Surprise! New Chapter! :D

I'm not going to bore you with how busy I still am because, well ... that's not going to change soon. I just wanted to let you know that I try my very best to write new chapters whenever I get a chance and I'd never abandon this story :) (just in case that there is someone scared about that)

Guest: Thank you very much for your review I'm glad you liked the Chairman's entrance. :3 (The cat who inspired this part of the story is actually sitting right next to me at the moment and being cute as hell) Greetings from Iffi. ;D (To all you dear readers too, of course! :3)

LOVERGIRL: I updated a bit later, but I hope your still out there to read this chapter :)

julia: Thank you very much for your kind words and have fun with the new chapter. :D

In case anybody wondered - my little Thumbnail/avatar-picture-thingy (you know what I mean?) is not her but a picture of one of my other two cats. :)

And of course the biggest THANK YOU-HUG goes out to my awesome beta alexa-hallywell who always works so hard to get the chapters done as fast as possible so you can all read them as soon as possible. :D *hug* *throwing confetti*
alexa: As you might have noticed already my autocorrect does weird things to the words I want to write whenever I forget one letter. ;)

Disclaimer: I've picked up CoHF lately and ... nope, my name wasn't on it. (I'm going to write something about the shirt at the end of the chapter) Mistakes are still mine. :)

Chapter 6

Magnus knew that he officially wasn't allowed in the bedroom since the curtain-incident, but it was already past noon and he had neither seen nor heard anything from his favorite writer. He couldn't help but feeling slight worry bubble up inside his chest. Since his rather simple breakfast which had consisted of cornflakes he was sitting on the couch that he had turned into a pretty decent living-bedroom-mix - in his opinion - and he tried to concentrate on reading the newspaper he had plucked from the mail box. Alec had a subscription, but he never really read anything besides the cartoons.

"I used to take every possibility to find a job before I could support myself with only my writing. Now I'm just keeping the subscription because of the nostalgia ... and for the cartoons", he had said when Magnus had asked him about the growing pile of newspapers in the living room. Magnus smiled at the memory of Alec's smile as he went on and the smile had turned into a smirk, a very cute one. "I always wanted to cut them out and make a collage ... but who has the time."

Magnus had only raised an eyebrow mentioning that the other male had had enough to lie around on the floor at random occasions. Alec had stuck out his tongue at him and Magnus had kissed him, just an innocent peck on the cheek.

When he looked up Magnus could see half of the ceiling of the living room covered with 'glow in the dark'-stars. Buying them together had been fun. Magnus figured that he himself actually had a lot of time on his hands lately. Getting a job was easier said than done and with Alec around most of the time he didn't really dare to do his usual hobby-job-thing that was hacking - not to mention it being illegal. He still hadn't told Alec about it and how exactly he'd found him in the first place. He knew that the time would come, but he also hoped that till then he'd find a way to make it sound ... well, less illegal.

"I have to find a job", Magnus muttered, "if only to get rid of the guilty conscience for not even paying rent." He sighed thinking about the small amount of money he had left after paying for his 'Stalker-trip' to New York. It had been quite some time since he'd been that broke.

Magnus shook his head to get rid of those depressing thoughts. He mentally chided himself to stop whining. From the beginning he had known what he had gotten himself into and he had decided that Alec was worth the risk, the trouble, the 'whatever would happen along the way'. Content with that statement Magnus nodded to himself and turned his head to look at the little ball of fur they had adopted a few days ago.

The new addition to their flat share, aka Chairman Meow, had proven to be a professional sleeper, meaning he could sleep practically everywhere and that meant really everywhere, including the sink and Magnus' face. Right now it looked like the Chairman tried to turn into an even smaller ball of fur than he already was. Magnus could make out one of his forepaws draped across his eyes and a hind paw sticking out under his little head, but the question of right and left was lost on Magnus. For a few moments he gazed at the little feline remembering something a friend of him had once told him about living with a cat.

"You can have the shittiest day at work, but when you come home to a sleeping, purring cat, the rest of the world suddenly doesn't matter anymore." Back then Magnus had mentioned that he'd prefer a cute guy or girl waiting for him too. Ragnor had only rolled his eyes at him.

The Chairman's ear flicked like he tried getting rid of an invisible fly and eventually raised his head blinking sleepily at Magnus.

"That's what being home feels like, huh?", he mused, the warm smile never leaving his lips and for a moment he found himself thinking that even if it wouldn't work out with Alec the way he wanted it to, he could still be okay with the company of the little cat; not great, but okay.

