Disclaimer: The characters belong to Cassandra Clare

Song: The Funeral by Band of Horses (as mentioned in the previous chapter)

"Hello, Alec."

No. He is actually here. No.

He stopped breathing for a second and watched the boy in front of him.

I'm coming up only to hold you under

I'm coming up only to show you're wrong

Hecould not move from where he was standing.

The gold-haired boy was watching him, with his shiny eyes piercing through the deep blue sea living inside Alec's. He disliked the storm that this particular waves of light produced.

After a few more seconds of staring and trying to understand what was going on, he let go of the air he was holding inside his lungs and glanced towards Jace. There was no point in refusing to accept the truth. His brother was here, in New York and everything from that moment on would take an unexpected turn. Realization hit him. Even if Isabelle had told him what was going to happen, seeing his brother in front of his room made it undeniably real. He was so scared that their return meant reliving those days. He looked at Jace one more time. The boy was watching Alec with a questioning look, asking for permission to walk in, swinging back and forth not knowing what to do or say. He had an allure of vulnerability Alec hadn't seen in a long time. Memories and moments shared with his brother flashed in front of Alec's eyes and he let out one more sigh.

He opened the door.

Because even though he felt his chest tightening from emotion and anxiety, this was his brother. Even though he knew this meant hiding and lying again to his family, he couldn't stop the rush of emotion which invaded him. After almost a year of texting and talking on the telephone from time to time, here he was, standing in Alec's small room, his golden hair shining brightly in the dim light coming from the window, his eyes watching Alec with intensity. He could see the beginning of a smile at the corners of his mouth. His expression was hard to read, but Alec could see the same longing that was always present in his own soul too. He missed his brother. He missed his bold behavior and his stupid jokes. He missed the way Jace was used to hide behind his recklessness although Alec could see through it. He could see how Jace was so scared to let anyone too close so he wrapped himself in shallow shells. Everyone is, after all, putting up walls around their heart. Jace's were just more powerfully built than the ones of anyone else.

Jace stepped into the room and placed his bag onto the floor. He looked at Alec for a couple of seconds. His smile was now wider. Alec still didn't know what to do, but Jace's moments of awkwardness had passed and now assurance was taking its place. He leaned towards Alec and gave him a strong embrace while tapping his back.

"Hey there, big brother. Long time no see. Kind of missed you." said Jace when he let go.

"Kind of? I expected a long declaration of love," replied Alec but he was undeniably kidding. Awkwardness was slowly fading away and Alec remembered he enjoyed spending time with his brother, especially when they were younger and more innocent, when they played video games or watched Christmas movies with Isabelle on their living room couch, eating ice cream and teasing each other. He even missed going to parties with them and having to actually carry both of them back home because they were too drunk to walk. Being their older brother made Alec feel like he had a purpose: protect the ones you love. He missed those moments but also tried to stay away from the past. He wanted his family near him. He wanted it so much! But he also wanted to be himself around them, and that was not possible.

Jace was now analyzing his room.

"How the hell are you able to live in this tiny box? Can you breathe in here?"

"Yes, Jace. I can breathe for I am standing right now in front you. I am not dead," replied Alec in a sarcastic tone.

"If the lack of space hasn't killed you yet, college sure will."

"Yeah, some of us have to actually study to have a career. You are the lucky one, you know? You have your soccer and you are nailing it." Both of them were laughing now. "How was the game, by the way?"

Jace was about to respond when Alec cut him off, rolling his eyes.

"Wait. Don't answer that, actually. Isabelle told me all about it. You won. Now I don't have to hear you bragging about it this entire day! "

Jace acted as if Alec didn't just warn him not to talk about the game. He was sitting on the bed now, already making himself comfortable, while Alec was pacing the floor and then tossing himself in the chair next to his desk.

"Actually, my team won and I scored the winning goal," added Jace with a huge grin on his face.

"Oh, God. You've got to be kidding me!" added Alec rolling his eyes again but laughing nonetheless.

