9. My Compliments to the Chef

"MAGNUS?" Alec called as he entered the Bane house. The door was open, and no one had answered immediately, so he'd just walked in. It had been a few days since his father had moved into a hotel room, and his mother was trying to be busy at work. There was really no difference at home; it was still mostly just Izzy and himself who inhabited the house.

Magnus came down the stairs into the living room with a calm expression.

"What's going on?"

"Your mom brought my mom to a PFLAG meeting last night!" Alec accused, well aware that Magnus probably didn't have anything to do with it. A smirk appeared across his face. Magnus had only met his mother once, but it had probably been enough for him to get a pretty good picture of how Maryse was. "It's not funny! She doesn't say it, but I can tell she's freaked out by all the hippie moms," Alec sighed.

"Are you calling me a hippie, Alec?"

Alec froze. He had thought Mrs. Bane was at work or out, as she usually was by this hour of the day.

"Mrs. Bane, no I didn't… you know what I mean," Alec tried to save it, but couldn't. Fortunately, she didn't look upset about it, but rather amused.

"Your mom is fine," she assured him.

"Her lips were pursed this morning, when I came down for breakfast, and she told me she'd been out with you last night," Alec explained, hoping not to sound too accusingly about it.

"Okay, maybe 'fine' is a bit of a stretch, but she'll come around eventually."

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Bane, but I don't need her to get new excuses for feeling disgusted with me, now that I'm finally back in the house."

"Alec…" Magnus said, and he'd never seen Magnus look so miserable before. It was the last straw, and he felt the pressure of tears, so he left the house before he could embarrass himself further in front of Mrs. Bane.

…

Magnus didn't understand the feelings that now rushed over him. Why would Alec even think that his own mother was disgusted with him? Magnus' own mother must have noticed the change in him, because she put her hand on his shoulder.

"You're shaking, Magnus?"

"I am?"

"You should go talk to him. Make sure he doesn't think like that again, I'm sure you'll be able to convince him that he's wonderful just the way he is," she smiled softly.

Magnus ran outside, but he couldn't see Alec anywhere. He thought about texting him, but then he had an idea – the park bench. He hurried over to the park, but the bench was occupied by an old couple. A new sort of misery rushed over him, he'd thought he would know where Alec had gone, but maybe he didn't know him that well at all. Of course he wouldn't have gone to one of 'their places'. Perhaps he'd gone back to the school? It would be mostly deserted by now.

"Magnus?"

Magnus' heart skipped a beat, and he turned to follow the sound of a voice he knew so well. Alec was standing by another bench, which was slightly hidden beside a bush. His eyes were puffy, and it made him hold his distance. He knew it was ridiculous, but Alec didn't like anyone seeing him cry and touching him would most likely only make it worse.

"Alec, I…" Magnus swallowed, and stepped closer, despite his worries about Alec's feelings. "Why would you talk like that?"

"I didn't mean to be rude to your mother," Alec said and sat down on the bench despairingly. Magnus went to kneel in front of him.

"That's not what I meant. She doesn't care about that, she cares that you would think that way of your mother and of yourself. Please tell me that's not what you think of yourself?"

"That I'm disgusting?" Alec asked, although he knew very well that's what Magnus meant. Magnus hid his face in his palms. He felt a hand brush his arm. "I don't feel disgusting when I'm with you." Now Magnus looked up at his boyfriend. His eyes were glistening.

"Then why…?"

"Because I see the way she looks at me now. She's trying to hide it, but she can't. She doesn't feel comfortable. And you should have heard her when she talked about those parents," Alec explained.

"Alec…"

"I know it will take time for her, and I know she's really trying, just like my dad is trying. But it's just difficult right now," he said, and took Magnus' hand in his. The boy was so beautiful, even with puffy eyes it was only the blue shining through that Magnus noticed. He had sworn to himself weeks ago, when he first realized that he was not only in love with Alec, but he loved him more than he'd ever thought possible, that he would always protect him. But he didn't know how to protect him from this, because that's how it was for a lot of gay people, and if anyone had figured out how to avoid it by now they wouldn't be having this problem.

"How about dinner?"

"I'm not really hungry," Alec sighed.

"No, I mean dinner with your mom and my mom, just the four of us? I know they already know each other, but what if we have a nice dinner just the four of us. No other hippie parents or co-workers, just us," Magnus suggested. Alec was considering it, and the small quirk on his lips told Magnus that he thought it was a good idea.