Chairman Meow yawned and meowed, his eyes were trained on Magnus as if he wanted to say 'If you already have doubts about it, it's never going to work out - stop the doubting.' Magnus let out a breathy laughter and reached over the scratch the cat's head.

It was then that a yell interrupted their silent conversation about self-doubt.

"He's dead!"

The Chairman disappeared into his favorite hideout behind the television with the speed of a lightning bolt and Magnus with his hand still raised to scratch the cat that wasn't there anymore, tried to process what had just happened. The yell had come from Alec's bedroom and was followed by a screaming silence. Slowly Magnus lowered his hand onto the fabric of his blanket. It was still warm from the feline's body heat and furry. "For such small cat, you sure lose a lot of hairs", Magnus muttered, but he had other things to worry about now, like if his roommate was still safe and sane for example. Magnus got up from the couch which had turned out to be a quite comfortable bed. He glanced at his watch while walking over to the bedroom door. It was almost one o'clock.

"Alec?" he called cautiously, knocking lightly at the door."Are you okay?"

No reaction. Magnus knocked again using more force this time.

"Would you mind telling me who died?"

No reaction. No answer. Not even the muffled sound of a possible movement towards the door. Magnus started growing irritated. It was one thing if the dear writer wanted to sleep in, but it was a completely different story when Alec stayed behind closed doors yelling cryptic stuff about dead people.

"I'm coming in." Magnus placed one hand on the door knob. "Please don't throw anything, you know I suck at dodging."

There had been that time during middle school when everybody wanted to play dodgeball and Magnus had found out that even being hit by a softball could hurt after the twentieth time. Around the same time he had also figured out that he had a talent for throwing things at other people. By the time he got into high school almost every blackboard at his middle school had been covered at least once with the sentence 'I must not throw - add preferred throwing-object of the day - at my classmates'. These experiences led to the realization that he could write very large if he wanted to.

Smiling at the brief memory of the day he had found out that Alec couldn't throw something in a straight line to save his life, but did always hit something without purpose, he cracked the door open and cautiously stuck his head into the room. It was one of these moments when you expect pretty much everything, but not what you get to see. Magnus had never believed that this was actually possible, but then again he also had never expected Alec to happen.

The room was a mess, but surprisingly not in the bad way. It wasn't littered with trash like empty take out containers or cardboard boxes with half-eaten pieces of pizza inside like it was shown on TV so very often. No, Alec's bedroom was covered with sheets of paper in pretty much every color his closet lacked, and pens of which Magnus could barely name half of it. There were text markers (mostly yellow), ball pens, fountain pens, pencils, crayons - was that a carbon pencil? - a white-out pen and about everything else you could buy at a stationer's. Sticky notes were scattered all over the interesting ensemble like colorful sprinkles over a gigantic hot fudge sundae with Alec as the cherry on top of the whipped cream. Magnus was very proud of himself for not instantly turning this rather innocent mental picture into a very sexual one. He slightly shook his head as exactly that started to happen.

Though he remained silent simply taking in the scenery that lay before him or rather focusing on the young man sitting on top of the chaos like a disoriented king sitting on a simple throne and completely absorbed by whatever could be seen on the screen of his laptop. His hair was a mess, black strands sticking out in absolutely every direction. A pink sticky note stuck to his forehead, small enough not to get into his eyes. There were stains of black and blue ink on his right cheek, on his nose ... actually all over his face and his fingers which kept racing across the keyboard. One of the ballpoint pens was plugged behind his left ear poking through the unruly black strands. Behind the other ear could be found a pencil with smileys printed on it.

Judging by his attire which consisted of a seriously too big - even for Alec - shirt with the words 'Always be yourself unless you can be a unicorn then always be a unicorn' written on it and a pair of black boxers he must have gotten up early and started writing right away. Did he have something for breakfast?

Magnus himself was a great fan of the more traditional pajamas with button-down top and matching pants. There was actually that one time he tried to get Alec to wear one made out of satin with different little teddy bears printed on the fabric, but that hadn't really worked out. In the end it became a rather long story with hidden pictures of teddy bears in notebooks, the words 'I know I'm cute' written across Alec's forehead with waterproof ink, a very interesting shower session and a heated discussion about naked cuddles.

Up until now Magnus had never really noticed how adorable Alec actually looked in his usual sleep-attire, but maybe it was the addition of the paper-chaos, the sticky note, random pens and messier-than-usual hair that made it work completely. Magnus cleared his throat.