"Talking about Isabelle. She called me. Multiple times. She said you two argued about something and you won't talk to her."

At this, Alec's expression became serious.

"It's not that I don't want to talk to her. I've been really busy lately. I had to move out in a different dorm so the students from the first year would be closer to the actual school's building. College policy. And as you mentioned earlier, college is murdering me. I already have a ton of projects and at least 500 pages to read and learn by the end of the month. But I like what I am studying and I don't want to ease down now. So I really don't have any free time."

"Stop making lame excuses. You could have at least called her."

"Look who's talking. You didn't answer to my e-mails, phone calls or messages."Alec stood up, pointing an accusatory finger towards his brother, but his tone remained calm. These altercations were something ordinary for them. Wanting to spend some time apart from his family was one thing but not talking to them for months was something else.

"We have to go," replied Jace, ignoring Alec's statement and jumping from the bed right next to the door.

"Where?" Alec was confused, again. This happened more and more often since his siblings arrived in New York.

"To Isabelle. She's waiting for us."

Alec opened his mouth to say something, closed it and then opened it again. But nothing came out.

"Well, you are not the only one who's moving in," explained Jace after he saw the bewildered look on Alec's face.

But this confused Alec even more. Everything was happening so fast. After he talked to Isabelle on Monday he came to the conclusion that she must have either applied for this college or she didn't apply at all. But he didn't have time to ask and he hadn't seen her on the hallway nor in any of the classes. He was in his second year and he was studying History, but sometimes students had to choose some optional subjects and he thought she would choose History or Latin because their parents were so passionate about these things and when they were little Hodge used to teach them these subjects. But he hadn't seen her since that day in the coffee shop so he assumed she must have taken a year off because it was the beginning of the school year and she was still in New York. Someone had to explain to him what the hell was going on.

"What do you mean she's moving in? Where is she moving? I have classes in less than an hour. I can't go to her right now. I will talk to her when I'll have the time!" This had to stop right now. All these people telling him what to do and making a mess of his organized program were getting on his nerves!

Jace didn't respond to him, exited the room and kept on walking down the hall. "I am not going anywhere until you explain this to me, Jace! I am serious! I had enough of all this secrecy! First Isabelle comes to New York and announces our parents' divorce and then you walk in my room and tell me...what, more excatly?" Alec lowered his voice immediately as he realized he was shouting and people were opening their doors to see what was the fuss about at such an early hour in the morning.

"Alec, keep it down, will you?" Jace was now returning to Alec's room, trying to calm down his brother and urging people to go back to their rooms. "I know you are right. But calm down for a second, okay? If you wouldn't have left Isabelle in the middle of your conversation – which by the way, I know all about and she was very furious when she told me about it - you would know she applied for this college so we could all be here together. And she is moving in the dorm which you - second year students - just released " added Jace while gesturing towards his brother.

Alec watched him for a few more seconds, realizing Jace's explanation made everything blurrier.

"A year ago she said she was going to apply from some college in New Hampshire. I knew that was no longer the case when I saw her here, in New York. I guess all this separation thing..." Divorce sounded too harsh for Alec and it was clear how unpleasant it was for him to talk about it. Alec moved away from his room's threshold , locked the door and headed towards Jace.

"You should really talk to Isabelle. I don't know much myself and she'll be really pissed off if she won't have the chance to explain all this herself," added Jace when Alec finally made it close enough so they could talk in a lower voice. Alec's voice had already woken up enough people.

"Let's just...walk. The dormitory for the first year students is a few blocks away." Alec was really not up for all of this. Last year was a very quite one. It was hard for him at the beginning to adjust to new classmates and teachers, but he loved what he studied. He had spent his evenings in the library studying for all his projects and preparing for every possible test and he spent his nights reading or going to the gym. This is how he managed to detach from everything. This is how he allowed himself a second chance, even though he wasn't sure he deserved one. But being away from home was relieving. He was able to spend his time the way he wanted, with no one to give explanations to, with no one to hide from. He was on his own and he was actually better than he had been in years. It gave him the reassurance he needed to keep going.

