Jalec Week 2015

Day 5: Weddings.

"That sounds fake but ok." This is brOTP Jalec because I'm Malec trash.

"You can't marry her."

It sounded like a voice in his dream but it was too real and concrete and passionate to be his mind playing tricks on him.

So he opened his eyes, locking eyes with Jace.

"What are you doing in here?" Alec asked. 

"I'm stopping you from making the biggest mistake of your life."

Alec shook his head, rolling back over. He'd had this debate with himself for the last year. And now there was nothing he could do. He resigned to that fact weeks ago when he could no longer be a puppet in the affairs of his parents.

"Please let me sleep," Alec said, as Jace put a hand on his shoulder, pulling him back.

"No," Jace said. The blankets tore off Alec. The air at night was colder, an unexplainable fact.

"Jace--" Alec warned, sitting up. 

"I really thought you would have stopped it all by now," Jace said. "I thought you'd be smarter than this. But I can feel what you're feeling right now."

"No," Alec said. "You can't. You don't understand."

"I understand you don't love Lydia as much as you pretend to. I understand that you're confused. I understand that you're being forced. I understand that you will never be truly happy if you're with her."

"There are ways around that," Alec said. 

"You can't get around me," Jace said. "And if you march down that aisle tomorrow, I will object."

"You wouldn't--"

"I would," Jace said. 

"I can be happy with her--"

"That sounds fake but okay," Jace said, rolling his eyes. "It doesn't matter, Alec. You're not marrying her tomorrow. I've decided that. Now you get to decide how to end it."

"You're being a complete and utter--"

"I'm being your best friend!" Jace shouted. "I'm doing what's best for you! I know you think you have to try and stop me because you-- you're so delusional at this point that you don't even know what you really feel!"

"Watch yourself," Alec hissed.

"No," Jace challenged. "You're gay, Alec. I've seen it since the moment I met you. Which means you cannot be attracted to Lydia. Which means you are damning yourself by fooling that girl into thinking she loves you."

Alec was going to be sick. His stomach churned and twisted with pain. If Jace knew, who else knew? Who else was going to allow him to get married tomorrow, despite knowing his secret?

Jace was right but there was no politically correct way to jump out of a marriage the night before. If it were a sinking boat, Alec had decided to stay on board a long time ago. 

"Now," Jace sighed. "Am I going to object or are you going to tell Lydia?"

........

"I can't marry you."

Lydia crossed her arms, her eyes empty and full at the same time. Empty of any life, full of malice.

"Alexander Lightwood. . ." She shook her head. "You ass."

Alec turned his face away. He deserved this.

She stepped up to him, grabbing his chin and turning it back towards her.

"Tell me you don't mean that," Lydia begged.

"I can't."

"Why? Why are you doing this?"

"I can't-- I don't know how to explain it," Alec said.

Her eyes remained firm and demanding. He owed her answers.

"I'm gay," he said.

Then she slapped him.

Alec staggered away with the force of the blow.

"How could you lie to me? How could you lie to yourself? Did you really think you would be able to go the rest of your life with me? By the Angel, Alexander, you could have hurt so many people-- You have hurt them! Me first of all! And you! How could you deny yourself love? Because you were afraid of coming out? What were you so afraid of?"

"I could lose everyone. Everything," Alec said.

"Your family does not deserve you if they can't accept the fact that you're gay," she snapped. "I hate you so much right now. I hate people that lie to themselves. I told you that once. You knew that."

"I--"

"You don't get to speak!" Lydia shouted. It was nearly three in the morning and she was going to wake the entire Institute with her voice. 

Alec let his arms dangle at his side.

"Go find the man you're really in love with," Lydia said.

"How do you even know there's someone?" Alec countered.

"Because you had to be thinking of someone every time you kissed me."

.......

Alec knocked on Magnus' door. The front door to the apartment building had been left unlocked so he didn't have to buzz. 

Magnus would never have let him get this far.

The door flew open immediately.

"You'd be stupid to think that I don't have wards around this place letting me know when Nephilim are in the area," Magnus said. "What are you doing here? It's nearly 5 am."

Alec was frozen. Most of his planning had consisted on getting to this point. But he hadn't actually pictured this conversation.

It had been almost five years. What could you say?

Alec crossed the threshold. He had come this far-- ending the marriage, getting yelled at by Lydia, and sneaking out of the house-- and he was feeling pretty reckless.

He slid his hand behind Magnus' neck and rose on his toes just a little to kiss Magnus.

Magnus hesitated, stumbling back for just a moment for planting his feet on the floor and his hands on the small of Alec's back. 

This was what felt familiar-- not Lydia's fingers intertwined with his, not Jace telling him he was an idiot, not his parents telling him what to do. He felt made for Magnus. 

Alec caught Magnus' lower lip between his teeth, and Magnus let out a shuttering sigh, dragging Alec towards his room. Alec knew the steps and made them with his eyes closed, a smile playing on his lips. He was getting his life back and it wasn't blowing up in his face.

Magnus shut the door as he pushed Alec ahead of him.

"Wait," Magnus said, his voice barely a whisper. "Alexander, what are you doing here? You're getting married in just a few hours."

"The wedding is off," Alec said, finding Magnus in the dark. He put his hands on Magnus' chest, trying to appease him. "And how did you know about it?"

"I hear things," Magnus said. "And Isabelle sent me an invitation with 'You better object' written at the bottom."

"She-- Of course," Alec said, letting his forehead fall against Magnus' shoulder. "By the Angel, Magnus, I'm so sorry I wasted all that time. So so sorry."

Magnus would forgive him.