Snowflake, the writer and the vet

Chapter 6 - Motel

"Magnus, thank you so much for helping me. Now I'm going to find a motel. Bye." He said dazedly, almost deliriously. With that, he left, visibly dizzy, his knees shaking, his eyes staring into forward.

Magnus called after him. "No way. You're not going anywhere in this state. Besides, It's almost 1 am. You're coming up with me. I have a guest room. We'll tend to your wounds. You need rest and care, not a motel."

'And I need some explaining,' Magnus thought to himself, but that can wait until tomorrow.

Alec looked at him, blinked a few times, not understanding why Magnus was being so nice to him, but secretly he was happy for caring, because he was feeling very desperate and alone right now.

"Thank you Magnus, I...I...I don't know what to say." Alec said shyly, staring at the ground. He dared not look at Magnus. Magnus stepped up to him, reached under his chin and gently lifted his head.

"Alexander, there's nothing to be ashamed of, or to be thankful for. Just come and let me help you. First, I need to take care of your bleeding hand. " he said softly.

Alec looked down at his hand, not even noticing the blood dripping from it. He was in such shock that he could barely feel the pain. "All right, thank you," Alec said quietly. He wanted nothing more than to rest. Suddenly he felt a leaden fatigue. He staggered, but Magnus caught him and helped him stay on his feet.

They went through the front door, just as the receptionist came back. He greeted them in surprise.

"Mr. Bane, can I help you with something? What happened? "

"No, Horace, thank you. But please make a note that I'll have a guest for a while. 

Mr. Bane. Who shall I register?" he asked.

"Mr. Alexander Lightwood." said Magnus

"Gideon." Alec said quietly. Magnus looked at him questioningly.

"Alexander Gideon Lightwood. That is my full name" said Alec

Magnus smiled. "Your name has a beautiful sound to it" said Magnus. Alec said nothing, just blushed.

"Horatio, then please write Alexander Gideon Lightwood. Thank you."

" All right, sir. Do you require any further assistance?" And he looked questioningly at Alec's hand, which thankfully was no longer bleeding, but looked pretty bad.

"No, thank you, we can handle it. Good night."

They walked to the lift and returned to Magnus' apartment. They were silent. Alec continued to stare in shock. Tears began to fill his eyes. When they got inside, Magnus walked Alec over to the couch and sat him down.

"Magnus, my clothes are dirty, I don't want to mess up the couch," Alec said quietly. "I feel dirty myself, my soul" he muttered to himself. Magnus' heart broke at this almost silent sentence.

"Alexander, first of all sit down, the couch is not important now. Secondly, you have the purest, most beautiful soul I have ever met. Please don't say such things about yourself." Magnus said softly.

Alec sat down. He couldn't concentrate, he was embarrassed, he didn't know how to handle Magnus' kindness. He wasn't used to being helped and being kind to him. He always had to be the strong one. He blinked a few times, then his eyes began to blur with tears again. He didn't want to cry, didn't want to look weak. He just didn't want to think about anything.

"Magnus, can we see Snowflake and the kittens?" asked Alec.

Magnus nodded, though he knew it was just a way of changing the subject, but he thought Alec's soul would feel better with the animals around. "Come, but we'll tend to your wounds afterwards," said Magnus gently.

They went to Snowflake's bed, the kittens and Snowflake sleeping peacefully. They had an exhausting day too.

"See, everything is fine. And now come on, you need to be fixed up too. I'll help you."

"Magnus, I don't need anything, I just need to wash off the blood and I'll be fine. I always treat my wounds alone, sometimes Izzy helps me. I can sleep on the couch. You've already done more than you should have."

"Always? " the word struck Magnus' ear. Alec closed his eyes again. He didn't answer. Magnus thought Alec was distracted enough not to ask questions for now. He saw that Alec was mentally on edge. He didn't want to burden him with questions, which by now had become a lot.

"Say no more. You're going to sit on the couch and let me treat you. I'll just get the first aid kit."

Alec smiled gratefully. He was very tired, in pain all over, and let Magnus take control. The care was very pleasant for him. He sat down on the couch, waiting for Magnus to come back. Magnus brought water, a wet cloth, a first aid kit and some clothes.

"Alexander, you can wear these pajamas if you want. I've never worn it, it was a present, but it's big on me."

"Thank you Magnus. Can I take it now? My clothes are really dirty, and I don't want to get anything dirty here."

Sure, there's the bathroom, go on, I'll make some tea. I think it would be good for both of us.