"So, uh, who died?"

At that Alec's head whipped up, his eyes big and round, his face a perfect mask of surprise. He really hadn't noticed his roommate entering the bedroom. Surprise was followed by realization, followed by confusion and a little bit of irritation, but Magnus didn't really feel like dealing with that particular one now. Alec blinked.

"Somebody died?" he asked with a bit of shock and sadness creeping into his voice. Magnus sighed quietly. Why was it so easy for the writer to make him smile? There had to be a law against that, but then again, what sense would such a thing really make.

Another feeling rose inside of him as well, filling his chest with warm, fluffy clouds; like cotton candy, but without the clamminess, just sweet and soft to the touch. He knew the feeling from watching the Chairman earlier. It felt like home. For so many years Magnus had moved from one orphanage to the next, from one foster family to another, meeting people, seeing new faces, forgetting them again to have enough space to remember the next line of new names; a never-ending blur of eye colors and voices. Somehow he managed to get through school, to get accepted by a college. Then Camille happened and the blur of faces stopped because now there was only one remaining.

Blond hair, green eyes.

Maybe he had only noticed Alec so clearly because Camille had stopped his world from spinning with ever-changing people. Maybe. Maybe he was where he was standing now because of her, because she had taught him how boring shallow beauty was, that it was worth the trouble of digging deeper if there was the chance of discovering a beautiful personality. Yeah, maybe he should be thankful and maybe there would be a time when he'd feel bad about puncturing Camille's tires that one day when she had dumped her coffee on Alec's head.

Magnus tilted his head. He watched Alec yawning and stretching his arms above his head.

Probably not.

Alec would have turned his world upside down sooner or later with or without Camille in the picture. If Camille hadn't been there Alec would have stopped his world from spinning, giving it a completely new kind of rotation.

"Well, sweetheart, you yelled 'He's dead', so I figured that somebody died." A teasing smirk danced across Magnus' lips, but obviously Alec wasn't awake enough yet to notice or react to it. Shame, Magnus liked his playful glares.

"Right, right, I did", Alec mumbled. Then his face suddenly lit up, his lips curving into one of those rare light-up-the-world smiles.

"I killed my first victim."

The sticky note on his forehead chose this moment to flutter down on his shoulder and Magnus had to fight hard not to break down laughing. He wanted to throw his head back and laugh at all the people who had eyed him with confusion whenever he had expressed his interest in the 'gay loner'. He wanted to laugh at all those critics who suspected Alec to be some mentally ill forty-year-old because of his graphic way to write about murder and torture in his books. And he wanted to laugh at the people who had told him he'd never find a place to call his home if he didn't do something about his 'difficult attitude' first.

"Congratulations, sweetie, what was his name?"

The smile fell from Alec's face and was replaced by a thoughtful frown. He started rummaging through the many sheets of paper scattered around him. "Name, name, he had a name", he muttered while expertly moving his fingers through the piles of hastily scribbled down notes. "He had a name, but I'm not good with the names – Aha!" With a triumphant grin he held up a sheet with a yellow sticky note attached to it. Magnus raised one eyebrow expectantly. "His name was - oh, 'Guy A'."

Magnus snorted and this time it earned him the playful glare.

"I'm not good with names of secondary characters", he muttered pouting. "It's a lot easier when the victim is female."

"Why is that?"

"I can always name her Camille then", Alec mumbled absent-mindedly with a shrug as his eyes scanned the mess around him, his eyes looking for something he didn't quite seem to find.

"You name your female victims after my ex-girlfriend?"

Alec froze, his head still turned towards the right side of his room, his hand hovering over another sticky note, the pink one which had been sticking to his forehead now fluttered from his shoulder into his lap.

"Maybe", he said. His discomfort about the turn the conversation had just taken was clearly audible, as was the fooling gulp and his cheeks staring to flame with a traitorous scarlet color. Magnus, who enjoyed said turn very much, crossed his arms in front of his chest and leaned against the doorframe.

"Why?"

Alec sat up straight, pursing his lips, crossing his arms as well and looking away with ostentation, stubbornly refusing to meet Magnus' eyes. Silence grew between them and even if it weighed heavy on their shoulders it wasn't the 'piercing your skin with needles'-kind of weight. It was like a strong wind that messes your hair, tugging at your clothes and leaving behind a pleasant cold burn on your skin when you finally step inside the warm living room whose door you know to always be open.

A low growl ripped the silence apart.

