"Working sucks!" Izzy exclaimed as she got home. Simon heard the door close loudly behind her. "My feet hurt."
"Maybe don't wear heels on an eight hour shift," Simon suggested.
"But I like heels," Izzy whined.
"Clearly your feet don't," Simon chuckled.
"You don't get to smile like that, Mr. Unemployed," Izzy snapped.
"And who's idea was it for me to be unemployed, hmm?" Simon reminded her. "Besides you work, what, like one shift a week?"
"Sometimes two!" Izzy shot back, with a glare.
"Talk to me when you've worked a 40 hour week where you can't sit down for any of it," Simon said with a dismissive wave of his hand. Simon couldn't help but grin at the very annoyed sound his girlfriend made next. The 40 hour work weeks he'd had at Tim Hortans over the summers while in school weren't making him very sympathetic.
"I'm gonna take a bath!" Izzy grumbled, stomping off into the bathroom.
"Good idea," Simon called down the hall to her. "Great for sore muscles."
Izzy had been working part time for almost three months now, and it was becoming increasingly clear that she didn't care much for it. Her job hunting had been very much about the hunting, and very little about the results. Still he gave her points for sticking with it since she hardly needed the money. With Simon being unemployed on top of the fact that they didn't need her income was still a bit of a strange concept to Simon. Since quitting his job Simon was developing new sympathy for Magnus's plight while unemployed and engaged to Alec.
While unemployed, Simon had continued his search for a more career style job, but despite his best efforts he was still jobless. October had turned to November and still nothing. Actually he'd quit back in September, but thanks to his two weeks notice, and that vacation pay he hadn't used Simon was only now feeling the lack of paycheck.
Funnily enough Izzy actually empathized with him on this one. Simon could remember perfectly that moment when Izzy had seen that pay stub for her first paycheck from the clothing store job. That proud expression on her face had been crushed instantly as she read the dollar value all that time and energy was worth.
"That's it!" Izzy had exclaimed. "All that folding and helping and toadying and tidying and standing and stacking and smiling and not yelling, and for what!?"
"Welcome to minimum wage," Simon had told her calmly.
"Minimum my ass," Izzy had scoffed. "No one could live off this!"
He'd actually expected Izzy to quit right then, but to his surprise Izzy had kept up with her shifts. She really wasn't as much of a spoiled brat as she acted like a lot of the time. Simon felt sure this had something to do with her parents. Despite the Lightwoods paying rent, tuition and giving their kids credit cards that didn't ever need to be paid off, Robert and Maryse haven't spoiled their kids as much as you'd expect for such a rich family. In fact, given their actions with Alec recently, Simon suspected they'd put in place systems to teach their kids responsibility from the start.
Simon gave her a solid thirty minutes before getting up from his computer and walking down the hall. He knocked on the door and instantly got the reply 'occupied', but he ignored this and opened the door anyway.
"Hey!" Izzy's shrill voice exclaimed. Then she saw who it was. "Oh it's just you."
Simon rolled his eyes. "Who were you expecting?" he chuckled.
"We have roommates you know," Izzy reminded him. "You could at least announce your presence if you are gonna join me here."
"And miss that adorable startled expression on your face?" Simon replied, smiling cheekily at his girlfriend.
"This bath isn't big enough for the both of us you know," Izzy reminded him.
"I know," Simon said, moving over to perch on the edge of the tub near her feet. "Lift," he added pointing. Izzy obliged him, though she looked confused.
Simon placed her foot in his lap, before using his hands to put pressure on the soles of her feet in a repeating pattern. All the confusion melted from Izzy's face and she sighed. Simon loved seeing her so content, especially when it was his doing.
"You're the best," Izzy said, her body relaxed and her eyes closed. "That feels amazing."
"What are unemployed boyfriends for if not foot massages?" Simon laughed.
"You're hired," Izzy said. "My official foot massager for life."
For some reason her casual use of the phrase 'for life' felt strange to him. It wasn't like he hadn't thought about them as serious or anything, but the idea of knowing exactly what he wanted for the rest of his life felt like a daunting prospect.
"How long has it been now?" Izzy asked.
"How long has what been?" Simon replied, mostly focused on the soles of her feet and his idle thoughts.
"Since we've been officially a couple?" Izzy explained. "Or would you rather celebrate the anniversary of making out in an elevator?"
"I mean they were both important moments," Simon replied with a grin. But then he gave it some real thought, trying to count back the years. "I think this March will be four years since that elevator threw us together. And I broke my elbow," He paused to think, gazing off into the distance. "Like maybe a year and a bit later. I think around October." He turned his gaze back to his girlfriends face. "Which means we've been officially a couple for like two-ish years last month. Actually now that I think about it we've never celebrated an exact anniversary date, have we? The beginning for us was garbled and confusing wasn't it?" He smiled at her.
