So here's a new chapter :) I'm afraid the story is a few chapters away from the end.

Do let me know what you think with your reviews!

Enjoy!

"WAIT!" Ragnor Fell called from his place "You're telling me our little hispanic friend has a boyfriend?!"

"Uh huh" Magnus nodded with a smirk, he then extended his hand to the front. "Pay up bitches!"

"That's not fair!" Catarina shook her head "That's not what you betted at all!"

"Wait" Raphael frowned, putting his bottle of beer back in the table "You betted on this?"

"We made a bet on when you would get yourself a boyfriend" Ragnor shrugged, taking a gulp of his own bottle.

The group of friends were gathered in a restaurant bar on a Friday night. It was the weekend before Raphael had to turn in his final project. And while he was still stressing about all the things he had to do, his friends had dragged him out for a night out. It was almost certain Magnus would drag them all to some club and then ditch them to hang out with his boyfriend, who would, conveniently, be with his siblings at said club. Raphael hated going to clubs. The music was always too loud and people had no regards about personal space whatsoever. He hated the mass of people moving in what they called dancing while they sweated like pigs and drank to oblivion. He could definitely do without that. Of course, Magnus (with the help of Ragnor and Catarina) always managed to convince him to go with them.

Magnus was his oldest friend. And while they argued like siblings, they knew they loved each other. They had been there through very difficult times in the lives of each other. That type of friendship was not something one could find so easily. Ragnor and Catarina came along the way in different times of their lives. They were both very dear to Raphael and he would not hesitate to throw everything away if they needed him. Ragnor and him had grown very close during their years of high school, though their feelings towards each other were completely platonic. Raphael had taught Ragnor how to speak Spanish, even though his friend was useless at the language. Catarina was like the mother hen of their small group. She was the most collected person any of them knew. She was very aware of all of their needs and she always knew when something was wrong without even having to glance at them. The three of them cared for her with all their hearts, though if anyone from the outside saw them they would not believe they were that close. They were a mismatched group of friends. All of them were from very different backgrounds and upbringing. They had different interests and different personalities. No one would believe they were the best of friends. But the opinions of other people were never important for the four of them. They knew they loved each other, and that's all that matter to them.

"I said that Raphael would get a boyfriend before graduating from college" Magnus said "You both said he would not. I win"

"You guys are unbelievable" Raphael shook his head.

"Come on" Ragnor rolled his eyes "As if you had not participated in the bet we put when Magnus was courting Alec"

"Courting?" Catarina snorted "More like stalking"

"I was not stalking Alexander!" Magnus gasped dramatically "How dare you?"

The three of them burst out laughing while Magnus crossed his arms and pouted. After they had calmed down they moved to a different topic, still teasing Magnus a bit with his relationship with Alexander Lightwood and then moving on to Ragnor and Catarina about their significant others. None of them were dating anyone, though Ragnor told them (with more details than necessary) about the last girl he had hooked up with.

"I still wanna see who is Raphael's boyfriend" Catarina said suddenly.

"Yes mate!" Ragnor protested "Show us a picture! Show him off!"

"Guys, no" Raphael shook his head "It is all pretty recent..."

"Still!" Catarina said "Come on! I'm sure you have a photo of him"

Raphael sighed but pulled out his phone and started looking through the many photos he had. He had just uploaded the photos he had taken of Simon to his cloud so he could edit them later, and he was able to open them through his phone. He chose one that he knew he would not use for his project, but that he had still liked very much. It was of Simon at the studio with the grey sweater. He was laughing at something, looking straight at the camera while one of his hands covered his mouth. His eyes had wrinkles in the corners and his smile was so wide it could not be completely covered by his hand. His hair was messy, a flower crown hanging from his free hand. It was breathtaking.

Raphael turned his phone around to show his friends. Ragnor took the phone out of his hands to get a closer look. Catarina leaned closer to Ragnor to get a chance to see the screen of the phone as well.

"Oooooh he's adorable!" Catarina gushed, taking the phone out of Ragnor's hands to look at the photo more clearly.

"I have to admit, I didn't think he could be your type" Ragnor told Raphael.

"My type?" Raphael asked with a raised eyebrow "Since when do I have a type?"

"Ragnor is right, my sweetest Raphi" Magnus said with a serious nod, even though Raphael scowled at the nickname "When we think about Seamus here, we do not think that he could be dating you"

"That's his name?" Catarina asked, looking up from the phone.