Alec's cheeks turned an even deeper shade of red and he unfolded his arms to place his hands on top of his stomach. His shoulders fell and the tension left his body. A heavy sigh escaped his lips which Magnus liked kissing so much. It was then that Magnus suddenly noticed the light red tinge to Alec's eyes, the shadows beneath, the exhaustion creeping into his face invading his whole posture.

"How much did you sleep last night?", Magnus asked and pushed himself off the doorframe with a few long strides he made his way next to the bed he'd like to share with the writer, but he had accepted that it might happen one day, just not today. And the couch wasn't that bad. Alec didn't give an answer. He was still looking down, slightly hunched over as if he tried to disappear from sight between the paper-mess, simply becoming invisible, slipping away through one of the many cracks their world is made of. But Magnus had gotten very good at finding Alec wherever he tried to hide.

Magnus didn't get an answer, but he hadn't really expected it because Alec was still Alec. For some people it was a greater challenge to learn how to care for themselves than other who had to learn how to care about others. Magnus had taken on the latter challenge when he'd left France and he was determined to confront Alec with the first one. With crossed arms he stared down at the back of Alec's head.

Or maybe he just needed someone to care about him and maybe Magnus needed someone to care about. Maybe this was the way their little world could work. But Magnus couldn't quite drown out the little voice in the back of his head that kept telling him he wanted Alec to care about him too, to look at him and see more than a crushed affair from college. He remembered the conversation they'd had the day the Chairman had gained a new home and guardian. The little feline was actually sitting in the doorway that led to the bedroom.

"Because you like me?"

"I think I do."

"You're stubborn as hell", Magnus suddenly exclaimed and he was almost as surprised as Alec about that sudden outburst. The writer's head whipped around, tired blue eyes were staring up at him with surprise written across them along with a silent question which needed no words.

Magnus nodded. His lips were a strict, thin lie. "You heard me, mister", he said furrowing his eyebrows. "You wanted to know what I can see beneath the surface of your good looks? Well, it's stubbornness."

Alec's eyes fell from Magnus' face to the chaos surrounding him. He unfolded his arms and placed his hands on his ankles as he sat on the bed with crossed legs. Magnus couldn't see his face clearly, but he was sure Alec was biting his lower lips. There was a tension in the line of his shoulders which Magnus didn't quite get. He tilted his head. Had he been too harsh? But telling someone that he was stubborn couldn't possibly be considered as that, right? Besides, he was pretty sure Alec had –

"I didn't sleep."

Magnus stopped his mental rambling mid-sentence. "What?"

"I didn't sleep last night, okay? Like not at all." Alec threw his hands up in the air. "I wanted to go to bed, but then I had this idea for that one scene and I started writing it because, well, it was awesome and then I kept writing on and on - and then 'Guy A' was finally dead and you got in and well, night was over." Alec's voice had grown almost frantic throughout his outburst and he was breathing a bit heavy as he stared up at Magnus his eyes bright and ... pleading? "I know it's not healthy. I know I should get proper rest, that I should take care of myself more while writing a manuscript, that I should pay more attention to what I'm eating or if I'm eating at all. But that's not how it works, Magnus. If I have a flow I have a flow and I hate to be given the health-lecture, okay? So please don't waste your breath, it's not going to get anywhere. I'm not stupid and I know that almost fainting isn't a good sign." Alec took a few deep breaths and Magnus wondered if he probably should pay more attention to the writer's condition in the future. Fainting? When Alec continued his voice was only a hoarse whisper. "When I write I sometimes can't stop myself and I know it's hard to understand for someone who doesn't write, but ... but that's how it is. I'm sick of having to explain myself in that matter."

Silence settled between them and Magnus had somehow lost count of how many different kinds of silence there had already been since that first evening though he was sure that this one was the most complex one. He felt bad for his lack of trust in Alec's common sense. Yes, the writer had an issue of low self-esteem when it came to his appearance; maybe because he saw those blue eyes every morning in the mirror and didn't quite get why they were anything special. But he wasn't stupid. He was well aware of the fact that a deprivation of sleep wasn't something one should get used to.

At the same time Magnus felt like he was shut out, standing on the same side with all those people that had already lectured Alec about the negative aspects of his life-style, those who Alec had already isolated himself from because their discussions had always led to the point that they demanded Alec to change, which wouldn't happen.

This silence also carried an opportunity within. Magnus wanted to proof that he wanted more than to revive an old affair and he would do exactly that.