"Worth the mess though," Izzy grinned back. "And maybe it's time we picked an anniversary? I think becoming a couple is more worth celebrating than me attacking you in that elevator. Especially since it took us so long to get here."
"And whose fault was that?" Simon replied, raising his eyebrow.
"Oh hush," Izzy grumbled. "Anyway back to my original point. Even though last month marks us being a couple for two years, you still haven't confessed to me any of those nerd boy fantasies I'm sure all guys have." Simon couldn't help but laugh. "You know, like Princess Leia in a gold bikini or something. Could be fun!"
"Princess Leia is the best you can come up with, huh?" Simon sniggered, though secretly visualising Izzy in that very gold bikini she just mentioned.
"That's why I'm asking!" Izzy answered back.
Simon set her foot back down in the bath water before leaning down to kiss her sweetly. "You are my fantasy," he whispered.
"Yeah and a big help that is!" Izzy huffed. Simon just chuckled, as he leaned back and started on her other foot. He knew she would react like this since his answer was always the same, and so was her response. It was not the first time she'd asked him this question, nor did he suspect it would be the last.
Izzy grumbled under her breath but changed the topic. "Aline and Helen's wedding is coming up next month," Izzy said. "December 17th. Have you rented a tux yet?"
"Umm… no," Simon said. "Funny story about unemployment. It's like I have more time to do stuff… but I get less done. Not sure how but-"
"Well get on it," Izzy said. "I already have my dress, and I'm not showing up to my cousin's wedding with a guy in a t-shirt."
"You'd rather go alone?" Simon teased, already knowing the answer.
"I'd rather go with Simon in a tux," Izzy countered with an eye roll.
"And what exactly is me renting a tux worth to you, hmmm?" Simon replied in a seductive voice.
Izzy narrowed her eyes at him. "This bath ain't big enough for the both of us."
"Who said anything about the bath?" Simon replied easily. Touching her skin, even if it had been just her feet, and talking of fantasies had affected Simon. That, along with her being totally naked under the water, was about all he could take.
"I'm not walking down the hall naked," Izzy continued. "We have roommates, or didn't you get that the first time?"
"Who said anything about walking down the hall?" Simon purred.
Unbuttoning his now tight jeans, Simon next took off his shirt before moving from sitting on the edge of the tub by her feet to closer to her head. Next he let his hand move slowly into the water until it found something sensitive. As he stroked the skin of her hip, stomach, and breasts Izzy closed her eyes.
Taking off the rest of his clothes so as not to get them wet, Simon put his feet in the water to support his weight at a better angle to kiss her while still exploring her form with his hands. Izzy was almost moaning now. He could feel a flush on her skin, unrelated to the warm bath water.
"I love you," Simon whispered to her as he moved from kissing her mouth to kissing her neck.
Then suddenly it was his turn to gasp as Izzy's outstretched hand took hold of him. "Shower," Izzy said firmly.
The bathroom had a separate bath and shower, which was something Simon had only seen in apartments rented by Lightwoods, but he wasn't complaining. Together they stood up, and moved behind the glass panes of the shower. Izzy had her back to the wall and Simon leaned down to kiss her again, one hand supporting his weight while the other followed the curve of her hip, up her sides and finally cupped her breast.
Thanks to Izzy's hands following his lead, Simon's breathing was erratic now, same as hers. When she spread her legs a little as if trying to wrap them around his waist, Simon decided foreplay was over. Finding the right angle, Simon pushed in, lifting Izzy's legs right off the ground for a moment as he shoved them both against the wall.
"Faster," Izzy kept telling him and Simon obliged as best he could, though this particular position meant he had very little traction under foot. Thankfully the shower had one of those adhesive rubber mats; otherwise they would have fallen over long before now.
Izzy wrapped her legs completely around his hips and took control for a while, rolling her hips up and down until Simon felt her body tense and tighten around him. This was the end of his endurance as well and they finished together, both panting. Izzy slid off him and onto the shower floor. Simon turned on the water. They often showered together after sex, and today the commute was gonna be that much shorter.
"Did you wash your hair in the bath?" Simon asked her as the warm water started flowing.
"No," Izzy replied.
"Want me to?" Simon asked. Izzy nodded, smiling and Simon reached for the shampoo. Izzy's long dark hair was beautiful and there was something rather relaxing about running his hands through it.
"I love it when you wash my hair," Izzy sighed contentedly.
"Oh is that all?" Simon chuckled. "Because I was under the impression that you loved me."
For that comment he was playfully hit on the arm. "Of course, I love you, you idiot," Izzy snapped.
"Then why are you hitting me?" Simon asked innocently.
