magnus's walls enough for Magnus to return that love or were Magnus's true feelings still hiding within those walls?
There was a knock on Magnus's door. He looked up, confused. Had Clary forgotten something? Or was Tessa back? Had there been a random people arriving at his apartment today memo that he'd missed?
When Magnus opened the door, there was a woman standing there but she wasn't Tessa or Clary. Magnus had never seen her before in his life but he knew instantly who she was. This woman had the same shape to her face and same colour hair as Alexander. Though her eyes were more brown than blue.
"You must be Magnus," she said. It was then Magnus noticed her clothes. Unlike Alec who managed to look like he couldn't afford to replace sweaters with holes, Izzy looked rich. She was wearing nothing that didn't look like it came straight off a runway. He skinny jeans hugged the curves of her long legs and her silk blouse gently fell from her shoulders underneath the cashmere coat and mohair scarf she wore. Her hair hung in soft, perfect waves that highlighted her high cheekbones and impeccably outlined eyes. Magnus was a bit in awe with the perfection that was her eyeliner, creating the perfect smoky eye. There was no question, the woman was flawless and her entire outfit probably cost one semester's worth of tuition.
"And you must be Isabelle," Magnus said with a smile. He was trying, and failing, not to calculate the cost of her outfit as he wondered if he'd missed a conversation where Alec had told him that she was coming to visit?
"How did you know?" she asked.
"Family resemblance," Magnus replied. "Alec's sleeping."
"What the heck is he doing asleep in the middle of the afternoon!" Izzy asked annoyed.
"He's got the flu," Magnus explained.
"Hmm," Izzy deliberated. "I guess he's off the hook then."
"What are you doing here?" Magnus asked. A few things were coming back to him now. Alec's little sister was in high school and couldn't just leave whenever she wanted, even if she was graduating this June.
Izzy looked over Magnus's shoulder then suddenly grabbed the front of Magnus's shirt and pulled him outside. Too stunned to think, Magnus found himself standing on his own front steps, his front door closed behind him, and his boyfriend's sister looking intensely at him.
"I'm here to talk to you," Izzy told him seriously.
Cliffhanger. ^_^ Because I'm mean like that.
I get a WHOLE bunch of reviews when people thought Clary was pregnant but then I reveal she isn't and I get SO few. :( Come on guys!
Also, what do you guys think of Magnus's fretting? Did I explain it enough for you to understand his concerns? Or are you guys like my beta and think Magnus is just being an ass. Her words exactly.
AND OMG IT'S IZZY! hehe FINALLY am I right!
On another note! OMG This story is SO close to having 200 follows! I AM SO EXCITED! Please if you read this but aren't following, follow. It would make me happy.
At the moment this story is my most followed and most reviewed story BUT I want it to be my most everything story. :D So it needs to be more than 56 chapters, longer than 170,000 words, and have more than 144 favs! THEN IT SHALL BEAT THEM ALL! *Mwhhahhaa!* Except in view count but I doubt ANY of my stories will EVER beat my Malec POV of TMI story for view count. o_O those numbers still blow my mind. Though I guess this story is currently just a little less than half way to that one for views... so you never know. :D
Sneak Peek Chapter 41
She knocked but rather than actually waiting for an answer Izzy just opened the door and entered, eager to surprise her brother. She surprised the occupants of the room alright, but her brother wasn't one of them. The couple who's make out session she'd interrupted jumped and turned to face her. Izzy's recognized the blonde as Jace from High School. She knew Alec and Jace shared a dorm but she still hadn't been quite prepared to meet him like this, sucking face with some redhead.
"Where's my brother?" Izzy asked.
"Wow Izzy!" Jace said. "Blast from the past."
"Ha!" Izzy scoffed. "What past."