He bent down and pressed his lips lightly against the bared skin of Alec's neck.

Just one innocent kiss.

He felt how Alec jumped at the sudden touch he hadn't seen coming, but he didn't pull away. His familiar scent engulfed Magnus' senses like a warm blanket. Magnus could feel the softness of his skin which he had once yearned to touch while watching Alec's every move through hidden cameras; the softness he had missed during those years in France because Camille's simply wasn't the same.

'Just one kiss', he thought, 'then you have to pull away.'

A second kiss was placed next to the first one. A third one followed. Alec's breathing became labored. A shudder ran through his body and his skin became warm against Magnus' lips, growing hot. Magnus didn't know if it was a conscious move or not when Alec turned his head slightly to the left, baring his neck even more, making it easier for Magnus to create a line with one kiss next to this other till his lips brushed against the shell of the writer's ear. Magnus placed one last savoring kiss right behind Alec's ear, relishing in the breathy whimper that escaped the other's lips when he flicked his tongue against the heated skin.

Magnus had to tear himself away from Alec, but he didn't go far.

"If I would prepare you something to eat", he whispered into his right ear. His voice was low and caressing. His hands were lightly placed on the rumpled blanket on either side of Alec's crossed legs. "Would you make a break and eat something?"

Alec didn't look at him and Magnus allowed himself to simply enjoy the closeness and the intimacy of the moment. The other's voice was a hoarse whisper when he eventually answered:

"Y-yes ... I would."

Magnus smiled and pressed one last kiss to Alec's cheek before straightening up again. He turned towards the door making his way into the kitchen and scooping the Chairman up in his arms in the go.

Alec felt his pulse thrumming through his body. The skin of his neck felt like it was searing, but it was the pleasant kind of burn. The kind of burn that woke every nerve in his body and clouded his mind with desire at the same time. Without taking his eyes off his crossed ankles, Alec reached up to trace the line Magnus' lips had taken on his skin. He let his fingertips dance across the tingling imprints of soft caress. He bit his lower lip and let his head fall back while his right hand cupped the side of his neck. HIs body was singing with desire and his breathing refused to slow down.

"God, I'm so screwed", his whispered hoping that Magnus was already out of earshot.

Absent-mindedly Magnus stared down at the scrambled eggs which were still steaming in the frying pan. Two plates were already sitting next to the stove, one with scrambled eggs and mushrooms, the other with scrambled eggs and chives. Currently in the pan were scrambled eggs with bacon bits. He had only planned on making one plate, but then he had realized that he couldn't quite remember the last time he'd seen Alec eating which led to ... well, three plates of eggs. That and an interesting idea concerning the bottle of ketchup.

It was only a few minutes later when Alec finally entered the kitchen a sullen expression on his far and visible shadows beneath his eyes. He yawned and noticed the three plated sitting by now on the kitchen table. Magnus was leaning against the sink waiting for his reaction. Three plates of scrambled eggs neatly placed next to each other with cutlery on the side. On top of each portion were red lines of ketchup forming three words:

Get some rest!

Alec turned around to face Magnus with the mixture of a pout and a glare, but the older male only sent him a lopsided smirk. Alec snorted and turned his gaze back to the plates on the table. But before he could come up with a smart retort to this silent order, his stomach growled and Alec turned into a beacon. A very cute beacon though he himself probably didn't see it that way. Magnus' smirk turned into a full-blown grin.

"You're mean", Alec muttered under his breath, but took a seat at the table while Magnus pushed himself off the sink and sauntered over to the table as well to take place across from the writer who cautiously eyed the plate in the middle - scrambled eggs with mushrooms.

Alec felt the slightest pang of guilty conscience when he noticed that this was pretty much the same situation they had had the first morning after their 'reunion'. That morning their positions had been reversed and there had only been one plate of eggs. With the words 'Go away' written across them because what Alec had really wanted to say wouldn't fit on one plate.

What had he wanted to say that morning again? Alec thoughtfully chewed on the first bite. It was good. It was no haute cuisine, but then again they were both only average cooks who could transform leftovers into a mediocre meal that was actually edible. Scrambled eggs weren't that difficult. They were easy to make and it was hard to get them wrong if you don't burn them to ashes. But still...

There was a lump rising in Alec's throat as he took the second bite, tasting the juicy mushrooms, and the slightest hint of salt. It wasn't the first time that Magnus had prepared a meal of course. They had agreed to take turns in the kitchen and the same went for shopping and cleaning up the kitchen afterwards. But it was the first time that he had specially cooked for Alec without making anything for himself.