"No" Raphael glared at Magnus "His name is Simon. Simon Lewis"

"That's what I said" Magnus waved his hand in dismiss. "Anyways, guys! You have to see them together! They are tooth-rotting sweet!"

"I doubt they can be more than you and Alec" Ragnor pointed out.

"They're close" Magnus grinned "But they're perfect together! I should have put them together so much earlier!"

"He's a model?" Catarina asked. Apparently, she had decided to scroll through the rest of the pictures in the folder Raphael had opened.

"He's not" Raphael said, leaning up to snatch the phone out of Catarina's hands "And I would appreciate if you did not go through the photos in my phone"

"Why? Something naughty to hide?" Ragnor smirked, wiggling his eyebrows.

Raphael glared at him, unimpressed. He did not bother to answer his friend, while Magnus burst out laughing and Catarina tried to hide her laugh with a drink of her glass.

"Callense" Raphael snapped in Spanish "He just helped me with my final project"

"He photographs beautifully" Ragnor commented.

Ragnor was a screenwriter, studying at an university not far from where Magnus and Raphael studied. He had a great passion for cinematography and he would often discuss photography with Raphael. It was something that both of them enjoyed and had an extended knowledge about. Often Ragnor would ask for Raphael's help in school projects when needed and vice-versa.

"He does" Raphael nodded "That's why I chose him as a subject"

"And your crush on him had nothing to do with it" Magnus rolled his eyes, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Raphael glared but did not comment further. Everyone snickered, teasing Raphael a little bit more, before moving on to a different subject. Raphael could not help but feel relieved on how well his friends had taken on his relationship with Simon. Of course, the real test would be when they actually met him. Even though Raphael knew their opinion would not change matters in his new relationship, it was still important. Raphael's family was small and distant. His friends were the closest thing he had to a loving family, and he craved their approval in many things in his life. However, seeing Magnus loud voice and waving his hands as he told a story, Ragnor's obnoxious laugh and serious jokes, and Catarina's warm smiles and loving comments reassured Raphael that everything would be alright.

Saturday morning came and Raphael and Simon had agreed to finish the last of the photos. Raphael had planned to go out and do some location photographs. Simon had been hesitant to be outside taking pictures in public, but Raphael had soon calmed his worries.

"We'll go to a small forest nearby" Raphael explained.

"There are forests nearby?" Simon asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes" Raphael asked "Almost no one knows about them. So it'll be completely empty when we get there"

"Okay" Simon nodded "So what are we doing?"

"Just taking some photos outside" Raphael explained "You're all about soft colors and flowers. I would like to take some photos of you interacting with nature"

Simon had nodded and smiled shyly. Raphael grinned in return and then guided Simon towards his car. It was a short drive. Soon Raphael was pulling over and taking all of his equipment from the trunk. Simon followed quietly, looking around the area in silent awe. Raphael took his hand, lacing their fingers together. Simon smiled brightly at him, squeezing his fingers.

They walked a bit further into the forest, just enough to be away from the edge and the highway, but not far enough that they would get lost. They reached a flat surface in the ground, filled with grass and some wild flowers. There were multiple trees around them with moss and beautiful green leaves. The place was perfect to what Raphael had in mind.

"Uh...Raphael" Simon said nervously looking around "I don't think we though this through. Where will I change?"

"There's no need to change" Raphael said, letting go of Simon's hand in order to start getting out all of his equipment.

"What?" Simon asked with a frown "But...this are not my best clothes"

Today Simon had gone for a little tuned down outfit. He whore a big woven white sweater. Underneath he had a sky-blue collared shirt, the collar of which was over the neckline of the sweater. He also wore tight black jeans and white converse shoes.

"You don't look half as bad" Raphael rolled his eyes.

"Is that supposed to be a compliment?" Simon frowned, pulling at some strings on the sleeve of his sweater.

"You look fine Simon" Raphael said, pulling the younger man closer and kissing the corner of his mouth. "Now...would you just relax?"

"I'm s-sorry" Simon stuttered, blushing furiously.

