She was frozen, looking at him overwhelmed. "He won't ever do it again Magnus. I don't know what happened, but I know he'd rather die than hurt you again. I've seen the way it broke him to be apart from you. I could hear him cry himself to sleep every night, when he did sleep at all."
"He will. At least once more he will. Whether he wants it or not." He said and his voice broke at the mere thought, tears falling from his cat-eyes. "And when he does, the pain I feel now, his anguish and mine combined, will feel like nothing…"
"Is that why you let him go?" She asked, understanding his unspoken words. "So it won't hurt when he dies?"
He flinched at her words, looking even more pained, and nodded.
"Magnus…" She said patiently. "You can't do that. You said you've never loved anyone the way you love him. If that's true, how can you forget about him and magically not care when he dies? All you will manage to do will be to live miserably for the next years and then mourn his death anyway if you hear about it. And I know you will. You are the High Warlock of Brooklyn after all. One day you will be called to the Institute to create a portal and he won't be there. Instead, you may see me or Jace clad in white, and no longer smiling."
"Stop it, please, stop…" He said hiding his face in his hands.
"No." She said, not unkindly. "Because if you can't even bear to think about it now, what will you do then? The pain is one thing. But the regret? Will you be able to live, knowing you forever lost the chance to be with the love of your life because you were afraid? I won't let you do this to neither yourself nor Alec."
"But what else can I do?" He whimpered softly, still not looking at her.
She sat down beside him, gently running her fingers through his hair, soothing him, and whispered. "I know it's cruel. And I'm so sorry… I wish he was a Warlock like you instead of a Shadowhunter, so you wouldn't have to go through that. But he's not. He is a Shadowhunter and he loves you. Just like you love him. Don't sentence both of you to a lifetime without love. I promise you it will be worth it. You make each other happy, just by existing in the same space. I've seen it, and I want to see it again. You can't give up on him."
He nodded dropping his hands from his face and looking down at them. "You're right…" He muttered. "He is worth the pain. All the pain in the world. And if his death ends up killing me, dying for love is better than dying of regrets, right?"
"Right." She agreed. "But don't think of that now." Izzy said and smiled at him. "Think of what to wear because we're going back right now so you can undo the spell and make everything right again."
"Whoa. Wait." Magnus said, regaining a little of his old spark, just by thinking he'd be with Alec again, soon. "I'm not undoing the spell."
"What are you talking about? Of course you are."
"There is no way I will cause him unnecessary pain like that. He's finally happy."
"Have you even been listening to me for the past hour? You make him happy. He doesn't need some stupid spell for that. All he needs is you to stay by his side. To love him."
"What about Max?" He asked softly.
"This pain is part of who he is." She said without hesitation. "It's the proof of his love for Max. You shouldn't take it away, no matter how much you want to protect him. You know he wouldn't want this."
"I guess you're right…" He sighed giving up. "Fine then. Let's go." He clicked his fingers and a wave of blue magic surrounded him.
Once it faded away, his hair was perfectly styled and his makeup was on point. He was wearing a dark red dress shirt with most its buttons unfastened, revealing his toned chest and stomach, combined with a tight pair of jeans.
She raised an eyebrow at him. "You could do that, yet kept spending hours getting ready before?"
"Of course I could. But where's the fun in it?" He smirked.
She raised an eyebrow in silent question.
"There's no time for fun now." Magnus explained. "I need to see him as soon as possible."
"How fast the night changes…"
"Don't mock me Shadowhunter."
She laughed. "Fine, High Warlock. Now let's go fix everything."
~o~O~o~O~o~
"He's probably in his room." Izzy said when they entered the Institute, and they headed there together.
She knocked on the door and Alec answered it a moment later. "Izzy? What's wrong?" He asked before his eyes fell on Magnus. "Oh… Magnus. Hey." He muttered taking his appearance in, blushing slightly as his eyes rested on the Warlock's unblemished chest.
"Hello Alexander." Magnus purred and Alec's eyes snapped back on his face as he blushed more, saying nothing.
Izzy smirked looking at them and took a step back, lightly shoving Magnus towards the room. "My work here is done. I'll see you two later." She said and walked away.
"Can we talk?" Magnus asked once they were alone.
"Sure." The Nephilim answered entering the room and gesturing for Magnus to follow. They both sat down on his bed, avoiding each other's eyes.
Surprisingly, it was Alec who broke the silence. "I thought you never wanted to see me again." He said.
"And how do you feel about that?"
"I don't know…" Alec muttered looking confused. "I do love you." He confessed making Magnus' heart flutter. Even affected by the spell his love hadn't faded. "But… I'm okay with it?" He went on unsure. "Wait. No. Why?" He grabbed his head folding over himself. "No. This isn't right. I love you. I shouldn't be okay with it. Mags… Why…?" He convulsed, still clutching his head. "My head… What's wrong with me?"