With the third bite Alec's eyes started burning. He swallowed and put the fork down even though he was still hungry. His stomach growled again like an animal that had only been teased with a few slices of meat. Magnus watched him, the smile fading from his face, being replaced with confusion.

"Everything okay?" he asked with concern lacing his words. "Did I use too much salt?"

Alec shook his head without looking up because he was sure that if he did he'd cry. He bit his lower lip and took a deep breath. He was hungry and only realized now how much.

"Thank you", he whispered and when he peeked through the curtain of dark bangs that covered his eyes he could see the smile returning on Magnus' face.

"You're welcome, sweetheart."

Magnus felt his heart swell while watching Alec eat and how his eyes lost some of the sleepy dullness. The look of exhaustion of course couldn't be banned from the writer's face, couldn't be erased from his body just by a bit of scrambled eggs, but did plan on making it happen after he had eaten. If Alec couldn't properly take care of himself because it'd intervene with his work, Magnus could do it for him.

"What did you really want to write?" Alec suddenly asked. He had reached the second plate now and took another bite while looking at Magnus expectantly.

"What do you mean?"

Alec smiled knowingly around the fork and Magnus was glad that he hadn't been tilted on his chair because he'd have fallen right off it.

"Come on, there is never enough space on a plate of scrambled eggs for a proper sentence", he said with a slight teasing note entering his voice. "So, what did you actually want to write? Or tell me to be more precise"

Magnus crossed his arms in front of his chest and leaned back in his chair. He tilted his head and with a grin that matched the teasing in Alec's voice he replied: "Originally I planned on writing 'Get some rest or I'll knock you over the head with a baseball bat."

Alec's eyes widened though only a fraction. Then he glanced away and muttered something about not owning a baseball bat. He took another bite and chewed thoughtfully before he paused again and stared down at the plate then back up at Magnus.

"I wanted to write 'You can take a shower, but please leave afterwards'." Alec looked down at the plate again with a little smile playing on his lips. In the meantime Magnus remembered that morning and he had to say that when he'd seen the 'Go away'-eggs his guts had turned to ice. He had thought that he had already screwed everything up, any chance he might have had with Alec simply by the way he'd shown up at the other's apartment and pretty much directly dragged him into the bedroom afterwards.

But now, things were different. He had taken quite a number of showers since that first morning.

Alec began feeling filled when he was almost through the second plate. He took a mouthful of water from the glass Magnus had brought over from where he'd been leaning against the sink and glanced at the last plate. The word 'rest' stood out in stark red color like only ketchup could manage it. He looked back at the almost empty one in front of him. Alec didn't want to throw any of the food away, but he also knew that he'd get behind with his schedule if he'd eat too much and risked getting sick.

After cleaning the third plate he sneaked a glance at Magnus and ... was caught, but that wasn't necessarily something new because on the one hand Magnus wasn't really looking anywhere else at the moment - probably to make sure that Alec actually ate something - and on the other hand ... Alec sucked at sneaking glances. He was way better at masking his open staring as uninterested staring off into the air. Following moving 'targets' with that strategy had been proven to be rather difficult.

Magnus raised his eyebrows with a silent question. Alec felt his cheeks heating up. He cleared his throat.

"Uhm, okay", he muttered his gaze falling back at his fork which turned out to be unbelievably interesting. Had every fork four tines? "I know this might sound utterly cheesy, but ... hum, would you like some of the eggs with the bacon bits?"

The sound of ruffling fabric carried through the otherwise silent apartment - not counting the Chairman who gave content noises from time to time while being fast asleep on Magnus' bed. From the corner of his eye Alec could see Magnus placing his arms on the table, crossing them and then placing his chin on top of them. This way he brought his grinning face on the same height as Alec's bowed head.

"Why so shy about that, sweetheart?" Magnus asked with a slight teasing note. "You want to feed me?"

Alec's head whipped up, his cheeks burning as he suddenly realized that of course Magnus could just take another fork and they could share the last plate. He gulped.

"Of course not", he exclaimed and okay, maybe it sounded like a squeak, but Alec would never admit that. "You can - wait, I will get you a fork and ... then you-" He froze in mid-motion as he was about to get up looking down at Magnus who was still grinning up at him from his position with his chin on his crossed arms. "D-do you even want some?" he whispered, "because I don't think I can eat it all and it would be a shame to throw it away ... I mean you can't freeze scrambled eggs."