"Okay."

"Good. I'll be at my best behavior, and your mother will love me by the end of the evening," Magnus promised, and Alec couldn't help but give him a nervous smile. Magnus stood up, because his feet were starting to prickle from the lack of blood flow the position gave him. But he'd only just stretched his legs, when Alec pulled him down to the bench and kissed him, just like that and in the middle of the park! He could feel Alec's hands around his neck, holding him in place so he wouldn't escape his perfect lips. Once Magnus relaxed, Alec forced his mouth open and pressed his tongue against Magnus'. He loved it when his boyfriend was forceful, and he forgot where they were for a second, so he pulled Alec closer by the front of his shirt. Assertive-Alec was the Alec he loved the most, but not the Alec he had fallen in love with. Still, he enjoyed that his presence had helped him dismiss his previous feelings, because Magnus hadn't really done much to cheer him up other than just following him. Carefully he broke off the kiss, still leaning against Alec's chest with only his hands between them.

"Alec, someone might have seen us," Magnus said, remembering the old couple on the other bench.

"I know," Alec smirked. Magnus turned his head to see if the old couple was still there, or if they'd freaked them out. Alec turned his eyes in the same direction. The older couple was smiling at them. Alec sniggered, and sounded a bit embarrassed. Magnus looked back at Alec, who didn't appear sad anymore.

"Alexander, please don't ever change," he whispered. He hadn't thought his words would mean much, but it seemed that to Alec it meant the world to hear those simple words, as he tried to hold back more tears.

"I can't promise that, because eventually we will change," he said and looked back over at the couple. "But that doesn't have to mean my feelings for you will change," he added. Magnus had never thought he could feel this happy, and he couldn't stop himself from burying his face in Alec' shirt, taking in the familiar smell of Alec.

…

Alec had not thought this dinner through when he'd agreed to it. Magnus had that effect on him – he always thought it was a good idea at the moment, but as these ideas came closer to reality he started having doubts. However, his mother did seem to be just as nervous as he was.

"Do I look okay?" she asked Alec. A question she'd never asked him before. He'd just always assumed that his mother was confident enough to wear anything, which she probably also was most of the time. She was wearing black jeans, which seemed almost painted onto her, and a loose black see-through dress shirt on top of a black tank top.

"You look great, mom," he said and forced a smile past his nervousness.

"Bane always dresses so nice, I don't want to look sloppy when I'm going to her house," she said, and Alec couldn't help but roll his eyes. His mother never looked sloppy. She was much like Izzy on that matter – they both looked as if they'd spent hours dressing themselves, but really it was effortless for them.

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind even if you showed up in a tracksuit," Alec assured her. Now Maryse turned to look at her son.

"I only know her work side, but you seem to really like her?"

"She's one of the nicest people I know," Alec admitted. "If you give her and Magnus a chance, I think you'll really like them too," he added, hoping he wasn't pushing it.

"Relax, I already like her, as long as she doesn't take me to any more of those meetings," she said matter-of-factly.

When they arrived, Magnus was in the kitchen and Alec wasn't sure whether to feel comforted by the fact that Magnus was cooking for his mother, or horrified by it. Alec had never tried any of Magnus' food, and whatever he was making it looked complicated. Mrs. Bane showed Maryse around the house, and Alec joined Magnus in the kitchen.

"You didn't say you were cooking?"

"Nervous?" Magnus grinned.

"A little, yeah." Now Magnus turned towards him, and held up something that looked like a sort of mushroom. Alec let him feed it to him, and it was orgasmic. It was unbelievable how something so simple without any sort of significant taste, had turned into something with so much flavor.

"Still nervous?"

"Magnus, that's amazing! Why did you never tell me you could cook?"

"My uncle in Europe is a chef, I've spent every summer there for several years now, and he's taught me a few things along the way," he shrugged. Alec couldn't help but think it was a bit sexy seeing Magnus in an apron, especially when he was this good at what he was doing. He was wearing navy colored dress pants and a casual cashmere sweater, and the professional apron didn't make him look any less sophisticated. "Do you want to help? Or do you just want to stare?"

"I'm good with staring. Cooking has never really been the strong side of my family."

"So? Maybe you would be the exception?" Magnus challenged.