"Oh hush," Izzy complained. "You're ruining the moment."
"I rather thought I was improving it," he chuckled, but she didn't take the bait that time and they lapsed into silence as Simon finished massaging her scalp.
Simon didn't have nearly as much hair to wash, but she did return the favour with a scalp massage before they both rinsed off and got out. Simon always liked to get dressed right away after getting out of the shower, but Izzy never did. She had this one towel with velcro on it that was basically a dress and after a shower she'd lay on the bed with her laptop in nothing but the towel dress.
"You know," Izzy began as she got settled in her usual after shower spot. "If we didn't have roommates I could walk around the whole apartment like this, and no one would care."
"Yeah because it's the unemployed and the part timer who should be increasing their living costs," Simon chuckled.
"Sometimes I think you forget that Jordan and Maia only contribute grocery money to this place," Izzy stated. Simon blinked. He had forgotten. "Maia is saving and Jordan is part time like me. My parents pay the rent, the internet, and everything because I'm still in university."
"Okay so in a year we'll pay rent like normal people?" Simon replied.
Izzy just shrugged. "Maybe, but Alec is still getting help with his rent, at least since mom and dad uncut him off, though I think he is paying more now than before. I'm not totally sure."
Simon threw himself onto the bed face first. "I don't understand your world," he groaned.
"It's a good thing you're cute," Izzy giggled at him, making Simon feel like a trophy wife for all of five seconds.
"Hey Simon?" Izzy began, after a moment's pause. Her tone was so soft and gentle after all the teasing Simon wasn't really sure what to make of it.
"Yeah."
"Do you think that one day- I mean- do you think we'll ever... get married?" she asked.
The question caught Simon totally off guard, yet rationally he knew it wasn't unreasonable. Her brother was married. They were old enough now that no one would give them grief about it, and hadn't they just been talking about how many years it had been since they'd met? If someone had told him in that elevator that one day the force of nature that had just blown into his life like a tornado named Isabelle Lightwood would one day be looking shyly up at him expressing interest in promising to be his forever, Simon would never in a million years have believed them.
"I honestly don't know," Simon answered. "I've never really thought about it." He paused, trying to be as honest as he could. "I mean it feels strange to think that far ahead, doesn't it? We are great right now, but how can we know how we will feel in ten, twenty, or even thirty years?" He paused for a moment before adding. "I mean I don't even know what I'll be doing next year or next month, or heck even next week!"
"Yeah I guess," Izzy replied. Suddenly the shy expression melted away, and she was her usual wonderful slightly annoying self as she added, "You've spent time with Clary lately, right?" Simon nodded. "Has she been acting weird to you."
"Weird in what way?"
"Like she's only really there if you're looking at her," Izzy tried to explain. "Or something. I'm not really sure how to describe it."
"You mean how she seems like she's working hard to make sure everything thinks she's fine, but the moment no one is looking it's like she drops the effort?" Simon offered.
"Yeah that," Izzy agreed, looking relieved that he actually noticed the same thing.
"She's been like that for a while now," Simon sighed. "I really don't think there is anything anyone can do to help her though. I have offered to listen if she wants to talk, but she always smiles and says she's fine."
"She says the same thing to me."
"I am really glad you two are getting along so well these days," Simon smiled at her. "Remember when you used to get all jealous around her?"
Izzy laughed. "Yeah I remember." Her laughter died as she added, "Still, I hope she's actually okay and not just pretending."
"Me too," Simon agreed. "And if that's not possible I hope she will be okay again soon."
Look at me updating only a week apart! Woot! This is fun. Almost like the good old days but not quite. I hope you all enjoyed this Simon chapter. I know the last two chapters are kinda filler-y but after that heavy Magnus chapter we could all do with a break right? Besides it's been ages since we had any good Sizzy moments so they were due some. Sometimes that is literally how I plan chapters: I just figure out which pov hasn't been used for the longest time. ^_^
What did everyone think of Simon's reaction to Izzy's question?
(UPDATE: Back edited by CoffeeandLiterature)
Sneak Peek Chapter 178
"Whatever you are baking there smells good," Alec said. "I think I need comfort food." He reached forward but Paige snapped his wrisp to discourage him.
"These are for my boyfriend," Paige said firmly.
"Man ever since you met Jon your roommates have been getting so many less baked goods," Alec whined, but Paige just chuckled.
"You know you are an adult capable of acquiring your own chocolate scones," Paige reminded him.
"But the store bought ones don't taste as good as yours," Alec whined.
"I meant you could learn to bake," Paige laughed as she packed up her scones into a lined tin.
"Lucky Jon," Alec grumbled.
"Damn right!" Paige chuckled. "I'm a catch you know." She grinned at him as she carried her baked goodies away from Alec's salivating mouth.