His mind was screaming at him 'you're rambling, you idiot', but his lips happily kept moving. Only when something crossed Magnus' face that Alec couldn't quite name he managed to finally shut up. There was a look in the other's eyes that made his pulse speed up and his skin tingle.

If Magnus would ever be asked if it was a good idea to move in with somebody you want to touch like crazy, but under the condition of not being allowed to touch in the way you're craving for, he'd say ... something.

With a heavy sigh he sat up straight again and then got up from the chair. He rounded the table well aware of Alec's confused look following his every move. They had been in this situation once before and Magnus felt like he could still taste the remnants of that kiss on his lips. When he finally stopped in front of Alec who had turned around to face him, he whispered:

"Stop doing that."

Blue eyes grew wide with confusion. Pale lips parted to form a question that would never be heard, the unspoken words stolen away by Magnus' lips which were pressed against Alec's from one second to the other. There was a soft gasp, such a well-known sound that made Magnus' heart ache. He wanted to ... god, he wanted so much and everything was out of reach, teasing him. He was drowning, taking these kisses, hugs and nips on that skin that was flushed so easily like gasps of air before pulling away again, before pushing himself underwater again.

Alec felt himself melting against the touch, his lips moving without his consent. He had always been unable to resist responding to those kisses, touches, caresses. He knew from experience that Magnus didn't know what he was really doing to him with these things, the swipe of his tongue along Alec's bottom lip. How such simple things turned his whole body into liquid. Gentle fingers pushed through his hair, a thumb that moved in little circles across his hipbone. He knew these things. He knew that Magnus' tongue would always move carefully against his, he would tease him into a dance that made Alec's knees go weak.

It was so familiar and Alec could almost taste the tears he had cried on the day all of these sensations had been taken away from him the last time. Like the familiarity of the touch, there was the familiarity of the cold pain when the others fingers were removed, the other's lips wouldn't meet his own again.

Alec didn't blame Magnus for leaving him at the end of college. He only blamed himself for falling for him back then.

Suddenly Magnus felt Alec's hands gripping his sides, his fingertips digging into the fabric of Magnus' shirt. Alec pushed himself against the slightly taller male pressing their bodies against each other, freezing the movement of their lips with a sudden desperate urgency. Then he pulled back and Magnus didn't know what to think.

Alec didn't move away. He kept standing close to Magnus with his head bowed and willing himself not to cry. Nobody could promise him that he wouldn't be left alone again this time. Nobody could tell him, that things were really different this time, but that's how it always was. Maybe Alec was being an idiot again. Maybe his 'no sex'-rule was just a way to buy himself time with Magnus because he knew that Magnus had a competitive side and Alec knew how to tease that side.

This way he could be sure that Magnus wouldn't leave him at least till he'd finished his book. Maybe the following night would be like their last night together in college.

But maybe not.

Maybe he would finally manage to get these three little words past his lips and he really prayed that it would happen before August 26th.

Three words, they couldn't be that hard, right? It should be easy? But what if with these three little words one laid his heart bare free for the other person to carefully pick it up or to crush it with everything there was.

Alec raised his gaze slowly. He hoped that the tears that were dwelling up inside of him weren't showing in his eyes, that his hammering heartbeat couldn't be heard. Magnus was so close, so confused.

"Let's share the last plate."

And once again three words were only a silent scream inside his head.

'I need you!'

They shared the last plate. They had fork-fights for the bacon bits. And they noticed that they maybe should think about leaving messages on sticky notes because they were easier to write on than scrambled eggs. They laughed and Alec almost pierced Magnus' hand with his fork as he tried to snatch away the last bit of bacon. This way they learned about their common craving for bacon.

But Magnus couldn't shake off the feeling that since that kiss there was something bothering Alec. He didn't ask him though. Instead he remembered what he had written on the eggs. He smiled at Alec and tried to chase away whatever was bothering the writer or at least he tried to chase away any sign of the fact that he had noticed there was something they weren't talking about.

"Okay, it's time for you to get some rest", he stated, hopefully not leaving any room for any kind of argument. But as he saw Alec's face stretching into a yawn he knew that there was nothing to worry about.

"Rest sounds great", Alec mumbled with one hand still in front if his mouth. He blinked with tired eyes. "You know what sound even better?" He smiled dozily. "Sleep. And it has only one more letter."

Magnus shook his head with soft laughter on his lips and he decided to dispel his worries at least till Alec was rested and maybe up for a more serious conversation.