But now, two of the persons he loved most in this world came in and disturbed his peace. And what was he supposed to do? Chase them away? He glanced backwards and saw he had been walking faster, leaving Jace behind. He stopped and waited for him while he watched the sun rising higher on the blue, pale sky. He took a deep breath, calming himself. The fresh air rushed in his lungs and he felt the cold trail it left behind on his throat.

Breathe in...and out...

He was going to talk to Isabelle and clear things up. Even with his family in town he could still find a way to go on. He had to.

He felt a pat on his back as Jace reached him. His brother looked as though he was deepened in his own thoughts and when he glanced over to Alec he had a concerned look on his face. Alec wanted to ask him what was wrong but instead he told him to hurry, because he had classes in less than an hour. So they both kept on walking towards their sister's dormitory.

Isabelle's room was very close to the one in which Alec used to live last year. He leaned closer to the door, intending to knock, then hesitated. Then intended to knock again. What was he suppose to say? He had to apologize for the way he acted but also for so much more. What was he supposed to begin with?

Before he could give it any more thoughts, Jace opened the door and shouted.

"We are here, Izzy!"

"I'm coming. Wait just one second!" she shouted from where Alec supposed was her bathroom.

Alec took the opportunity to examine her room. It was considerably bigger than the one he was living in now and just about the same as his old one. Her bed had white clean sheets and her closet – which was only two feet away from the bed - was open. Alec couldn't stop from rolling his eyes at the sight of her clothes. No human being should be allowed to buy that many! Some make-up products were spread on her desk along with some notebooks and pencils. There was tie on the desk. A man's tie. That - Alec was sure - was not supposed to be there. He turned around to Jace and pointed toward the piece of clothing standing on the writing table.

Jace removed the tie from Alec's sight and placed a hand on his btother's shoulder.

"Drop it, Alec. At least for now. She is ninteen."

"Exactly! She is nineteen," Alec whispered back, although Jace could tell it was very hard for him to remain calm.

Jace looked at his brother, his eyebrows hitting his hairline. "Really, Alec? Raise your hand if you were such an angel at nineteen."

Isabelle came out of her bathroom with a towel wrapped around her head, a few strands of hair encircling her face.

The look on both her brother's faces said conversation over.

"Well, what were you two talking about? I heard some whispers." The moment she finished her sentence she spotted the tie in Jace's hand, even if he tried to hide it from Alec behind his back. "Oh, give me that. I have to return it."

"To whom?" asked Alec.

Jace cleared his throat. "Alec."

"Oh, never mind. I don't even want to know. I might kill him if I know him!"

"Alec!" this time the voices belonged to both Izzy and Jace.

"I was kidding," said Alec, although the look on his face said he wasn't.

Isabelle looked at him for a second and her features softened.

"I thought you won't come - I thought Jace couldn't convince you to."

Alec approached her.

"Jace didn't have to convince me to do anything." Now he was very serious and the tie incident slipped quickly in the back of his mind. It was more important to solve things with his sister. "I was going to talk to you. I told you I would. I just...needed a few moments to breathe and calm down. It was all so sudden and unexpected. It still is. I'm sorry I left like that. I mean, on Monday. I am sorry I left and I'm sorry I didn't explain why later."

"It's fine, Alec. I am not mad anymore, although some boy had to pay for our drinks and that was weird." She said the word weird, but the beginning of a smile could be spotted on her face.

Alec's face dropped when he heard Izzy's words and when he realized what she jus said.

"Oh my God! Oh, I'm so so sorry. I completely forgot! I'm such an idiot!"

"Yes, you are. Because you didn't wait for me to finish all I had to say a few days ago and I bet you left from there with more questions then you already had. And for that I am sorry. I shouldn't have scared you off like that with all of those news. This is why I asked Jace to bring you here. So we could talk. All three of us," added Isabelle with a very serious look on her face. Alec knew this was going to be a long talk.

