Alec sat there on the bed remembering how he and Chris had met. Like Magnus, it was at a party. Unlike like Magnus, Chris didn't dress to draw attention. Chris didn't try to be noticed at all. Chris was trying to keep his unruly children under control. And failing so badly that Alec couldn't help but intervene.
"Hey, do you need help?" He asked Chris. He hadn't known his name, then. The man was startled by Alec's voice.
"Help? Umm, yes , that would be nice. Could you watch Ashleigh while I try to get Rory to behave? God, this is embarrassing," he mumbled, giving Alec the hand of the two year old standing next to him. The way that he spoke gave Alec a wealth of information. Nowhere near enough sleep, not used to dealing with children on his own, and he wasn't born a Shadowhunter.
"I'm Alec, Alec Lightwood," he offered, as it would be weird if he didn't.
"Yeah, I know who you are. If I didn't, I wouldn't have handed you my daughter. I'm Chris. Uh, Chris Shadowhunter. Rory, what are you doing? No, don't feed fairy food to the newborns, Rory stop!" Chris said, running off in the direction of the little devil boy. Alec looked down at my the girl Chris had called Ashleigh. She was pretty, with her caramel curls that framed her green eyes. The slightly pointed ears said that she was also of the Fair Folk. Alec glanced back up at Chris, wondering what an ascendant was doing with a mixed blood child.
Later, when day turned to night, and Ashleigh had fallen asleep in his arms, Alec went to find Chris. The Institute was quiet, and he was one of the last few non-Londoners left .
"There you are," came a voice from the library to Alec's left. A quick glance in that direction told him that it was Chris. It had been a few years since Alec had stepped foot in the London Institute's library, and he missed it.
"She's asleep. Has been since the warlock boy, Sam, I think, started playing the fairy lullabies," he told Chris. Chris tilted his head slightly. It was rare for someone-a Shadowhunter-to try and remember the name of the Downworlder entertainment.
"Yeah, that would do it. Her mother used to sing her to sleep. Nothing else works so well. For her and this one," Chris said while pointing to the sleeping boy on his lap.
"How did an ascendant end up with part fairy kids?" Alec couldn't contain his curiosity any longer, and was well aware that the question as a bit intrusive for the first meeting. Instead of getting offended, Chris just laughed.
"I ascended when I was 16. Five years later, I had a night with too much to drink with a very pretty girl, who got pregnant. Later, I found out that she was one of the Fair Folk. For awhile, I lived with her. I loved her. Most of the time, we were careful. Until once again, we weren't. Hence Ashleigh. Last year, Chrisalai found someone prettier, and left me with the kids." It sounded as though the man had already accepted the fact that he wasn't likely to find someone else to fall in love with.
"How old are you?"Alec couldn't help but ask.
"28," Chris replied. Alec just nodded. That placed Rory at 7. That made sense.
"Alexander Lightwood, if you wish to go back to New York, I would get yourself down here because I am not holding this portal open too much longer, not even for you," Catarina yelled into the library. When Chris looked confused, Alec laughed.
"Give me a sec, Cat. Just need to say goodbye to a friend," he called back down to her.
"You know Catarina Loss personally?" Chris asked. Alec nodded and said,
"Yeah, we're actually really good friends. More so in the last year or so..." Alec went quiet when placing the timeline, because it still hurt.
"Lightwood, get down here, or I will bring him here and he can take you home!" Alec cursed under his breath, still aware of the sleeping children In the room.
"Sorry, I have to go. If you're ever in the New York area, find me, okay?" Alec said really quickly before being a reckless idiot and kissing Chris on the cheek and running out the door. Alec had not expected to find Chris at the Institute door the next day. Nor did he expect Chris to grab his arm and pull him into a kiss.
"Never be such a tease again, Alec Lightwood," Chris whispered in his ear. Alec smiled. Nine years wasn't such a big difference, and he did like older men.
When it came down to it, Alec really did love Chris. He loved that Chris forced him out of his comfort zone. Sure, Alec had kissed Magnus in front of everyone, but that was nothing compared to the way that Chris had simply refused to let him hide away again. Chris would take his hand and dance in Angel Square. When talking to Ashleigh, he would refer to Alec as 'daddy' and that simple sentiment lit up Alec's whole world. And when Chris proposed, Alec could almost convince himself that Magnus was nothing but the past.
"Come on, dad, dad's waiting," Rory called out. It was still strange, hearing Rory call him 'dad'. Rory had taken longer than Ashleigh, but then, he was older.
"Rory, calm down. I'm coming. What could your father possibly have planned?" He laughed as the eight year old grabbed his hand and pulled him along. It still amazed Alec that Chris had moved to New York on a hunch that Alec might be the one who would accept him, no exceptions. It seemed an awful lot to risk on a 19 year old boy. (Alec didn't dare call himself a man. A man would have chosen Magnus that night.)
"Just trust me, dad. Dad said that you would love it," Rory told him. Alec's influence had changed Rory. He was a lot more respectful, and much better behaved. Though the energy had not gone away. Rory dragged him through the halls of the Institute as though Alec hadn't grown up within them, as though he hadn't chased Izzy and Jace through them, as though Max hadn't done the exact same thing only a few years ago.
"Rory, that's enough. You're going to make him dizzy," Chris said. How he was suddenly right in front of him, Alec would never know.
"Me? Dizzy? Alec said mockingly. What he didn't say was that dizzy took on a whole new meaning when the furniture danced around you as fingers trailed across skin. But Chris didn't know about that. Only one person knew about that.
Chris laughed. Ashleigh peeked out from behind him, and then ran into Alec's arms.
"Daddy!" Alec chuckled at her.
"Hey, baby girl. Do you know what daddy's planning for me?" Ashleigh shook her head .
"I dunno daddy," she said with a giggle. Alec smiled at her.
"By the Angel, Chris, what is it that you want?" Chris looked flustered, which was Alec's first clue.
"I love you. I realize that you are much younger than me-"
"I like older guys. The age difference doesn't matter to me," Alec said, interrupting him. He didn't say why it would be stupid if nine years mattered to him.
"Alec, please let me do this," Chris said that was Alec's second clue. "I almost talked myself out of it. I realize that there aren't a lot of not heterosexual Shadowhunters. And for awhile, I was convinced that there's no way that you really wanted me. After all, I have two kids, and they aren't full Shadowhunter.. But it was thinking about these two, that convinced me that this was right," he said, pulling Rory towards him and taking Ashleigh's hand.
Rory looked up at Alec, the image of mischief. Ashleigh smiled at him, totally innocent. And Alec put it together.
"Yes." He said simply. Chris looked at him confused.
"Yes? I didn't even-" he didn't get the chance to finish because Alec was kissing him.
"I love you too. Now, give me your ring, and I will give you mine later," he said. Getting his ring back would mean asking Jace to go to Magnus's, but oh well. It was time to move on.
Jace was happy for Alec when he announced his engagement. He was confused why his Lightwood ring was at Magnus's after all this time, or in general really, but he was happy that Alec was figuring out something to do with his life. Chris and Alec married a month later.
Alec thought back on the last decade. He was happy. Really happy. He had kids-that was something he had long accepted he would never have, it wasn't like the Clave was going to hand a warlock and Shadowhunter couple any-and a husband that loved him. Everything seemed perfect and beautiful. He was happy, but he wasn't caught up in love, it it wasn't the overwhelming passion that there was with Magnus. It wasn't as intense.
Alec had to admit to himself that he still missed it.