"Oh, but I have to put away the stuff on my bed first", Alec muttered while he looked towards the doorway that led to his bedroom. Magnus walked over to him after putting the plates and the glass along with the cutlery into the dishwasher.

"Nonsense", he stated and lovingly ruffled Alec's ink-black hair. "You can of course crash on my bed."

For a short moment Alec was jolted awake again by his nerves going haywire. Magnus was sure that with this blush he finally managed to put a supernova to shame. If supernovas were red. He chuckled lightly. "Calm down, Alec, just get a few hours of sleep and then you can sort through all the stuff lying on your bed. I will just sit next to you, reading the newspaper or rereading one of your books or flirting with the Chairman till he cheats on me with the pillow on your bed."

Another yawn let any possible fight Alec might have had in him considering the situation die and he simply nodded with heavy-lidded eyes.

Alec carefully placed himself next to the little cat who only flicked one ear dismissively and cracked one eye open, but after making sure that the world wouldn't end he resumed to sleeping.

"Want me to sing you a lullaby?", Magnus asked when he reached over Alec to help him with the blanket. Alec stopped in his movements and glared at him.

"I'll pass", he said and laid down completely. Magnus chuckled quietly. He closed the curtains, so the room was covered with only a dim light. It was still enough to read without killing his eyes and at the same time should make it possible for Alec to get some sleep. Then he sat down next to Alec and leaned back against the headrest of the bed which once had been the backrest of the couch.

It got slightly cramped with all three of them on the couch that had been turned into a bed and maybe even a little private living room. With the little origami figures, the 'glow in the dark'-stars above and the pile of newspapers lying on the ground next to the 'bed'.

"Do you know what this reminds me of?" Magnus whispered into the silence that started engulfing them, calming his senses, his heartbeat, the worries chasing themselves inside of his head. Alec only made a questioning sound. He had his eyes already closed and it didn't seem like he was about to open them again soon. "It reminds me of that one afternoon before this evil exam about the heroic saga in medieval Germany."

A snorting laugh escaped Alec's lips and Magnus had to smile at the memory too. They had tried to study together for said exam, but it hadn't really worked out because they both had dreaded every session of that class. In the end they only talked about how much that professor must have had a very tragic childhood to turn out as vicious as she had. How exactly they had ended up in a corner of the library cuddled up under a polka dotted blanket Magnus couldn't really recall, but just for that outcome it had been worth to screw up the exam the next day.

Magnus could hear Alec shift next to him and he reached over to lightly push his fingers through the younger one's hair. He loved doing that because it was intimate without being necessarily sexual. It could be done in public - like holding hands - it would be a message to other people, telling them that they were close, but it would also be a secret code because a gesture like that would always mean so many more things.

"I still can't believe that I agreed to have sex in the library", Alec muttered with half his face covered by the blanket. It made Magnus stop dead in his tracks. He pulled back his hand and rubbed his chin. They had had sex that day? He looked up at the ceiling. There was the 'Smileyface' right above his head and only sometimes he found it slightly creepy. Blurred memories started surfacing. Ragged breaths, whispered words, burning skin. But only briefly.

Why didn't he remember the sex, but the cuddling afterwards?

When Alec awoke he had his arms wrapped tightly around Magnus´ waist who had fallen asleep as well with his head resting only inches above Alec's and with Chairman Meow sprawled across his face.

End of chapter :) Review it up because I love to hear/read your opinions. ^^
There was no flashback in this chapter because there will be major flashback-ness in the next chapter if everything goes according to plan (which rarely happens, but hey, a girl can dream, right?) and of course you can still submit wishes for possible flashbacks if you like to.

As for the T-Shirt :) Those of you who have read 'Wanted' might have already picked up on the fact that I LOVE shirts with funny stuff printed on it. I got the idea for Alec's shirt in this chapter from spreadshirt . de (without the spaces) They've got awesome shirts there. I haven't yet ordered something from this page, so I can't say anything about the quality, but they've got tons of different designs there. (It's a german side though.)

Yes, I have an odd craving for scrambled eggs lately because I'm not allowed to eat them at the moment - but I'll try to get something different for Magnus and Alec to eat in upcoming chapters. :)

At last, I hope the kissing-scenes were okay. I'm still practicing the writing of make out-scenes and stuff like that because ... well, I promised it a certain someone *cough*Satyana*cough* (Lova ya, sweety! ;3) which means you have to suffer through them if they suck :D
Bye Pumpkin ^^