Half an hour later, Alec left Isabelle's room finally understanding what happened - at least the majority of it. Apparently Izzy would not tell him what caused their parents' divorce and Alec couldn't tell whose fault it was because his sister seemed very upset with both Maryse and Robert. So he decided that he would have to talk to his parents, eventually, but that could wait. As for Isabelle, she applied to The Institute College not only because it meant that she would be closer to her family, which she had to admit was a pretty strong reason, but also because she found their program much more interesting than the one from Dartmouth College. And because this was in freaking New York and you could not say no to New York. She actually applied for this college at the beginning of her senior year, without telling anyone and when she received her acceptance letter she took the opportunity without thinking about it twice. This surprised Alec a bit. He thought of the way she planned all of this since the beginning of the last year - she wanted to study in the same city as her brother even before their parents got in such a big fight. It made him think that maybe his family wasn't planning on ruining his life, but maybe planning on going on with their own. And Isabelle just needed his support, she needed someone to lean on from time to time. Alec didn't know if he was capable of keeping himself standing let alone hold someone else. But he was going to try, for his sister. Speaking with her and clearing some things up made Alec feel like he was in control of his own life again and everything was slowly turning to its ordinary course.

He was shook back into reality when he realized he was walking towards his old room instead of heading towards the exit. A few more steps and he reached the door to the well known chamber. It was just a few doors away from Isabelle's room. The door was cracked open and Alec could see that no one was in there, which was unusual because this dorms were always full and some students had to buy crappy apartments in town if they wanted to study at this college. Alec was one of the first students who got accepted last year so his place had been insured from the beginning.

He took the opportunity and opened the door a little bit more so he could take a peek inside his old room. Same old white walls. Same bed only without his dark-blue sheets. The desk was now empty, not stuffed with books and notebooks and black highlighters. But something was different and Alec couldn't put his finger on it. He lived there the previous year. Literally lived there, because he never left his room a year ago – only to go to the library - and he wasn't planning on doing it this year. So he should be able to tell the difference, but there was something unsettling about it, something that may seem insignificant to someone else, but not to Alec. Either way, it wasn't something that he should care about. He didn't have the time to think about it because he suddenly realized he had to get back to his new room if he wanted to take a shower before classes. He looked quickly at his phone and saw that he had less than half an hour to get ready. So he turned around, shoving his phone back into his pajamas pants.

Oh. My. God.

How the hell did he leave the room in his pajamas pants? He had to return to his dorm - and quickly!

He stopped looking at his so called outfit and headed straight to the exit. He saw that someone was walking down the hall exactly in his directions.

God, this can't get any worse! he thought as he started to walk faster, looking only at the floor in an attempt to hide away his embarrassment. Maybe they won't notice his strange choice of clothes. Or his ruffled hair. At least he could hope so.

But he was wrong! It could get worse!

Because as the student was approaching, Alec decided to look at him so he would know whom he should avoid for the rest of his college years and that's when he realized he could identify the guy. And Alec knew in that moment that the universe decide to punish him for something known only by its divine forces.

Because walking down the hall was no other than Magnus Bane.

Of course it's him! Alec stopped thinking, breathing and walking. He stood there, shocked to his core, as Magnus was getting closer and becoming aware of Alec's presence.

In the next second, Alec turned around and started to walk very fast towards God-knows-where.

Okay. Think! You can go to Izzy's room.

No. That's a very bad idea! She would start asking questions because he just left her room a moment ago.

No, that was not an option. He had to go somewhere else.

He remembered that no one was actually living in his old room so he walked straight over there, closing the door with a loud noise behind him when he reached his hiding place. His chest felt like it was going to explode. He rested his back against the door and tried to calm his breathing.

Song: Sail by Awolnation (I'm assuming you already know the song but you absolutely have to listen to it while reading this paragraph. LISTEN TO IT!)

"Breathe, Alec, breathe," he kept repeating to himself. He stepped away from the door and began to walk aimlessly around the room, thinking about what had just happened.