"Okay, if you tell me what to do?"

"First, we need to get you an apron. I see you've dressed up for the occasion, I wouldn't want to ruin what is probably your only suit," Magnus winked.

…

"You have a beautiful home," Maryse said, after she'd been showed around what appeared to be a big apartment from the inside, but what was really a smaller house.

"Thank you. It's mostly furniture that my husband collected over the years."

"I heard about what happened to him, I'm terribly sorry," Maryse said. Stories had gone around at work years ago, when the accident had happened.

"It's been years. But sometimes I think Magnus still blames himself. He was like a father to him."

"Oh, so he wasn't his father?" This was a surprise. Maryse wasn't even sure Alec knew about it.

"Stepfather, but he was my husband through most of Magnus' childhood."

The tragic story of a car accident pressed against Maryse's memory. The car had had no reason to crash according to the news, and somehow the boy had gotten away in time, before the car started to go up in flames. Today it was still somewhat a mystery, and though she didn't like the thought that Alec might not know about the details, she also understood if Magnus had decided not to tell him yet.

Now they heard the two boys laugh in the kitchen, and when she turned to look, she saw her son wearing an apron and helping out with the vegetables – a sight she never thought she would see. He looked so happy. Alec had never been a child who would laugh much, but he was also never a child who had cried much, which she'd only seen as a good thing. Maybe it hadn't been a good thing after all.

"He looks… happy," she said. Mrs. Bane was smiling.

"They compliment each other very well, don't you think?"

Maryse hesitated. She'd long hoped that Alec would find a sweet girl, who would make him smile more than he did, just like she'd found Robert at a young age, but look how that had turned out. They were still young, and she didn't want to see him hurt. Magnus' hand brushed Alec's back, while he told him how to prepare the food.

"Yes, they do."

…

Dinner went better than Alec could have ever hoped for. Only once in a while, when Mrs. Bane brought up the PFLAG meeting did his mother seem to have to compose herself. He wondered what had happened at the meeting that would have upset her, but he decided it would be a bad idea to imagine what happened at those meetings. For all he knew it was a group of parents all in the same boat; it didn't sound much unlike a support group, which usually wasn't a happy place.

"You jumped into the river?" his mother asked, when Magnus told them about the camping trip.

"It was a lake. Magnus, stop calling it a river!"

"You could have gotten a cold?"

"Well, I didn't," Alec smiled, as did his mother while shaking her head. He rarely saw her smile, especially not since his father had moved out.

"This doesn't mean I'm not mad at you for going without telling me first," she warned.

"I'm sorry."

"They're kids, Maryse. They do silly things," Mrs. Bane said. Alec noticed Magnus rolling his eyes.

"How about dessert?" Magnus stood up and started clearing the table.

"Did you make that yourself as well?" Maryse wondered.

"Yes, I did. It's rose panna cotta."

Alec didn't even know Magnus had made rose panna cotta, which seemed too good to be true. His mother looked at Alec inquiringly.

"You don't like panna cotta?" Magnus asked.

"No, it's my favorite," she admitted.

"Oh, well I hope I didn't mess it up then," Magnus said and went into the kitchen. Alec cracked a nervous smile, praying that it was as delicious as the main course.

They all waited patiently for Maryse to try the dessert, and when she finally smiled everyone breathed again.

"This is delicious, Magnus," she said politely. Alec felt Magnus' hand on his leg under the table. This night could not have gone any better, he thought.

"Thank you so much for dinner, Magnus. It really was delicious," his mother said, as the dinner was over. She turned towards Mrs. Bane.

"Please come again sometime," she said.

"I would love to. Alec, are you coming?" she asked. He looked at Magnus for a second, and then he walked after his mother. He stopped her just outside the house.

"Is it okay if I stay here tonight? It is a weekend." It was the first time he'd asked permission, but he felt like it was the appropriate way to ask her for her approval.

"Sure. I guess I can see why you like him so much. What I'm trying to say is, you could have done worse," she admitted. It was enough approval for now, and he was almost certain that she liked Magnus.

"Thanks," he said and kissed her cheek, which seemed to surprise her, but she didn't say anything. "It means a lot to me that you agreed to this dinner," he added. She brushed her fingers through his hair, like she'd done so many times when he was younger.