"If you're too uncomfortable with all of this just let me know" Raphael said tenderly "I won't force you to do something you're not okay with doing"

"Thanks" Simon whispered "I'm...I'm alright. Just a bit nervous, I suppose"

Raphael nodded but commented no further. Instead, he allowed Simon to get comfortable with the environment and the situation. He knew Simon did not like having pictures taken of him, and while he allowed Raphael to use him as a model for his project, he still got a bit self-conscious and nervous. But after some time, Simon started to get more comfortable with the whole thing and even in his own skin. Raphael loved photographing Simon. Not just because they were now dating and (even though he would never admit it), Raphael loved looking at Simon. But Simon was so photogenic. The camera loved him. It was impossible for Simon to take a bad picture, he looked so good in all of them. And it was not Raphael being biased. Simon was just that good. And Raphael really enjoyed watching his boyfriend through the lens of his camera. The younger boy knew how to take directions really well and the shapes he could create with his body, without even trying, were just amazing. It was a delight seeing Simon interact with a camera, even though he claimed not to know what was happening or what to do.

"Have you taken any self-portraits?" Simon asked as Raphael guided him towards some of the trees nearby.

"Not really" Raphael shook his head "I had to, for a class, but other than that not really"

"Why?" Simon asked "I bet you would photograph much better than I do"

"I would not" Raphael shook his head.

Simon followed Raphael's instructions, leaning against a tree, taking some of the flowers that were around them and playing with them. Raphael took frame after frame after frame. That was something Raphael really enjoyed about working with Simon. It seemed almost effortless. Simon was such an easy person to work with. He took direction so well and didn't cause any problems. It was almost as if both of them were synced somehow. Simon knew exactly what Raphael had in mind and what he wanted in the photo. It was amazing.

"Would you mind lying down in the ground?" Raphael asked "I don't want your sweater to get dirty, but maybe you can use my jacket as a blanket..."

"I'll lie down" Simon grinned "No need to ruin your perfectly expensive jacket"

Raphael rolled his eyes and told Simon exactly where he wanted him to lie down. It was over some yellow wild flowers. They were all around the place and looked beautiful around the area. Simon dropped over the plants as if he was throwing his body in a mountain of dried leaves. He extended his arms to the sides and smiled brightly. Raphael wanted to scowl at Simon for letting himself fall to the floor that way, but he looked just too beautiful Raphael had to take a photo right away. He took some other shots, ordering Simon to move one way or the other and then he helped Simon stand up. The younger boy was smiling brightly, so brightly he took Raphael's breath away.

"I wanna take a shot of your eyes" Raphael said suddenly.

"My eyes?" Simon asked surprised

"Yes" Raphael nodded "I just...I have this idea and I think your eyes will look really good"

"I...I guess" Simon blushed "Though my eyes are nothing special. You could ask Jace or Clary. Green and Golden eyes are much cooler than brown"

"I want to photograph your eyes" Raphael said fiercely.

"Okay" Simon smiled shyly "What should I do?"

Raphael leaned down and took one of the yellow flowers from the floor. The petals were long and lean. He started picking them off the flower, and then gently putting them on Simon's cheek and temple, so they went around the curve of Simon's eyes. Simon closed his eyes and allowed Raphael to place the petals as he wished. Raphael noted that Simon usually breathed through his mouth, instead of his nose. Being this close reminded Raphael of the kiss they had shared in the studio and he had to hold himself back from not kissing Simon right there.

"Okay" Raphael whispered "Open your eyes"

Simon did and he gasped when he noticed how close Raphael was to him. Their breaths mixed together, being so close to one another. If any of them leaned just a tiny bit closer, their lips would meet. They didn't though. Raphael knew that if he kissed Simon now, he would completely forget about the photo he wanted to take. So he took a step back, clearing his throat and lifting the camera to his eye.

Simon blinked, once, twice before blushing softly. Raphael adjusted the zoom. He was still standing really close to Simon, but not close enough for it to be intimate. Plus, they had a camera between them. Raphael shot a photo, and then adjusted the zoom and focus again. Simon's freckles were seen perfectly and his eyelashes framed his eyes beautifully. The flower petals were a nice contrast against the warmth of Simon's skin. He took another photo.

"Alright" Raphael said, putting the camera away. "I think we're done for the day"

"Really?" Simon asked with a smile.

"Yeah" Raphael nodded "I think I already have all the photos for the project, I just need to edit them and have them printed"

"Cool!" Simon grinned "Are you going to show me the pictures?"

"Of course" Raphael nodded "How about we go back to my dorm? I know for a fact that Magnus will be out with Alec, so he won't be bothering us. You can help me choose the photos to use there"

"Alright" Simon said enthusiastically "Let's go then!"