He realized the stupidity of his actions after a few seconds. This was so childish! What was wrong with him? If he kept on hiding in this room he would miss his first class. Magnus probably didn't even see him and he was running away for no reason – or so he liked to believe, because it was easier than to admit he was more than intrigued by the glittering man and it scared him in a way.

He took one more breath, deciding to stop this foolish behavior and reached for the door. He opened it attempting to get out of there as soon as possible, preferably with no one noticing his strange behavior. But the moment he took a step out of the room, someone else bumped into him.

Someone who shoved him back in. Someone who emanated a rich, deep and powerful smell. A perfume which surrounded Alec and when he breathed it in, he could actually feel his muscles softening, his heart receiving the much wanted flavored oxygen and spreading it all inside his body. He felt his veins filling with this presence – blood no longer needed.

Alec could actually feel Magnus under his skin. They were standing very close to each other so Alec could actually sense Magnus' body shape even if they weren't touching. He wasn't brave enough to make eye contact so his eyes were staring at Magnus' body while his own chest was moving dangerously fast. He stared at the curve of his neck and at the edge of his jaw. A strange feeling of yearning sparkled inside him and he let out an instinctive and soft moan. Immediately after that, his cheeks erupted in a deep, flaming blush and he looked up at Magnus. His eyes were still closed and a soft smile warmed his features but he opened them immediately after he heard the sound coming from Alec's throat. His eyes widened and changed colours. Now they were bright yellow with sparkles of green. Magnus looked taken aback and Alec thought he could see in the other man's eyes the same hunger that was growing inside him.

As he realized the effect that only his presence had on Alec, the other guy's features changed and Magnus was now moving like a feline surrounding his prey. He had an odd grin spread all over his face and in that moment Alec's attitude shifted. His body tensed and his features hardened. He was trying to resist to the urge that was growing inside him with every moment that passed. He was trying to take control over the situation but without realizing it, he was playing Magnus' game. Because in the following moment Alec was pressed against the door, trapped between the rough wood material and a long, lean body. Alec's breath was coming out very fast and his heart was racing inside his chest. He felt his throat drying, stopping the other moan from coming out.

Magnus's head moved around Alec's neck breathing him in. His eyes were closed and his smirk widened. He let out a laughter when Alec tried to push him away and pressed his hands harder into the door. Alec was now trapped in a cage consisting of a body emanating desire from his every pore and a hard surface which was all that kept him standing – because he wasn't sure he could rely on his knees anymore.

Magnus' lips dropped to Alec's ear, finally finding the space they were so desperately looking for.

"Are you lost, little blue-eyed boy?" As he spoke he opened his eyes. His breath was hot against Alec's neck and a shiver went down Alec's spine when he felt soft lips barely touching his earlobe. He couldn't look Magnus in the eye so he fixed his gaze on the other guy's neck. Alec could feel and see his blood racing too. He wasn't the only one excited.

"I was just..." Alec tried to speak, but when he moved his lips he was feeling as though the distance between their bodies was becoming dangerously small. He tried again, but his words were barely audible. "I was just heading towards my room."

"Is that so?" Magnus leaned over Alec, but their bodies were not touching yet. "It just happens that I was heading towards mine and I found you in it."

Alec's heart plummeted. He had to get out of there and the only way that was possible was if he moved his body. He stepped away from the door and implicitly closer to Magnus. For a moment their faces were so close that Alec could actually see his own reflection in the other one's eyes. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath while reaching for the door knob behind him.

Magnus' lips were near his and he could almost feel their sweet taste on his own. He hesitated, temptation drawing him closer and reason pushing him away. He took a few steps back, exiting the room and leaving behind a very puzzled Magnus. Alec could practically see the other man's expression changing from pure lust to discomfiture. He walked down the hall with a huge smile on his face, a strange feeling in his heart, with shaking knees that barely kept him standing and trying to hide away his arousal from the glares of the other students.