"You're growing up too fast. I know you're afraid to talk to your dad and me, but I do want to hear about your plans. I want to hear where you want to go to college, and I want to hear about your camping trips," she said. "I feel like a fool, when I have to go your boyfriend's dinner party to hear that you've started thinking about college."

"You're not a fool, mom."

"I know you don't think that, but that's how I feel sometimes. I'll see you tomorrow?" she said, and walked off.

Alec went back inside, and Magnus and his mother were cleaning up.

"Let me help you with that," he said and took off his blazer.

"Yeah, we'll take care of it, mom."

Mrs. Bane smiled at the two of them, she put her hands on Alec's cheeks for a second and then she went upstairs.

"Your mom seemed to have a good time?" Magnus said, as he placed the dishes in the dishwasher.

"I don't think I've seen her smile like that in months," Alec admitted.

"That's good, right?"

"And I think she actually likes you."

"I'm not sure if I should be hurt by your surprise?" Magnus narrowed his eyes. Alec took his hand and kissed his fingers.

"She rarely shows if she likes anyone, that's why I'm surprised. She seems to have accepted you though," he said, while studying Magnus' hand.

"That's good enough for me," Magnus smiled. "I'm going to hurry this up, so I'll have to borrow my hand for a moment, but then you can have it back afterwards," he said and took his hand back. Alec helped him clean up the rest, and it didn't take long, before they could go back to Magnus' room. Alec went to the bathroom to brush his teeth with the toothbrush he'd gotten back when his father first kicked him out. When he came back Magnus was in his pajamas pants and nothing else, which was a rare beauty, Alec thought to himself.

"I'll just go brush my teeth," Magnus said and went into the bathroom, while Alec went to take off his own clothes and slip under the covers. Magnus must have taken his time, because Alec was almost asleep when he felt a cold hand brush over his stomach. He held out his arm so that Magnus could lie against him and rest his head on Alec's arm. Alec had been under the impression that they were going to sleep, but Magnus seemed to have a different idea. He kept brushing his stomach and it was a good thing that Alec wasn't ticklish or the soft gesture would have been an entirely different sensation.

"What are you doing?" he whispered against Magnus' hair.

"I'm just enjoying your abs, is that okay?" Magnus said, and moved down a bit so his head was at the same level as Alec's chest.

"Be my guest," Alec chuckled. Alec sucked in the air in front of him, when he felt Magnus tongue against his nipple. He had hoped for more when Magnus had started touching him, but he hadn't expected more, so it came as a surprise when the touching was now both hands, lips and tongue. It was an odd mixture of feelings since his hands were still cold, yet his kisses were warm against his skin. For once Alec made an effort not to take control and just enjoy the caresses from his boyfriend. Though it was impossible to not move with the touches, he did stay underneath Magnus and enjoyed how his boyfriend took care of him, because that's what he had needed after a long week of family drama – he had never needed attention from anyone before, but he needed it from Magnus now, and Magnus was very good at giving him undivided attention. Alec felt the excitement of the light touches bubble under his skin. Magnus was only just warming up, when he decided he needed to put on some music.

"What are you doing?" Alec wondered as Magnus reached for the remote control and turned on the stereo.

"Your breathing is getting kind of loud, and I'm not even halfway done with you," Magnus bit his lower lip. Alec had an idea, and it made his heart slam against his chest. "Don't be nervous, I'm not going to do anything that'll make you scream." Magnus must have noticed the change.

"Do you still have that butt plug?" Alec wondered. Now Magnus smirked and reached his arm over to his drawer.

"Do you want to try it?"

"I want you to try it," Alec said.

"You want me to top?"

"I want you to top." Alec chewed his lip, hoping he wasn't demanding too much. In a swift move Magnus had removed Alec's boxers, and he felt Magnus' warm mouth. Alec's eyes rolled back and he arched his back. He tried to control his breathing, but Magnus was trying new things and it became impossible to breathe normal. Some kind of soft, yet loud, music was playing over their moans and gasps. Names came out with every breath – "Alec!" "Magnus!" "Al-", Alec clutched at Magnus, his nails boring into his skin and Magnus collapsed on top of Alec, leaving small kisses all over Alec's skin for a moment.

"That thing is highly underrated," Magnus finally admitted, though Alec had already known from the look on his boyfriend's face through every thrust.

"So that was alright?" Alec grinned.

"That was beyond alright."